Yin Li certainly wasn’t going to mention her dream—so romantic and absurd. She laughed it off and brushed the whole thing aside.
The two of them chatted comfortably. Zhao Xiujie finished washing the dishes and stood by the kitchen watching them. He suddenly realized that the atmosphere between them was something he could hardly break into.
It was as if there was some mysterious barrier between them that no one else could penetrate.
And at that moment, Li Hanting looked up and met his gaze directly, without flinching.
Zhao Xiujie was startled. This man’s eyes were too straightforward, too sharp.
There was a barely noticeable trace of provocation in them, but when he looked more closely, they were perfectly calm.
Their eyes met and then parted.
Whether it was because of the miraculous water Li Hanting had brewed, Yin Li’s throat soon recovered completely.
In the following days, Aunt Li was away on a business trip. Her father worked night shifts in a row. Her stepbrother went to his job at the company, and Li Hanting was out driving his truck. Yin Li focused on her studies—her portable cassette player proved very useful.
At that time, foreign language education in the country wasn’t very systematic; most of it was centered around textbooks.
Zhao Xiujie told her that speaking was very important. Learning a language meant being able to use it, to communicate with others.
Yin Li thought that made a lot of sense, because when she heard Zhao Xiujie speak a foreign language, it sounded exactly like the radio broadcasts—even better, in fact!
So Yin Li never doubted the things in her dream. How could she not be drawn to someone so outstanding when she spent every day with him?
Yin Li filled her days with studying—memorizing vocabulary, learning grammar, repeating after recordings—and time passed quickly.
She thought her birthday would pass like that, but her father came home early, carrying bags full of things.
“Precious, don’t go to the library today. Dad will make you something delicious!” Yin Jianguo had worked several night shifts in a row to trade for time off, all so he could celebrate her birthday properly.
Of course Yin Li was thrilled. She walked over and said sweetly, “Dad, you’re so good to me~ I want to eat fish stewed with tofu~”
That was one of Yin Jianguo’s signature dishes. He rolled up his sleeves. “Alright, Dad will make it for you. I promise it’ll be so good your tongue falls off. There are a few things in that bag—go see if you can use them.”
At the mention of gifts, Yin Li cheered immediately. “Okay!”
She found a carefully wrapped package and first pulled out a small box. “It’s face cream! Dad, how did you know I ran out?”
“Silly vain girl. Don’t I know you?”
She had loved pretty things since she was little, but good skincare products weren’t so easy to find. Yin Jianguo hadn’t understood such things before, so he just bought what his daughter usually used, though he thought about finding even better ones.
Next, Yin Li opened another box, and her eyes curved into crescents. “Dad, these shoes are so beautiful!”
Inside the box was a pair of women’s leather shoes with a single strap. She had seen a pair just like them in a department store window before but had never mentioned them to her father because they were very expensive.
Her father still wore old cloth shoes himself.
“Try them on. See if they fit?” Yin Jianguo’s mood lifted seeing his daughter so happy.
As soon as Yin Li put them on, she felt like a grown-up. But with new shoes came thoughts of new dresses, new clothes, new hair ties…
Of course, she didn’t mention any of that to Yin Jianguo. She happily went over and hugged her father. “Thank you, Dad. You’re the best!”
“Alright, alright, go on now. Be careful or you’ll get your dress dirty.” Yin Jianguo was a little embarrassed. His daughter had grown up, and they hadn’t been this close in a long time.
Besides, fathers should keep a proper distance from grown daughters. Yin Jianguo was very mindful of such things.
Yin Li happily went off to pretty herself up. She looked at her hair. She had heard that girls in big cities were starting to get perms. She thought about getting one herself someday, but for now, she would just stick to her two plain braids.
The father and daughter were chatting happily when a knock came at the door.
“Sis, are you home? It’s Tianbao!” There seemed to be two or three people outside. Aside from one man’s loud voice, the other two were also murmuring about something.
Yin Li glanced at Yin Jianguo. Seeing him nod, she hurried over to open the door.
As soon as she opened it, she was hit by a wave of cigarette smoke mixed with the smell of sweat. The man wore a blue laborer’s jacket, his face reddened and darkened by wind and sun.
His eyes lit up when he saw Yin Li open the door, but the woman behind him promptly gave him a sharp pinch.
“Oh, you’re my brother-in-law’s daughter, right? I’m your uncle.” The man grinned, striding into the house as if it were his own.
Besides Li Tianbao and his wife, a girl with her head lowered followed behind. Pressing her lips together in silence, she walked inside.
A strong, unpleasant odor of smoke immediately filled the room.
Neither Yin Jianguo nor Zhao Xiujie smoked. Cigarettes were expensive. But Li Tianbao smoked—homemade dry tobacco, year in and year out. Combined with the sweat on his body, the smell was quite foul.
Yin Jianguo set down what he was doing and came over. “Have a seat. I’m just about to cook—we’ll eat together in a bit.”
Yin Jianguo wasn’t happy about it. His daughter’s birthday was being disrupted. But he couldn’t very well ignore his brother-in-law’s family.
Meanwhile, Yin Li brewed some tea and brought it over. “Uncle, Aunt, Sister, please have some tea.”
She had learned these social skills from Li Wenyue. Before, whenever she met Aunt Li’s relatives, she would cower and avoid them, not wanting to speak.
But Li Wenyue carried herself with poise and could handle anyone with ease. Yin Li wanted to become that kind of person, so she took this opportunity to practice.
“Brother-in-law, your daughter is really well-mannered.”
Li Tianbao’s eyes darted around the room as soon as he entered. Ignoring the scalding tea, he downed it in two or three gulps. It was his wife, Yu Meifeng, who spoke instead.
Yu Meifeng wasn’t bad-looking, but farm work had left her skin rough, giving her a somewhat worn appearance.
She spoke in a very simple, honest manner, but her eyes were fixed intently on Yin Jianguo.
No matter the occasion, Yin Jianguo liked to keep himself neat and clean. Compared to Li Tianbao standing beside him, he looked practically like a celestial being.
In the kitchen, Yin Jianguo chopped vegetables with a rhythmic thumping sound. He replied with a smile, “Yes, the child is growing up. She knows how to help her parents share the burden.”
“How wonderful. Unlike our Xiao He—she’s so awkward and shy.”
The girl being spoken of, Li Xiaohe, pressed her lips together and lowered her head, as if used to this kind of talk.
Putting down one’s own child in front of others and pointing out their flaws was standard practice for many parents back then.
Although Yin Jianguo had never done such a thing, Yin Li still felt bad for her introverted cousin. It must hurt.
Also, she wanted to build good relationships with her stepmother’s relatives. So she quickly came over and took Li Xiaohe’s hand. “Uncle, Aunt, why don’t I take Cousin Xiaohe to my room for a while?”
“Good, good, good,” Yu Meifeng agreed readily.
“They’re both good children,” Yin Jianguo added, trying to smooth things over. He actually didn’t like it when people belittled their own children, but he never knew how to respond. If you want to discipline your child, do it at home.
Only after entering Yin Li’s small room did Li Xiaohe finally look up.