If it had only been three hundred words, she could have quickly finished it and handed it in, so Ren Chaomei would have done it immediately.
But three thousand words made her feel like she could spend an entire day at the police station, so Ren Chaomei wasn’t in any hurry anymore. Holding the pen, she had only written two lines before she couldn’t resist finding someone to talk to.
“Uncle Wang, where’s Ye Changqing? Has he left?”
The interrogation was already over, so Uncle Wang no longer put on a stern act. With an exasperated look, he said, “He left. He had something to take care of. You insisted on dating him, so how could he possibly agree? You’re a young woman. Can’t you be a little more reserved?”
“Why did he have to leave?” Ren Chaomei looked dejected.
She hadn’t even managed to delay things for very long. She didn’t know whether Ren Ganying and the others were still waiting at the park. What if this blind date hadn’t been ruined? Wouldn’t all her effort have been for nothing?
“Uncle Wang, I think I dropped something. What if someone else picked it up? I want to go back and look for it. Can I come back and finish my self-criticism after I find it?”
“Don’t try any of that nonsense with me. Finish your self-criticism and I’ll let you go.”
Uncle Wang refused without mercy. How could he not know exactly what this little girl was plotting?
Her attempt to bargain had failed.
Ren Chaomei sat quietly for a few minutes, angrily writing a few dozen words before she couldn’t resist asking curiously, “Ye Changqing said he’s sick. What illness does he have?”
“A heart condition,” Uncle Wang added. “He had an attack when his father died. He fainted and was taken to the hospital. He also had another attack at his factory last year.”
“Does his mother have a heart condition too?”
Uncle Wang hadn’t expected Ren Chaomei to know so much, but he casually answered, “His mother doesn’t. She has some mental issues. Apparently, she keeps wiping the same table over and over again all day.”
Ren Chaomei nodded knowingly.
She no longer remembered the details about Ren Ganying’s first boyfriend in the novel. She only remembered that the man had a short life, and although his family was difficult to deal with, Ren Ganying eventually managed to bring them under control before happily remarrying.
If things didn’t go well today and she failed to ruin this blind date, she would have to keep playing the troublemaker afterward.
So Ren Chaomei asked, “Which work unit does Ye Changqing work for? Where does he live?”
“You still haven’t given up?” Uncle Wang was shocked.
Was the power of male beauty really that strong? Even all that hadn’t scared Ren Chaomei away?
Ren Chaomei pretended not to understand. She scratched her cheek and lowered her head, pretending to concentrate on writing her self-criticism.
When she stopped talking, Uncle Wang couldn’t help asking, “Girl, are things not very good for you back in the countryside?”
Because her parents had both died, perhaps she had already suffered a lot, which was why she wasn’t afraid of continuing to suffer after getting married.
The Ye family’s circumstances had already been made very clear, yet Ren Chaomei still wanted to charge ahead.
“Things weren’t very good before. But I’ve grown up now. Things will get better from here on.”
Hearing that, Uncle Wang tapped his fingers against the table thoughtfully for two seconds before answering her earlier question.
“He works at Xinglin Machinery Factory. He lives on Happiness Street. Go into the alley, and he’s the third house.”
A little while later, Uncle Wang cleared his throat.
“Didn’t you say you dropped something? Go look for it. Just bring me the rest of your self-criticism later.”
The moment Uncle Wang gave her permission, Ren Chaomei didn’t hesitate. She dropped the paper and pen in her hands and walked out.
“Thank you, Uncle Wang! I’ll go first. I’ll come back later.”
The moment she finished speaking, she had already disappeared.
Looking at her retreating figure, Uncle Wang couldn’t help touching his own old face and secretly thinking: Actually, I was quite handsome when I was young too.
But there was no denying that Ye Changqing had been a little more handsome than him back then.
One was handsome but not greedy for money; the other had a face that could carry him anywhere. They were quite a good match.
As the police officer stationed in this area, Uncle Wang could be considered an elder who had watched Ye Changqing grow up. Since he thought they were suitable for each other, he couldn’t help quietly trying to play matchmaker.
To many people of the older generation, seeing suitable men and women remain single was simply unbearable.
Whether they were good or bad, they had to get married. If they didn’t, it was as if the sky itself were going to fall.
After leaving the police station, Ren Chaomei hesitated over whether to go to the park or secretly observe Ye Changqing and his family.
After estimating the time, she decided to go to Ye Changqing’s home on Happiness Street and see what the situation was like.
This was still a society where everyone knew everyone else, and population mobility was very low.
As soon as a stranger like Ren Chaomei appeared, an auntie immediately came over to ask.
“Young lady, who are you looking for?”
Ren Chaomei sighed and honestly answered, “I’m looking for Ye Changqing.”
She had just come out of the police station, and she was genuinely afraid this auntie might mistake her for a suspicious person and drag her back there.
“Changqing~ Someone’s looking for you.”
The auntie didn’t even move from her spot. She simply lifted her head and started calling out.
Ye Changqing came out of his own courtyard. When he saw Ren Chaomei, he was stunned for a moment.
“Have you finished your three-thousand-word self-criticism?”
“No.”
Ren Chaomei jogged toward him, then craned her neck to look into his home.
“Do you have guests?”
“What are you doing?”
Ye Changqing stepped sideways, blocking Ren Chaomei’s view.
He could block the person in front of him, but he couldn’t block the person behind him. His mother, Zhang Shujun, came rushing out from behind him with a delighted expression.
“Changqing, is this your friend?”
“Since she’s already here, how can you make her stand outside talking? Come, come, come in and sit down.”
Zhang Shujun enthusiastically grabbed Ren Chaomei by the wrist and pulled her inside.
See? I got in, didn’t I?
Ren Chaomei turned her head and gave Ye Changqing a cheeky grin.
It can’t be helped. Auntie is just too enthusiastic.
The Ye family lived in a large shared courtyard. Once they entered through the main gate, there were several different households inside.
Ren Chaomei looked around. “Auntie, which room is your—”
Before she could finish her small talk, she saw that the auntie who had just enthusiastically held her hand was now frantically washing her hands under the faucet.
Ren Chaomei was dumbfounded.
She raised her hand and looked at it. Her hands weren’t dirty at all. Although she had come straight from the countryside that day, there wasn’t even any mud on them.
But remembering what Uncle Wang had said about Ye Changqing’s mother being ill, Ren Chaomei didn’t take it personally.
The faucets in the city really were more convenient than fetching water in the countryside.
Since things had already come this far, Ren Chaomei walked over to the sink as well.
“Auntie, don’t turn off the water yet. I want to wash my hands too.”
Zhang Shujun knew that washing her hands at a time like this wasn’t appropriate, but she had tried to endure it just now and simply couldn’t. If she didn’t wash her hands, she felt unbearably uncomfortable, as though something were crawling all over her body.
“I’m sorry, child. I really couldn’t help myself. It’s all because of me. Changqing hasn’t brought any friends home to play for so many years.”
After looking around and confirming that Wang Xiaoqin and the others weren’t there, Ren Chaomei had been preparing to leave after washing her hands.
But after hearing Zhang Shujun say that, she suddenly felt bad about leaving.
If she left now, Zhang Shujun would definitely think that her behavior had been impolite and that she had driven away her son’s guest, making her feel even more guilty.
Ren Chaomei quickly comforted her.
“It’s just washing your hands. I like washing my hands too.”
After their trip to the police station, Ye Changqing already knew all of Ren Chaomei’s basic information, including where she lived, so he wasn’t nearly as guarded around her anymore.
Seeing Ren Chaomei washing her hands at the faucet, he said nothing, silently accepting the fact that she had come to his home as a guest.