Five years of marriage, always separated [1970s]

Geng Zhiqin sneered: "There is no way the mayor's daughter would marry your son."

Yu Wentao was choked and speechless.

Ye Fan suddenly understood something: "You are wrong."

Geng Zhiqin was so busy arguing with her mother that she didn't notice her sister-in-law and didn't understand: "Wrong?"

Ye Fan: "The daughter of the mayor of the capital city, Lai Fu, is out of my reach for the time being, but the daughter of the mayor of Jin or Hangzhou is not necessarily the case."

"What did my sister-in-law say?" Geng Zhiqin was speechless.

Ye Fan was sure that she still felt that marrying Sun Laifu was unfair. Wasn't it explained clearly before? If there was such a reason, then she would have to say: "It was Chang Guangrong who took the initiative to bring up the matter between you and Laifu, but don't think that whoever brought up the matter first is rushing to curry favor with the other party."

Geng Zhiqin opened his mouth and sighed again, with an expression that said "I really don't want to pay attention to you", and said helplessly: "Sister-in-law, Sun Laifu is not Chang Laifu."

Does this mean that she is marrying down? So she has been unwilling not only because Sun Laifu was not her partner.
He is over 30 years old and still can't see through it! Ye Fan really didn't expect it, so he stopped being polite: "He is Chang Guangrong's younger brother, his parents are still alive, his father has not retired yet, he is a master's degree holder, and there is an old doctor who takes care of him personally. The lowest blind date is the daughter of the municipal party secretary, it's not your turn!"

It was Saturday night, and Geng Huihui was also at home. She couldn't help but exclaimed, "No way?"

Ye Fan glanced at his sister-in-law who was full of suspicion: "It seems that you really don't understand the blind date market. Dabao, Sen Sen, come here and listen!"

The two brothers dragged Erbao into the house and listened carefully.

Ye Fan: "Looks or height are not rare, but looks and height together are rare. People with looks, height, education and ability are rare. None of my dozen employees have such a complete set. Good temper, clean family background, no bad habits, a rich and powerful brother-in-law, and brothers and sisters are honest and don't cause trouble. Such people are rare in a hundred thousand!"

Geng Huihui covered her mouth in disbelief.

Ye Fan said, "Huihui, your classmates in college and graduate school must be at least 20 or 30, if not 50 or 60. Do you think they are so complete?"

Geng Huihui thought about it carefully. Some of them were tall but not good-looking, while others were good-looking but didn't have a brother-in-law like Chang Guangrong. There were a few who were decent in height but very aloof, and Geng Huihui didn't even bother to talk to them.

Geng Huihui thought about her high school classmates again. Some of them were good-looking and good at studying, but they had a bad temper. Their family background was not as good as that of their aunt and uncle, but their temper was worse than that of Dabao.

Geng Huihui shook her head: "Sun Laifu has absolutely no flaws."

Ye Fan: "No, he is not yet a graduate. His parents are from the countryside and have no pension. He has no house and his elder brother and sister need him to take care of them. These are all disadvantages. In two years, his elder brother and sister will settle down in the capital. His salary will increase and he will have his own house. He is not a young boy anymore. He is mature and steady. The daughter of the mayor of the capital will like him, and the mayor will agree to this marriage for the sake of the Chang family."

"Sister-in-law, you are exaggerating more and more." Geng Zhiqin said this, but he felt very nervous.

Ye Fan could hear the hesitation in her words, which was not as firm as when she mocked her mother just now. He could not help but sneer: "Exaggeration? If you break up with Sun Laifu today, I will call Cheng Zhenhua tomorrow and introduce him to the daughter of the city leader. She will thank me and Cheng Zhenhua!"

Geng Huihui couldn't help but ask: "Aunt, is it true?"

Ye Fan nodded: "In the future, if someone introduces you to someone and says he is the son of a professor, don't think you are not worthy of him."

Although Geng Huihui had no plans to date for the time being, she also wanted to know if she was in a good market: "Aunt, tell me more."

Ye Fan: "A professor's son is also fine, but he must have the same education as you, have his own house, and be of good looks, height, and temper."

Geng Zhiqin couldn't help but ask: "Why don't you find the mayor's daughter or Huihui for this kind of thing?"

Ye Fan: "Do you think she is not as good as the mayor's daughter? The secretary is polite to your second brother, and the mayor has to be polite in front of the secretary."

Geng Huihui asked hurriedly: "Is my father so powerful?"

"Your father said he was a fitter. Do you really think he was a fitter?" Ye Fan rolled his eyes at her. "Maybe the principal of your school wouldn't dare to call him Old Geng when he sees him. Geng Zhiqin, where's your father?"

Geng Zhiqin couldn't answer.

Yu Wentao didn't expect that she would still despise Sun Laifu's family background even though they were about to get married. She said unhappily, "If you don't live with your third brother and his wife, you only have a mother who sings opera. Do you think you are a rich girl? The eldest rich girl in our family is Huihui, and the youngest rich girl is Erbao!"

Ye Fan: "Xiao Qin, don't think I'm being harsh. Chang Guangrong doesn't like you after we separated. Don't think you have a high education. But you are old. People don't plan to be DINKs, and they will consider having children when looking for a partner. In two years, you will be an elderly mother, and if you are not careful, you will die. Many families can't afford the risk."

Huihui agreed with this: "Aunt, I am ten years younger than you. You are Sun Laifu. Should I find someone who is four years older than you or six years younger than you?"

Geng Zhiqin hesitated for a moment: "...It's too vulgar to only look for someone younger."

Ye Fan: "If you are not vulgar, why don't you find someone who is not good-looking?"

"I——" Geng Zhiqin was unable to refute.

Ye Fan: "It's not like you can't marry someone younger than you. Why not find someone who's worthy of you? Geng Zhiqin, I'm warning you. If we divorce because of your problem, we will help Sun Laifu find another partner. As for you, take care of yourself!"

Geng Zhiqin looked at her mother, and Yu Wentao didn't wait for her to speak: "I told your sister-in-law that if you let her down, we will be responsible for finding her a good one!"

"You - are unreasonable!" Geng Zhiqin was so angry that he went out without even having dinner.

Hui Hui wanted to go to the back to check on her but was stopped by Yu Wentao: "It's all because of me that she got so mad. She doesn't know how high the sky is or how deep the earth is!"

The next day, Geng Zhiqin returned to the front yard to eat, but no one paid any attention to her.

Two days later, Sun Lai Fu was on vacation and Geng Zhiqin took a leave of absence. The two tried on wedding dresses and suits and went back to Ye Fan's house for lunch. Geng Zhiqin didn't say much and seemed to be in a bad mood. She didn't dare to turn her face away from Sun Lai Fu in front of her sister-in-law and her mother.

Geng Zhiqin went to the kitchen to wash the pots and dishes. Yu Wentao told Sun Laifu, "If Xiaoqin bullies you in the future, just tell me and I will punish her. Don't spoil her. She has been spoiled by me and her father."

Ye Fan's house was small, so even if she made a loud noise in the main room, she could hear it clearly in the kitchen. Geng Zhiqin was sure her mother was not trying to scare her, so she finally stopped talking.

As for whether he would return to his old ways, Ye Fan had no idea, but she had made it clear that if Geng Zhiqin did that again, he would never be allowed to enter her house. Yu Wentao also agreed.

—

By the way, Erbao was outside when Sun Laifu was given the money. Erbao didn’t know about the money: “Shouldn’t Laifu pay for the wedding dress?”

Ye Fan: "This is what your aunt thinks. Your grandmother thinks your aunt is not satisfied, and she is afraid that she will not pay when the time comes, so she asks her to take out the money, and your grandmother gives the money to Lai Fu."

Erbao said: "Laifu's temper will be returned to my aunt."

Ye Fan: "That's their business. Lai Fu just needs to know that it wasn't your grandmother, your mother-in-law, who instigated it."

Erbao sighed, "This is the first time I've seen my mother-in-law clear herself so cleanly."

Yu Wentao came in from outside: "It's because your aunt is ignorant. I don't want to help her clean up the mess."

Erbao hugged her and said, "Grandma, don't be angry. Don't be angry. My aunt is immature, but we are sensible."

Yu Wentao: "Your aunt is sensible at your age. I don't know what happened, but she doesn't even know her last name after secretly dating someone."

Ye Fan: "Don't say Liu Ning has led her astray. Liu Ning knows what kind of people his parents are like, so he should be careful when looking for a partner."

Erbao knows Liu Ning's story well: "Grandma, Xiao Ming said Liu Ning's wife is amazing, but actually they have a very good relationship. I've seen them several times, eating together. I was embarrassed to see Liu Ning with her wife a few times."

Ye Fan: "Is Liu Ning's wife also a teacher at your school?"

Erbao nodded: "A junior high school teacher, the school doesn't seem to trust her to teach the high school. Maybe her alma mater is an ordinary university, and the school is worried that the high school parents will know and make a fuss. Oh, and it was his wife who pursued him. In fact, there are several female teachers in our school who pursued Liu Ning. Classmates also said that Liu Ning was blind to find a girl from the countryside. If I didn't know that Sister Liu Ning is of the same character as Wang Aihe, I would think so too."

Ye Fan pulled Erbao over and said, "Don't bother your grandma."

Erbao: "Grandma, my aunt was scolded by you and mom that day. She will never look down on Lai Fu again."

When Ye Fan saw Geng Huihui, he suddenly remembered something: "Huihui, which school is your junior sister teaching at now?"

Geng Huihui: "Introduce her to Uncle Hongwei? No, it's not appropriate for one to be in West City and the other in East City. I asked her and she also thought it was a pity. I'll ask other people when I go back to school tomorrow. Isn't Uncle Hongwei only 24?"

Ye Fan nodded.

"That's not bad. The junior sisters graduating this year are almost all 22 or 23 years old. The junior sisters graduating next year are also 21 or 22 years old this year." Geng Huihui said, "They are about the same age, so we can meet next year."

Ye Fan: "You should ask earlier. If she is willing to meet you, ask her and you to be bridesmaids for your aunt, and ask Lei Lei and Hongwei to be best men for Lai Fu."

Geng Huihui said quickly, "We can't ask Leilei to go over. It would be so embarrassing if Junior Sister doesn't like Hongwei and Uncle likes Leilei instead."

Erbao: "Mom, let my brother be the best man."

Ye Fan smiled and nodded: "That's fine. When your brother puts on an adult suit, he looks like a teenage high school student. People will look down on him."

Yu Wentao asked Ye Fan to write the wedding invitations, and she and Ye Fan would deliver them together some other day, which would be a good opportunity for Ye Fan to get to know the guests.

Ye Fan called Dabao in to write the wedding invitation.

Dabao muttered as he wrote: "It's really troublesome for my aunt to get married. Erbao, don't be like my aunt in the future."

Erbao: "I'm not a girl who has nothing but romantic thoughts in her mind and wants to find a leading man in a Qiong Yao drama."

Ye Fan was stunned for a moment: "Erbao, what did you say?"

Erbao was confused by the question, but after thinking about it, he suddenly realized: "Mom, my aunt didn't really want to marry Laifu. Besides thinking that Laifu was not worthy of her, she must have also thought that he was not romantic."

Yu Wentao: "Can romance be eaten? When I was young, people would invite me to the movies every day. If I had gotten married, your uncle would still be single."

"My aunt used to love writing. She even submitted her manuscripts to a publishing house. She has a lot of ideas. Besides, she has never suffered any hardship." Erbao said, "Like me, I have been selling couplets with my brother since I was a child. I know best that love is not important."

Ye Fan patted his daughter's head and said, "You can pursue love. Mom will protect you."

Erbao shook his head: "I won't marry if it's only for love. Mom can support me, but you can't use our family's money to support others."

Geng Huihui nodded.

Ye Fan: "If you two are like this, it will be hard to find a partner in the future. No one is perfect."

Erbao said: "I will be prudent and won't learn from my aunt."

Geng Huihui said: "My uncle may be worried that I will fall in love too early, so he reminded me a long time ago that you should pay attention to what others do instead of what they say. I think that's what he meant. I can't remember it clearly after so many years."

Ye Fan looked at his son and nephew.

Dabao: "If you want to be a mother-in-law, you have to wait at least fourteen years. Because I plan to look for one in thirteen years, when I'm thirty."

Ye Fanxin said, plans cannot keep up with changes, so it’s useless even if you have made plans.

"Stop talking! Hurry up and write the invitations."

The next morning, Ye Fan and her mother-in-law took the bus to deliver invitations all over the city. Although they were all over the city, there were actually only about ten families. The next morning, Ye Fan followed her to Yujia Village.

The invitations sent by Geng Zhiqin were combined with those sent by Ye Fan. Ye Fan counted the number of people and collected money from the neighbors on both sides of the alley and the Zhang family. Han Dawei asked Geng Zhiqin when he would get married, but Ye Fan didn't say a specific time.

Han Dawei saw her like this and knew that Ye Fan didn't plan to invite him. In fact, he also guessed that after all, the one who was going to get married was her sister-in-law, not her children. In Yujia Village, except for the two uncles' families, each cousin's family only gave one invitation. Yu Wentao's cousins ​​were not invited. Yu Wentao didn't plan to associate with them.

Ye Fan counted the number of people and gave it to Chang Guangrong. Chang Guangrong counted the number of tables he had ordered and found that there were two extra tables. Chang Guangrong asked Ye Fan, "If there are two tables left, should I call my childhood friends and the people who bought from you wholesale?"

Ye Fan: "I didn't count the children. If they don't have classes on Sundays, they will definitely want to go. If there are too many people, I will send Erbao, Huihui, Leilei and Sensen back home."

Chang Guangrong heard this and said, "Forget it. If you invite people to dinner at a wedding, they will be forced to eat even if they don't want to pay for it. If they can't finish the food, we can pack it up so that they don't spend money."

As expected, on October 5, Zhang Xiaoming's stepdaughter wanted to go, and several children from the next-door neighbor's house also wanted to go. The neighbor's uncle's daughter-in-law didn't want the children to go. Ye Fan came out and said, "Go ahead. If there's no seat, I'll sit in your arms."

Dabao pointed at the little kid and said, "Ask him to sit in your arms."

The neighbor's daughter-in-law also wanted her child to have a good meal, so she took the child along after hearing this.

Chang Guangrong asked someone to get a car, and he personally served as the driver to pick up Geng Zhiqin from Ye Fan's house. Geng Huihui saw the car and ran back to the main room to whisper in her aunt's ear: "If you marry someone else, you will have to ride a bicycle." Before her aunt could speak, she said: "I know you are noble, and you would rather ride a bicycle than a jeep. In my opinion, you want both this and that, and you don't dare to fight for it."

Geng Zhiqin glared at her: "Are you done?"

Geng Huihui nodded: "But I still want to say congratulations. Congratulations to grandma for not having to worry about you."

Geng Zhiqin was so angry that he cried.

Aunt Li and others came in to watch the fun, and when they saw her situation, they advised her not to cry during such a happy occasion.

Geng Huihui curled her lips and smiled, "He has hidden his merits and fame."

Before the National Day holiday, Geng Huihui called her junior sister who had already graduated and asked her if she wanted to be a bridesmaid. Her school was good, and she didn't need to use connections to get into a high school near Yu Hongwei's junior high school.

Yu Hongwei has a high school that is as strong as her junior sister's high school. The junior sister thinks it's not worth the hassle, but she also wants to see what Yu Hongwei looks like before being a bridesmaid.

Geng Huihui found another junior sister who was transferred to Dongcheng.

When Ye Fan heard about this, he scolded her for making trouble, but he was not afraid that the two girls would quarrel at the wedding banquet.

Geng Huihui did it on purpose.

Although Yu Wentao didn't care recently, she looked very tired. Now there is a breakfast vendor at the entrance of the alley. Yu Wentao doesn't have to walk far to buy breakfast, Erbao can go there, she should be relaxed.

When Geng Huihui thought that there was only one troublemaker in the family, she felt sorry for her grandmother and annoyed with her aunt.

However, when the two bridesmaids arrived at the hotel, they both fell in love with Geng Leilei. Taking advantage of the fact that Geng Huihui was alone, the two of them approached Geng Huihui and asked her if Geng Leilei was her relative.

Geng Huihui estimated the conditions of the two people and said apologetically, "No! He wants to find someone who is of equal status."

The two junior sisters didn't give up and asked: "For example?"

Geng Huihui: "The daughter of a university professor or a teacher, or the daughter of our mayor."

The parents of the two junior sisters are ordinary workers. They were able to get into college by themselves. Except for their academic qualifications, their own conditions were not outstanding. At this moment, Geng Huihui finally understood why her aunt thought that she was qualified to have a blind date with the mayor's son. Her comprehensive conditions were indeed much higher than those of the two junior sisters.

But the two junior sisters did not give up and looked for opportunities to talk to Geng Leilei. Geng Leilei was not as smooth as Geng Sensen. In Geng Sensen's words, his brother was just a nerd who didn't care about the world.

The two of them glanced at the blind man.

After seeing these scenes, Geng Huihui realized why her junior sister was not attracted to Sun Laifu before, because Sun Laifu was from another place and, like her aunt, she did not think highly of him.

Geng Huihui thought of this and looked at her aunt. She saw that her aunt was not smiling forcefully and kept looking at her junior sister, as if she was on guard against her. She immediately reported to her aunt, "You scolded her and woke her up."

Ye Fan: "I finally realized that she is an old maid and doesn't have much advantage over your junior sister."

Geng Huihui: "Can I have dinner with you?"

Ye Fan nodded.

Geng Huihui brought her tableware over. Sun Laifu and Geng Zhiqin came to toast, and Geng Huihui deliberately asked: "I haven't drunk yet. I'm also a guest, do you look down on me?"

Sun Laifu wanted to smooth things over, but when he saw Geng Huihui staring at Geng Zhiqin, he dared not intervene. Geng Zhiqin stared at him and asked, "Are you deliberately making things difficult for me? I loved you in vain!"

Geng Huihui: "I'm not doing this for your own good? Aunt, you can't think like that."

Geng Zhiqin was so angry that he pulled Sun Laifu to the next table.

Geng Huihui muttered, "I think I'm a child."

Ye Fan reminded: "It's almost done."

After the wedding banquet, Geng Zhiqin went back to the bridal chamber and started crying. She didn't dare to say that she had looked down on Sun Laifu and upset the whole family. Sun Laifu asked her what was wrong, and she said that she was angry with Geng Huihui.

The next day after the wedding, they went to Chang's house because Sun Laifu's parents were at Chang Guangrong's house. On the third day, Geng Zhiqin was about to leave after lunch at Ye Fan's house. Sun Laifu felt embarrassed.

Ye Fan deliberately said that Xiao Qin wanted to be alone with him, so Sun Lai Fu and Geng Zhiqin went back.

After the two of them walked away, Yu Wentao said, "You're still mad at us."

Ye Fan: "At the beginning, she could eat whatever she wanted and buy whatever she wanted. It was comfortable and free, so she definitely thought that a small family was good. But when her salary was gone at the end of the month, she became obedient."

Ye Fan bought steamed buns and sometimes breakfast. She also asked Zhang Xiaoming to drive the rice, flour and coal briquettes. She also bought daily necessities. She gave her mother-in-law 50 yuan every month.

Geng Zhiqin had to buy everything for her when she got married. She had to buy all kinds of things in the first month, and it took more than two months' salary to cover the expenses.

Yu Wentao: "What if I want to save face but suffer in life?"

Ye Fan: "Can't you ask your son-in-law when he's on vacation to come over for dinner? Will your son-in-law come over without inviting your daughter?"

Sure enough, in mid-November, Sun Laifu took a weekend break and came over, and Geng Zhiqin also came.

Geng Huihui knew that her grandmother was worried about her aunt and hoped that her aunt would come back more often, so she did not deliberately anger her this time. When her aunt was in the main room, she would go to the kitchen to help cook. When her aunt went to the kitchen to wash the pot, she would go to Erbao's room.

Erbao asked: "Why aren't you and my aunt talking yet?"

"She ignored me." Geng Huihui said, "I did that because she was stubborn and I didn't want her to keep being stubborn. I didn't want to pay attention to her because she was so ungrateful. You know, I told grandma and my aunt about everything she said to me before. How could she cut off contact with me?"

Erbao: "Will you tell my mom what I told you?"

"Do you have a secret?"

Erbao had no secrets, and there was nothing that her mother couldn't know, so she changed the subject: "Who did you introduce to Uncle Hongwei?"

"I don't want to talk about this." Huihui was annoyed when she mentioned this. Fortunately, she had mentioned it to her aunt secretly. Fortunately, she didn't tell Yu Hongwei, otherwise it would be so embarrassing.

Erbao: "Find Uncle Hongwei someone who works in a bank. Or a nurse. They are just conceited because they graduated from technical secondary schools and don't have the same education as my aunt and your junior sister."

"My junior sister is also down-to-earth." Geng Huihui said as she went to the main room. When she got there, she asked, "Uncle Laifu, do you have any nurses in your unit who are in their early twenties and don't have a partner?"

Geng Zhiqin heard this in the kitchen and asked her mother, "What does your granddaughter want to do now?"

"It's impossible for Lai Fu to have a child." Yu Wentao was annoyed by her and her tone was not pleasant. As soon as she finished speaking, Sun Lai Fu asked, "Is there something wrong?"

Geng Huihui nodded: "Find a partner for Uncle Hongwei."

"Cousin Hongwei?"

Geng Huihui: "Yes, the one who is your best man."

"He is far away from the hospital in Dongcheng, so it's not suitable." Sun Laifu said.

Geng Huihui forgot this: "Yes." Suddenly she thought of someone: "Third Aunt!"

Ye Fan had a headache: "Keep your voice down."

"Third uncle's uncle——"

Ye Fan planned: "He is also your father's uncle."

"I forgot, I forgot, there are too many uncles." Geng Huihui said, "Isn't my uncle in Dongcheng? It shouldn't be far from Uncle Hongwei's school, right? Ask your aunt to ask."

Ye Fan looked at the sky, it was still early before dark: "Come with me to your aunt's house?"

Geng Huihui is looking for a scarf and a hat.

Erbao ran out: "And me!"

Ye Fan: "Geng Dabao, come out and play with your sister."

Erbao grabbed Ye Fan's arm and refused to let go: "I want to play with Mommy."

"I don't want to play with you!" Ye Fan took her hand away. Dabao dragged Erbao to the main room and pointed at his sister, "Stay still."

Erbao muttered, "Mom is partial to me and doesn't love me."

Dabao: "Erbao, you are fourteen years old, not four. There is no point in complaining like this."

Huihui went to the door and waved at Erbao, who was so angry that he raised his hand to slap her in the air. Geng Huihui grabbed her aunt and ran away. When they reached the bus stop, Geng Huihui asked, "Aunt, what if my aunt never forgives me?"

Ye Fan: "Don't force it. When your grandmother was a child, she was closer to her younger sister than you are to your aunt, but now they still don't have any contact with each other. Friends will drift apart as time goes by, and relatives also need fate."

"Like us and my grandparents?"

Ye Fan nodded: "People's thoughts will change with their social life, work and life. Just because there was no conflict this year doesn't mean there won't be any in a few years. If Lei Lei hadn't been intentionally trained by your uncle for a period of time, he and Sen Sen would not have gotten along well."

“Will it get better in the future?”

Ye Fan: "It's possible! Time can dilute everything."

"Then I feel relieved. Otherwise, grandma would be caught in the middle and it would be so difficult." Geng Huihui has often reflected recently, wondering if she should not have deliberately made things difficult on the day of her aunt's wedding.

Ye Fan said, "Don't meddle in your aunt's affairs. Didn't you see that I didn't ask your aunt whether she and Lai Fu had a quarrel today, and when she planned to have a child?"

Geng Huihui thought about it carefully. When her aunt and uncle came over, her aunt was polite to them, just like she was treating Yu's uncle: "I want to learn from you."

Ye Fan: "You don't have to learn it specially. When I was your age, I thought I knew a lot and could take care of everything. In a few years, you will understand when you are older. I have advised and reminded her, but she still insists on going down this path. I wish her all the best."

(End of this chapter)