Five years of marriage, always separated [1970s]

Geng Zhiye couldn't help but complain in his heart, what a crappy name.

"After all, it's my first time going abroad, so I have to be careful." Geng Zhiye said helplessly.

Ye Fan: "It's also the last time."

Geng Zhiye immediately thought of his children who didn't plan to follow this path, and this was their last time filming a TV series: "Hasn't Dabao had his holiday yet? It's already the coldest time of the year. Doesn't his supervisor know to walk on ice during the coldest and coldest days of the year? The locks of the lab should have been frozen shut."

Ye Fan: "I went on a business trip with the teacher."

Geng Zhiye subconsciously asked: "Where are we going?"

"I don't know. He packed a bag one day and took your military coat away, saying that he was busy recently and lived in the graduate student dormitory. What nonsense! It's less than three miles from home, maybe even farther than the teaching building to the dormitory. He can always go home no matter how busy he is." Ye Fan was helpless, "Hiding his intentions from me is just like trying to cover up one's own faults."

Erbao came out of the kitchen: "Yes. His childhood friend also came to our house to ask when his brother would be back. In the past, he would not ask Chu Guangming to come over to play with him on Saturdays, but to play basketball with him on weekends. Chu Guangming was used to it. But my brother suddenly stopped going to see him, and Chu Guangming was not used to it. He also came to our house to ask when he would be back. Mom, your big baby is usually so smart, how could he forget that there is not only his childhood friend in school, but also a friend Chu Guangming? Who does he think he can hide from?"

"Bad decision! Bad decision!"

The family of three was stunned for a moment. Was it a dream in broad daylight? Then they turned their heads and saw Dabao holding a bag in one hand and a military coat on his shoulder, which he held loosely with his hand. He was wearing an old man's cotton hat and scarf, with only a pair of eyes showing.

This outfit must have just come from some deep mountain, or he has been to the bitter cold northwest. Ye Fan felt distressed and angry, took his luggage and stuffed it into Geng Zhiye's hands, and slapped him on the back: "I told you not to talk nonsense!"

Dabao stumbled forward. Yu Wentao and Geng Huihui came out of the kitchen and saw this scene. They were so scared that they shouted, "Be careful!"

Dabao sighed: "Mom, look how scared my grandma and sister Huihui are!"

Ye Fan: "Don't say anything if you don't want to. Stop talking nonsense!"

"I dare not, I dare not. I forgot that you have cooperation with certain scientific research institutions. You know us as well as I do."

Ye Fan glared at him: "Poor again?"

"I don't dare anymore, Mom!" Dabao reached out and hugged his mother, resting his furry head on her shoulder, "I'm so tired."

Ye Fangang saw her son's face was cracked by the wind, and his lips were faintly bloodshot. She felt very distressed. When had her baby ever suffered such a thing? "Go back to the room and get some sleep first. Erbao, fill two hot water bottles for your brother. When Sen Sen comes back in the evening, you two can go take a hot bath."

Geng Zhiye asked: "Are you hungry?"

Dabao stood up and said, "I'm a little hungry. Is there anything to eat?"

Geng Huihui quickly said, "Yes! Freshly cooked chicken soup!"

Ye Fan has been working hard in recent months. If she is in a good mood, she will not feel tired, but will feel that her life is fulfilling. Unfortunately, no one cheated her when she was doing small things before, but now she is famous and has not encountered any difficulties when she went abroad. Instead, she was tripped up by the people she favored. It is so annoying.

Ye Fan would never complain to her mother-in-law before, but this time she couldn't help but complain a few words. Yu Wentao realized that she was very unhappy. Even though she thought abalone and fish maw were troublesome, she still roasted the abalone first, and today she stewed chicken with fish maw.

Geng Huihui poured half a bowl of soup for Dabao, and despite the heat, she tore a chicken leg for him: "Drink some soup before you eat."

Dabao: "It's better to come back at the right time than to come back early."

Geng Zhiye took the coat off his son's shoulders and said, "Wash your hands."

"I'll drink the soup first." Geng Dabao took off his thick gloves. Ye Fan looked over and saw that he didn't have frostbite, so he probably didn't go to a very cold place. Ye Fan went to the kitchen to pour hot water and let him wash with it.

Dabao said: "Mom, I've never been in a relationship, so I don't understand that a short absence is better than a new marriage, but seeing you all surrounding me——"

Geng Zhiye asked: "If I give you three points of color, you will open a dyeing factory?"

Dabao immediately stopped complaining and drank the chicken soup and ate the chicken obediently. Then he quickly rinsed his mouth and ran to his mother's room.

Erbao just came out from the back: "The bed is made."

Dabao turned around and walked towards his sister, then went to Erbao to hug her and touch her head: "Brother loves you well."

Erbao was so annoyed: "Can't you shut up? Brother, you know what? You are good in every way, but you have a big mouth!"

"You know what, my lip seems to be broken."

Erbao wanted to say that he deserved it, and when she looked up, she saw that his lips were bleeding: "It must be too dry. I have a lipstick that I haven't used yet, I'll give it to you." She pulled her brother and ran to the back.

Geng Zhiye looked at the things in his hand and asked, "Don't you want it anymore?"

Ye Fan: "The information cannot leave the company. It must be nothing important. It's just some stinky clothes and socks."

Geng Zhiye threw his coat on the recliner and opened his bag. Sure enough, there was a strange smell. Geng Zhiye took out four plastic bags, two for shoes, one for clean clothes, and one for dirty clothes. He put the socks directly in the bag: "Who is he trying to stink up on purpose?"

"Socks don't fit in plastic bags." Ye Fan called out "Hui Hui", and the two of them took out the washing machine. Geng Zhiye threw the clothes in and the socks into the basin. Ye Fan knew he was going to wash them by hand: "You wash them?"

Geng Zhiye nodded: "I'm not busy today, but I have a feeling that something is going to happen. I was afraid that you would only report good news and not bad news, so I came back to check. So you're waiting for me here."

Geng Huihui wanted to laugh: "If you don't know, you might think this pile of socks is a time bomb!"

Geng Zhiye said with a look of disgust: "It's almost the same if it stinks this bad."

Ye Fan: "Don't use cold water, there's hot water on the stove."

Although Ye Fan's family has a water heater and uses a gas stove for cooking, so they don't need a stove, they still buy coal briquettes to light the stove in winter, because it is convenient to warm water on the stove. Using a water heater requires waiting for the water to heat up, which is very troublesome to do when washing your face and hands.

Ye Fan took out the kettle and poured it into the basin, then filled a steel pot with cold water and put it on the stove. After the meal, when the water was heated, Ye Fan asked Geng Zhiye to return to the army while she washed Dabao's clothes.

Actually, just pour hot water into the washing machine and wash it.

Since it would not cause any trouble and would not tire Ye Fan, Geng Zhiye did not argue with Ye Fan and instead said, "Erbao, give your mother a hand."

Erbao nodded: "Will Dad be back tonight?"

"It's hard to say." Geng Zhiye said.

Ye Fan: "Don't come back after dark. The hooligans can't see clearly in the dark and think you are driving a private car. If they throw nails and hijack your car, it will be troublesome."

Geng Zhiye said: "I'm one against five."

"Oh, Master Geng is so awesome?" Ye Fan said sarcastically. Geng Zhiye laughed and said quickly, "Don't be angry. Anger makes you old. I promise I won't go anywhere after dark."

Ye Fan opened the car door: "Get in."

After Geng Zhiye left, Ye Fan went to the backyard, where Dabao was sleeping soundly with his head covered. Ye Fan saw that he was not holding himself back, so he gently closed the door and went to the front yard.

Ye Fan has been too busy recently and has no time to go back to her parents' home. After washing the clothes, she asked Erbao if he wanted to go to his grandmother's house.

The first time Dabao disappeared for almost a month, Erbao was worried that her brother was not in the mood to go to grandma's house. Now that her brother is back, Erbao asked whether to go tomorrow or the day after tomorrow.

Ye Fan let Erbao make his own decision.

Erbao thought his brother must want to go too, but his brother had just come back and needed more rest: "Maybe the day after tomorrow."

Yu Wentao: "Good day after tomorrow. Ask your mom to go shopping tomorrow. It's been a while since I went there, so I can't go empty-handed."

Erbao suddenly remembered something: "Mom, do you think grandma would recognize me if she watches TV tonight?"

Ye Fan laughed: "Have you forgotten that grandma knows you're filming a TV series?"

Erbao suddenly remembered that she often went to her grandmother's house during the summer vacation in previous years, but she was not available this year. Her grandmother even called her mother and asked if she had signed her up for another class.

If Ye Fan spoke a little slower, Tao Chunlan would scold him.

Erbao was not at home at the time, and he came back to hear what his grandmother said. Therefore, after the filming was finished and before school started, Dabao and Erbao went to their grandmother's house to let the old couple check on them and see if they were okay.

Erbao asked again after hearing this: "Grandma, will you think that person on TV doesn't look like me?"

Ye Fan asked: "Erbao, are you nervous?"

Erbao thought about it carefully and said, "It seems so! Mom, I wasn't nervous when I was taking the photo. Why am I nervous now?"

"You haven't experienced it, have you?" Ye Fan said, "The time chosen by Chang Guangrong attracted too much attention. If you fail, many newspapers will definitely criticize you. If you become popular, many newspapers will also criticize you. The former may be telling the truth, and the latter may be nitpicking. In either case, you will hear a lot of voices. Mom hopes you don't care. In the future, you will not only hear bad voices on this path, but also be bullied by foreign media. You must learn to be as still as a mountain to keep going forward with determination."

Erbao hugged his mother's neck and said, "I know. Grandpa's comrades told me. Mom, I don't care what others say. Even though you are so talented, there are still people talking about you, not to mention that I haven't graduated yet. It's just a hooligan to ask a student like me to be as professional as actors who have graduated from professional schools. I don't bother to pay attention to them."

Ye Fan felt relieved: "Then let's have dinner early tonight."

In the cold winter, it gets dark at 5pm. Ye Fan and her mother-in-law cook at 5pm. Geng Sensen comes home from get off work to eat something to fill her stomach, and then takes Dabao to take a bath.

They came back from the bathhouse just in time for dinner.

After dinner, Ye Fan and Yu Wentao cleaned up the kitchen, boiled some water, washed their feet and faces, closed the stove, closed the main room door, and turned on the heater, waiting for the news to finish. Just as the news was over, there was a knock on Ye Fan's door.

Dabao and Sensen went to open the door and saw Geng Leilei outside. Geng Sensen couldn't help but yell at him: "Why are you back so late? What if something happens?"

Ye Fan asked them to come in first, and then he set rules for his children: "From now on, if you can't be home before 8 pm in the summer or 5 pm in the winter, you will have to spend the night with your classmates."

Geng Leilei saw that his aunt was serious and quickly explained: "I came here in the leader's car."

Ye Fan raised an eyebrow: "Is the leader so nice?"

Geng Leilei smiled awkwardly and a little distressed.

Ye Fan suddenly realized: "Do I have to introduce you to someone?" He sighed, "How come these people have more free time than me. But, Leilei, you are not young anymore, meet him when you are free, and don't force yourself if you don't want to. There are many people getting married in their thirties now."

Geng Sensen poured water for his brother to wash his hands. Geng Huihui used the gas stove to cook two packs of instant noodles, beat two eggs, cut some cabbage leaves and threw them in. She brought the small pot to the main room and said, "Eat quickly. You can watch TV after you finish eating."

After Geng Leilei had eaten and drunk his fill and washed up, Chu Guangming's face appeared on TV.

Geng Sensen was surprised: "Why was it him at the beginning?"

Ye Fan: "Grandpas and grandmas don't like to see students playing house, they like to see teachers punishing disobedient students. Only by creating conflicts with teachers at the beginning can they capture their hearts. This director is quite good at editing."

Geng Sensen was puzzled: "The director said that our audience is mainly students."

Ye Fan said: "If our family only has this one TV, grandma and I have the final say, or can you watch whatever you want?"

Geng Sensen subconsciously wanted to say, you guys, you are the elders. But when he was about to say it, he suddenly realized, "If grandpa and grandma don't like it, how can the ratings go up if students of the same age as Erbao like it?"

Ye Fan nodded, watching Chu Guangming move his desk to the back office on TV. Even though he had read the script, he couldn't help but ask, "Is the pace so fast?"

Everyone in the room looked at Ye Fan at the same time, as if to say, is it so fast?

It seemed very fast to Ye Fan.

If it were a TV series from her previous life, it might take more than ten minutes to drag on, but a conflict would end in just a few minutes.

The good student played by Chu Guangming went to the poor class and was ridiculed and bullied by some bad students, which was another small conflict.

Ye Fan had been paying attention to the plot, and didn't realize that the TV images of this year were blurry, and everyone looked like they were filtered. Filters were different from the later retouching. Retouching made people look unnatural, while simple filters made good-looking people look better.

Ye Jingjing was sighing at home at the moment: "Chu Guangming is so photogenic?"

Chen Xiaohui couldn't help but say, "I didn't expect Erbao to be so photogenic." Then she asked her father, "Is Erbao born to be a diplomat?"

Ye Jingjing: "Aren't you going to be an actor?"

Chen Xiaohui shook her head: "Erbao is not outstanding in the entertainment industry where there are so many beautiful women. If she wants to join the diplomatic department, she must be——"

"She's such a beauty!" Ye Jingjing said excitedly.

Seeing that she was happier than herself for being the most beautiful girl, Chen Xiaohui felt embarrassed to pour cold water on her and swallowed back the words "a beautiful girl".

Tao Chunlan frowned: "What's annoying?"

Chen Xiaohui: "Morning."

Tao Chunlan stared at Erbao again: "Isn't Erbao the heroine? Why is she always with others?"

Father Ye reminded: "The name is "Rongguang Class 8", not Geng Jingjing. Don't say anything, I didn't hear what Erbao said just now."

Tao Chunlan glared at her husband, disliking him for talking too much.

Little did they know that similar situations were also happening in Hengshan Island, Hangzhou City, and Ningbo City. Zhang Xiaoming's neighbors and Chang Guangrong's relatives and friends were also talking about this TV series.

In order to catch up with the drama, Chu Guangming gave his childhood friend a TV, saying that he didn't give him anything when he moved to a new house, so he made up for it now. In fact, Chu Guangming realized that no matter whether the drama was a flop or a big hit, he was not suitable to live in the slum. His house had not been renovated yet, and he would have to live with his childhood friend for a while in the future, so of course he had to show some appreciation.

The day the TV was delivered, the neighbors on both sides saw it. Chu Guangming said something polite and went back to watch TV. Unexpectedly, they were really rude and asked Chu Guangming and his childhood friend if they were busy after dinner.

Today is no exception.

The funny thing is that the neighbors didn’t even realize that the hero was right next to them.

There were also many old men and women who were not interested in the plot, thinking that the kids from the poor class were mischievous and needed to be punished, but when they saw that the male students were handsome and the female students were pretty, they couldn't help but stare at them and admire them.

The head teacher of the worst class is Geng Huihui. Because other teachers don't want to teach this class, they throw the class to Geng Huihui who just graduated and is unaware of the truth.

Geng Huihui is a real teacher. Although her looks cannot compare to Erbao, she has developed a good temperament over the years with Ye Fan. With her high education and good family background, her gestures show that she is calm and confident. She does not look out of place standing on the three-foot podium. As a result, the sharp-eyed grandparents praised her as soon as they saw her appear: "This girl is good!" Then they said: "Why let her teach these little bastards?"

Not many people can afford a TV these days, and even in the capital not every household has one. In the compound where Chu Guangming lives, there is only one TV for dozens of people.

It would be a pity to buy such a precious thing and let it rust, so no matter whether it is hot or cold, we have to turn on the TV after dinner. Selfish people watch it with their family, while generous people watch it with relatives and neighbors, chatting while watching, so after an episode is over, everyone who has watched this drama remembers the faces of the leading actors.

As small conflicts continued one after another, most people were still unsatisfied after the show was over.

Chang Guangrong cares a lot about word of mouth, so before the ending song was over, he called real audiences who didn't know much about the show.

The friend who helped Chang Guangrong shoot this drama cares more about the ratings. If the ratings are high, the TV series produced by his company can be sold at a good price.

His friend still remembered that Chang Guangrong said that Erbao and Chu Guangming had no intention of becoming actors. If the drama became popular and commercial contracts came in, he could transfer them to the company's artists, so he immediately called the TV station.

The TV station staff were in a panic at the moment because the phone kept ringing, but all the phones had one thing in common: the people calling were sneaky, as if they were using the phone secretly from their elders.

The difference is that some people are asking about Chu Guangming, and some are asking about Erbao's situation.

As soon as the TV station staff saw "Xiao Ye" and "Ye Zi" on the cast list, they knew the names were fake and it was obvious that they did not intend to work in this field.

The staff thought about the fact that the producer "Chang Guangrong" had an unusual background, and guessed that they couldn't afford to offend the young actors in the play, so they didn't dare to ask anyone. So when they received inquiries from the audience, they said that the actors were young and didn't want to be disturbed. The audience expressed their love for the actors, so the staff asked them to write letters, which would be delivered to the actors themselves.

Nowadays, many audiences can receive replies from actors, so the enthusiastic audience did not think that the staff were lying to them and looked for letter paper after hanging up the phone.

But these are ordinary audiences. The extraordinary audience asked friends early in the morning to find out which unit Geng Huihui from "Glorious Class 8" worked for.

Erbao is still childish, and she and Chu Guangming look like students at first glance. Boys and girls who are a little cunning have never thought of dating them because they will definitely be stopped by their parents or teachers.

The male audience member Lu Ziye found out that Geng Huihui is a teacher at Renmin University. He was shocked that she was a real teacher but he didn't dare to ask her out because he couldn't afford it!
Geng Huihui has attended several weddings and funerals for her parents over the years. Someone was busy watching TV last night and realized something was wrong this morning: "Why did Teacher Chu look so much like Old Geng's granddaughter last night?"

The few people who thought of this were already quite old, and their families were curious: "Which Lao Geng? Do you know any celebrities?"

One of the old ladies said, "You don't know Lao Geng's second son, but you definitely know the third son's wife, that Ye Fan."

"Which Ye Fan? The Ye Fan who runs a company?"

The old lady nodded: "Ye Fan's niece from her husband's family." Speaking of Ye Fan, she suddenly realized: "No wonder I felt that the little actress looked familiar last night. Isn't she Ye Fan's daughter? She came to our house with Old Ye. Isn't that child studying at the Foreign Affairs College?"

The old lady's granddaughter said, "It should be her. I looked at the cast list last night, and the actress' name is Xiao Ye, the Ye in Ye Fan."

The old lady frowned: "Why is it called this-" Realizing something, "This child definitely doesn't plan to go down this path. But why is she filming this movie?"

Granddaughter: "I can see you're only looking at people. Didn't you notice that in last night's episode, as soon as the teacher showed up, she told the students to put on their school uniforms and not to be so sloppy? Those weren't school uniforms, they were sportswear made by Rongguang Company. You've scolded me and my brother before, saying we can't buy domestic sportswear. Why are we letting the foreigners make money?"

The old lady had an impression: "Is the sportswear also Ye Fan's?"

The old lady's son was not interested in the TV series. Hearing this, he said, "No, it was done by Chang Guangrong and Jin Dazhi. No wonder I felt familiar when I heard "Rongguang Class 8" last night." Seeing his mother puzzled, "Chang Guangrong and Ye Fan are friends. His company has just been established, and there will be many places to spend money in the future. In order to save costs, it is normal to find people around him to shoot."

The old lady asked, "So Lao Geng's two granddaughters are not actors?"

The old lady's son shook his head: "I don't know about the younger one. You said he is at the China Foreign Affairs University, so that must be it. I heard about the older one. He is a teacher at Renmin University."

The old lady sighed: "No wonder he has such a good temperament." Suddenly her eyes lit up, "Does your cousin still have a girlfriend?"

The old lady's granddaughter said, "Don't match people up randomly. Besides, is my cousin worthy of her?"

Many outstanding young men who learned about Geng Huihui's family background felt that they were not worthy of her, and it was a pity for them to go out with friends. Their friends couldn't help but wonder who Geng Huihui was.

So there were many more viewers in the evening.

The next morning, Geng Huihui went out to take out the trash. There was a gift by the door with a card on it. The card did not say "Teacher Chu" but directly expressed her love for "Geng Huihui". She was so scared that she screamed, "Auntie!"

(End of this chapter)