The sky collapsed, and in the blink of an eye, I found myself transported to Nanluoguxiang.

After confirming that Li Kaixin's family was truly alright, Aunt Wang, Aunt Zhao, and Aunt Sun left one after another.

Inside the main room, Li Kaixin and his parents exchanged glances, their faces showing a mixture of amusement and exasperation.

They were certainly touched, but they were determined not to tell anyone about Li Kaixin being in the newspaper before it was published.

It would be too easy to attract attention if it got out. It's fine if people in the same department are left alone, but I'm afraid it will be like last time, when people from other departments get jealous and a letter of complaint will cause trouble.

As for the slip of the tongue by Qin Xiuli this morning, the whole family had discussed it and decided that if anyone asked, they would just pretend to be clueless and gloss over it.

Before I knew it, an afternoon had passed.

People started returning from get off work one after another, and the courtyard gradually became lively.

Sun Dali and Li Kaixin's father, who lived in the front yard, worked in the same workshop at the steel rolling mill.

As soon as he entered the courtyard, several middle-aged women immediately surrounded him, with his wife, Aunt Sun, leading the way.

Although it has been confirmed that nothing bad has happened to Li Kaixin's family, their curiosity is still hard to suppress.

Throughout the afternoon, several versions of the story had circulated, and even people from the School of Foreign Languages ​​had heard about it.

Sun Dali looked at the women in the courtyard and his own wife who had all gathered around him, a little confused: "Women, wives, what are you all doing?"

"Master, do you know about Mingde's family?" Aunt Sun spoke first.

The other middle-aged women in the courtyard also gave her looks that urged them to speak up.

Sun Dali felt a little uncomfortable being stared at like that: "Mingde was called away by Deputy Factory Director Li this morning and hasn't returned to the workshop since."

"We know that; Mingde and his family got home around noon," Aunt Sun continued. "We just want to know why Mingde's family came back so early today?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the other three middle-aged women nodded in agreement.

"I don't know about that," Sun Dali shook his head. "But when Deputy Factory Director Li came back, he seemed quite happy. Didn't you go and ask Mingde and Xiuli directly?"

Upon hearing this, the other three middle-aged women immediately lost interest and walked away.

"If Mingde and the others were willing to talk, why would we be asking you?" After saying that, Aunt Sun turned around and went back into the house.

Sun Dali was left standing there, completely bewildered.

Li Kaixin and his parents, who lived in the backyard, heard the commotion in the front yard but did not go out to join in the fun.

They knew that the conversation would mostly revolve around their own family.

"Sister Zhao and the others are really good at gossiping. Now it's not just in our yard, it's probably spread all over the next yard." Father Li Mingde muttered as he helped his wife in the kitchen.

Qin Xiuli, the mother, glanced at her husband: "You're still talking about Sister Zhao? Didn't you also..."

"Wife, can you give me some face?" Father Li Mingde hurriedly interrupted.

Mother Qin Xiuli chuckled: "What did you do back then? Are you afraid of what people will say?"

Hearing this, Li Kaixin, who was tending the fire in the stove, also became curious: "Mom, what did Dad do last year? How come I don't know?"

"Kaixin, you should ask your father about this," Qin Xiuli, Li Kaixin's mother, said with a smile as she turned to him.

She ultimately saved face for her husband and didn't continue the conversation.

Seeing this, Li Kaixin stopped asking. He knew his father wouldn't tell, and asking would be pointless.

Dinner was ready, and my younger siblings came home from school.

At the dinner table, Li Kai, the younger brother, was shoveling rice into his bowl when he suddenly looked up and asked, "Dad, Mom, Big Brother, when I came back today, I felt that Aunt Zhao and the others were looking at me strangely?"

"Oh? Xiao Kai, what do they think of you?" Mother Qin Xiuli put down her chopsticks.

Li Kai, the younger brother, shrank his neck: "Ever since we entered the yard, several pairs of eyes have been staring at us, which gave me goosebumps."

As soon as he finished speaking, his younger sister, Li Xiaoxiao, nodded in agreement.

"Just ignore it, it'll fade away in a few days," said Li Mingde, the father, sitting at the head of the table. He then looked at his younger sister, "By the way, Xiaoxiao, did Xiaokai mention your older brother's interview at school today?"

"No, Dad!" Little sister Li Xiaoxiao shook her head seriously.

This morning, after leaving the courtyard, my father not only gave my mother some instructions, but also gave instructions to my brother and sister.

The father nodded, then turned his gaze to his younger brother, Li Kai, with a scrutinizing expression.

Seeing this, Li Kai immediately protested: "Dad, you really don't believe me? I'm very tight-lipped!"

"Do you want to listen to what you're saying?" Father Li Mingde snorted. "Just a few months ago, I told you not to tell your mother where I hid my money, and you immediately told her."

"That's...that's a special case!" Younger brother Li Kai blushed and quickly turned to his mother for help, "Mother, isn't that right?"

"Xiao Kai is right." Mother Qin Xiuli smiled, glancing at her husband. "What, do you have a problem with that?"

"No, no! Whatever my daughter-in-law says goes." Father Li Mingde immediately picked up his bowl and buried his head in his food.

Upon seeing this, Li Kaixin couldn't help but shake his head and chuckle.

After dinner, there was another knock on the door.

After finishing their meal, Li Kaixin and his father Li Mingde, who were resting on a bench, exchanged a glance. They both assumed that their neighbor, unable to contain their curiosity, had come to inquire about what had happened that day.

After a brief exchange of glances, Li Kaixin got up and opened the door.

Upon seeing the people standing outside the door, the words he had just prepared instantly stuck in his throat.

The first thing I saw was Secretary Liu, Director Liu and his wife, as well as the police officer surnamed Liu whom I had saved before. All of them were carrying large and small bags of gifts.

"Happy, it's been a long time." Director Liu greeted him with a big smile.

Li Kaixin glanced at Director Liu, then at Secretary Liu, and a thought suddenly popped into his mind: Could Secretary Liu and Director Liu be related?

Seeing Li Kaixin standing frozen at the doorway, not speaking for a long time, Secretary Liu smiled and asked, "Comrade Li Kaixin, what's wrong?"

"You two, what is this...?" Li Kaixin didn't know how to ask for a moment.

Director Liu and Secretary Liu exchanged a smile, and Director Liu continued, "I'm the third oldest in my family, and this is my eldest brother."

Li Kaixin's pupils dilated slightly. Although she had a vague idea in her mind, hearing it with her own ears still gave her a jolt.

He finally understood why Secretary Liu had always been so close to him.

At this moment, a police officer surnamed Liu, who was standing to the side, extended his hand and introduced himself with a smile: "Comrade Kaixin, hello, my name is Liu Jianming. I really owe you a lot for saving me last time."

"Brother Jianming, you're too kind. This is what I should do." Li Kaixin snapped out of her daze and quickly shook hands with him.

Realizing that Director Liu and his group were carrying things, Li Kaixin quickly stepped aside, saying, "Please come in, let's talk inside!"

Upon seeing this, Director Liu and his wife, along with Secretary Liu, smiled and nodded, then carried their belongings into the house.