1970s: My childhood sweetheart ran away, and I turned around and married the wildest chief.

Lu Mingzhou kicked him, yelling, "Get lost! You dare to kidnap my daughter? I'll never forgive you!"

Li Hongjun sighed, looking up at the sky, "Alas, things are not like they used to be when we were brothers. Back then, we were so close, so..."

"Can you stop being so mushy? Who's being affectionate with you?"

Li Hongjun: "..."

While the two were arguing, Qiao Wanqing's attention was more focused on the girl next to her older brother. Was her older brother dating someone?

How come she didn't know?

She quickly pulled her mother over, "Mom, who is that girl?"

Speaking of this, Xu Hui said proudly, "What do you think of the girl I arranged for your brother? Isn't she beautiful? She's a college graduate, from a working-class family, with a super good social standing, and she has a great personality too!"

Qiao Wanqing asked curiously, "Whose family is it? What's their situation?"

"Our factory manager's daughter!"

Qiao Wanqing's eyes widened. "You've kidnapped your factory manager's daughter?"

sure!

"Big brother agreed too? He really likes this girl? When did this happen? I didn't even know."

Xu Hui smiled and said, "We just met last month. The girl is studying at a university in the next city. She has an older brother and sister, as well as a younger brother and sister-in-law. Her older brother and sister are married, while her younger brother and sister-in-law are still studying."

"Someone introduced her to me, and I thought she was pretty good, so I introduced her to your brother. It seems like he's finally come to his senses and wants to get married and settle down. He's not very familiar with this girl; he's only met her two or three times, since she's still a student!"

Xu Hui paused for a moment, then continued, "It's just... she's only a sophomore, she still has more than two years until graduation!"

Qiao Wanqing: "..."

My brother is already twenty-nine. He should get married as soon as possible. Unlike later generations, when it's common to date for several years, many people get married after knowing each other for only a few months. Even soldiers and other special professions don't have that many holidays. Many people go home for blind dates during their holidays and get married within a month.

If her brother continues dating for a few more years, he'll be over thirty and an old man. What young girl will want him then?

Lu Mingzhou married her when he was 28, which was considered an old bachelor in the army. He never expected that her brother would drag it out until he was 29.

"What did my brother say? What was his impression of him?"

Xu Hui frowned and shook her head, saying, "Your brother... I don't think he's very enthusiastic, but he didn't object either. After all, they've only just met, how can it be love at first sight? This girl is indeed quite good in every way, and she's a good match for our family. Your brother probably wants to consider it, since it's time for him to settle down."

This is difficult. One person wants to get married as soon as possible, so they will seriously get to know and consider the girls they don't dislike. The other person, however, is still in college and will not graduate for another two years.

When the college entrance examination was first reinstated, married people were allowed to enter the campus because of the long period of stagnation. Many people even had children and still took the exam to enter university. However, in the following years, this situation gradually decreased, and eventually, married people were no longer allowed to go to university.

It's only 1980 now, and Qiao Wanqing doesn't know if college students can get married now. If they can't, then her older brother will have to wait two years.

"By the way, if this girl is in school, what's she doing here?"

There's no holiday right now!

Xu Hui's expression was somewhat strange. "She took leave specifically to come back, saying she was very curious about the military and wanted to come and see for herself."

Qiao Wanqing: "..."

Are you curious about the military?

Qiao Wanqing thought about it. Chinese people do have a special feeling for the military. When they see soldiers, they feel that the other person is reliable or cute. Her boyfriend is a military officer. The military can bring their families to banquets, and girlfriends can also go and have a look. It seems normal for girls to want to come and join in the fun.

After the banquet, Qiao Wanqing and the others took their children home. Qiao Yuanhe also came along, along with the factory director's daughter, Yao Yulan.

Yao Yulan is twenty years old this year. She looks like she was spoiled and pampered. She has big, watery eyes, fair skin, and an oval face. She is a very pretty young girl.

The Lu family lives far away, so no one came this time. Now, only Xu Hui and her husband, along with her maternal grandparents, are in the house. Qiao Yuanhe is usually busy with work, but now that his parents, grandparents, and younger sister are all here, he looks at the children running around with eyes full of love. He has already started thinking that if he also gets married and has a few children, will his home be just as lively when he goes home?

He used to worry about his sister's marriage, fearing that rushing to get married under those circumstances would affect her future. Now, seeing how well his sister is doing, he is genuinely happy.

The adults were talking in the living room. Qiao Yuanhe was holding the twins, one in each hand, and stood in the yard with Yao Yulan. The weather was very cold, but today was a rare good day. The sun was warm outside, and it was very comfortable to bask in the sun.

Looking at the twins in front of her, and then at the triplets in the room, Yao Yulan felt nothing but sympathy for Qiao Wanqing.

"Being a woman is really tough. I didn't expect your family to be so well-off. Your sister got married and still had to have so many children. How much damage must that have done to her body?"

Qiao Yuanhe: "..."

He glanced towards the living room. As the older brother, he naturally felt sorry for his younger sister, but she was willing and had been taking good care of her health. Even his grandfather said that his sister was in good health and there was no need to worry too much.

People always have choices in life, and every choice has consequences. Qiao Yuanhe felt that as long as his sister was willing and wasn't forced to have a child, it was fine.

"It's alright. My sister was willing to have the baby, and we originally thought three children would be enough. We didn't expect her to be pregnant with triplets. At first, our family was very worried, but thankfully everything went smoothly later."

Yao Yulan looked at Qiao Yuanhe, her brows furrowing slightly. "You really think so? This is your sister, from such a good family, and so beautiful. It wouldn't be difficult for her to find someone of equal social standing, would it? How could she marry someone like this? He's not good enough for her!"

Qiao Yuanhe frowned slightly. He had initially disapproved of his sister marrying Lu Mingzhou, but only because he was worried that Lu Mingzhou and his sister would not have anything in common and that they would quarrel in the future. He never thought that Lu Mingzhou was inferior to them or unworthy of his sister.

The Lu family is not the kind of family that relies on the Qiao family for support. Given Lu Mingzhou's personal qualities, even if the Qiao family were at its peak, marrying their daughter to him would not be considered an insult to their sister. Who would look down on a 28-year-old who could rise to the rank of brigade commander entirely on his own?

Qiao Yuanhe said, "It's hard to say about matters of the heart. As long as my sister is doing well, that's all that matters. She's quite happy now, and my brother-in-law has a bright future. There's no question of whether they're a good match or not. Their relationship is the most important thing."

Yao Yulan didn't respond, but she disagreed.

She comes from a wealthy family with a good background and is good-looking. She is definitely eligible to marry into a higher social class. In particular, she is very lucky to have given birth to so many children in just two pregnancies. She is so fertile that even if she marries into a wealthy family, she will have a good status. Wouldn't her husband's family cherish her?

Marrying someone from the countryside like Lu Mingzhou would be a complete waste.

If she had married Qiao Yuanhe earlier, she would never have allowed her sister-in-law to waste her resources like this.

Yao Yulan didn't say it aloud, but smiled gently at Qiao Yuanhe, "That's true, as long as your sister is happy."

She steered the conversation towards herself, "I'll be on holiday soon, what about you? Do you have a holiday for Chinese New Year?"

Qiao Yuanhe nodded, "Yes, but not many. My family is all here. The long holiday during the Spring Festival is usually given to people whose families live far away, so they can go home and reunite with their relatives. I will rest for a few days, but I have to work during the Spring Festival."

Yao Yulan was somewhat disappointed. "You're a military officer, and you still have to be on duty during the Spring Festival? Isn't that something your subordinates do?"

Qiao Yuanhe shook his head. "Cadres should set an example. Besides, my family is all here. It's different from those comrades who came from far away. It's not easy for them to go home. Some of them haven't had time to go home for two or three years. They already have a hard time getting a holiday during the Spring Festival. I won't compete with my comrades for a spot."

Yao Yulan bit her lip, looking aggrieved, and said, "Then... will we still have time to meet?"

Qiao Yuanhe looked at the aggrieved girl, his ears turning red, and replied, "Yes, we are all in Beichuan City, so it's very convenient. I will take turns resting during the Spring Festival, so I will definitely have a few days off."

Although Yao Yulan was not very satisfied, she didn't say much. She wasn't very familiar with Qiao Yuanhe yet, and thought she would talk about it after they got to know each other better.

She was quite satisfied with Qiao Yuanhe's conditions. The Qiao family... if they hadn't returned to China a few years earlier, they would be overseas Chinese, right? Overseas Chinese have a very high status. The Qiao family is in the same circle as those overseas Chinese, so their family must be very well-off.

Single, wealthy, highly educated, and good-looking, Yao Yulan was very satisfied. Marrying into such a family meant she would enjoy endless wealth and luxury in the future.

It's rare for the whole family to gather today. Grandpa Xu is talking to everyone about the current policies. After the Lu family incident, the old couple went into hiding for a while and took the opportunity to go to Shanghai and the south to check the market situation.

It seems that quite a few overseas Chinese have returned to China, especially from Shanghai. Many have come back to invest, and most of their businesses are in the south, where they have already started.

Overseas Chinese have a high status, and the country currently attaches great importance to the economy.

Grandpa Xu originally wanted to keep a low profile for a few years and see how things went, but after visiting his old friends in Shanghai and seeing how well they were doing and how high their status was, he became a little tempted.

In Beichuan City, the elderly couple stayed at their granddaughter's house for a few days to help take care of the child. They spent a little more money on the child, but they were reported for it. They had to be very careful. When would this end? He didn't want to stay here anymore.

He just hadn't made up his mind yet. His granddaughter needed someone here, and he couldn't just ignore her. Now that the baby is 100 days old and his granddaughter has recovered, his mind started to wander.

"Your mother and I went to Shanghai this time. Some of our old friends came back, although... only one in ten survived. But those who made it big are doing well now that they're back, and their status is high. We also went to the South. It's chaotic, but much better than during the war years. Our family's identity is a bit sensitive, so I was thinking, why don't we just let the old collateral branches come back?"

Their family returned to China early, unlike the overseas Chinese returning to China today. Returning to China early had its advantages, so Grandpa Xu didn't worry about it. Anyway, the family had made arrangements back then, and it wasn't impossible for them to associate themselves with the overseas Chinese identity now.

Xu Hui hadn't been to Shanghai for many years. She had gone there twice on business trips before, but she was always busy and would come back immediately after finishing her work. She didn't know what Shanghai was like now.

"Dad, what happened to all the people I used to know?"

Grandpa Xu sighed, "What else can we do? Don't you know what our situation was like abroad? Taking all our wealth to someone else's territory, how many of us end up well?"

"Back then, things were so chaotic overseas. Many people went there and lost their lives, and many families suffered as a result. Those who managed to do well were extremely rare. Otherwise, I wouldn't have brought you back to China."

Grandpa Xu had lived on both sides of the world and was very knowledgeable. He had no prejudice against foreign countries. Those places were not as civilized as some people described. In Grandpa Xu's opinion, foreign countries were very chaotic and not much better than China. There were gangs everywhere, and they were even famous all over the world. It would be strange if such a place was good!

These people are all outsiders, with different skin colors and races. They brought all their wealth with them, so who in the area wouldn't keep an eye on them?

Very few survived and thrived. After all, that place wasn't his hometown. After Grandpa Xu went abroad, he saw so many compatriots whose property was taken away and who died without a burial place. He then thought about returning to China.

That's why when her son-in-law received the invitation to return to China, she decided to bring her family back with him.

He contributed a lot of foreign exchange when he returned to China, and his treatment was originally very good. If it weren't for that shameless Bai family member interfering and that unfilial son reporting him, his family would have gotten through those years peacefully.

Grandpa Xu glanced at the three children and made a decision. "I've been thinking about this for a while now. Today, I've recovered and can manage things at home. I think it's better if your grandma and I go. You two can stay home and take care of your work and lives."

Xu Hui frowned. "Dad, where are you going?"

"south."

"At your age, traveling such a long distance..."

"I'm in excellent health. If you put me in charge of the Xu family at its peak, it wouldn't be a problem for me."

Xu Hui: "..."

"Then you should take people with you. I used to work there and I've been to Guangzhou. It's a very chaotic place, so please be careful."

Grandpa Xu nodded, "I understand. Your daughter just gave birth not long ago. Please take good care of her for now. Your mother and I have been around for so many years, we've seen it all, so don't worry about us."

Xu Hui: "..."

The old man has an entrepreneurial spirit, what can she do?

Go ahead and build up your business; maybe then she can get a bigger share of the inheritance!

"Then let me know when you leave. I know people there, and it's easy to buy tickets through my workplace. I'll arrange it then," Xu Hui said.

When Grandpa Xu got back, he checked the cash in his hand.

Grandma Xu chimed in from the side, "Are you really going? Shouldn't you wait a bit?"

Grandpa Xu snorted coldly, "I always wanted to keep a low profile. I was worried about what kind of bad influence it would have on the children. I thought it wouldn't matter if we waited a few years, and we should just stay out of it. But what happened? Our granddaughter spent that little bit of money and still got reported."