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

After speaking, Lu Mingyu introduced the people present to Li Yuqing. Li Yuqing had a pair of big, watery eyes, and as Lu Mingyu introduced them, she greeted each person one by one, her voice so pleasant.

Even Miao Cuiying, who was about to become a mother-in-law, didn't know what to say. She was on high alert, thinking that this girl was either a strong, capable, domineering, and unreasonable person, or a seductive vixen. But she turned out to be neither. Instead, she seemed like a well-behaved girl.

Now, even she didn't know how to treat this girl.

It was only when Lu Mingyu called out that she came to her senses and quickly invited people into the house.

"You're here! Come on in!"

Even though she was very beautiful, Miao Cuiying couldn't be enthusiastic. The thought that her son, whom she had raised with such difficulty, would have to go with her to such a far place was like raising him for nothing, made her unhappy.

The group went to the living room, which was very large. Although there were many people, it did not feel crowded. Ceiling fans had been installed in the room and were blowing, so it did not feel too hot.

From the moment she entered, Li Yuqing had been observing the Lu family. She felt a little regretful that this meeting wasn't at Lu Mingyu's brother's house.

She had heard Lu Mingyu say that he had a powerful older brother who served in the army and lived in the military compound in Beijing. He was the most successful person in the family. She thought he must be a capable officer, and she wanted to see for herself!

I never expected to meet you here.

However, the house is quite big. Lu Mingyu said that his family had just come to Beijing and opened a steamed bun shop. He was helping out at the steamed bun shop this summer, which is why he did not go back to his hometown.

To be able to live in such a large house in Beijing, one must be quite well-off.

Miao Cuiying remained silent with a cold expression. Frustrated, Mr. Lu had no choice but to speak up himself, "How long have you two been talking?"

Lu Mingyu replied, "It's been about a year."

Mr. Lu nodded, understanding. It should be around this time. He remembered that Lu Mingyu had started frequently asking his family for living expenses in the past year or so. They used to give him money, and with the school subsidies, Lu Mingyu's living expenses should have been sufficient. However, more than a year ago, he started asking his family for living expenses for various reasons, especially in the last six months, the amount increased.

At first, the elderly couple didn't take it to heart. It wasn't that they were short of money, and they were worried about what hardships their child might suffer outside. So when their child asked for it, they gave it to him.

But later, as more and more people came along, they began to have doubts.

The child was originally very obedient at home and didn't cause them much trouble at work. He stayed at home quietly and everything was normal for the first two years after starting university. But then things started to get increasingly strange.

With so much money for living expenses, they naturally suspected that he had a girlfriend. They had asked him, but Lu Mingyu didn't say anything.

Now it seems that the timeline matches up perfectly.

"You two went to the same school?" Mr. Lu asked again.

Upon hearing this, Li Yuqing looked somewhat awkward and turned to Lu Mingyu for help. Lu Mingyu replied, "No, she's from the Teachers' College."

Miao Cuiying and Lu's father didn't quite understand; they weren't very familiar with universities in Beijing. But Qiao Wanqing knew that although these days it was all elite education, university admission rates were very low, and the value of a degree was much higher than after the expansion of enrollment in later years, there were still differences between universities.

Capital Normal University certainly doesn't have the same prestige as Lu Mingyu's Renmin University.

Qiao Wanqing smiled and explained to Lu's parents, "It's a school that specializes in training teachers. Most of the graduates go on to become teachers in schools all over the country. There are other majors too, but not many."

They didn't explain further, or at least not in front of Li Yuqing. Lu's parents understood that very few people could surpass their two children in terms of education. But in their eyes, getting into university was already quite good. Back in their hometown, Lu Mingzhu's school wasn't as good as Lu Mingyu's or Lu Mingyue's, but they were just as happy.

Because Miao Cuiying was dissatisfied, she didn't say much. When Lu's father asked a few questions, Lu Mingyu answered them all. This girl hadn't spoken since she first came in and greeted everyone. In addition, Lu Mingyu only answered one question at a time and didn't want to say a single extra word, so Lu's father didn't want to ask any more questions.

The atmosphere became a bit awkward.

Miao Cuiying stood up and said to Li Dongmei, "Second daughter-in-law, let's go to the kitchen to cook!"

Li Dongmei looked a little embarrassed. "Mom, I'll go. You stay here and talk to them."

It was so embarrassing, she didn't know what to say, so she ran away quickly.

Miao Cuiying looked at Qiao Wanqing and said, "You young people talk, I'll go cook."

Qiao Wanqing pulled Miao Cuiying back, looking embarrassed as well. "Mom, you stay here and watch the children. My sister-in-law and I will cook."

After saying that, he quickly ran away.

Are you kidding me? Her mother-in-law ran away. Does she expect her, the daughter-in-law, to stay here and talk to her father-in-law? Even if Lu Mingyue and Lu Mingyu were here, she wouldn't have anything to say. The atmosphere is just too strange.

When other families' sons' girlfriends come over, it's always a lively affair, but with the Lu family's mess, she'd better run away quickly! She doesn't even want to watch the show anymore.

As soon as Qiao Wanqing ran out the door, Lu Mingyue also tried to run, but Miao Cuiying grabbed her and called out to Qiao Wanqing, "Wanwan, you young people talk to each other, I'll watch the child for you."

Qiao Wanqing: "..."

She looked towards the kitchen, where her second sister-in-law, Li Dongmei, was craning her neck to look into the living room. When she saw her looking over, she immediately pulled her head back.

Qiao Wanqing: "..."

Father Lu and Miao Cuiying got up and went to the yard. Second brother Lu Ming'an also went to the yard. The three of them sat under the big tree and chatted. In the living room, Qiao Wanqing looked at Lu Mingyue, and Lu Mingyue shrugged.

Helpless, Qiao Wanqing took out ice cream and chilled fruit from the refrigerator and placed them on the coffee table.

"It's so hot outside, have something cool to eat. Um... how old are you?"

The question was directed at Li Yuqing, who smiled and replied gently, "Twenty-three years old!"

Qiao Wanqing paused. Her attention had been drawn to Lu Mingyu's intention to go back to her hometown with her, and only then did she remember the age. This girl did look much more mature than Lu Mingyu, twenty-three.

Only one year older than Lu Mingyu?

Qiao Wanqing looked closely at Li Yuqing's face and felt that her age might not be real. No matter how well a person takes care of themselves, their age can still be seen. At most, they might look a little younger than their peers, but that usually means they are over thirty.

Girls in their twenties are all very young, and whether they take care of themselves or not doesn't really make a big difference, especially since Li Yuqing's family isn't well-off, so they probably don't have the means to take care of her.

Upon closer inspection, it becomes clear that Li Yuqing appears to be several years older than Lu Mingyu, yet she is only twenty-three.

She looks very young and beautiful, but her real age could be twenty-five or twenty-six, or even twenty-seven or twenty-eight.

Qiao Wanqing didn't show it on her face, and said with a smile, "Is that so? I'm two years older than you. Yunnan Province is so far away. Is it warm all year round in the south? I've never been there. Now that you've come to the capital, are you getting used to it here? It's so cold here in winter."

Li Yuqing looked at Qiao Wanqing's face. She didn't expect that she was already twenty-five years old. Her face was very young, and her skin was fair and flawless. She heard that she had given birth to five children. How could she not look old at all after having so many children?

How well-off must one's family be to raise someone who never lifts a finger?

"Yunnan Province is indeed much warmer than Beijing. When I first came here, I wasn't used to it, but there was nothing I could do about it. Over the past few years of studying here, I've gradually gotten used to it."

Qiao Wanqing took an ice cream and put it in her mouth. Her eldest daughter saw this and reached for it too, but Qiao Wanqing pulled her away, saying, "You can't eat that."

Qiao Anning looked at her mother with a wronged expression, "Mom..."

"You'll get diarrhea if you eat this."

"Why can you eat that?"

"I'm older than you, so eating this won't give me diarrhea."

Qiao Anning looked at the ice cream with resentment. Qiao Wanqing peeled a grape for her, which was also chilled and cool, but not as cold as the ice cream. The little one was very obedient and ate the grape obediently, while looking at Li Yuqing with her big eyes.

Looking at the chubby little girl, Li Yuqing asked, "Is this your daughter? How old is she?"

"My eldest daughter is four years old, and she and that other girl are twins!" She pointed to her eldest son, who was lying on the ground in the yard counting ants.

Li Yuqing stared at Qiao Anning for a long time without saying a word, and it was unclear what she was thinking.

Qiao Wanqing continued, "I heard from Mingyu that you're going back to your hometown after graduation. Is that a decision? Are you going back to be a teacher?"

Li Yuqing glanced at Lu Mingyu, and seeing that he didn't speak, she frowned and nodded, saying, "Yeah! I heard from my teacher that after graduation, we are usually assigned to our place of household registration. I don't have any other options, so I'll most likely have to go back to my hometown."

Qiao Wanqing raised an eyebrow slightly. No other channels?

What if there are other channels?

"Now that the college entrance examination is open and the country values ​​education, being a teacher is a good job. It should be very stable. Mingyu's school is much better. If he goes to Yunnan Province with you, he should be assigned to a good unit. Then you will both have jobs, and life should be good."

Li Yuqing suddenly looked up, somewhat surprised, and asked, "Your family agrees to let Mingyu go to Yunnan Province with me?"

While peeling grapes for her eldest daughter, Qiao Wanqing replied, "My mother-in-law probably wouldn't be happy about it. After all, it's so far away. If Mingyu really goes, it will be difficult for her to see her son again in the future. However, my father-in-law probably won't forcefully stop him. He just hopes that if Mingyu chooses to go with you, he won't regret it in the future."

"Ultimately, it depends on Mingyu. His future is his own. As family, we naturally hope he stays in Beijing. After all, we're all here, so we can look after each other if anything happens in the future. But if he insists on going with you, we can't stop him."

Li Yuqing was a little incredulous. She opened her mouth, but didn't say anything for a long time.

Qiao Wanqing looked at her expression and found it strange; this girl didn't seem happy!

Qiao Wanqing smiled meaningfully, then changed the subject, "Mingyue, did you like the dress from last time? The department store has new styles again, shall we go take a look?"

Lu Mingyue's eyes lit up. "Really? Let's go! Even if I can't afford it, it'll be good to go and take a look! I've been making steamed buns for my second brother these past few days, I'm practically a steamed bun myself."

"You're still young. Take advantage of your youth and go out more. Once you start working, you'll have to strive for promotions and raises, and you won't have as much time to go out and have fun. Let me tell you, sometimes after a busy day, you just want to sleep until you're completely exhausted, and you simply don't have the energy to go out and have fun."

"By the way, a few individually owned clothing stores have recently opened in Beijing. They look pretty good. Let's go check them out together. I just don't know when your fourth brother will be back. It's too hot now, so it's better to go in the evening. With your fourth brother there, we won't be worried about any danger even if we come back a little late."

Lu Mingyue said helplessly, "I probably can't count on him, besides..."

Lu Mingyue leaned closer and said with a grin, "My fourth brother hasn't been back for so long. If he really comes back, he'll just go shopping with you. I'm pretty perceptive; I definitely won't bother you."

Qiao Wanqing raised an eyebrow. "Really? Then I'll let you take care of the child."

Lu Mingyue: "..."

Qiao Wanqing turned to Li Yuqing and asked, "What about you? Do you usually like to go out and have fun?"

Li Yuqing's expression was indifferent. "It's alright. I usually have to study, and I'm not familiar with the capital, so I rarely go out. It was only after I met Mingyu that he would occasionally take me out for a stroll."

Qiao Wanqing nodded. "There are still many fun places in Beijing. Take advantage of this summer vacation to go out and have fun. Let Mingyu take you, or you can come with us. It's more fun with more people."

"If you decide to go back to your hometown in the future, then this summer vacation should be your last vacation in Beijing. Hurry up and travel around. After you go back to work, it will be difficult to come back and play again."

It was just a casual chat, but Qiao Wanqing noticed that Li Yuqing's expression seemed to turn ugly for a moment after she said those words.

She was a little surprised; this girl didn't like to hear this?

Girls should be interested in clothes and cosmetics. Perhaps Li Yuqing's family is not well-off and she can't afford these, but judging from her appearance, it shouldn't be that bad. Her clothes look quite nice.

However, even when Qiao Wanqing chatted with Lu Mingyue and deliberately brought her into the conversation, she remained indifferent and didn't respond unless absolutely necessary.

Qiao Wanqing was speechless. This girl wouldn't reveal a single word unless asked.

Qiao Wanqing didn't want to ask anymore, so she turned on the TV. The group occasionally exchanged a few words to ease the awkwardness, and spent the rest of the time watching TV.

Lunch was ready, and the family sat down to eat.

Li Yuqing looked at the dishes in front of her. The table was full of food, quite a feast. There were chicken, fish, meat, and eggs, twelve dishes in total, as well as drinks. Those drinks were not cheap at all; there were more than a dozen bottles on the table.

She restrained herself, trying to eat more elegantly and not wolf down her food.

After lunch, Miao Cuiying asked Lu Mingyu to take Li Yuqing out for a walk. The girl didn't talk much, and they didn't know how to greet her. They couldn't let her stay there for a nap in the middle of the day, so they decided to leave her with Lu Mingyu.

Lu Mingyu took the person out. It was very hot outside at noon, so they just strolled around the streets. There were still some shady places under the eaves and in the alleys.