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Chapter 414: Chapter 404: What Is It Really For?
Shen Yunfang had chatted with Elder Shen for over half an hour in the cold house, and amidst the conversation, Elder Shen’s wife had even inquired about the house, which kept things quite busy.
"Yunfang, we came to the Capital mainly to see your sister Yunxiu. We only found out you were also here in the Capital and living nearby after seeing your sister. Moreover, we learned that you bought a house here. We thought since we’re here, we must come to see you," Elder Shen said with heartfelt sincerity.
Shen Yunfang suddenly realized what was happening and remembered that Yunxiu, following her educated youth man, had also come back to the Capital. However, how could Yunxiu have known about her buying a house? That’s what she was wondering and what she asked.
"Elder, I’m more than happy to have you visit me. But I’ve been moved here for almost half a year now, so how come I’ve never seen Shen Yunxiu around? How did she find out I bought a house here?" It truly was quite mysterious. Given that Yunxiu knew she had bought a siheyuan here, she should also be aware that Yunfang did not usually reside there. So why had Elder Shen and his wife been left waiting outside in such cold weather? If she hadn’t arrived today, or hadn’t planned to come until before the New Year, would Elder Shen and his wife have waited outside indefinitely?
It was clear that Yunxiu only knew she had bought a house here but was unaware of her other apartment in the residential area.
Indeed, Yunxiu didn’t know where she lived. The niece of her uncle’s wife’s sister was a distant relative of Zhao’s youngest son’s wife, which boiled down to a slender connection with the original house owner. At first, Yunxiu came to join the crowd out of curiosity, and unexpectedly she spotted Shen Yunfang coming to buy the house. She immediately hid herself in the crowd and later watched secretly from the shadows, confirming that Yunfang was indeed the new owner of the household.
"Your sister Yunxiu’s in-laws live around here. She saw you buying the house initially and was hesitant to recognize you. But after she saw you bring the kids here several times, she confirmed it was you. When we came to visit her, she told us about it, and your uncle insisted on paying you a visit." A mother would always put her daughter in the best light; Elder Shen’s wife implied through and through that Yunxiu had moved past the events of the past, suggesting that Yunfang shouldn’t dwell on those old grievances either.
Upon hearing this, Shen Yunfang raised her eyebrow. So Yunxiu lived nearby and those prying eyes she felt on occasion must have been Yunxiu watching her in secret.
It was quite something; who could have thought that in such a vast Capital, just randomly buying a house would lead to being spotted by an acquaintance, especially one with whom she didn’t get along. She wasn’t sure whether her luck was good or bad.
"Oh, is that so? I’m really happy that you could come by to see me. Elder, right now the kids and I aren’t staying here. It’s very cold in the winter if you don’t light the stove; let’s go back to my place and continue our chat." They had been talking for quite a while, and while the adults seemed fine, she was worried the children might catch a cold from just sitting there.
"You don’t live here, where do you live?" Elder Shen asked, hesitantly.
"Just upfront, there’s a residential complex. I live inside that complex." There was no point in hiding this, nor was there a need to.
"What, you’ve moved into an apartment?" Elder Shen’s wife seemed truly astonished.
"Yes, with two children, it’s more convenient for us to live in an apartment," Shen Yunfang said with a smile.
It was at this moment that the two elders finally noticed the siblings standing side by side.
This is what happens when they’re not your own flesh and blood; if they were their own grandchildren or their grandchildren by marriage, they surely would have noticed them right away.
"Oh, you’ve had another one?" Elder Shen’s wife knew about Pangpang but didn’t realize Shen Yunfang had another daughter.
Shen Yunfang didn’t know how to respond to that, so she simply moved on, "Pangpang, Manman, come over and greet everyone."
The two children were very well-behaved and called out to everyone just as their mother had told them to.
This put Uncle Shen and his wife in an awkward position. It was the first time the younger generation was meeting them, and they were supposed to give some kind of gift, but they had come empty-handed.
"It’s too cold, let’s go back to the house and chat there," Shen Yunfang said as she pushed out the bicycle, helped the children onto it, and started walking home with Uncle Shen and his wife.
On the way, Shen Yunfang inquired when the old couple had arrived and where they were staying now.
"We’ve been here for over a week," Aunt Shen said, "staying at some guest house nearby. Oh, don’t even mention it, everything in the Capital is so expensive." She felt pained just thinking about the daily room expense.
When they were at Yunxiu’s house before, after the Fang Family had returned home that evening, they squeezed together for a bite, and right after dinner, Yunxiu said she would take them to a guesthouse to stay. 𝑛𝘰𝑣𝘱𝑢𝑏.𝘤𝑜𝘮
The old couple wasn’t offended. Their daughter-in-law’s in-law’s place was no bigger than the palm of a hand; even if they wanted to stay, there simply was no room for them.
Shen Yunfang completely understood why Uncle Shen and his wife had to stay at the guesthouse. Housing in the big city was tight, something she had experienced firsthand, and since Yunxiu was living with her in-laws, there was even less chance of there being space for Uncle Shen and his wife at her place.
"How long were you waiting there for me?" She felt bad for the elderly couple, having to endure the cold weather for so long.
Uncle Shen shook his hat but didn’t reply. Instead, Aunt Shen answered, "We’ve been waiting there for you for almost a week now. We thought you wouldn’t take long to come over. We never expected to wait so many days, freezing in this cold."
Although the temperature in the Capital wasn’t as cold as in the north, long hours outdoors would be unbearable for most people. The couple had nowhere to shelter from the wind or to warm themselves; the ground was chilly, and after sitting a while, they had to stand up and jump around to keep warm. It was hard on their old limbs; standing made their knees ache, so they had to sit down and rest. That’s how they kept switching between sitting and standing at the entrance, where people wearing red armbands would ask them who they were, what they were doing there, whom they were looking for, and so on. If it weren’t for the fact that Uncle Shen had the introduction letter in his pocket, they might have been mistaken for vagrants and taken into custody by the police.
Shen Yunfang calculated in her mind that they had been there for over a week, just waiting for her for one week, which meant that soon after their arrival, they had already started looking for her. She began to ponder what could be the real reason behind their visit this time.
She was quite self-aware; not to mention Uncle, she knew that Auntie and she hadn’t had the smoothest relationship over the years, with a fair share of conflicts and unpleasantness. She didn’t delude herself into thinking that Auntie had waited like this simply out of concern for her.
"Aiya, Uncle, Auntie, you must have suffered a lot in this freezing weather, being cold all day outside. Yunxiu too, she really should have persuaded you to stay in. Also, there was no need to wait at the entrance to find me; you could have gone directly to the local residents’ committee to ask for me," Yunfang said. This area was under Ma Liguo’s jurisdiction, and if the elderly couple had truly gone to the residents’ committee to inquire about her, they would have indeed found her.
Moreover, when they bought the house, the residents’ committee had a record of it, although there were no phone numbers listed, it was stated that the homeowner, Shen Yunfang, was currently studying at North Agricultural University.
