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Chapter 745: Chapter 735 Why are you here?
"I’m back!" Shen Yunfang called out from the kitchen as she was cooking and heard the sound of the door opening.
Without hearing a reply, she felt quite puzzled, but when she took the dish out of the wok and brought it to the living room, she saw that it wasn’t just her own family’s Li Hongjun there, but also another man. It was Sun Chengbin, Li Xianghe’s husband, whom she had seen once during the New Year’s celebration.
"Oh? Chengbin? How come you are here?" Shen Yunfang was truly surprised.
How could Sun Chengbin, who should have been in some mountainous corner near the Capital, appear in Z Province? Was he here for training or a meeting?
"Heh, sister-in-law, I’m afraid we’re going to be neighbors soon. I was transferred to the Z Province Military Region today." Sun Chengbin spoke with a face beaming with joy.
But Li Hongjun still had that stern face.
"Really? Wow, that’s unexpected. Why didn’t you call ahead or something? This is so sudden." Shen Yunfang was shocked by the news and couldn’t accept it for a moment.
"Heh, I didn’t want to bother brother-in-law and you in advance, so I didn’t say anything. Besides, there wasn’t much to prepare. I was all by myself at the original military region, and when the transfer came, I just picked up my bag and moved." Sun Chengbin laughed as he spoke.
Following his lead, Shen Yunfang looked him up and down from head to toe, "Just arrived today? Have they assigned you a dormitory? If not, you can make do at our house for the night."
"Let’s not talk about that right now, let’s eat first." Li Hongjun had already washed his hands and came out, "Pangpang, Manman, hurry up and wash your hands for dinner. Come, take a seat." The last sentence was an invitation to Sun Chengbin. No matter what, the man was still his brother-in-law.
"Big brother, let me go wash my hands too, I’ll be right back," Sun Chengbin, knowing the house rule of washing hands before meals, naturally followed suit so as not to be disliked.
"Pangpang, take your uncle-in-law to wash his hands," Li Hongjun instructed his son.
Li Hongjun had just taken Sun Chengbin to pick up the two children, so on the way home, the kids had already greeted their new uncle-in-law.
Sun Chengbin also got friendly with the kids, joking and laughing with them.
By the time they came back from washing their hands, the table was already set with food.
"Chengbin, I had no idea you were coming today, so I didn’t prepare anything special for lunch. Just make do with what we have, and I’ll prepare a good meal tonight to welcome you," Shen Yunfang said politely.
Looking at the four dishes on the table, Sun Chengbin quickly replied, "Sister-in-law, this is very nice already. I can’t eat here tonight though, I’ve just arrived and need to get to know my new colleagues." 𝓃𝓸𝓿𝓹𝓾𝓫.𝓬ℴ𝓶
The four dishes on the table were indeed impressive; he hadn’t even eaten this well back in his hometown during New Year’s.
One was an oily dish of braised eggplant, another was preserved vegetables with pork belly, a red-cooked yellow croaker, and there was also a dish of sweetened persimmons.
Sun Chengbin was secretly amazed that his uncle-in-law’s family could still have fresh vegetables at this time, but he didn’t show it on his face.
"That’s true, you have your work to do. Go take care of your business then and come by for a meal when you’re free," Shen Yunfang was very welcoming to relatives who didn’t come to cause trouble or to take advantage.
"Sister-in-law, I won’t stand on ceremony then. Now that we’ll be living in the same residential area, I’ll probably trouble you quite often," Sun Chengbin said with a smile.
They exchanged greetings and inquired about each other’s well-being, when Li Hongjun suddenly asked, "Now that you’ve come over here, are you planning to bring Niuniu over to the hospital for a check-up?"
Sun Chengbin was taken aback, possibly not expecting his second uncle to bring up the child’s matter. "Yeah, I’ve thought about that too, after I get settled down here, I’ll write home to have Niuniu come over for a look." In reality, he hadn’t given a single thought to Niuniu, the abnormal child.
In his eyes, Niuniu was already a lost cause and he had never thought about treating her like his own daughter, who should be taken to the hospital for medical attention. After all, with the child being the way she was, there were always people at home willing to take care of her, freeing him from any worries or the need to keep someone for her care. Why waste money on a girl when he could save it to have a son instead, which would be more cost-efficient?
However, now that his second uncle had brought it up, it seemed he would have to bring Niuniu over for a while. He had just arrived and his foundation here was not yet stable; he still needed the support of his second uncle.
"If the child comes over, will Li Xianghe also come over here?" Shen Yunfang asked.
The question was not directed at Sun Chengbin but at Li Hongjun.
Li Hongjun did not reply, the answer was self-evident. If Li Xianghe, who was longing to be with the military back home, learned that Sun Chengbin had been transferred to the Z Province Military Region and that Niuniu was to be brought over, it would be impossible for her not to follow.
Shen Yunfang felt a tightness in her chest at the thought; knowing Li Xianghe’s temperament, trouble was certain to follow her arrival, and Yunfang was utterly reluctant to live close to her. But getting medical treatment for the child was the most pressing issue, she felt sympathy for Niuniu and couldn’t let her dislike for the adult prevent the child from receiving medical care.
Later at dinner, Sun Chengbin began asking Li Hongjun for advice on how to process the procedures for accompanying the military. It seemed he had come to his senses and was preparing to bring Li Xianghe over to strengthen family bonds with his second uncle.
After the meal was over, Sun Chengbin took his leave.
After finishing the dishes, Li Hongjun went into the room to find his wife lying facing away from the door on the bed.
He sighed and, removing his coat, he lay down on the other side of the bed, reaching out to hold his wife in his arms.
"I know you don’t like Li Xianghe, and to tell you the truth, as a second brother, I’m not fond of her either. But you’ve seen Niuniu’s condition. If she remains like this, she’ll have no future. I feel sorry for the child!" Li Hongjun could be ruthless towards adults, but he just couldn’t harden his heart towards a child like Niuniu.
"We have a daughter ourselves, and I keep thinking about what I would do if my daughter had such an illness. I just want to give the child a chance." Nobody can say for sure whether the treatment will work, but never giving it a chance would mean the adults have failed the child.
Li Hongjun’s words brought Shen Yunfang to tears. As a mother herself, her heart was even softer than Hongjun’s.
"I don’t mind the child coming over for treatment, as her own parents will pay, not me. But I really can’t stand your sister. We even came to blows back in our hometown, consider how things will turn out here if Li Xianghe really moves here with the military. Mark my words, it will be constant squabbles." Shen Yunfang spoke in a muffled tone.
Why was peaceful living so hard to achieve?
"Fighting is not important, as long as you don’t come off worse. If Li Xianghe had any shame, she wouldn’t have turned out this way. If she really comes here, she probably has forgotten all about it anyway. Don’t hold back with her; if she really provokes you again, then go ahead and hit her." Nobody knew his sister better than Li Hongjun did.
"Pfft, you can be quite ruthless with your sense of justice," said Shen Yunfang with a playful glance at him.
"I am a soldier of the people. D has taught us that we must always stand on the side of righteousness, and not hesitate to sacrifice family ties for justice," Li Hongjun stated solemnly.
"Oh, just sweet-talk me," she said.
