Hearing that, Su Yun asked with concern, "Aunt Xia is sick? What happened to her?"
"She got so angry that it affected her health. She had to be rushed to the hospital last night. After my dad came back from the hospital, he completely lost his temper and threw my aunt and her son out of the house!"
Xia Ying smiled in relief.
"Our family can finally have some peace."
The more Su Yun listened, the more curious she became.
"Yingzi, haven't Uncle Xia and Aunt Xia always been very tolerant of your aunt? What made Aunt Xia so furious all of a sudden?"
"Su Yun, if I tell you this, you absolutely can't tell anyone else! I've never met anyone as shameless as my aunt..."
She suddenly stopped speaking and cautiously glanced back at Gu Hai.
Gu Hai had tilted his head, stretching his ears as far as they would go. It was obvious he was eavesdropping.
Eager to hear the gossip, Su Yun immediately said to him, "Gu Hai, didn't you say you were going home to cook lunch? Hurry up and go. I'm starving."
Since the weather had become so hot, Gu Hai no longer brought lunch from home. Instead, he cooked fresh meals every day.
Gu Hai: "..."
This was too much.
He had finally finished guarding against other men, and now he had to guard against women too?
Under Su Yun's watchful gaze, Gu Hai reluctantly shuffled out of the recycling station, dragging his feet every step of the way.
Only after he had left did Xia Ying continue.
"My aunt came this time because she wanted my dad to find her son a job."
"But instead of asking politely, she actually told my mom yesterday that if my dad wouldn't help her son get a job, then I should have a fake marriage with him. After that, they could transfer his household registration to our family so he could qualify for state grain rations."
"She even said my mom owed her this because, if she hadn't stepped aside back then, she should have been the one who married my dad!"
"Su Yun, can you believe that?"
"My parents were the ones who had the arranged meeting back then. What did any of it have to do with her? She failed to scheme her way in, yet she's completely twisting the facts!"
After hearing the story, Su Yun clicked her tongue.
"Your aunt really has some nerve."
"Exactly! She's got everything calculated so she'd never lose. I can't believe she even came up with the idea of a fake marriage. Disgusting! Isn't she afraid people would laugh her to death if word got out?"
Su Yun nodded in agreement.
"If you ask me, Aunt Xia is just too kind. The moment your aunt showed up, she should have chased them out with a stick. A fake marriage? That's absolutely revolting."
"I know! My mom regrets it now too. I just came from the hospital. After hearing that my aunt and her son had been kicked out, she was already feeling much better."
Su Yun nodded in relief.
At the same time, she tried hard to remember.
In her previous life, Xia Ying had never entered into a fake marriage with anyone, which meant her aunt's scheme had ultimately failed.
But...
Who had Xia Ying married in her previous life?
Why couldn't she remember at all?
Resting her chin in her hand, Su Yun searched her memories for any image of Xia Ying's future, but her mind remained completely blank.
"Su Yun? Su Yun?"
Snapping back to reality, she saw Xia Ying waving a hand in front of her face.
"Su Yun, where did your mind wander off to?"
Su Yun immediately smiled.
"It's nothing. I was just wondering whether your aunt will really give up. What if she starts plotting against you behind your back?"
Xia Ying looked completely unconcerned.
"Let her try! My eldest uncle works for the Municipal Public Security Bureau. If she dares pull any tricks, my uncle could find an excuse to deal with her whole family."
Only then did Su Yun understand.
---
Around lunchtime, Gu Hai returned carrying freshly prepared food.
Seeing that Xia Ying was still there, he immediately forced a smile.
"Oh, Comrade Xia Ying, I didn't realize you were still here. I only brought lunch for Xiao Yun and myself. How about you make do with my portion?"
Of course Xia Ying wasn't about to eat Gu Hai's lunch.
She was just about to decline when Su Yun said,
"It's fine. Yingzi can share my meal with me. I don't really have much of an appetite anyway. It'll help me lose some weight."
The moment Gu Hai heard that, he frowned.
"Xiao Yun, it's so hot these days. You need to keep your strength up. You have to eat more so you'll have enough energy to study."
Su Yun replied helplessly,
"But I really don't have much of an appetite..."
She had just finished drinking two bottles of orange soda that Xia Ying had brought. The empty bottles were still sitting on the counter. Couldn't Gu Hai see them?
He could.
But to him, drinking and eating were two completely different things.
"I made braised pork ribs today," he said earnestly. "There's also cold cucumber salad, dry-fried green beans, and sweet pickled radish. They're all your favorites."
Just hearing the menu made Su Yun surrender.
"Alright. Then I'll eat your lunch, and you can go home and eat mine. Yingzi can have my lunch box."
Gu Hai: "..."
Xia Ying, was it?
He was officially holding a grudge.
---
That evening, after returning home, Su Yun told Su Wenshan and Chen Xiue about Aunt Xia's hospitalization.
The moment Chen Xiue heard the news, she immediately stuffed the wedding invitation she had been holding beneath the kang mat. Then she searched through the cupboards and packed a basket with dried longans, red dates, brown sugar, and several bright red apples that Su Yun had previously brought home for Su Wenshan.
Carrying the basket, the whole family headed to the hospital.
Taking advantage of the trip, Su Wenshan also stopped by the People's Hospital to visit Su Yonghe.
Seeing that Su Yonghe could eat well and sleep soundly, he finally relaxed.
Naturally, Zhao Manfen didn't miss the opportunity to praise her future son-in-law.
Right in front of Su Wenshan, she spent the entire visit singing Zhou Ziyang's praises from beginning to end.
Fortunately, Zhou Ziyang wasn't at the hospital that evening, sparing Su Xiu from even greater embarrassment.
Lying in bed, Su Yonghe looked at Su Wenshan with gratitude.
"Big Brother, Xiu already told me everything. If you hadn't donated blood for me that day, I don't think I would've recovered so quickly."
"I honestly never imagined you'd be willing to let go of the past."
His eyes filled with tears as he quickly wiped them away with his rough hand.
Zhao Manfen, however, wasn't pleased.
Curling her lip, she said,
"He's your older brother. Giving you a little blood is only what he should have done. Consider that blood his compensation to our family. Back then—"
"Mom!"
Seeing her mother about to dredge up old grievances again, Su Xiu hurriedly interrupted, shooting her a warning look.
Zhao Manfen swallowed her anger with a snort and turned to stare out the window.
Knowing exactly what kind of person Zhao Manfen was, Su Wenshan simply ignored her and said to Su Yonghe,
"You were already in the emergency room that day. How could I still be thinking about old grudges? As long as you're alright, that's all that matters."
Su Yonghe lowered his head in shame, unable to reply.
Trying to ease the awkwardness, Su Wenshan continued,
"Oh, by the way, Xiao Yun told me that the Public Security Bureau has already sent that fellow Qiangzi to the detention center. I heard he'll be locked up for six months. That's wonderful news! By the time he gets out, Xiu will probably already be married, so there'll be no need to worry about him causing trouble again."
"That's right," Su Yonghe agreed. "We owe all of that to Comrade Xiao Zhou. He even helped our family recover some of our medical expenses."
The two brothers continued chatting rather awkwardly for quite a while.
Eventually, Zhao Manfen deliberately let out a loud snort, and only then did Su Wenshan reluctantly end the visit.
To be honest, ever since each of them had gotten married, this was the first time the two brothers had enjoyed such a friendly conversation.