"Why are you father and son arriving just now?"

Zheng Fang, with her arms full of bags, complained to Tan Yunlong and Tan Wenbin.

She had already been waiting a while since her long-distance bus arrived, having become quite irritated by the aggressive touts asking her if she needed a ride.

Tan Yunlong: "I arrived at your son's dormitory at noon."

Zheng Fang: "Wasn't your son in his dorm?"

"He was, and I happened to see him come out."

"Then why didn't you..."

"He went out to eat and take a walk with a girl; I waited for him to come back."

"Well, you… indeed should have waited."

Zheng Fang patted Tan Wenbin, who was busy loading the luggage into the car, and asked, "Son, what's the girl like? Tell mom about her?"

"Mom, it's not what you think, we're just friends."

"Isn't it true that lovers often start as friends?"

"Mom, what are you saying? Can't there be pure friendship between men and women?"

"Is the girl very ugly?"

"Mom, really, there's nothing going on. The stuff is loaded; hurry up and get in the car. Dad, you should start driving. Let's take Comrade Zheng Fang to have a good meal at a restaurant to welcome her!"

"Why go to a restaurant? You have already eaten, haven't you? Let's first go back to the place your dad got from his job. I need to tidy up for your father. Living by himself, I don't even know what pigsty he might have turned it into."

"That's right." Tan Wenbin immediately agreed, "Mom, you don't know how messy Dad can be. Just be glad it's still not cold. During winter, he alone could wear his stinking socks until they're stiff as batons."

Tan Yunlong, who was driving, glared at his son through the rearview mirror and then said:

"I can't live without your mother in this life. I'm taken care of by her. What about you?"

"That's right, son. Where is that girl's hometown?"

"Mom..."

Tan Yunlong: "She's also from Nantong."

Zheng Fang clapped her hands: "That's great! You can travel together back home during holidays. And after graduation, whether you stay in Jinling or go back to Nantong to work, it'll be convenient."

Tan Wenbin rested his forehead against the car window, somewhat resigned.

Zheng Fang continued, "Where in Nantong is she from? The city district, Tongzhou, or Rugao, Hai'an?"

Tan Yunlong: "She's from Shigang."

"Ha!" Zheng Fang laughed, "Not bad, son, strive to clinch the deal..."

She stopped at this point, looking at her husband driving the car, and asked, "Zhou Yunyun?"

Tan Yunlong wound down the window, ready to light a cigarette to invigorate himself. He had worked late into the night to finish his tasks and take the day off to pick up his wife.

Realizing his cigarette pack was empty, he searched for a cigarette.

Leaning forward, Tan Wenbin placed a cigarette in his father's mouth and then the almost full pack into his father's coat pocket.

Tan Yunlong glanced at his son in slight surprise, then silently lit the cigarette.

"Is it Zhou Yunyun or not?" Zheng Fang gently tapped the back of her husband's seat.

Tan Yunlong exhaled smoke out the car window without saying another word.

Tan Wenbin could only answer: "Yes, it's Zhou Yunyun. Today was just an old classmate gathering, a totally normal get-together with folks from our hometown."

"Old hometown friends and the girl goes as far as to come to your school? Wait for you below the dorm? Son, your mom wasn't always this old."

"Mom, why did you bring so much stuff?"

"This time, Zhou Yunyun's mother asked me to bring some clothes and food for her. I added some things myself. I was planning to visit her school when I had the chance. Now it would seem better for you to deliver them to her."

During his senior year of high school, Zheng Fang found out about her son's special relationship with their class leader by eavesdropping on a father-son conversation and then made an effort to get to know Zhou Yunyun's mother.

Shigang was just a small town, and it wasn't difficult to make the acquaintance of someone if one really wanted to.

Zhou Yunyun was an only child, with both parents working at a local textile factory—simple, honest people.

After getting to know each other well and when Zheng Fang mentioned that her son was in the same class as their daughter, the couple immediately became distant and resistant.

In the countryside, girls often marry young, but they hoped their daughter would go to university for a better future and did not pursue the matter.

Zheng Fang, having too much free time at work and with her son mostly staying at Mr. Li's house, let the matter go. It later became just an occasion to exchange gifts during festivals, a relationship that was neither close nor estranged.

Once both children were admitted to university, Zhou Yunyun's parents' attitude changed completely and became proactive and enthusiastic.

Many parents in China guard their children against dating before the college entrance exam, but as soon as it's over, they start urging them to marry.

A former high school male classmate who was once called a nuisance was now referred to endearingly as a childhood friend.

The Tan family was considered quite respectable in their town. If the two families' children ended up together, it would be considered a match with mutual background knowledge, and even from a self-serving viewpoint, beneficial for their future elderly life.

"That suitcase with the retractable handle and wheels, your mother personally selected it in the department store. I even stuck some cartoons on it. When the time comes, you can deliver it to Zhou Yunyun."

"Mom, what about my suitcase?"

"What do you need a suitcase for? Strive a little harder, so when you come home, you can push one suitcase back together."

Tan Yunlong: "Alright, the child has his own considerations about his affairs."

"You shut up! If only our son had your drive from back then, do I need to worry about failing to secure Zhou Yunyun as my daughter-in-law?"

Tan Yunlong honked a couple of times and overtook the tractor ahead.

Reaching Tan Yunlong's workplace housing, which was small but included three rooms and a living room, the condition was considered very decent.

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