Back to 1984: Let's Work Hard Together to Raise The Kids!-Chapter 172: Running into an Acquaintance

The courtyard looked a bit aged, with houses made of yellow earth bricks, some of the walls had cracks, but the courtyard was kept very clean. The ground was covered with some broken tiles, and flowers and plants were planted around. You could hear the sounds of chickens and ducks, yet there was no trace of chicken or duck droppings, which showed that the owner of the courtyard was also very meticulous about cleanliness.

The two sisters had just sat down when someone walked out from the side room. Lin Qin was startled once again, "It’s you!"

Su Shengning paused for a moment, politely nodded towards Lin Qin, with a hint of confusion in his eyes.

"You know each other?" Su Yonghuai was even more surprised than Lin Qin.

Lin Qin took a moment and then explained how she met Su Shengning on the bus.

Su Yonghuai laughed heartily, "So that’s how it is. This is my son, Su Shengning, and this is Lin Qin, my former student. It’s fate that you two met."

Su Shengning sat down, posture straight, wanting to speak but hesitating.

Su Yonghuai, engrossed in catching up with Lin Qin, didn’t notice.

When Su Yonghuai went to the kitchen, Su Shengning looked at Lin Qin pleadingly and whispered, "Big sister, could you please not mention Jin Jing’s matter?" 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

"Who’s Jin Jing?" Lin Qin was puzzled.

Su Shengning blushed, seemingly hesitant, and after a while he reluctantly said, "She’s the girl who didn’t want to get on the bus with me."

Lin Qin understood, made an "OK" gesture.

Su Yonghuai came over with tea, and Lin Qin, afraid he would be suspicious, quickly asked, "Teacher Su, I thought your family was in the city, I didn’t expect you to be from Pingxi Town."

Su Yonghuai sighed, "This is my hometown. Ever since I went to work in the city, I haven’t returned much throughout the year. My mother mainly lives here.

I originally wanted to take the elderly to the city, but she wasn’t used to living there. Plus, she had no one to talk to in the city, so she firmly wanted to come back after a while.

Luckily, my two older brothers are in the town to take care of her. In recent years, her health has been deteriorating, so during the winter and summer holidays, I always come back to accompany her."

Lin Qin realized this and praised, "Teacher Su, you’re not only a good teacher but also a good son. Your virtues are worth learning from."

"Oh, stop flattering me!" Su Yonghuai chuckled bitterly, waving his hand, turning to look at the room where the old mother lived, his eyes gradually reddened, and his voice lowered considerably, "To be honest, I guess my mother doesn’t have much time left, so I called Shengning back from the army. She adores Shengning and always wanted to see her grandson get married. It was agreed that Shengning would bring his partner back for her to see, but unexpectedly the girl couldn’t make it due to something coming up at the last minute."

Su Shengning, not wanting Su Yonghuai to feel disappointed or heartbroken, pressed his lips tightly, and after a while, hoarsely said in a low voice, "Dad, actually, I brought Jin Jing back, but she threw a fit as soon as we reached the city, not willing to get on the bus with me. She looked down on our countryside, so I have decided that when I return to the army, I will make things clear with my superiors and end the relationship with her."

Originally, he intended to keep this matter hidden, but now with a witness like Lin Qin present, he really had no face to continue hiding it from Su Yonghuai.

Su Yonghuai widened his eyes in shock. Once he gathered himself, he went to find a stick, furiously swinging it at Su Shengning, "You idiot! Can you joke about such matters? That girl is from a big city, never experienced hardships, so it’s understandable that she can’t adjust to our environment.

Couldn’t you have honestly explained it to her? Breaking up over such a trivial matter, does it make sense?"

Su Shengning stubbornly stood still, letting Su Yonghuai hit him with a stick.

The two sisters, Lin Qin and Lin Ying, listened in fear and trepidation.

Lin Qin hurriedly persuaded, "Teacher Su, let’s talk calmly, this matter is not entirely Shengning’s fault. In fact, when they were having disagreements, I was there too. To be honest, the attitude of that girl at the time made me frown. Shengning tried to persuade her, coax her, but it wasn’t his fault that he couldn’t keep her."

Su Yonghuai suspiciously looked back and forth between them, "Really?"

Su Shengning remained silent with his head lowered.

Lin Qin immediately swore, "Teacher Su, you know what kind of person I am. While I may not be particularly upright, I have never lied to you! Let me carefully explain what happened at that time, perhaps then you will understand Shengning’s decision."

Then Lin Qin recounted every detail of what happened at the bus station.

Su Yonghuai furrowed his brows, almost suffocating a fly, perplexed, "It can’t be! I haven’t met Jin Jing, but I know she’s been fond of our Shengning for years. I heard about this from Shengning’s leader who visited An City last year. The leader brought it up.

I was anxious about this kid’s lifelong matters, so I immediately called Shengning, asking him to try dating the girl.

Previously, this boy always said on the phone that things were going well, Jin Jing called me uncle sweetly every time, sounded like an understanding good girl..."

Su Yonghuai kept talking about Jin Jing’s good qualities, trying to convince himself there was a misunderstanding, but seeing Lin Qin and Su Shengning’s serious expressions, he couldn’t go on, his demeanor gradually collapsing.

Su Shengning, feeling heartbroken, said, "Dad! I hadn’t planned on bringing her back to see you this soon if not for grandma. If she had returned with me this time, I’d have filed a report to marry her once we got back.

But she looked down on me first, and she was unwilling to meet my elders, which indicates she’s not truly willing to live a life with me. Under such circumstances, why should I continue entangling myself? Fortunately, we haven’t been dating for long, mostly just holding hands, so it doesn’t count as taking advantage of her.

I’ll clarify things with her, it won’t affect her future marital prospects."

Su Yonghuai felt his son was naive, silently shaking his head, "You’re making it sound easy. That girl has familial ties with your leader. If you break up, how can you continue staying in the army?"

Su Shengning nonchalantly curled his lips, "It’s a time of peace now, the country is focusing on economic development, with less warfare, making it harder to achieve merit. If I continue in the army, opportunities for promotion are slim, maybe this is it for my life. I’d rather get allocated a job here, at least I can take care of you and mom and also be with grandma."

He’d considered this long ago, but Su Yonghuai didn’t agree, and without any significant reason to leave, he just continued staying.

If he broke up with Jin Jing, even if he didn’t want to leave, he’d have to.

Su Yonghuai still felt regretful, continually sighing.

The two sisters, Lin Qin and Lin Ying, looked at each other, not expressing any opinion at a time like this.

Since the incident with Su Shengning left Su Yonghuai unhappy, Lin Qin found an excuse and left with Lin Ying.

Before leaving, Lin Ying pointed to that dilapidated and abandoned courtyard next to the Su family, saying, "I bought this courtyard. Once the house is renovated, we’ll be neighbors."

The father and son of the Su family smiled and nodded, seeing the Lin sisters off.