Chapter 33

“Qian Fu was arrested.” Ye Changjun heard the good news from his friend. The outcome was even smoother than they had imagined.

“Besides gambling, he also has serious charges of assaulting a police officer. He’ll be in jail for at least two or three years.”

Ye Changyuan clapped his hands. “That’s great.”

Ye Xiaoxiao asked, “Is the widow okay?”

After all, they had asked someone to help them act. Although they had paid, it wouldn’t be good if they had caused too much trouble for others.

Ye Changjun: “You don’t know, that widow is tough. After Qian Fu got into trouble, she just left and got together with someone else. Qian Fu’s fierce mother went to make a scene, and she was beaten up.”

Ye Xiaoxiao: “The Qian family bullies the weak and fears the strong.”

Ye Changsheng: “Big Sister leaving the Qian family is like escaping from a sea of misery.”

Ye Changjun patted his two younger brothers on the shoulders. “Tomorrow, we’ll go back to Big Sister’s house. You guys are starting school soon. Focus on your studies after school starts. Take good care of Xiaoxiao at school.”

Ye Changyuan looked distressed. “Ah! Time flies so fast!”

After resolving Ye Lian’s matter, Miao Cuifang finally noticed something was wrong.

“Where did Third Brother go? Why haven’t we seen him in all these days?”

Ye Changsheng widened his eyes. “Didn’t Third Brother go home?”

Miao Cuifang was also stunned. “No, I haven’t seen him since he sent you guys to town.”

Ye Jianguo remembered something and suddenly slapped his thigh. “That rascal ran away. He’s always wanted to go out and explore. He probably took this opportunity to run away.”

Miao Cuifang immediately became worried. “Why are they all running away? What if something happens to them?”

Ye Xiaoxiao weakly comforted her. “Mom and Dad, Third Brother is an adult. He should be fine.”

Miao Cuifang was both angry and anxious. She warned the children at home, “You must tell your family before you go out in the future. If anyone dares to run away without saying anything, I’ll break your legs.”

The children in the yard didn’t dare to say anything.

Although Miao Cuifang wouldn’t hit the children, Ye Jianguo definitely would.

Miao Fengshan looked at his daughter and son-in-law and advised, “Children grow up and have their own ideas. Let them be. But Third Brother needs to be criticized. He should at least write a letter home. He can’t just run away quietly like this.”

Because of Ye Changning’s matter, everyone’s emotions were stirred up, which diluted the matter of Ye Lian’s divorce.

…

Two days before school started, Ye Mei came to Grandpa Miao’s house.

She had heard that her elder sister had gotten a divorce and came back to see her.

But at this time, Ye Lian had already returned to Baishi Village with her parents.

Ye Mei was excited. “She got a divorce! Good, good! I think our family should set off firecrackers.”

Ye Changyuan: “Second Sister, what are you doing here?”

Ye Mei patted her younger brother’s head. “Xiaoxiao asked me to help her find a house near the school. I’ve already found a vacant unit. The environment is pretty good, and it’s close to the school. Let’s go see it.

And Xiaoxiao needs to enroll, so I’ve already contacted the principal.

With Grandpa’s influence, the principal agreed to let Xiaoxiao transfer in.”

Ye Changyuan: “When did Xiaoxiao say she wanted to find a house?”

Ye Xiaoxiao stepped forward. “It was me who asked Second Sister. The dormitory environment at school isn’t good, and I thought we could all live outside if we rented a house.”

Ye Changyuan: “Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go take a look.”

Miao Fengshan smiled. “Since your Second Sister has already arranged everything, I won’t go. If you need money, come and ask Grandpa.”

Ye Xiaoxiao had enough money to live until the college entrance exam, so she wasn’t worried about money at all.

As for university, according to the current policy, tuition was free, and she could also get scholarships.

After thanking Miao Fengshan for his kindness, Ye Xiaoxiao packed her books and clothes. If she couldn’t find a house, she would leave them at Ye Mei’s house.

Thinking of her master who hadn’t returned, she wrote a letter and left it at the pharmacy.

It stated that she had started school and would come back every Sunday.

Ye Mei had come back on a bicycle, but she couldn’t take the three boys with her.

Fortunately, they met a donkey cart on the way and got a ride for a while.

This was Ye Xiaoxiao’s first time coming to the county. Although the streets were still dusty, they were wider than the village and town.

Every few streets, they could also see four or five-story apartment buildings. The city was beginning to take shape.

Baichuan High School was the best high school in the county and had the best teaching resources in the county. There were many students and teachers, but the quality varied. Few people were admitted to university every year.

The house Ye Mei found was in the family compound behind the high school.

The house originally belonged to a couple of teachers, but they had other houses, so this one was empty.

The entire family compound was made up of three-story buildings, built four or five years ago. They weren’t old yet.

Ye Mei opened the door with her key. “The house I found is in Building 2, Unit 203. There are two small bedrooms, a living room combined with the kitchen, and a bathroom.

The rent here is expensive because each household has a separate bathroom, and most of the neighbors are teachers.

I thought that it would be safer for a young girl to live here.

Otherwise, there are many vacant old houses in the alleyways.”

Ye Xiaoxiao walked in and was quite satisfied with the place, but the bedroom was empty, with nothing in it. “Second Sister, why isn’t there a bed in the room?”

Ye Mei: “The owner probably moved out. The bed is no problem. I’ll ask your brother-in-law to find some boards and make two new beds and bring them over.”

Ye Changyuan: “This place is pretty good, but I wonder how expensive the rent is.”

Ye Mei: “I’ve discussed it with the owner. We’ll pay eighty yuan for the whole time until the college entrance exam. The water and electricity will be paid separately each month.”

Ye Changyuan was shocked. “That’s so expensive!”

Ye Changsheng also frowned. “Is there a smaller house? Changyuan and I can continue to live in the dormitory.”

Ye Changyuan: “Yeah, yeah.”

Ye Mei smiled helplessly. “You two stinky boys know how to save money. Second Sister will pay for it.”

Ye Xiaoxiao felt that the price was within her budget. She had also observed the surroundings along the way. Every floor was quiet. There wasn’t much noise. “Second Sister, we’ll take this house. I have money. You don’t need to pay.”

Eighty yuan was almost three months of Ye Mei’s salary. She couldn’t accept this favor.

Ye Xiaoxiao had already prepared the money. She counted out eighty yuan from her pocket and handed it to Ye Mei.

“Second Sister, before we pay, let’s sign a contract with the owner. We don’t want any problems later.”

Ye Mei: “No problem. This house needs to be cleaned up. You guys can stay at Second Sister’s house first.”

Ye Xiaoxiao: “Second Sister, go home first. I want to go see if there are some things I need to buy. We’ll go to your house after we’re done.”

Ye Mei: “Okay. Take this key. But when you go out to buy things, buy a new lock. Put the owner’s old lock away for him.”

Ye Xiaoxiao agreed.