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On the second day of the Lunar New Year, according to tradition, it was the day for married daughters to return to their parents’ home to pay respects.
As always, Ye Ermei and Ye Xiaoyu followed this custom, and naturally, Zhao Qing, Tianniu, and Lele would go with them.
Lele had only been to the Ye family home a few times and didn’t have a deep impression of it. He could recognize his grandmother, eldest uncle, and aunt, and he knew that his grandmother doted on him. Compared to his paternal grandmother, he preferred his maternal grandmother. However, when it came to distinguishing between his older cousins, he was often confused.
Tianniu, on the other hand, was reluctant to go.
Firstly, her previous experience in the countryside hadn’t left a good impression. Secondly, while the cousins from her second uncle’s family were fine, the two younger cousins from her eldest uncle’s family were too rowdy. Since she was older than them, whenever they got into mischief together, she was always the one who got blamed—as if being older automatically made her the one at fault. She also felt that her eldest aunt was a “smiling tiger”—kind on the surface but not truly so.
“What are you two whispering about?” Ye Ermei glanced at Ye Xiaoyu and Tianniu, who were huddled together. The two were so close that sometimes even Lele got jealous of their bond.
According to tradition, they also had to bring New Year gifts when returning home.
Ye Xiaoyu prepared two “168 Reunion Gift Sets”, which included pastries, fruits, tea, and liquor, along with some toys for the children. Ye Ermei, on the other hand, bought warm cotton coats for the elderly couple and added a pack of cigarettes for Father Ye.
Additionally, both of them prepared red envelopes. Since they didn’t visit their parents’ home often, they made sure to give a little extra during the holidays, within their financial means.
Ye Ermei and Ye Xiaoyu’s family home was still within the Beijing area. Although it was in the county suburbs, it wasn’t too far away. From the scenery along the way, a lot had changed over the years.
For one thing, there were large groups of bicycles on the road, which explained why in the early 1990s, Beijing was known as the “Kingdom of Bicycles”, with over seven million privately owned bicycles.
Many villagers commuted to the city center for work, and many families had built new houses.
Ye Dagé had taken over as village chief from Father Ye, who had previously served as team leader. He also contracted farmland within the village. Ye Sānzi worked as a truck driver for a transport team, while his wife helped out at a private restaurant in town. Although the Ye family’s financial situation wasn’t the best in the village, they were still doing well. Just at the beginning of last year, they had built a new house.
The house was a two-story building, and since Ye Dashan was the village chief, he was able to get a larger plot of land approved. Their courtyard was spacious, and inside, there was a shared dry toilet.
The village had electricity, though there was no central heating system. Instead, each room had a kang (a traditional heated brick bed), which made it easier to install chimneys. If not for the need to connect the chimneys, the house could have been built even taller. The large glass windows made the house bright and airy—far better than the old mud houses from the past.
To Tianniu, this house was much more comfortable than the cramped communal apartments in the city.
As soon as they stepped into the courtyard, the first person they saw was Ye Dasao, whom Tianniu had described as a “smiling tiger.” Her real name was Huang Chunxiang, and she was married to Ye Dashan. The couple had three children—two sons and a daughter. Their eldest daughter was already married, their second son was in middle school, around the same age as Tianniu, and their youngest son, who was in fourth grade, had been born during the 1982 one-child policy era.
Seeing them, Ye Dasao was momentarily stunned but quickly put on a warm, welcoming smile.
“I was wondering why I heard magpies chirping this morning—turns out it was you two sisters coming home!” She beamed. “Come in, come in! It’s warm inside—Dad and Mom are watching TV in the main hall!”
Ye Ermei followed up, asking, “Did you buy a TV?”
“Yes, yes! Our Dashan specially bought one for Mom and Dad as a gift.”
Then, Ye Dasao’s gaze fell on Ye Xiaoyu, and she clicked her tongue in amazement.
“Xiaomei, you’re getting more beautiful every year! You look ten years younger than last year—just like an unmarried young lady! No wonder you were able to marry a state-owned factory director and enjoy the good life!”
The air froze for a second.
Ye Xiaoyu had been divorced for a long time, but she had never told her family. She had also asked Ye Ermei not to mention it for now. Still, keeping this a secret wasn’t easy—she planned to tell them before she left.
However, Huang Chunxiang didn’t notice the stiff expressions on their faces. She kept smiling and went on:
“Tianniu has grown into such a fine young lady, and Lele has gotten so tall! Both of them are so good-looking—fair and chubby, with great fortune written all over them. No village kid can compare!”
No mother disliked hearing her children being praised. Ye Ermei’s lips curled slightly, but out of habit, she didn’t boast about her kids in front of others. Instead, she downplayed it:
“She’s just growing taller, not smarter—stubborn and careless. She’s nothing like your Daya, Dahai, and Dahu.”
Tianniu puffed up her cheeks in protest and shot Ye Xiaoyu a look.
See? See? The moment their eldest aunt appeared, she was getting scolded again!
But this time, at most, it would be equal blame on both sides. Ye Xiaoyu winked at Tianniu, then smoothly changed the subject:
“Why didn’t Dasao visit her own family today?”
This was the question she had been waiting for! Her smile grew even wider.
“My maiden family lives right here in the village. It’s only a few steps away, so I can visit them anytime. I’ll go over after lunch.
“But I knew you all would come home for the New Year, and since Dad and Mom are getting older, and our third sister-in-law went to visit her parents this year, I stayed behind to help out. Anything I can do to help, I will.”
Ye Xiaoyu:
“Thank you for your hard work, Dasao.”
“Not at all! How can taking care of our elders be considered hard work?” Huang Chunxiang waved her hand dismissively.
Upon entering the main hall, Ye Xiaoyu saw her parents, eldest brother Ye Dashan, as well as her eldest niece’s family, second nephew, and fourth nephew—a big, lively household.
Her second niece and third nephew had gone with their parents to visit their maternal grandparents, so they weren’t there yet.
“Dad, Mom, Happy New Year!”
“Grandma, Grandpa, Happy New Year!”
Ye Xiaoyu and the children greeted the elders first.
Father and Mother Ye were both in their sixties, their hair turning gray. They wore new cotton coats and looked healthy and energetic.
Father Ye had been a production team leader for many years, and his manner of speaking always carried an official tone. Meeting his daughters and sons-in-law felt like a formal work evaluation. Even when giving red envelopes to Tianniu and Lele, he did so with the air of distributing production bonuses at the end of the year.
Mother Ye, on the other hand, was a typical traditional woman. She always listened to her husband, and her neatly tied-back hair made her look strict. Ye Xiaoyu had inherited both her looks and personality.
Seeing that her second son-in-law wasn’t here again, Mother Ye sighed. She lamented how her youngest daughter was unlucky to have married such an unreliable husband.
“She’s lost so much weight in just a year… How will she live the rest of her life?” she murmured, before pulling Lele close, stroking his head, and giving him osmanthus cakes.
Ye Xiaoyu suddenly became much quieter in front of her parents—almost like her old self.
Ye Ermei assumed she was worried about how to tell them about the divorce, so she talked more to draw attention to herself.
Even Ye Ermei didn’t talk much with Ye Dashan, let alone Ye Xiaoyu.
Ye Dashan was the eldest of the four siblings, already in his forties, making him ten years older than Ye Ermei. The age gap meant they never played together as kids, let alone with the younger siblings.
Moreover, he had inherited Father Ye’s authoritative personality, though not completely. He was even more rigid and less adaptable than his wife. His position as village chief owed much to her efforts.
Ye Xiaoyu’s eldest niece, Ye Daya (Ye Dayà), had a gentle personality and looked quite pretty.
The Ye family had good genes—all four siblings were decent-looking, and even Ye Dashan had thick eyebrows and a righteous aura.
Ye Daya had married a minor government official in the county. Today, she only brought her daughter, Xinxin, while her husband had to work.
When Xinxin, a three-year-old, called Ye Xiaoyu “Great-Aunt” in her childish voice, Ye Xiaoyu almost lost her composure.
**She was still in her prime youth—how had she suddenly jumped to the grandparent generation? Wasn’t this a super upgrade in seniority?
“Talking too much only brings tears, just give a red envelope.”
Ye Xiaoyu’s red envelope contained a 50-yuan bill, which was more than the 20 yuan she used to give. The main reason was that their neighbor, Yang Zhirou, had given 100 yuan. Though there was some gratitude involved, she couldn’t give too little to her own nephews and nieces.
Besides Xinxin, Ye Daya also received one.
According to tradition, getting married symbolized adulthood, and married people no longer received New Year’s money.
But when Ye Xiaoyu encountered her mischievous nephews, Ye Hai and Ye Jiang, the two brothers barely thanked her after receiving their red envelopes and then ran off to play with firecrackers. Just as Ye Dashan was about to get angry, Huang Chunxiang changed the topic with a few words.
These two kids were a bit too spoiled.
Huang Chunxiang quickly made excuses for them: “Their maternal grandparents gave them a task today, asking them to accompany their cousins. But they insisted on greeting their aunts first, and their grandparents have been urging them to come over.”
The excuse was laid out so clearly that Ye Xiaoyu had nothing to say. It was best not to meddle in other people’s family matters. Compared to the rosy-cheeked Xinxin, she pulled out another red envelope.
“No need, no need, I’m already married,” Ye Daya quickly waved her hands. She and her younger aunt were close in age, and when they stood together, they looked more like sisters, with her even appearing older. How could she accept a red envelope from her younger aunt?
Ye Xiaoyu smiled, “Nephews and nieces are all the same. Happy New Year to you too.”
“Just take it!”
Ye Ermei also persuaded her. Among her eldest brother’s five family members, she was the closest to this niece. Before Ye Daya got married, Ye Ermei had taken care of her for a while. Ye Xiaoyu and Ye Daya had actually been quite close before her marriage.
Ye Daya hesitated but eventually accepted the envelope along with her daughter, feeling both a bit shy and a little surprised.
During lunch, Ye Dashao, Huang Chunxiang, took the lead in cooking, with Ye Ermei and Ye Daya assisting. Ye Xiaoyu… at most helped add firewood.
Huang Chunxiang took the opportunity to tease her, saying things like, “A delicate young lady’s hands,” “No wonder she became a rich lady,” and “Born with a wealthy life.”
Because Huang Chunxiang sounded sincere, Ye Ermei usually didn’t mind, but today, it felt particularly grating, like she was stabbing her little sister repeatedly with a blunt knife. She simply said, “It’s getting late. Sister-in-law, are you heading back to your parents’ house? I can handle things here.”
Huang Chunxiang was taken aback.
“But this is a traditional stove.”
“So what? I can light a fire, and Xiaoyu helped add wood for me. We all came from the village—who’s really a delicate young lady?”
Huang Chunxiang was stunned by the retort, changed into new clothes, and left for her parents’ house. To prevent Ye Dashan from staying behind, she persuaded him to leave too.
After she left, Ye Ermei looked at Ye Xiaoyu with frustration. “You usually have a lot to say, don’t you?”
Ye Xiaoyu proudly displayed her “delicate young lady’s hands.” Since she hadn’t been working in the factory lately, her calluses had faded, leaving only thin ones. Her hands were long and well-shaped, truly beautiful. She said, “Wasn’t she actually complimenting me?”
Ye Ermei: “…”
There was no good way to argue against that. Perhaps part of what Huang Chunxiang said was sincere—she even told Ye Daya’s daughter to “learn from her.”
Ignoring it was the best response. Besides, those words had no real impact on Ye Xiaoyu. Leaving aside the “rich lady” label, who wouldn’t like being called “born with a wealthy life”?
After finishing lunch, Tian Niu took Xinxin and Lele out to play. Ye Xiaoyu cleared her throat and said, “Dad, Mom, I’m divorced.”