Seeing Shen Xue's eyes red from crying, Chen Yang quickly opened the envelope.
However, the first sentence of the letter shocked him.
"Chen Yang, your elder sister is getting married."
There was no affectionate "Dear Chen Yang" or respectful "Respected Chen Yang" as was customary during those times. The first line was simply, "Chen Yang, your elder sister is getting married."
The tone sounded like his old man's style.
Looking at the woman who was nervously watching him open the envelope, her eyes almost glued to his chest, Chen Yang felt a surge of pride.
This silly woman finally knew to care about him.
She had even wanted to divorce him and send him back to Jinling before!
But despite his pride, Chen Yang couldn't bear to see Shen Xue worried. He quickly pulled her into his arms and placed the letter between them.
"Elder sister is getting married, my dad wrote to inform me."
"I haven't read the rest yet, and you're literate, so you can help me read it."
Chen Yang knew exactly what Shen Xue was worried about. This silly woman truly believed he would abandon her and their child and run away.
"I'm not reading it for you."
Shen Xue huffed, proudly turning her head away. In truth, upon hearing the first sentence, all her previous worries and pretense of strength had vanished.
But she couldn't let this rascal know that she had just been mentally criticizing her in-laws; that would seem too disrespectful.
"Alright, alright, I'll be your letter reader."
Chen Yang lightly tapped Shen Xue's fair forehead. When had his silly wife become so proud?
"Dada, Dada, I want to listen too."
The little child's eyes sparkled. Mama was smiling, and indeed, Dada could protect Mama and also protect Yanyan!
"Alright, alright, I'll read it for both of you."
Chen Yang sat on a stone stool in the courtyard, holding Shen Xue in one arm and the little child on the other. He unfolded the letter and began to read.
"Chen Yang, your elder sister is getting married."
"The wedding date is set for August 16th, the day after the Mid-Autumn Festival. Your elder brother-in-law's name is Li Zhengpeng. He is a lecturer at Jinling University. My wife and I have observed him, and he has good character."
"You have been in the countryside for nearly five years. We wonder how you, Shen Xue, and your child are doing?"
"Your mother's health is very poor, but she has always wanted to visit her granddaughter in An Province. I feared she couldn't endure such a long and arduous journey, so I stopped her."
"Now that the child is likely older and can travel, can you obtain a letter of introduction from the production team? Using your elder sister's wedding as an opportunity, can you return to Jinling to recognize your family and alleviate our longing for our grandson?"
"Two hundred yuan has been sent via post office. After receiving this letter, you can go to the county post office to collect it. After deducting travel expenses, it can supplement your household expenses."
"Father: Chen Liming, signed."
As he read the letter, Chen Yang's eyes also turned red.
In his past life, his feelings for his parents weren't very deep. He only remembered that after he returned, his father had tried to talk to him several times.
But ultimately, he didn't speak.
He supposed his father wanted to ask about his daughter-in-law and granddaughter in An Province.
However, to spare his feelings, his father ultimately chose silence.
He might not have approved of his son's actions, but as a father, he could only remain silent.
"Mom and Dad want you to take me and Yanyan to attend Big Sister's wedding?"
Shen Xue's feelings were complex after Chen Yang finished reading the letter.
She had been looking at it as Chen Yang read.
The letter wasn't long, and Chen Yang's father used concise words, but Shen Xue could feel the profound affection pouring from his heart.
So, it turned out that her mother-in-law's health had always been poor. No wonder her father-in-law and mother-in-law hadn't come when she and Chen Yang got married. This now made sense.
Furthermore, Chen Yang was a thousand miles away in An Province. After nearly five years without seeing their son, how could his parents not miss him?
At this moment, Shen Xue felt a deep sense of guilt.
She had misunderstood the two elders who had always been thinking of her and their child!
"Chen Yang, I'm sorry."
Shen Xue hugged Chen Yang, whose eyes were red. She knew that her man must be feeling bad right now. Having been away from his parents for nearly five years, unable to be filial, how could he not feel bad?
"Silly girl, there's nothing to be sorry about."
"It's also my fault. I never explained to you why Mom and Dad didn't attend our wedding. It's not your fault."
"Yanyan, do you want to go see Grandpa and Grandma?"
Chen Yang gently stroked Shen Xue's head, letting her lean comfortably in his arms.
"Want to."
"I also want a grandpa and grandma."
"But, I'm scared, scared Grandpa and Grandma won't like Yanyan."
The little one pouted. After all, she had never met them since birth, and her parents had barely mentioned her grandparents. Naturally, she would be nervous.
"Yanyan is so good, Grandpa and Grandma will only love her. Grandpa even said in the letter that he wants Dada to bring Yanyan. If Dada doesn't take you, Grandpa might not even let me in."
Chen Yang pinched the little child's soft, white cheeks, instantly making the nervous little one laugh.
"Yay, yay!"
"Yanyan has a Grandpa and Grandma too."
The little one immediately became so happy that she was hopping and skipping around the courtyard. Her joy was so great that she was almost rolling on the ground.
"Dad also sent us money. For so many years, we haven't shown them any filial piety. I..."
Seeing how happy the little child was, Shen Xue hugged Chen Yang tightly, feeling deeply ashamed.
"My dad is a level five worker, earning over forty yuan a month. My mom is also a level four worker, earning over thirty yuan a month. We still have some money at home."
"But we have to prepare a dowry for Big Sister, and Little Sister also costs money. It's estimated that this two hundred yuan is all they could manage."
Chen Yang knew his family's situation well. His father and mother both worked at the Jinling Aviation Manufacturing Plant, which had a slightly secretive nature at that time.
Of course, his parents were ordinary technical workers, and being located in Jinling, the plant wasn't that secret.
It certainly couldn't compare to those who dedicated their lives to the country in the Gobi Desert. Otherwise, Chen Yang wouldn't have been sent to An Province as a sent-down youth.
However, it was quite difficult for Chen Yang's parents to travel out of Jiangsu Province.
Therefore, their inability to come to An Province wasn't solely due to Chen Yang's mother's poor health.
"We don't lack money now. How about we take out a little more and send it to Dad and Mom through the post office?"
Shen Xue looked at Chen Yang. Although she had always refused to handle the money, she knew that Chen Yang had saved quite a bit, at least one to two thousand yuan, after building their house. She wanted to make up for the two elders who she had initially misunderstood.
Remitting money during those times wasn't as convenient as nowadays with banks for transfers. It was all done through the post office.
And it wasn't as simple as putting cash in an envelope. One had to go to the post office, fill out a remittance form, provide the recipient's address and identity information, and then hand over the cash to the post office, which would then inform the recipient's local post office via telegraph.
Collection usually required the recipient's household registration book or a letter of introduction to sign and receive the money. The procedures were extremely cumbersome.
"No need."
"We earn a few work points a year in the brigade. If I really transferred money, it would scare my parents sleepless."
"When we go to Jinling, we can explain things clearly. Then it won't be too late to give them money."
Chen Yang pinched Shen Xue's nose. This silly wife was only thinking about filial piety towards her in-laws, without considering whether they might be shocked.