Chapter 1684: Going to School

Ye Chenghu was, after all, an external transfer student, so aiming for a top local high school was out of the question; they took the bus toward Pudong, where there were also many historically prestigious high schools.

Moreover, compared to other options, enrolling in Pudong was somewhat easier.

Because they had made arrangements in advance, resolved the household registration issue, and paid a transfer fee, they completed the registration very smoothly.

It was only when deciding between commuting and boarding that the couple hesitated; they felt boarding would be more convenient, but they worried that since Ye Chenghu was younger than his classmates, he might be bullied in the dormitory, so after much thought, they chose to commute.

It was a bit farther, but he also had a house in Pudong and had left someone there; if Ye Chenghu didn't want to get up early, he could stay in Pudong and go to the Western-style house on weekends.

After all, with commuting, the guardians could see him every day and understand the child's situation better.

At the very least, if he were bullied outside school, Ye Yaodong could arrange for two bodyguards to escort him to and from school.

As for during class at school, that depended on how he handled it and got along with his classmates, but at least he wouldn't be completely isolated within the school, beyond their reach.

Ye Chenghu himself had no objections; anyway, his father had promised to buy him a bicycle, so riding his bicycle to school every day would be quite happy, and he hadn't even had enough of living in the Western-style house yet.

Once he had had enough of the Western-style house and didn't want to ride a bicycle to school every day, moving to the Pudong house or choosing to board later would be simple.

After successfully registering, the couple felt they had solved a major matter; the three of them happily toured the school before going out to buy daily necessities for Ye Chenghu.

A new semester, a new beginning; anything that needed replacing should be replaced with new items for him.

They also bought some daily necessities, along with rice, flour, and grain, since Ye's father and Ye Chenghu would be living in Shanghai for several months ahead, so everything needed had to be stocked.

Previously, they had only stayed for a few nights, so the kitchen hadn't been used at all, lacking any sense of daily life; now, everything that needed adding had to be added.

In the afternoon, Ye Yaodong rode the newly bought bicycle and took Ye's father to the driving school again to handle his father's matters as well.

With each matter handled, one less remained, allowing him to focus on his own business with peace of mind.

Even after registration was done, Ye's father was reluctant to leave the driving school; looking at the small cars in the driving school grounds, his mouth stretched almost to the back of his head, and before leaving, he touched them a few times and walked around them several times before finally departing.

"Dongzi, now that registration is done, when can I get in the car to start learning?"

"I don't know; we have to wait for the schedule. Only after passing the theoretical exam can we arrange practical driving lessons. You registered today anyway, so just attend classes according to the scheduled time; once I free up my hands, I'll find someone to take the theoretical exam for you."

"Ah, okay, okay, no rush; you just focus on your own business first."

Though saying no rush, he was actually very eager inside, wishing he could get in the car and start learning immediately.

Ye's father asked again, "Tomorrow is the 2nd, so the factory workers will come tomorrow, right?"

"They'll come the day after tomorrow; tomorrow I'll first handle the procedures, pick up the exhibition badge, and get other items."

"Where will they stay?"

"There's a unified accommodation arranged for exhibition personnel; anyway, tomorrow when Manager Qi arrives, we'll go handle the procedures together."

He actually didn't need to manage it personally; handing it to employees would suffice, but since this was the first exhibition and concerned orders for the next few years, it was a major matter.

As the boss, he certainly needed to understand the process; he couldn't leave everything to others, and anyway, he was currently here and not out at sea.

"Oh, that's quite good; there's arranged accommodation."

"You have to pay for it; a huge sum was already paid for the exhibition."

"Anyway, what's spent will be earned back in the end."

"Mm, that's for sure."

This wasn't the internet age; there were no electronic platforms, so promotion relied entirely on physical exhibitions.

He heard that during this period, people brought handfuls of cash to exhibitions, queuing up to beg factories for orders, and the information he gathered confirmed this, which is why the entire factory had started preparing a year in advance.

He had been running around outside all day today, and the rest of the family at home hadn't been idle either.

In the morning, Ye's father accompanied the elderly lady; in the afternoon, the three sisters-in-law took over, helping with weeding, tidying the yard, and buying groceries and cooking.

The next day, they took the elderly lady out for a stroll and took some photos.

After resting for a day, having a day to buffer allowed the elder's spirits to improve somewhat.

At an advanced age, extra care is needed when traveling far; rest periods should be longer.

So they took advantage of the cooler morning hours to stroll for about an hour, then Ye's father brought the elderly lady back first.

In the afternoon, after the sun set, they took another short stroll nearby.

There was plenty of time ahead; they would stay here for at least a week, so taking the elderly lady out for one to two hours in the morning and one hour in the afternoon each day was sufficient.

That evening, they also made a phone call back home.

After all, the children at home were going to school the next day, and since their parents weren't there, they had to call back and say a few words.

At home now remained Ye Ye Chengyang and Ye Ye Xiaoxi, plus Pei Yu; all three were left under Ye's mother's care.

Ye's mother was only responsible for their three meals a day and taking them to register; she didn't handle anything else, couldn't handle it, and didn't understand it.

Lin Lin Xiuqing was worried, so of course she had to call back to give a few instructions.

"Mom, when are you coming back? I miss you so much."

"I've just finished arranging your older brother's matters; I'll be back in a few days. Be good at home."

"Give Big Brother to my dad; come back, I want you to come back. You didn't accompany me during summer vacation, and now that I'm back, you've run off again."

Ye Ye Xiaoxi held the phone with one hand, wedged it under her shoulder, wrapped her fingers around the phone cord, winding it around and around, coquettishly speaking while her shoulders swayed along.

"It was you who ran off during summer vacation, not me."

"Mm~ Well, I went to earn money; I've earned so much money and brought it back, but you ran off. Mom, come back tomorrow; if you come back, I'll buy you beautiful shoes to wear."

Lin Lin Xiuqing chuckled, "Buy me what beautiful shoes? If you buy me beautiful shoes, won't I be able to run even faster?"

"I'll buy you high heels! I saw many beautiful older sisters wearing high heels at dad's place; they looked so beautiful, and I'll buy them for you too."

"Huh? You saw many beautiful older sisters at your dad's place?" Lin Lin Xiuqing's alarm bells rang loudly in her heart.

Ye Yaodong, waiting nearby for her to finish the call, heard the statement, wore an incredulous expression, and raised his voice.

"Damn, don't talk nonsense! When have I ever had beautiful older sisters for you to see?"

"I just saw them! On the street, beautiful older sisters wore high heels, walking with a clack-clack-clack sound, which sounded so nice; their little bottoms swayed back and forth, and I want to wear high heels too..."

Lin Lin Xiuqing understood now; indeed, she had seen them at her father's place, but only on the street.

It scared her half to death; this child's way of expressing things was quite deadly.

Ye Yaodong pressed his ear to the receiver, heard it too, understood her meaning, sighed in relief, then happily took the phone and spoke.

"You don't need to buy them. In a few days, Dad will buy your mother a pair of high heels; your mother is just missing a pair of high heels."

"Great, Dad, buy something pretty. Red ones would look best."

"Alright, no problem."

Lin Lin Xiuqing's old face flushed red; she immediately thought of the black stockings her children had bought her last year, when Ye Yaodong had said she should wear high heels with them.

How did this brat come up with the same idea as his father, wanting to buy her high heels to wear?

So improper.

She snatched the phone, glared at Ye Yaodong, stopped the father and daughter from speaking, and instead earnestly instructed the child to be obedient and so on, then spoke a few more words to Yangyang before hanging up.

"Hey? I haven't even said a few words to them, and you've already hung up?"

"I said enough; what more do you need to say? You've been with them for two months, and you've only been apart for a few days; what's there to say?"

"One day without seeing each other feels like three autumns."

"Autumn your head; go back. Are you taking Chenghu to school tomorrow, or should he go alone?"

"I'll take him, then I'll go handle some business; the timing works out perfectly."

"Alright."

Ye Chenghu was also packing the schoolbag he would carry the next day; he had neatly wrapped the textbooks in old newspaper.

Before sleep, he unusually checked again to see if he had forgotten anything.

Moreover, he took out the books to read through them; anyone seeing this would have their jaw drop.

Before, at home, he never checked; after registering, he would grab the new books, stuff them all into his schoolbag without looking, and at most write his own big name on them, let alone wrap them in book covers.

He always flipped through a single book until the end of the semester, wearing the cover to shreds; now he was actually wrapping book covers and reading ahead—truly a maiden getting into a wedding sedan chair for the first time.

That night, he also lost sleep for the first time.

In the past, he would only lose sleep if taken to a market fair or on a long journey; now, about to enter high school, he felt some excitement deep within his heart.

He slept only a few hours, but as soon as dawn broke, he woke immediately, sporting dark circles under his eyes yet full of energy, washed up, shouldered his bag, and went downstairs.

"Good morning~"

The old lady smiled at him. "Why are you up so early again? It's only 6 o'clock; didn't you say school starts at 8? It's still early; you children are growing, you need more sleep."

"I've slept enough. The journey will take a long time, and I need to eat; getting up early avoids being late."

"Right, right; on the first day of school, you must go early. Wait for your father; your father is taking you."

Ye's father couldn't help but boast, "Once I get my driver's license and your father buys a small car, I'll drive you to school."

"Really?" Ye Chenghu was delighted. "Then when will you get it?"

"I don't know. I just registered yesterday; we'll have to wait. Your father said if it's fast, two or three months; if slow, three or four months, or it might even be extended."

Ye Chenghu's delight vanished; his expression sobered.

"Oh."

Then he had a long wait ahead; who knows if he'd ever get the chance to ride in it.

By the time his grandfather got his license and his father bought a small car, they would drive straight home or to Zhoushi City; there was no way they'd drive to Shanghai to take him to and from school.

His grandfather just loved to brag.

The old lady slapped Ye's father. "It's not even a full character yet, and you're already boasting about promises?"

Ye Chenghu added, "My father calls this drawing a big pie! I'm already full first thing in the morning!"

The old lady chuckled.