Chapter 17: Family

After Xia Fangfei checked her ticket and boarded the train, Di Ye walked out of the waiting hall. Standing by the side of the bustling street, he summoned Di Ye and said, "It's only 3:30; there shouldn't be anyone home. Why don't I take you to see how your parents and your sister are doing at work?"

Di Ye agreed, saying, "Going to take a look would be good; I've never cared about their work before."

Since the two had previously exchanged information about their family, Di Ye knew everyone's specific workplace. He planned a route in his mind and said, "How about we go to the Post and Telecommunications Bureau first, then the City Hospital, and finally the Chenghuang Temple?"

"Fine."

In Yuncheng, apart from the main thoroughfare that runs through the entire city center called Qingyun Road, most other streets are named after mountains and rivers. Di Ye's older sister is named Di Yan, and she works at the Municipal Post and Telecommunications Bureau at the intersection of Qingyun Road and Taishan Road.

Di Ye hailed a motorized tricycle taxi. After arriving at the entrance of the Post and Telecommunications Bureau, he saw shops standing in great numbers all around. His heart stirred, and he said to Di Ye, "I'll help you buy a few gifts to give them as a memento."

"No need. In their eyes, you are me, and I am you."

"They are them, and you and I are you and I."

Di Ye did not insist further and said with some guilt, "I've never bought them gifts; I don't know what to buy."

Di Ye wasn't good at buying gifts either. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Family affection is like gold, never fading. Let's go to the Department Store Building and buy some gold jewelry."

"Gold is very expensive. Don't buy too much, otherwise, I won't be able to explain the source of the money to them."

"I know."

In 1995, gold was actually not expensive; one gram was less than 100 yuan. Di Ye ran to the Department Store Building and bought a gold necklace and two gold rings, spending all of the more than 2,000 yuan in labor fees he had earned from Shi Yucheng.

On the way back to the Post and Telecommunications Bureau office building, Di Ye remembered something and asked, "You said your sister is a salesperson at the Post and Telecommunications Bureau; what exactly does she sell?"

"She probably sells everything. When I used to eat at home, I heard her talk to my dad about selling stamps, BB Pagers, and Big Brother mobile phones and the like."

"You never asked her about her specific job title?"

"No. There is a large age gap between my sister and me. Usually, besides caring about what I eat, wear, and my studies, she doesn't really talk about anything else."

Di Ye was a bit speechless. As he walked, he analyzed, "Your sister is 6 years older than you and graduated from college in 1990. Back then, college graduates were still very sought after, so I bet you she is definitely not a salesperson now."

Di Yan was indeed not a salesperson, but the Deputy Section Chief of the Personnel Section of the Yuncheng Post and Telecommunications Bureau. She had an independent office. When Di Ye walked in, she was typing at a computer. Without lifting her head, she said, "Don't come to ask anymore; the rumor that the Post Office and Telecommunications are going to be operated separately after the New Year is false... Huh? Little brother, why are you here?"

Di Ye glanced at the Light Screen and saw Di Ye standing there like a wooden chicken, saying nothing. He had no choice but to speak for himself: "The final exams ended today. I was planning to go home for a meal and stopped by to see you on the way."

"Finals are over so soon? What day is your postgraduate entrance exam?"

"Tomorrow."

Di Yan had a very strong personality. Upon hearing this, she raised her eyebrows and scolded, "Then why aren't you staying at school to study properly instead of running over here?"

Di Ye, likely having been taught to fear her since childhood, couldn't help but shrink his neck inside the Light Screen.

Seeing this, Di Ye couldn't help but laugh and bluffed, "Sister, I've already read the books hundreds of times; there's no need to cram at the last minute. The final exams these past two days have left me feeling dizzy, so I came out to relax and recharge, so my mind will be clear for the exam tomorrow."

Although this was a bluff, it sounded quite reasonable. Di Yan's expression softened, and she said, "If you want to relax, go find your brother-in-law. He has more fun things there. Here, it's just work and more work; it's incredibly dull and boring."

Di Ye sat down on the chair opposite the desk and said, "Sister, give your husband a call and tell him to come home for dinner tonight to cheer me on for my postgraduate exam."

"Taking a postgraduate exam isn't like joining a suicide squad; what is there to cheer on!"

Di Yan shot Di Ye a glare, pointed at the landline on the desk, and said crossly, "If you want to call, do it yourself. I'm busy right now; I don't have time."

Seeing this, Di Ye in the Light Screen spoke up: "My sister must be sulking with my brother-in-law again. Help me persuade them."

Di Ye took the phone, used his intent to type on the Light Screen, and asked, "Do you know the work number for your brother-in-law?"

"I don't."

Di Ye sent a face-palm emoji, then asked Di Yan. Di Yan casually rattled off a string of numbers and said, "Didn't you want to be cheered on? Tell him to go buy a decent bottle of red wine to drink tonight."

Di Ye's brother-in-law is named Lu Hanming and works as an Editor at the Yuncheng Literary Publishing House. After receiving the call, he readily said, "I'll go buy the wine right now. Let's have a few good drinks tonight."

Di Ye had the call on speakerphone. Di Yan heard it, raised her eyebrows again, and scolded, "Lu Hanming! You're handling private matters during work hours again; do you want to get fired by your unit?"

"Well... it's almost Spring Festival, there's nothing to do at the unit, and I'm just sitting idle anyway."

"If you're idle, go read a book or practice calligraphy; don't wander around like a loafer all day long!"

Seeing that the situation was not good, Di Ye quickly picked up the receiver, turned off the speakerphone, and said to Lu Hanming, "Brother-in-law, we won't be eating until six or seven tonight; there's no need to rush to buy the wine."

"I insist on going now. Let's see what your sister can do to me!"

Di Ye glanced sideways at Di Yan and saw her face full of rage, gritting her teeth. He had no choice but to cover for Lu Hanming by giving an answer that didn't address the question: "Fine, brother-in-law, you go back to work first; we'll talk tonight."

After hanging up the phone, he picked up the glass teacup on the table, refilled Di Yan's water, and urged, "Sister, don't be angry. Brother-in-law is genuinely good to me, which is why he was in such a rush to buy the wine."

"Good my foot! He's almost 30 years old and all he knows is how to play around all day. That lousy publishing house of his has terrible efficiency; he only makes two or three hundred yuan a month, and he spends it all on eating and drinking..."

After Di Yan finished venting, she waved her hand and said, "You go home first. I have a meeting at 4:30; I probably won't be able to get there until after six."

Seeing her chest heaving and her lingering anger, Di Ye took the box containing the gold necklace out of his pocket and said with a smile, "Sister, I bought you a gift. See if you like it."

Di Yan took the box, opened it, and discovered it was a gold necklace. Instead of being happy, she was startled and asked sternly, "Where did you get this?"

Because the case involving Feng Shijie was of extreme importance and was still in the investigation and evidence-gathering stage, Di Ye, as an important witness, could not speak carelessly to outsiders. Therefore, he used Liu Shaosong as a shield and said, "I helped Professor Liu write some software, and he gave me 2,000 yuan in wages. This is the first time I've ever earned money in my life, so I specifically bought this for you."

"Wasting money. Why buy such an expensive gold necklace? Buying a piece of clothing would have been enough."

Di Yan smiled at the corners of her mouth. While scolding him, she took the gold necklace out of the box, held it up to try it on, and then sighed, "I never expected that the first valuable gift I'd ever receive would be one you bought, little brother."

This remark was clearly a jab at Lu Hanming from afar. Di Ye didn't want to spoil the mood, so he didn't chime in. Seeing that Di Ye wasn't speaking either, he had to think of a topic and asked, "Sister, when I walked in just now, I heard you say that the Post Office and Telecommunications are going to be operated separately. Is that true?"

"Why are you asking this kind of question too? Didn't I just say it was a rumor?"

"Does the rumor refer to the timing, or the event itself?"

Di Yan laughed upon hearing this. She put the gold necklace back into the box and said, "You've grown, little brother. You can actually hear the subtext in my words. The separation of the Post Office and Telecommunications is an inevitable trend, but the authorities haven't issued a specific policy yet, so the execution time is uncertain."

"But judging by the tone you used just now, internal personnel adjustments have already begun, right?"

"Of course. The Post and Telecommunications Bureau has millions of employees nationwide; before the split, we definitely have to sort out the personnel relationships first."

"Which department do you plan to go to?"

"I plan to go to Telecommunications. Although the Post Office side is well-established with good benefits, the telecommunications business is developing very quickly now, and it should have a better future."

Upon hearing this, Di Ye typed on the Light Screen: "With your sister's drive and vision, she will definitely achieve something great in the future."

Di Ye gave a hum and said, "I'm not worried about my sister's work; I'm more worried about her life. Her and my brother-in-law's personalities don't match, and they argue often."

"A couple isn't a real couple if they don't argue or fuss. As long as they have a foundation of affection, personality differences can be reconciled."

"Their relationship should be fine; they've known each other since middle school. After all these years, there's never been any messy business like scandals or affairs."

"That's a relief."

Di Ye then inquired about the situation regarding internet access, but finding that Di Yan was unclear about it, he stopped delaying, left the Post and Telecommunications Bureau, and went to the City People's Hospital to see Di Ye's mother.

Di Ye's mother was named Zhang Xiuzhi; she was already 53 years old and nearing retirement, responsible for training and guiding new Nurse staff at the Hospital, a relatively relaxed job. She was very happy to see Di Ye and introduced several young, pretty nurses to him.

After spending over ten minutes mingling with the young nurses at the Hospital, Di Ye took a taxi to the Chenghuang Temple to take Di Ye to see his father, Di Yongchang.

"Actually, there's no need to go to the Chenghuang Temple; I often go to the shop my dad runs, and I know his work very well."

"A sense of ritual is important; let's go anyway."

The Chenghuang Temple was the small commodity distribution center of Yuncheng, large in scale with over a thousand shops; besides modern industrial products like home appliances, clothing, and toys, there were also antiques, calligraphy, paintings, and folk trinkets like flowers, birds, insects, and fish, making it very lively.

The shop Di Yongchang ran was located in the northwest corner of the Chenghuang Temple, mainly selling cassette players and CD Players, with pirated tapes and cut-out discs sold on the side.

When Di Ye entered, Di Yongchang was chatting with someone who could have been a customer or a friend about VCDs, but they were not talking about VCD players, but rather pirated VCD discs.

"Boss Di, the cost of one VCD disc is only a dozen yuan or so, and selling it fetches at least fifty or sixty yuan; the profit margin is huge. If a few of us pool our funds and go to Guangdong Province to wholesale some Cheng Long and Zhou Xingchi movie discs to sell, we'll definitely make a fortune."

"Nonsense, a VCD player costs four or five thousand yuan each right now; not many families can afford one, so who would we sell the discs to if we bought them?"

Seeing that the two were preoccupied with their chat and hadn't noticed him, Di Ye offered an idea: "You could sell them to video parlors."