Chapter 386: Pressing for Marriage
Chapter 386: Chapter 386: Pressing for Marriage
"Beilin sent a letter!" Su Qing was delighted to hear Li Huan’s announcement. It was impossible to make phone calls between the mainland and Xiangcheng. Even back when Cheng Beilin was heading to the Northeast to find her, she had to wait until she reached Guang City to make the call.
Before she’d returned from Xiangcheng, Cheng Beilin had promised to let her know about her and Du Chaoran’s wedding. ’Could it be that the date is getting close?’
"Yep, and it’s a thick one," Li Huan said with a grin, holding up the bulging envelope for Su Qing to see.
Su Qing took the letter. Her name was written on the front. Tearing it open, she found two letters inside. One was for Li Huan. She smiled and handed it over. "This one’s from Beilin for you."
"Hehe, I knew there’d be one for me." Li Huan giggled. She and Cheng Beilin had gotten along wonderfully during her stay with the Cheng Family.
Su Qing chuckled softly and unfolded her letter from Cheng Beilin.
Sure enough, Cheng Beilin and Du Chaoran were getting married. The date was set for October 18th, supposedly an auspicious day for a wedding. She was inviting both Su Qing and Li Huan to attend. The Cheng Family had even arranged everything they needed to travel to Hong Kong, including providing a valid reason and handling the border crossing procedures.
With the era of Reform and Opening-Up, many things were quietly changing, and a lot of policies had been relaxed. For example, even though she and Li Huan had somewhat special circumstances, as long as they had a legitimate reason to go to Xiangcheng through official channels, there would be no problem at all.
"Qingqing, Qingqing, Beilin’s getting married! She’s inviting us to the wedding!" Li Huan was so excited she looked like she wanted to grab Su Qing and spin her around. She was dying to go back to Xiangcheng. The last time, though she was captivated by the city’s glamour, she had been too worried about their safety and Su Qing’s well-being to really explore. ’This is perfect,’ she thought. ’If we can go this time, I’m definitely going to see everything.’
"Mm-hmm." Su Qing smiled and nodded. Since it was possible to go to Cheng Beilin’s wedding, she would definitely attend. Counting the days, they only had about five or six left. If they were going to Xiangcheng, they’d have to set off in the next day or two.
’Looks like I’ll have to ask our advisor for time off first.’
And they’d need to ask for nearly half a month off.
Looking at Su Qing and Li Huan’s leave request, Teacher Sun frowned. "You two want to take half a month off?"
"Yes, we have a family matter to attend to," Su Qing said with a nod.
"If you do that, you’ll fall behind in your classes." Teacher Sun wasn’t worried about Su Qing’s academic performance. And while Li Huan wasn’t on Su Qing’s level, her grades were still quite good. But taking off for half a month... Teacher Sun was genuinely concerned they would fall behind, especially since the curriculum was so demanding at the moment.
"Don’t worry, Teacher Sun. We definitely won’t fall behind," Li Huan said, full of confidence. This wasn’t just because of her absolute faith in Su Qing’s abilities; their dorm mates had also promised to take meticulous, detailed notes for them.
"All right, then," Teacher Sun said after a moment’s thought. "But you two must promise me that your studies absolutely will not suffer."
Su Qing smiled. "Don’t worry, Teacher Sun. It will be absolutely no problem."
Once their leave was approved, Su Qing and Li Huan said a quick goodbye to their dorm mates and headed straight back to their courtyard home. They would be in Xiangcheng for two weeks, so they couldn’t let Mr. Li and Mrs. Li run out of snacks. Su Qing baked enough long-lasting pastries to last them half a month before she and Li Huan returned to the main family compound.
To their surprise, however, the Li family wasn’t the least bit shocked to hear they were going to Xiangcheng.
"Grandpa, Grandma, don’t tell me you already knew?" Li Huan asked, astonished.
Mrs. Li chuckled. "Your dad came home last night and told us, so we already knew. We were going to tell you when you came home tomorrow. We’ve already bought your train tickets, too—for tomorrow night’s train. As for your time off from school, I expect your dad already called your department head today to get it approved."
Not only was their leave approved, but their letters of introduction had also been prepared.
"Huh?" Su Qing and Li Huan stared at each other. So the entire family already knew, and they, the two people at the center of it all, were the last to find out.
Since Li Huan was going to Xiangcheng with Su Qing openly and with full permission this time, she strutted about as smugly as a peacock showing off its tail feathers. She even gloated to Shang Yuqi, "Mom, I’m not sneaking away this time! I’m going on a trip, fair and square."
Shang Yuqi couldn’t even bear to look at her silly daughter and covered her eyes.
Su Qing’s eyes crinkled with amusement. When she turned, she saw Li Wan and Gu Xinsheng watching the scene from the side. A mischievous glint in her eye, she sidled up to them with a grin. "Mom, Uncle Gu, when are you two planning on getting married?"
Li Wan: ...
Gu Xinsheng: ...