Chapter Ninety-Six: Do as You See Fit

Very well, esteemed readers, here is the second update fresh from the press.

Only about three months have passed since the two of them officially became a couple, yet the elders here were already so impatient. Since the question had been brought up, some way had to be found to handle it.

After much thought, Yang Hui finally came up with a fairly reliable plan. “The thing is, Moon and I have actually only been together for three months. We still have a great deal of work on our hands. Just this trainer aircraft project is enough to keep us busy. Our thought is to put this aside for now. After all, there’s no running away from the two of us.”

Yang Yue did not want to rush into marriage either, so she hurried to explain as well. “Yes, yes, we still need to understand each other a little more. That way things will be more secure in the future.”

The words made it obvious they were stalling for time. Young people these days—what was all this delay for? If they looked good together and there was no problem, then they might as well get married. Why make things so roundabout?

At that, Director Yang felt it was necessary, just as before, to give these two young people a little push.

“Yang Hui, you tell us plainly: do you have any objection to Xiaoyue?”

“No, of course not.” The answer came from Yang Hui almost instinctively, and that was precisely what best reflected his true feelings.

Yang Yue lowered her head with a faint smile at that, but then it was her turn.

“Xiaoyue, you don’t have any objection to Xiaohui, do you?”

Though embarrassed to be asked directly, Yang Yue thought it over and still gathered the courage to say what was in her heart. “I... I don’t either.”

Once Director Yang had pressed the two of them into revealing their intentions, the three elders immediately smiled in satisfaction. That was more like it. Think back to our generation—where was there time for courting? A matchmaker would take the two of you to meet, and if there was no problem, in a month or two the engagement would usually be ready. There was no need to drag things out this long.

The old gentleman was especially pleased. Stroking his beard, he said at length, “This is so much better. You’ve grown up in the same compound from childhood to adulthood—what more is there to understand? Those are all excuses. To put it nicely, that’s called childhood sweethearts. If there’s no problem, then since both of you are in the capital this time, you might as well settle it now.”

He put down his chopsticks, swallowed the food in his mouth, and Director Yang continued, “What Brother Li suggested is good—very good. Xiaoyue, it seems your parents are also coming back in the next few days. When that happens, you can meet them. If there’s no issue, it can be settled then. Conveniently, the leaders from your base are also in the capital, so the timing is excellent.”

At this point, it seemed there was no escaping it this time. Since that was so, they might as well go along with the wishes of the three elders. That was not bad either. Since things were not yet too busy and everyone was here in the capital, it would be good to settle it early.

“In that case, we’ll leave it to the arrangements of our elders. We have no objection.”

What objection could Yang Yue possibly have? Since the elders had said so, and Yang Hui had already taken charge, what was left to say? If that was how it was, then settling things now was fine. It was going to happen sooner or later anyway.

Yang Yue, however, saw things more openly. Turning to Yang Hui, she said, “That works too. Now that my parents are back, you should go meet them at least once, as my boyfriend.”

“Yes, what Xiaoyue said is very right. Xiaohui, you should indeed go meet Xiaoyue’s parents in your new capacity.”

As Yang Hui’s elder by seniority, the old gentleman immediately voiced his approval of Yang Yue’s words.

...

And so the meal became rather unusual. Yang Hui and Yang Yue were both terribly embarrassed, and in the end they hurriedly finished a few bites before the gathering came to an end.

Yang Hui was mindful of Director Yang’s instructions and felt he should return early to the guesthouse to tell the base leaders about Director Yang’s position. The project’s progress had to be pressed forward; getting it settled was what truly counted as completing the initial defensive battle.

“Then let’s leave it at that. I’ll be going first. No need to see me out—since we’re family, there’s no need.”

Though Yang Hui said there was no need to escort him, Yang Yue still followed him downstairs.

“Yueyue, today was indeed a bit unexpected, but I’m very happy. Our love has finally achieved a stage of progress.”

Walking beside him, Yang Yue shot him a displeased look. “What do you mean by that? What do you mean, ‘stage of progress’? I’m telling you, it still hasn’t been settled yet. You’d better perform well. My parents are soldiers, and they’ve got explosive tempers. When the time comes, you had better watch yourself.”

In the very next sentence she was still saying the matter had not been settled, yet in the one after that she was already reminding him what to pay attention to when meeting her parents. Women really were changeable. From his past life to now, Yang Hui still could not figure out when this woman might suddenly change.

Just as they were about to leave the compound, Yang Hui stopped Yang Yue.

“All right, Yueyue, go back now. We have a long future ahead of us. Go and keep the elders company for now—they must miss you terribly, and they probably have a lot to say to you. Hurry back.”

Knowing there was no point in seeing him farther, Yang Yue turned around and headed back, preparing to face the interrogation of the three elders at home.

Once outside the compound, the whole of the capital revealed yet another face. That was the city’s many-sided nature, and also the truest reflection of the compound culture of that era. It was not until the new century arrived that things began to blend together again, and the families inside the compounds and those outside the walls started to interact more.

The dim streetlamps were nowhere near as dazzling as the neon lights of more than a decade later, and the night markets of the present were far less bustling than those of later generations. Yet they stirred up even more memories in Yang Hui...

By the time he returned to the guesthouse, it was already half past eight in the evening. The base leaders probably would not have gone to bed so early, so Yang Hui went first to the director’s room and knocked.

At the guesthouse in those days, although the director and the others did not have to sleep in a communal dormitory, there were still no private rooms. The room currently housed Director Bai and Xie Lianfa.

The one who came to open the door was not the director but Xie Lianfa. When he opened it and saw that the person outside was Yang Hui, he was rather surprised.

“Team Leader Yang, didn’t you go home? Why are you back now? Something happened?”

Of course something had happened. Yang Hui glanced inside but did not see the director, so he could only ask Xie Lianfa.

“Lianfa, where is the director? I do have something I need to discuss with him.”

Xie Lianfa stepped out and pointed to another room several doors away.

“There, see? The director went to discuss something with Chief Engineer Yu. If it’s urgent, you can go over and take a look.”

It was not urgent, but what he had to say was certainly related to the matter the director and the others were discussing inside. Yang Hui nodded and headed toward the room Xie Lianfa had indicated.

Knock, then open.

The one who opened the door was the director himself, and he too was astonished to see Yang Hui.

“You brat, you’re back again? What’s going on? Didn’t I approve your going home? Why are you back now?”

Why had he returned? Why else would he have returned? Could it be that only the director and the factory leaders were allowed to stay up late at night holding meetings for the trainer aircraft project, while Yang Hui himself was not part of the project team?

“I came back this afternoon and discussed our project with Director Yang. As for now...”

Just as he was about to get to the point, he was quickly cut off. “Come, don’t rush. Let’s talk inside. Say it slowly. Everyone is in here.”

Only then did he realize the entire room was packed with the base’s important leaders. The choking smell of tobacco stung his nose, and he sneezed several times in succession.

Seeing this, everyone immediately understood what was going on and could only smile helplessly. The one near the window reacted first and quickly opened it to let in some air.

“Ha, don’t mind it. We’ve all been tangled up in this room for a long time. We’ve thought of every possible solution, and we still haven’t even eaten yet. Once we’re done discussing, we’ll go out for a late-night snack.”

At those words, something in Yang Hui was stirred. He had experienced this many times before, especially when tackling technical problems, yet he still could not suppress a certain bitter feeling. Looking at the floor strewn with cigarette butts, he already understood.

Finding a place that could still spare room for one backside, Yang Hui sat down and began to explain his conversation with Director Yang, along with Director Yang’s attitude afterward.

“This afternoon I went to see Director Yang. He is very concerned about our project and is absolutely on our side. As for our plan to establish a company, he said he would help us put it into effect as soon as possible.”

The room immediately exhaled in relief upon hearing this. This was the first real result since the project had started running through the relevant departments, and things seemed to be going fairly smoothly.

At once, someone could not wait to ask about Director Yang’s further attitude toward the trainer aircraft project, and turned eagerly to Yang Hui.

“So what does Director Yang plan to do about our trainer aircraft project? What’s his attitude?”