Siheyuan: Domineering life

The weather is sunny today, and the sun feels warm on my skin.

Yang Jun spent most of the winter in the glass room of Diaoyutai. Every day, besides fishing and drinking tea, he would sunbathe. The first thing he did every day was to cast his fishing rod into the water, then wrap himself in his coat and lie on the rattan chair to sunbathe.

Although he has long since achieved immortality, his mental age does not match his physical age. If calculated by age, he is already a centenarian.

As time has passed and the world has changed, he has long lost the fighting spirit he once had. Especially in the last two years, he has been practically in a state of complacency, leaving all his affairs to Yang Chengdao.

After Yang Chengdao graduated from university, he kept him by his side, personally promoting and training him. He didn't care about others' prejudices of nepotism. He wanted to clearly tell the world that only his son could inherit everything from him. He didn't care what others said. Those gossips were just dust on his body that he could brush off.

He wanted to let his son take over everything from him as much as possible, so that he could put down his burdens and return to the mountains to live a pastoral life. His appearance has always remained in his twenties, which has already aroused doubts from the outside world. Therefore, he also wanted to hand over his burdens to his son as soon as possible.

Yang Chengdao is indeed the successor he chose. He is very ambitious. Because he has been exposed to things since childhood, he is very skilled and adept at handling things. If he continues to develop like this, he will be able to completely take over from him in less than five years.

Yang Jun couldn't wait to hand over the heavy burden to his son, but he also knew that haste makes waste. Yang Chengdao's foundation was still weak, and not all of his childhood friends had entered the workforce yet. What he needed to do in the next two years was to vigorously promote and cultivate those people, to build a solid foundation for his son so that he could set sail for a long voyage.

"Honey, I want to eat grapes."

Yang Jun lay on the rattan chair with his eyes closed, resting and thinking about his son's future path, when he suddenly heard Yi Qiushui calling him.

He reluctantly opened his eyes and looked at Yi Qiushui, who was sitting on the sofa next to him, basking in the sun.

"Where am I supposed to get you grapes in the dead of winter?"

"Husband..." Before she could finish speaking, she saw Yi Qiushui pouting and acting coquettishly.

"Okay, okay, I'll get you some grapes, alright?"

As Yang Jun took out grapes from his spatial storage, he muttered, "You're over sixty years old, why are you still acting like a child? Don't you find it awkward?"

"If I don't act cute in front of you, in front of whom do you expect me to act cute?" Yi Qiushui said with a playful smile.

Although Yi Qiushui is well-maintained, the signs of aging are still clearly visible on her; her hair is somewhat gray, and wrinkles are visible all over her forehead and around her eyes.

However, it must be said that she looks younger and has a more refined demeanor than women of the same age, especially with the imposing presence of someone in a superior position, which gives people a sense of inexplicable elegance.

Yang Jun likes Yi Qiushui very much now. She seems more mature and rational than before. After so many years of ups and downs, the two have gone beyond the scope of being husband and wife. Sometimes he feels that the two are just friends and confidants, the kind of spiritual partners.

As the saying goes, "A couple who are young become companions in old age," and this is absolutely true. Yang Jun now has a strong sense of dependence on her. If he doesn't talk to her one day, he feels like something is missing.

Inside the glass room were only Yang Jun and Yi Qiushui. Yang Jun simply used his mind to take out a large plate of grapes from his spatial storage space. There were seedless grapes, raisins, rose grapes, and all sorts of other varieties.

These grapes were all washed and placed in the space; they can be eaten directly after being taken out.

"Ugh, it's so sweet."

Yi Qiushui elegantly popped a grape into her mouth, then made a delicious sound, looking very pleased with herself.

"Eat more if it's sweet," Yang Jun said.

"Honey, you should eat too."

Yi Qiushui threw a seedless grape directly into Yang Jun's mouth.

"I won't eat it, it's too sour," Yang Jun shook his head.

"Give me one." Yi Qiushui said softly, "Jun'er, be good, open your mouth."

"What did you call me?" Upon hearing this, Yang Jun immediately sat up from the rattan chair.

Since his mother passed away, no one had called him Jun'er for many years. Now, hearing it suddenly felt especially warm... yet also a little awkward.

"You're called Jun'er?"

Seeing Yang Jun's stern face, Yi Qiushui was afraid he would really be angry, so she quickly explained, "Look at us together, don't we look like mother and son? Others can tell at a glance that I am your mother, so shouldn't I call you Jun'er?"

"You...you've gone too far."

Although Yang Jun was angry on the surface, he wasn't angry at all in his heart.

Firstly, he hadn't heard anyone call him Jun'er in a long time. Secondly, he and Yi Qiushui looked like mother and son, or more accurately, like grandfather and grandson. Yi Qiushui was over sixty years old, while he still looked like he was in his early twenties. If you didn't know them, you would definitely think they were grandfather and grandson.

"Am I going too far?"

Yi Qiushui squinted and smiled, "Do you know that I'm afraid to go out casually now? When I run into friends or something, I don't know how to explain the relationship between us."

"What's so hard to explain? We're husband and wife, what are you afraid of?"

Although Yang Jun said he didn't care, he knew in his heart that this was an unchangeable fact. Over the years, he had vaguely heard others gossiping about them, saying things like "old wife, young husband" and so on.

It's impossible for him to be completely indifferent, which is the main reason why he was in such a hurry to retire to the countryside. As time went by, the age difference between him and these women grew larger and larger, and the gossip grew louder and louder.

He now tries his best to avoid going out with these women to avoid being looked at strangely.

"I explained, but..."

Yi Qiushui opened her mouth, then sighed and said, "How about we change our husband-wife relationship to a mother-son relationship? That way, people won't gossip."

After saying that, he burst into laughter, bending over backwards.

"Giggle!"

Upon hearing this, Yang Jun's face turned ashen, and he stared at her without uttering a word.

Seeing that Yang Jun was unhappy, Yi Qiushui stopped laughing.

"Jun'er, what do you think of my suggestion? Hehe! Haha!"

Yang Jun snorted coldly, glared at her, and said, "Don't go too far, or I'll whip you with my big whip."

"Hehe, come and whip me, you think I'm afraid of your big whip?"

Yi Qiushui had completely lost her former reserve and composure, replaced by a shameless demeanor.

She stopped serving Yang Jun two years ago. She knew her health was failing, so she let Yang Jun go to other courtyards to find women. She had come to terms with it. Rather than managing Yang Jun every day, she would let him go. That way, she could leave a good impression.

"Do you really need to smoke?" Yang Jun asked cautiously.

He had to be careful, after all, the two of them hadn't played cards together for two years, and the topic seemed a bit unfamiliar. After all, Yi Qiushui wasn't young anymore, and he couldn't contact her whenever he wanted like before. With his old arms and legs, he was afraid of breaking them.

Upon hearing this, Yi Qiushui's eyes suddenly lit up for a moment, but quickly dimmed. She shook her head and said,
"No need, I was just joking."

"Don't be shy, just say what you need. No matter what, I'm your man." - Yang Jun

"I don't need it." Yi Qiushui's face suddenly darkened, as if her tail had been caught in a door.

"Really not..."

Before Yang Jun could finish speaking, he saw that Yi Qiushui was angry, so he quickly said, "Okay, okay, forget I said anything." After that, the two of them fell silent, and the air became unusually heavy.

About ten minutes later, Yi Qiushui spoke.

"Aren't there some things you should be thinking about?"

Although she didn't explicitly say what it was about, Yang Jun knew she was referring to retirement.

The two had discussed this matter more than once, but each time they came to no avail.

Yang Jun also wanted to retire early and live a peaceful life, but Yang Chengdao had just entered officialdom and his foundation was not yet stable. He had to help him get on his feet and accompany him for a while.

"Five years."

Yi Qiushui was stunned for a moment after hearing this.

Before Yi Qiushui could ask, he continued, "I will support my son for another five years, and I will definitely retire after five years."

Upon hearing this, Yi Qiushui frowned deeply.

After a long pause, he sighed and said, "That's all we can do."

She knew this matter couldn't be rushed. Her son had just entered officialdom and his foundation was still weak. Yang Jun certainly couldn't step down at this time; he had to support his son for a while. She knew this matter couldn't be delayed, but she had no choice but to continue to suffer.

"After you retire, have you thought about where you'd like to settle down?"

Beijing is definitely out of the question. There are too many people here who know Yang Jun. If he wants to have a few days of peace and quiet, he definitely needs to get away from Beijing. As for where to settle down, he hasn't decided yet.

"Let's go to your province," Yang Jun replied cautiously after a moment's consideration.

"Your province?" Yi Qiushui paused for a moment, then asked, "You plan to settle in the shelter?"

"Yes."

Yang Jun paused slightly, then continued, "The shelter was originally built as a precaution. Now that it's completed, it's currently being renovated and will be ready for use soon. As for the ground... after so many years of construction, some workers have settled there with their families. There are over 100,000 people living there; it's practically a small town."

"The town has complete infrastructure, including a hospital, schools, and a farmers' market. We will settle there, and if there is any situation, we can enter the shelter immediately."

"What do you think?" Yang Jun asked.

"If you've made up your mind, then it's fine with me." After saying that, Yi Qiushui sighed and said, "A woman follows her husband wherever he goes."

"Alright, then I'll settle down in your province."

After Yang Jun finished speaking, a determined look flashed in his eyes.

He made this decision a long time ago, and it was a decision made after careful consideration, but he only announced it today.

This was a conversation, but also a disclosure. It was called a discussion, but it was really just to inform her. The final decision was still up to him.

"Will we move there and live in a shelter?" Yi Qiushui thought for a moment and asked.

"Definitely not," Yang Jun laughed. "Living underground is only out of necessity. Who could stand living underground all the time?"

After a slight pause, he continued, "Don't worry, I've already had Xiao Wu build a large manor above the shelter. We'll live in the manor then."

"In case of any emergency, we can immediately move from the surface to underground to ensure absolute safety."

"Oh, I see. I thought we'd have to live underground." Yi Qiushui breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.

The shelter is currently under renovation, and given the scale of the investment, the living environment will certainly be no worse than it is now, but she still feels a bit uncomfortable living underground.

Shelters are meant to be used as a last resort, just in case, but they should never be used as permanent residences. So after retiring, one should still live on the ground.

"I heard it rains a lot there and the humidity is high," Yi Qiushui asked.

"Ah."

Yang Jun responded with a faint "yes".

"I wonder if I'll get rheumatism?" Yi Qiushui muttered to herself.

To be honest, she was unwilling to settle down in Guizhou Province. She had lived in Beijing for so many years and was used to the climate and environment there. She was unwilling to move to an unfamiliar environment.

Yang Jun listened without saying anything.

There will always be some regrets in this world, and it is impossible for everything to be perfect. Your province does have a lot of rain and high humidity, but is the climate in Beijing perfect?

Every year in March and April, Yanjing experiences sandstorms and smog. Summers are unbearably hot and winters are unbearably cold, yet we've managed to get through it all these years.
Therefore, for the long term, we still need to gradually adapt to the environment.

Yang Jun didn't want to leave Yanjing either, after all, he had lived here for fifty years and he was definitely reluctant to leave. But he had no choice but to leave, as he couldn't stay in this city any longer in his current state.

"I heard there are a lot of mosquitoes in the mountains. Will I get skin diseases?"

Yi Qiushui muttered to herself, as if asking a question or complaining; in any case, she was not happy about settling down in Guizhou Province.

“If you don’t feel comfortable with life over there, you can stay in Yanjing. After all, the children are here, and if you stay in Yanjing, you can take care of them a little,” Yang Jun said.

"Should I stay here?"

Yi Qiushui was somewhat tempted, but quickly pursed her lips and said, "I'll stay here so you can take them to your province?"

"You think I'm in your way? I'll make room for you."

Yang Jun rolled his eyes after hearing this.

Women are strange creatures; no matter what they say, it's always wrong. If you don't want to make a mistake, you should just shut up.

"Can't you be reasonable? Let's stick to the facts. Why are you bringing this up?"

Yang Jun frowned and said, "If you want to settle down in your province, you can come with me. I'm not stopping you from going."

“You didn’t say it out loud, but that’s what you really think.” Yi Qiushui rolled her eyes and pouted, “You just think I’m too old.”

Yang Jun: "..."

At this time, it's best to keep quiet and not say anything. Women are emotional creatures and hate it when others say they are old.

"Hmph, are you trying to make me back down and give you a place?"

"I'm telling you, no way. As long as I'm alive, no one can replace me."

Yi Qiushui kept nagging on and on, driving Yang Jun to the brink of despair. (End of Chapter)