Courtyard House: Starting with a 28-inch motorcycle

"Dad, it was ordered a long time ago, and they'll deliver it this afternoon," Su's mother said with a smile, stopping him.

"Then I'll go pick some more fruit!" He patted his pocket. "This plate won't be enough. We need more for the two little ones!"

Xiao Yao didn't stop him, he just nodded silently—if they couldn't finish it, he would clean it all up.

As soon as Xiao Zhiyuan stepped out of the building, his steps were as light as if he were walking on the wind.

"When I was pregnant with you, your dad only accompanied me to two prenatal checkups. But now he's practically glued to your little brother—buying formula and rushing to change diapers. I've lived half my life and this is the first time I've seen him so flustered. It's probably true that grandparents love their grandchildren so much; the warmth is in their very bones."

Lin Wan smiled, fine lines appearing at the corners of her eyes, and tightened the apron straps as she spoke.

"Dad now looks at my brother the way Grandpa looked at me back then. He doesn't have as many rules and regulations in his mind, and he doesn't have to put on airs as an elder. He's actually more relaxed now."

Xiao Yao picked up his teacup and took a sip, his tone plain yet carrying a hint of insightful gentleness.

"By the way, Xiao Yao, how long are you going to stay on holiday this time? Your brother's getting married on New Year's Day! That kid already acts like he's practically a son-in-law, hanging around his mother-in-law's house every day, he even brought his bedding there! It makes me so angry I could slap my thigh! He keeps telling me about how it's 'close to work'—it's only a ten-minute bike ride here, and fifteen minutes there too, who are you kidding? I think it's because once the wife moves in, the mother takes a backseat!"

Lin Wan scolded loudly, but her face was beaming with a smile, and her eyes were full of indulgence. She knew perfectly well that it was better for the young couple to live a stable life than anything else; they should take care of their parents, but forcing them to live together would only create more problems.

"It's not decided yet, but I don't have any tasks at the moment, so I should take at least three months off."

Xiao Yao answered decisively.

Lin Wan turned and slipped into the kitchen, her apron hem fluttering as she walked briskly.

"Mom, please stop fussing! Xiao Yao and I just had a big meal at Grandma's, and then we had another meal at Han Chunming's this afternoon. Our bellies are so full, we can't take any more!"

Su Man quickly stood up to stop her, her voice soft and slightly coquettish.

"I'm making soup for your dad—he complains the cafeteria food is bland and insists on eating at home without fail. Why don't you stay for dinner, Mom and Dad? Neither Old Su nor Grandma Su are home today, so we can have a little family reunion."

Lin Wan rolled up her sleeves and handed over the chopsticks with a smile.

Su's mother nodded and sat down next to Su Man, her gaze gently falling on her daughter's slightly protruding belly.

No sooner had she finished speaking than hurried footsteps echoed down the hallway—Xiao Zhiyuan, carrying two large bags of groceries, sweat beading on his forehead, burst through the door. Lin Wan couldn't help but laugh, thinking to herself, "This old man, his grandson hasn't even been born yet, and he's already become the 'Chief Stay-at-Home Dad.'"

Aunt Wang from next door bumped into him in the hallway and, thinking something terrible had happened, chased after him asking, "Old Xiao, what's wrong? Did your workplace catch fire?"

Upon hearing that his daughter-in-law had been diagnosed with pregnancy, he was stunned for a moment before realizing what was going on: "Oh my, Director Xiao's face is even brighter today than it was on my daughter's wedding day!"

He walked into the police station that afternoon, a smirk on his face, walking with a swagger. His colleagues all turned to look, assuming it was an official document from the Organization Department. A quick inquiry revealed it wasn't a promotion, but rather that he'd become a grandfather. The office erupted in chatter: "Our Director Xiao can actually grin like an idiot?" "That cold face he'd kept up for twenty years, it's completely broken down today!"

……

Upon hearing that her brother had returned, Xiao Yun immediately pulled Zhao Jiao home. Lin Wan greeted them, taking Zhao Jiao's hand in one hand and gently placing the other on Su Man's shoulder, pulling the two closer together: "Jiao Jiao, this is your sister-in-law, Su Man. From now on, you're family."

"Hello, sister-in-law, my name is Zhao Jiao... Let's live together from now on."

Zhao Jiao's ears turned slightly red, and her voice, though soft, was as clear as a spring stream.

Su Man slowly stood up, supporting herself on the sofa armrest: "I'm sorry, I felt heavy and couldn't go to the door to greet you."

As she spoke, she took out a plain silver bracelet from her small bag. The bracelet was carved with lotus scrolls and had a warm, lustrous sheen.

"We're family, no need for formalities, thank you so much, sister-in-law!"

Zhao Jiao took it with both hands, and with a flick of her wrist, the bracelet slid smoothly into her sleeve, making her fingers appear fair and slender.

She took Su Man's hand and the two sat side by side on the sofa. Laughter quickly filled the air as they chatted, becoming more and more familiar with each other, as if they had known each other for many years.

At this moment, Xiao Yao came out of the inner room, and Xiao Yun rushed over in a flash: "Brother! This is my girlfriend, Comrade Zhao Jiao! Jiao Jiao, this is my brother, Xiao Yao!"

"Hello." Xiao Yao smiled and handed over a thick red envelope. The red paper was pressed crisply, and the edges were even embroidered with gold thread—he had prepared it as soon as Lin Wan said that Xiao Yun was coming back.

"Thank you, big brother!" Zhao Jiao took it with both hands and carefully put it into the inner pocket of her handbag.

As Lin Wan stepped into the kitchen, Zhao Jiao got up to follow her in and help.

"You can just chat with your sister-in-law. Aunt Su and I are enough to handle things in the kitchen!" Lin Wan said with a smile, gently pushing her back to the sofa.

Zhao Jiao obediently sat back down next to Su Man. The two intertwined their fingers and chatted about everything from dietary restrictions during pregnancy to local restaurants, laughing continuously.

Before long, Mr. Xiao pushed open the door and entered carrying two bags of fruit. Water droplets were still dripping from the mouths of the bags, indicating that they had just been washed.

As soon as the table was cleared, Xiao Yao saw Xiao Yun and Zhao Jiao out. Just as they reached the entrance of the residential area, Xiao Zhiyuan suddenly chased after them: "Wait! These two bags of fruit, one for Su Man to nourish her body, and one for Zhao Jiao to try—they're the sweetest ones we picked this morning."

Xiao Yao took the bag and watched the two figures disappear into the shadows of the sycamore trees before turning back.

"Son, your uncle and cousin are coming back tomorrow. Your brother's wedding is in a few days. You didn't get to see him last time because you were on a mission, so this is a good opportunity for you to meet them all."

Lin Wan waited until Xiao Yao was seated before slowly speaking.

Xiao Yao's mind went blank, but hearing his mother's resolute words, he nodded in agreement: "Okay, Mom."

"Several of my uncles have been demobilized and returned home, and your cousin also served his full term in the army and retired this time. Our whole family hasn't been able to sit together for over ten years. Last time you got married, your unit temporarily transferred you to another city, and you didn't even get to drink a drop of wine. They've been saying they want to see you ever since."

"This time I'm back, I have plenty of time." Xiao Yao smiled, his tone gentle yet firm.

Actually, he had sensed something was amiss long ago—how come he was assigned to Han Chunming's village during his time as a sent-down youth? The path the system had paved for him seemed far too smooth. Later, he remembered that three months before returning to the city, a cadre in military uniform had indeed come to his door, asking if he wanted to join the army, saying that "Xiao Yao's qualifications were exceptionally strong." That memory was vague at the time, but now he understood: it was his uncles who had secretly used their connections, and his cousin who had made several trips behind the scenes.

"Manman's uncles and aunts are coming one after another, Manman, you should spend more time with them. Before, it was difficult to visit each other because of the distance, but now we are family, and the bond between relatives should be strengthened through frequent visits. We don't have many relatives to begin with, Xiao Yao, you should also pay more attention to them." Su's mother said softly while peeling an orange.

Xiao Yao nodded in agreement. He had heard Su Man mention that her father had met her father in the army, and later his grandfather had carefully considered the matter before finally agreeing to marry his daughter off. Relatives in their hometown were sparse, and back then a long trip would cost half a month's worth of food rations, so visits were naturally infrequent.

"Okay, Mom."

The toy factory is hiring skilled workers, and it's a good place to settle down—take advantage of the fact that housing prices haven't gone up yet, grit your teeth and buy a place. It will be convenient to visit neighbors in the future, and the house will be lively and welcoming during holidays.

"The transfers of the third and second sons are all settled, and my paperwork is done too. I heard they're all in subordinate units of Huayu. Why don't the three of you apply to the same family compound? You'll see each other all the time, how friendly!"

Xiao Zhiyuan wiped his glasses, his tone relaxed, but it made Xiao Yao's heart skip a beat.

He knew his father too well—retiring at fifty-five? Logically, he could have easily worked for at least another five years. This retirement seemed far too early and too coincidental.

"Your uncle was a key member of his department. Your dad isn't retiring; he's just giving himself some time to rest—he's worked his whole life, it's time for him to relax."

Lin Wan straightened Xiao Yao's collar while explaining with a smile.

As dawn broke, Xiao Yao accompanied his parents to wait at the airport exit.

Before long, my parents' faces lit up – twenty or thirty people poured out of the exit, the elderly leaning on canes, the young being held in their arms, the men dressed smartly, the women wrapped in thick scarves, all looking travel-worn yet radiant.

In the blink of an eye, the crowd surged in front of us.

"This is your eldest uncle Lin Ye, second uncle Lin Jun, and aunt Lin Mei; this is your cousin Xiao Yu, second uncle Xiao Bing, aunt Xiao Yue'er, and uncle-in-law Lu Qiang."

Just introducing everyone, exchanging pleasantries, and offering cigarettes and water took more than half an hour.

"Brother, sister, we still have to rush to work to report for duty. We'll have a proper get-together tonight!"

Uncle Xiao Bing had barely finished speaking, his voice still ringing out.

"Alright! I've had Xiao Yao make a reservation—Jinghua Royal Banquet Palace. You can take a taxi there; the drivers all know the way. The children can come home with us first, rest a bit, and have some hot tea."

Xiao Zhiyuan made the final decision decisively, leaving no room for negotiation.

Everyone nodded in agreement. Xiao Zhiyuan had rented a minibus from the Transportation Bureau in advance; otherwise, even a dozen private cars wouldn't have been enough to fit the whole family—some were visiting Beijing for the first time and couldn't even tell which way was which at the subway entrance; the eldest had just turned twenty, and the youngest was still wobbling and learning to walk. He dared not be careless in the slightest.

Lin Wan led the way, with Xiao Yao and his father carrying their two younger cousins, each with a childish voice. Only now did Xiao Yao truly understand the meaning of the word "relatives": all along the way, there were crisp "Hello, big brother!" and "Hello, cousin!" all rushing at him, making his ears ring and making it impossible to tell who was calling whom.

As soon as the group entered the community gate, Lin Wan continued to lead the way without stopping. The older children took their younger siblings' hands and stood on tiptoe to get closer.

They walked home noisily and enthusiastically, their laughter, children's chatter, and footsteps mingling together. Xiao Zhiyuan, far from finding it noisy, smiled so hard his eyes narrowed into slits, as if he had become a child again, chasing after his little nephew and niece all over the neighborhood, bending over to dodge them, teasing and joking around, even more energetic than Xiao Yao.