Rebirth in 1986: Unforgettable Regrets
Chapter 85: There’s a Situation

Chapter 85: Chapter 85: There’s a Situation

Early morning, 3:30 AM, Tang Yue heard Zhang Hualian calling her to get up while she was still in a daze, rubbing her eyes that hadn’t woken up yet, she asked, "What time is it?"

"It’s 3:30 now, the bus is at 4:00. Although the station is close by, don’t you still need to wash up and get dressed?" Zhang Hualian knew she was going with her to stock up and hadn’t slept well all night.

She gently got up several times, went to the living room to check the time, until she woke up at 3:00, and Zhang Hualian, fearing she would miss the time, never fell back asleep.

In the morning, there were baozi to make, so Zhang Hualian simply started heating water early, and when it was 3:30, she began calling for Tang Yue.

"Xiao Yue, it’s cold outside. Put on more clothes so you don’t catch a cold," Zhang Hualian reminded as she got the fire going, feeling particularly cold. She brought the brazier inside; it had roaring flames, which she placed inside the room to keep Tang Yue warm when she got up.

"Mom, why did you get up so early?" Tang Yue, seeing that Zhang Hualian had even taken care of the fire, couldn’t help but wonder when exactly she had gotten up.

On regular days making baozi, she would wake up between 4:00 and 4:30 AM, and she always slept soundly, Zhang Hualian would wake up and she would vaguely notice, but would fall back asleep.

"Quickly get dressed, I’ve heated some water," Zhang Hualian brought in the warm clothes she had dried.

Wearing the warm clothes, Tang Yue felt an indescribable touch of gratitude.

In the past, Zhang Hualian might have done the same, but back then, she resented Zhang Hualian for waking her up and keeping her from sleeping well. Even though she dried clothes for her, she still complained and never really felt Zhang Hualian’s maternal love.

Later, after she graduated from high school and followed Wu Xinming, whenever she returned home, it was cold and indifferent; the mother-daughter relationship was even worse than strangers.

"Mom." Wearing the clothes, Tang Yue looked at Zhang Hualian, eyes swimming with emotion.

Seeing her motionless, Zhang Hualian looked up and saw those moved eyes, and she smiled, "Xiao Yue, you’re already a senior high school student and still so prone to tears."

"Mom, thank you." Tang Yue threw herself into her arms, tears inevitably falling, dampening Zhang Hualian’s clothes.

"We’re all fine, why say such things?" Zhang Hualian, being hugged by her daughter and listening to her tender words, felt an ultimate sense of happiness. She looked up and said, "Xiao Yue, hurry up, or your little uncle will have to come looking for you."

After speaking, Zhang Hualian hurried away, her hand wiping at her eyes.

"You are the best mom," Tang Yue grinned at her retreating figure, took a deep breath, and couldn’t help saying, "God, thank you for giving me another chance."

Tang Yue also knew time was running short; she already heard Tang Mingli gently knocking at the door. She quickly brushed her teeth and washed her face, tying her hair in a high ponytail, grabbed the baozi Zhang Hualian had made early, and left, saying, "Mom, I’m in a hurry, I have to go now."

"Did you take the baozi for your little uncle?" Zhang Hualian hurriedly asked.

Tang Yue held up the warm baozi in her hand; as soon as she stepped out, she handed them to Tang Mingli and was already breathing heavily. Outside, the sky was pitch dark without a glimmer of light, the morning streets were still, all the shops were closed, lacking the usual hustle and bustle, the streets were quieter than she had ever seen.

"Uncle, do you still recognize the way?" Tang Yue looked at the pitch-dark surroundings, unable to even distinguish north from south, eating a warm bun, her whole heart felt warm.

"I do." Tang Mingli took a big bite of his bun and said, "My second brother’s wife woke up so early to make buns. I was planning to treat you to bao mian when we reached the Provincial City. The bao mian there tastes really good."

"Bao mian? My parents can make a bit of bao mian too. Diversifying a bit would be better for business," Tang Yue thought that bao mian was even easier to make than dumplings and tasted good too. If they added another dish, surely more people would come to their place for breakfast.

Tang Mingli, realizing belatedly, slapped his head and said, "Oh no, look at my memory. Why didn’t I think of that before?"

Hurriedly moving through the night, Tang Mingli took Tang Yue on the car heading to the Provincial City for purchasing goods.

As soon as she got on the car, Tang Yue began to doze off with her eyes closed. She was mostly in a daze and didn’t really fall asleep until Tang Mingli called her, and she found out they had arrived at the Provincial City.

Tang Yue, who hadn’t visited the Provincial City for a long while, was initially a bit confused, but soon got into the swing of things.

This time, aside from purchasing, it was still for purchasing. Sister Wei’s goods were good, but other stores also had good items. Tang Yue was in charge of scouting out other stores for stylish, high-quality goods.

Tang Mingli was behind her, managing the money. He believed in Tang Yue’s taste one hundred, no, a thousand percent.

Eventually, they reached the place where Sister Wei was located. Tang Yue picked many styles. Sister Wei’s store had the most comprehensive collection, and it seemed that other clothing stores in Wangjiang County also noticed Sister Wei’s store, sometimes having many similar styles.

But, that was inevitable. Tang Yue could only try to maintain their store’s advantage.

"Is Jiajia selling children’s clothing today?" Tang Mingli asked casually after paying.

"She is," Sister Wei said with a smile. "Jiajia went to Shenzhen before the new year and negotiated a few more suppliers. Her kids’ clothes are especially pretty. You know the location of the store, so go ahead."

"Alrighty." Tang Mingli dragging the goods, planned to move the items to the car before going to find Wei Jiajia. As he turned around, he saw Tang Yue standing neatly there, the teasing in her eyes impossible to hide.

Tang Mingli’s face turned red unconsciously, and not until he left Sister Wei’s store did Tang Yue come up dragging the goods and said, "Uncle, who is this Jiajia? My future little aunt?"

"Xiao Yue, don’t jump to conclusions." Tang Mingli, being an elder to Tang Yue, felt a bit embarrassed being scrutinized by her like this.

Tang Yue clicked her tongue and said, "Uncle has taken a fancy to her, hasn’t he? No wonder uncle wants to sell kids’ clothes, turns out the future little aunt sells childrenswear."

"Xiao Yue, don’t talk nonsense in case someone overhears and misunderstands," Tang Mingli hurriedly said. If his hands weren’t full, he’d have liked to cover Tang Yue’s mouth. Her unchecked words, if heard by Wei Jiajia, would be so embarrassing.

"Uncle, are you saying you have no feelings for her?" Tang Yue raised her eyebrow, pressing on: "Uncle, just tell me; you don’t have to confess right away. Why are you blushing?"

Tang Mingli: "..." Where had his gentle, sensible, and understanding niece gone?