Xue Changlin and Liu Hongxing went to the brigade office.

They dialed the number written in Xue Xingjun’s letter, and after a few whirs from the line...

"Hello?"

Liu Hongxing, holding the receiver, froze. The voice on the other end didn’t sound like her son.

She was suddenly afraid to speak and looked over at Xue Changlin.

Xue Changlin looked at her in confusion. "Did no one answer?"

Liu Hongxing shook her head.

In fact, it was He Lang who had answered. The number Xue Xingjun had left was for his office phone.

He Lang seemed to hear them talking on the other end and paused for a few seconds.

"Are you looking for Xue Xingjun?"

Liu Hongxing’s eyes lit up. She nodded eagerly, then remembered the person on the other end couldn’t see her and quickly said, "Yes, I’m looking for Xue Xingjun. I’m his mother."

He Lang replied, "Please hold on a moment. I’ll go get him."

He Lang put down the receiver, stepped out of his office, and called to the room next door.

"Xing Jun, you have a phone call."

At first, Xue Xingjun thought he had misheard. He ran to the office and asked He Lang, "A call for me?"

He Lang nodded and gestured with his eyes toward the phone on the desk.

Xue Xingjun picked up the receiver, confused. "Hello? Who’s asking for me?"

When Liu Hongxing heard Xue Xingjun’s voice on the other end, she was instantly overwhelmed with emotion.

"Is that you, Little Jun?"

Xue Xingjun froze for a second when he heard her voice. "Mom?"

Liu Hongxing, now laughing through her tears, said, "Yes, yes, it’s your mom."

A smile finally broke out on Xue Xingjun’s face. "Mom, it’s me. Don’t cry. What made you guys decide to call me?"

Liu Hongxing wiped away her tears and said happily, "We just got the letter and the package you sent. Why did you buy so much? We have plenty to eat here, you know. You just take good care of yourself. Are you doing okay in Beijing City?"

Xue Xingjun grinned. "I’m doing great! My sister and brother-in-law are amazing to me. I’m staying with my big brother, and my sister-in-law is really good to me, too. I have food to eat and clothes to wear, I’m not wanting for anything. Don’t be afraid to use up the things I sent you. Once I get more money, I’ll buy you more."

Liu Hongxing was about to tell him not to spend his money so recklessly, but then she remembered that Xue Yue and her family were well-off, so she just nodded and agreed. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Beside her, Xue Changlin had been leaning in close, his ears perked to catch every word.

"Let me say a few words to the boy."

Liu Hongxing shot him a look. "Little Jun, your father wants to say a few words." With that, she handed the receiver to Xue Changlin and leaned in close to listen herself.

Xue Changlin took it. "Ah, Little Jun, it’s your father."

Xue Xingjun rolled his eyes. "Yeah, Dad."

Xue Changlin launched into his usual speech: "Make sure you work hard, and don’t cause any trouble for your sister and her family. Life isn’t easy for them, either."

’Here we go again!’

Xue Xingjun nodded wearily. "Okay, I know."

Standing beside Xue Changlin, Liu Hongxing rolled her eyes at his words and reminded him, "Get to the point. Don’t lecture the boy over the phone."

Xue Changlin opened his mouth, then changed tack. "So, uh, are your sister and her family doing all right? And your brother... how’s he?"

"My sister and her family are doing great! My sister started working at the Ministry of Commerce—that’s a civil service job, you know, super hard to get. My big brother joined the Beijing City Public Security Bureau, so he’s still a police officer, and he looks so sharp in his uniform. My sister-in-law was assigned to a newspaper office. And there’s Tun Tun! Tun Tun is my big brother’s son. Hehe, my nephew. He’s super cute, three years old this year, and so well-behaved. He loves his Uncle Jun the most!" Xue Xingjun rattled off, chuckling.

Hearing this, a smile touched Xue Changlin’s eyes. He nodded, relieved to know they were all doing well over there. "That’s good. That’s good."

He was about to say something else, but Liu Hongxing snatched the receiver back from him.

"You’ve been on long enough. It’s my turn to talk to our son."

"Little Jun, it’s your mom. Make sure you’re eating well in Beijing City, and don’t work yourself too hard. I miss you so much. Write to me when you have time, okay? You didn’t come home last year, so you absolutely have to come back this year."

Xue Xingjun said, "I’ll see what the situation is."

Liu Hongxing nodded. "Okay, that’s all for now, then. These calls are very expensive."

Xue Xingjun wanted to say more, but he heard a sharp CLICK from the other end, followed by a dial tone.

Liu Hongxing glanced at the call timer—four minutes and fifty-nine seconds—and patted her chest in relief. Good thing she’d been quick on the draw.

He Lang watched as Xue Xingjun stared blankly at the phone.

"Feeling homesick?"

Xue Xingjun put down the receiver and shook his head. "Not exactly. Before, when you and my brother left our hometown and weren’t around, I always felt this emptiness inside. I just wanted to run away. I didn’t go back for two years, and I rarely thought about my parents. To my dad, I was basically invisible. My mom doted on me, sure, but sometimes I couldn’t stand the way she did things, so I kept my distance from her, too. Then, the other day, I heard Brother Xiao Chen mention that he often writes home and sends money, and it made me feel... weird. Like maybe I’m not a very good son. Brother-in-law, what’s wrong with me?"

He Lang looked at him and smiled. "It just means you’re growing up."

"Growing up?" Xue Xingjun touched his face.

’I guess I have. And I’ve even gotten a little chubbier,’ he muttered to himself.

He Lang stood up with a smile. "Come on. It’s the end of the month. Time to get you your spending money."

Hearing that, Xue Xingjun instantly shot to his feet. "Let’s go! Time to get paid!"

They called it spending money, but it was really Xue Xingjun’s wages. He Lang had already increased his pay from twenty or thirty yuan a month at the start to sixty or seventy now.

He Lang didn’t dare give him too much because of his young age, but he was genuinely fond of the kid. He was sharp and adaptable, and he never complained about any task he was given. His only flaw was that he talked a bit too much. He was a chatterbox, rambling on in He Lang’s ear all day long. But on the rare occasions he fell silent, He Lang found he actually missed it.

Sure enough, when Xue Xingjun came home from work, he was carrying a new toy.

Xue Xingzhou saw him and asked, "Did your brother-in-law pay you today?"

Xue Xingjun chuckled. "Is it that obvious?"

Zhang Qian teased, "Of course it is. You buy Tun Tun a new toy every month as soon as you get paid."

Watching Tun Tun play happily with it, Xue Xingjun’s heart swelled with joy. "I already promised him I’d buy him a new toy every month. Besides, we all get to go out every day while he’s stuck at home. It must be so boring for him. Kids have their own thoughts, you know, they just don’t say them out loud. And other than playing with toys, what else is there for him to do?"

Zhang Qian and Xue Xingzhou exchanged a glance. They had never considered that before. Looking at their son, they saw he was indeed having a wonderful time. He clearly loved the new toy.

Zhang Yunlei sat off to the side, simply watching them. No one paid him any mind. His gaze then shifted to Tun Tun as he played, a thoughtful expression on his face.

The next day, Zhang Qian called her parents’ home.

Zhang Qian’s parents didn’t have a phone, but there was a newspaper kiosk with a public telephone at the entrance to their alley, and the owner knew her well.

After a short wait, Huang Ying called back.

"Qianqian?"