Chapter 491: A Phone Call

When Mrs. Qin heard that, she was quite tempted.

However, there was so much to do at home, and two elders to look after.

Just as she was hesitating, Granny Qin made the decision for her. "Shulan, you go. And have Mingxue take plenty of pictures to bring back for an old woman like me to see."

If her legs weren’t giving her trouble, she would have wanted to go too.

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Qin nodded at once. "Alright, then. Let’s all go together."

Fu Mingxue immediately said, "I’ll come over at 7:30 tomorrow morning. We can go together."

Mrs. Qin nodded. "Sounds good."

The Qin siblings, who were listening from the side, were also thrilled.

Come to think of it, they lived right here in Beijing City, yet they had grown up without ever visiting the Forbidden City!

After finalizing the plans, Fu Mingxue didn’t stay at the Qin residence much longer.

Just as she was preparing to leave, the phone in the living room rang.

Mr. Qin was closest to the phone, so he answered it.

"Who’s calling?"

"Dad, it’s me, Wenhao." Qin Wenhao’s voice came through the line.

Hearing his youngest son’s voice, Mr. Qin raised an eyebrow. "Well, your timing is perfect. Your wife is right here."

Qin Wenhao was ecstatic to hear that his wife was there too.

He immediately said, "Dad, quick, put Mingxue on. Let me say a few words to her."

Mr. Qin: ’...?’

’Was it so wrong for a father and son to chat?’

Despite this thought, he still called out to his daughter-in-law, who was just about to leave.

"Mingxue, it’s Wenhao on the phone."

Fu Mingxue walked over and took the phone he was holding out. Before she could say a word, Qin Wenhao’s voice came through. "Honey, it’s me, Wenhao."

Fu Mingxue: ’...?’

’Wasn’t that redundant?’

’Her father-in-law just told her. Did he think she wouldn’t know it was him?’

"What is it?"

The moment Qin Wenhao heard those three words, the smile on his face vanished.

"Honey, can I only call you when I have something important to say?"

Fu Mingxue was speechless.

’This is a long-distance call!’

’And from a military line, no less, right?’

’Besides, the whole family is here.’

’And they’re all staring at me.’

"So... are you busy?"

"Not really, same as always. Are you busy over there?"

"Mm-hmm. But I have the day off tomorrow. I’m taking Mom and everyone out for a bit."

"That’s great. You haven’t had a proper break in a long time. You definitely deserve some rest."

"Is there anything else?" ’They couldn’t just make small talk over the phone like this!’ Fu Mingxue thought.

"Nothing else, I just miss you!" Fortunately, he had some sense of propriety, whispering the last part of his sentence.

Fu Mingxue heard him, and her face inexplicably flushed.

She gave a soft cough to ease the sudden awkwardness.

"So... what about your New Year’s leave? Are you getting any time off?"

"That’s actually what I wanted to talk about. There’s a field training exercise coming up, so I probably won’t have time to call. I won’t be able to make it for the New Year itself, but I’ll be back in Beijing on the sixth day of the new year. I can pick you all up then."

That way, he could rest easy.

"Alright. In that case, you stay safe. If there’s nothing else, I’ll give the phone back to Dad so you two can talk—"

When Fu Mingxue handed the phone to Mr. Qin and he was about to say something, all he heard was a dial tone from the other end.

His expression darkened.

’That damn kid.’

Fu Mingxue said her goodbyes to the Qin family and rode her bicycle home.

Mrs. Fu saw her come back.

She asked, "How is your sister-in-law doing?"

"She’s recovering well." Fu Mingxue didn’t elaborate.

She especially saw no need to mention that Gao Lan’s own mother was going to take care of her.

’After all, it was their family’s private business.’