Chapter 455: Chapter 452: Applying for Annual Leave
"It’s not much each month, but I’ve been saving up five thousand for you, and by now there should be tens of thousands in there. Keep it for adding some stuff to your new house, or take it out for a trip."
When Zhang Hao heard what his parents said, he too felt quite moved.
But the one with the biggest emotional surge was He Qianhui. She thought she heard Uncle refer to them as a ’young couple’ just now.
Could it be an acknowledgment of their relationship?
"Uncle, actually, the two of us are now..."
He Qianhui hadn’t finished speaking when Zhang Hao pulled her aside.
"Mom and Dad, you should have done this long ago. I knew you wouldn’t let your son live a bad life. We’ll save this money for a rainy day. Dinner’s just been cooked, come and join us."
The elderly couple shook their heads at the table full of lavish seafood.
"Your dad and I can’t eat these things, we were just passing by, glad to see you’re living well."
"We’re not worried, so we’ll head back first. You two take your time and enjoy the meal."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Hao glanced at He Qianhui, who understood immediately, and she quickly found a bag to pick some crabs, oysters, and other seafood from the table to pack up.
"Uncle, Auntie, take these back with you. Eat while watching TV just for fun. These were all carefully selected by Hao, they were all alive before they went into the pot."
Zhang Hao’s mother, seeing He Qianhui still calling her "auntie," was somewhat dissatisfied.
"Xiaohui, what are you still calling us ’uncle’ and ’auntie’ for? Isn’t it time to change how you address us?"
He Qianhui slapped her forehead, her heart bursting with joy.
"That’s my bad, Uncle... no, I mean Dad, Mom, please take these back to eat."
"Alright, we’ll take these back with us. Your dad and I will try your cooking. You two hurry up and eat."
Watching his parents leave, Zhang Hao felt that he was very lucky today.
To celebrate, he knocked on his neighbor’s door.
The female neighbor and her husband happened to be at home and were also getting ready for dinner.
With Zhang Hao’s insistent invitation, they finally brought over a bottle of wine.
The four of them sat at the table, chatting one after another until they parted ways at eleven o’clock.
When getting ready for bed, He Qianhui checked her social media and saw at least a dozen likes and comments.
No need to mention the likes. The comments were all blessings, congratulations, envy.
But what made He Qianhui feel most blessed was that her relationship with Zhang Hao had finally been acknowledged by Uncle and Auntie.
If they didn’t acknowledge it, their relationship would always be something to be hidden away.
Now she had no worries and could openly date Zhang Hao.
"What’s up, you look as happy tonight as if you’ve won a hundred thousand bucks."
"That’s right. But Uncle and Auntie said to use the card’s money for a trip. I think we should save it."
"Uncle and Auntie are getting older, and as you know, with age come all sorts of ailments."
"Let’s save it up slowly. If Auntie never falls ill, that’s the best. But if she ever feels unwell, the money could be life-saving."
"It’s just that for the two-week holiday coming up, I don’t want to just stay at home. Do you still have annual leave left for this year?"
Zhang Hao nodded, "I still have some; haven’t taken any. Do you want me to take time off to go out with you?"
He Qianhui nodded.
"Alright, then I’ll ask for leave from the hospital tomorrow. You plan where we’ll go, like a pre-honeymoon of sorts."
He Qianhui really liked this idea.
"Great, I’ll look at some travel guides tomorrow morning. Once you’ve taken your leave, we can decide where to go."
After both had washed up, they finally got ready to rest.
Even after turning off the lights, the bedroom wasn’t particularly dark, and Zhang Hao held He Qianhui in his arms, savoring the fragrance of her hair.
"Xiaohui, have you ever thought about what it would be like for us to live together after we get married?"
"But we’re both still young right now, so there are a million possibilities ahead of us."
He Qianhui rolled over to face him.
"Whatever kind of life you want to live, I’ll be right there with you. Is that okay?"
With that promise from He Qianhui, Zhang Hao felt like he would jump into the Huang He if she asked him to right now.
"Alright, then I’ll think it over carefully, about which kind of life we’ll have in the future. You can’t go back on your word."
In the darkness, Zhang Hao gazed at He Qianhui for a long time, before finally kissing her gently on the forehead.
"As long as I’m here, I’ll definitely provide the life you want."
As they watched each other, they hugged tightly, and Zhang Hao started to become restless.
He Qianhui was the same, and eventually, some sounds not suitable for children filled the room.
The next day, as soon as Zhang Hao arrived at the hospital, he immediately sought out his supervisor to ask for a long vacation.
The leader was shocked upon hearing this.
"Zhang Hao, Mr. Zhang, you’re suddenly asking for a long vacation. What are you up to? You haven’t found a better opportunity, have you?"
Zhang Hao shook his head repeatedly: "My wife just closed a big deal, and her boss rewarded her with half a month of paid leave."
"She doesn’t want to be home alone, so she thought of bringing me along for a trip. It just so happens that I still have my annual leave for this year, so I thought I’d take it and go with her to see different places."
The leader understood Zhang Hao’s intentions.
"Well, alright, but since you work so diligently, I’ll grant you paid annual leave as well. However, you still need to finish today’s work properly, got it?"
Having gotten the leave, Zhang Hao reported the news to He Qianhui.
And He Qianhui had spent the morning planning out their travel itinerary.
Now that she had received a definite answer from Zhang Hao about the successful leave, she was ready.
He Qianhui went over the travel plan again, though she was longing for the freedom of the open road more than sticking to the itinerary.
As long as they were together and had enough money in their wallets, they were prepared to handle whatever good or bad might occur along the way.
To spare Zhang Hao any extra burden, He Qianhui headed to the mall on her own in the afternoon.
They say that when a couple is happy together, a man easily gains ’happy weight.’
However, throughout the long time they had been together, He Qianhui had never seen Zhang Hao gain any noticeable weight.
At one point, she wondered if he was simply incapable of gaining weight.
Despite this, she still picked out a few clothes for him.
She also bought clothes according to his taste, getting three sets for each of them, along with two pairs of shoes.
She even bought some other essentials for traveling.
Since there was still time, He Qianhui stopped by a hair salon, planning to perm her hair for a good mood change.
After all this, He Qianhui finally received a call from Zhang Hao after he finished work.
It was almost nine in the evening when she got the call.
Perhaps because Zhang Hao was going to have the next day off, his supervisor made him work a little overtime.
He had to diagnose and prescribe medication for a few patients with serious conditions.
But as he took his leave, the other departments became tense.
Especially the surgery department—the head of surgery even went out of his way to come to the Traditional Chinese Medicine department after hours to ask why Zhang Hao was taking leave.
He wondered if it was because he kept coming there to pull Zhang Hao into helping out at surgery.
