Song Yu felt emotional from seeing how handsome he looked at that time. The incisive gaze that he so often had was absent, and at that moment, he looked at her like she was the apple of his eye. Song Yu had an even greater appreciation for that handsome and magnificent man.
As a result of his gaze, a tender lovingness surfaced inexplicably from the bottom of her heart. She stretched herself and kissed him lightly on his eyes. Her thumb then drew gently across his facial features, thinking to herself, ‘How is it possible for a man to be so handsome?’
She scrutinized his face in detail and suddenly recalled that he had not answered her question, so she asked again. “What did you talk about with Auntie?”
“What else is there to talk about? The only thing I’d talk about is you and I. I told her not to interfere.” Qi Chengzhi wrapped his arm on her and tightened his grip.
Song Yu sighed. She had been resting her chin on his chest, but at that moment she turned her head slightly so her cheek was resting above his heart. She listened to his heartbeat, which had yet to return to normal speed.
“Did you rush back specifically for that? It must’ve bothered your work, right?”
“Not at all. I was already thinking about leaving.” Qi Chengzhi kissed her forehead. “You told me to come back earlier, didn’t you? I remembered.”
Song Yu smiled, lowered her head, and smelled the sweat on his chest. It was salty, but not pungent in the slightest.
It was as if nothing that came from him could ever be bad.
Song Yu frowned, looked up, and asked, “So, do you want to eat dinner tonight, or not?”
Without waiting for an answer, she sat up, counted the hours, and ascertained that he had not had the time to eat something.
She had overlooked that particular point because she kept thinking about him and his mother.
“You smoked and drank tea on an empty stomach?” She frowned disapprovingly. She then pursed her lips and rebuked him, “You’re not allowed to do that in the future.”
Once she was done talking, she sat up, and not bothering to cover herself in front of him, she moved to get off the bed.
“Where are you going?” He sat up immediately too, grabbing her by the waist. He wrapped his arms from behind and placed his warm palms on her belly, after which he planted a kiss on her shoulder.
“Down. I’ll cook some noodles for you.” Song Yu then asked, “Isn’t it uncomfortable for you because we did some…’exercises’…when you were on an empty stomach?”
“As long as you let me eat ‘down there’, I won’t feel uncomfortable at all.” He leaned over to her ear and whispered softly. His rich voice was very indecent because of his sexual tone. The eroticism in his voice tunneled through her ear and threaded deep into her body, sending shivers down her spine.
On the surface, there was nothing too unusual about his words, but it was his hand movements that led her to realize the hidden meaning behind his sentence. Her face turned red immediately!
A change of tone in those words was enough to make it lewd!
“Qi Chengzhi, you… how can you be so shameless!” Song Yu could not find any other word that could describe him appropriately. He was so proper when he had clothes on, but the instant he took them off, he was a beast!
She barely finished her sentence when he pushed her back down onto the bed.
“Qi Chengzhi, what are you doing!” Song Yu exclaimed in alarm and tried, unsuccessfully, to stop him.
…
…
On that occasion, Song Yu’s legs were trembling madly afterward, and she was red from head to toe.
She lay exhausted on the bed with no energy to get up. Qi Chengzhi’s fingers grasped her on her waist and he asked, “Do you still have the energy to cook those noodles?”
Song Yu looked at the time. In fact, it was still early, but she replied rather sheepishly, “Has Aunt Yang slept yet? If she hasn’t, maybe you could ask her to cook a bowl for you.”
Initially, Song Yu wanted to be the one who cooked for him, but she did not expect him to push her back down onto the bed so savagely.
Song Yu would not agree to him going hungry for the night. At that time, Aunt Yang was not yet asleep, so Qi Chengzhi requested Aunt Yang to cook a bowl of noodles for him.
Aunt Yang rummaged through the fridge, and upon remembering that the freezer contained some oyster flesh she had bought the day before, she took them out.
She mulled it over for a moment. Oyster flesh had benefits to men who ate them, and Qi Chengzhi had also been doing ‘it’ quite frequently as of late. At thirty-four years of age, he was no longer young. Aunt Yang had never seen him with other women in the past few years, and although she understood that Qi Chengzhi was probably unable to control his excitement once he had Song Yu, doing it too much would be detrimental to his health!
Song Yu had been cooking his meals recently, so Aunt Yang felt that it was inappropriate to say anything. Aunt Yang wanted her to add some ingredients that would benefit men’s health into those meals, but she felt embarrassed to bring it up. The perfect opportunity came that night, and Aunt Yang really wanted to just toss in every single type of ingredient that could strengthen his body.
In the end, oyster flesh covered the noodles completely, so much so that the noodles disappeared underneath the oysters.
She brought the noodles up to his room and could not resist advising him, “Sir, please eat more oysters. They’re good for you.”
Once Aunt Yang left, Qi Chengzhi carried the bowl of noodles back to Song Yu, and she saw how full of oysters it was. Almost immediately, she was speechless and embarrassed: the thought of Aunt Yang personally bringing the noodles up made Song Yu so ashamed that she did not know how to face Aunt Yang in the future.
“What’s up?” Qi Chengzhi was curious as to why Song Yu was red-faced.
“Aunt Yang…” She blushed while looking at Qi Chengzhi. “Oyster meat is an aphrodisiac for men.”
Qi Chengzhi, “…”
A mouthful of oysters did not stop his lips from curling into a teasing smile. “Aunt Yang’s afraid that you’re milking me dry?”
Red-faced, Song Yu hugged a pillow and retorted, “You’re the one who’s always so randy. This has nothing to do with me!”
Qi Chengzhi continued eating his noodles while Song Yu sat up. She used a blanket to cover herself, and the pillow was still hugged in her embrace.
“Are you busy tomorrow?”
Qi Chengzhi looked up at her, prompting her to explain, “If you have nothing to do tomorrow, let’s go and meet my parents. You’ve already brought me to the wedding today, so we can’t hide our relationship anymore. Jian Yi’s parents were there too, and I’m worried that his mother might go and gossip with my mom. So, I was thinking that we should tell them before they hear it from someone else. We can’t drag this on for long. Sooner or later, we’ll have to tell them.”
Qi Chengzhi placed his chopsticks down, walked over to the bedside, and picked up his phone from the bedside cabinet. He called Cheng Dongge and said, “Cancel my itinerary for tomorrow.”
“…”
“Tomorrow’s plan will go ahead as usual, but Chenglin will attend on my behalf.”
Song Yu did not expect Qi Chengzhi to cancel his work arrangements directly. She told him after he hung up, “If you’re busy with work tomorrow, you should deal with it first. Don’t just cancel your appointments because of this. It’s the same if I tell them myself.”
“In the event that your mom doesn’t agree, what then? Can you handle it all yourself?” He sat on the bed and held her hand with his slender, fair fingers. Noticing how she lowered her head in helplessness, he reminded her, “That is why I told you I’d follow you. I said that before, didn’t I?”
Song Yu leaned forward and rested her forehead on his shoulder. She inhaled the sweat-infused fragrance from his body.
“Qi Chengzhi. Have I ever told you that I feel lucky to have you liking me? Thank you for being so sincere towards me. I’m really happy that you came into my life,” she uttered softly as she placed her palm affectionately on his chest.
His chest was warm, and his thumping heartbeat was pounding gently on her palm.
Qi Chengzhi placed his arms around her with enthusiasm and hugged her tightly in his embrace. His warm, thin lips brushed through her eyes and then to her cheekbone. “Wanna do it again?”
“…” Speechless, Song Yu hit him. He just had to ruin the emotional moment with his words. “Why do you keep thinking about that!”
Qi Chengzhi chuckled with a resonance that was akin to the lowest note on a piano; it was rich and seductive.
He kissed her forehead, hugged her, and laid back down. “Time to sleep.”
…
…
The next day, Song Yu was still asleep when her lips were being gently kissed by a pair of moist lips. She groaned and strained to open her eyes, which she finally did, although she was still having some blurry vision. Bit by bit, Qi Chengzhi’s handsome face slowly began to look crystal clear.
“What time is it now?” Song Yu’s voice was hoarse and she was not completely awake yet. She leaned her head to look at the bedside clock and saw that it was not even eight. “Why did you wake up so early?”
“Didn’t you say you wanted to meet your family today?” Qi Chengzhi’s dry hand crept into the blanket and slid to her belly. His fingers gently massaged her there. “We have to leave a little earlier so we can buy something for them. I can’t be going to your home empty-handed for my first meeting with your parents.”
Song Yu was still blurry at first, but those words jolted her awake immediately. She ran off to get herself ready, and after both of them had breakfast at home, they left for the shopping mall.
In fact, Qi Chengzhi could simply ask Cheng Dongge to help get everything in order. There was no particular need to bring Song Yu to choose what they were going to buy, but because Qi Chengzhi would be showing up in person, he wanted the gift to be sincere.
He held Song Yu’s hand and they walked side by side. Song Yu watched as he chose those gifts without even the slightest hint of impatience. His slender fingers brushed across those items while his body stood still and upright, lending him an appearance of calmness and dignification.
Being the busy man that he was, rest days – even on weekends – were hard to come by, but there he was, sacrificing what little time he had to rest in order to prepare himself for the best possible impression on her parents. What other actions could possibly be more deserving of admiration?
Song Yu looked at his meticulousness and was afraid that his sincerity would be in vain if her mother was still averse to the Qi family. Turning to the man who was placing all of his attention onto the gifts, she said, “Just about all right is good enough.”
Qi Chengzhi looked at her with his enigmatic eyes and made her feel shy. She looked down and held the fair, well-defined fingers of his hand.
He knew exactly what she was worried about, so he kneaded her hand and uttered softly, “Don’t worry.”
…
…
Yu Qianying held a bagful of vegetables she just bought from the supermarket and headed toward Song Yu’s apartment.
She reckoned that Zhou Mingyan might come over to the house with the wedding sweets and blab about how grandiose the wedding was or how many of those important people came to the fore.
Yu Qianying let out a cold ‘hmph’. How could she not know about those upper-class people who attended the wedding?
Even though Yu Qianying was no longer in that circle for a good few years, at the end of the day, she was still someone who was previously close to the Qi family. Those who were invited would undoubtedly have been close to the Qi family, too. Yu Qianying knew that all too well and did not need Zhou Mingyan to harp on about it.
It was better for Yu Qianying to grumble about it all with Song Yu, her unmarried daughter.
Upon reaching the entrance to Song Yu’s unit, Yu Qianying pressed the doorbell a few times, but no one came for the door.
Yu Qianying’s decision to come over was made at the last minute, so she did not inform Song Yu about it. She went over directly after thinking about how Song Yu was single and had never liked going out even on the weekends.
Seeing as no one seemed to be in, she took out her phone to call Song Yu. It was then that Yu Qianying spotted Auntie Zhang bringing along a small tow-cart that was used to place the vegetables she bought.
Auntie Zhang saw Yu Qianying standing at the entrance to Song Yu’s unit and remembered who she was. Yu Qianying had come over a few times prior, and in the past, Auntie Zhang had met her and even exchanged some friendly conversation with her.
“Sister Zhang, you went to buy some veggies?” Yu Qianying asked with a smile.
Auntie Zhang picked up the tow-cart and placed it on the ground. She panted and returned the smile. “Looking for Song Yu?”
“Yes, but she doesn’t seem to be home!” Yu Qianying exclaimed while holding her phone.
“She didn’t tell you? She moved over to stay with her boyfriend. The lease in this unit is not going to expire for some time, but she’s not staying here anymore. I think her boyfriend is pretty rich, he probably doesn’t mind wasting that remaining rent.” Auntie Zhang leaned the tow-cart onto the wall and was in no rush to enter her home.
Retired and with nothing better to do, gossiping was a fun thing to do, especially if it involved something juicy.
“Boyfriend?” Yu Qianying exclaimed in shock.
“Yes, you didn’t know? Her boyfriend’s driving one of those cars like those big bosses! I went back and asked my daughter about it, she said it was some rover or something, Land Rover! Yes, it’s called a Land Rover! I forgot what Land Rover, but my daughter said the car was worth a few million!” Auntie Zhang was in total admiration when she continued, “Song Yu has quite the skill to be able to find such a rich boyfriend.”
“How does her boyfriend look like? How old is he?” Yu Qianying suddenly recalled the time during New Year where Lao Xu told her that Song Yu had gotten into an SUV. At that time, Song Yu did not admit to it, but Lao Xu’s story seemed to be holding water.
Yu Qianying’s greatest fear was that Song Yu had gotten herself involved with an old man.
“Thirtysomething, I think. He’s tall, handsome, so fair, so well-groomed. He’s a little aloof though. I didn’t see him smile, but he’s really very handsome!” Auntie Zhang giggled. “You’re lucky you know! There’s plenty of rich men, but someone as young and as handsome as him, who’s also rich? A man like that is hard to find!”
“When did she move out?” Yu Qianying asked another question.
“Oh, I think it’s been a while now. Almost two months I guess!”
The both of them exchanged a few more words, and when Auntie Zhang had no other information to give, Yu Qianying left and brought along the vegetables with her.
She did not know what to feel at that moment. She ought to feel happy since Song Yu had a boyfriend, but there was a part of her that felt worried. ‘Why must Song Yu hide it from her parents if she was in a proper relationship?’
It came to a point where Yu Qianying had to find out about it from an outsider, and she even did not know that her own daughter had moved out. She had no idea when her daughter moved out, nor where she moved out to.
She even had to hear about the boyfriend’s appearance from an outsider.
Yu Qianying was suffering quite a bit in her heart. Barely two steps later, she felt her breathing becoming stifled. She tapped her fist against her chest a couple of times, and she called home as soon as she was at the bus stop.
She spoke immediately after she heard Song Donglin’s voice and did not even give her husband the chance to speak. “Song Yu’s in a relationship. She even went to stay at her boyfriend’s place. She kept all of it from us. I heard this from her neighbor because there wasn’t anyone in her apartment when I arrived. What is our child up to? It’s such an important thing, but she didn’t even tell us, her own family. When I came, I had to hear about the news from an outsider. As Song Yu’s mother, even I don’t know about this. Someone else had to tell me. How disgraceful is that? She’s being so sneaky with this, is it possible that she’s become someone else’s mistress?”
“I think you should hurry home!” Song Donglin’s voice did not seem quite right from the other end of the phone.
Still angry with Song Yu, Yu Qianying felt odd once she heard Song Donglin’s unusual tone of voice. “What happened?”
Song Donglin stood on the balcony and stole a glance at the living room through the glass window. He kept his voice low as he said, “Liang Lihua’s here, you’d better come home quick!”
“Liang Lihua?” Yu Qianying turned blank and did not react upon hearing those three words. After all, she had not heard that name for quite some time, much less seen that person. “Who’s that?”
“Your sister-in-law!” Song Donglin hung up as soon as he said that.
Yu Qianying still did not know what was happening and why someone she had never kept in touch with for so many years turned up at her doorstep so suddenly. What was going on?
…
…
Song Donglin opened the door for Yu Qianying. She did not bring up Song Yu’s issue because Liang Lihua was there. The vegetables were carried into the kitchen and she put on a grave expression before going back into the living room. Liang Lihua was wearing an exquisite and branded outfit; it was Parisian fashion in its latest fall-winter style.
She sat very upright on the sofa, taking up about only a third of space.
Liang Lihua was scanning the surroundings as if she found the decorations too plain, too inferior to be shown in public, and too despicable for her eyes to see.
She then noticed Yu Qianying and began looking at her from head to toe. Yu Qianying had put on some weight as a result of failing to pay enough attention to her own health, and a cheap houndstooth jacket was covering that plump body. Her plain face was devoid of makeup, and the curls in her hair betrayed the fact that it was the work of some neighborhood barber.
The present-day Yu Qianying no longer had the refined personality of being Mrs. Song. Her appearance reeked of commonplace milieu, and all the desirable characteristics that she once had was completely eroded by the peasant lifestyle.
Liang Lihua’s gaze flickered and she thought, ‘Things have gone full circle and the pendulum has swung back. Back then, for the sake of the family company, I risked my dignity just so I could try and curry favor with you. Now, look at where we are?’
Liang Lihua was now the wife of a respected family, while Yu Qianying was a mere housewife who spent her days cooking and doing other mundane routines.
“Lady Liang, to what do I owe the pleasure of having you come to my home so willingly?” Yu Qianying did not hide her displeasure. “If I remember correctly, the boundaries have been drawn right from the beginning. Am I not already cut-off from being considered a member of the Yu family?”
“How have you been these years, elder sister-in-law?” Liang Lihua remained unmoved. She picked up the cup of tea in front of her, intending to take a sip, but the mere smell of it was enough for her to know that it was just some ordinary green tea, and not the aged Pu’er that she loved so dearly. She felt it beneath her dignity to be drinking it, so she pursed her lips and placed the cup back down. “I remember that both of you enjoy drinking Longjing tea. I’ll get someone to send you some later.”
“No need for that,” Yu Qianying replied coldly. She shot Song Donglin a glance, as if she was chastising him for taking the trouble to offer tea. It was a waste of water and tea leaves. When it came to Liang Lihua, it was best to just send her on her way.
“Sister-in-law, please don’t be so courteous. I didn’t expect your daily lives to be so full of disappointment.” Liang Lihua then scanned the living room as she pleased. “It’s just tea leaves. You don’t need to be so courteous with me.”
—
Free mini-scene:
Old man, “Are you nervous to meet your future parents-in-law?”
Qi Chengzhi, “…”
Yan Beicheng, “He’s so nervous he can’t even speak.”
Qi Chengzhi, “Wait till it’s time for you to meet your future in-laws, then try and take it easy.”
Yan Beicheng, “You think I’m as unlikeable as you?”
Chu Zhaoyang, “Hehe!”
Yan Beicheng, “Chu Zhaoyang, what are you trying to imply, you’d better explain yourself!”
Chu Zhaoyang, “Well, you’re pretty likeable, usually.”
Yan Beicheng, “…”
Han Zhuoli, “HAHAHAHA, Yan Beicheng, I have no idea what your temper is like. If I were you, I don’t think I can contain myself.”
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Song Yu felt emotional from seeing how handsome he looked at that time. The incisive gaze that he so often had was absent, and at that moment, he looked at her like she was the apple of his eye. Song Yu had an even greater appreciation for that handsome and magnificent man.
As a result of his gaze, a tender lovingness surfaced inexplicably from the bottom of her heart. She stretched herself and kissed him lightly on his eyes. Her thumb then drew gently across his facial features, thinking to herself, ‘How is it possible for a man to be so handsome?’
She scrutinized his face in detail and suddenly recalled that he had not answered her question, so she asked again. “What did you talk about with Auntie?”
“What else is there to talk about? The only thing I’d talk about is you and I. I told her not to interfere.” Qi Chengzhi wrapped his arm on her and tightened his grip.
Song Yu sighed. She had been resting her chin on his chest, but at that moment she turned her head slightly so her cheek was resting above his heart. She listened to his heartbeat, which had yet to return to normal speed.
“Did you rush back specifically for that? It must’ve bothered your work, right?”
“Not at all. I was already thinking about leaving.” Qi Chengzhi kissed her forehead. “You told me to come back earlier, didn’t you? I remembered.”
Song Yu smiled, lowered her head, and smelled the sweat on his chest. It was salty, but not pungent in the slightest.
It was as if nothing that came from him could ever be bad.
Song Yu frowned, looked up, and asked, “So, do you want to eat dinner tonight, or not?”
Without waiting for an answer, she sat up, counted the hours, and ascertained that he had not had the time to eat something.
She had overlooked that particular point because she kept thinking about him and his mother.
“You smoked and drank tea on an empty stomach?” She frowned disapprovingly. She then pursed her lips and rebuked him, “You’re not allowed to do that in the future.”
Once she was done talking, she sat up, and not bothering to cover herself in front of him, she moved to get off the bed.
“Where are you going?” He sat up immediately too, grabbing her by the waist. He wrapped his arms from behind and placed his warm palms on her belly, after which he planted a kiss on her shoulder.
“Down. I’ll cook some noodles for you.” Song Yu then asked, “Isn’t it uncomfortable for you because we did some…’exercises’…when you were on an empty stomach?”
“As long as you let me eat ‘down there’, I won’t feel uncomfortable at all.” He leaned over to her ear and whispered softly. His rich voice was very indecent because of his sexual tone. The eroticism in his voice tunneled through her ear and threaded deep into her body, sending shivers down her spine.
On the surface, there was nothing too unusual about his words, but it was his hand movements that led her to realize the hidden meaning behind his sentence. Her face turned red immediately!
A change of tone in those words was enough to make it lewd!
“Qi Chengzhi, you… how can you be so shameless!” Song Yu could not find any other word that could describe him appropriately. He was so proper when he had clothes on, but the instant he took them off, he was a beast!
She barely finished her sentence when he pushed her back down onto the bed.
“Qi Chengzhi, what are you doing!” Song Yu exclaimed in alarm and tried, unsuccessfully, to stop him.
…
…
On that occasion, Song Yu’s legs were trembling madly afterward, and she was red from head to toe.
She lay exhausted on the bed with no energy to get up. Qi Chengzhi’s fingers grasped her on her waist and he asked, “Do you still have the energy to cook those noodles?”
Song Yu looked at the time. In fact, it was still early, but she replied rather sheepishly, “Has Aunt Yang slept yet? If she hasn’t, maybe you could ask her to cook a bowl for you.”
Initially, Song Yu wanted to be the one who cooked for him, but she did not expect him to push her back down onto the bed so savagely.
Song Yu would not agree to him going hungry for the night. At that time, Aunt Yang was not yet asleep, so Qi Chengzhi requested Aunt Yang to cook a bowl of noodles for him.
Aunt Yang rummaged through the fridge, and upon remembering that the freezer contained some oyster flesh she had bought the day before, she took them out.
She mulled it over for a moment. Oyster flesh had benefits to men who ate them, and Qi Chengzhi had also been doing ‘it’ quite frequently as of late. At thirty-four years of age, he was no longer young. Aunt Yang had never seen him with other women in the past few years, and although she understood that Qi Chengzhi was probably unable to control his excitement once he had Song Yu, doing it too much would be detrimental to his health!
Song Yu had been cooking his meals recently, so Aunt Yang felt that it was inappropriate to say anything. Aunt Yang wanted her to add some ingredients that would benefit men’s health into those meals, but she felt embarrassed to bring it up. The perfect opportunity came that night, and Aunt Yang really wanted to just toss in every single type of ingredient that could strengthen his body.
In the end, oyster flesh covered the noodles completely, so much so that the noodles disappeared underneath the oysters.
She brought the noodles up to his room and could not resist advising him, “Sir, please eat more oysters. They’re good for you.”
Once Aunt Yang left, Qi Chengzhi carried the bowl of noodles back to Song Yu, and she saw how full of oysters it was. Almost immediately, she was speechless and embarrassed: the thought of Aunt Yang personally bringing the noodles up made Song Yu so ashamed that she did not know how to face Aunt Yang in the future.
“What’s up?” Qi Chengzhi was curious as to why Song Yu was red-faced.
“Aunt Yang…” She blushed while looking at Qi Chengzhi. “Oyster meat is an aphrodisiac for men.”
Qi Chengzhi, “…”
A mouthful of oysters did not stop his lips from curling into a teasing smile. “Aunt Yang’s afraid that you’re milking me dry?”
Red-faced, Song Yu hugged a pillow and retorted, “You’re the one who’s always so randy. This has nothing to do with me!”
Qi Chengzhi continued eating his noodles while Song Yu sat up. She used a blanket to cover herself, and the pillow was still hugged in her embrace.
“Are you busy tomorrow?”
Qi Chengzhi looked up at her, prompting her to explain, “If you have nothing to do tomorrow, let’s go and meet my parents. You’ve already brought me to the wedding today, so we can’t hide our relationship anymore. Jian Yi’s parents were there too, and I’m worried that his mother might go and gossip with my mom. So, I was thinking that we should tell them before they hear it from someone else. We can’t drag this on for long. Sooner or later, we’ll have to tell them.”
Qi Chengzhi placed his chopsticks down, walked over to the bedside, and picked up his phone from the bedside cabinet. He called Cheng Dongge and said, “Cancel my itinerary for tomorrow.”
“…”
“Tomorrow’s plan will go ahead as usual, but Chenglin will attend on my behalf.”
Song Yu did not expect Qi Chengzhi to cancel his work arrangements directly. She told him after he hung up, “If you’re busy with work tomorrow, you should deal with it first. Don’t just cancel your appointments because of this. It’s the same if I tell them myself.”
“In the event that your mom doesn’t agree, what then? Can you handle it all yourself?” He sat on the bed and held her hand with his slender, fair fingers. Noticing how she lowered her head in helplessness, he reminded her, “That is why I told you I’d follow you. I said that before, didn’t I?”
Song Yu leaned forward and rested her forehead on his shoulder. She inhaled the sweat-infused fragrance from his body.
“Qi Chengzhi. Have I ever told you that I feel lucky to have you liking me? Thank you for being so sincere towards me. I’m really happy that you came into my life,” she uttered softly as she placed her palm affectionately on his chest.
His chest was warm, and his thumping heartbeat was pounding gently on her palm.
Qi Chengzhi placed his arms around her with enthusiasm and hugged her tightly in his embrace. His warm, thin lips brushed through her eyes and then to her cheekbone. “Wanna do it again?”
“…” Speechless, Song Yu hit him. He just had to ruin the emotional moment with his words. “Why do you keep thinking about that!”
Qi Chengzhi chuckled with a resonance that was akin to the lowest note on a piano; it was rich and seductive.
He kissed her forehead, hugged her, and laid back down. “Time to sleep.”
…
…
The next day, Song Yu was still asleep when her lips were being gently kissed by a pair of moist lips. She groaned and strained to open her eyes, which she finally did, although she was still having some blurry vision. Bit by bit, Qi Chengzhi’s handsome face slowly began to look crystal clear.
“What time is it now?” Song Yu’s voice was hoarse and she was not completely awake yet. She leaned her head to look at the bedside clock and saw that it was not even eight. “Why did you wake up so early?”
“Didn’t you say you wanted to meet your family today?” Qi Chengzhi’s dry hand crept into the blanket and slid to her belly. His fingers gently massaged her there. “We have to leave a little earlier so we can buy something for them. I can’t be going to your home empty-handed for my first meeting with your parents.”
Song Yu was still blurry at first, but those words jolted her awake immediately. She ran off to get herself ready, and after both of them had breakfast at home, they left for the shopping mall.
In fact, Qi Chengzhi could simply ask Cheng Dongge to help get everything in order. There was no particular need to bring Song Yu to choose what they were going to buy, but because Qi Chengzhi would be showing up in person, he wanted the gift to be sincere.
He held Song Yu’s hand and they walked side by side. Song Yu watched as he chose those gifts without even the slightest hint of impatience. His slender fingers brushed across those items while his body stood still and upright, lending him an appearance of calmness and dignification.
Being the busy man that he was, rest days – even on weekends – were hard to come by, but there he was, sacrificing what little time he had to rest in order to prepare himself for the best possible impression on her parents. What other actions could possibly be more deserving of admiration?
Song Yu looked at his meticulousness and was afraid that his sincerity would be in vain if her mother was still averse to the Qi family. Turning to the man who was placing all of his attention onto the gifts, she said, “Just about all right is good enough.”
Qi Chengzhi looked at her with his enigmatic eyes and made her feel shy. She looked down and held the fair, well-defined fingers of his hand.
He knew exactly what she was worried about, so he kneaded her hand and uttered softly, “Don’t worry.”
…
…
Yu Qianying held a bagful of vegetables she just bought from the supermarket and headed toward Song Yu’s apartment.
She reckoned that Zhou Mingyan might come over to the house with the wedding sweets and blab about how grandiose the wedding was or how many of those important people came to the fore.
Yu Qianying let out a cold ‘hmph’. How could she not know about those upper-class people who attended the wedding?
Even though Yu Qianying was no longer in that circle for a good few years, at the end of the day, she was still someone who was previously close to the Qi family. Those who were invited would undoubtedly have been close to the Qi family, too. Yu Qianying knew that all too well and did not need Zhou Mingyan to harp on about it.
It was better for Yu Qianying to grumble about it all with Song Yu, her unmarried daughter.
Upon reaching the entrance to Song Yu’s unit, Yu Qianying pressed the doorbell a few times, but no one came for the door.
Yu Qianying’s decision to come over was made at the last minute, so she did not inform Song Yu about it. She went over directly after thinking about how Song Yu was single and had never liked going out even on the weekends.
Seeing as no one seemed to be in, she took out her phone to call Song Yu. It was then that Yu Qianying spotted Auntie Zhang bringing along a small tow-cart that was used to place the vegetables she bought.
Auntie Zhang saw Yu Qianying standing at the entrance to Song Yu’s unit and remembered who she was. Yu Qianying had come over a few times prior, and in the past, Auntie Zhang had met her and even exchanged some friendly conversation with her.
“Sister Zhang, you went to buy some veggies?” Yu Qianying asked with a smile.
Auntie Zhang picked up the tow-cart and placed it on the ground. She panted and returned the smile. “Looking for Song Yu?”
“Yes, but she doesn’t seem to be home!” Yu Qianying exclaimed while holding her phone.
“She didn’t tell you? She moved over to stay with her boyfriend. The lease in this unit is not going to expire for some time, but she’s not staying here anymore. I think her boyfriend is pretty rich, he probably doesn’t mind wasting that remaining rent.” Auntie Zhang leaned the tow-cart onto the wall and was in no rush to enter her home.
Retired and with nothing better to do, gossiping was a fun thing to do, especially if it involved something juicy.
“Boyfriend?” Yu Qianying exclaimed in shock.
“Yes, you didn’t know? Her boyfriend’s driving one of those cars like those big bosses! I went back and asked my daughter about it, she said it was some rover or something, Land Rover! Yes, it’s called a Land Rover! I forgot what Land Rover, but my daughter said the car was worth a few million!” Auntie Zhang was in total admiration when she continued, “Song Yu has quite the skill to be able to find such a rich boyfriend.”
“How does her boyfriend look like? How old is he?” Yu Qianying suddenly recalled the time during New Year where Lao Xu told her that Song Yu had gotten into an SUV. At that time, Song Yu did not admit to it, but Lao Xu’s story seemed to be holding water.
Yu Qianying’s greatest fear was that Song Yu had gotten herself involved with an old man.
“Thirtysomething, I think. He’s tall, handsome, so fair, so well-groomed. He’s a little aloof though. I didn’t see him smile, but he’s really very handsome!” Auntie Zhang giggled. “You’re lucky you know! There’s plenty of rich men, but someone as young and as handsome as him, who’s also rich? A man like that is hard to find!”
“When did she move out?” Yu Qianying asked another question.
“Oh, I think it’s been a while now. Almost two months I guess!”
The both of them exchanged a few more words, and when Auntie Zhang had no other information to give, Yu Qianying left and brought along the vegetables with her.
She did not know what to feel at that moment. She ought to feel happy since Song Yu had a boyfriend, but there was a part of her that felt worried. ‘Why must Song Yu hide it from her parents if she was in a proper relationship?’
It came to a point where Yu Qianying had to find out about it from an outsider, and she even did not know that her own daughter had moved out. She had no idea when her daughter moved out, nor where she moved out to.
She even had to hear about the boyfriend’s appearance from an outsider.
Yu Qianying was suffering quite a bit in her heart. Barely two steps later, she felt her breathing becoming stifled. She tapped her fist against her chest a couple of times, and she called home as soon as she was at the bus stop.
She spoke immediately after she heard Song Donglin’s voice and did not even give her husband the chance to speak. “Song Yu’s in a relationship. She even went to stay at her boyfriend’s place. She kept all of it from us. I heard this from her neighbor because there wasn’t anyone in her apartment when I arrived. What is our child up to? It’s such an important thing, but she didn’t even tell us, her own family. When I came, I had to hear about the news from an outsider. As Song Yu’s mother, even I don’t know about this. Someone else had to tell me. How disgraceful is that? She’s being so sneaky with this, is it possible that she’s become someone else’s mistress?”
“I think you should hurry home!” Song Donglin’s voice did not seem quite right from the other end of the phone.
Still angry with Song Yu, Yu Qianying felt odd once she heard Song Donglin’s unusual tone of voice. “What happened?”
Song Donglin stood on the balcony and stole a glance at the living room through the glass window. He kept his voice low as he said, “Liang Lihua’s here, you’d better come home quick!”
“Liang Lihua?” Yu Qianying turned blank and did not react upon hearing those three words. After all, she had not heard that name for quite some time, much less seen that person. “Who’s that?”
“Your sister-in-law!” Song Donglin hung up as soon as he said that.
Yu Qianying still did not know what was happening and why someone she had never kept in touch with for so many years turned up at her doorstep so suddenly. What was going on?
…
…
Song Donglin opened the door for Yu Qianying. She did not bring up Song Yu’s issue because Liang Lihua was there. The vegetables were carried into the kitchen and she put on a grave expression before going back into the living room. Liang Lihua was wearing an exquisite and branded outfit; it was Parisian fashion in its latest fall-winter style.
She sat very upright on the sofa, taking up about only a third of space.
Liang Lihua was scanning the surroundings as if she found the decorations too plain, too inferior to be shown in public, and too despicable for her eyes to see.
She then noticed Yu Qianying and began looking at her from head to toe. Yu Qianying had put on some weight as a result of failing to pay enough attention to her own health, and a cheap houndstooth jacket was covering that plump body. Her plain face was devoid of makeup, and the curls in her hair betrayed the fact that it was the work of some neighborhood barber.
The present-day Yu Qianying no longer had the refined personality of being Mrs. Song. Her appearance reeked of commonplace milieu, and all the desirable characteristics that she once had was completely eroded by the peasant lifestyle.
Liang Lihua’s gaze flickered and she thought, ‘Things have gone full circle and the pendulum has swung back. Back then, for the sake of the family company, I risked my dignity just so I could try and curry favor with you. Now, look at where we are?’
Liang Lihua was now the wife of a respected family, while Yu Qianying was a mere housewife who spent her days cooking and doing other mundane routines.
“Lady Liang, to what do I owe the pleasure of having you come to my home so willingly?” Yu Qianying did not hide her displeasure. “If I remember correctly, the boundaries have been drawn right from the beginning. Am I not already cut-off from being considered a member of the Yu family?”
“How have you been these years, elder sister-in-law?” Liang Lihua remained unmoved. She picked up the cup of tea in front of her, intending to take a sip, but the mere smell of it was enough for her to know that it was just some ordinary green tea, and not the aged Pu’er that she loved so dearly. She felt it beneath her dignity to be drinking it, so she pursed her lips and placed the cup back down. “I remember that both of you enjoy drinking Longjing tea. I’ll get someone to send you some later.”
“No need for that,” Yu Qianying replied coldly. She shot Song Donglin a glance, as if she was chastising him for taking the trouble to offer tea. It was a waste of water and tea leaves. When it came to Liang Lihua, it was best to just send her on her way.
“Sister-in-law, please don’t be so courteous. I didn’t expect your daily lives to be so full of disappointment.” Liang Lihua then scanned the living room as she pleased. “It’s just tea leaves. You don’t need to be so courteous with me.”
—
Free mini-scene:
Old man, “Are you nervous to meet your future parents-in-law?”
Qi Chengzhi, “…”
Yan Beicheng, “He’s so nervous he can’t even speak.”
Qi Chengzhi, “Wait till it’s time for you to meet your future in-laws, then try and take it easy.”
Yan Beicheng, “You think I’m as unlikeable as you?”
Chu Zhaoyang, “Hehe!”
Yan Beicheng, “Chu Zhaoyang, what are you trying to imply, you’d better explain yourself!”
Chu Zhaoyang, “Well, you’re pretty likeable, usually.”
Yan Beicheng, “…”
Han Zhuoli, “HAHAHAHA, Yan Beicheng, I have no idea what your temper is like. If I were you, I don’t think I can contain myself.”
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