Chapter 476: Tired, want to go home.
"Would it be inappropriate to call the girl ’little troublemaker’?"
Song Jiayu whispered beside the baby’s crib.
"Ah Nian says it doesn’t matter. Girls don’t have to be so demure and gentle. Haven’t you always said that I was naughty when I was little, like a tomboy...?"
"What do you mean ’like a tomboy’? Back then you were quite the tomboy. Xiaonian watched you grow up, didn’t he Xiaonian?"
Song Jiayu said offhandedly to Wen Nian.
Wen Nian sat to the side, smiling without a word.
Song Lili looked coldly at Wen Nian, the threat in her eyes now quite obvious.
Wen Nian’s instinct for self-preservation was always strong. By remaining silent now, he would offend neither his father-in-law nor his wife.
Wei Yuandong knocked and entered, followed by two doctors and two nurses, one was Dr. Ge and the other was Dr. Hu Tian who delivered Song Lili’s baby.
"Mr. President, the doctors have come to check on the President’s wife’s condition."
Wen Nian acknowledged, and he and Song Jiayu stood up to give space, moving farther away from the sickbed.
Standing side by side, Song Jiayu looked at Wen Nian and asked,
"Are Old Mr. Wen and your parents still unwilling to accept Lili?"
Song Jiayu didn’t often visit President Mansion. As the Mayor of Anlin City and someone who frequently interacted with the President for work, there were few opportunities for casual family chatter.
Lili’s childbirth was a major event, but when he arrived, he hadn’t seen any elders from the Wen Family, which showed they were still rejecting Lili.
"Lili doesn’t need their acceptance."
Wen Nian said indifferently,
"There’s nothing wrong with Lili. Just because I defied their wishes, they’ve shut her out. Such actions are childish and unreasonable."
"They are your family after all—grandfather, father, mother. Time may dull some of their sharp emotions. If there’s an appropriate chance, try to communicate more with them. Lili wouldn’t want to see you really at odds with the Wen Family because of her."
Song Jiayu advised.
Wen Nian simply smiled gently, seemingly having no intention of placating the elders or wasting time on futile communication.
Song Jiayu did not press further.
At that day’s Wen Family banquet, he too had been harsh and incisive. Perhaps his behavior then was partly why relations had not eased between the two families to this day.
Yet, as time passed, Song Jiayu felt that nothing was more important than family ties.
If reconciliation was possible, one should seek it. After all, parents and children becoming enemies was unheard of.
"Dad, I understand."
Wen Nian nodded, reassuring Song Jiayu.
A lot had happened over the past six months.
Following the family banquet, Lili’s status as the President’s wife was completely publicized, making her an immediate internet sensation.
The sudden emergence of the President’s wife indeed made many young women feel both envious and jealous, resulting in spiteful language spreading online, with malicious instigation and interference not uncommon.
However, as video footage of Lili during the Dongheng earthquake surfaced—where she risked her life to save the President who was inspecting the site, and later at the Great Bright Light Cinema hostage situation in Anlin City, where Song Lili was one of the key rescue personnel—the negative comments slowly turned to positivity and admiration.
Of course, Wen Nian also exercised some influence over this shift in public opinion.
Following the storms of public discourse, every move of the President’s wife drew extra attention. Most of the time, Lili stayed in President Mansion, focusing on her pregnancy. Occasionally, when necessary, she would accompany Wen Nian to certain political events.
Then there were the arrests of Bai Cangqiong and Song Xiangqiao.
Last month, Joy was captured in M country on charges of illegal arms trafficking and collusion with a rebel army. Upon receiving the news, Wen Nian immediately sent personnel to M country to record testimonies, and after bringing them back, he questioned Bai Cangqiong again.
Bai Cangqiong, who had been imprisoned for over five months, looked twenty years older.
He was ultimately convicted of treason among seven charges and sentenced to death.
This was probably the biggest case in G country for the year.
As for Song Xiangqiao, who took the fall for Zhuo Ting and caused a disturbance at the President Mansion, she was originally sentenced to thirty years of fixed-term imprisonment. However, one month into her incarceration, she was found to be pregnant.
Even the Supreme Court could not turn a blind eye to such a situation. After directly consulting with Wen Nian, Song Xiangqiao was granted a two-year suspended sentence and could be released first.
The most troublesome and helpless during this period had to be Song Jiayu’s divorce case.
...
Doctor Hu and Dr. Ge carefully checked on Song Lili after she gave birth, and finding no special complications, they left.
With nurses and maternity matrons taking care of the little troublemaker, and Wei Yuandong watching over, Wen Nian could be at ease.
Not wanting to disturb Lili as she rested, he and Song Jiayu stepped out.
"How is your divorce with Miao Lerong going?" Wen Nian casually asked Song Jiayu, who clasped his hands behind his back and limped slightly on his right leg,
"Still refuses to divorce... Eh."
He heaved a heavy sigh,
"Only now do I understand why Miao Lerong was attracted to me back then; she just thought I was naive and easy to deceive, not too cunning and easier to control."
"Actually, over the years, Miao Lerong has been quite good to you."
"Good to me, yet she harmed my daughter behind my back. What kind of goodness is that?"
Song Jiayu sighed again, then added self-mockingly,
"But come to think of it, being the father-in-law to Mr. President and also to Vice President... Does that make me the most distinguished father-in-law in history? Hahaha!"
Wen Nian’s lips curled slightly in response,
"Isn’t that the case."
"These days, I keep thinking, if Lili’s mother were still alive... even if I were just an ordinary retired soldier, at least I would be living more comfortably than now."
"Dad... Do you feel tired?" Wen Nian and Song Jiayu sat in the living room.
"Anlin is always Anlin, constantly undergoing swift and dramatic changes, never giving one a chance to breathe. I’ve aged too..."
Wen Nian pursed his lips,
"Are you thinking... of retiring?"
"Xiaonian, I know I shouldn’t retire at this time. Your grandfather and your father have stood against you ever since you disclosed Lili’s affair."
"Although I am not of much use, the title of Anlin Mayor still carries some weight."
"..."
Wen Nian remained silent, just listening to Song Jiayu.
"Miao Lerong’s reluctance to divorce might also be because I’m still the Mayor of Anlin City."
Wen Nian also felt this was a possibility.
"Your father is my benefactor, yet now, in his eyes, I must seem like an ungrateful man."
"Dad, you don’t have to care about my father’s opinion."
Song Jiayu smiled and patted Wen Nian on the shoulder,
"These are all trivial matters. The main reason is that dad is tired. After so many years in Anlin, I’ve had enough of the political maneuvering. In my old age, I just want to return to Ruicheng, to be beside my late wife Xiao Lan..."