Chapter 805: Chapter 543: All-Night
Second watch.
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Hearing Lin Yanqiu say she and Zhu Xinqin, Lin Yanmei have the same temper, Old Madam Zhou laughed, “Yanqiu, you’re really doing well with reflection and self-reflection now.”
“Mom…” Lin Yanqiu looked at the old lady helplessly, “Can you save me a bit of face in front of my daughter-in-law?”
“Chuxia is such a clever child, what could you possibly hide from her?” Old Madam Zhou laughed as she got up, “I’m getting old, can’t stay up anymore. I’m going to bed, you all should go to bed early too.”
Chuxia quickly stepped forward to support her, “Grandma, let me take you upstairs.”
Lin Yanqiu laughed, “Mom, my daughter-in-law really is more observant than your daughter-in-law.” “Yeah, you’re luckier than I am,” the old lady replied with amusement.
Zeng Meili sat on one side, looking at the interaction between the few people, her face full of envy. The Jing Family is very nice, but she just can’t find it in herself to be as genuinely close as Chuxia and the others.
“What, feeling envious?” Lin Yanqiu looked at her niece and asked.
Zeng Meili nodded, “Yeah, very envious.”
“When you’re married and have spent some time with your mother-in-law’s family, you’ll become close too,” Lin Yanqiu said, glancing at Zhao Yulan, with an apologetic smile, “At first, I wasn’t as close to Chuxia as I am now. People only get closer after understanding each other better.”
“Sister Qiu, you’ve always been kind to Chuxia from the start, her father and I both know that,” Zhao Yulan said, feeling uncomfortable as she got up, “You guys chat, I’ll go lie down too, getting old, not as strong as before.”
Lin Yanqiu quickly tried to keep her, “Yulan, there’s nothing we’re saying that needs to be kept secret from you, especially you, there’s no need at all, stay and chat with us a bit more.”
“No, I don’t quite understand, can’t join the conversation, I really am exhausted,” Zhao Yulan said as she hurriedly ran into the room.
Zeng Meili sighed, “Third Aunt, my mom isn’t as lucky as you.”
“What nonsense are you talking about?” Lin Yanqiu poked her forehead, “You’ve known your future mother-in-law since you were little, she’s not a bad person, don’t worry, eventually, you’ll become very close.”
“Hopefully.” To this, Zeng Meili still wasn’t very confident.
The reason Third Aunt and Zhao Yulan get along well is largely because Zhao Yulan has a good nature, doesn’t fight over things, and always yields to Third Aunt, so there are no heated arguments.
But her mom and potential mother-in-law are different, both have competitive personalities. Her mom feels embarrassed for pursuing Jing Zhe, so she tries to make it up in other areas, while her mother-in-law, doesn’t see her pursuing Jing Zhe as lowering herself, but her favorite daughter-in-law isn’t her, so inevitably, they can’t get too close.
Also, her husband’s elder sister is overly polite to her, and she doesn’t like that feeling at all. Only with strangers do you need to be so formal.
Like Chuxia, Jiping, and Xiangping, if you didn’t know better, you’d think they were real sisters.
Or maybe it’s just how people are. When she wasn’t with Jing Zhe, she thought as long as Jing Zhe was willing to be with her, it didn’t matter how others treated her.
Once her relationship with Jing Zhe was established, she found her demands growing, hoping Jing Zhe would treat her well, think only of her, and wish her in-laws would value and get close to her…
The result is, the more you expect, the easier it is to be disappointed.
Tonight, maybe as Third Aunt said, her future mother-in-law spoke harshly in anger. She understood the reasoning, but she couldn’t get over the hurdle in her heart.
Always liking to compare herself to Chuxia, she thought all the way here, feeling that if it were Chuxia there today, her mother-in-law definitely wouldn’t have asked her to leave.
She even thought that if not for helping Chuxia, her in-laws wouldn’t have caused trouble, and she wouldn’t have been caught in the crossfire.
Now, with her emotions calmed a bit, she felt her previous thoughts were ridiculous. When did she forget her original intentions?
By this, she could more or less understand her mother-in-law’s actions, she was wronged and still that biased, let alone her mother-in-law, who, after many years of marriage, suddenly realized her husband once loved another woman even more deeply, how could she bear it?
Understanding comes in an instant, now she’s truly relieved, and looks at Lin Yanqiu with some apology, “Third Aunt, I’ve worried you.”
“Figured it out?”
“Yes.” Zeng Meili nodded, “I was caught in a dead end myself. I feel a little wronged and reacted this way, let alone my mother-in-law.”
“Aren’t you embarrassed, you’re not even married and you’re calling her your mother-in-law already…” Seeing her mood improve, Lin Yanqiu teased her,
“No wonder your second sister is angry with you, if it were me, I’d be angry too.”
“Third Aunt…” Zeng Meili said, feeling embarrassed, “After we got engaged, my mom asked me to call her that, and now you’re teasing me.”
“I’ll have to have a good chat with your mom later. Back when you first got together, she was so afraid you wouldn’t end up with Xiao Zhe, she practically wanted to stamp the Jing Family seal on your forehead.
Now that it seems your relationship is stable, her thinking has changed, how can that be? You too, need to adjust your mindset.
And stop dragging Chuxia into this. Thankfully, that child is broad-minded. Otherwise, how would she feel? It’s not her fault Xiao Zhe likes her, why should she constantly be brought up?”
“Moreover, I’m her real mother-in-law. You say questioning her in front of me won’t just stir the pot between us as in-laws?”
Zeng Meili quickly explained, “Third Aunt, I absolutely didn’t mean it that way, please don’t misunderstand me. I’m sincerely hoping for a harmonious relationship between you and Chuxia.”
“Alright, enough said. It’s not like I don’t understand your character. If that’s what you truly thought, you wouldn’t have spoken out, nor would you be talking with Xiao Zhe. I’m just reminding you to be a bit more careful. Kin is kin, familiarity is familiarity, but some things still need careful consideration.
Even if we don’t care, and Chuxia doesn’t care, if ill-intentioned people overhear and start spreading ridiculous rumors, wouldn’t that be a headache for everyone.”
“Got it, Third Aunt. I really didn’t think about these things…” Zeng Meili’s expression grew solemn, “I’ll make sure to watch out in the future.”
“What are you guys talking about, so serious?” Chuxia walked over, analyzing their expressions, “What’s up now?”
“Nothing much, just advising Meili to relax,” Lin Yanqiu changed the topic, “Is Grandma sleep?”
“Not yet, she’s bathing, Aunt Liu is taking care of her, so I came out.” Chuxia glanced at the time, noticing it was nearly nine o’clock, and then bid farewell, “Mom, Sister Meili, I’m heading to bed too.”
“Go ahead.” Lin Yanqiu waved her hand, “Who knows when Xiaomi will be back, don’t wait for him, get your sleep. If he dares to wake you up, just give him a good beating.”
Am I that fierce? Chuxia was at a loss for words…
Waking up early, seeing the space beside her still empty, Chuxia felt inexplicably uncomfortable. After getting up and freshening, Zhou Mikang came through the door.
Glancing at him from the mirror, Chuxia remained silent.
“Up so early?” Zhou Mikang examined her, “You don’t look too well. Is it because I wasn’t beside you, you couldn’t sleep?”
Rolling her eyes, Chuxia didn’t respond.
“Angry because I didn’t come back?” Zhou Mikang smiled as he hugged her from behind, “Nice, this shows you have me in your heart.”
Could you be any thicker-skinned? Rolling her eyes again, Chuxia slapped his hand, “Move, I’m trying to wash my face!”
“Really angry?” Zhou Mikang released her and ruffled her hair, “Even when angry, you’re beautiful, my wife truly is a beauty!”
“Shameless!”
“Yeah, if I weren’t shameless, how could I have married you?” Zhou Mikang looked at her with a grin, “The most proactive thing I did in this life was chasing you, and it’s also the best decision I ever made.”
“Are you explaining yourself because you feel guilty?”
“Not guilty, I just don’t want you overthinking.” Zhou Mikang rubbed his face, “With the holidays coming, we had an overnight meeting to finalize everything, so we can prepare after the new year.”
“Who did you have the meeting with?”
“A lot of people. Do you want me to list them all?”
“No need for the men. Tell me about the women.”
“Just Huang Suai.” Zhou Mikang shrugged, “Right now, she’s the only woman in the preparation group. Even if I wanted to add more, I couldn’t.”
“You want to add more?” Chuxia smirked, “Why not add a whole team? More to feast the eyes on.”
“Hahaha…” Zhou Mikang laughed, “Good idea, I think I seriously need to consider it.”
“Take your time considering, I’m going to exercise.” Chuxia stomped on his toe as she headed downstairs energetically.
Zhou Mikang shook his head with a wry smile, washed his face with cold water in the bathroom, and followed her downstairs.
Old Madam Zhou was just coming down as well. Seeing Zhou Mikang with dark circles under his eyes, she frowned, “What time did you come home last night?”
“Grandma, I had an all-night meeting. I’m just back to change clothes and I need to rush back now.” He was reluctant to admit he snuck back during a break to check on his wife, so he made an excuse about changing clothes.
“Isn’t it just about some frontline medical thing? How come it’s taking so long to finalize a plan?”
“The preparation group’s opinions are never aligned, so we have to keep meeting.” Zhou Mikang was also vexed. Without Chuxia’s warning that this was bound to happen, he wouldn’t have gotten involved at all.
Old Madam Zhou grumbled, “Isn’t that old rascal Director Yang intentionally making things difficult for you?”
“Director Yang wants training concentrated at the hospital, and he has five supporters. I think it should be half in the hospital and half in challenging environments, to improve adaptability, but only four people agree with me. Right now, no one can persuade the other.”
“Which side is Huang Suai on?”
Zhou Mikang was at a loss, “Grandma, why are you also singling her out?”