Chapter 31: Going Back to the Village with Him
In the early morning, sunlight streamed into the bedroom through the gaps in the curtains. Suddenly, a cell phone rang, startling Bai Zhenzhen and causing her to furrow her brows.
A large hand covered her ears from behind and gently pulled her closer to his chest. Bai Zhenzhen, who was already sleep-deprived, naturally fell asleep again.
It's Saturday, and Shen Huai'an, unusually, stayed with her until this late, but a phone call quickly broke the tranquility of the morning.
The call was from Shen Qing's homeroom teacher. Previously, the Wang family had come to the school asking her to issue a letter of forgiveness to Wang Yongshun, and somehow rumors started circulating afterward.
It's currently the crucial time for the college entrance examination, and the homeroom teacher was worried that staying at school would be too much of a distraction for Shen Qing, so she specially granted her two days off so she could go home and relax.
After receiving the call, Shen Huai'an got up to go to school to pick up his younger sister, which completely woke Bai Zhenzhen up.
"I plan to send Xiaoqing back to her hometown for the weekend. I probably won't be back tonight. If you're bored at home, you can go back to the villa or stay at your father-in-law's for a day. I'll pick you up when I get back tomorrow." Shen Huai'an said a few more words as he sat down by the bed after she woke up.
He knew Bai Zhenzhen didn't like the countryside, so he didn't ask her if she wanted to go back together. Before leaving, he gave her a light kiss on the forehead and then departed.
Unexpectedly, Bai Zhenzhen reached out a hand from under the covers and grabbed him, saying sleepily, "Wait for me to get ready, I'll go with you."
Since their marriage, Bai Zhenzhen has never visited her husband's family in the countryside. Shen Huai'an's family also rarely comes to the city. She is unwilling to accompany him back to his hometown for the New Year, and they always spend time with their own families.
Last night she said she was willing to have a child, and today she said she wanted to go back to his hometown with him. Shen Huai'an was deeply moved. He felt as if someone had gently bitten the soft spot in his heart, making him feel both swollen and itchy. He unconsciously leaned down and hugged the delicate woman who was still lying on the bed.
“Okay, let’s take Xiaoqing back together,” Shen Huai’an picked her up and gently stroked her hair. Her long, black, and shiny curly hair was as fluffy and beautiful as seaweed and felt very nice to the touch. He continued, “We won’t be able to get back to the city that night. We might have to stay in the countryside for one night. I’ll have Aunt Wang pack you a change of clothes later.”
Bai Zhenzhen yawned and sat up from his lap. "I remember you can drive. It's inconvenient for Uncle Liu to come along this time, so you can drive back directly."
“Okay,” Shen Huai’an originally planned to take Shen Qing back to the countryside by car, but considering that Bai Zhenzhen might not be able to stand the smell on the bus, he agreed directly, “I’ll go get you some clothes first, and if you’re still sleepy, you can sleep after we get on the bus.”
Hearing his words, Bai Zhenzhen couldn't help but glare at him. Whose fault was it that she was so sleepy?
Although she didn't refuse last night, the man got so excited that he kept her up until the middle of the night, and she couldn't take it anymore. Who would have thought that a prosecutor who sits in the office investigating cases every day would have so much energy?
Knowing he was in the wrong, Shen Huai'an placed his hands on her waist and legs to massage and relieve her pain for a while before getting up to go to the dressing room to get her clothes.
Bai Zhenzhen wasn't worried that he would bring her ugly clothes. She had good taste and plenty of money, and every dress in her wardrobe was the latest fashion. Plus, she was beautiful and had a great figure, so she looked good no matter what she wore.
Her decision to go back to the countryside with Shen Huai'an was a spur-of-the-moment thing. She wasn't just saying she wanted to live a good life with Shen Huai'an. Since she wanted to cultivate their relationship, she naturally couldn't ignore his family like before.
After changing her clothes and going to the bathroom to wash up, Bai Zhenzhen remembered something else. She remembered that she had made a scene at her wedding, offending all the relatives of the Shen family who came to the wedding.
Oh dear, I hope she'll be kicked out on this trip.
Forget it, it's impossible for her to humble herself and fawn over people anyway. At most, she can spend more money to buy some expensive gifts as an apology.
Moreover, Bai Zhenzhen reached out and picked up the toothbrush that was lying on the rinsing cup. Shen Huai'an had already squeezed toothpaste onto it for her. She believed that with Shen Huai'an around, he wouldn't let his family bully her.
Bai Zhenzhen grew up surrounded by love and care, and her greatest talent was to be spoiled and arrogant. She could sense that Shen Huai'an's attitude towards her had changed a lot since she first moved here.
Of course, if Shen Huai'an dares not protect her, Bai Zhenzhen is not afraid. At worst, she can just come back and get a divorce. Her father will definitely agree after he understands the whole story.
"You go and get something to eat after you've washed up. I'm going to the school to pick up Xiaoqing now, and then we'll drive home together." Shen Huai'an told her as he walked to the bathroom door. "I've already called home in advance to have them prepare the room. You can tell me what your requirements are for the place now, and I'll have my family prepare in advance."
Just now, Bai Zhenzhen was thinking about how to deal with his family when she went to the countryside. Upon hearing this, she paused for a moment, then turned to look at him and asked, "Won't your family think I'm being too demanding?"
"No, Mom and Uncle will only welcome you and won't think you're asking for too much." Shen Huai'an wasn't lying to her. Although his mother had mentioned wanting him to divorce his wife and remarry, it was only out of love for the children. Now that Bai Zhenzhen had changed her mind and their relationship had improved, she would only be happier to know that.
Since their marriage, Bai Zhenzhen had never met his family. Shen Huai'an guessed that she might be feeling uneasy, so he patiently reassured her, "Mom and Second Uncle are both kind-hearted elders, and Eldest Brother and Sister-in-law are not petty people. You've met Little Sister, and she likes you very much as her sister-in-law. As for the other relatives, with me here, they won't and wouldn't dare to treat you badly."
Shen Huai'an's biological father died early. When he was six or seven years old, his mother remarried to Shen Ershu from the same village. Both of them had young children. At first, they got married just to live together. However, Shen Ershu was honest, hardworking and kind. He treated Shen Huai'an well after marriage and was willing to spend a lot of money to support his studies. He was better than a biological father to him.
The eldest brother and Shen Huai'an are not related by blood, but the two have a very good relationship like brothers. The younger sister is even more so. She has been well-behaved since she was a child and is the youngest child in the family. Her parents and two brothers love her very much.
These were Shen Huai'an's closest family members. Even if they didn't like Bai Zhenzhen, they would never do anything to make things difficult for his wife.
However, feelings are built over time. Shen Huai'an had his own experiences to draw upon, and he knew that sooner or later his family would see how good his wife was, and then she would naturally have no more concerns.
Bai Zhenzhen felt much more at ease after hearing Shen Huai'an's words. While waiting for him to pick up Shen Qing from school, she asked Aunt Wang to pack some unopened high-end health supplements and imported snacks from home. Since there wasn't enough time to go to the mall to buy new gifts, it would be good to bring these to the Shen family.
When Shen Huai'an brought Shen Qing back to the family compound, they saw that Aunt Wang had packed a bunch of things and put them in the living room. These were all things that Bai Zhenzhen was going to take to his family.
Knowing that these were all her good intentions, Shen Huai'an didn't say anything and helped carry them to the car. Before they left, they handed the house key to Aunt Wang for safekeeping.
When Shen Qing saw her sister-in-law again, she was much less reserved and greeted her sweetly with "Sister-in-law," seemingly unaffected by the rumors.
Bai Zhenzhen sat with her in the back seat, and the two chatted for a while. Shen Huai'an drove quite steadily. After leaving the city, Bai Zhenzhen started to feel sleepy again, so Shen Qing stopped talking and let her catch up on her sleep.
When she woke up again, more than two hours had passed. The tall buildings outside the car window were gone, replaced by towering mountains in the distance, one after another. Rural villages with tiled roofs and rice paddies flashed by from time to time along the roadside.
The rice crop had just ripened not long ago, and at this time of year, the fields are not yet planted with new crops; there are only clumps of harvested rice stubble.
The car quickly drove onto the winding mountain road. The ride was very uncomfortable, with the car going around and around. Shen Huai'an had tried to slow down as much as possible, but the road became more and more difficult to travel. There was still a stretch of muddy road to the village where the Shen family lived.
This trip really wore Bai Zhenzhen out. On the way, she couldn't help but ask the Shenqing government why they didn't fix the roads better, because how could anyone walk on such a winding and circuitous road?
She grew up in the city and had no idea that roads in the countryside were like this, especially for people living in the mountains. The roads there were originally made by people walking on them time and time again, so these roads are much better in comparison.
"This road was built last year, and it's already a very good road in our village." It's passable for both people and vehicles, and the fruit grown in the village can be sold.
Shen Qing looked a little embarrassed, but she didn't have any bad thoughts. She liked the wide and flat roads in the city and hoped that one day a cement road could be built in front of her house.
She also told Bai Zhenzhen that fortunately it hadn't rained recently, so the road surface was relatively hard. If it had rained, the muddy road would have been slippery, and they would have had to walk back to the village.
“When I was studying in town, I would take off my shoes and walk home barefoot whenever it rained.” A few years ago, the Shen family emptied their savings to treat Shen’s mother’s illness, so Shen Qing knew from a young age that she should be frugal and could not bear to wear shoes and step in the mud.
While driving, Shen Huai'an listened to the conversation between his younger sister and wife in the back seat without interrupting. In fact, he had a harder life than his sister since childhood, but he never complained. The harder life was, the harder he studied, hoping to get out of the mountains as soon as possible and give his family a better life. Fortunately, he has now achieved that goal.
"We've arrived." The car drove into the village, and the Shen family's house was built not far from the village entrance by the roadside. The two-story house stood out prominently.
There was a cement courtyard at the entrance. Bai Zhenzhen looked out through the car window and saw Shen's mother and others standing at the entrance, looking at her with eager smiles on their faces.
Shen Huai'an drove the car to the courtyard, got out of the car, went around to the back seat, opened the door and led Bai Zhenzhen out. He looked up at the couple in front of him and smiled, "Mom, Second Uncle, I brought Zhenzhen back with me."
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Author's Note: [Dog head carrying a rose] is here~
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