Suddenly, a soft, deep voice was heard: "Little girl, may I sit next to you?"
Looking in the direction of the sound, one could see an elderly woman with a full head of silver hair, her figure slightly hunched, leaning on a cane, but every step she took was so powerful.
A faint smile appeared on his face, and his cloudy eyes held a unique warmth and wisdom.
“Of course.” Zhong Tingyue smiled slightly, stood up, and helped the old lady sit down.
Thank you.
"fine."
The old woman stared at her: "I've never seen you before. You just moved here, haven't you?"
Zhong Tingyue said, "I am not a resident of the community."
Which unit are you from?
Zhong Tingyue answered truthfully. Upon hearing this, the old lady raised an eyebrow: "You are the girlfriend of that handsome young man named Chu Fang."
Zhong Tingyue was somewhat surprised that the old lady knew Chu Fang's name. The former nodded generously, while the latter sized her up and down, saying slowly, "That young man is a very good person; beneath his handsome appearance lies a kind and gentle heart. It's a pity..."
"What's a pity?"
The old lady smiled and said, "It's a pity he's not my granddaughter's husband."
“I once wanted to introduce my granddaughter to him, but the young man didn’t like her. He said he wanted to find a woman who was compatible with him and would grow old with him. I’ve always been a little resentful. My granddaughter is outstanding in both family background and appearance. What is it about her that makes her unworthy of him?”
"But after meeting you today, I realized that my granddaughter seems to be a bit inferior to you."
Zhong Ting raised his eyebrows, and there's a story behind it.
She said modestly, "You flatter me."
"No, no, no." The old lady shook her head, objecting to her reply. "You know what? The first time I saw you, I felt that you and Chu Fang were the same kind of people. Your figures overlapped in front of me. You are both the kind of people who have their own understanding of love, and once you decide, you will stay together for a lifetime."
Are they really that similar? ... Zhong Tingyue flicked a strand of hair.
"Actually, we're not that compatible."
"Why?"
"I come from an ordinary family..."
Before he could finish speaking, the old lady interrupted him, "Isn't he one? If you go back three generations, who among us didn't come from humble beginnings? Who is more noble than whom?"
The old lady's questions left Zhong Tingyue speechless. She looked up at the sky, her gaze empty, as if recalling the past, and said softly, "If I had a choice, I would rather give up wealth and status to be with the person I love."
The old lady once had a deeply unforgettable relationship, but because of the large gap between their families, and because she couldn't bring herself to be ruthless at the time, or perhaps because she was extremely confused about the future, she broke off her relationship with her first love and, under the guidance of her family, married and had children with someone she didn't like.
Decades have passed, and the old lady has sons and daughters, grandsons and daughters-in-law. The whole family has grown and prospered, and everyone in the family praises her for her contributions to the family business.
These sounds so pleasant, but the old lady finds them extremely jarring.
Yes, she sacrificed herself for her family and received everyone's praise, but she let herself down and let her first love down.
Looking back now, the old lady is filled with deep regret.
I should have been bolder and braver back then.
The old lady spoke softly, as if a gentle breeze had passed by, but Zhong Tingyue sensed a complex inner turmoil in her words and was at a loss for how to comfort her.
After a while, the old lady came to her senses, composed herself, looked at her and smiled: "I'm sorry, as people get older, they always unconsciously recall things from the past."
"It was my fault that I brought up your painful past."
"Hey!" The old lady waved her hand dismissively. "It's all in the past, so there's no need to be sad. What I want to say is, if you're in love, be bold and avoid regrets. We only live once, so follow your own heart."
He slowly stood up, patted his back, and said, "I'm not chatting anymore, I'm going home. Goodbye, little girl."
"Please take care."
As Zhong Tingyue watched the old lady's back as she leaned on her cane, a feeling of loneliness welled up in her heart, and she slowly exhaled.
Compared to this old man, I was being too dramatic.
"Sister-in-law!" Just then, Chu Yi's voice rang in my ears.
She turned around and saw Chu Yi and Zhou Qiong walking side by side. Upon seeing her, they quickly ran over, the latter's voice soft: "Sister-in-law..."
"Why are you here?" Chu Yi asked.
“Your brother said he hasn’t seen you two in a long time and misses you very much, so he came to see you two specially.” Zhong Tingyue stroked Chu Yixiu’s hair.
"I don't believe you!" Chu Yi pouted. "My brother won't miss us. He'll only find us annoying. Sister-in-law, don't say nice things about him anymore."
Chu Fang almost completely ignored his two younger sisters, letting them do whatever they wanted, while the task of taking care of them fell to Zhong Tingyue.
Zhong Tingyue spent more time with her two younger sisters than Chu Fang did with them. She bought them clothes, took them shopping, handled various school matters, and even joined the school's parent group chat.
Therefore, Chu Yi was extremely dissatisfied with Chu Fang, but he had great respect for Zhong Tingyue, and the two had a very good relationship.
However, Chu Fang treated Zhong Rou very well.
The two treated each other's families in their own ways.
“Your brother is busy,” Zhong Tingyue explained to Chu Fang.
"Sister-in-law, you should come up with a more plausible reason next time."
“... ..."
busy?
The word is quite humorous when used to describe Chu Fang.
The three of them went home together.
As night fell, a gentle breeze began to blow, causing the curtains to flutter.
Chu Fang and Zhong Tingyue were preparing dinner in the kitchen. Hot pot was the perfect meal for a family reunion, creating a wonderful atmosphere. Their three younger sisters didn't disturb their time together.
Chu Yi looked at Zhong Rou, who was petite with her hair tied up, her coat open, and her hands in her pockets. She exuded an indescribable aura. She asked, "I heard you're very capable?"
"So-so, number one in the world." Zhong Rou tilted her chin up.
"Can you teach me? I want to learn too," Chu Yi said, pulling Zhong Rou along.
"My boxing style is for killing enemies, not just for show."
"Then I want to learn even more."
"The tuition is one thousand, but I'll give you a discount since we're relatives."
"Then I won't learn it."
"..." Zhong Rou paused for a moment, then pointed at Chu Yi and said, "You have no talent for martial arts!"
Zhou Qiong watched from the side and smiled gently.
Soon, the aroma of hot pot filled the entire room. While eating, Chu Yi suddenly remembered something and slapped his forehead: "Second Brother Chu, the school is holding a rally to mark the 100-day countdown to the college entrance exam..."
Before he could finish speaking, Chu Fang refused outright: "I'm not going."
He couldn't be bothered to go to those so-called conferences; they were pointless except for sunbathing.
Chu Yi retorted, "I didn't ask you to go."
"I won't go even if you call me."
"I didn't mean to call you."
"Call me or not, I'm not going."
"Go if you want, or don't. I didn't want you to go."
"I don't want to go at all."
“... ..."
The two talked about this topic for a long time, leaving the people around them speechless.
What are you two doing here?
Chu Yi glared at Chu Fang, took a deep breath to calm his turbulent emotions, and said, "After the college entrance examination rally, the school will be closed until the end of the exam to avoid disturbing the exam due to external matters, so my mother wanted to come and take a look."
"Oh." Upon hearing this, Chu Fang immediately understood and scolded Chu Yi, "Then just say it directly. Why are you beating around the bush with me? Chu Yi, have you lost your mind?"
"Chu Lao Er, I'll kill you."
Seeing Chu Fang twist the truth, Chu Yi could no longer suppress his inner rage, and with his ten fingers bent, he reached out to grab Chu Fang.
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