27. Remarriage
"I don't mind, we can be together."
Xu Huaihuai and Ling Zhou's mother, Shu Yunyin, were talking on the sofa in the living room.
Ling Zhou and his father, Ling Jingshang, were drinking tea at a tea table on the other side. Ling Zhou's father looked dignified and taciturn, and in fact, he rarely spoke. Xu Huaihuai had never heard him say many words.
The aroma of tea filled the air on the man's side, while the woman's side was bright and clean, creating a warm and cozy atmosphere.
“You two haven’t had children in the years you’ve been married. Although I don’t care about that, after I learned that you and Xiao Zhou separated, I sometimes wondered if urging you and Xiao Zhou to have a child would help you go further in your relationship. However, these are all very selfish thoughts.”
“Auntie…” Xu Huaihuai was surprised by Shu Yunyin’s frankness.
“Just call me Mom. Even though you and Xiao Zhou have separated all these years, I still truly consider you family.” After hearing Xu Huaihuai softly call her Mom, Shu Yunyin smiled and touched her flat stomach. “Childbirth is too much for women. I still have a scar here. It’s better not to have children.”
Shu Yunyin took Xu Huaihuai's hand, examining her changes as she gently asked, "Huaihuai, how did things get to this point between you and Xiaozhou? Did Xiaozhou bully you?"
Shu Yunyin's face showed almost no signs of aging; there was hardly a fine line between her eyebrows and eyes. She had a gentle temperament, her hair was styled in a bun, and she wore an elegant and clean cheongsam. Her back was straight and her posture was upright. You couldn't tell from her appearance that her son was already thirty years old.
She is far removed from the stereotypical image of a "shrewish and wicked mother-in-law," and can be said to have no relation to her at all. She seems to genuinely care about whether Xu Huaihuai has been bullied.
In fact, Xu Huaihuai also wanted to know why the male and female protagonists divorced. She was more concerned about this issue than Shu Yunyin. However, as a "participant," she couldn't act as if she knew nothing about the reasons for the divorce, as that would be unreasonable. She hadn't lost her memory in the car accident.
Knowing that she was going to meet Ling Zhou's parents today, she had already prepared a foolproof excuse: "No, maybe our fate has run its course."
But Xu Huaihuai wasn't familiar with Shu Yunyin, and being held by the hand and shown concern by an elder she wasn't very close to made her look somewhat unnatural. Shu Yunyin keenly noticed this, and she tightened her grip on Xu Huaihuai's hand slightly, her voice a little nervous, "Is it because Xiao Zhou... he has someone else outside?"
Huh? Xu Huaihuai was stunned for a moment, completely unprepared for Shu Yunyin's idea.
Seeing that Xu Huaihuai remained silent, Shu Yunyin became even more certain that it was her son who had caused the trouble. She gently patted Xu Huaihuai's hand and then stood up abruptly, saying, "Mom will stand up for you!"
"No, wait a minute..." Ling Zhou's mom! Mom! Mom! Wait a minute! Xu Huaihuai reached out to try to grab her, but failed. Shu Yunyin's shawl slipped through Xu Huaihuai's fingers. Xu Huaihuai stared blankly at her empty palm, the soft touch of the shawl still lingering on her hand.
Shu Yunyin stormed toward the father and son who were drinking tea at the tea table. She pressed down on her husband, Ling Jingshang, who was about to get up, and glared at Ling Zhou, "Come here!"
Ling Zhou put down his teacup and walked to the side with his mother.
“Xiao Zhou, I never interfere too much in your affairs, but this time, tell your mother the truth, what exactly is going on between you and Huai Huai?”
"As you can see, we are divorced."
"Of course Mom knows. Mom wants to ask why you got divorced? Is the reason you are the one who caused it?"
"……yes."
“Xiao Zhou, you really are... how could you be just like your father…” Upon receiving a positive answer, Shu Yunyin’s hand trembled, and she reached out and slapped him.
The slap wasn't hard, but the sound was very clear.
Xu Huaihuai stared in disbelief. The distance was too great for her to hear clearly what the mother and son were saying.
She only saw the mother and son standing together and talking for a short while before Shu Yunyin made her move.
What? What is this?
What a dramatic scene!
She was unsure whether to sit or stand, and was a little confused about the situation. After hesitating for a moment, she decided to go and see what was going on. Before she even reached Ling Zhou and Shu Yunyin, she heard Ling Zhou say, "Mom, I didn't cheat on you."
"If there was no infidelity, then what could it be?" During the standoff between mother and son, Ling Zhou's father, Ling Jingshang, sat calmly by the tea table, seemingly unwilling to intervene.
How did they start arguing? It's quite awkward for her, as the "former daughter-in-law" and "former wife," to stand aside. "Um, is the food ready? Should we..."
"Put the food aside for now, Xiao Zhou. Tell Huai Huai clearly in front of him, are you sure you didn't cheat on him?" Shu Yunyin pulled Xu Huai Huai to her side and looked at her son.
Her eyes reflected not only her concern for her daughter-in-law, but also her fear that if the upper beam is crooked, the lower beam will also be crooked.
Ling Zhou's gaze swept over his father and then landed on his ex-wife, who was avoiding his gaze.
Finally, he gazed into his mother's eyes and said, "If I cheat on my wife, is it okay if I go bald?"
As soon as he finished speaking, he felt his mother's gaze pierce him like needles, as if she were measuring how many times his hair volume could go astray.
"If I, Ling Zhou, were to cheat on you, I would never have a good end in this life." Ling Zhou added, though it was unclear whether he was speaking to Shu Yunyin or emphasizing it to Xu Huaihuai.
In the end, Shu Yunyin didn't ask any further questions.
During the meal, Shu Yunyin reverted to her usual gentle demeanor, sitting with her husband Ling Jingshang on one side. Xu Huaihuai and Ling Zhou sat opposite them on the other side.
The meal was quite formal, far exceeding Xu Huaihuai's expectations. The long table in the family banquet hall was filled with dishes from one end to the other, and the dishes and plating were exquisite.
Isn't this a bit too much? Even if you stretch your chopsticks out, you can't pick up many dishes.
Oh, rich man, the farewell dinner turned into a long table banquet. I won't talk about it.
The main reason is that Ling Zhou's family seems to have very strict discipline; no one spoke at the dinner table, and there were only the slight clinking sounds of cutlery.
There were hired aunties serving dishes and adding food to the table. The aunties were very good at reading people's expressions. As soon as the ladies and gentlemen's eyes fell on a dish, the aunties knew what to do.
Xu Huaihuai wasn't used to being served like this, so she just kept her head down and ate, picking at the food in front of her in small portions.
Of course, she didn't eat much. The atmosphere was too strange. She just wanted to go through the whole farewell dinner process and officially say goodbye to her ex-husband.
She didn't want to receive another phone call that night, one that sounded like she'd been caught cheating.
Shu Yunyin put down her chopsticks first, wanting to spend more time with Ling Zhou and Xu Huaihuai. What if? What if there was still a chance for them to start over? Her marriage with her husband, Ling Jingshang, had already failed, and she didn't want her child to end up in the same situation.
Shu Yunyin and Ling Jingshang left first. Xu Huaihuai also put down her chopsticks and prepared to leave.
Ling Zhou gestured for the aunt to go back first. He pressed down on Xu Huaihuai's chair, preventing her from getting up. "Aren't you going to eat? You've only eaten a few bites and you're leaving?"
"I've already eaten, haven't I? Of course I'm going back now that I've eaten. This is your farewell dinner, so we should part ways amicably after we've eaten."
Xu Huaihuai tried to pat his hand, but Ling Zhou grabbed her wrist instead. His hand was very cold.
Why did you come over when Mom hit me?
He asked a question that Xu Huaihuai had never thought of—that an exam could be set up. Xu Huaihuai's expression was indescribable. "No, what are you talking about? I'm a guest. If the hosts start arguing, I can't just sneak away, can I?"
“You can pretend to be deaf and dumb like Dad did; Dad didn’t even come over.”
"What do you mean? You think I'm more like your dad than he is?" Xu Huaihuai didn't pull her arm out, a little annoyed.
"..." Despite being interrupted, Ling Zhou didn't forget what he wanted to ask. He smiled and said, "You still care about me, you care about my face, right? So what you said before about hating my face wasn't true, right?"
Ling Zhou, as the male lead, is actually quite good-looking. The female lead even said something like this? The reason for the divorce was that she disliked his face?
But now was not the time to think about these things. She ignored Ling Zhou's words and said, "Let go of me. If your hands are cold, go warm them by the fire. Don't use my hands to warm them."
Ling Zhou released his hand, and Xu Huaihuai got up and left.
She changed her shoes at the door, and Ling Zhou stared at her calves. There were red marks in places she couldn't see herself—finger marks? Hickeys? Perhaps both.
Does she even know what kind of person her boyfriend is?
Is it really impossible for us?
No way, what time is it? She's been divorced for months and she's still asking this? Her reaction time is way too long!
And those classic lines about chasing after your wife in a crematorium are no longer in fashion.
"Ling Zhou, it's over, it's over. Take a look at the divorce certificate and wake up. Besides, I have a boyfriend now." Xu Huaihuai said as she called Lin Xu, preparing to have him come pick her up.
"I don't mind, we can be together."
Xu Huaihuai was stunned by Ling Zhou's words, and she subconsciously hung up the phone that had already been connected.
"What the hell?! Are you crazy?! What are you saying?!"
Compared to Xu Huaihuai's panic, Ling Zhou smiled and said, "You can continue to be my wife, and I won't mind if you sleep with other people."
Wasn't it said that the male protagonist in the original work was very positive? Who is this one?
"Ling Zhou, I don't know what's wrong with you, I can't talk to you anymore..."
She tried to open the door, but it wouldn't open. Something seemed off.
"Don't be nervous," Ling Zhou said, moving closer to her. "You can't see now, right?"
"What? Are you cursing me to go blind?"
Ling Zhou chuckled, ending the previous nonsensical conversation. "Weren't you investigating me? What, you don't care at all? You're still investigating whether I cheated on you even after the divorce?"
“As I said, if you want to reconcile, come to me anytime. With me, you will always have room for regret. You don’t need to be ingenious or go to great lengths.”
When Ling Zhou said this, his tone was gentle and tender, and he seemed very affectionate.
If you ignore his cold and gloomy eyes, this lingering affection really does seem quite plausible.
But we can't ignore it!
It seems I didn't hear a word she said!
Unable to open the door, Xu Huaihuai tried to keep her distance from him. She wanted to retort that he was overthinking things, but what came out was: "Then let's remarry."
[Author's Note]
The recycling description mentions [lop-eared rabbit head].
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