On the way home.
The elderly couple had driven there. At that moment, Wen Yiquan was gripping the steering wheel, seemingly lost in thought. He then stopped at a red light, turned to his wife, and said, "I have a question for you."
"What's the problem?" Su Juan was touching up her makeup in the car, planning to play a few rounds of mahjong later, since she didn't need to remove her makeup right away.
"If our son starts dating..."
Before Wen Yiquan could finish speaking, Su Juan interrupted in surprise, "He's in a relationship?"
"I mean, if he were in a relationship, what would you think?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the red light ended, and Wen Yiquan stepped on the gas and slowly accelerated forward.
"What do you want me to think?" Su Juan replied calmly, her expression revealing nothing of her current thoughts. "Of course, I'll give it my full support. After all, he's our son."
"But what would you think if the girl he likes wasn't a good match for him?" Wen Yiquan continued, adding an additional condition.
This time, Su Juan remained silent for a long time and did not give an answer immediately.
She finally let out a slow breath as she approached the entrance to the residential area, saying, "I'll still support it."
Wen Yiquan didn't say anything; after hearing the answer, he simply continued driving in silence.
"Aren't you afraid he'll do something reckless?"
“You were pretty reckless when you were young, don’t always talk about our son.” Su Juan suddenly changed the subject, smiling with her eyes narrowed. “We were the first people in the village to have a free-choice relationship.”
Upon hearing this, Wen Yiquan fell silent, and memories began to surface in his mind.
He and Su Juan did indeed fall in love freely. Wen Yiquan was born in the early 1980s, when free love was the prevailing trend, rather than arranged marriages. Everyone was free to find the person they liked.
They may say that, but in reality, most parents still hope to marry into a good family of equal social standing.
Wen Yiquan's family was very poor when he was a child, almost destitute. But even so, he and Su Juan, the village beauty, had a passionate love affair. They were the first couple in their village to fall in love freely.
Everyone says it's like a beautiful flower stuck in cow dung; why did she have to fall for this poorest young man in the village?
Love doesn't need material rewards; sincerity is enough. So this relationship has lasted from the 90s to the birth of Wenmer, and from the birth of Wenmer to now driving home.
Su Juan also chatted with Wen Yiquan about how he went from being penniless to his current affluent life.
Many villagers asked, "So many young men liked her back then, why did she choose the poorest one among them?"
The reason was actually very simple: she believed the vow of that silly boy at the time, that as long as she was with him, Su Juan would be happy for the rest of her life.
It was silly and naive, but Wen Yiquan really did it.
"I'm starting to miss it." Wen Yiquan slowly stepped on the brakes and stopped in the underground parking garage, glancing at his wife beside him every now and then.
Su Juan is over forty years old, but she still retains her charm and figure. When she stands there and puts on some makeup, she is often mistaken for Wen Mo's brother when they go out together.
"What do you miss?" Su Juan popped a piece of gummy candy into her mouth. It was her favorite flavor, and Wen Yiquan would always keep some in the car.
I miss the time when we first started dating.
"When you first started dating?" Su Juan was a little stunned, but quickly realized that she was no longer young and had many more wrinkles on her face. "You mean I'm not pretty anymore, right? Not as pretty as I was when I was young."
As she spoke, a faint hint of disappointment appeared in her eyes, but it quickly disappeared.
"Stupid, that's not what I meant."
"So what do you mean?"
Wen Yiquan remained silent for a moment, perhaps feeling a little embarrassed, but after thinking for a while, he raised his head again, got out of the car, walked to the passenger side door, and helped open it.
"I'm so glad that you're still the one sitting in the passenger seat."
After he finished speaking, the atmosphere in the car almost froze, and no one took the initiative to say anything more.
"You're over forty and you're still saying such mushy things." Su Juan ignored him, but unconsciously increased the speed at which she ate the candy, and stepped out of the car.
"Sometimes I want to say something really cool."
Why did you turn your head away?
"No, I just felt the underground parking garage was too stuffy."
...
"Why did you buy so many potatoes?" Wen Mo picked up a potato, weighed it in his hand, and found that each one was uniformly plump and heavy.
"Potatoes are cheap and delicious."
Xia Lian held a potato in both hands, obediently placed it in the sink to wash it clean, then shook off the water from her hands and picked up a kitchen knife to chop it into shreds.
Hearing this, Wenmo felt a strange feeling. It turned out that the reason he liked potatoes was simply because they were cheap and delicious. Perhaps he didn't have many opportunities to eat good food back home.
"Did you often eat potatoes before?" He leaned closer, helping Xia Lian with her meal.
"Yes, I eat potatoes often," Xia Lian said softly. "Mom's shredded potatoes are the best."
After saying that, she stopped talking and continued working on her hands.
Wen Mo glanced to the side and could see a faint sadness hidden in the eyes of the girl beside him.
Missing your mom?
Upon hearing this, Xia Lian slowed her movements considerably. "...A little bit."
The lunch she had with her uncle and aunt, her interaction with her aunt, and the maternal scent emanating from her almost made Xia Lian think her mother had returned.
But then I thought about it again and realized that it didn't make sense. My aunt is my aunt, and my mother is my mother. They can't be treated as substitutes. That would be too impolite to my aunt. They are both unique individuals.
Xia Lian's current life is something she never imagined. She is very happy here, with delicious food, people who love her, and endless warmth.
But... it would be great if I could bring my mother along too. What I miss is not the old days, but my mother who cared for me and loved me.
As for now, her mother must be watching over her from heaven, and she'll think her daughter is doing well, which puts her mind at ease.
"I'll take you back to our old home sometime, so you can reminisce," Wen Mo said casually, setting the washed potatoes aside.
Xia Lian suddenly raised her head, her gaze towards him carrying a hint of scrutiny, and finally she concluded with a single sentence.
"I always felt that Wenmo and his uncle were very similar."
"Huh? Not at all. I don't want to become like that guy."
"Yes, that's the kind of person who says one thing but means another, it's very similar."
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