Chapter 120: My younger brother Jingjing, you are the most obedient child...
"Qu Peiyun and I were classmates in the same major but different classes in college."
Song Runing leaned on the sofa, lowered his eyes, and spoke slowly:
"When I was in school, I was busy with studies, internships, and work. I only knew of his existence, but I had little contact with him."
“I really started to get in touch with it five years after I graduated.”
"At that time, my company was gradually getting on track, and I could be considered a promising young person among my peers. But I was busy with work and had never found a partner. My mother was always worried, saying that I was almost 30 and should think about the major events in life. I also felt that I was old enough to think about these things, so I gave in and met several blind dates introduced by people around me."
“The results were not satisfactory.”
"Until that year, my class monitor in college called a class reunion. Because our two classes interacted more frequently at that time, and the classmates were familiar with each other, Qu Peiyun was also among them."
“I went and met him.”
"I don't really know him that well, but I heard from my classmates that Qu Peiyun hasn't changed at all. He's still as good-tempered as he was in school, always smiling, and makes people feel comfortable just by looking at him."
"After hearing this, I looked at him twice more, but didn't pay much attention to him. Unexpectedly, after a while, my neighbor recommended a blind date to me, and it was him."
"In fact, I met a lot of men during that period. I had no interest in blind dates and didn't want to meet anyone. It was only when I heard that the other party was him that I became interested." She paused and pulled her lips: "He is just like what my classmates said, with a good temper, patience, gentleness, and considerate..."
"When we first met, I was quite satisfied with him. After spending some time together and learning about his family background, I became even more satisfied."
"We were together for two months. After two months, I asked him if he would be willing to live with my mother after marriage and have the child take my last name. He hesitated for two days and gave me the answer."
“That’s how we got married.”
Shen Qingye raised his eyes and looked at her: "In other words, in your union, feelings are not the most important factor, right?"
Song Runing looked at her and nodded: "Yes."
Song Runing is a very rational person. She doesn't have the mind or time to talk about any relationship. For her, getting married is not about choosing a lover, but someone to live with.
"I chose him because he has a good temper and personality, has no ambitions in his career, and is willing to stay at home to take care of the elderly and children after marriage."
"I am usually busy with work. If I find a partner who is equally busy, then what difference will it make whether we are married or not?"
Lu Yingzhuo nodded: "What about after marriage? How is your relationship?"
Song Runing said in a daze: "When we first got married, things between us... I can't say it was sweet, but at least it was warm and harmonious."
"After we had a child, he worked hard to be a good husband and a good father. He tolerated my busy schedule and took good care of Jingjing and our family."
"I thought it would continue like this..."
Yue Lingchuan keenly sensed the meaning of her words: "But he has changed, right?"
Song Runing closed his eyes for a long time before he sighed weakly and said, "Yes."
"About a year ago, he mentioned to me that he wanted to have another child."
"When Jingjing was playing outside the community, she saw other children had brothers and sisters and she was very envious. She wanted one."
"I was busy with work at the time and didn't have the energy to have another child. I felt that Jingjing was enough, so I decisively rejected his request."
"Later...about half a year later, there was a family dinner. His brothers came back with their wives and children. During the dinner, they were polite to Qu Peiyun on the surface, but they were actually mocking him, laughing at him for not even having a son, and that no one would break a pot for him when he died..."
Song Runing snorted and laughed: "Even his mother is not as enthusiastic towards him as she is towards his other brothers."
"After he got back, he told me that because he only had Jingjing, a girl, he had been ridiculed and mocked by his family for so many years... Then he secretly urged me, saying that Jingjing was already grown up, and after she went to elementary school, we didn't need to worry about it anymore, and we could have another child... He also said that it didn't matter whether it was a boy or a girl, as long as he could give Jingjing a companion."
"I was very angry at the time. First, I am an only child, and I had told him before we got married that I would only have one child, no matter if it was a boy or a girl. He agreed, but now he has gone back on his word and said that he still wants a boy, which is obviously biased towards boys. Second, when I was pregnant with Jingjing, I had a severe reaction during pregnancy, and later I almost had a dystocia during childbirth, which seriously damaged my vitality. Since then, I have made up my mind not to have a second child."
"I had a quarrel with him and said that no matter what others said, I would only have Jingjing as my child in this life."
Yue Lingchuan asked: "Has he changed since then?"
Song Runing was silent for a moment, then shook his head and said, "It can't be said to be a change."
Shen Qingye raised her eyes and listened to her words: "He is at home, everything is normal. It is the same as usual. But between the two of us, it is different."
"I can't tell what the specific difference is, but I just feel like there's something between us."
"I don't understand him, and he probably doesn't understand me either. We are just cold and deadlocked in a seemingly harmonious way."
Shen Qingye asked: "Have you ever thought about divorce?"
Song Runing said, "I didn't think about it at that time. After all, we have been married for so many years... Until one night, I came home late at night after a busy work and social event, reeking of alcohol. Qu Peiyun took care of me while I washed and rested. When I lay on the bed, I was very touched... But when I went out to drink water, I heard Qu Peiyun in my daughter's room, urging Jingjing to have a brother..."
That night, she couldn't remember how much she drank for a project. She only remembered that she felt dizzy when she got home.
Qu Peiyun patiently helped her wash and let her rest. Song Runing was drowsy and half asleep when she was awakened by thirst. When she struggled to get up to find some water, she found that her husband was not by her side.
When he walked out of the room, Qu Peiyun was accompanying his daughter who had just slept alone and was not used to waking up in the middle of the night. Song Runing was standing at the door of the room at that time, looking at her petite daughter and patient husband under the dim light, and her heart softened immediately.
She couldn't help thinking, maybe she was too much. He had suffered so much at home, but he just mentioned it to her. Maybe she was overthinking it. It was not a good thing to keep doing this. She would have a good talk with him tomorrow...
All sorts of thoughts came to her mind, but before she could be moved for too long, she suddenly heard her husband say to her daughter in his usual gentle and patient tone:
"Don't be afraid, baby, you have to be brave. Didn't mom tell you that good children have to be brave?"
"Didn't you want a brother or sister before? Jingjing, go tell mom that you want a brother or sister. Then, you can let your brother or sister sleep with you in the future, okay?"
"...How could mom not love you? Mom loves you so much. When you have a younger brother, you take good care of him. Mom will like you more when she sees that you are such a smart and reliable sister..."
"You are the most obedient, right? Jingjing, you are the best child, Dad loves you the most..."
…
Song Runing's groggy mind suddenly became clear. She looked at her husband's gentle and patient smile in the children's room, and she felt as if she had fallen into an ice cellar.
It was also from that time that she realized that perhaps her husband was not as kind and harmless as he seemed, nor did he love Jingjing as much as he seemed.
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