Chapter 118 Sister-in-law
Grandpa Wu was so surprised that Wu Ming would take a liking to Wu Zhou's girlfriend that he almost fainted.
Even rabbits don't eat the grass near their burrows.
The old man could only try to calm Wu Zhou down first: "Well... take the little girl home for a meal sometime."
The old man softened his attitude; his act of doing this for Wu Ming was too ridiculous, and Wu Zhou couldn't help but snort softly.
The old man said with a serious expression, "I will talk to Wu Ming, don't worry."
Wu Zhou straightened up, took the coat, and put it on: "Thank you for your trouble."
Grandpa Wu watched Wu Zhou leave home.
The eldest grandson, with his upright posture, strode away without any hesitation or lingering, and without letting momentary emotions cause him to argue with himself.
The year his biological mother married into the family, his in-laws came to visit—Wu Zhou's maternal grandfather, the owner of a large local factory.
That man did the same, entrusting his daughter to another man with great care.
The other party initially disagreed with their daughter marrying into the family, seeing that their son-in-law was not a law-abiding person.
He was single-mindedly focused on finding a man he could control for his daughter.
Unfortunately, my daughter was in such high spirits.
The in-laws were still angry and only visited Mengcheng once during the two years when Wu Zhou and Wu Ming were born. They never visited again under the guise of being in-laws.
Old Master Wu naturally disliked his in-laws, but he had to admit that Wu Zhou, his son who resembled him, was the most promising.
Wu Zhou only resembles his family side by two or three points, while the remaining seven points resemble his serious and rigid maternal grandfather.
But Wu Zhou and Wu Ming were brothers after all, sharing the same parents, so the old man's memory of Wu Zhou's face gradually became that of Wu Ming.
Around dusk, Wu Ming returned home.
"You still know how to come home!"
The old man smashed a celadon tea set and sternly reprimanded Wu Ming.
As evening fell, Wu Ming returned home, looking utterly dejected. He had no idea where to go except home.
Jiang Xia canceled the lease, and he could never go back to that little house that held so many memories for the two of them.
Jiang Xia moved to her elder brother's house, and since she couldn't go in herself, she could only watch longingly.
He was exhausted and startled by his grandfather.
"Grandpa, what's wrong?" Wu Ming didn't take it seriously and pretended not to see it.
He planned to move away from the old man.
A loud "thump" was heard.
"Stop right there!"
Wu Ming stared blankly at the old man's cane as he leaned on the ground.
Old Master Wu frowned. Seeing him like this, his anger grew even stronger. His usually kind gaze became stern as he looked Wu Ming up and down.
"Where are you going?! You're not allowed to leave!"
“I watched you grow up from a baby until you were a teenager. Your own mother insisted on taking you to study in Duliang. After all these years, has all the knowledge you've gained gone to waste?! Your family has spoiled you too much; you've really become a bad person!”
Wu Ming stared blankly at his grandfather, wondering what the old man was angry about.
Wu Ming is even less energetic than his elderly grandfather.
He now resembles a tortoise that has lived for over a hundred years and is on its last breath, walking very slowly, as if afraid that if he walks any faster, he will lose his breath.
Seeing that he didn't refute him and looked a bit thinner lately, Old Master Wu's anger subsided a little.
The old man knew that Wu Ming's dissolute lifestyle over the years had become a habit, and it was too late to correct his views on relationships now.
He noticed that Wu Ming had lost weight. He was studying in the UK, a place where he didn't know anyone and where the food and lodging were poor. Why did he go abroad to suffer? His usually shrewd eyes were like a stagnant pool, but now they were bloodshot.
"I know everything about you and Wu Zhou."
Grandpa Wu softened his tone, about to show his sympathy for his grandson; but upon closer inspection, he saw that Wu Ming's eyes were red, filled with resentment and anger. The man who usually got whatever he wanted had suddenly stumbled and was still unrepentant.
The old man's temper flared up again, and he pointed at his nose and yelled, "You and Wu Zhou are brothers from the same parents, and your older brother has taken care of you all these years! You don't have to be respectful to him, but you should at least be polite to him. But what have you done?! Of all the people you could like, you had to like your older brother's girlfriend!"
"You know perfectly well that your family hates your dad the most, and hates what he's done, yet you're even bolder than him!"
Wu Ming looked at his grandfather with some confusion, then his face turned pale.
He wanted to say that wasn't the case.
Jiangxia should have been his own; he was a good friend who had gone through thick and thin with him. How did he become his elder brother's?
Wu Ming couldn't speak because his grandfather said "elder brother's girlfriend" instead of directly saying Jiang Xia's name.
This indicates that Wu Zhou did not reveal Jiang Xia's name...
Wu Ming lowered his head, wishing he could bury it in his chest, crawl inside, and sew it up stitch by stitch.
He couldn't say a word, and he couldn't reveal Jiang Xia's name.
A cold arrow pierced his heart, and the cold wind howled, making his heart numb.
If his emotions on his journey back to China were like a rollercoaster, sometimes fearing that Jiangxia would reject him, sometimes dreading that Jiangxia would leave him, his mind would never be able to calm down.
Now, he is a death row inmate sentenced to death, with a noose around his neck, his heart plummeting, his emotions threatening to strangle him.
He numbly returned to his bedroom, and within minutes he had already forgotten how he had answered his grandfather.
All he knew was that it was over; his older brother was serious.
As soon as Wu Ming closed the door, his legs gave way and he could no longer support his body.
He lay sprawled on the ground like a dog, refusing to get up, and began to sob softly on the floor.
He was crying so pitifully that an uninformed person would think he had suffered a great injustice.
"Jiang Xia doesn't want me anymore, he doesn't want me anymore!"
"Jiang Xia! I was wrong, I was really wrong!"
Just as he once failed to understand Jiang Xia's heart, Jiang Xia now remains unaware that he is weeping.
If he continues to insist that Jiangxia turn back, he will hurt Jiangxia's feelings; if he wishes them happiness, he will never have a chance.
Jiang Xia fell in love with a man, who was her older brother.
Once he exposes this matter, he will hurt Jiang Xia and his elder brother, and he will become enemies with them.
Unless... unless Jiang Xia and her older brother break up, and she comforts him when he's sad, she'll have a chance to salvage the relationship.
But Jiang Xia is a man of his word; once he's truly committed to his older brother, it's impossible for him to break up with him easily!
Wu Ming felt increasingly hopeless and cried even harder!
Wu Zhou, the elder brother, was in a good mood and drove away from the old house, heading towards home.
He was eager to return home, but he controlled his speed, not going too fast, safety first, and he and Jiangxia still had a long way to go in their happy life.
Wu Zhou received a call from Jiang Xia halfway there.
Jiang Xia: "Hello?"
The wind was howling on the phone; he was afraid Wu Zhou wouldn't hear him.
Wu Zhou spoke up: "Yes, I heard you. Did you miss me?"
He flirted with Jiang Xia.
Jiang Xia's awkward cough came from the other end of the phone: "Um... are you coming back for dinner?"
Wu Zhou replied, "I'm coming back, but it'll be another half hour before I get home. It's okay, you eat first."
Jiang Xia glanced at Zhan Lintian, who was wielding a ladle in the kitchen: "Then let's wait until you come back to eat, it's not ready yet."
Wu Zhou agreed, "Okay~ I'll be right back."
Wu Zhou heard the little girl's cheerful voice coming from the other end of the phone: "Wenwen's here again?"
“Yes, the kindergarten has been closed for the holidays for a while, so she’s staying at home with nothing to do,” Jiang Xia explained.
Wu Zhou nodded in agreement: "It's good that she's with you."
Jiang Xia chuckled softly.
Wenwen is indeed a lovable child. She's so small. After playing with the puppy for a while, she runs to my side and says in her childish voice, "Uncle Jiang, I like you so much."
Then she turned around and went back to play with the puppy.
A moment later, she came back to his side and hugged his leg, saying, "Uncle Jiang, you are so handsome."
In Wenwen's heart, Uncle Jiang is her magic elf.
Wherever Uncle Jiang is, Uncle won't care what he plays.
So Wenwen would come over from time to time to hug Jiangxia to express her gratitude.
Wu Zhou talked to Jiang Xia while driving, and the half-hour drive didn't seem long at all.
He entered the door just as the food was being served; Wu Zhou looked around and saw that Wenwen was not home, apparently sent back by her kind uncle.
But her uncle is still here.
Tonight's meal was very plentiful. Two dishes were made by the aunt, and four other dishes were made by Zhan Lintian in the kitchen over two hours, according to Jiang Xia's taste.
They bullied people so much in the morning, but in the evening they cooked some food and apologized.
After Wu Zhou came in, he first put his arm around Jiang Xia, kissed Jiang Xia's forehead, and whispered, "Good evening."
Jiang Xia lowered his eyes and replied, "Good evening."
Wu Zhou gently rubbed Jiang Xia's arm again, noticing that he was only wearing home clothes and worried that he might be cold.
He touched him several times, and Jiang Xia's face became hot from his touch. She quickly pushed him to sit down at the dining table.
The meal was warm and comfortable, except that the food in Jiang Xia's bowl was always piled up so high that he couldn't even hold the bowl while eating, for fear that the mountain of food would collapse.
After finishing the meal, Zhan Lintian mischievously pinched Jiang Xia's cheek gently, controlling the pressure.
Jiang Xia squinted at him.
He didn't speak; Jiang Xia was a little sleepy.
But Zhan Lintian cupped his face in his hands, not letting him sleep: "You can't lie down right after eating, it's not good for your health."
Finally, Jiang Xia sat on the sofa, and the three of them huddled together to discuss the puppy's name.
Wu Zhou looked at the words on the notebook and read them aloud: "Winter plum blossoms, evening clouds, falling snow."
He commented, "Very poetic."
Ultimately, considering the need for verbal expression, Jiang Xia changed it to winter plum blossoms, gray clouds, and black snow.
Wu Zhou still gave high praise, only watching from the side as Jiang Xia took turns holding the three puppies, a scene of fair affection.
Wu Zhou leaned back, a smile playing on his lips, his eyes full of admiration.
So cute...
Wu Zhou's good mood reached its peak soon after.
Because Zhan Lintian finished cleaning the kitchen and went to wash up first, he didn't want the smell of cooking oil on him to bother Jiang Xia.
He went to take a shower.
Taking advantage of this moment, Wu Zhou embraced Jiang Xia and had someone sit on his lap.
He held the person in his arms and swayed his body like a swing, teasing Jiang Xia in this way.
Jiang Xia didn't hold on to him at first, so Wu Zhou deliberately increased the amplitude of the shaking.
Wu Zhou only stopped when Jiang Xia put his hands on his neck and snuggled close to him affectionately.
Wu Zhou nuzzled Jiang Xia's nose with his own and whispered, "If Wu Ming's situation is handled well, he'll have to call you 'sister-in-law' during the New Year."
Jiang Xia couldn't avoid it, but his face was burning hot.
Wu Zhou teased him, then gently shook him: "Don't be shy, it's normal for him to call you sister-in-law."
"Speaking of which, aren't you a little younger than him? His birthday is a little earlier than yours, I think."
Jiang Xia nodded.
Wu Zhou nuzzled Jiang Xia's face with the tip of his nose and said, "Then he has to call you sister-in-law. You're my girlfriend, so you're of a higher generation than him."
Jiang Xia couldn't help but chuckle. Wu Zhou was quite mischievous. No wonder Wu Ming had previously commented on Wu Zhou's mouth: "If he doesn't speak, he's silent; but when he does, he's astonishing."
The description is inappropriate, but it has a humorous feel to it here.
Fortunately, Wu Zhou didn't like talking to Wu Ming. When he did open his mouth, he would lick his lips, which was enough to poison him to death.
Wu Zhou rubbed Jiang Xia's body and whispered in his ear, mischievously mimicking Wu Ming's tone: "Why aren't you saying anything, sister-in-law?"
Jiang Xia pretended to be angry and hit his shoulder, while Wu Zhou hugged him and laughed even more happily.
He liked the transformation of the river gorges.
Jiang Xia used to hide whenever he saw me, and when I invited him to dinner, he would wish he could disappear into the floor. Now, he gets amused by me and even flirts with me.
Wu Zhou kissed Jiang Xia, his eyes catching sight of the red marks on Jiang Xia's neck. It seemed Zhan Lintian had bullied him again today.
When Jiang Xia saw him stop, she lowered her head somewhat embarrassedly, unsure of what to say.
The next moment, Wu Zhou's gloomy and hoarse voice came to my ears.
The man said, "You have work tomorrow night, so I won't take the day off tonight. But after you finish work tomorrow night, I'll celebrate with you. Jiang Xia, please have some pity on me..."
Jiang Xia looked up at him.
Wu Zhou gently kissed his lips: "I've been thinking about it a lot, but I've been holding back."
A note from the author:
There are only one or two chapters left to finish. If I'm quick, I can finish it tomorrow!
I've been brainstorming ideas for an alternate story for a while now, but sometimes I feel a bit guilty, especially when I think about a young Jiang Xia facing those two... [covers face and peeks]
For example, suppose Jiang Xia's family is happy, his father becomes a great photographer, and he moves to Mengcheng with his parents. After he grows up, he is introduced to Wu Zhou by chance, and the two plan to get married by agreement, marrying first and falling in love later.
Jiang Xia: Do couples who marry by mutual consent still have to fulfill their marital obligations?
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