Chapter 72 Exposure
Yan Shumei sized up Xu Jialan.
He became increasingly guilty.
"Is Yao'an really not here with you? Let me in to take a look."
Yan Shumei was about to go inside when Xu Jialan instinctively moved her body to block her.
"What? You won't let me in?" Yan Shumei's yellowed eyes were still sharp as she stared at him.
"Grandma isn't feeling well."
Chen Yao'an was peacefully eating the fruit that Xu Jialan had cut for her when she heard the noise outside and peeked out.
Then they saw Yan Shumei trying to barge in.
Yan Shumei's voice was arrogant: "What's inconvenient about it? What's wrong with letting me in for a quick look? You're not even letting me into your house?"
Chen Yao'an jumped up from the sofa, dropping her fork.
Grandma can't find out; she needs to find somewhere to hide.
She looked around, then finally plunged into Xu Jialan's bedroom, closed the door, and secretly listened to the sounds outside.
Yan Shumei was old, so Xu Jialan didn't dare to stop her. She entered the room leaning on her cane.
Behind him, Xu Jialan glanced into the living room and, not seeing Chen Yaoan, breathed a slight sigh of relief.
Yan Shumei went straight to the living room but didn't see anyone. She stood at the door and looked around, finally focusing on the bedroom. She walked over and pushed the door open.
The room door was locked, so she simply started banging on it.
"Chen Yao'an, I know you're in there. Come out, stop hiding."
Yan Shumei addressed her by her full name, clearly indicating her anger.
“People have seen the two of you go to the Guanyin Temple together, and you still want to hide it from me.”
Chen Yaoan and Xu Jialan were both stunned for a moment, realizing that the matter could no longer be kept secret, so Chen Yaoan had no choice but to open the door.
She felt a little guilty and lowered her head slightly, saying, "Grandma."
Yan Shumei asked with a blank expression, "How long have you two been talking?"
Feeling guilty, Chen Yaoan whispered, "A little over a month."
Yan Shumei pointed at her, gritting her teeth, "You've really gone too far, keeping this from me for so long!"
She was so angry that her fingers started to tremble, and her expression was complicated.
Chen Yao'an was completely taken aback by Yan Shumei's strong reaction and was somewhat shocked. "Grandma, we're just dating, we haven't done anything immoral or immoral, why are you so angry?"
Xu Jialan didn't seem too surprised; she just watched from the side.
"I don't approve of you two being together." Yan Shumei pulled Chen Yao'an's arm and walked out. "Come on, come back with me."
Chen Yaoan looked at Xu Jialan.
Xu Jialan said, "You go back with Grandma first."
Chen Yao'an couldn't argue with Yan Shumei, so she obediently went home with her.
Closing the door, Yan Shumei declared in an uncompromising manner, "Chen Yao'an, you must break up with him right now."
"Why?" Chen Yao'an was completely puzzled. "Even if it was my fault for keeping it from you before, there's no need for me to break up with him."
"Everyone else is fine, but Xu Jialan is not!"
Chen Yao'an was even more puzzled, "Why? Dating is my freedom, and besides, what has Xu Jialan done to displease you?"
"His identity is unacceptable! He's not one of us. He'll leave sooner or later, don't you understand?" Yan Shumei said angrily.
"Of course I know that, but so what?" Chen Yao'an didn't care that much now.
Yan Shumei looked at her granddaughter in disbelief, her eyes filled with sadness. "You're going to Jingbei with him, abandoning me and your mother?"
By the end, her voice was trembling.
Is Grandma afraid that she will run away with Xu Jialan and abandon her and her mother?
"Grandma, how could you think like that? How could I possibly abandon you and Mom?"
"So when he wants to go back later, will you go with him or not?"
Chen Yao'an paused for a moment, "We've only just started dating, I haven't thought about this."
"That's how you young people are, only thinking about the present. Don't see him again."
Yan Shumei's attitude was very firm, giving her no chance to refute.
In the following days, Yan Shumei suddenly became very strict with her. After closing the shop, she had to go home immediately, not even a minute late, otherwise Yan Shumei would call her. At night, Yan Shumei would keep a close watch on her and not let her go out.
She and Xu Jialan hadn't seen each other for almost a week. They had been communicating on WeChat and had hardly ever met in person.
Chen Yao'an couldn't stand Yan Shumei looking at her like a criminal. She didn't know what got into her, but she walked out in front of Yan Shumei that night.
Where are you going?
I'm going to find Xu Jialan.
"Stop right there!" Yan Shumei slammed his cane on the ground, making a thud.
Chen Yao'an ignored her and continued walking out.
Behind her, Yan Shumei suddenly burst into tears, "Are you really planning to abandon us?"
Helpless, Chen Yaoan turned to look at her. Yan Shumei's wrinkled face was already streaked with tears. "Grandma, when did I say I wouldn't take care of you?"
“You’re determined to stay with him no matter what, which means you’re planning to abandon us,” she said obsessively.
Chen Yao'an felt that Yan Shumei was being unreasonable. "Grandma, there is no conflict between me being with Xu Jialan and taking care of you."
"How can there not be conflict? You're planning to run away with him, leaving us two old, weak, and disabled people here."
Chen Yaoan rubbed her temples, feeling that Yan Shumei was becoming increasingly outrageous, “…Grandma.”
Yan Shumei's eyes suddenly hardened. "Since you insist on being with him, I might as well just die now, so as not to drag you down with me."
Before she could finish speaking, Yan Shumei stood up from her chair and rushed towards the wall in front of her.
Chen Yao'an was genuinely startled by her actions, rushed over, and hugged Yan Shumei tightly.
Fortunately, Yan Mei had bad legs and couldn't run fast, so she was stopped by her, and the two of them eventually fell to the ground.
"Grandma, what are you doing?"
Yan Shumei sat on the ground and began to wail and howl.
Zhou Yao was originally in the yard when she heard the commotion and ran in from outside in a panic. Seeing the two sitting on the ground, she squatted down beside them worriedly, asking, "What are you doing?"
Chen Yao'an didn't reply to her, but only focused on comforting Yan Shumei, "Grandma, I won't abandon you. If I really have to go to Beijing with him, I will take you with me."
Yan Shumei stopped, her attitude still resolute, "This is my home, I will stay here, I will not go anywhere else. Your father and grandfather are here, I will not leave."
Zhou Yao, who was standing to the side, nodded in agreement. "Yes, we'll stay here and not go anywhere."
Another troublemaker has arrived, and Chen Yao'an feels her temples throbbing uncontrollably.
After finally calming the two down, Chen Yaoan was exhausted. She returned to her room and lay on the bed, missing Xu Jialan.
She reached for her phone and texted him.
Chen Yao'an: [What are you doing?]
Xu Jialan: [Work.]
Chen Yao'an: [Working so late? I haven't seen you for almost a week.]
Xu Jialan: [What, you missed me?]
Chen Yaoan thought for a while and typed a single word: "Hmm."
Xu Jialan didn't reply to her again; she was probably busy with work.
Chen Yaoan put down her phone and sighed. Yan Shumei threatened suicide; could it be that she really couldn't be with Xu Jialan?
In fact, Yan Shumei's concerns were not unfounded.
Xu Jialan will have to go back to Beijing sooner or later, right? What will she do then? Will she really have to part ways with him?
Chen Yao'an's mind was in turmoil, like a tangled mess of threads, with no clue what to do.
Just as she was feeling troubled, she heard a knocking sound coming from the room. She was stunned for a moment before realizing that it was the sound of knocking on the windowpane.
It's Xu Jialan!
She jumped out of bed and went to draw back the curtains, and sure enough, it was Xu Jialan.
She opened the window.
"Why are you here?" she asked in surprise, but immediately made a shushing gesture, afraid that Yan Shumei would hear her.
"You miss me, so of course I'll grant your wish. Besides... I miss you too."
He opened his arms and said, "Hug me."
Chen Yao'an looked down at their predicament: one inside the window, the other outside, one at a higher position, the other at a lower position. "How can we hug like this?"
"Come here and I'll find a way to hug you."
She leaned her upper body out of the window, Xu Jialan hugged her shoulders, and Chen Yaoan wrapped her arms around his neck. He rubbed his cheek against hers, saying, "This is enough."
Chen Yaoan suddenly felt a little wronged, and her nose tingled. "What about Xu Jialan? It seems like we really can't be together anymore."
"Because Grandma objected?"
"I was going to visit you tonight, but Grandma stopped me. She even threatened to kill herself. Luckily, I stopped her."
Xu Jialan stopped in his tracks. He had never expected Yan Shumei to go to such lengths. "What did Grandma say?"
“She said that you would go back to Beijing sooner or later, and that I would go to Beijing with you then, leaving them behind. I said that even if I went to Beijing, I would take them with me, but they felt that this was their home.”
Xu Jialan remained silent for a moment.
The silence had gone on for too long, and Chen Yao'an's heart began to pound. She asked him, "Why aren't you saying anything?"
"I was thinking, what if I stay?"
Chen Yao'an was shocked and looked up at him, thinking she had misheard. "What did you just say? You mean you're going to stay in Dai County and not go back to Beijing?"
He nodded. "Yes."
She didn't seem happy at all. "Have you really thought about this?"
"Or... just to appease me?"
He smiled, his laughter seemingly possessing some kind of magic. "Of course, it's because I love you, so I want to live with you. Wherever you are, I'll be there."
Chen Yao'an was dazed by his words, but fortunately she hadn't completely lost her mind.
“You should think this through. Beijing and Dai County are worlds apart. If you go back, you can have a better job platform and resources. You can even go back to your old life of pleasure and debauchery.”
"Besides, your dad doesn't want you to inherit his company, because that would give you a higher social status and endless money."
Xu Jialan chuckled and listened quietly as she finished speaking.
"You've listed so many advantages of northern Beijing, but what about Dai County?"
Life in Dai County is predictable. "If you stay in Dai County, you will become an ordinary person, so you should think it through."
"I hope you won't make a hasty decision for my sake."
Xu Jialan nodded, "Okay, then I'll go back and think it over before making a decision."
The two cuddled together for a while longer.
"It's getting late, you should go back." Chen Yao'an urged him on. Yan Shumei was still awake, and she was afraid that if she stayed too long, they would find out.
"Okay, whatever you say."
He quickly kissed her on the lips, then stepped back and turned away.
Chen Yao'an closed the window only after he had walked away.
Considering Yan Shumei's unstable emotions, Chen Yaoan didn't go against her anymore, and didn't dare to meet Xu Jialan for the next few days.
It wasn't until Xu Jialan texted her to say she wanted to meet up that the two arranged to meet at the store.
As it was nearing the end of the workday, Xu Jialan arrived at Youye. She was busy, so he sat at the front desk waiting for her.
After seeing off the last group of guests, Xu Jialan grabbed her and pulled her into her arms, asking, "Are you done with your work?"
"I'm done with work."
He leaned on her shoulder, nuzzling against her, and said, "I missed you."
She reached out and wrapped her arms around his back.
Do you miss me?
"think."
"If that's the case, just say it directly. Making me ask you again is not being obedient at all."
Chen Yaoan chuckled.
"Let's go back together tonight."
"Huh? What do you mean, want to go back together?" Chen Yao'an pushed him away.
"Yes, I've made up my mind. I'll go back with you to see Grandma."
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