Chapter 51
A check for five million was placed on the table. Jennie's request to the sweet-looking girl in front of her was simple: leave Hong Kong and go to Canada to live with her parents.
"Or you can choose any city you like; this money is enough for you to start over in any city."
Ding Huihui suddenly felt it was absurd. A scene that was considered a tired trope in TV dramas was actually playing out in real life, and it happened to her. "That's ridiculous! Are you trying to expel me from Hong Kong? What right do you have? If there really is no problem between Ah Yuan and Iris, then why are you coming to me? And if they already have problems, then my leaving won't help."
Jennie thought this girl was incredibly shameless; no wonder Iris couldn't handle her. If Gloria were here, she'd probably be swearing. She tried to resolve the situation gently, but Ding Huihui had her own logic, and Jennie knew she couldn't persuade her. "Or let me put it this way, Ms. Ding, you're currently ruining my daughter and son-in-law's relationship. Perhaps you think they're not married yet, and you still have a chance. But in reality, if you force your way in, the one who will suffer in the end is Ayuan, because he'll lose both his wife and child."
Ding Huihui stared wide-eyed in disbelief: "Iris, she..."
"That's right, my daughter is pregnant, and Ayuan is very happy. They could have lived happily as a family of three, but now, because of you, Ayuan could lose his family at any moment. If you love him, do you think this can be made up for? Even if you wanted to compensate him with your own actions, do you think he would accept it? He won't love you; he'll hate you forever because you caused him to lose the family he'd longed for. Now, Ms. Ding, do you still think your so-called love is true love? Do you truly love Ayuan, or yourself?"
Zhuang Zhuohua accompanied Iris shopping to relax. When Zhuang Zhuoyuan returned home, only Jennie was there. She seemed to have been waiting for him for a while. He sat down very awkwardly and said, "Mom."
Jennie's gaze remained fixed on him. When she looked away, she suddenly smiled and said to him quite casually, "Pauline just called and said they're having hot pot at their house tonight. Yuan, ask Iris later if she wants to go."
“But Huihui lives there. Mom, Atao also invited me, but I refused.” Before Ding Huihui’s anger subsided, Zhuang Zhuoyuan had already decided not to go to the Zhan family again.
Jennie was finally satisfied with his statement. She nodded, put the teacup on the table, and smiled, saying, "Ding Huihui has already moved out of the Zhan family's house. You and Iris can go without worry."
Zhuang Zhuoyuan frowned subconsciously: "So sudden?"
“I gave her a check so she could start over. I also told her Iris was pregnant and asked her not to bother you anymore. I don’t know what she’s thinking, but the current situation is that the check hasn’t been cashed yet, and she’s already moved out.”
“Mom…” Zhuang Zhuoyuan was surprised by this fact. But before he could finish speaking, Jennie continued, “I’m sorry for interfering in your affairs, and I know that what I did was disrespectful to Miss Ding, but I’m sorry, Zhuoyuan. Iris is my only daughter, and I want to protect her.”
“…It’s my fault for not handling this well.” Jennie’s hand trembled slightly as she placed it on Zhuang Zhuoyuan’s. Zhuang Zhuoyuan had nothing more to say. He understood Jennie and Iris’s feelings. In the past few days, he had also reflected on his several cold wars with Iris. Jianren was right; each time it started because of Ding Huihui, but fundamentally, it was because he hadn’t given Iris enough security. Their beginning and development had always been too smooth; many things seemed to go unspoken, and both of them understood each other. This made him overlook the fact that relationships need communication to flourish. Therefore, his lack of decisiveness in dealing with Ding Huihui made Iris hesitate, ultimately hurting her. If he had explained things clearly to her in time, perhaps Iris wouldn’t be so sad now.
"Mother--"
Jennie stopped him: "You can talk to Iris about what you have to say. Mom understands you two, but there are some things I want to remind you of. You advised Pauline before that her husband's biggest characteristic is that he is soft-hearted, but you are the same. Because of this, your relationship with Iris has always been very good, which is enviable; you also have good interpersonal relationships and friends everywhere. But after this, I hope you understand that any quality can be a double-edged sword. It is not suitable for every situation or for everyone. In the future, you need to learn to make decisions properly."
Zhuang Zhuoyuan can be a sniper or an arrowhead, but he lacks the ability to control the overall situation. Jennie and Edward don't expect him to rise to a high position, but they hope that one day he can put down the scope and see the world in a different way.
Meanwhile, with Zhuang Zhuohua's comforting words and companionship, Iris's mood improved considerably. After the former had to leave the mall due to work, Iris sat quietly for a while and then proactively dialed Zhuang Zhuoyuan's number: "Honey, I'm torn between two outfits. My sister went back to the police station. Could you come and help me choose?"
The items she wanted to choose were two baby shirts, but Iris always bought everything she wanted, even if they were similar styles, she was happy to buy them as long as they suited her taste. Zhuang Zhuoyuan knew she was trying to save face for him, so when they stood side by side, their hands touched, and her little finger hooked onto mine, and then her whole hand was in his palm.
Iris pretended not to notice, her gaze still fixed on the two baby outfits, one blue and one pink, without even noticing the details. "Here's what we'll do, you choose one, I'll choose one, and we can buy them both." Zhuang Zhuoyuan took down both outfits, and Iris immediately turned to the two pairs of shoes beside her. The tiny shoes were no bigger than her palm, and as soon as her eyes fell on them, Zhuang Zhuoyuan picked them up again.
“There are also two hats, two bibs, and two pacifiers.” She puffed out her cheeks as she looked at him, as if she wanted to list everything in sight. Zhuang Zhuoyuan didn’t reach for the shelf again this time, but he took her hand and put it on her waist, then squeezed it: “Since there are two of each, maybe we’ll have a pair of twins.”
"You wish! You're not the one who's tired, are you?" Iris ignored him and went to pay after taking two more cute ponies. Zhuang Zhuoyuan followed closely behind, swiping his card at one of the next four or five stores, until Iris finally calmed down.
"I'm going for my prenatal checkup tomorrow, come with me." She nudged Zhuang Zhuoyuan's arm. He hadn't had a chance to hold her hand because they'd bought so many things, and she was only willing to cling to his arm when she was in a good mood. Others might turn a blind eye, but she was adamant about not allowing her husband to have other women around him. "Yunyun said we need to check if the baby's heartbeat is developing normally, and whether there's an ectopic pregnancy."
Zhuang Zhuoyuan sounded visibly nervous upon hearing the last three words: "Then should I take leave to accompany you?"
Iris then took his arm: "No need, you can go after get off work, we'll meet at the hospital."
"After the check-up, shall we go to Ah Tao's house for hot pot?"
“I’m not going, Huihui is here.” Iris stated her position directly. She had thought about it for the past few days and felt that she should have done so long ago. Zhuang Zhuoyuan hesitated, while she was still hiding her feelings. She deserved to suffer the consequences. “I am responsible for this matter, but you are too. So if you want me to apologize, then you have to apologize to me as well.”
"Sorry, wife." Zhuang Zhuoyuan turned around and hugged Iris. For a moment, he felt another kind of cuteness in his wife, but he was absolutely unwilling to repeat this cold war.
Iris kissed him as a gesture of forgiveness, but the only downside was that she left too quickly. So when she apologized, Zhuang Zhuoyuan asked, "Can I also use a kiss as a gesture of forgiveness?"
"NO!" Iris immediately shook her head, even letting go of his waist. She had more important things to do now, and Zhuang Zhuoyuan's sudden mention of hot pot had now whetted her appetite.
“But Huihui has already moved away.” Zhuang Zhuoyuan followed behind Iris and saw her stop in her tracks. She turned around with a puzzled look, and Zhuang Zhuoyuan explained simply, “Mommy went to see her and told her you were pregnant, and gave her a check.”
"Should we call her and ask?" Iris blurted out, then immediately shook her head. "Forget it, it's not appropriate for either of us to call her right now. Besides, she has more than just us as friends. I'll have Derek secretly check on her later."
Pauline was also relieved when Ding Huihui moved out. She specifically called the Zhou family, partly to share her joy with Jennie. She wouldn't say she liked Ding Huihui, but she didn't dislike her either. However, she always felt the girl was unreliable, and her son, Tao, was very loyal and sentimental. So, the fact that they were still living under the same roof after their breakup made Pauline very uneasy. She was afraid her son would give up on starting a new relationship because of Ding Huihui, even though new relationships don't come easily.
Now that the house is quiet and Zhuang Zhuoyuan and Iris have made up, she couldn't be happier. When she went to the market, she bought several extra bags of food so that everyone could enjoy the hot pot to their heart's content.
The whole family went to join in the fun. Jennie and Zhuang Zhuohua went first, bringing a lot of food and dipping sauces. By the time Iris and Zhuang Zhuoyuan arrived from the hospital, the group of gluttons had already eaten almost a round.
"Wow! You bunch of kids, you started eating before my wife and I even arrived! Make way, give my wife a seat. Hey, sister-in-law, you're here too." Zhuang Zhuoyuan squeezed his way through the crowd, and Zhang Jiguang tactfully gave Iris the seat next to Madam Zhuang. Before they even picked up their bowls and chopsticks, Sister Pauline had already handed them the dipping sauce: "Ashi, I've added a whole lemon. If it's not enough, have Ayuan get some more from the kitchen."
“Okay! Thank you, Pauline.” Iris took the chopsticks to test the meat, and Zhuang Zhuohua gave her a freshly scooped piece of meat from her bowl. She ate it in big bites without even frowning. “It’s just right.”
"Just right?" Guo Yaozu felt his teeth were about to crumble from the whole lemon he'd added. "Iris, have you been having some kind of taste disorder lately? Even Hui's wife, who's pregnant, only added half a lemon. Is your plate really edible?"
After grabbing the meat, Zhuang Zhuoyuan exchanged a glance with Iris, then smiled at Guo Yaozu and said, "Brother Zu, is it possible that I'm going to be a father soon too?"
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