Zhang Hongmei asked Chengzi to call Xiao Wu and the other dozen or so children. As soon as they came in, the living room was filled with them, and the children all greeted the old lady.
Pengfei, Ping'an, Qingyang, Zhiyu, Qihong, and the other older ones, after getting to know the old man, went out.
The remaining thirteen children, including Xiao Wu, stayed behind.
"Madam, I really envy you. You have seven children, and those three young masters are so beautiful, even more beautiful than my daughters. I want to take them home with me." Sun Xiaonan flattered Zhang Hongmei subtly.
"Madam Qin, you don't know, I'm truly envious of you all. You're all a bunch of boys, how can you compare to a sweet, gentle young lady?"
At this moment, Wang Ying came in and announced that it was time to eat. This time it was a buffet, otherwise it would have been really difficult to arrange seating.
The group moved to the restaurant. Zhang Hongmei introduced Wang Ying and the others to the six ladies and girls. This gave the women even more to talk about. They chattered excitedly, and everyone was very happy.
The women probably had some guesses in their hearts, that the lady was looking at her daughter-in-law, but they weren't sure.
The children stayed together, but Xiao Wu stayed by Zhang Hongmei's side the whole time. Even when Liu Jingze came to call him, he didn't leave.
He overheard Chengzi's thoughts and learned that his parents had just had a conflict. He was determined not to leave his mother, no matter what.
Everyone enjoyed the meal, and Zhang Shouyi chatted with everyone in a friendly manner. However, he was very anxious and just wanted it to end quickly so he could talk things out with his wife.
After dinner, Gu Chuanming and the others chatted in the first living room, while the women moved to the second living room.
Zhang Hongmei also learned about the girls' situations. She herself preferred Tang Feiyan and Qin Shuang, but she didn't show any special treatment towards them; it wasn't the right time yet.
"Madam, don't you need to rest? Are we disturbing you?" Song Yiqi asked with a smile.
"It's alright, Mrs. Tang. It's a rare opportunity to have so many young ladies with me today. My grandfather and father-in-law can also see their old comrades."
The six girls knew each other, except for Gao Xueqing and Hu Peizhen, but they quickly became friends.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Xiao Wu went to call his older brother, which was no small matter.
Zhang Zhenye was already asleep when he received the call, but all sleepiness vanished. After hanging up, he went to find Lao San.
Zhang Weiyu sneered after hearing his elder brother's words, "That woman was the one Dad was transferred to in the days after the old master passed away, right?"
Zhang Zhenye remained silent. Outsiders all said that Gu Yaozu was the most ruthless, but the four brothers knew that the most ruthless among them was actually Zhang Weiyu.
"Brother, I'm going back tomorrow."
"San'er, don't be impulsive. Your mother will worry if you go back now. She will definitely feel sorry that you didn't take the exam."
Zhang Weiyu gritted his teeth and said, "Fine. We only have five more days before we can leave. I'll endure it."
It wasn't until 4 PM that all the guests left.
All the adults were sitting in the living room.
"Grandpa, Dad, Brother Jingze, I prefer Brother Qin Shuang and Tang Feiyan."
"Well, whatever you like is fine." Gu Chuanming had no objections; Hongmei could decide for herself.
"Hongmei, I have no objection either way, you can choose whichever you like."
Liu Jingze thought about the two girls Zhang Hongmei mentioned and said, "Hongmei and Qin Shuang are more suitable for San'er."
"Yes, that's what I was thinking too. Let's stick with the two of them for now."
"Sister Er Ya, what do you think?"
“Hongmei, I really don’t know about this. I’ll let you choose my daughter-in-law in the future.”
The other three said the same thing. Wang Ying was even more straightforward: "Zhiyu and the other three are practically your sons now. You can take charge of the household from now on."
"Hehe, you guys really know how to make things easy for me."
Everyone knew Hongmei was upset, so no one suggested they go back. It was Zhang Hongmei who checked the time and said, "You all should go back now; I won't keep you for dinner."
"Hongmei, I'm going back too. Call me if you need anything." Liu Jingze knew he couldn't stay any longer. Although he was worried about Zhang Hongmei, he didn't want to put her in a difficult position.
After seeing Er Ya and the others off, they didn't go back.
Dinner was just porridge, but I prepared meat buns for the kids.
"Mom, I'm not going up the mountain. Let the six of them go. I want to stay with you."
"Xiao Wu, really, you don't need to. You can come back on Friday. Your brother and the others will come back too. Mom will be waiting for you at home. Be good and listen to me."
Liu Shaochuan knew that although his mother was trying to comfort him, he couldn't go against her decision.
"Mom, I'm worried about you."
"Hehe, what's there to worry about? Mom is a grown woman, she can take care of herself. Come on, let's go up the mountain."
In the end, Xiao Wu went up the mountain with his younger brothers.
Now only the four of them were left. Zhang Hongmei's smile vanished.
"Grandpa, Dad, I'm tired, I'm going to rest."
The two elderly people didn't know how to persuade her. But seeing that the girl really looked tired, they didn't say anything.
Zhang Hongmei stood up, and Zhang Shouyi followed behind her.
This time, Zhang Hongmei didn't close the door either; she didn't want her sons to worry. What she needed to make clear wasn't Zhang Shouyi's explanation, but rather to make him understand her thoughts. There was no need to put the children in a difficult position.
"Honey, listen to me, I really didn't have any other thoughts. I really don't know what I was thinking at the time."
"Alright, that's enough. The kids will be back soon, and I don't want them to worry. Let's just live separately from now on. I don't care about divorce or not, but if it affects you, just tell me, and I'll make room for you right away."
"Zhang Hongmei, what did you say?"
"What? You're tired of me now, so you're yelling at me and taking your temper out on me?"
Zhang Shouyi took several deep breaths. "I don't want to hear such words again. And can't you trust me?"
"There's no point in saying this anymore. You should leave. I need to rest."
Looking at Zhang Hongmei's heartless face, Zhang Shouyi felt as if someone was stabbing him in the heart.
Suddenly, he darted to Zhang Hongmei's side and hugged her tightly. "Wife, I can't accept this. I really can't lose you. Really, please don't do this to me. If I really have feelings for someone else, let me go outside and kill myself."
"Honey, please believe me, okay? All these years, I've never had a problem. Who in this world can compare to you? Do you really think I'm such a desperate person?"
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