Chapter 82 She's questioning her own integrity! ...
Shen Rong had just arrived home when Lu Lin also returned.
"Why didn't you go back with your sister-in-law, brother?" Lu Chang asked, puzzled.
Lu Lin was also puzzled. Shen Rong had returned long ago, so why was she only getting home now? "You're only just getting back?"
Shen Rong glanced at him, signaling him to wait a moment before speaking.
Xiao Ming was very excited to see his father come home after eating and drinking his fill, and Gui Chun almost couldn't hug him.
Shen Rong smiled and leaned closer, saying, "Quickly, give Mom a kiss."
Who knew that this little rascal would just smack his lips perfunctorily and immediately go to see his dad, even hugging Lu Lin's neck and drooling all over his face.
Shen Rong felt a pang of jealousy. Her son was her own, so why was he closer to his father, whom she rarely saw?
She was a little angry, so she reached out and slapped him on the butt.
"You heartless little brat."
Lu Lin just smiled. Xiao Ming didn't feel any pain and thought his mother was playing with him, so he grinned.
After playing with him for a while, there was a commotion outside. It was Lu Xuan arriving with her classmates.
Although the target was Wu Xinbai, they couldn't just invite him, otherwise their purpose would be too obvious and others would misunderstand. So they simply invited all of Lu Xuan's classmates and friends, a total of six or seven men and women.
Lu Xuan enthusiastically introduced the two parties.
Shen Rong stood up, smiling gracefully and warmly, and said with the hospitality of a hostess: "Everyone, please take your seats. Dinner will be served soon."
Apart from Lu Lin, the rest of the Lu family were quite kind and approachable. Lu Xuan's classmates gradually relaxed and started chatting with everyone.
In the brief moment when no one was paying attention, Lu Xuan gave Wu Xinbai a reassuring look, and Wu Xinbai secretly breathed a sigh of relief. But the next moment, Lu Chang asked him a question.
"After graduation, does Wu plan to stay in Bincheng or return to his hometown?"
Wu Xinbai glanced at Lu Xuan furtively, his face flushing slightly: "I need to discuss this with my family."
Lu Chang nodded, "That's true, it seems that Wu is a homebody."
"Xinbai is a filial son. He writes home every month to greet his family. His family is also very open-minded and supportive of him." The classmate added with a hint of envy.
Some of them had to sneak away from home to attend school, so they greatly envied Wu Xinbai's family.
The classmates all knew about the ambiguous relationship between Wu Xinbai and Lu Xuan, and thought that Lu's family was testing him. They all tried to say good things about him and praised him and his family in various ways.
Wu Xinbai was a little embarrassed by the praise: "It wasn't easy for my parents to support me."
The Lu family members laughed as well, and Shen Rong even glanced at Lu Chang: "Are you all like you, not liking to go home? Just you wait, you'll be in for a beating when you get home."
Lu Xuan led the laughter at her third brother. Everyone else had heard about this young master Lu, so they didn't laugh openly and instead covered their mouths and laughed.
After a pleasant banquet, at nine o'clock in the evening, Shen Rong sent a car to take them all home, with Wu Xinbai being the last to leave.
Lu Xuan pulled him aside to talk, and Wu Xinbai looked somewhat annoyed, feeling that his eldest brother from the Lu family seemed indifferent to him: "Did I not behave well? I feel like your eldest brother doesn't seem to like me very much."
He didn't speak a word all night, and didn't even laugh.
“You don’t need to worry about my older brother. My sister-in-law is angry with him, so how can he smile? He’s just not a smiley man by nature, and he always has a stern face when he’s with us.”
"Besides, who cares if he likes you or not? You're my friend, not his."
Wu Xinbai felt relieved when she said that, but felt a little sad when she heard that she was a friend.
Actually, he didn't know if Lu Xuan understood his feelings. It seemed that the two of them had never openly expressed their love. He thought that the two of them understood each other without saying a word, but listening to Lu Xuan's words, it seemed that she really regarded him as a friend.
Especially after seeing the Lu family living in such a luxurious house today, and the way the Lu family members spoke and acted, they didn't seem like ordinary people as he had imagined.
"Didn't you say your family was just an ordinary family?" Seeing this place today, he realized that what the two of them thought of as an ordinary family was not the same.
Lu Xuan nodded blankly: "Yes, we are just an ordinary family. This house was arranged for us by my brother's work unit to stay in. It's not our own."
Hearing this made Wu Xinbai feel a little better, but to be able to provide such a nice house, the eldest brother of the Lu family was probably not an ordinary minor official as he thought.
Lu Xuan smiled and took his hand: "Oh, don't talk about that. Whether it's an ordinary family or a wealthy family, we don't look at that when we make friends."
Wu Xinbai forced a smile and nodded, "You're right."
He didn't care about social status when making friends, but what about marriage? Thinking of Lu Xuan's sister-in-law's imposing manner, he felt uncertain about their future.
The car had arrived, and his classmate was calling him to get on.
Wu Xinbai couldn't help but grasp her hand: "I have something I want to tell you tomorrow. Come to our usual spot after class."
He felt it was time to express his feelings. Even if things didn't work out, he should at least give it a try. He truly liked Lu Xuan.
Lu Xuan was a little troubled: "But I have to help someone after class tomorrow, so how about the day after tomorrow?"
Wu Xinbai's hard-won courage dissipated again: "Okay."
He got into the car, and Lu Xuan happily saw them off.
The entire Lu family stood at the door watching.
Lu Chang crossed his arms and said, "I don't think Wu Xinbai is anything special."
He glanced at his older brother, wondering why his brother hadn't objected.
Shen Rong nodded: "He's an honest man."
Jiang Yufen also chimed in, "She's just a bit weak-willed."
Seeing that Lu You was about to express his opinion again, Lu Lin glanced over and retorted to Lu Chang, "It's not like you're the one getting married, do you need to think about it?"
Lu Lin watched Lu Xuan skip and hop back, a slight twitch at the corner of his mouth. Why was everyone so nervous about her just because she was making a friend? As long as she was happy, that was all that mattered.
The others lowered their heads, but Shen Rong remained unconvinced and glared at him, saying, "You've never been married either, so how do you know!"
Is this how you choose a husband? It's not like you're choosing a playmate, where all you have to do is be happy! Pshaw!
She nudged Lu Lin's shoulder aside, went up to Lu Xuan, took her hand, and asked, "Are you happy?"
Lu Chang couldn't help but laugh out loud, earning him a cold glance from Lu Lin.
He wasn't afraid at all. He swaggered into the house, enjoying the sight of his older brother getting his comeuppance.
With his sister-in-law at home, he felt he could be less afraid of his older brother.
Lu Xuan chattered excitedly with her family about her feelings today, feeling especially happy to be able to introduce her good friends and family to them.
Shen Rong nudged Lu Lin's arm, her face serious: "I have something to tell you."
Lu Lin felt a pang of panic, his steps became heavy, and he followed Shen Rong into the study.
He was hesitant to let her speak, fearing she might bring up the topic of divorce, but it turned out to be something else entirely.
Lu Lin secretly breathed a sigh of relief. It turned out he had run into Uchida Eiko on the way home, which was why he was late.
"This Sachiko seems very important to them?" She frowned and asked Lu Lin, "Do you think the young marshal will agree to replace her?"
Seeing him lost in thought, Shen Rong stomped on his foot hard and said fiercely, "What are you thinking about? You can't even concentrate when you're talking to me."
Lu Lin was only wearing ordinary cotton shoes, but her kick was quite heavy, and he gasped.
"I'm thinking that if it's just a matter of replacing a few teachers, the young marshal definitely won't agree. However, if this person is really important, there is still room for maneuver."
Shen Rong looked embarrassed. Well, she had wronged him.
Sachiko has been detained for a long time, but she has not been dealt with because of Japan's continued interference.
"The Japanese value her so much, are they really going to release her?"
Lu Lin said calmly, "Since we can't kill her, we might as well use her to exchange for some bargaining chips."
That's true.
Lu Lin immediately stood up: "I understand. I'll go to the Marshal's Mansion."
Shen Rong glanced at her watch. It's so late. Won't tomorrow be any different?
"If I'm not mistaken, they'll come tomorrow."
We still need to discuss what kind of plan Dou Wenliang has on his side.
After leaving the study, Lu Lin put on his coat, changed his shoes, and instructed the driver to prepare the car.
He said to Shen Rong, "I probably won't be coming back tonight. You should go to sleep early."
Before getting into the car, he hesitated for a long time before turning around and saying, "Think carefully about what we talked about today."
Before her dark expression could be seen, Lu Lin quickly got into the car.
Chen Rong angrily threw her shoe, and Lu Lin watched her frantically searching for something, and chuckled softly.
But it quickly turned into a bitter smile, for he had become infatuated with romantic love at this moment.
Why now of all times? Heaven is so stingy; the timing is terrible. Bincheng is about to descend into chaos…
He had to see her off, and if... there was a future, he would never make her angry again!
Looking out at the dark street, Lu Lin's expression grew increasingly grave.
***
Lu Lin did not return to the mansion for three consecutive days, and no one knew what kind of deal they had made with the Japanese. Dong Rongyi and the others were finally released after being detained by the Japanese for ten days.
Lin Wenhui and Dong Rongyi came to my house to express their gratitude.
Dong Rongyi looked haggard and somewhat listless. Shen Rong asked with concern, "Is Mr. Dong alright?"
Dong Rongyi shook her head: "I'm fine, it's just... a little regretful for Brother Zhang."
The "Brother Zhang" he mentioned was the military expert who was hit by stray bullets during the conflict and eventually died. Shen Rong sighed deeply upon hearing this.
"I heard from Wenhui that it was all thanks to Mrs. Lu and Commander Lu, otherwise we don't know if we would have made it out alive."
Shen Rong shook his head: "I dare not take credit for this. You are all pillars of the nation. It is thanks to the young marshal and the others that we were able to negotiate with the Japanese."
Dong Rongyi nodded: "We also wrote a letter of thanks to the Marshal's Mansion."
When Lin Wenhui explained their purpose, she said that in addition to expressing their gratitude, they also wanted to say goodbye, as winter vacation was approaching and they planned to return to Pingcheng.
Besides visiting relatives, another reason was to let Dong Rongyi relax.
That evening, Lu Lin heard about this and said to Lu Chang, "You should go with them too. We don't need you here anymore."
Lu Chang glanced at his elder brother and nodded: "Okay."
Lu Lin looked at Lu You and the others: "You should go back too. Your parents sent a telegram urging you to come back for the New Year."
Lu Xuan was a little unhappy, but Lu Lin glared at her and she quieted down.
Jiang Yufen smiled and said, "That's good. Otherwise, it would be too lonely for the two elders to spend the New Year at home without us. When are you two coming back, elder brother and sister-in-law?"
Lu Lin mumbled, "Later."
He glanced at Shen Rong, but Shen Rong kept her head down and ate, not even giving him a second look.
He sighed. He still hadn't won over Shen Rong. She wasn't like his younger siblings, who could be intimidated and obedient with just a glance.
Time flies, and one weekend, Shen Rong and Lu Lin saw Lu Xuan and the others off.
Before boarding the car, Lu Xuan held Xiao Ming's little hand and cried, reluctant to part. The little guy thought his aunt was playing with him and laughed without a care in the world.
After the car drove away, the family of three went home. The little girl looked around, but couldn't find anyone she recognized. Her little mouth twitched and she was about to cry.
Shen Rong quickly tossed it into Lu Lin's arms.
The little guy looked at his father with two hot tears in his eyes, and buried his head in Lu Lin's chest with some grievance.
"Alright, alright, we'll see each other in a few days." She glanced at Shen Rong to gauge his reaction as she spoke.
Shen Rong sneered: "If you're so eager to get rid of us, why didn't you just put us in the car?"
He thought to himself, "Isn't it because I didn't dare to do it?"
She lowered her eyes and gently patted her son.
Shen Rong leaned closer and stared at him: "Lu Lin, the way you're urging me to leave makes it hard not to suspect that you're doing something bad behind my back, or that you find me in your way!"
Lu Lin's face darkened instantly.
She's questioning her own integrity!
A month later, Dou Wenliang's military government and the Southern government reached an agreement, and the four northeastern provinces officially submitted. The unified flag of the Jincheng government was put up in front of the Marshal's Mansion.
Shen Rong thought Japan would definitely retaliate fiercely, but she was wrong. The streets were bustling with the pre-holiday excitement, while the Japanese military was quiet, and no one knew what they were planning.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com