Lin Shengmiao: "..."
My aunt clapped her hands and immediately said, "Then you can stay here. The clothes and bedding are all ready, and there's a bunch of shepherd's purse at home, perfect for making dumplings."
“We…” Xu Xingyan wanted to say that they could stay in the lounge on the second floor of the flower shop, but seeing the old lady’s rambling, smiling face, she swallowed her words.
Remembering the loneliness the old lady usually experienced living alone, she immediately decided to stay the night, changing her mind and saying, "We can sleep in one room, there's no need to prepare another room."
Wearing a mask, Xu Xingyan went to the nearest epidemic prevention point to get a nucleic acid test. She leaned on Lin Shengmiao's shoulder, pointed to the luggage that hadn't been taken out of the trunk, and said with a complicated expression, "Luckily we were a step too late and didn't put it at home, otherwise we would be out picking out new clothes now."
Before the nucleic acid test results came out, they didn't dare to go too far. There was only one farmers' market near Jiugan Village with two clothing stores, which were mostly run by the women who operated sewing machines. Due to the market conditions in the surrounding area, most of the clothes in the stores were styles that retired old ladies in the village liked.
Lin Shengmiao's eyes curved into a smile as he tilted his head to kiss her hair, saying with a smile, "Perfect timing. I wore your pajamas yesterday, so today it's your turn to wear mine."
Xu Xingyan, who was looking at the rain streaks on the car window, turned to her girlfriend upon hearing this, her eyes filled with joy, "It's good that you're here with me."
Although I can manage on my own, it feels really great to have you by my side.
"Of course, I also have to sleep with Miss Xu," Lin Shengmiao chuckled softly. "I got this job by defeating a whole roomful of dolls, so I cherish it."
Xu Xingyan stretched her arm out, and in the sunlight, the platinum ring on her middle finger became even more eye-catching. She smiled gently: "When we were having lunch just now, my aunt glanced at it several times. Guess what she was thinking?"
Lin Shengmiao took her fingers to his lips and kissed them gently. "I bet she's thinking, 'You look so good wearing this.'"
The answer was perfect. Miss Xu leaned forward and, amidst her pounding heartbeat, presented her with the medal.
...
In the bedroom, my aunt was wearing her reading glasses and reading today's morning paper. According to her daily routine, she should have finished reading it during breakfast, but the fact that Da Huang ran away from home in the middle of the night had disturbed her mind, so she had delayed reading it until now.
When Xu Xingyan came over, she barely looked up, still focused on her work. She just shifted her body slightly and said with disdain, "You're blocking the light."
“I have something to tell you,” Xu Xingyan said, sitting down next to her as if they were having a long talk.
The aunt ignored her, saying, "No matter how important the matter is, I have to finish reading this newspaper first."
"Alright, take your time reading," Xu Xingyan said, feeling very uncomfortable with her prepared remarks stuck in her throat.
After about fifteen minutes, the old lady carefully folded the newspaper, took off her reading glasses, stood up, straightened her clothes, and said leisurely, "Go ahead and say it."
Five more minutes passed.
The old woman said calmly, "So, after all this time, you're just telling me that the person you were talking about in front of me before was a girl?"
“No,” Xu Xingyan shook her head and said, “I’m telling you that I like a very outstanding girl, I love her very much, and I want to be with her forever.”
The old lady smoothed out the wrinkles on her sleeves and said calmly, "The word 'forever' isn't something you can just say casually. In my whole life, I've only used it at my wedding."
Xu Xingyan chuckled: "Flowers naturally smell sweet, and love naturally lasts. This is what you taught me when I was little."
The old lady raised her eyelids slightly and asked sharply, "Do you think you did something wrong?"
“No, I never felt that we made any mistakes in this matter. On the contrary,” Xu Xingyan said seriously, “I am glad that we were able to fall in love.”
"If that's the case, why are you sitting here like you're about to get scolded?"
The old lady looked at the neatly aligned sleeves with satisfaction and continued, "As elders, we treat the younger generation by correcting their mistakes and supporting them when they are not. Why do you treat bringing a partner home like you're going to the execution ground?"
Xu Xingyan smiled brightly, squatted down, and nestled affectionately on the old lady's lap, saying coquettishly, "I knew it, my little aunt is the best."
The old lady slowly stroked her soft hair. "But you did make a mistake today."
Xu Xingyan looked up at her, her eyes filled with doubt.
"You should have called me earlier to tell me you were bringing your partner over, so I could have made preparations sooner," the old lady tapped her forehead, annoyed. "Unlike now, you just gave us a plate of vegetarian dumplings, which makes us look so rude!"
Xu Xingyan looked at the old woman and thought, "Have you forgotten that they came to find Da Huang?"
To everyone's surprise, the old lady argued that if she had known this would happen, she wouldn't have cared about Dahuang at all!
Downstairs in the doghouse, Big Yellow, having eaten and drunk its fill, suddenly shivered. Its whole body felt cold, which reminded it of the miserable experience of falling into the pit last night and shivering in the cold wind and rain. It immediately hugged itself with heartache and vowed never to sneak out of the house again.
Upstairs in the bedroom, the aunt was still discussing the menu with Xu Xingyan: "How about making borscht tonight? We just bought some beef brisket and canned tomatoes, and we'll also steam a fish, stir-fry some vegetables, and roast some beef bone marrow... By the way, does Xiaolin have any dietary restrictions?"
"Don't worry, she loves everything you make," Xu Xingyan hugged the old lady's neck and kissed her on the cheek. "Didn't you see how she ate twenty shepherd's purse dumplings at noon?"
To appease the old lady, Xu Xingyan whispered in her ear that Lin Shengmiao had eaten too much at noon and had secretly taken some digestive pills.
The aunt's eyes immediately crinkled with laughter: "This child is something else, she should have said she was full. I was afraid it wasn't enough, so I gave her a few more. It must be so uncomfortable to have such a full stomach."
Xu Xingyan thought to herself, "It's precisely because you served it to her that I forced myself to eat it."
...
Evening, in the small living room.
"Xiao Lin, it's just a simple meal, please don't take offense if the hospitality is lacking..."
My aunt sat upright in the main seat, greeting us with a kind tone and elegant manner.
Lin Shengmiao looked at the table full of exquisitely presented dishes and his lips twitched. He had a new understanding of 'simple meals' and felt that Aunt Xu's attitude was very much like that of a wealthy mother-in-law in the old society when her prospective son-in-law came to visit for the first time. She valued him but also subtly showed her some unspoken power.
She immediately adopted the proper attitude, bowing slightly and saying respectfully, "Not at all, you're too kind."
The aunt smiled with satisfaction and said, "Don't just stand there, let's start eating..." She then very warmly served Lin Shengmiao a bowl of fragrant borscht, thus announcing the official start of dinner.
To be honest, Lin Shengmiao enjoyed the meal quite a bit. Of course, not all of the dishes on the table were made by the old lady herself. Apart from the borscht, the rest were ordered from the best hotel in the vicinity, and they tasted very good.
On the contrary, Xu Xingyan, because she was constantly paying attention to the atmosphere at the dinner table, couldn't eat much.
Especially when they were halfway through the meal, her aunt gave her a wink and called her to the next room.
As soon as Xu Xingyan entered the room, she asked nervously, "What's wrong? Is there a problem?!"
The aunt glanced at her with a knowing smile, said nothing, but took out two red envelopes from a drawer, one thick and one thin, and placed them in front of her, saying, "Here, choose one yourself."
Xu Xingyan looked at her, completely bewildered. "What do you mean?"
“According to our local custom,” the old lady said, waving the red envelope and raising her eyebrows, “if it’s the first time your boyfriend is visiting, the elders in the family will give you a small red envelope of two hundred yuan. If it’s your future spouse visiting, then you’re family, so you’ll have to give a bigger red envelope. They’re all here, one for two hundred and one for two thousand. You can choose whichever one you choose, and I’ll give it to you.”
Xu Xingyan looked at the old man's teasing gaze, and covered her eyes, both amused and exasperated. Without hesitation, she chose the thicker red envelope, saying, "What do you want me to choose? This is beyond question!"
--------------------
Author's Note:
The standards for giving gifts when meeting someone vary from place to place; this only represents the custom in my hometown.
Chapter 29 Luo Jing is a good older sister
The night was bright with a clear moon and few stars, and a chilly wind was blowing.
The bedroom was dimly lit, and the thick curtains that my aunt had just changed completely blocked out the chill from outside. The room was warm and cozy, with the scent of freshly burned cypress.
Xu Xingyan sat at her desk, having already taken off her heavy winter clothes and put on a crocheted long dress. The hem of the dress swayed gently and leisurely over her ankles.
Lin Shengmiao returned from her aunt's bedroom and saw this scene as soon as she entered. Her eyes softened, and she stepped forward to hug her from behind, burying her face in her shoulder.
"You're back. What did your aunt say to you?" Xu Xingyan tilted her head slightly, raised her hand to stroke her cheek, her expression languid, revealing her slender, fair neck.
"He talked about your son-in-law and even showed me photos of you when you were little," Lin Shengmiao said, clearly in a good mood, leaving a warm kiss on her neck.
Everything today gave her a very good impression, reminding her of a time in Kyoto when she visited a famous person's former residence. Because there were no other tourists, the old man at the gate waived her entrance fee and cheerfully showed her around the whole place. They chatted for a long time, and when they parted, he even gave her a lollipop meant for children.
Just like the feeling the old lady gave her earlier, she was particularly...warm and humane.
Xu Xingyan turned around and kissed her, then smiled and said, "It seems that your aunt really likes you. She only talks about your son-in-law to people she likes."
My aunt and her deceased husband had a very good relationship. At her age, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that he was the love of her life. She lost him when she was thirty-seven, and it has been almost forty years since then. She has maintained her love and longing for him for almost her entire life. What's remarkable is that she rarely shows any sadness.
Because I know you love me, I will love myself well, live a wonderful life, and then tell our story to the children I love.
In this way, you will remain the key word in my life, the inextinguishable lamp in my heart. If the sky were to collapse and death were to come, I would not be afraid at all, but would even welcome it with equanimity, because it is just... the reunion we have been waiting for.
Xu Xingyan smiled, looked at the bag in her hand, and asked, "What kind of photos are in there?"
The bag my aunt carried was very much in line with her identity as a former women's director. The front of the bag read "Focus on early development, achieve a wise life" and the back read "Jiugan Village Street Family Planning Office". Lin Shengmiao poured out two old photo albums with slightly yellowed covers and obvious creases.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, Xu Xingyan flipped through the photo album and pointed to one of the photos, laughing, "This is when I was ten years old. My cousin Mutong was pushing me on the swing in the yard. I moved around and fell, which scared her."
Looking at the blurry, slender girl in the old photo, Lin Shengmiao asked, "I heard from your aunt that you have three older cousins and one younger cousin in your two aunts' families, but I feel that you are still closest to Luo Jing. Is it because you are the closest in age?"
“Not entirely…” Xu Xingyan gently shook her head.
“My maternal grandmother passed away very early. My mother was still young at the time, and she was almost raised by Luo Jing’s mother, my aunt. She only took care of my mother. When Luo Jing and Luo Bin were born, she was too busy with work, so she was basically left to be cared for by nannies and the elderly in both families. Therefore, she always loved my mother the most.”
Sometimes, Xu Xingyan and Luo Jing even felt that in Ms. Fang Yuan's heart, her younger sister Fang Yi was the first child she loved most in her life.
Leaning back, Xu Xingyan pulled Lin Shengmiao's hand and lay down on the bed together, continuing to talk.
"Luo Jing has always admired her aunt since she was little. She is actually only nine months older than me, but she learned to walk quite late, um... I heard it was around thirteen months."
“So…” Xu Xingyan snuggled closer to Lin Shengmiao, looking relaxed and content, “If parents are a child’s first teachers, then she has already learned how to be a big sister before she can even walk. Mu Tong and the others are close cousins, but Luo Jing, she is her biological sister, it’s different.”
Luo Jingxue's awareness, inherited from her mother, was fundamentally directed towards her own younger sister. From the very beginning, the emotions she invested in Xu Xingyan were not merely those of a cousin, but rather those of a blood-related younger sister. Consequently, the emotions Xu Xingyan reciprocated were naturally the same love and dependence she would show to her older sister.
"..." Lin Shengmiao lay on the soft bed, with only one thought in her mind: Maybe she should try to smooth things over with Luo Jing. At least for now, it seems that the two of them will inevitably have to spend more time together in the future.
...
Early in the morning, the first thing Xu Xingyan did after getting up was to check her nucleic acid test results on her phone. Hmm, great, all negative, safe and healthy, she felt relieved.
Downstairs in the small living room, Lin Shengmiao had already finished washing up. She and her aunt each occupied one side of the sofa. The old lady was reading the newspaper on the left, while Lin Shengmiao was reading a book on the right.
He was still reading the mystery novel from the old lady's study—Miss Malpigh's Mysteries.
My aunt was a devoted fan of Agatha Christie, and she had a whole wall of bookshelves in her house dedicated to displaying her various novels.
When Xu Xingyan came downstairs, she saw the old woman and the young man huddled together discussing the plot. Of course, most of the time the old woman was talking enthusiastically, and Lin Shengmiao listened attentively, occasionally cracking a joke, which made the old woman very happy.
"What are you doing?" Xu Xingyan squeezed between them, and after a question she already knew the answer to, she asked bluntly, "What are you having for breakfast?"
"You glutton!" The old lady reached out and tapped her forehead, scolding, "All you ever do is eat!"
Lin Shengmiao said with a smile, "My aunt said you love her wontons the most. She got up early this morning to chop meat and prepare the filling, and she hasn't been sitting down for long."
"Xiao Lin bought the wonton wrappers, and she also made the wontons," the old lady said, not taking any credit.
The two of them were getting along well and had no idea that just five minutes earlier, Xu Xingyan had received a call from President Xu, a call that came after he had calmed down and thought things through.
The main point can be summed up in one sentence: whatever you like.
With a serene smile, Xu Xingyan volunteered to go to the kitchen to cook wontons for the two ladies who had worked hard. She felt that the gentle sunlight this morning was breathtakingly beautiful.
...