"That's true. Why don't you just sell your nude photos from when you were a month old to Shao Yuzhe? They're completely nude." Is this what a mother would say? And she even added that last part. I was so angry I felt like I was about to spit out blood.
"How long will you be back this time?" I quickly changed the subject; if I continued, it would be too explicit.
"The original plan was to see Shao Yuzhe at the shortest time, and at the longest until you get married." It's just a matter of agreeing or disagreeing, and it's said so tactfully.
"So, is it long or short?" I probed for an answer.
"Silly girl, you've known your mother for so long, can't you see that I like that boy? Besides, your father, although he can be old-fashioned, extremely doting on his daughter, and sometimes a bit neurotic and childish, he's not completely unreasonable. As long as Shao Yuzhe is a good person and treats you well, he won't just break you two up without a reason. To put it another way, when has your mother ever said something is good while your father says something is bad? That's the family rule. I already worked on your father's mindset back in Japan, for a whole week." Mom put on that completely harmless smile.
Then I basically know how my mom works on my dad's mindset. When I was in school, if it was my mom, she would usually put on this harmless smile, pat my head gently, and say, "Whatever it is, we'll talk about it when we get home."
God, I'm really terrified.
"If that's the case, why did Dad still ask Shao Yuzhe to go out for a drink with him?" I asked, puzzled.
"Just to intimidate you. Don't you know your dad? He's afraid of anyone bullying his precious daughter, and also to pass on the family rules... That's what I'm telling you."
In the end, Comrade Shao Yuzhe still didn't go home. The next time we saw him was at two in the morning. The two of them staggered back from outside. My mom and I, who were woken up, used all our human imaginations to understand from their monosyllabic words and a lot of nonsense that they had drunk too much and couldn't drive, so my dad brought him home.
My mom and I firmly threw them onto the sofa and left them to fend for themselves.
The result of being left to fend for oneself is having to endure the aftereffects of a hangover. Dad is okay, since he doesn't have to go to work and can sleep whenever he wants. The other one isn't so lucky, since Dad and Mom only come back on Sundays.
"Are you alright? Otherwise, you should take a day off." He looked so pale and pitiful, yet he still had to go to work.
"It's alright, we have to deal with this kind of situation. Besides, my uncle repeatedly told me yesterday to take responsibility as a man and to make sure my wife and children live a comfortable life from now on." He repeated this earnestly, which was typical of my dad's style, the life goals of a traditional man.
"Then good luck." I chuckled twice. "Let's go together then. I promised Dad I'd lend him my car yesterday. He's going to visit an old classmate and needs a ride to work." Actually, since my foot injury, my car has been practically idle. Shao Yuzhe's car has long been his personal mode of transportation.
When we got to the parking lot, I glanced at him again, then hesitated for a moment. Still feeling uneasy, I took the keys out of his pocket and said firmly, "I'll drive."
"What else did Dad say to you last night?" I asked as I drove.
“Your childhood experiences will prove how much you need care and how much you deserve our pity,” he said, propping his head up with his hand and looking at me with a smile.
"How much more clumsy can you be?" I wiped the goosebumps off my body. I almost lost control of the steering wheel and crashed into a telephone pole. My dad tells everyone about my embarrassing childhood stories. It's really shameful.
“Uncle isn’t a difficult person to get along with; he just dotes on his daughter too much,” Shao Yuzhe said, ruffling my hair.
"Of course I know about this." I brushed his hand away and focused on driving. So Dad approves of Shao Yuzhe. It seems things aren't as serious as I thought.
Once I felt relieved, my mood became incredibly good. So much so that when Tang Lei, who had learned from Ji An what kind of person my father was, asked me all sorts of questions, I didn't hold it against him and explained everything to him. Then, watching him happily go back to his office to make his wedding plans and spread the story with embellishments, I happily despised him thoroughly once again.
However, this feeling only lasted until I got home from get off work.
When I got home, I saw my dad sitting on the sofa with a gloomy face, as if he had been waiting for me for a long time.
"Dad..." I greeted him with my usual fawning face, wondering what was wrong with him this time.
“I won’t allow you to marry that brat Shao Yuzhe. I can’t hand my daughter over to someone like that.” The father’s words were like a thunderbolt.
"Why?" I was naturally surprised. How could it have changed so much in just one day? That's too fast!
“I’ve heard about it all. It’s about your leg. That kid, you had a fever of 39.8 degrees Celsius, and he still made you deliver documents. Couldn’t he have come and get them himself? Huh? You’ve never suffered such a serious injury in your life, a broken leg bone, a broken leg bone. Besides, if it hadn’t been a motorcycle, but a big truck, or if that motorcycle had been going any faster, you…you…you…I…I…I…Anyway, that kid is just too outrageous.” Dad stood up and then sat down again.
I screamed inwardly, "Be careful of high blood pressure!" But to avoid escalating the conflict, I resolutely maintained that ingratiating face. "Dad, it's not that serious. Look at me, I'm perfectly fine now, without even the slightest aftereffect. Besides, it really has nothing to do with him. He didn't know I had a fever, so he asked me to do him a favor."
I knew it! After all that buildup, how could I just agree so easily after my dad finally showed up? I thought God was finally looking at me with open eyes. Sure enough, here comes the trouble.
“You only know how to speak well of him. What do you mean you don’t know? If you were this rude to me before we got married, you’ll only get worse after we’re married. You’ll be made to do all the work, and you’re only allowed to complain and not to resist. How can I let my daughter live like that?”
"Dad, is this something you experienced firsthand?" I asked hesitantly, a feeling that sounded familiar.
"You...you don't need to know who I am, but one word from your father: you're not allowed to marry me." When my father said this, I don't know why, but I felt he was quite happy.
Let's ignore that for now.
"Dad, who exactly told you all this?" So gossipy! If I can't get married, I'll dig that person out and have them buried with me.
"Never mind who said it, whether it happened or not, you're done talking about it, so just listen to your dad."
"Dad, Dad, who said that? They're distorting the facts!" It's almost all true, except for the one thing that's not true: Shao Yuzhe didn't know I had a fever.
"It was your Uncle Yan who said it," Dad said impatiently, unable to stand my persistent nagging.
"Uncle Yan, which Uncle Yan?" I was completely confused; I didn't know this person at all.
"Heh, you've forgotten me so quickly." A chill ran through me, and without turning around, I knew who "Uncle Yan" was.
"You old fool, you said you were visiting an old classmate, but what kind of behavior is it to run out halfway through a meal? She hasn't even gotten off work yet, and even if you came back, you'd still have to wait." Mom came in afterward, looking very angry.
"So you two know each other? I've never heard you mention me before, Dad." So this is the dean who loves to use "hehe" as an opening and loves stage plays, torturing me to the point of death. Oh, we know each other. No wonder you targeted me so specifically. My dad must owe him a lot of money.
"No matter what, Nuannuan should call me Uncle Yan. I'm older than you," he said to my dad with a grin.
That's not the point.
"There's no need to mention someone whose behavior is unethical and whose thoughts are despicable. As a doctor, he shouldn't be serious when he should be, and he even enjoys playing pranks on people," Dad said with a look of disgust.
"Then why did you rush to see him as soon as you got here?" Mom was still angry and her tone was sharp.
"I just wanted to confirm if the name I saw in a seminar report was his. He lives in the same city as my daughter. If it really is him, I will warn my daughter not to go to the hospital where he works."
Dad, you're absolutely right. It's just a pity it's too late. Your dear daughter has already suffered terribly.
No, that seems a bit off-topic.
"So it's said that Uncle Yan told my dad about that." After a moment's thought, I realized that calling him "uncle" was too much of a favor, so I decided to listen to my dad.
"Hehe, as for my niece's matter, as your only elder in this city, I should report it to your father." He spoke so hypocritically while smiling innocently, it gave me goosebumps.
"Hey, who told you that 'fact'? And you're spouting nonsense in front of my dad? What good will it do you if I can't get married? Do I owe you a doctor's fee?" Once the goal was clear, she didn't care whether he was an uncle or a great-uncle.
"Hehe, it's you guys. You were sleeping in there that day, Mr. Shao confessed it himself." What do you mean I was sleeping in there? That's called being unconscious, okay?
"Did he confess that he knew I was sick and still made me travel over mountains and rivers to crash into a motorcycle?"
"I didn't say that. It's just that your dad is too sensitive. I only said half of it before running away."
"That's called hinting, hinting at me, misleading me." Did Dad finally understand what was going on, how he made such a simple thing so complicated?
"Sigh, no matter what, Nuannuan almost became my daughter-in-law. She's getting married soon, and for the sake of my abandoned son, I should at least express my regret." He said it so matter-of-factly. Wait, what does "almost became his daughter-in-law" mean? What era is this? I have no idea.
I turned around and glared at my dad.
"Hey, hey, hey, don't try to sow discord between us, daughter. Don't glare at your dad. The truth is, I was young and naive back then and didn't see his true colors. I was fooled by this guy and treated him like a close friend. We even made a pact to marry each other after I got married." Sure enough, that's my dad. He doesn't use punctuation when he speaks. But that can't hide the fact that he just casually decided my marriage like that. I turned to look at my mom.
"If you want to glare at someone, glare at your dad. I didn't even know about this," Mom quickly distanced herself from the situation.
I locked onto the target and continued to stare.
“I’m warning you, it was your son who ran off to get married without even saying goodbye. The problem is that you have the nerve to come here and try to sow discord between my daughter and me. I’ve never seen anyone as outrageous as you.” My dad quickly turned my gaze toward the class enemy.
It turns out the people over there are already married, thank goodness.
“You’ve never mentioned me and my son to your wife and daughter all these years. Look, they don’t even know this happened. My son is so hurt.”
"That's because you just went off to study in England without saying a word and disappeared without even a way to contact me. I don't even know if you're alive or dead, so why would I bring up this kind of silly promise I made when I was young and ruin the harmony of the family? It's not like I'm doing too little housework and have nothing better to do."
"You can find it by asking around. We're both medical enthusiasts, and we made a promise to take the same exams when we were in high school. You broke your promise first, so of course I'm angry."
"Why should I be so eager to find out if you just left without a word? Am I crazy? Besides, who said I broke the contract? We clearly went to the same medical school, okay? You're lying through your teeth."
"You actually glanced at my college application form and knew I was studying Western medicine, so you applied for Traditional Chinese Medicine instead. Are you trying to mess with me?"
"I was just browsing casually. Why would I choose Western medicine if I like traditional Chinese medicine?"
“…”
“…”
"Mom, I understand now. The grudges of the previous generation almost ruined my bright future." Sitting on the sofa with my head tilted back at a 75-degree angle, I casually picked up the last handful of popcorn. I had basically figured out the main point.
"They still remember each other after more than 20 years of no contact, they're really good friends. But they're both a bit out of their minds, birds of a feather flock together." My mom, who was sitting next to me, snatched half of the popcorn from my hand and gave her concluding remarks.
"Yeah, yeah, interrupting like this is such a waste of time, energy, and emotions. It made my emotions fluctuate so much. I won't interrupt anymore, let them have a good chat." I waved my hand, put my arm around my mom, and left.
"By the way, didn't you already meet Yu Zhe's parents? When is it our turn? It's about time we started discussing the wedding date." He's already calling me "Yu Zhe" so soon, while I'm still calling him by his full name.
It seems Mom really likes him, lol.
“I’ll tell him. Her parents aren’t in this city either. Besides, I need to discuss it with An, Lin, and Amo. They’re all waiting.” I patted my mom’s shoulder.
"Okay, then Mom will sit and wait for the call." Mom smiled and pinched my cheek. "You're a grown woman now, so Mom won't say much more. You need to take good care of yourself; marriage is a big deal."
Yes, getting married is a big deal, so there's a lot of groundwork and preparation involved, which almost killed me with exhaustion.
But even the most elaborate preparations eventually come to an end, and so, I am now finally wearing my wedding dress... letting the makeup artist do whatever she wants.
Yes, it's me, Warm Winter, twenty-five years old, getting married today.
At this moment, there were five brides in the bridal preparation room, their faces pale and their heads throbbing with pain.
Because I drank too much alcohol…
Last night, after we had fun, a bunch of people lay down on my floor and fell asleep. I don't even know if they were asleep or not before a bunch of relatives and friends dragged them off the floor and dumped them here.
Luckily, we made it in time, otherwise the wedding would have been postponed. Although the hangover was painful, there was still a profit to be made, namely our fifth bride, Kurosawa Yu.
Kurosawa Yu, who couldn't hold his liquor, ended up being sober enough to get completely drunk and not know what anyone else was saying or what he was saying, to agree to get married on the same day as us, wear a wedding dress, and even have the conversation recorded as evidence.
He initially refused to admit it after regaining consciousness, but Hayakawa couldn't bear to see him being tortured by us and offered to switch places with him as a sacrifice. However, he was suppressed. In the end, I used the excuse of helping him and Hayakawa Noriyuki's relationship to force him to admit that he owed me a debt of gratitude. Finally, he compromised with resentment.
Women's strength is great, especially the strength of four of us.
To be honest, Kurosawa Yu's cross-dressing wedding dress version has a unique charm.
Then there's Jiang Chen. Wearing a suit and tie, he not only looks good but is incredibly handsome. Even those of us who are used to seeing him to the point of aesthetic fatigue were stunned on the spot. If Tang Lei hadn't dragged her away and finally carried her away, that lecherous woman An would have pounced on him long ago.
Getting married... is also a lively event...
It was an incredibly tiring affair. Tang Lei insisted on trying both Western and Chinese styles because he said marriage only happens once in a lifetime, so he wanted to make the most of it, otherwise he wouldn't have another chance. This left An unsure whether to hit him or not.
So we really did try everything, including the wedding night pranks. For convenience, we booked rooms in a hotel as our bridal chamber, and a group of people jumped around and made a ruckus in the five rooms.
After finally seeing all the guests off, I took a shower, not caring whether it was my wedding night or not, and collapsed onto the bed. Finally, I could sleep…
"No, you can't sleep yet." Half-asleep, it sounded like someone was breathing in my ear.
After overcoming numerous difficulties, I finally managed to open my eyes and saw Shao Yuzhe's face looking down at me with a half-smile.
Please, he drank quite a bit yesterday, how come he doesn't show any signs of being sleepy? I'm so tired, I'm just turning over and going back to sleep.
"Dad told me you're ticklish..." A devilish voice came from above.
Did I just use the word "devil"? In my memory, Shao Yuzhe is a kind, considerate, and very polite person. Although he sometimes plays childish pranks, he has never given me the feeling of being a devil, right?
Before I could even think about it, all I could do was scream for help. I'm really ticklish! That's how my dad used to wake me up. Why does he say everything? I'm going to be completely under his thumb from now on.