flamboyant - Chapter 62
Long San couldn't sit still any longer. He stood up and took a few steps: "Then what does this have to do with Feng'er?"
Long Er said, "I sent people to investigate the matter of Feng Ning giving birth to Bao'er, and it is true. The Feng family did not lie. As for your Feng'er, I don't know where she came from. In Huzhou, there has never been a case of two daughters of the Feng family, and no one has ever seen the two of them together."
Long San frowned, and Long Er added, "This matter didn't have to be so complicated, but you insisted on taking it all on yourself."
Long San replied in a hard voice, "I just like her."
Long Er pursed his lips, reluctantly saying, "Then bring her back. What did you tell them? What are you going to do with the child?"
Long San lowered his head, his voice a little soft because he felt guilty: "I didn't tell her anything. She thought she was Feng Ning, so Bao'er was naturally her child." He sat down and continued: "I had already thought about the child. When I thought she was still Feng Ning, I decided to accept the child for her sake. I spent some time with Bao'er recently, and she is such a well-behaved child, so I don't mind being her father."
"What if their biological parents come knocking on their door?"
Long San remained silent, while Long Er snorted and said, "What if this fake Feng Ning regains her memories?" Long San gritted his teeth but still kept quiet.
Long Er glared at him and cursed, "Useless."
Long San looked up and said, "Second Brother, I want to marry Feng'er and have our marriage ceremony renewed."
"You think this will stop them from running away?" Long Er poured cold water on him: "You haven't even figured out their background, how can you register them? If they're still using Feng Ning's identity, won't the Feng family still cause trouble? Besides, where is the real Feng Ning now? Is she alive or dead? You haven't figured these things out, what good will it do to go through the wedding ceremony?"
Long San, however, made up his mind: "No matter what Feng'er's identity is, the Feng family will still make a fuss. The news about Zhen Feng Ning is just like Feng'er's illness, there is no certainty at all. What if we can't find her in this lifetime and she can't get better? Wouldn't I have to live with Feng'er without a name or status for the rest of my life? Anyway, no matter what, she will be my wife. What's so difficult about getting her registered? After the wedding ceremony, the register official will handle it easily. If Second Brother is in a difficult position, I will handle this matter myself."
"What, are you throwing a tantrum at me now?" Long Er said with a sour face. "As the older brother, I've always helped my own brother. But you're so infatuated with her now, have you thought it through? This isn't just about having more people in the house, more chopsticks to eat, or more people to warm the bed. There are all sorts of troubles involved, plus a child. Once your infatuation wears off, it will be too late for regrets."
"I understand this perfectly well."
Long Er stared at Long San for a long time, then frowned and waved his hand: "Alright, alright, you hurry up and take your fussy wife to pick up the kids. Bring them home first. No matter what, home is always better. What's the point of living outside? The New Year is coming soon, and my eldest brother is coming back too. It's rare for our whole family to get together. You can't spend it alone outside. There's going to be some trouble and preparations for the celebration. We can discuss it when we get home. I'll go back after I finish dealing with things here."
Upon hearing this, Long San knew that Long Er had agreed, and he was overjoyed. The two brothers talked for a while longer before calling it a day.
Meanwhile, Feng Ning returned to her room, and the first thing she did was look for a mirror. The sight of it immediately infuriated her. Her neck was covered in red and purple marks, even bite marks. Feng Ning nearly dropped the mirror after seeing it.
Good heavens! She walked back from the street with such an embarrassing neck, and even greeted and chatted with people as soon as she entered the house. No wonder everyone was looking at her strangely. She thought it was just that she hadn't come home all night and that she had brought Long San with her when she returned, which aroused their suspicion.
Unexpectedly, the evidence was irrefutable; there was no need to even use your brain to guess.
Feng Ning felt increasingly ashamed and angry as she thought about it. She wished she could dig a hole in the ground and bury herself in it. But then she thought, before burying herself, she should bury that scoundrel Long San first; it was all his fault. She paced back and forth, wishing Long San were right in front of her so she could give him a good beating. But she waited and waited, until she fell asleep on the bed, and he still hadn't appeared.
Feng Ning didn't know how long she had slept. She vaguely felt someone kissing her cheek. There were many martial arts practitioners in this place, so she was still somewhat vigilant. Before she was fully awake, she swung her hand and slapped him. The person reacted extremely quickly, grabbing her hand. Feng Ning woke up halfway and sat up abruptly, her other hand already clenched into a fist and ready to punch. The person chuckled and, taking advantage of the punch, pulled Feng Ning into their arms and hugged her.
Feng Ning was now truly awake and immediately recognized the person who had come. She called out softly, "Long San..." Her soft voice, still slightly sleepy, sounded like she was being coquettish.
Long San lowered his head and kissed her forehead again: "Wife, you don't even forget to hit people when you're sleeping."
"They didn't know it was you." She rubbed her eyes, yawned, and suddenly realized, "No, it's you who deserves a good beating." She punched him in the chest angrily, "How could you do this to someone's neck? It's so embarrassing."
Long San groaned in pain and put on a pitiful act, saying, "I originally thought you were thinking about Bao'er, so I prepared a carriage to take you back. But now that you don't like me anymore, forget it, I'm not going."
Feng Ning immediately perked up: "Can we go now? We don't have to wait another day?"
"Mm." Long San smoothed her hair. "I've thanked and greeted all these brothers and friends. I've also met Yun Ranxiang. Second Brother will take care of the rest. We can go home now."
Feng Ning was overjoyed and jumped off the bed: "Quickly, let me comb my hair and wash my face, then we'll set off. I've missed Bao'er so much!"
Long San smiled slightly and helped her tidy up her bag. Feng Ning combed her hair as she said, "It's so good to have an older brother. There's always someone to help you with everything. I wish I had an older brother too."
Long San's hand froze for a moment, then he smiled and replied, "Isn't my second brother your second brother? If you say that, I, as your husband, should be jealous."
After getting ready, Feng Ning put on the hooded cloak that Long San had brought, covering her neck. She looked herself over and was satisfied. She skipped and hopped out the door, saying as she turned back, "Your second brother is a stingy person, and you're a jealous person..." Before she could finish speaking, she saw someone standing in front of her and almost bumped into them. She quickly stopped and looked closely. It was indeed the stingy person she had been talking about.
Long Er glared at her with a dark face, and Feng Ning glared back. Long Er scolded, "So reckless." Feng Ning retorted, muttering, "So petty." Long San quickly interrupted, calling out, "Second Brother."
Long Er glared at Feng Ning, persisting, "Third brother, you need to teach this one properly. Don't reveal everything you're thinking. You need to know what to say and what to keep to yourself. You need to be tactful and learn how to handle people and situations."
Before he could finish speaking, Feng Ning became unhappy: "Well, you didn't hide it either. Look, if you don't like me and have any opinions, you should talk to your brothers in private. Is it called being good at interpersonal relationships to embarrass me like this in front of me? You scolded me for being rash and raised your voice, but when I said you were petty, I lowered my voice. I'm much more sensible than you."
Long Er almost choked on his words. He narrowed his eyes and said, "If you still want to be my Long family's daughter-in-law, you'd better tone down your temper."
"I'm not going to live with you, so why are you interfering with my personality?" Feng Ning was annoyed. It was clearly Long San who was clinging to her, so why was she being accused of being unreasonable? She did want to be Long San's wife, but she didn't like being talked about like that.
“Feng’er.” Knowing her temper, Long San quickly put his arm around her shoulder to comfort her: “Second brother is worried that you are too straightforward and will not be able to adapt to the complicated relationship between our family and the outside world. As the third wife, you will naturally have to face some social interactions. Being too frank and honest will make you more likely to get hurt.”
Feng Ning retorted, "I've been married into this family for three years. What complicated interpersonal relationships or hypocritical social interactions have I had? Nobody even knew that Third Master Long had a wife. I..." She suddenly realized that if that was the case, it meant that he had acknowledged her as Third Master Long's wife.
She looked at Long Er, who said with a stern face, "I told the third brother that we must go home for the New Year and bring the children back too. Our Long family has always celebrated the New Year together. This year, the eldest brother and sister-in-law will also be back. You've forgotten something; you haven't seen them yet."
Feng Ning was stunned. Going home for the New Year? Was the Long family her family? Were they now willing to acknowledge her as a member of the Long family? A member of the Long family whose identity could be publicly acknowledged?
In that instant, Feng Ning suddenly felt like crying. Since she woke up and discovered she had lost her memory, this was the first time in so long that she had felt the emotion of being affirmed and accepted by others.
A note from the author: I forgot to report the results of my cooking class yesterday, haha, it went very well! The pizza and light cheesecake turned out great, they tasted amazing, and I posted pictures on Weibo.
Also, I got a train ticket for the 6th, so I'll be spending the 6th and 7th on the train. These next few days I'm moving, packing, and shipping – it's been a chaotic flurry of activity. I'm writing this in my spare time, and I estimate I can finish by the 6th. After that, I need to get broadband installed, buy furniture, and set up the house, so I'll probably be taking a break from updating for three or four days. Just letting everyone know in advance. Once I've finished moving and have internet access again, I'll be back online as soon as possible. Hugs to everyone, and thank you for your support.
46
46. Master Long, who has a wife and daughter...
Feng Ning and Long San rode in a carriage towards Fuyang City. Along the way, Feng Ning was beaming with joy: "Long San, Second Uncle has recognized me as a member of the Long family. He even said that I can take Bao'er back for the New Year." She had no recollection of ever arguing that she wouldn't become Long San's wife, nor did she remember how much she disliked Long Er.
Long San embraced her, unable to stop smiling, and repeatedly replied, "Yes, yes, you are a member of our Long family."
Feng Ning added, "I don't remember how I used to celebrate the New Year. When I took Bao'er away, I never imagined that I would have a home to celebrate the New Year with in the future."
"Do you realize now that you acted impulsively and made a mistake?" Long San seized the opportunity to lecture him.
Feng Ning glared at him: "What did I do wrong?"