"Don't rush, let's have breakfast first—"
Fang Zi couldn't continue speaking. Xiang Lan was too flustered. She directly took off his clothes, revealing her naked body. She hurriedly put on underwear with lace flowers and then reached for a thin undershirt.
"Your dad seems easy to get along with. What about your mom?" Xiang Lan turned her back, fastened her bra, and put on her undershirt. Not hearing his reply, she turned to urge him. She saw him sitting at the small square table, his face flushed, intently looking at her body. She blinked, caught a glimpse of his bulge, smiled, and said, "Am I pretty?"
"It's beautiful."
She came over, sat down next to him, and kissed him on the lips. "Your mother doesn't seem very outgoing."
“She’s a bit serious.” Fang Zidu broke off a pair of chopsticks and handed them to her. “As long as you’re reasonable, she’ll generally not have any objections.”
What's the reasoning behind that?
"As long as you can convince her, that's enough."
Six small, turquoise dough balls lay in the lunchbox. Xiang Lan carefully picked one up, smelled its faint, refreshing aroma, took a bite, and her mouth was filled with a sweet and fragrant taste, yet it wasn't cloying. "This is delicious."
"They're all yours."
"Have you eaten yet?" Xiang Lan took a big bite.
"I'll eat soup dumplings later." Fang Zi pointed to the unopened food container next to her, afraid that the smell of oil would bother her.
The two finished getting ready and went downstairs, where they found Fang's parents at the coffee shop. Xiang Lan followed behind Fang Zidu, pretending to be obedient.
"Dad, Mom." Fang Zidu pulled her to sit down, and she followed suit, "Hello, Dad. Hello, Mom."
"Hello." Fang Haoping smiled at Xiang Lan. "Did you sleep well? Are you getting used to Haicheng?"
"It's fine." Xiang Lan glanced at her mother-in-law, who nodded at her, sipped her coffee from her small white porcelain cup, and remained expressionless.
"What would you like to drink? Order whatever you like." Fang Haoping handed over the menu, glanced at the recipes, and ordered two glasses of freshly squeezed orange juice.
Why did you come back in such a hurry this time?
"I brought Xiang Lan back to see you and Grandpa, and to help her relax."
“Her health doesn’t allow her to travel too much right now. Your mother and I plan for you to come back two days before the wedding banquet in June, so you won’t have to make several trips.”
"I'm fine," Xiang Lan said. "It's better to get out and about than to stay in one place."
Fang Zidu's mother's gaze swept over her indifferently, passing over her half-long hair, chubby cheeks, and slender neck, finally settling on the side of her neck. Seemingly a little uncomfortable, she looked away.
Xiang Lanxin hung in mid-air, afraid that she might do something wrong and be discovered by the sharp eyes of the other woman.
"So you're not going home this time?"
"We're not going back. Today we'll take her to see her grandfather, tomorrow we'll visit some nearby tourist spots, and the day after tomorrow we'll go back."
"With such a tight schedule, there's no way to introduce her to your uncles and aunts."
"Introducing her at the time of the wedding is the same thing."
“They’re not the same at all; even the etiquette for walking is different now.”
"Attending the wedding is already a concession on our part."
"Xiao Xiang, do you have any ideas?" Unable to get his son's support, Fang Haoping sought other allies.
"No—" Xiang Lan was drinking her juice intently when she was suddenly called on, and she quickly replied, "No."
Fang Haoping was a little disappointed. He had initially imposed various restrictions on the two little ones, intending to punish them, but now that they were actually behaving obediently, it had lost its appeal.
"Feel free to make any requests. Being a bride comes with special privileges, after all."
"Really, there's no need." Xiang Lan was attending the wedding with the mindset of a tourist, ideally arriving on the first day to prepare, having the main meal on the second day, and being able to leave on the third day.
“Since they don’t want any trouble, you shouldn’t cause any more trouble,” said Fang’s mother. “There’s one event in Haicheng, and another one in B City. It’s exhausting enough.”
"All right!"
Xiang Lan discovered that Fang's mother was in charge of making decisions in the Fang family. The two men didn't dare to raise any objections when she made the decision, and so the matter was settled.
"Take the things out and give them to Xiao Xiang."
Fang Haoping took out a well-packaged box from under the table, pushed it towards her, and said, "This is a gift from your parents to you. Don't think it's too simple; it's just our way of showing our appreciation."
Xiang Lan turned to look at Fang Zidu, who nodded slightly.
"Thank you, Mom and Dad."
"Open it and see if you like it or not."
She lifted the lid of the box, revealing a pair of white, smooth jade bracelets, their color alone making them exceptionally beautiful.
"This is so beautiful." Xiang Lan looked at Fang's mother and said, "Mom will look even more beautiful wearing it."
Fang's mother didn't look at Lan and said, "My job makes it inconvenient for me to wear jewelry. It's a waste to leave it unused. You can wear it for fun."
"Okay." Xiang Lan obediently closed the box, put it in her bag, and then took out the gift her parents had prepared and handed it over.
"I'll cook a meal when you come home for lunch," Fang Haoping asked, having accepted the gift.
"I'm going to my grandfather's house," Fang Zidu insisted.
"You brat, do you have wolves in your house? You seem so disgusted."
No.
"Xiao Xiang, have you thought about what to name the child?" Fang Haoping turned around. "This child was born at the turn of the year, which has the meaning of bidding farewell to the old and welcoming the new. It's a good birth. Look, I've prepared some names here, for both boys and girls. Would you like to take a look?"
"Dad, don't worry."
"I'm not in a rush, I'm just preparing in advance so I won't panic when the time comes."
"If something unexpected happens, wouldn't the name you gave it make the situation even more heartbreaking?"
"What accident? Don't talk nonsense!" Fang Haoping didn't give Fang Zidu a friendly look.
Fang's mother looked at Fang Zidu, then at Xiang Lan, and asked, "Is there something wrong with the child?"
"Not yet, but scientifically speaking, nothing is 100% certain." Fang Zi secretly held Xiang Lan's hand under the table, squeezed it twice, and told her to be quiet.
"It's clearly a good thing, don't bring up those possibilities."
Fang's mother continued, "Did your father cause you any trouble by all that fuss? Don't you want this child anymore?"
"What a perceptive mother," Xiang Lan thought, feeling a little scared, her palms sweating.
"There are no major problems for the time being."
“I think Xiao Xiang has indeed lost weight. She used to be so chubby and cute.” Fang Haoping immediately chose to betray his son.
"What's the little problem?" Fang's mother asked, addressing the issue directly.
"My morning sickness is really bad, and my throat is a bit sore," Fang Zidu said. "I think it's too much trouble, and it might affect my and Xiang Lan's work later."
"What do you mean?" Fang Haoping asked coldly.
“My previous considerations were not thorough enough; I am reconsidering the issue of being childless.”
"You're the one who wanted to get married, you're the one who insisted on convincing yourself you could support a family, and now you're saying having children will be a burden?" Mr. Fang couldn't accept it. "How can you change your mind so easily? I've never raised you like this—"
“A decision has its prerequisites, which may not be sufficient at the time. Adding supplementary conditions afterward may also lead to different conclusions.”
“Fang Zidu—” Fang’s mother tapped the table, “You’re not facing work now, not the ideal conditions and environment of a laboratory, but your wife and children. These are living people; you can’t think of them as animals or objects. Please immediately adjust your perspective to that of an ordinary human being—”
“Mom, I can explain from four aspects.”
“I don’t want to hear it. Your twisted logic can convince many people. I don’t want you to bewitch your father. Your father already has evil thoughts. He always thinks that you will remain single and become a great scientist without any distractions. I’m afraid you two will hit it off.”
Xiang Lan's heart tightened, and she shifted her gaze to Fang Haoping.
"Being single or married won't have a fundamental impact on me, but children are different—"
“I don’t want to hear it,” Fang’s mother said firmly once again. “Men have no say in the matter of childbirth unless you can experience the pain of ten months of pregnancy and childbirth as well.”
"Mother--"
Mrs. Fang glanced at her watch and said, "I can stay for five more minutes, so I'll finish what I have to say in one go. Xiang Lan, I'm very happy to meet you, and I'm also very happy that you're about to add a new member to our family. Also, I hope that when you're dealing with Fang Zidu, you don't have to go along with him in everything. You must have the courage to stop him and persuade him, because his mind works too fast, which makes his actions many times faster than others. This is an imbalance, and it may cause some harm to the people around him. After all, what's just a small idea here is already a plan that's being implemented for him."
Xiang Lan felt a little guilty; she was certain that her mother-in-law already knew everything.
"His approach appears calm and rational on the surface, but if you think about it carefully, it's the kind of crazy person who's willing to do anything."
"Mom—" Fangzi said helplessly.
"Getting married was one of the things that made him act impulsively; his sudden decision to return to China for work was another; but since it didn't harm anyone, I didn't stop him. Now, I'm telling you that his high-speed thinking isn't something to be viewed in a normal way, in the hope that you can avoid being hurt by him. Because, so-called scientists, when faced with what they call truth, are willing to do things that could even destroy the earth."
Fang Haoping nodded involuntarily, but then immediately turned his head away.
Fang's mother stood up. "Fang Zidu, come with me."
Fang Haoping hurriedly followed.
Fang Zi shrugged and gave Xiang Lan a helpless kiss on the cheek. "I'll be right back."
"Mom, is there anything you want to tell me privately?"
Fang's mother reached out and straightened his collar. "Fang Zidu, do you love Xiang Lan?"
"Love".
"Indulgence is not love, but harm."
“I know, Mom, I’m in good control.”
"Don't lie to me. I know you've thought about what you're saying a lot."
“Okay, I admit it.” Fang Zi readily admitted it. “If he makes Xiang Lan uncomfortable, I really don’t want him. But I will be able to discern Xiang Lan’s true intentions. She’s quite interesting.”
Mrs. Fang sighed, unsure of what to say. She glanced at Xiang Lan, who was drinking juice not far away, her eyes darkening. She said, "She's weak right now, and the baby isn't very stable. You should restrain your desires."
Fang Zi blushed slightly, remained silent, and nodded, "I know."
“Take good care of her. I don’t want to hear bad news, and I don’t want you to bring up anything about being childless again. The child is already here; your decision now is willful and selfish—”
Fangzi went back, and Xiang Lan stirred the juice with a plastic stick. Some fruit pulp stuck to the surface, and she scooped it up and licked it, her small pink tongue sticking out slightly. He tensed up and quickly sat down next to her. She turned her head with a smile, her collar half-lowered, revealing layers of kiss marks underneath.
"You're back?" She took his hand. "I felt great this morning, I didn't feel nauseous at all!"
"That's good." Fang Zidu thought that Xiang Lan was good in every way, except that she was a little willful. He should give her a little pushover.
Chapter 42