DLRC – Chapter 3 Into Her Arms

The distaste in his tone was so obvious that everyone in the room could hear it, making both Yuan Guifang and the sister-in-law cooking outside feel a bit embarrassed.

But then again, this man was a factory director who’d seen the world—of course he’d eaten better things. Their homemade brown sugar not being good enough for him was hardly a surprise.

Only Yu Wei seemed completely unfazed by the director’s tone of disdain. She simply sat down on the edge of the bed and cuddled her son, trying to cheer him up.

There were only three women in the house at the moment. All the men were still working at the factory. A few curious children from the neighboring houses peeked in through the open door, only to be shooed away by Yuan Guifang, who then closed the door to block their stares.

“Director Luo is truly generous. Our brown sugar really isn’t anything special. Sorry to have made you laugh.”

Yuan Guifang gave a sheepish smile. Though she said that, she still dropped two large chunks of brown sugar into Director Luo’s nearly empty enamel cup and told the sister-in-law to pour in hot water.

“Mhm.” Director Luo responded coldly, sneaking a glance at Yu Wei, who was still playing silently with her son. He took a few sips from his cup before getting to the point.

“The factory’s pretty busy today, so I’ll keep this short. I came to ask—when do you plan to hold the wedding, Mother-in-law?”

His voice was low and stuffy, and with his sharp, calculating appearance, it wasn’t exactly pleasant to listen to.

“I checked the calendar yesterday,” Yuan Guifang replied. “The fifth of this month is an auspicious day. We’ll go get the marriage certificate a few days beforehand.”

As she spoke, Director Luo glanced again at the beautiful woman sitting by the bed.

Even with a bandage wrapped around her forehead and a pale face, it couldn’t hide her striking beauty. She was already a mother, yet her aura was completely intact.

The more he looked, the more he wanted to marry her as soon as possible.

“Also, this is my second marriage,” he continued, clearing his throat. “So we’ll just keep the wedding small—just a few tables for friends and family.”

When Yu Wei continued to ignore him and the other two women smiled at him from the table, he went on.

“As for her son, he can stay with the mother-in-law. I already have two daughters at home, so once you marry into the family, take good care of them. And we should aim to have a chubby boy of our own by the end of the year…”

Watching him ramble on with increasing enthusiasm, Yu Wei finally couldn’t take it anymore and interrupted, “Director Luo, I think there’s been a misunderstanding. I have no intention of marrying you.”

“Hey! What nonsense are you spouting, girl?” Yuan Guifang almost wanted to strangle her daughter for speaking so bluntly. She immediately forced a smile and turned to Director Luo. “She injured her head and isn’t thinking clearly. Don’t mind her.”

She waved her hand and smiled until her small eyes nearly disappeared. “It’s nothing, nothing. Once you’re married, just live a good life together. We’ll take care of Dabao so he won’t be a burden to you two.”

At that, Yu Wei clearly felt the small child in her arms tighten his grip on her hand. His little head squirmed against her chest uneasily, and the soft scent of milk on his body lingered faintly under her nose.

Yu Wei gently patted the boy’s thin back in reassurance, her voice ice-cold as she said, “I’m perfectly sane. And I’ll ask Director Luo not to come here again. My family is poor, and I come with baggage—I’m not good enough for you.”

Luo Dongshen looked like he was about to get angry, but after hearing what she said, he merely put down his enamel cup, smiled, and nodded as if in agreement.

“Your situation really isn’t ideal, but I don’t mind. As long as you stay home and take care of me and the family after we marry, we’ll be fine. As for your son…”

He paused for a few seconds, frowning as he studied the small child in Yu Wei’s arms. Watching the little one cling to her, his tone soured.

“I’m not petty. I’ll give you twenty yuan a month as child support—consider it a way to show respect to your parents.”

Yu Wei tucked the boy’s head deeper into her chest and gently covered his ears. Her voice turned frigid.

“My parents are my responsibility—not yours. And we’re not even in a relationship right now, so stop flattering yourself. Watch your tone when you speak to me.”

What mother-in-law? Being a good wife and mother? And he doesn’t even dislike her?

Pfft! Him? He’s almost as old as her parents, and he has the nerve to want to marry her?

“Yu Wei, don’t talk nonsense!” Yuan Guifang stepped forward, ready to smack her.

“That’s right, Yu Wei. Director Luo is such a good man, how can you say such ridiculous things?” The older sister-in-law, seeing how strange things were getting, hurried to smooth things over.

“I’m not talking nonsense. I’ve made up my mind—I’ll live with my son, just the two of us. I won’t marry anyone!” Yu Wei hugged the little one tightly in her arms. Feeling his soft, warm body seemed to ease her frustration a little.

What a mess this all was!

First thing after arriving, they forced her to get married. And not just to anyone—some man in his forties, divorced. Fine, she could accept a divorced man, considering her situation was rather unique in the 1980s.

But what kind of man was this? He looked down on others just because they were beneath him?

She was born in modern times—what kind of people hadn’t she seen before? Director Luo was certainly one of a kind… in all the worst ways.

She had to admit, the values and mindsets of the 1980s were drastically different from her own.

Fine then. Even if she was a single mother with a “burden” and no longer a “clean” woman, choosing to live alone was her right. Why must she get married? She didn’t believe she couldn’t survive on her own without a man.

But in this era—especially for women—not marrying wasn’t just seen as irresponsible to oneself, but also to one’s family!

“Yu Wei, don’t make me beat some sense into you!”

Yuan Guifang threatened her, eyes wide with rage. If Yu Wei dared talk back again, she looked ready to drag her off to Director Luo’s house right then and there—maybe even shove her directly into his bedroom.

“I said I won’t marry, and I mean it!” She had a good temper, sure, but that didn’t mean she didn’t have a breaking point!

“Yu Wei, what nonsense are you spouting?!” The sister-in-law, still cooking outside, couldn’t hold back anymore and joined Yuan Guifang in scolding her.

Luo Dongshen still sat in his chair. The enamel cup of brown sugar water was already empty, a few bits of sugar quietly resting at the bottom. He looked at Yu Wei’s unhappy face. Seeing her act so ungrateful, his temper began to flare too.

“Didn’t you agree just last week? And now, only a few days later, you’ve changed your mind?” Director Luo wanted to scold her, but looking at her delicate, fair face, he found himself unable to say anything harsh.

After a moment, he sighed with false helplessness. “Fine. Since that’s how it is, don’t bother coming to work at the factory office anymore. Come back only when you’ve made up your mind.”

Who couldn’t tell this was a thinly veiled threat about her livelihood? Yu Wei ignored him, but Yuan Guifang became even more agitated and rushed over to pull her stubborn daughter off the bed.

“You better not be stupid about this!”

“Yu Wei! What do you think you’re doing?!” the sister-in-law shouted furiously. If it weren’t for others being around, she really would’ve grabbed something handy and given this foolish sister-in-law of hers a good beating—for throwing away such a golden opportunity.

Yu Wei remained stubborn, her face unreadable and unmoved.

She frowned, gently placing her wide-eyed son—who had been staring at her—onto the bed behind her. At first, the little one didn’t want to let go, reaching out his trembling hand for her.

Yu Wei bent down and whispered softly into his ear. The little one immediately calmed down and sat quietly on the bed. Just like always, he turned into a little presence no one would notice.

Luo Dongshen watched her every move, grinding his teeth quietly. “Fine. That’s enough for today. There’s a mountain of things waiting for me at the factory. I’ll be going.”

He gave Yu Wei a long look, the woman still sitting silently at the edge of the bed. But she didn’t spare him even a glance.

If this were still the old society, with his status and identity, would he need to talk to her nicely? He’d have simply taken her home as a concubine!

Before leaving, Luo Dongshen, still fuming, spat out: “Once you’ve decided, hurry up and let me know!”

Yuan Guifang shot her disappointing daughter a furious glare and quickly chased after him. “Director Luo, why don’t you stay a little longer?”

“No need!”

Yuan Guifang put on a fawning smile. “Alright then. Director Luo, take care!”

Only after watching Luo Dongshen leave the narrow courtyard of the Yu family did Yuan Guifang storm back in, her face flushed with rage.

“No one’s eating dinner tonight!”

She was so angry at her disgraceful daughter that she was ready to fall ill. Once inside, she looked around, grabbed a feather duster from the wooden cabinet, and charged straight at Yu Wei.

“If I don’t beat this unfilial girl to death today, I’ll change my surname!”

She was truly furious now. She hadn’t raised a hand to her daughter since she started high school, but she couldn’t hold back this time. She grabbed the duster and struck down hard.

“Ah—!”

Yu Wei was spacing out when the feather duster struck her with full force. She cried out in pain, her face contorted. The injury on her head throbbed worse than ever.

She hurriedly raised her hand to block the next blow, but before she could, the little one beside her scrambled over and threw himself into her arms, hugging her tightly.

His tiny eyes squeezed shut, his little face filled with fearless determination. The sight of him made Yu Wei’s heart clench.