RGL – Chapter 149

After William proposed to her yesterday, although she was scared and felt ashamed, a sense of hope also arose in her heart — the hope for a different kind of life. Mr. William was a man of depth. He had experience, ideas, and seemed quite humorous. Moreover, he had been to her home and knew her family’s situation, yet still wanted to marry her. That meant he accepted her family.

Such a man, she didn’t want to give up. Even though she couldn’t say she had very deep feelings for him right now, just the thought that life only gave one such chance made her unwilling to let go.

Su Min leaned her head on one hand, her eyes filled with some uncertainty. “To be honest, in life nowadays, who can guarantee you’ll spend your whole life with someone? If you can accept him, then give it a try. If you have any concerns, make sure to clarify them with him before marriage. Of course, talking about marriage now is too soon. You can spend some time with him first. When you feel it’s right, then it’s not too late to talk about marriage. Life doesn’t offer many chances — give him a chance, and give yourself one too.”

Zhang Qingqing sighed, still uncertain in her heart.

After all, between a stable life and an exciting one, she still didn’t know how to choose.

Meanwhile, after once again sending William away, Grandma Zhang came over to Qingqing’s place. Seeing Su Min there, she held back what she wanted to say.

Su Min could tell there was something to be said in private, so she smiled and found an excuse to leave. After all, Zhang Qingqing already had her own thoughts, and once such thoughts surfaced, they only grew stronger. It seemed that William might not be far from winning himself a bride.

As soon as Su Min left, Grandma Zhang frowned and said, “That Mr. William came again. He was pacing in front of me, saying he’s willing to stay in our country and live with you. Luckily, no one else heard it — if they had, who knows what they’d say about you.”

“Grandma, he really said he wants to stay in the country?” Zhang Qingqing suddenly asked.

“Yes! Ah, these people talk smoother than they sing, but they can’t fool me.”

Grandma Zhang looked disbelieving. “If you ask me, it’s still better to find someone from back home. I’ll call the post office in the town one day and have them send a message to your mother to help you find someone suitable.”

Zhang Qingqing kept her head down doing embroidery and didn’t respond.

From that day on, William came to check in every day, bringing nutritional supplements for Grandma Zhang and chatting with the old lady. He also often offered to take them home.

Grandma Zhang, unable to shake him off, could only let him tag along. Her only consolation was that her granddaughter remained firm and didn’t speak much to the man whose intentions she considered impure.

But after a month of persistence, even Grandma Zhang began to waver.

She even started to say some good things about William. At night, she went to Zhang Qingqing’s room to talk.

“To be honest, this young man is quite sincere. Though he’s more capable than us, he never looks down on anyone. Ah, what a pity — if only he were from our own country.”

Zhang Qingqing listened while taking down her braided hair.

After Grandma Zhang finished her musings, she asked, “What do you think?”

“Grandma, I don’t want to marry someone from back home.”

“What?” Grandma Zhang looked at her.

Zhang Qingqing tugged at her hair, clutching the comb nervously. “Grandma, I don’t want to marry someone from the village.”

“Child, have you been dazzled by the city?” Grandma Zhang grew anxious at once. She quickly sat beside her, holding her arm. “Qingqing, what we should fear most in life is being blinded by wealth. You mustn’t have other ideas.”

“Grandma, I’m not blinded. I just think… if I can have a different life, why should I stay in the village forever? Women in the village, like my mother, work hard inside and outside the house every day and have never even stepped out of the county. Now that I can be out here, why can’t I stay out here?”

Grandma Zhang never expected her once obedient granddaughter to have such thoughts. She felt both anxious and uncertain. “So, you mean… you want to be with this Mr. William?”

Zhang Qingqing gathered her courage. “Grandma, I want to give it a try.” She looked at herself in the mirror. “If I don’t try, how would I know it won’t work? Even if it doesn’t, at least I won’t keep wondering about it.”

Grandma Zhang was silent for a long while before finally saying, “Then give it a try. But Qingqing, as a woman, you must respect yourself. You mustn’t cross the line.”

“Grandma, I understand.”

After the grandmother and granddaughter came to an agreement, Grandma Zhang stopped blocking William.

At lunchtime, Grandma Zhang even took the initiative to go eat with Sun Yan and the others, not stopping William from taking Zhang Qingqing out for lunch.

William was overjoyed at finally being able to eat alone with Zhang Qingqing.

He had thought all hope was lost, but now even Grandma didn’t object, and Qingqing had agreed. He was so stunned that it took him a moment to react.

Fortunately, he had imagined this situation in his mind many times, so he didn’t panic. He drove with Zhang Qingqing to a Beijing cuisine restaurant.

All the way there and even after entering the restaurant, Zhang Qingqing didn’t speak.

William knew Chinese girls were usually shy — not everyone was as talkative as Shu Jing — so he kept trying to find ways to start a conversation.

“Mr. William.” Zhang Qingqing looked at him seriously.

“Hmm?” William got a bit nervous under her gaze.

“You must’ve heard about me from people in our village. And you know about my family situation.”

William nodded.

Under the table, Zhang Qingqing rubbed her hands nervously. “I may be a village girl, but I have my own thoughts when it comes to relationships. I hope that my future partner can respect my family and see me as worthy.”

Though her wounds from Zhao Liang had healed, the feelings of being disliked and abandoned still lingered in her heart.

“Qingqing.” William called her name with slightly unclear pronunciation, but his expression was incredibly serious. “Though I’ve lived here for a while, I don’t fully understand life here, nor do I understand the minds of Chinese women. But I understand myself. I’m serious about relationships, and I’m serious about you. My parents divorced when I was twelve and each formed new families. I grew up relying on welfare. That’s why I take family very seriously. I long for a family that never breaks apart. I know many people here say that ‘foreigners’ like us don’t care about family ties, but it’s not that we don’t care — it’s that we’re strong.”

“Mr. William…” Zhang Qingqing’s eyes began to heat up as she listened.

She had wanted to use Mr. William to change her life, but she had forgotten about his feelings.

William, however, laughed softly, looking relaxed. “I’m very clear about what I want. I’ve always chased the life I desire. Qingqing, I really like you. I hope that one day I can marry you. Many of my friends are in China. I can stay here and live.”

Zhang Qingqing took a breath and bit her lip. “I don’t understand. I’m not pretty at all.”

William smiled and pressed his lips together. “To me, you’re more than enough.”

People in the store noticed that after that meal, something changed between Zhang Qingqing and William. The two who previously barely interacted now went out to eat together almost every day.

Su Min, though she didn’t come to the store often, had seen them go out twice and could guess — Grandma Zhang had probably given her approval, and Qingqing was most likely on board now too.

A week later, William finally announced that he and Zhang Qingqing were officially in a relationship. Following the customs of his hometown, he even handed out candies—so-called “wedding candies”—to a few employees at the shop. This made Grandma Zhang so furious that her face turned red and her neck thick with anger.

“They’ve only just started dating! Why’s he already handing out wedding candies?”

“Grandma, the rice is already cooked,” William replied earnestly.

“Hahahahaha…”

As soon as he said that, the employees in the store burst into laughter. Grandma Zhang’s face turned even redder from embarrassment.

Su Min laughed so hard she could barely straighten up. “William, who taught you Chinese? You need a new teacher.”

“It was Shu Jing who taught me. Why? Did I say something wrong?”

Looking at his dumbfounded expression, Zhang Qingqing couldn’t hold back and hurried into her office to hide.

Su Min, catching on quickly, thought of how Shu Jing had lived abroad for so many years. It was likely even her own Chinese wasn’t completely up to par anymore. No wonder her student turned out a little off too.

William’s words had the young women in the shop blushing and chuckling in secret all afternoon. Fortunately, although Grandma Zhang was angry, she kept in mind that he was a foreigner, and the fact that he could communicate with them normally was already impressive. A few verbal slip-ups were forgivable.

After November passed, the weather grew colder.

In the north, the weather changed even faster, and soon it would be time to switch to winter clothes.

For Su Min’s clothing shop, this season brought some pressure. As the cold set in, people began thinking about preparing for the New Year.

For those with a good quality of life, buying a new outfit for the New Year was a must. And not just any outfit—it had to be of a certain grade. When going out, one absolutely couldn’t appear less stylish than friends and neighbors.

Lately, many people in Su Min’s social circle had been wearing embroidered garments, and their workmanship and designs were better than hers. The trend seemed to be quietly shifting.

Coincidentally, Su Min’s design instructor also noticed this shift and grew very interested in this style. For the upcoming final exam, he asked students to design clothing in this style.

“This is so hard—how are we supposed to design something like that? We’ve only just scratched the surface. Can’t we just sketch something random?”

“Our teacher has a nickname: the Art Maniac. Know what that means? He’s mad for art. Since he’s already gone mad, do you think he’ll care whether we just started learning?”

“Ah, just scribble something. We’re not even graduates yet.”

As soon as the assignment was given, the class buzzed with chatter.

Sun Manli stood up with her textbook and silently walked toward the classroom door.

As she passed Su Min, she gave her a glance filled with scrutiny. Su Min was just finishing packing up to leave and paused when she noticed the look. “Is something the matter?”

Sun Manli pursed her lips in a slight smile that, for no reason, seemed full of arrogance. “Nothing really. Just wanted to tell you—don’t be greedy for things that aren’t yours.”

Su Min frowned upon hearing that.

In her memory, she had never had any conflicts with Sun Manli. Even in previous competitions, her own ranking was never higher than Sun Manli’s, so there shouldn’t be any reason for tension.

But seeing Sun Manli’s expression made Su Min instantly displeased.

Though she normally didn’t like causing trouble, that didn’t mean she would let someone step all over her.

Just as she was about to stand up and argue, Sun Manli turned on her heel and walked away, leaving behind a group of bewildered classmates.

Several girls who had witnessed the exchange came over to comfort Su Min.

“Don’t mind her. She always acts like she’s above everyone else, thinks she’s number one. Let’s all work hard and beat her this time. I heard she used to study abroad, which is why she has a good grasp of fashion trends. That gave her an edge before. But this time we’re designing traditional clothing—I don’t believe we can’t outdo her.”

“Yeah, Su Min, you can do it!”

Su Min felt quite a bit of pressure from her classmates’ enthusiasm.

Still, she truly had no prior conflict with Sun Manli, so she had no idea why the girl had suddenly decided to target her.

After packing up, Su Min prepared to head back and start working on a new design order.

Just as she reached the door, she saw a bicycle parked outside. Xue Mian was dressed in a black wool coat and brown casual shoes, looking very refined.

“Hop on,” he called.

Su Min was surprised—it was her first time seeing Xue Mian ride a bicycle.

She sat on the back seat with her books, gripping the cold metal bar below her. “Alright.”

Seeing that she’d rather hold onto the freezing metal than grab his coat, Xue Mian felt a little disappointed, though he quickly hid it and cheerfully started pedaling.

It was already quite cold, and with nothing to block the wind, Su Min instinctively tucked her head behind his back. “Go a bit slower. The wind is strong.”

“Just lean against my back. We’re almost there,” Xue Mian said, pedaling with even more energy.

There were still plenty of people out at noon, but Xue Mian navigated skillfully through the streets and alleys, finally coming to a stop.

“We’re here.”

“Where is this?” Su Min asked, eyeing the small eatery in front of them.

“The owner here is from your hometown. The food is very authentic. I found it yesterday and immediately thought of you. Come on, let’s go try it.”

His warm smile made Su Min’s heart feel warm too.

Inside, the place was already bustling. The owner seemed familiar with Xue Mian and greeted them as they entered. They found a private room, and the owner even brought in a small heater for them.

“You rode all the way here just for a meal? Why not just take a cab?”

“These alleys are too narrow for taxis.”

That’s what he said, but in his heart, he thought: if we took a cab, we’d be there in a few minutes. How would I get to spend more time with her then?

Su Min didn’t think too much of it. She warmed her hands over the charcoal heater and, remembering she hadn’t seen Xue Mian for a while, figured he must’ve been busy. She smiled and asked, “How’s your company doing lately? Everything going smoothly?”

“Yeah, it’s going well. I even found a partner company.”

“Already? Someone spotted your talent so quickly?”

“Not exactly. A mutual acquaintance introduced us. At first, they didn’t trust me because I’m young. But after seeing my past results and current proposals, they agreed to give it a shot.”

“That’s great! With a partner, you won’t have to worry so much about shortages anymore.” Su Min smiled sincerely. She was genuinely happy for him. She wanted to see how far this former schoolmate of hers could go.

“Mhm.” Seeing her happy made Xue Mian smile too.

Once the food arrived, Su Min realized how hungry she was and quickly dug in.

Xue Mian didn’t eat much. After picking at his rice, he asked, “Winter break is coming up. What are your plans? Now that you’ve opened a shop here, you can’t just leave it behind, right?”

“Oh, it’s fine. I just need to complete the orders before the New Year and then close shop. I’ll return after the holiday. I’m still in school, after all—I don’t need to be overly strict. I can’t skip going home for the New Year just because of a shop.”