WRS – Chapter 79

After returning home, the family of six took some time to rest. They were celebrating the New Year in the capital this year. Although they wouldn’t be staying long, all the necessary preparations still had to be made. Jiang Mingchuan took the kids out again to the department store to buy Spring Festival couplets, sweets, meat, and vegetables.

Jin Xiuzhu stayed home with Bai Jingzhi to prepare dinner.

Bai Jingzhi asked her sister-in-law what things she needed to pay attention to during pregnancy. She had no experience and worried that she wouldn’t know what to do when the time came.

After listening, Jin Xiuzhu thought for a moment and said, “How about this—after the New Year, I’ll contact Qian Yufeng and see if she can find another suitable person. If there is someone, we’ll get them to come and take care of you. You’re too busy with work, and you hardly have time to cook or do laundry. Having someone to look after you will be good.”

“Ah? Have someone come take care of me now? Wouldn’t that be a little… inappropriate?”
Bai Jingzhi wasn’t used to being looked after. Deep down, she felt she didn’t deserve it.

“What’s inappropriate about it? Look at Ji Ling’s aunt—Zhang Qiulai, the one from your Sister Fang’s family. Now the whole family can’t live without her. It’s mutually beneficial. As long as you don’t talk about it, who would know?”

Bai Jingzhi nodded, then hesitantly said, “I heard from Ji Ling’s mother that if I get pregnant, she wants to come take care of me.”

“Absolutely not. I already helped you refuse. You mustn’t give in. Having an elder take care of you—even if she’s a good person—there will always be times when you don’t get along. And since she’s a senior, you’ll be the one who has to swallow your grievances. Ji Ling’s salary isn’t low, and yours is high too. Hiring someone won’t hurt your finances. Life is about being comfortable. Do you really want to live tiptoeing around someone else?”

The moment Bai Jingzhi imagined the scenario her sister-in-law described, she hurriedly shook her head. She had lived her childhood watching her adoptive parents’ moods; she absolutely did not want a repeat. She wasn’t good with words and didn’t know how to coax people. In the end, she’d only suffer silently.

“Don’t be afraid. Our family’s conditions are better than Ji Ling’s. You should have confidence. Don’t be too easygoing. If Ji Ling ever does something poorly, don’t hesitate to get mad or argue. Otherwise people will think you’re easy to bully.”

Bai Jingzhi stared at her sister-in-law wide-eyed. Her colleagues had all told her to get along well with Ji Ling after marriage and avoid quarrels. She never expected her sister-in-law to actually tell her to argue. She couldn’t help asking, “Won’t quarreling affect the relationship?”

“What would it affect? In a marriage, either the east wind overwhelms the west wind, or the west wind overwhelms the east. The kind of life you want depends on you, not him. If you want to be a doormat, then just agree with everything Ji Ling says. But if you want to be the head of the household, then coax when needed and quarrel when needed. You must establish your position from the start.”

After finishing, she raised an eyebrow and asked, “Understand?”

Bai Jingzhi never expected there to be such deep life lessons after marriage. Though it sounded a bit difficult, she still nodded. “Got it. I’ll try later.”

Jin Xiuzhu laughed. “But remember—coax when needed, sweeten your words when needed. We’re not the ones suffering losses.”

Bai Jingzhi also laughed. She wasn’t great at talking outside, but as her sister-in-law said, when it came to Ji Ling, she was great at praising him. Every time Ji Ling came to see her, he complained she was lazy even while helping her tidy her room and cook meals.

When Jiang Mingchuan returned with the three kids, each of them was carrying big and small bags. Besides meat and vegetables, they bought new clothes and shoes too.

Liuliu was the happiest. She had gone out wearing old clothes and came back entirely new from head to toe, with two little red flowers pinned in her hair.

The moment she entered the house, she circled Jin Xiuzhu and Bai Jingzhi, asking if she looked good.

Bai Jingzhi laughed. “Beautiful. Liuliu is the prettiest.”

Satisfied, Liuliu returned to the living room and began jumping around again.

They ate rice for dinner. For the past couple of days, for convenience, they had been eating noodles and dumplings—ready-made ones sold at the supply and marketing cooperative. Because the weather was cold, they were all frozen hard, and you only needed to boil them at home. But after eating too much, they all felt tired of it.

Eating fragrant, steaming rice made everyone’s stomach feel much better.

Bai Jingzhi said, “Ji Ling says they eat steamed buns back in his hometown. I wonder if I’ll get used to it.”

Jiang Mingchuan replied, “In the old days, forget steamed buns—even tree bark was hard to find. What’s there to not get used to?”

Jin Xiuzhu shot him a look. “We’re not some delicate people. Whatever they eat, we eat.”

Bai Jingzhi felt her sister-in-law’s words were much nicer and smiled as she responded.

After dinner, Jiang Mingchuan and He Yan went to wash the dishes. Jin Xiuzhu leaned close to Bai Jingzhi and whispered, “Some things you just let me know. Don’t tell your brother. His brain is too stiff.”

Bai Jingzhi pressed her lips together, smiling as she agreed.

She originally wanted to tell her brother about her situation with Ji Ling, but now she felt she should forget it. Her brother was exactly the rigid type her sister-in-law described. Her sister-in-law was the one who truly cared for her.

Jin Xiuzhu continued, “Tomorrow morning you can sleep in a bit. No need to follow rules in your own home. Next year you’ll be spending the New Year at Ji Ling’s house. You won’t have this much freedom anymore.”

Bai Jingzhi felt a pang of sadness. In a muffled tone she said, “I already talked to Ji Ling. From now on, we’ll take turns for New Year. Why should I only go to his house? My brother and sister-in-law only have me as their little sister.”

Jin Xiuzhu laughed. “What did Ji Ling say?”

“He said okay… but I don’t know if he really meant it.”

Jiang Mingchuan, who had just walked out of the kitchen, heard it. His expression looked much better than earlier. “That’s right. Why should you spend New Year only at the husband’s family?”

Then he turned to his two daughters. “Hear that? Learn from your aunt.”

Fu Yanyan didn’t even think before saying, “I’m not getting married.”

Jiang Mingchuan didn’t see a problem. “Great. Not getting married is fine. Mom and Dad will support you.”

Usually Liuliu always echoed her sister, but this time she surprisingly stayed quiet. She just widened her eyes and looked around.

Fu Yanyan felt strange and turned to her. “What about you?”

Liuliu looked a little guilty, then whispered, “I have to get married. I already promised Little Ninth Brother. He said if I marry him when I grow up, he’ll buy me lots of chocolate.”

Jiang Mingchuan: “……”

Fu Yanyan held it in for a while but ultimately couldn’t. She snapped, “Is our family missing anything for you to eat? He bribed you away with chocolate?!”

Liuliu looked innocent. “But we really don’t have chocolate at home.”

Jiang Mingchuan gritted his teeth. “I’ll buy you some tomorrow.”

Liuliu immediately cheered. “Then I won’t marry Little Ninth Brother!”

Only then did Jiang Mingchuan’s expression improve.

Jin Xiuzhu wasn’t angry, though. Children’s words couldn’t be taken seriously anyway.

He Yan pinched his little sister’s cheek. “You only know how to eat.”

Liuliu snorted. “If you don’t eat, what’s the point of having a mouth? Isn’t it for eating?”

There was simply no way He Yan could argue with that.

After resting for two days, on New Year’s Eve the whole family slept in until ten in the morning.

After casually eating a little something, everyone began preparing the New Year’s Eve dinner. Jiang Mingchuan and He Yan were in the kitchen cooking, while Jin Xiuzhu and Bai Jingzhi first cleaned the house. Once they finished putting up the Spring Festival couplets, the two sat in the living room to wrap dumplings. Yanyan and Liuliu were in charge of rolling glutinous rice balls. Liuliu mostly just thought it was fun — her tiny hands made the balls big and flat, and after making each one, she proudly showed it off to everyone. After receiving praise, she happily continued making giant rice balls.

Since they would be leaving right after the New Year, they didn’t make too much food, worried that they wouldn’t finish it later. In the evening they cooked six dishes, symbolizing “smooth sailing” (liuliu dashun).

But each dish was made in generous portions. The whole family sat around the table, lively and cheerful. The leftover wine from the wedding banquet a few days before hadn’t been finished, so Jiang Mingchuan had brought it back. It was low-alcohol plum wine—sweet and mellow. Even the two children had taken a few sips at the banquet.

That night the family ate and drank together. He Yan didn’t handle alcohol well; after a bit too much, he became tipsy, picked up his chopsticks, and started tapping the table while singing.

The song was one he’d learned from watching TV at Old Master Zhang’s house. It sounded nice, so he remembered it.

Looking at He Yan’s rough, changing adolescent voice singing, then looking at the happy smiles on everyone’s faces, Fu Yanyan felt her heart relax as well.

This was an experience completely different from her previous life. She hoped every year could be like this.

On the second day of the Lunar New Year, they went visiting relatives. On the morning of the third day, the family packed up and set off for H Province. Worried that the morning rush would be crowded, they left before dawn. But upon arriving at the train station, they still found a large crowd — many people were even sleeping outside, curled up together.

It took two days and one night to travel from the capital to H Province. Jiang Mingchuan bought sleeper tickets, and the whole family was in the same carriage, which was reassuring.

The two daughters slept in the middle bunks, Jin Xiuzhu and Bai Jingzhi on the bottom, and He Yan and Jiang Mingchuan on the top.

They ate and drank their way through the journey until arriving in H Province. Ji Ling knew they were coming and had arrived early to wait at the station. He was tall, so the moment Jin Xiuzhu and the others stepped off the train, he spotted them and quickly came over to take the things from Bai Jingzhi.

Jin Xiuzhu carried Liuliu. Jiang Mingchuan held Yanyan and the luggage. He Yan and Bai Jingzhi carried the remaining bags.

Ji Ling took all the luggage from Bai Jingzhi and Jiang Mingchuan. “There isn’t enough room at home, so we arranged a place in the county. The whole family discussed it—we’ll have Jingzhi leave from the county guesthouse for the wedding.”

As he spoke, he secretly glanced at Jiang Mingchuan and Jin Xiuzhu—mainly Jin Xiuzhu. By now he could see clearly: although Jiang Mingchuan seemed hostile toward him, it was mostly because he cherished Jingzhi so much and couldn’t bear to let go of his only sister. As for Bai Jingzhi’s sister-in-law, she looked gentle and easygoing on the surface, but she clearly had her own mind and was a woman who meant what she said.

Sure enough, Jiang Mingchuan replied, “Whatever you’ve decided is fine.”

Jin Xiuzhu asked, “How’s the bridal room coming along?”

Ji Ling answered, “Everything is ready. My mother even had someone do some renovations beforehand. The walls have been freshly whitewashed, and they built cabinets and a desk. She figured that if we come back to stay in the future, it’ll be more convenient.”

Jin Xiuzhu nodded. “That’s good. Our family is an ordinary one, we don’t care about fancy things. What matters is the attitude. As long as you value Jingzhi, we can hand her over to you without worry. From the looks of it now, your family is indeed wonderful. My sister didn’t choose the wrong person.”

Ji Ling felt a weight lift from his heart. He turned to look at Bai Jingzhi, who smiled at him shyly, and he couldn’t help smiling back.

He thought that having such a sister-in-law was also a good thing—it meant Jingzhi would have fewer worries.

After leaving the train station, Ji Ling led them to the county town by bus. They put their belongings in the guesthouse, then he took them out for dinner. It was already dark by then. After eating, he took them back to rest, planning to pick them up again the next morning.

They spent one night at the guesthouse. That night Bai Jingzhi wanted to sleep with Jin Xiuzhu. Jiang Mingchuan had no choice but to give his wife to his sister and squeeze in with his son for the night.

Bai Jingzhi chatted with Jin Xiuzhu for a long time. Before sleeping, she wrapped her arm around Jin Xiuzhu’s and said, “Sister-in-law, I feel so lucky to have met you. I really hope that one day I can live as freely and clearly as you do.”

Jin Xiuzhu was stunned for a moment, then fell silent. Only when she heard the soft sound of Bai Jingzhi’s breathing did she slowly exhale and let out a small helpless laugh. “Living as clearly as I do isn’t easy—it’s the result of countless painful lessons.”

But Bai Jingzhi was already asleep.

Jin Xiuzhu couldn’t fall asleep. She stared at the dark room.

Sometimes she wanted to raise her daughters to be sharp and clever like herself so they’d avoid detours in the future. But sometimes she wished they could stay innocent and simple.

Early the next morning, Ji Ling arrived to pick them up. After breakfast, they followed him to his home.

Ji Ling’s home was more than ten kilometers from the county. He had come with two comrades, each on bicycles. He carried Bai Jingzhi and Yanyan on his bike. One comrade let Jiang Mingchuan use his bike, and Jiang Mingchuan carried Jin Xiuzhu and Liuliu. The last two comrades shared a bike and carried He Yan.

Halfway there, one comrade became too tired to pedal, so the other took his place. When the tired one got off, he patted He Yan’s shoulder. “Kid, you’re heavy. You’ll make good material for a soldier in the future.”

He Yan grinned. “I’m planning to apply to a military academy next year.”

The man was pleased. “Nice. Come play here often in the future.”

“Of course! My little aunt is getting married here. I’ll definitely come often.”

Hearing this, Bai Jingzhi turned and smiled back at him.

Liuliu held onto the bicycle handlebar in front of her father and shouted excitedly, “Daddy, go faster!”

After about half an hour of riding, they reached Ji Ling’s production brigade. His home was in the Fourth Production Team. All around were fields and houses.

Zhu Ying was already waiting with her daughter and grandson at the entrance. Many people stood around watching curiously, and even Ji Ling’s uncles and aunts came, though they didn’t stand together—just watched from the side.

When they saw Bai Jingzhi getting off Ji Ling’s bike, they couldn’t help but sigh in amazement. One aunt couldn’t help praising, “Whose daughter is she? She’s so beautiful!”

Bai Jingzhi understood and shyly lowered her head.

Zhu Ying hurried over to pull her forward. “Alright, alright, stop staring. You’re making my daughter-in-law shy.”

Then she greeted Jin Xiuzhu. “It must’ve been tiring. Our roads here aren’t easy to walk. Hurry, come home for a cup of hot tea.”

Ji An also said warmly, “Come in, come in. It’s warm inside.”

Jin Xiuzhu smiled. “Not tired at all—we’re too happy to be tired.”

Ji An’s husband was also there. He didn’t say much but automatically went to help push the bike Jiang Mingchuan was holding. Jiang Mingchuan accepted the gesture and started chatting with him.

The village aunties gathered around enthusiastically and even pulled Ji An aside to ask who Jin Xiuzhu was.

Ji An explained, “She’s my sister-in-law’s sister-in-law.”

“Married already?”

“Her kids are already big. Can’t you see those three children? They’re all hers.”

The auntie was shocked. “She’s so young!”

Another aunt teased her, “What, were you planning to match her with your son? Look at her family’s conditions—way too good.”

The first aunt glared. “Mind your own business.”

Ji An didn’t want to listen to their bickering and slipped away quickly.

Zhu Ying led Jin Xiuzhu and the others home. Her home had three rooms. The main room and the small one beside it were older, clearly built earlier. The one on the left looked new, with obviously white walls.

Sure enough, Jin Xiuzhu heard Zhu Ying say, “This house was built by the children’s uncle. Back then, since there weren’t many people at home, he only built three rooms and a kitchen—just enough for me and An’an. Since Ji Ling rarely comes back, building more would’ve been a waste. This side is newly built. Come and see what you think.”

As she spoke, she pulled Jin Xiuzhu into the new room. The room was spacious, with a cement floor, a large kang-bed, and two sets of neatly folded red bedding on top. The walls and windows were decorated with wedding “double happiness” characters. There was also a new desk, cabinet, and a spittoon and washbasin in the corner.

Zhu Ying only allowed Jin Xiuzhu and the others to enter. She stood at the doorway blocking the village neighbors outside, earning herself a scolding from one of the aunties for being stingy.

Ji An quickly explained, “It’s not just you all—my brother hasn’t been allowed to sleep inside these past few days either. He’s been sleeping on a bench in the living room.”

Hearing that, Bai Jingzhi couldn’t help pressing her lips together in amusement.

Jin Xiuzhu also found it funny and hurried out. She said to Zhu Ying, “You’re impressive. You’ve really worked hard these past few days.”

Zhu Ying chuckled awkwardly and waved her hand. “What hard work? As long as you’re happy, that’s all that matters.”

Jin Xiuzhu seemed to remember something. “Where’s Fang Min? I didn’t see her.”

“Auntie went to the market with Uncle. There’s a market fair today, and they said they wanted to buy some vegetables.”

Jin Xiuzhu grew concerned. “Her belly must be quite big by now, right?”

“Yeah. It’s her first time coming here, and she just loves going to the market.”

Jin Xiuzhu shook her head helplessly. “That’s true. She looks quiet, but in reality she loves joining the fun.”

After they finished looking at the newly renovated room, Zhu Ying brought them to her bedroom to drink tea.

It was cold in the living room during winter, so guests were always invited into Zhu Ying’s bedroom. Although Jin Xiuzhu felt a bit uncomfortable with this, she didn’t say anything. Zhu Ying invited her to sit on the kang. The two children climbed onto the kang as well. After playing for a while, Liuliu ended up running off with Ji An’s two kids.

The three children were acting sneaky. When Fu Yanyan noticed, she felt uneasy and got off the kang to follow them. Then she discovered the three had run into Ji An’s room to steal food.

Since the wedding was tomorrow, some cold dishes had been prepared in advance. Because Zhu Ying’s room was needed for receiving guests, and Fang Min was also considered a guest, all miscellaneous items were stored in Ji An’s room. Which just happened to benefit those kids. Now, they even brought Liuliu along to steal food.

Liuliu ate so happily she didn’t want to leave. Ji An’s two kids had only planned to let her taste one or two pieces of meat, but who knew she’d eat one and want another and another. They somewhat regretted their decision.

It was Fu Yanyan who went over and dragged Liuliu away. As she left, Liuliu’s mouth was stuffed full. She still told Fu Yanyan, “Big sister, it’s so yummy.”

Fu Yanyan looked at her shiny, oily lips and snorted, “He Yan was right—you’re definitely going to get lured away with food someday.”

Liuliu puffed up her cheeks. “No, I won’t!”

At noon, Fang Min and her husband returned. Jin Xiuzhu chatted with her for a long time. But after lunch, Jin Xiuzhu and her family left. Since the wedding banquet was the next day, they definitely still had a lot to prepare, so it wasn’t appropriate for them to stay longer.

Bai Jingzhi left with them.

The next morning, Jin Xiuzhu woke up early with Bai Jingzhi to get ready—mainly to help Bai Jingzhi tidy up. Just like on the betrothal day, she applied beautiful makeup on her and then helped her change into a bright red jacket.

The jacket was made by Zhu Ying for Bai Jingzhi, so Jin Xiuzhu decided she should wear it. After all, it was a gesture of goodwill from her future mother-in-law.

Though the style was plain, Bai Jingzhi looked lovely wearing it.

Seeing that there was still time, Jin Xiuzhu also tidied herself and her two daughters. But they didn’t wear red—afraid it would be too eye-catching. They each wore a fairly decent blue cotton jacket. Yanyan and Liuliu were dressed the same, though they wore red flowers in their hair.

Around nine in the morning, Ji Ling came to fetch his bride. He Yan had already prepared himself. Together with his two younger sisters, he blocked the doorway asking for red envelopes and even prepared questions to test their future brother-in-law.

Ji Ling had no choice but to ask someone to fetch paper and a pen. Leaning against the wall, he started solving the questions on the spot.

After he finished, Fu Yanyan stepped forward, blocking the door again, demanding that Ji Ling do a hundred push-ups right there.

Laughter erupted outside. Everyone started cheering Ji Ling on.

Inside the room, Bai Jingzhi and Jin Xiuzhu could hear it all. Both of them started laughing. Jin Xiuzhu even opened a small crack in the door curiously. She saw Ji Ling taking off his coat and actually doing the push-ups, counting as he went.

In the middle of winter, a thin layer of sweat formed on his forehead.

Bai Jingzhi also turned to look outside. Just as she did, her gaze met Ji Ling’s as he lifted his head. Before either could react, people around them noticed, and the teasing grew even louder.

Bai Jingzhi’s face turned crimson.

The commotion outside went on for quite a while. Finally, the door was forced open from the outside. As if fearing more challenges, Ji Ling immediately picked Bai Jingzhi up and ran.

The three kids chased after them.

When Jin Xiuzhu stepped out, she saw Jiang Mingchuan standing at the door. “Why are you standing here?”

Jiang Mingchuan smiled. “Nothing. Let’s go.”

She walked down the stairs with him. After a few steps, she naturally linked her arm through his and comforted him, “Ji Ling is a good kid. He and Jingzhi are a great match.”

“I know… I just can’t shake the feeling that I owe my little sister.”

“Don’t think like that. Your sister adores you. She even told me this morning that she had a dream last night. In the dream, we never reunited, and her adoptive parents sent her to the countryside as an educated youth. She even got married there—her husband beat her every day. When she woke up, she was so relieved it was only a dream.”

Jiang Mingchuan knew she was reassuring him, but it did make him feel better. Compared to her adoptive parents, he certainly did better by her. “Not long ago, her adoptive parents called me. They said that sister of hers ran away. They wanted me to help find her.”

“When did that happen?”

“Right before we returned to the capital. You didn’t know. I asked for details, but they only gave a vague explanation, so I told them to report it to the police.”

Jin Xiuzhu nodded. “Since you can’t really help, it’s better not to get involved. The country is huge. Where would you even start?”

“Mm.”

Jin Xiuzhu and Jiang Mingchuan also went to Ji Ling’s home. Although Ji Ling wasn’t close with several of his relatives, he had a good relationship with the villagers. So the wedding was held as a “flowing banquet”—tables set up right outside the house in a long row. Almost the entire village came to eat.

Jin Xiuzhu joined in the fun too, sitting down with the three children. Opposite her was Fang Min, both of them simply joining the lively atmosphere.

Fang Min looked completely different from her usual neat and elegant self. She wore a thick black coat and had a scarf wrapped around her head. If you didn’t look at her face, she was no different from any village wife.

She seemed comfortable like this. She even said, “This pregnancy has been great. Everything tastes good, and I sleep really well.”

“That’s wonderful.”

“Yeah. I hope this one will be an easy baby too.”

As she spoke, Bai Jingzhi and Ji Ling came out of their new room to serve tea to the elders. Their happy and shy expressions made both women smile.

Fang Min sighed, “They’re such a perfect pair.”

Jin Xiuzhu smiled. “Of course—they chose each other.”

Fang Min’s smile faded a little as she sighed. “Time really flies… When I first saw Jingzhi, she was still a quiet, frail girl. And now she’s getting married. And not just married—married to Ji Ling.”

Jin Xiuzhu teased her, “You’re even faster than she is. You’re already on your second child. Give it a few years and you’ll be a grandma.”

Fang Min huffed, “You’ll be a grandma before I am!”

“Fine, I don’t mind. Honestly, I’d love it if He Yan gave me a baby to play with.”

Fang Min lost the argument and grumbled, “Who taught you this? Your skin’s getting thicker by the day.”

Jin Xiuzhu: Wants a baby to play with.

Jiang Mingchuan: Another one?

He Yan: Then I want a little brother.

Fu Yanyan: Mom actually wants a grandson.

Liuliu: Then will I become an auntie?

He Yan: No… don’t you all think you’re overthinking this?