Chapter 399: Chapter 398: Liang Hongmei’s Lack of Understanding
"Child, after all, she’s from the same village and still your good friend. As a girl out there alone, let’s help her if we can."
Lin Wan pouted indifferently. Ye Qing didn’t consider her a good friend; of course, she wouldn’t consider Ye Qing a good friend now either, she couldn’t avoid her enough.
"I told her we moved, and suggested she come by when she has time. I also mentioned we’re going home for New Year’s and asked if she’d like to come with us."
"Mom... did you tell her our new address?" Lin Wan’s sudden outburst left Liang Hongmei and Lin Yinghui momentarily stunned.
Both of them looked at her in confusion.
"Little Sis, what’s wrong? Ye Qing is not an outsider; what’s wrong with telling her?" Lin Yinghui smiled helplessly, finding his sister just hot-tempered. The two little sisters’ quarrel lasted so long, and she still hadn’t cooled down.
"Mom, Brother, I’ve told you many times, haven’t I? I’ve had a quarrel with Ye Qing, we’re not on good terms. She’s not my good friend now, and I don’t want a friend like her. Please keep your distance from her in the future. You never listen, thinking I’m just being childish... Now, I’m telling you clearly, I’m not speaking out of anger or throwing a tantrum, I’m not joking with you. I don’t like Ye Qing, she’s too scheming, and please keep your distance from her, okay?"
"Alright, alright, we’ll keep our distance from her, keep our distance. Don’t get angry, don’t get worked up, be careful with the baby," Liang Hongmei saw her daughter was upset and emotional, quickly took her hand to sit down, placating her.
"Little Sis..." Lin Yinghui wanted to say a few words to her, but was elbowed by Liang Hongmei, signaling him with her eyes not to speak recklessly.
Lin Yinghui sighed, smiled, and said, "Mom and I will try to keep our distance when we see her, how about that?"
Lin Wan knew very well they were just brushing her off. She was anxious, but didn’t know how to explain to her mom and brother about what Ye Qing had done to her in the past life.
She didn’t know Ye Qing’s intentions after disappearing for a few months and reappearing in their life, but Lin Wan knew, it couldn’t be anything good!
Her brother was at school every day, she couldn’t reach him, but her mother was at the shop daily. She couldn’t let Ye Qing have any opportunities.
Lin Wan thought about it all night and decided to go to the store with her mother the next day. She needed to keep a close eye on things there.
Getting up in the morning, around eight or nine, after the delivery people came and went one by one, she put on a thick cotton-padded jacket, a military overcoat over it, wore the knitted earmuff hat she made last year, and wrapped a scarf around her neck. She stubbornly insisted on following her mother to the store, refusing to leave the car.
"Child, it’s cold outside, much colder than home. You’re pregnant, why are you running around like this? The sky looks gloomy, I bet it’s going to rain this afternoon."
"If it rains, even better. Mom, you don’t have to go today. There’s no class this afternoon, right?"
"How can that be? We’re in a crash course, not like you. We can’t miss a single day. Our class teacher said if we pass the unified exams at the end of this semester, we’ll get our diplomas next summer. Accounting certification, once I have that, any factory would want me in no time."
"Alright, it’ll be nice to accompany mom to the shop. You can go to class in the afternoon, while I watch the shop. Our shop is warm; I won’t catch cold. Besides, Brother took a leave a few days ago because the shop was too busy. I have nothing to do at home, better help out. Mom, don’t worry about me, I’m more concerned about my baby than anyone else. So, let’s go quickly, don’t dilly-dally, Mom."
Seeing Lin Wan so insistent on going, Liang Hongmei didn’t hold her back and took her to the shop.
There were no wedding orders today, so Lin Wan just sat at the front desk, doing the accounts, balancing the books.
All day long, Lin Wan didn’t catch a glimpse of Ye Qing. Instead, her mother surprised her.
When her mother came back from class, she wasn’t alone; there was a middle-aged man following her.
As soon as Lin Wan laid eyes on him, she guessed he must be the man Aunt Liu introduced to her mother.
Tsk tsk, just like Aunt Liu said, the charm forged from the vicissitudes of life gave this uncle a natural attraction to women.
The conditions indeed looked quite good.
"You must be Xiao Wan? Hello, I’m Du Guangjun, introduced to your mom by your Aunt Tang (Aunt Liu’s surname is Tang). I’ve heard about you from your Aunt Liu."
Du Guangjun openly introduced himself to Lin Wan, not feeling that this late-life romance was something to be hidden.
"Hello, Uncle Du."
"Hello? What hello? Mr. Du, I already made it clear the first time we met that we’re not suitable. Don’t waste your time on me. Just leave now," Liang Hongmei said, embarrassed, looking at all the people in the restaurant.
Du Guangjun seemed accustomed to Liang Hongmei’s attitude and didn’t get angry. Instead, he continued smiling at Lin Wan, "Comrade Xiao Wan, I think my conditions match your mom’s well. I know what your mom is thinking; she’s just shy, but that’s no big deal. As long as you children don’t oppose, I’m sure I can make your mom willingly accept."
Lin Wan thought to herself, this time, her mom encountered a persistent uncle, not easy to deal with. Just as she was about to utter the words "don’t mind," her mom gave her a glare, shutting her up.
It seemed Old Du wasn’t waiting for Lin Wan’s approval either. Seeing Liang Hongmei about to get angry, he quickly smiled at them and rode his bike away.
As soon as Old Du left, Lin Wan sneakily looked at her mom, whispering, "Mom, has Uncle Du been picking you up from school every day these days?" Surprised by her own speculation, she added in astonishment, "Has Brother seen him too?"
"So what if he has? I’m not going to agree to it, no matter what. You all need to help me think of a way. If Mr. Du keeps following me, there’ll be gossip over time. I’ve lived decently for most of my life; I can’t end up in a mess because of this."
"Mom, I think Uncle Du seems quite nice. You really don’t like him?"
"I don’t like him," Liang Hongmei replied bluntly, leaving Lin Wan wanting to persuade but unsure how to begin.
She could see her mother’s distress. She and her brother wanted their mom to have a good life, but it didn’t necessarily mean she needed to find a partner.
This kind of matter should entirely depend on their mother. If she didn’t want it, they, as her children, wouldn’t push it. If their mother did want a companion, they wouldn’t stop her either.
"Since you don’t like him, next time I see Uncle Du, I’ll have a good talk with him."
"Now that’s what a daughter should do," Liang Hongmei remarked.
These days had really been tough for Liang Hongmei.
Sure enough, just as mom said, snowflakes began to fall around seven in the evening.
Lin Wan instructed Xiao Gu to close up as soon as possible because it was difficult to walk in heavy snow at night.
They employed staff and had to consider safety as well.
She also told Xiao Gu to order fewer vegetables for the next day. Not many would come out to eat in such snowy weather. Preparing for ten or so tables should suffice.
After giving instructions to Xiao Gu, the mother and daughter pedaled their bikes home. Fortunately, it was just starting to snow, so there wasn’t an accumulation yet. It wasn’t slippery.
When they got home, her brother was missing. After they heated a kettle of water and drank four or five cups each while sitting on the kang, he came back covered in snow.
It turned out he had ridden his bike towards the shop as soon as he saw it snowed, hoping to meet them on the way. They ended up taking different routes and missed each other.
"Your brother is destined to live a hard life. Ever since he was young, he helped me earn work points in the fields. Now that he’s grown up, he’s still working hard," Liang Hongmei said, heartbroken, looking at her son covered in snow.
"Brother, how many times have I told you, when it rains or snows, you don’t need to come pick us up. We’re adults, we know how to take care of ourselves." Lin Wan quickly led him into the house to warm up. He was her only brother, the one who treated her the best in the world, and she felt for him.
"I was worried about you guys, waiting anxiously at home. I might as well go out and check," Lin Yinghui didn’t mind, he was a man, strong and healthy.
Liang Hongmei went to the kitchen and made some ginger soup. The three of them drank a bowl each.