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墨書 Inktalez
Illness comes like a mountain collapsing and leaves like pulling silk. Liu Shuhan had been sick for over a week, during which she attended Cheng Tianhong's funeral.
Holding a funeral during the year is considered inauspicious, but fortunately, people nowadays are not so particular. Once the seventh day after the New Year passes, it is considered the end of the celebrations, and there are no more superstitions about good or bad luck.
Cheng Qiuyi did not attend Cheng Tianhong's funeral; she only found someone to help Cheng Boming arrange everything. She posted about it, but how many people attended was none of her concern.
People with colds fear the cold. Liu Shuhan curled up in her blanket, blowing her nose. "Qiu Yi, isn't it appropriate for you to go?"
"The whole C City knows that the Cheng Family has such an unworthy descendant like me. What’s appropriate or inappropriate about it?"
"But he is your father..." No matter how strained their relationship was while he was alive, they still had to put on a show after his death; otherwise, it would leave others with something to say.
"He always wanted a son to carry on the family name. Now that Cheng Boming is mourning for him, I’m afraid he would be so happy underground that he might jump out. Why would he care about me?"
Cheng Boming returned to school shortly after the funeral. A few days later, Liu Shuhan's illness finally improved significantly, and she was preparing to find a time to return to work when her mother, Ms. Xu Ruyun, sent her a message saying, "Shu Han, I have arrived in C City. I don’t know the way; can you come pick me up?"
At that moment, Liu Shuhan was riding her electric vehicle on her way to work. Hearing this made her anxious. "What do you mean? Mom, why didn’t you notify me in advance that you were coming?"
"What kind of talk is that?" Xu Ruyun replied unhappily. "Have you grown wings and started to look down on your mother?"
"No, no, no! How could I dare..." Liu Shuhan listened as her mother scolded her and thought it over; it seemed that only Cheng Qiuyi could be relied upon. So she called Cheng Qiuyi, who was taking a nap.
Cheng Qiuyi sleepily glanced at her phone. "Shu Han, what’s up? Did you forget something? Do you need me to bring it to you?"
"Not really, Qiu Yi..." Liu Shuhan parked the car by the roadside waiting for the traffic light, her foot tapping anxiously on the raised pavement tiles. "My mom is coming over."
"Uh..." Even Cheng Qiuyi was momentarily at a loss for words. "What are you planning to do?"
"I don't know..." Liu Shuhan said in despair. "She’s already at the train station. Qiu Yi, can you go pick her up for me? I can't leave right now."
Cheng Qiuyi pondered for a moment. "I can, but is it appropriate for me to go?"
"Of course it's appropriate! Even an ugly daughter-in-law has to meet her in-laws; she is your mother-in-law! You have to meet her sooner or later!" Liu Shuhan nodded vigorously.
Cheng Qiuyi raised an eyebrow. "Oh really, so in your eyes, I'm just an ugly daughter-in-law?"
Once the call ended, Cheng Qiuyi lost her playful mood. She quickly got up to tidy herself up, trying on clothes from her wardrobe one by one. Either they were too formal or too casual; none were suitable for meeting elders. She applied makeup, washed it off, and reapplied, feeling that it was either too heavy or not formal enough. She had never felt this anxious even when pursuing Liu Shuhan.
What a joke; this time she was meeting her future mother-in-law! If she didn’t leave a good impression, there was no way she would let her daughter be with her.
With her mother-in-law still waiting at the train station, there wasn’t much time for Cheng Qiuyi to be picky. After thinking it over, she carefully chose a safe black outfit that couldn’t go wrong and applied light makeup to look energetic and capable before rushing off to the train station.
Xu Ruyun received Liu Shuhan's notification and knew that Cheng Qiuyi was coming to pick her up. She had a good impression of Cheng Qiuyi; although they had never met, she had heard her daughter talk about her for three years and still remembered her fondly after graduation. She must be a good person.
When she finally met Cheng Qiuyi, she couldn't help but praise her. This girl had a nice demeanor; she was composed and polite, much more sensible than her own somewhat reckless daughter.
Cheng Qiuyi placed Xu Ruyun's luggage in the trunk and opened the car door for her, even protecting her head with her hand as she entered the car. She took care of every detail, worried that Xu Ruyun might be dissatisfied with anything.
"Auntie, I didn't know you were coming. Sorry to keep you waiting. Shall we go have breakfast first?"
"Auntie has already eaten. Miss Cheng, how old are you this year?"
"Auntie, you can just call me Qiu Yi. I'm 27 this year, one year older than Shu Han."
Xu Ruyun sighed, "You're only one year older than Shu Han, but you're much more reliable than her. That girl is too flighty. If she had half of your steadiness, I wouldn't have to worry so much."
Hearing Xu Ruyun say this, Cheng Qiuyi felt that her performance today was quite good; at least she had passed the test so far. "Auntie, don't say that. Shu Han is quite good at taking care of people. Usually, she takes care of me more."
"Do you two live together?"
Oh no. Cheng Qiuyi quickly thought of a reason to cover up. "Yes, with the housing prices in C City being so high, it's cheaper for two people to share a place."
"That's good. I'm just worried that Shu Han might find some unsavory friends if she lives alone. Qiu Yi, please keep an eye on Shu Han for Auntie and make sure she doesn't go down the wrong path."
Cheng Qiuyi felt inexplicably guilty. Auntie, it seems like your daughter is getting worse because of me...
Older people tend to be a bit chatty. Xu Ruyun was particularly talkative and asked Cheng Qiuyi about her family background all the way. Cheng Qiuyi answered what she could and made up some stories for what she couldn't share, trying her best to present herself as a well-educated and upright young person.
After discussing family backgrounds, Xu Ruyun went on to criticize her own daughter without holding back, even bringing up Liu Shuhan's bedwetting incident from when she was three years old. Cheng Qiuyi listened with amusement; no wonder Liu Shuhan has such a fun personality—her mother is quite amusing.
After the laughter, Cheng Qiuyi felt both comforted and envious. With loving parents and a harmonious family, it was no wonder Liu Shuhan developed such a cheerful personality. Even though her own mother and Cheng Tianhong maintained a false marital relationship, she could never grow up to be like Liu Shuhan.
The conversation drifted further and further away, eventually landing on the topic of Liu Shuhan's neighbor's dog. Xu Ruyun talked for over two hours without a break on the way home, while Cheng Qiuyi quietly listened, occasionally sharing her thoughts, remaining serious throughout without showing any impatience.
Xu Ruyun grew fonder of this girl, feeling an increasing closeness.
Their home had only three rooms: one bedroom, one guest room, and one study belonging to Cheng Qiuyi, which was quite small and hardly suitable for anyone to stay in.
Cheng Qiuyi took Xu Ruyun's luggage to the guest room that Liu Shuhan had lived in long ago. Although it was not occupied, it was regularly cleaned and remained tidy.
"Auntie, this is Shu Han's room; you can stay here for now."
"You say this is Shu Han's room?" Xu Ruyun exclaimed. The meticulous cleanliness was surprising, especially considering that Liu Shuhan was someone who often couldn't be bothered to make her bed.
Cheng Qiuyi thought Xu Ruyun had noticed something and felt a bit flustered. "Yes, what's wrong?"
Xu Ruyun was almost moved to tears. "It's nothing; I just didn't expect Shu Han to have such a clean room. Qiu Yi, thank you!"
Cheng Qiuyi was stunned to find herself at a loss for words twice in one day due to the same person. Liu Shuhan's mother truly was an extraordinary woman.
In the evening, Xu Ruyun insisted on cooking dinner for Cheng Qiuyi and Liu Shuhan to let them taste her culinary skills. Cheng Qiuyi had originally made reservations at a hotel and planned to eat out, but after trying for a long time to dissuade her, she finally gave in.
Liu Shuhan returned from work without knowing what was going on. As soon as she entered the door, she hung around Cheng Qiuyi's neck and kissed her cheek. "Qiu Yi, I'm back!"
Xu Ruyun was in the kitchen cooking and hurried out upon hearing her daughter's voice. She saw Liu Shuhan tiptoeing and leaning against Cheng Qiuyi, wrapping her arms around her neck and smiling playfully. Xu Ruyun couldn't quite describe her feelings; it just felt unusual.
Liu Shuhan looked at Xu Ruyun coming out with a spatula, startled and jumping away from Cheng Qiuyi's embrace. "Mom? You... you’re here..." She desperately signaled to Cheng Qiuyi, why didn’t you remind me that my mom was coming!
Cheng Qiuyi touched her face where Liu Shuhan had left saliva and smiled wryly. I wanted to notify you, but who knew your mouth was so quick?
She joked half-seriously, "Auntie, look how naughty Shu Han is! After opening the Courier box with dirty hands, she wiped them on my face, leaving me all dusty!"
Xu Ruyun thought she was being overly sensitive and laughed, waving the spatula to threaten Liu Shuhan. "You little rascal only knows how to bully others. Go wash your hands!"
Liu Shuhan ran into the bathroom with relief, hearing Xu Ruyun call out loudly from outside, "I made your favorite spicy chicken feet. Should I add chili?"
"Don't add it! I don't eat spicy food!"
Xu Ruyun muttered as she went into the kitchen, "Strange, weren't you the one who loved spicy food the most before?"
Cheng Qiuyi awkwardly touched her nose, pretending to know nothing. The one who didn’t eat spicy food seemed to be herself...
After taking a shower in the evening, Liu Shuhan naturally headed towards the master bedroom. Xu Ruyun was watching a drama and looked at her strangely. "Where are you going?"
"To sleep," Liu Shuhan replied, confused. After being cautious all night, sleeping surely wouldn’t be a mistake?
Xu Ruyun pointed to the guest room. "Isn't your room over there?" Seeing Liu Shuhan so familiar with it, it seemed like that room was her bedroom.
"Ah... this... that room..." Liu Shuhan panicked, spinning in circles. How could she have overlooked this in all her calculations?
Cheng Qiuyi took Liu Shuhan's words to save the situation: "That room is indeed Shu Han's, but the bed in that room is small and can't fit two people. My bed is big enough for Shu Han to sleep in my room."
"Exactly! Mom, it's getting late, and I have to work tomorrow. I'm going to sleep now," Liu Shuhan yawned, pretending to be tired as she walked into the room. She sighed in relief only after closing the door; her mother was too hard to fool.
It wasn't until Cheng Qiuyi finished watching TV with Xu Ruyun and returned to her room that Liu Shuhan nervously asked, "So, did my mom notice anything?"
"No, don't overthink it," Cheng Qiuyi said as she pulled back the covers and got into bed. Spending the day with the old lady was more exhausting than arguing at the negotiation table.
Usually, after getting into bed, Cheng Qiuyi would cuddle with Liu Shuhan for a while. Even if they didn't do anything, they would at least tease each other first. But today, she lay down properly as soon as she got into bed, which made Liu Shuhan feel a bit unaccustomed.
"Hey, you're just going to sleep like this?" Liu Shuhan kicked Cheng Qiuyi under the covers.
Cheng Qiuyi opened her eyes and propped herself up on her hand with a half-smile, "What else should I do?"
"It's a dark and windy night, sister. Aren't you going to... do something?"
Cheng Qiuyi tapped on the wall next to the headboard. "Your mother is right across from us; are you sure about this?"
"Forget it..." Liu Shuhan gave in, pulling the covers over her head in defeat. "I'm going to sleep!"
Oh my mother, disturbing a daughter's happy life is inhumane!
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