Chapter 39: Come Sleep Together!
Gao Ming’s eyelids twitched.
Who exactly was the unlucky one here was still unclear, yet she casually pushed all the blame onto him!?
Left with no choice, he did as she said. After cleaning up the room, Gao Ming also went to take a comfortable hot shower.
Not long later, Lu Shengdong and Qin Yi returned home.
Wet clothes were soaking in a stainless steel basin by the sink, and together with the soaked tractor outside, anyone could guess what the two of them had gone through after seeing the heavy rain earlier.
After thinking things over for an entire night, Lu Shengdong and Qin Yi had finally accepted reality and decided to respect Cheng Fei’s choice.
As they kept telling themselves, compared to life and death, everything else was a small matter.
Besides, Cheng Fei was now a woman. Sooner or later, she would have to face marriage anyway.
Thinking this way felt a bit like fooling themselves, but Lu Shengdong had mostly gotten over the emotional hurdle in his heart. Of course, some awkward feelings still remained.
Even though their first impression of Gao Ming was good, they still did not know him well enough. He still felt somewhat like a stranger. As for whether they would truly accept him as their “son-in-law,” the couple decided to observe him for a few more days.
Cheng Fei often wondered whether Bread had actually been a dog in its previous life.
Other people’s cats were either cold and wild, or spent all day and night running around outside. But whenever guests came over, Bread would run to the door meowing just like someone else’s pet dog. Before Cheng Fei came home, it would even squat by the entrance waiting for her.
This time, after jumping off her lap, it was obviously going to greet Lu Shengdong and Qin Yi.
Dinner was once again a family-style meal full of country flavors, though much richer than yesterday’s spread.
After all, today they had an important guest.
“About yesterday… we didn’t treat you properly.” Lu Shengdong brought out his best alcohol, asked Cheng Fei to pour it, and raised a cup apologetically.
What else could Gao Ming do except raise his own cup as well?
“We really are sorry. Yesterday one thing after another just kept happening. By the way… Xiao Gao also works in Yunzhou?”
After helping carry the last two dishes into the living room, Qin Yi sat down and immediately started asking questions.
“Yes. After graduating, I started my own studio.”
“You became a boss at such a young age. Not bad.” Lu Shengdong sounded approving.
Qin Yi still looked a little confused. “I see celebrities online talking about having their own studios too.”
“Theirs are entertainment companies. Mine is different. I focus on mobile games.”
“The IT industry,” Lu Shengdong said.
“That’s right.”
Qin Yi was already over fifty years old. Like many people her age, she found it harder to understand newer things.
Before retiring because of illness, she often saw younger coworkers in the hospital department addicted to mobile games. Some young people even spent large amounts of money on them.
She knew these things could easily become addictive, but she also understood it was an industry that made huge profits.
Love might be beautiful, but daily life still needed money for food, oil, salt, sauce, and tea.
At the very least, Gao Ming clearly would not struggle financially.
“Being this successful at such a young age must come from a good family upbringing,” Qin Yi said.
With that one sentence, the “background investigation mode” officially began.
Just as Gao Ming had expected earlier, he answered everything calmly and smoothly.
Meanwhile, Cheng Fei sat on the side eating, drinking, and playing with the cat as if the conversation at the table had nothing to do with her at all.
Halfway through the meal, Qin Yi casually started asking about their “love story,” and only then did Cheng Fei finally realize what was happening.
But by then, it was already too late.
As a former head nurse, Qin Yi’s eyes were extremely sharp.
After the satisfying meal ended, they understood Gao Ming a little better.
He came from an educated family and had been the kind of excellent student praised by teachers since childhood.
To put it simply, he was the classic “other people’s child.”
Even though he studied well, he was not stiff or boring. He also had a good business sense and decent social skills.
Most importantly, he treated people well.
That past relationship may once have been a twisted kind of love, but now it seemed to have finally returned to the right path.
After dinner, washing dishes, and chatting for a while, Qin Yi deliberately brought Cheng Fei upstairs and pulled her into the bedroom she shared with Lu Shengdong.
She straightened out the bedding, folded Lu Shengdong’s blanket, and then took out a brand-new quilt.
What was she doing?
Watching this strange series of actions, Cheng Fei’s mind immediately filled with question marks.
“Tonight, mother and daughter will sleep together.”
What?
“You two argued during the day today, right?” Before Cheng Fei could figure out Qin Yi’s purpose, Qin Yi spoke again.
For a moment, Cheng Fei was completely confused.
Then suddenly, a light seemed to shine into her heart.
Oh!
So Qin Yi was talking about what happened at the dinner table earlier!
They were home now, relaxed, and less careful.
While Qin Yi lowered her head to busy herself with the bedding, Cheng Fei could not help glancing toward her own room. Just as she turned back, thinking the timing was perfect, she suddenly saw Qin Yi’s face very close to hers, eyes narrowed slightly.
Cheng Fei nearly jumped in fright.
“You got caught in the rain today. Was that why?”
Cheng Fei forced out a silly smile, but under Qin Yi’s steady gaze, the smile slowly faded.
“I told him there was nothing interesting about farmland, but he insisted on going. Then not long after we arrived, the rain just—”
“People from big cities rarely see these things. It’s natural for him to be curious. You can’t completely blame him for getting caught in the rain,” Qin Yi interrupted.
Since her goal had already been achieved, Cheng Fei wisely stopped there.
“Yes, yes, yes! I was narrow-minded, I was wrong! I promise I won’t lose my temper randomly again.”
After a quick round of surrender, Cheng Fei kicked off her slippers, climbed onto the bed, slipped under the blanket, stretched lazily, and let out a huge yawn.
Her nonstop words left Qin Yi with no chance to interrupt.
Qin Yi shook her head, then calmly took off her clothes right in front of Cheng Fei.
Cheng Fei pressed her lips together and stiffly turned her head back around.
Qin Yi lifted the blanket and patted the spot beside her.
“Come here!”
Cheng Fei’s heart tightened. Before she could move, the blanket was already pulled open and a hand grabbed her shoulder.
With a little force, she was pulled directly into a warm embrace.
In an instant, memories returned from childhood, from the years before she started school.
Back then, Qin Yi used to hold her every night while sleeping.
Later, after she started school, they slept in separate beds like most families. Then eventually she had her own room to help her become more independent.
More than ten years had passed in the blink of an eye. What was once familiar had now become unfamiliar.
But who could say that unfamiliar things could not also be beautiful?
“Mom…”
“What are you thinking about?”
Cheng Fei pressed her lips together, forcing down the emotions that were about to overflow.
“I want to change my name.”
Qin Yi blinked, then laughed softly. “Is there really a need for that? Even if you changed it back on your registration papers, all the neighbors know we only have one son.”
“Then what are we supposed to do in the future? Introduce you two as my godparents in front of people?”
Qin Yi gently touched Cheng Fei’s worried face.
“As long as we understand it in our hearts, that’s enough. Not everything in life can be made perfect.”
Cheng Fei could not argue back, especially while looking into Qin Yi’s gentle eyes.
Since she was already being hugged anyway, she decided to take it one step further.
She wrapped her arms around Qin Yi’s neck and buried her face against Qin Yi’s chest.
The result was that Qin Yi hugged her even tighter, while one hand gently stroked her short hair.
“Hehe, my girl has such a good figure. You’re pressing against me so much I can barely breathe.”
The warm atmosphere instantly broke apart.
Just moments ago everything had felt so touching, but Qin Yi’s honest comment completely destroyed the mood.
“Mom, seriously… hahaha.”
“Hehe, a body is like wealth. If you have something valuable, you need to take care of it. Otherwise, after time wears it down, it loses value.”
Whenever Qin Yi spoke, her words were always easy to understand. Comparing beauty to money sounded a little crude, but it was realistic.
So many women spent their whole lives desperately chasing after that goal. Some reached the finish line successfully, while others became satisfied too early after overcoming only a few obstacles, only to end up back where they started.
In the end, it was all caused by society and those invisible pressures.
Sad and frustrating.
So many people wanted to live as their true selves, yet they were attacked from all sides by things they could neither see nor touch. Eventually they changed, became assimilated, and turned into the kind of person they hated most.
Thinking back to her former self, hadn’t she once been the same?
Shaking her head, Cheng Fei stopped thinking about all those meaningless things and picked up her phone.
“Mom, this time I plan to stay for a few days and properly spend time with you and Dad. Also…”
As she spoke, she turned the phone screen toward Qin Yi.
“The money from before. I’m handing all of it over.”
Qin Yi pressed her lips together, locked the phone screen, and casually tossed the phone behind the pillow.
“I don’t want it. Your father won’t take it either.”
“Then just keep it safe for me, okay?”
“You two are only just starting your life together. There’s still a long road ahead. Xiao Gao is a businessman, and business always carries risks. Keep the money yourself as a backup.”
“Mom!”
“Alright, sleep now. Your father and I spent all day clearing out spoiled vegetables at the supermarket. We still need to open early tomorrow morning.”
Seeing Qin Yi close her eyes, Cheng Fei understood that it meant the conversation was over.
Not daring to touch that dangerous topic again, Cheng Fei helplessly blinked while looking out the window.
The mother and daughter fell asleep while leaning against each other.
Meanwhile, in another room, Gao Ming stared at the sky full of stars that could never be seen in Yunzhou, countless thoughts running through his mind.
…………………
The Next Day.
At the roadside near the street corner, small stools of different colors and sizes surrounded several tables.
Most of the relaxed customers were elderly people, though there were also housewives sitting with children while peacefully enjoying the delicious food by the roadside.
Nearby, fried cakes puffed up inside hot oil until they became golden and fragrant, making people want to bite into them immediately.
Crispy baked flatbread paired perfectly with rich beef soup, just like soy milk and fried dough sticks.
Steamed dumplings covered with sesame sauce and garlic sauce… just imagining it made people drool.
The dazzling variety of food once again triggered Cheng Fei’s inability to decide.
At times like this, letting someone else choose was always the best solution.