Chapter 1344: Phone Call
"Xing Xiangzhang, I need to call my big brother."
Li Yunqiao received a call from his second brother, "I know, Xue already called me."
"Big brother, Xiao Wei said he will set off back in a month. He’ll definitely be back in two months."
"Hmm, okay, I got it."
Li Yunqiao was also particularly happy. This morning, he noticed his wife vomiting, and it’s been calculated that it’s been two months since her last period, so she is pregnant again.
He didn’t mind, but seeing his wife so happy, he was also in a particularly good mood. However, this happy news wasn’t something he could easily share with his brother. He still felt a bit embarrassed about it.
Li Yungui was happy to return home, and the first thing he did was to tell his wife the news about Li Xue being pregnant.
Qu Xiaoli wasn’t as happy as Li Yungui, mainly because she was worried about Li Xue being so young.
"Mom, don’t worry, with Teacher Jiang and the others around, they’ve definitely already checked on Xue."
Wang Menglin sighed here; now her cousin would be unhappy for a long time again. This unrequited love is really harmful. This Lv Guodong is truly her cousin’s doom.
"Well, it can only be like this. I still have to quickly prepare the things the child will need, while things are not busy yet, get everything ready so as not to be flustered at that time."
Wang Menglin saw that her mother-in-law was no longer worried, so she was relieved.
In the afternoon, Tao Yanzhen came over and saw Qu Xiaoli making a baby wrap on the kang.
"Aunt, didn’t you already make the baby wrap?"
"Yes, Xue’er is pregnant too. Now that I have nothing to do, I hurried to make it."
Actually, Tao Yanzhen had long thought of this possibility, but hearing it for real still made her heart ache. So the smile on her face was very unnatural.
Wang Menglin had been paying attention to her cousin and immediately changed the topic, pulling Wang Menglin onto the kang.
"Aunt, cousin, I’ll head back first; I suddenly remembered I didn’t put coal in the stove."
Wang Menglin watched her cousin flee in a panic, feeling pained in her heart. But this is her own choice. She thought that she had let it go, but actually, she hadn’t at all. Why put herself through this? She’s just tormenting herself.
Later, when they meet, it’ll be even more uncomfortable.
"Mom, I’ll go and check."
Qu Xiaoli was focused entirely on her tasks and didn’t notice.
"Be careful. No, I’ll take you there."
"Mom, there’s no need. There’s no snow on the road between our two houses, and I’m not going anywhere else. Don’t worry."
The younger brothers made sure all the snow on the road between the two houses was completely cleared for safety.
Wang Menglin reached the doorstep, knocked for a while before her cousin came to open the door.
"Cousin."
Wang Menglin took Tao Yanzhen’s hand, and the two entered the yard.
Only in front of her cousin did Tao Yanzhen show her vulnerability and pain.
As she looked at the crying young girl, Wang Menglin pulled her inside.
"Xiao Zhen, let it all out and cry your heart out, but once you’re done crying, it’ll all be over."
She hugged her younger cousin who was sobbing uncontrollably, feeling distressed. To love and not be able to embrace it, that is the most painful thing in life.
After her cousin gradually calmed down, "Xiao Zhen, you should hurry up and settle down. Once you have your own family, your mind won’t dwell on this."
"You’ve seen my situation, too. You know I didn’t have any feelings for Li Manjiang at first, but after being together, I now find myself thinking of him from time to time.
"So I think this is the best way to heal."
"Xiao Zhen, don’t be so harsh on yourself. Lv Guodong isn’t all that great. He’s just an ordinary person. Why cling so tightly? What’s the point?
"Xiao Zhen, wake up. Why put yourself through such anguish? He’s not worth it.
"Besides, he’s already married, has kids, and he’s very happy at that.
"Xiao Zhen, let yourself go. It makes my heart ache to see you like this, and your cousin is uneasy. If the family knew our precious one was this harsh on herself, who knows how heartbroken they’d be."
"Cousin, is it really possible?"
"From my experience, yes. Once we women have a family, we retract all our emotions and focus solely on it."
Though, in truth, Tao Yanzhen didn’t really believe it. She was a very rational person. Just the fact that she could be so hung up on Lv Guodong baffled her.
Her cousin made it sound easy. Maybe she could do that, but she herself couldn’t.
But maybe she could try. She was really tired of feeling this way. This kind of life was enough, and why did she meet Lv Guodong?
After a good cry, Tao Yanzhen felt somewhat lighter.
The two leaned against each other on the kang. "Cousin, I’ve decided to agree to Grandpa’s proposal. If Yang Zhongyi agrees, then we’ll be together."
"Xiao Zhen, why are you so resistant to Yang Zhongyi?"
Tao Yanzhen smiled, but it was a smile that was harder to look at than tears.
"Cousin, I see Yang Zhongyi as a relatively upright person. I don’t want to hurt him."
This made Wang Menglin fall silent. Her mother was a living example, showing that two people without love wouldn’t find happiness in the end.
"Xiao Zhen, you can try to learn to like him after you’re married.
"Life goes on no matter what, living happily is just a day, don’t put yourself in chains."
"Haha, well, let’s give it a try. When he comes over next time, I’ll talk to him. Actually, I’m being quite despicable, using him in this way.
If we can develop feelings, that would be the best. If not, we’ll both suffer our entire lives."
Wang Menglin didn’t know how to persuade her. She feared her cousin might be in pain for the rest of her life.
"Xiao Zhen."
"It’s okay, cousin. I’ll just give myself a chance.
Besides, Yang Zhongyi might not even agree. He has someone in his heart too, but maybe his family is disagreeable with it.
Actually, this could work for us. At least we wouldn’t be wronging each other; we might even manage a harmonious life together. Don’t worry. I’ll handle it.
"Also, you always have this frown on your face. Don’t make my nephew wear a bitter gourd look in the future."
Wang Menglin gave Tao Yanzhen a light tap. "Xiao Zhen, the family might put interests first, but they will absolutely consider your thoughts."
"Yeah, I know. That’s why I agreed to Grandpa’s proposal. Grandpa must have already investigated Yang Zhongyi, and family would never harm me. So I am willing to listen to their arrangements."
"Good, I believe my sister can handle it."
"Yes, rest assured. When Yang Zhongyi returns, I’ll have a chat with him."
Only then did Wang Menglin feel relieved. Her mood lightened up.
"Xiao Zhen, from my perspective, Lv Guodong is nothing compared to Yang Zhongyi."
"Cousin, there’s no way to compare. Sometimes I just think, am I like Aunt, having such a tumultuous love life? Is it just that we fall for the looks?"