Chapter 422: Office Chit-Chat – Daily Gossip in the Sickly Aunt’s Courtyard

Chapter 422: Office Chitchat – The Frail Young Woman’s Daily Gossip in the Compound

After Auntie Liu achieved her goal, she didn’t cling to Lin Qing anymore, which finally let Lin Qing let out a sigh of relief!

She wasn’t needed anymore afterward, so she found an out-of-the-way corner to stay by herself.

The wedding went off without a hitch, suggesting Auntie Liu’s in-laws weren’t troublesome folks.

Lin Qing got a proper look at the newlyweds this time. At the government canteen that day, she hadn’t seen them clearly, but today she noticed how the bride—being a teacher—radiated warmth even when silent, and her winning smile was truly charming!

Clearly, Secretary Liu hadn’t just grabbed at straws. The man had a good head on his shoulders.

A good wife brings blessings for generations, while a poor marriage choice can curse just as far!

On their way home, Lin Qing and her mother chatted about Auntie Liu.

“Looks like your Auntie Liu really sees you as a good-luck charm, hahaha!” Her mother found it amusing.

Lin Qing made a face. “What nonsense! It’s just her imagination. Things worked out by chance—nothing to do with me!”

Her mother replied, “Well, as long as she believes it, it might as well be true.”

Lin Qing: “…”

“Let’s not talk about this ‘good-luck charm’ business. Old superstitions aren’t allowed these days!”

Her mother quickly toned it down. “Right, right, let’s not mention it again!”

After a pause, she added, “And I’ll make sure others don’t bring it up either.”

Lin Qing: “Tch!” That’s more like it!

But no sooner had they finished this conversation than, upon returning home, Lin Qing’s mother started blabbing about it to her father.

“???” Didn’t we just agree not to talk about it?

Her mother pretended not to notice Lin Qing’s pointed look. She’d stop after today—but the day’s not done yet!

“…”

The next day at work, Lin Qing took up knitting during breaks, just like Sister Liu.

“Oh! You’ve bought the yarn already!” Sister Liu caught sight of the white cashmere yarn in her bag at a glance.

“Mhm.” Lin Qing nodded, winding the yarn around her needles before her fingers flew into action.

Her speed left Sister Liu gaping in amazement.

“Wow, you’re pretty impressive at this!”

Lin Qing looked up and smiled. “It’s nothing special.”

“No wonder you’re so quick with the abacus—turns out you knit just as fast!”

“What’s the connection?” Lin Qing was puzzled.

“She’s saying you’ve got nimble fingers!” Auntie Tang chimed in as she passed by with a freshly filled water bottle.

“Maybe there’s some relation, I don’t know. But none of this is hard.” Knitting was something practically every woman could do, wasn’t it?

"You knit faster than I do," Sister Liu said, shaking her head.

"Maybe just from practice!" Lin Qing didn’t know how else to explain it.

After buying the knitting wool, the conversation shifted to other topics, and Lin Qing listened while eating.

"Hey, you know so-and-so just got married? The groom’s mother brought his older sister and her kid along!"

"What for? I thought the guy was from the countryside?"

"Apparently, they got a small place after marriage, and his mom couldn’t wait to move in!"

"That poor bride! Just married and already saddled with double the mother-in-law trouble!"

"Wait, hold on! The mom’s bad enough, but isn’t it a bit much for the sister to tag along with her kid?"

"Oh, I heard she’s a widow! She and the kid got sent packing back to her family."

"She’s not remarrying?"

"Who knows?"

"Word is she’s got a son. Would her in-laws really let her take him away?"

In everyone’s mind, boys were the family’s bloodline carriers—usually, widows weren’t allowed to take male descendants away. Now that’s fishy!

Lin Qing listened quietly, her needles slowing or speeding up with the twists of the story, though it never stopped.

Mother Jiang, the oldest in the office, had a shadier theory. "Maybe the mother-in-law is real, but the sister? Hard to say!"

"Huh?" The others gasped.

Was there more to this?

"Heh! You city slickers wouldn’t get it. Some rural areas are stuck in the dark ages. Even if they can’t afford to raise a boy, they’d never let their male heir walk away. If the sister brought a son back to her parents, there’s only one likely reason—unless her in-laws are all dead!" Mother Jiang shrugged. "But that’s clearly not the case here. They claim she was booted out—that’s even weirder!"

The others: So?

Mother Jiang suddenly tossed out another shocker. "I’ve heard some places still have *tongyangxi* (child brides)!"

Holy cow, talk about a plot twist!

The quick thinkers caught on instantly.

Lin Qing was so stunned she stopped knitting. "You’re kidding!"

She blinked, exchanging glances with the other women in the office. Whoa, they were all thinking it!

Even the male colleagues in the back were all ears. Listening to the women chat during the lighter workdays always taught them something new!

Today was no exception.

Auntie Tang swallowed hard. "Mother Jiang, are you saying the sister might’ve been a *tongyangxi*?"

Mother Jiang neither nodded nor shook her head. "I didn’t say that. Just a possibility. Plenty of villages still skip marriage certificates!"

Another curveball, just like that!

Who’d touch a rural marriage with a ten-foot pole now?

Here’s the edited translation incorporating all expert suggestions:

It’s not about looking down on country people, but when two sides are truly far apart, it’s like there’s a wall between them—no way to get any news about the other. If anything strange were going on, there’d be no way to find out in time.

After returning home, Lin Qing shared the story with her parents. Surprisingly, the elderly couple showed no shock at all, acting like it was no big deal!

This... this... Guess she was the inexperienced one!

"We’ve seen things like this before!"

"It really happens?" Lin Qing still found it hard to believe.

"What’s the big deal? Bet this kinda thing happens all the time! You just never heard about it before!"

Lin Qing’s face burned with embarrassment.

"But these people are so unethical!"

Her parents laughed. "Since when do people like that have morals?"

Lin Qing: "..." Okay, she’d been way too naive!

Her mother went back to what she’d said before. "I think the senior colleague in your office might be right. It’s not that we’re deliberately painting them in a bad light, but their situation just falls apart if you think about it!

No matter what, that new bride is definitely in for a hard time—suddenly gaining a mother-in-law and a bossy sister-in-law on top of it. Talk about a rough life!" Lin Qing agreed. Whatever the truth might be, it was bound to be tough!