Chapter 120 Younger Brother

Chapter 120: The Younger Brother

"I met Qu Peiyun in college—we were in the same major but different classes."

Song Runing leaned back on the sofa, her eyes lowered as she spoke slowly:

"Back then, I was busy with studies, internships, and work. I only knew of him but never really interacted with him."

"We only started getting to know each other five years after graduation."

"By then, my company was gradually stabilizing, and among my peers, I could be considered a rising star. But I was always too busy with work to think about relationships. My mother kept worrying, saying I was almost thirty and should start considering marriage. I also felt it was time, so I agreed to meet a few dates introduced by people around me."

"None of them clicked."

"Until that year, our college class president organized a reunion. Since our two classes had interacted a lot back then and everyone was quite familiar with each other, Qu Peiyun was there too."

"I went, and that’s when I met him."

"I didn’t know much about him, but I heard from classmates that Qu Peiyun hadn’t changed at all—still as easygoing as he was in college, always smiling and pleasant to be around."

"Hearing that, I glanced at him a couple more times but didn’t pay much attention. Unexpectedly, some time later, a neighbor recommended a blind date to me—and it turned out to be him."

"Honestly, by then, I’d met quite a few men and had lost interest in blind dates. I didn’t even want to go. But when I heard it was him, I became a little curious." She paused, then smiled faintly. "Just like our classmates said, he was easygoing, patient, kind, and thoughtful..."

"I was fairly satisfied after our first meeting. Later, as we saw each other for two months and I learned about his family background, I was even more convinced."

"After that, I asked him if he’d be willing to move in with my mother after marriage and have our children take my surname. He thought about it for two days before giving me his answer."

"And so, we got married."

Shen Qingye looked up at her. "So, in your case, love wasn’t the primary factor in your union, was it?"

Song Runing met her gaze and nodded. "No."

Song Runing was a very rational person. She had neither the inclination nor the time for romantic pursuits. To her, marriage wasn’t about finding a lover but a partner to share life with.

"I chose him because he was easygoing, had no strong career ambitions, and was willing to stay home after marriage to take care of my mother and our children."

"I was always buried in work. If I married someone equally busy, what would be the point?"

Lu Yingzhuo nodded. "And after marriage? How was your relationship?"

Song Runing’s voice grew detached. "In the early days of our marriage... I wouldn’t call it lovey-dovey, but at the very least, it was warm and harmonious."

"After we had a child, he worked hard to be a good husband and father—tolerating my busy schedule, taking excellent care of Jing Jing, and keeping our home running smoothly."

"I thought it could stay like that forever..."

Yue Lingchuan caught her drift. "But he changed, didn’t he?"

Song Runing closed her eyes. After a long pause, she let out a weary sigh. "Yes."

"About a year ago, he floated the idea of having another child."

"He said Jing Jing often saw other kids in the neighborhood with younger siblings and envied them—she wanted one too."

"At the time, I was buried in work and had no interest in having another child. I felt Jing Jing was enough, so I shut that down."

"Then... about half a year later, his family had a get-together. His brothers and their families came with their wives and children. They were superficially polite to Qu Peiyun but took digs at him, saying he didn’t even have a son—that when he died, no one would carry his lineage. In Chinese funeral customs, the act of 'smashing the clay pot' refers to a ritual where a designated male relative breaks a clay pot to symbolize carrying on the deceased's legacy."

Song Runing let out a mocking laugh: "Even his own mother wasn’t as warm to him as she was to his brothers."

"After we got back, he finally told me that because we only had Jing Jing, and she was a girl, he had endured years of backhanded remarks from his family... Then he hinted to me, saying Jing Jing was older now and wouldn’t need much fussing over once she started elementary school, so we could have another child... He even said it didn’t matter if it was a boy or a girl, just to give Jing Jing a companion."

"I was livid at the time. First, I’m an only child, and before we got married, I made it clear to him that I would only have one child, regardless of gender, and he agreed. Now he was going back on his word, and his words clearly hinted at wanting a boy—clearly favoring boys. Second, when I was pregnant with Jing Jing, I had severe pregnancy symptoms, and I nearly had a difficult birth, which left me worn out. From then on, I decided I would never have a second child."

"We had a blowout fight, and I told him that no matter what anyone said, Jing Jing would be my only child in this lifetime."

Yue Lingchuan asked, "After that, he changed?"

Song Runing was silent for a moment before shaking her head. "I wouldn’t call it changing."

Shen Qingye looked up, listening as she continued, "At home, everything was the same as usual. He acted no differently than before. But between the two of us, there was this wall now."

"I can’t pinpoint exactly what it was, but it felt like there was something between us now."

"I didn’t understand him, and he probably didn’t understand me either. We just maintained a surface-level harmony, cold and at a standstill."

Shen Qingye asked, "Did you ever think about divorce?"

Song Runing replied, "Not at the time. After all, we’d been married for so many years... Until one night, I came home late after a work event, smelling like a bar. Qu Peiyun helped me clean up and get to bed. Lying there, I was actually touched... But when I got up for water, I overheard Qu Peiyun in our daughter’s room, coaxing Jing Jing to ask for a little brother..."

That night, for a project, she couldn’t remember how much she had drunk, only that her head was pounding when she got home.

Qu Peiyun patiently helped her freshen up and settle in. Groggy and thirsty, Song Runing struggled to get up for water, only to find her husband wasn’t beside her.

Leaving the room, she saw Qu Peiyun comforting their daughter, who had woken up frightened in the middle of the night. Standing at the doorway, Song Runing watched the dim light cast over her small daughter and her patient husband, and her heart melted a little.

She couldn’t help but think that maybe she’d been too hard on him. He had endured so much at home and had only mentioned it once. Maybe she was overthinking things. They couldn’t keep going like this—she would talk to him properly tomorrow...

Her mind raced, but before she could process it all, she suddenly heard her husband speaking to their daughter in his usual gentle, patient tone:

"Don’t be afraid, sweetheart. You have to be brave. Didn’t Mommy say that? Good children are brave."

"You wanted a little brother or sister before, right? Jing Jing, go tell Mommy you want a sibling. Then, in the future, they can sleep with you, okay?"

"...How could Mommy not love you? She loves you so much. When you have a little brother, take good care of him, and when Mommy sees what a smart, reliable big sister you are, she’ll love you even more..."

"You’re the most obedient, aren’t you? Jing Jing, you’re the best child. Daddy loves you the most..."

...

Song Runing’s foggy mind went ice-cold in an instant. Staring at her husband’s sickly sweet smile in the nursery, she felt as if she had fallen into freezing water.

It was then that she realized—perhaps her husband wasn’t the saint he pretended to be. And perhaps... he didn’t truly love Jing Jing.