Chapter 76 Good Looks

The Zhou family didn't come bothering Lu Yun again. Zhou Yanze must've gone over there to talk to them. Lu Yun didn't ask how he got them to settle down.

Zhou Jun and Sun Chun were getting married, which was the talk of the garment factory. Sun Chun had caused quite a stir working there, and now she was finally tying the knot with Zhou Jun. Instead of feeling for the couple and all they'd been through, folks were more focused on how rocky the mother-in-law/daughter-in-law dynamic was gonna be—and even the daughter-in-law and father-in-law situation looked like it was headed for trouble.

Sister He, who was already a mother-in-law herself, had a lot to say about that. "My daughter-in-law seems sharp, but we're still under the same roof. Before the wedding, I was pretty happy with her, but living together ain't easy. There are little spats here and there—nothing big, but they never get talked about openly!"

Chen Qiao asked, "What kind of conflicts?"

Sister He replied, "You're not married, so you wouldn't understand. Just petty little stuff—nothing major on the surface—but it piles up day after day and makes the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law start getting on each other's nerves. She's my daughter-in-law, sure, but I'm always gonna put my son first. Anything I do for her is really for my son in the end. Sometimes I can't help it—I end up feeling like I'm getting the short end of the stick for my son, but I can't say anything. If I said anything, it'd just start a fight between them, so I keep my mouth shut. Anyway, being a mother-in-law or a daughter-in-law is tough either way. And don't forget—I'm still a daughter-in-law myself, even if I'm a mother-in-law now."

Chen Qiao's head was spinning just listening to all that.

Sister He said, all pleased with herself, "But these days, I barely get involved in their business. I'm too busy knitting sweaters to earn some cash. Sometimes I'm so generous with my daughter-in-law that I can't even believe it myself!"

Since the weather was getting cold, Lu Yun ordered a bunch of sweaters from Sister He on top of stocking up on fall clothes.

Lu Yun and Chen Qiao were always ready to eat. When they arrived at the cafeteria at noon, Lu Yun spotted Pandi at the factory. She hadn't seen that woman in ages. Li Pandi was the one who had previously wanted to partner with Lu Yun in business—Lu Yun had turned her down, so she'd gone to Sister He by herself instead.

Chen Qiao had the scoop on Li Pandi.

Chen Qiao said, "I heard about it when I was out at my stall."

Lu Yun asked, "Didn't you open a store? Why are you still working a stall?"

Chen Qiao replied, "For money, duh! Unless it's freezing or boiling hot, I'm out there! If I'm not at my stall after work, I've got nothing else going on. Before, I could hang out with you, but now your husband's picking you up the second you're off! And you're busy on weekends too!"

Lu Yun said, "Give me a break—we're newlyweds. He's super clingy."

Chen Qiao teased, "I thought you were the clingy one."

Lu Yun thought about it. "I'm pretty clingy too."

After marrying Zhou Yanze, he was clingy, and while Lu Yun wasn't as bad as him, she was pretty attached too. They spent pretty much the whole weekend together. When Lu Yun went to see her parents, Zhou Yanze tagged along. When she went shopping, he came with her. Lu Yun loved it!

She pictured herself picking stuff out while Zhou Yanze carried her bags and paid. When she couldn't pick a color, he'd just buy all of them without a second thought. When they went to her parents' place, he'd drive, and he knew just how to win over her mom and dad. Sometimes when Lu Yun was too lazy to go, Zhou Yanze would be the one to bring it up and offer to go with her.

Lu Yun had a sweet look in her eyes.

Chen Qiao said, "Quit showing off! You wanna hear this or not?"

Lu Yun asked, "Hear what?"

Chen Qiao said, "The dirt on Chen Pandi!"

Lu Yun said, "Tell me!"

Chen Qiao continued, "This Chen Pandi didn't have much money to start with—that's my guess. She started out selling cheap stuff at her stall. Then after she made a bit of money, she started carrying pricier stuff. Seems like things were looking up for her, right?"

Lu Yun asked, "Her name is Li Pandi. Did her family come hitting her up for money?"

Chen Qiao exclaimed, "You're good! That's exactly it. Li Pandi's little brother came around demanding money. At first she gave it to him, but eventually she said no. He took the money she'd saved for restocking, and even brought his girlfriend by to grab stuff from her stall without paying. After a huge fight with her brother, she didn't come to the stall for a few days. When she finally came back, she was quiet and closed off, and she looked skinnier. But her brother never showed up again. I got curious and asked around."

Lu Yun asked, "She cut ties with the Chen family?"

Chen Qiao said, "Yeah, she broke things off. She stopped giving her brother money and moved out of the house. And here's something even more interesting—remember how she approached Sister He alone to propose a partnership? During those days she took off, someone tracked down her supplier and tried to strike a deal with them. When Li Pandi found out, she had a huge blowup with that person! In the end, the supplier took pity on her—she was honest after all—and continued working with her."

The cafeteria served cabbage, vermicelli, and tofu stew for lunch, along with rice and steamed buns. Lu Yun loved it, though she preferred the rice over the buns. This dish was a regular on their cafeteria menu, and it kept getting tastier.

After finishing their meal, Lu Yun and Chen Qiao headed back. As they were coming down the stairs, they ran into Li Pandi. She walked past Lu Yun with her head down, not saying a word. Lu Yun and Chen Qiao paid it no mind, stopped to buy ice cream on the way, and returned to the office.

Lu Yun didn't attend Sun Chun and Zhou Jun's wedding, but Chen Shu did. Chen Shu went specifically to watch them get married—she'd had her eye on those two for a long time. When they saw Chen Shu, they assumed she was there to cause trouble. Zhou Jun pulled Chen Shu aside for a private talk, while Sun Chun sent someone to find Lu Yun, hoping she'd help mediate.

Lu Yun didn't want to go, though she was a bit tempted to witness the drama. In the end, she stayed away out of good sense.

As soon as Zhou Yanze came home, Lu Yun asked, "Do you know how Zhou Jun and Sun Chun's wedding went?"

Zhou Yanze said, "Their wedding?"

Lu Yun said, "Yeah. Chen Shu went. Sun Chun wanted me to help persuade her. I honestly don't know why Sun Chun would come to me—I already turned her down once before. Does she think that since she'd call me 'little aunt,' I might be willing to help this time?"

Zhou Yanze said, "Hold on, let me ask."

He came back quickly. Nothing dramatic had happened at Sun Chun and Zhou Jun's wedding. Chen Shu had genuinely attended and watched the whole thing. After hearing this, Lu Yun could only marvel that Sun Chun and Zhou Jun must have been on edge the entire time, worried Chen Shu might cause a scene. It reminded Lu Yun of her own wedding to Zhou Yanze, when she'd been nervous about the Zhou family causing trouble.

Lu Yun smiled. "What are we having for dinner?"

Zhou Yanze said, "Hot pot."

Lu Yun said, "Hot pot?"

Zhou Yanze said, "It's autumn. Dad said you need to eat this in autumn. Let's go back and have it together."

The two returned to the courtyard compound, strolling leisurely.

Lu Yun's father told her that Han Gang's wife had come back and brought a bunch of gifts for the Han family again. Lu Yun was curious about Han Gang's wife. When Han Gang got married, he'd invited the Lu family. Lu Yun was too busy to attend, but her family had gone. They only said that Han Gang's wife seemed like a woman who wouldn't be easy to push around—she walked with her chin practically in the air.

Lu Yun asked, "When is she heading back?"

Lu's father said, "She doesn't like eating at the Han house. She'll probably leave soon. That's how it is every time she visits."

Lu Yun waited a bit and finally saw Han Gang's wife. Just as her father had described, she clicked along in high heels as she left, with the Han family hovering around her, clearly not wanting the courtyard neighbors to talk to their daughter-in-law.

Lu's father said, "The Han family found themselves a decent daughter-in-law. Even though Han Gang married into her family, she often comes back with him and helps the Hans out. Now the Han family wishes Han Gang could get pregnant and give her a child right away. He can't, of course, but she can—so they're getting anxious. Last time I saw Han's father buying fertility medication. He didn't dare give it to his daughter-in-law, so he's giving it to his own son."

Zhou Yanze said, "I think I've seen her before."

Lu Yun asked, "You have?"

Zhou Yanze said, "Last time, she had a younger man with her."

He didn't specify the nature of the relationship, but it was clear it wasn't simple.

Lu Yun asked, "When was that?"

Zhou Yanze said, "Maybe last week? I was at the housing development, and she was showing a man around the apartments. Later, she made up an excuse and didn't buy."

Lu Yun burst out laughing at the "made up an excuse and didn't buy" part.

Lu Yun and Zhou Yanze headed home together. Lu Yun wanted to buy ice cream again, and Zhou Yanze asked, "Didn't you already have an ice cream today?"

Lu Yun said, "So I can't have another?"

Lu Yun said, "Who says I can't?"

Zhou Yanze said seriously, "Dad said I can't let you eat too much ice cream!"

Lu Yun said, "In that case, next time I'll just eat ice cream at the office and not tell you."

Zhou Yanze: "So we're not having ice cream at home anymore?"

Lu Yun asked, "Didn't you say you can't make that decision?"

Zhou Yanze: "Honey, please, okay?"

Lu Yun blushed, watching Zhou Yanze's face as she listened to his low voice. It was just ice cream—if she couldn't have it, she couldn't have it. It wasn't like she had to have it. She could eat something else. Watermelon was pretty tasty these days too, and she hadn't had any this afternoon.

Lu Yun: "Let's go get a watermelon!"

Zhou Yanze: "Alright, let's go get a watermelon!"

Buying the watermelon brought up another problem—neither of them knew how to pick a good one. They stood at the watermelon stall, and Zhou Yanze looked so professional that Lu Yun felt relieved. Then Zhou Yanze asked her which one she wanted, and Lu Yun realized he didn't know how to pick one either.

Lu Yun: "Let's just pick by looks."

After they got home, Lu Yun started eating the watermelon. Surprisingly, the one they picked by looks was pretty good. Zhou Yanze kept staring at Lu Yun. She took another bite of the watermelon but didn't ask what he wanted to say. Zhou Yanze finally couldn't help asking, "Besides my looks, what else do you like about me?"

Lu Yun: "I like your voice."

Zhou Yanze: "And?"

Lu Yun: "What are you trying to say?"

Zhou Yanze: "I'm going to get old."

Lu Yun: "So what? Even when you're old, you'll still be you."

Zhou Yanze: "I'm going to get ugly."

Lu Yun: "You're my husband. Even if you get ugly, you're still my husband."

Zhou Yanze smiled and sat down next to Lu Yun, eating the watermelon together with her.

Men, so easy to coax!

Author's note:

None