Reborn in the 1970s — Married a Proud Rough Man

”...” Mrs. Xie thought Qin Xiang was being inconsiderate too, but she couldn’t scold him the way she did Jing Si.

Mr. Xie ached all over. Listening to them, his head—which hadn’t been hurting before—now started to throb as well.

Qin Mei looked at Qin Xiang. She could understand why Jie Jingchen didn’t want their parents to meet, but Qin Xiang was clearly on the same page. ’What on earth are those two thinking?’ she wondered. ’They must have some ulterior motive.’

”So, it’s settled,” Jie Jingchen announced, making the final call.

”Alright, Auntie, Uncle, we won’t disturb your rest any longer,” Qin Xiang agreed, pulling Qin Mei out of the room.

Mrs. Xie was still trying to process what happened. ’Settled what?’ She made to chase after them and ask, but Mr. Xie stopped her.

Mr. Xie coaxed her in a low voice, ”They don’t want our families to meet, so let’s hold off for now. Besides, you’re so busy at the hospital. Do you really think the director will approve a long leave for you?”

Mrs. Xie said nothing. The director certainly wouldn’t approve it. But if she was insistent, and the director refused, she would just find someone to put pressure on him until he had no choice but to grant her the leave.

”Why don’t they want our families to meet?” Mrs. Xie muttered, confused. She could feel that both Qin Xiang and Jing Si were against the idea.

’But why?’

Mrs. Xie couldn’t understand it. She had the Qiao Family backing her; people would kill for a chance to marry into the Qiao Family.

Mr. Xie shook his head. ”I don’t know.”

Mrs. Xie fell silent, a thoughtful expression on her face.

”Stop dwelling on it. You know Jing Si, don’t you? He must have his reasons. That brother-in-law of his is cut from the same cloth. If he isn’t worried, why should we be? In any case, Qin Mei and Jing Si are already legally married,” Mr. Xie said, a little selfishly.

Mrs. Xie shot him an icy glare. ”Would you have the same attitude if this were about Jing Qi?” she asked, her voice dripping with frost.

Knowing he’d said the wrong thing, Mr. Xie rubbed his nose. ”Heh, I was just rambling. Don’t take it to heart. By the way, didn’t Xiao Mei give you a bottle of medicine? Let me have one.”

Mrs. Xie opened the bottle, poured a pill into her palm, and handed it to Mr. Xie. ”Here. I’ll go get you some water.”

Mr. Xie took it. He looked at the small, dark pill in his hand, hesitated for a moment, and then popped it into his mouth. The bitter, herbal taste made his brow furrow slightly, but he swallowed it dry before Mrs. Xie could even get the water.

Seeing this, Mrs. Xie raised an eyebrow. ”Still want that water?”

”No.” Mr. Xie shook his head and closed his eyes.

Mrs. Xie sat on the edge of the bed and tucked the covers around him. Then, she stared blankly at the red envelope in her hand, a storm of complicated emotions swirling within her.

”How many red envelopes did you bring?” Qin Mei couldn’t help but ask Qin Xiang. ”Even Jie Jingchen’s cousin, Xie Anlin, got one.”

”Quite a few,” Qin Xiang said. He mentally reviewed his stash. ’Better to have too many than not enough,’ he thought. ’Xie Anlin was unexpected, though. I was kind of put on the spot with that red envelope.’

”Did Jing Qi get one?” Qin Mei asked.

”He did.” Qin Xiang nodded. ”His was the first one I gave out.”

Qin Mei smiled, satisfied. She only cared about Jing Qi; she couldn’t care less about the others.

”Get some rest. Tomorrow, take Meimei to deposit the money,” Jie Jingchen said, clapping Qin Xiang on the shoulder.

Qin Xiang was speechless. He really wanted to remind Jie Jingchen that this was Shijiu City, not Yangcheng City.

He really was getting sleepy. With a big stretch, Qin Xiang headed for his room.

Qin Mei and Jie Jingchen went into their room. As Jie Jingchen headed to the bathroom to get a bucket, Qin Mei blocked his path at the door. He gazed at her, his lips curving into a soft smile. ”Meimei.”

”Are you and my brother plotting something?” Qin Mei demanded, frowning at Jie Jingchen.

A gentle smile touched Jie Jingchen’s lips and lit up his eyes. ”No.”

”Really?” Qin Mei narrowed her eyes. ’It’s normal for men to have secrets, but I have a feeling this one has something to do with me.’

”Really,” Jie Jingchen said, his expression completely sincere.

”Neither you nor my brother wants our parents to meet. Why is that?” Since he wouldn’t fess up, she decided to ask him point-blank.

Jie Jingchen’s eyes darkened slightly. He set down the bucket, raised a hand to stroke her cheek, and gently pinched the tip of her nose. ”It’s not that we don’t want our parents to meet.”

’He did want their parents to meet, just not at her family’s home. The villagers were terrible gossips, and the fact that this was Qin Mei’s second marriage would surely come out. He needed to talk to Qin Xiang and find the right time to persuade his father-in-law and mother-in-law to do them the honor of visiting Shijiu City.’

Qin Mei huffed, tilting her chin up to stare at Jie Jingchen. ”Do you even believe the words coming out of your own mouth?”

Jie Jingchen watched his own reflection in her eyes. A flicker of a complex emotion crossed his face before he explained in a soft, gentle voice, ”You get motion sickness on the train. I can’t bear to see you suffer.”