Zheng Qinglan led Shang Liu Xin to the mall first. He saw a black woolen coat that looked very righteous. It was heavy in his hand and soft and comfortable to touch. Shang Liu Xin tried it on, the size and length were suitable. "How is it?" Shang Liu Xin said with a smile," I don't have anything else to say. It's just that the color is a little darker and a little old-fashioned." However, this woolen coat couldn't be lost after a year or two. It would be worn for a few years or even a decade in the future. It looked old now, but it wouldn't be obvious in the future. Forget it, I'm not picky. I'll take this one." Zheng Qinglan paid and picked out a long and wide velvet scarf for Shang Liu Xin. The waiter said," You guys have good taste. This is an authentic cashmere scarf. It's warm and comfortable. The color is bright red and festive. It's the best for a wedding.”Indeed, the black coat he had just bought was a little dull, but when he wore this red scarf, he suddenly became lively. When they passed by the watch counter, Zheng Qinglan pulled Shang Liu Xin and stopped. There were all kinds of watches in the counter, and the colors were all different. Just the various straps alone were enough to make people love them. Shang Liu Xin said,"I don't want a watch. There's an alarm clock at home and in the office."”The alarm clock could only be placed at home. You couldn't bring the alarm clock with you when you went out. There would be many opportunities outside in the future. It was better to buy one. Moreover, it had sentimental value.”Shang Liu Xin felt that his words made sense, so she agreed. The two of them picked a golden female watch with a calendar. Zheng Qinglan helped Shang Liu Xin put it on and asked,""How is it?" "It's good, but it's too cold." Zheng Qinglan laughed." You'll be fine after wearing it for a while. Why don't I wear it for a while and put it on you when it's warm?"”Shang Liu Xin said,"I'm just casually saying, which one do you want to wear?" Don't just buy it for me, I have to buy it for you.”"I'm not in a hurry. I'll buy yours first. As long as my clothes are new, it'll be fine.”"No, I definitely can't make do with it. Marriage is a lifelong event. It's only once in a lifetime. I have to be careful. Look, I've bought a coat and a scarf. It's time to buy them for you.”"I'm really not in a hurry. If I can't buy it today, it won't be too late for me to buy it when I go to work. You must buy all of them today and bring them back tomorrow morning. Otherwise, how would you have time to come to the city again?”Shang Liu Xin couldn't win against him, so she could only agree. However, she raised a condition, that was to go to the street vendors to see.
It was already the twelfth lunar month, and the streets and alleys were filled with people, some from the city and some from the countryside. The streets and alleys were packed to the brim. There were a lot of things in these streets and alleys. You could find all the daily necessities you could think of here. It was just that some unpopular things would take a little more time. But to be honest, the quality of the things here was not good at all. They could not be compared to the goods in the big shopping malls. Zheng Qinglan carried the clothes she had just bought in one hand and pulled Shang Liu Xin with the other to follow the crowd to look at the stalls. Shang Liu Xin said," You are carrying these things and there are so many people. It is too tiring to squeeze here and there. We will buy them here. Many things are the same. There is no need to run here and there to avoid the trouble."”" There's one more place," Zheng Qinglan said." If there aren't any changes, just buy it."”He then brought Shang Liu Xin to another street. This place was different from the temporary stalls that they had set up earlier. Each merchant had one or two storefronts. Many of the businesses here were wholesale businesses. They were all business owners from the villages and towns below who came here to purchase goods. As the New Year approached, there were a lot of people coming here to stock up. Some bosses were so busy that they hadn't even eaten yet, while others were eating while discussing business with customers. Although there were many people here, it was much quieter than the street stalls. The two of them looked around as they walked. They bought an embroidered cotton jacket, a light pink smock, a pair of fluffy pants, a pair of trousers, two pairs of socks, a pair of red cloth shoes, and a full set of underwear for Shang Liu Xin. They bought a blue tunic suit, a full set of underwear, two pairs of socks, and a pair of brown leather shoes for Zheng Qinglan. Shang Liu Xin saw a cloth seller on the street and said to Zheng Qinglan,""Look, you'll definitely look good in those pants. We'll pull a few feet off and make a pair of pants for you.”She walked over and asked about the price. She felt that it was very suitable. The cloth seller looked at Zheng Qinglan and said,""With your size, 1.2 meters is enough.”After paying for the cloth, the two of them walked back with their bags. There were too many things. Zheng Qinglan was so tired that she was sweating profusely. Shang Liu Xin also said that there were too many things and it was not easy to take them. There were also too many people. They would not even know if they lost them. "Wait here," Zheng Qinglan said."I'll go get the bicycle."”After Zheng Qinglan left, Shang Liu Xin gathered all the bags together and looked at them from the side. Suddenly, a man walked up to her and said,""Why did you buy so many big and small bags? It looks like you're getting married. Why didn't you inform me so that I could congratulate you?”Shang Liu Xin raised her head and saw blood gushing up. Her face turned the color of pig liver and her vision turned black. After a long time, he calmed down and said coldly,"I don't know you. Why are you looking for me?”"I've been with you for a long time." "I don't know you. Why are you following us?”You don't know me, as the saying goes, a day as husband and wife is a hundred days of kindness. We were husband and wife for two to three months, and we even had a child…" Before that shameless man could finish speaking, Shang Liu Xin was already so angry that tears flowed down her face."You beast, you think it's not enough to harm me. You want to harm me again, right? Are you leaving or not? If you don't leave, I'll call for help.”The man said," I know I've let you down. We can't be husband and wife, but we can at least be friends. I actually quite like you and your mother's cooking."”"Who wants you to like me? Get lost, get as far away as you can.”The man still wanted to say something, but when he saw that someone had stopped in front of them, he could only leave resentfully. Shang Liu Xin squatted down, burying her head in her arms, crying bitterly, causing the passersby to look at her.
Zheng Qinglan rode her bike over. He stopped the bike and said to Shang Liu Xin,""Come, let's put the things into two big bags and tie them to the car. If we can't put them in, we'll put them in small bags and hang them on the handles.”Shang Liu Xin acted as if she didn't hear him and didn't even raise her head. Zheng Qinglan said again, but she still didn't move. Zheng Qinglan pulled her up in confusion and asked,""What's wrong?" Shang Liu Xin turned her head to the side, afraid that Zheng Qinglan would see her tear-stained face and red eyes. Zheng Qinglan turned her head and asked in surprise,""What's wrong with you? Did someone bully you? Who was it? I'll go find him." "No, I really didn't." "Then why are you crying so hard?”"I don't know either. I suddenly feel like crying.”"Did you cry when you saw these wedding dresses and thought of your parents?”Shang Liu Xin didn't say yes or no. "You're not marrying to the ends of the earth. It's so close. We can go back and see them at any time. When we have a house in the future, we can often bring them down to play. Don't be sad. It's getting late. Let's go back.”
Shang Liu Xin said,"I'm not going back with you, I want to go home now."”Zheng Qinglan was surprised and asked,""What did you say? I didn't hear you clearly.”Shang Liu Xin emphasized her tone,"I'm not going back with you. I'm going home now.”"What's wrong with you? We talked about it this morning. You're staying overnight in the city today and taking the early bus back to work tomorrow morning. You were fine before I left.”"I don't want to tell you. I just want to go back.”"Look, it's almost dark now. Where are the cars? Even if you have a car, it will be dark for a long time when you get out of the car. How are you going to go back alone?”"I'm not afraid. I'll walk back alone.”"You're not afraid, but I'm afraid. People walk towards the light, but you walk towards the dark. What if something happens?”"It's none of your business." "Anyway, you can't leave." "I want to leave." As he spoke, he really wanted to leave. Zheng Qinglan walked over and stopped her. Shang Liu Xin wanted to pry Zheng Qinglan's hand away, but Zheng Qinglan held it tightly. Seeing that she couldn't break it, Shang Liu Xin didn't do so. She stood there woodenly and didn't say anything.
"Let's go back first. We'll talk about it when we get back.”The night had fallen and the air was cold. Zheng Qinglan helped Shang Liu Xin wrap the scarf around her and tied her clothes into two big bags on the shelf. She hung a few small bags on the handle and said to Shang Liu Xin,"Look, I've given everything to the bicycle. You don't have to take anything. Let's go back.”Shang Liu Xin didn't seem to hear him and didn't move. Zheng Qinglan tugged at her, seemingly very angry." If you keep doing this, I really won't care about you anymore. Do whatever you want."”Shang Liu Xin then followed Zheng Qinglan back. When they passed by a place, Zheng Qinglan told Shang Liu Xin her story with interest.
"When I was eleven or twelve years old, one day, one of the people in our group who drove a big car outside drove home. My dad took me to this city in his car. That time, we stayed in this hostel. After we put away our things, we went out to buy things. At that time, I especially liked reading. When I passed by the Xinhua Bookstore, I went in without telling my father. My dad walked and walked. When he didn't see me, he quickly came back to look for me. At that time, I was in the bookstore. My dad looked for me on the street, but he couldn't find me. He went back to the hostel, but he couldn't find me on the street. After searching for me several times, my father was so anxious that he was about to go crazy. Guess what happened after that?" "Found it." "Wrong, I went back by myself. I bought a book and came out to take a look. It was already dark. This gave me a fright. My heart was pounding. I thought, Where am I going? Fortunately, I stood there and thought for a while before remembering the way I came and returned to the hostel. I remember that when I went back, my dad was telling the waiter that he was going out to look for me. If I went back, he would keep me and never let me go out again. When my dad saw me, he wanted to eat me up. He gritted his teeth and scolded me fiercely. This was my first adventure, and now that I think about it, it's still a little unbelievable. It was the first time I entered the city and the first time I left the adults for such a long time. If I got lost that time, I don't know what would happen now. I don't know how worried my parents and grandmother would be.”
Shang Liu Xin remained silent. Zheng Qinglan was even more surprised. If it was in the past, Shang Liu Xin would reply twice or thrice Zheng Qinglan's words. But now, she had become a pure listener. No, she couldn't even be considered a listener. She could even be considered a deaf mute. How could this not be surprising?
Zheng Qinglan thought as she walked. She went through everything that had happened in the morning and concluded that Shang Liu Xin's emotional change happened in the twenty minutes when he went to get the bicycle. In such a short period of time, something that could make Shang Liu Xin's mood change so drastically was definitely not a small matter. However, they were on the street now, so it wasn't good to ask.
When they arrived at her place, Zheng Qinglan tied up her bicycle and opened the door to let Shang Liuxin in. She said,""Sit down for a while. I'll bring the things in.”Shang Liu Xin went in and sat down on the chair. She then weakly leaned on the table, tears flowing down her face.
Zheng Qinglan came in with some things. Seeing Shang Liu Xin lying on the table, she said,""Don't lie on the table. You might catch a cold.”Putting down the things, he pulled Shang Liu Xin up and used his hand to touch her forehead, asking her,""No, what's wrong with you? Where are you feeling uncomfortable? If you're not feeling well, we'll go and see you now.”"I'm not sick. It's really nothing. Don't ask. Even if you ask, I won't tell you.”"Alright, I won't ask anymore. Let's go eat. After shopping for half a day, I'm really hungry. How about you?”"I'm not hungry." "Even if you're not hungry, you have to eat. It's a long night and it's cold. If you don't eat, the child still needs nutrition.”Shang Liu Xin originally didn't plan to go, but when she heard him mention the child, she stood up with difficulty. "Are you eating dinner or noodles tonight?" Zheng Qinglan asked.”"I don't have an appetite. I don't want to eat anything. You can eat whatever you want.”"You don't have a good appetite. Let's eat noodles." He brought Shang Liu Xin to a shop that he frequented and ordered two bowls of beef noodles. Shang Liu Xin rolled out half of the noodles into Zheng Qinglan's bowl. Afraid that Zheng Qinglan would roll out more for her, she said," I didn't want to eat it at first, but you insisted that I eat it.”Zheng Qinglan didn't say anything. She ate the noodles and went to the street to buy two bags of snacks."You must be hungry at night. If you're hungry, eat some snacks so that you won't wake up in the middle of the night.”
Back in the cottage, the two of them sat quietly for a while. Zheng Qinglan kept thinking, Should I ask her? I didn't ask. It was really uncomfortable to keep it in my heart. I should know why she had such a big reversal. This was both a concern for her and a responsibility for myself. Asking would be troublesome. She might not tell him the truth even if she asked. Even if she told him the truth, it might hurt her and herself. It was better not to know. After thinking about it, he decided to ask, so he asked carefully,"What's wrong with you today?" Shang Liu Xin was a little angry," I told you not to ask, but you insisted. I naturally told you what I could tell you, but what good is it for you to know what you shouldn't.”Zheng Qinglan was also furious." We're getting married and becoming a family now. Shouldn't I care about you?”"I don't need your concern. I'll handle my own matters.”Zheng Qinglan had already guessed what was going on. She couldn't help but feel angry. I've already put myself at risk for her, but she's still like this. How can I accept this?
"I saw a man talking to you from afar. When I was about to arrive, he left. When I came over, I saw you squatting there. Tell me, do you know that man?”Shang Liu Xin appeared somewhat flustered, stuttering,"You're seeing things. There's no man. There are so many men on the street.”There was no need to ask anymore. This was like a louse on a bald man's head. It was obvious that that man had an extraordinary relationship with Shang Liu Xin. Could it be…Zheng Qinglan felt dizzy. He wanted to ask if that man was the one who had hurt her, but he couldn't bring himself to do so. He was afraid of hurting Shang Liu Xin and himself.
Shang Liu Xin opened her mouth and asked Zheng Qinglan,"Qinglan, are you really willing to marry me?”"Of course, we wouldn't have made it this far if we weren't willing.”"Did you marry me because of the pressure of the child? If that's the case, there's no need. I'll give birth to the child and let others say whatever they want.”"What are you talking about? When I was with you, you told me that I might get pregnant. I told you that if we had a child, we would have it. How could I let you have the child alone and raise the child alone? What kind of person do you take me for? I'm not an irresponsible person.”"I'm not a good woman. I'll make you suffer.”"Let bygones be bygones. I won't hold it against you.”
Zheng Qinglan fetched some hot water and the two of them sat on the bed. Shang Liu Xin seemed to be avoiding Zheng Qinglan. As long as Zheng Qinglan was near her, she would shrink back. Zheng Qinglan didn't say anything, but she felt very awkward. She didn't want to touch Shang Liu Xin's body, but she felt that it was too cold, so she tried to get close to her. However, Shang Liu Xin pulled her hands and feet away. The two of them kept their distance and slept for the whole night. That night, neither of them slept much, but in order not to affect each other, they tried their best to endure it. They turned less and sighed less.
The next day, before the sun rose, the two of them got up and washed up. Zheng Qinglan sent Shang Liu Xin to a taxi. Shang Liu Xin wanted to bring back the things she bought for her. Zheng Qinglan said," You still have to walk a long way after you get off the car. It's too inconvenient to bring these things. Leave them with me. I'll bring them back when I go home. I'll bring them to you on the day of the wedding. Anyway, I'll only wear these clothes on the wedding day." Shang Liu Xin agreed. Zheng Qinglan only packed the scarf and shoes together and asked Shang Liu Xin to bring them back. Seeing that it was still early, Zheng Qinglan said,""It's still early. There's still some time before the train leaves. Let's go to the breakfast stall outside and eat something first.”As he spoke, he took Shang Liu Xin's things and put the snacks that he didn't eat last night together, bringing them back for Shang Liu Xin.
It was very cold outside. Zheng Qinglan couldn't help but shiver as soon as she stepped out. Shang Liu Xin couldn't help but stomp her feet. After breakfast, Zheng Qinglan sent Shang Liu Xin to the station and said to her,""It's less than half a month away from our wedding day. The family must be very busy these days. I have to go back and take a look when I have time.”
Luo Tianyin called Zheng Qinglan into her office and signaled for her to close the door. This was an unprecedented action that Zheng Qinglan had never experienced before. Is there something important? Zheng Qinglan felt uneasy.
Zheng Qinglan, you're getting married?"
" Teacher, I…" Zheng Qinglan didn't expect Luo Tianyin to ask her about this. She didn't know how to answer.
"I saw you two yesterday when I was shopping with your master's wife. You bought so many things. You guys have developed quite quickly. It's been less than a month since the last time you took leave for a blind date.”
Zheng Qinglan was even more embarrassed. She felt very uncomfortable sitting there. She stammered for a while before saying,""Teacher, the last time I applied for leave and didn't go for a blind date, I went to see Shang Liu Xin, the one you saw yesterday. Teacher, I'm sorry. I lied to you!”
"I know why you didn't ask me for leave directly. It's because I told you those things in the past. You're afraid that I'll object and not approve your leave, right?”
Zheng Qinglan nodded and said," Yes, teacher. You care about me and think about me. I know that I'm grateful to you from the bottom of my heart. You take care of me like a father.”
"I want to know, why are you so stubborn, insisting on marrying Shang Liu Xin? Do you really love her, do you understand her?”
"Teacher, to tell you the truth, my feelings for her right now can't be considered love. I can't even accept her, but I'm willing to help her walk out of the shadow of the blow. I also hope to cultivate love for her in the future. I know it's a little silly to do this. Outsiders look down on me and say that I'm stupid. I want a woman that others don't want. Sometimes, I also think about what I'm doing and whether it's worth it. To be honest, I'm also very afraid. I don't know if I should move forward or backward, but in the end, I decided to move forward. I want to go as far as I can. I want to go to the end with her. It might not be the best outcome for her. Perhaps she would be better off leaving this place and finding a foreigner. Although I have these thoughts, I still feel that I should help her. As for understanding her, frankly speaking, I've only known her for a month or two, so I don't know her very well. If she is a good person, everything will be good. Even if she has all kinds of shortcomings, I believe that as long as I treat her well, she will treat me well. Teacher, there are all kinds of people in this world. Some people are so selfish and cold, disregarding the life and death of others for their own interests. I despise such people. I am willing to be a person who can bring warmth to others.”
Luo Tianyin's eyes were wet. He looked at Zheng Qinglan gently and said in a trembling voice,""Qinglan, thank you for trusting me and telling me what's on your mind. I hope you can forgive me for being shallow. In the past, I was only thinking from the perspective of personal happiness and advised you not to interact with Shang Liu Xin. I never thought that you were not only thinking from a personal perspective, but also from the perspective of society and humans. Now, I'm not sure if your efforts are meaningful, but your heart and feelings are worthy of our admiration.”
"Teacher, you flatter me. I'm just a small figure. My actions won't have any impact on this society. I don't even know if I can persist.”
"Qinglan, don't say that. I think it's already quite amazing that you can think like this. You're using your personal sacrifice to summon the conscience of society, not to mention that you're already doing it. Indeed, this society needs a conscience and real people. Animals like us, who are called humans, should also have a 'human' life and not just stay at the animal stage. We have to distinguish between real human nature and real bestial nature. Thank you for teaching me a lesson. At one point, I was afraid of the materialistic and carnal desires of society and felt at a loss. Now, I can see the future from your actions. Perhaps, to change the current social situation, it is difficult to eradicate human greed and animal desires. It will take a long time, but as long as we work hard, I believe that there will be a day when we can completely eradicate them. At that time, there would not be so many tragedies in this society. We have a pen in our hands, which is a very good weapon. We can write poems, essays, novels, and reviews. We can use them to awaken people's conscience, replace filth with purity, drive away tears with laughter, and defeat deception with trust. Yes, we should do some work, and we must be able to do some work, which is quite meaningful.”
"However, Qing Lan, not only does this require a great sacrifice, but it will also face a great challenge. First, he had to face the challenges of society. In this society, there were many people who had sexual desires. Needless to say, there were those with bad morals and impure motives. Many cultured and cultured people were also happy to do so. Especially now, some government officials also regarded this as a necessary condition for economic development. They set up red-light districts as a supporting measure to attract investment. If it was just a family behind closed doors, it would be easier to control them. However, now that it involved the overall situation of economic development, it was another matter whether the leaders of some places could think clearly about this problem. Moreover, there was no shortage of people who chased after flies and scums among these politicians. People with low character could easily use the power in their hands to obtain women. This pressure was not small. Second, he had to face the desires of the person himself. Confucius said that sex was the same as food. He placed sexual intercourse on the same level as eating. It was obvious that even the saints knew its importance. Of course, Confucius should be talking about normal and legitimate sexual intercourse here, not selfish, shameless deception and despicable play. However, the problem was that people were easily controlled by their desires. Before they betrayed and realized that this was a lie, no matter if it was a man or a woman, who would think about this matter?”
"Teacher, I didn't think too much. To save this society, I'm afraid my power is too small. I just want to help Shang Liu Xin, to accept her sincerely, to love her, to let her live a happy life, to let her free herself from the shock of being cheated and abandoned.”
Luo Tianyin thought of the opposite side of the matter. If a person did not restrict his actions, even if he had a bad reputation, as long as he was good at acting or pretending, he could still find someone who loved him. He did not even need to say anything. He just dressed himself up as a victim and did not have to worry about finding someone who would give him love out of pity. Although this kind of love might not be perfect, was it fair to the person who gave him love? He was so kind and rational, but the person he got was an incomplete person from body to soul. Was this fair? Wasn't this cruel? However, Luo Tianyin didn't voice out her thoughts. After all, Zheng Qinglan and Shang Liuxin had already reached the stage of marriage. It was meaningless to say these things. He didn't want to give Zheng Qinglan any more blows. Although he didn't know what would happen to Zheng Qinglan, he couldn't say anything about her courage and kindness. Luo Tianyin took out a red packet from the drawer and handed it to Zheng Qinglan.""Qinglan, your master's wife and I were supposed to visit you personally to congratulate you on your wedding, but we've already decided on our schedule a few days ago. Our daughter bought a house in Shen Zhen and asked us to go over to celebrate the New Year.”
Zheng Qinglan waved her hands." Teacher, there's no need. We've received your blessings. We can't accept this red packet."”
"You child, how can your master's wife and I not express our gratitude when you get married? We've always treated you as our son. Come, take it. If you don't take it, it won't be easy for me to report back. Your master's wife will look down on me and say that I can't even send a congratulatory gift.”Zheng Qinglan had no choice but to accept the red packet. Luo Tianyin then said," Do you want to give the studio a breeze so that everyone can come to your house to have a good time? We have ready-made talents in our studio. We have all kinds of people who can play, play, and sing. We also have people who can play movies. Let them prepare two good movies in advance."”
Zheng Qinglan waved her hands anxiously." No, no, no, teacher. Please don't tell anyone about my marriage. I don't want them to know. The conditions in the countryside are poor. I'm afraid that I won't be able to entertain them well and they might gossip."”
"How can it be bad? The conditions now are much better than before. Which family doesn't kill pigs and chickens for a wedding? They also have to hire a special chef to host the wedding banquet. Moreover, your parents are hospitable people. In the past, when we were in such a poor condition, we would always have a full table when we went to your house for dinner. When you get married, they would not be sloppy. Besides, they did not go to your house to support you.”
"No need, no need. There's really no need."
"It's not good for you to get married without anyone at work.”
"I won't argue."
Luo Tianyin seemed to understand what Zheng Qinglan meant. She said,""Alright, fine. You must be very busy that day. If you go, you'll have to divert your attention to entertain them.”He felt another layer of worry in his heart.
This book is provided by FunNovel Novel Book | Fan Fiction Novel [Beautiful Free Novel Book]