An Nuannuan took a sip of hot water and spoke calmly.
The sentence was a bit awkward, but the meaning was simple.
The better she took care of Yao Mingyue now, the faster Yao Mingyue would recover, and naturally, there would be no excuse for her to stay any longer.
After all, An Nuannuan wasn't very generous, especially when it came to her own territory, concerning phrases like "Xu Musen's girlfriend," "teahouse owner," "mistress of the house," and other critical keywords.
She was uncompromising.
However, Yao Mingyue didn't feel displeased; instead, she found An Nuannuan's jealousy somewhat endearing, making her seem not so perfect after all.
Holding the hot water, she took a sip and a corner of her mouth curved up, her phoenix eyes gleaming with a hint of mischief, ""What if I just refuse to leave?"
An Nuannuan silently put down her cup, her bright eyes clear and profound.
Her gaze slowly drifted to Yao Mingyue's injured right leg.
Suddenly, she stood up and gave Yao Mingyue a "mischievous Samoyed" smile.
"Stay here; I'll go get you something nice…"
With that, An Nuannuan turned and headed for the kitchen.
At that moment, Liu Rushuang and Bai Xin also arrived safely home.
"Now that you're home, you can go back. I'll take good care of her,"
Bai Xin told Xu Musen.
"Okay, thanks Aunt Bai, get some rest early."
Xu Musen nodded. He was worried whether the other two troublemakers at home might end up discussing something inappropriate and start arguing again.
As Bai Xin watched his figure disappear, she finally closed the door.
This young man, barely of age, and already his romantic life is so complicated.
Oh, single life is so much carefree…
Bai Xin filled a cup with hot water, mindful of the person she still had to attend to inside the house.
But as she pushed open the bedroom door, she saw Liu Rushuang, who had just been too drunk to walk, now standing at the floor-to-ceiling window gazing at the lights in the neighboring building.
The lights were in Xu Musen's apartment.
"I was never drunk to begin with."
Bai Xin was at a loss for words.
Liu Rushuang, seeing her best friend's expression, smiled and took the glass of water from her hands.
"Actually, I'm a bit tipsy, but if I don't act a bit drunk, my daughter will still worry about me."
"You, there aren't many who can outsmart you…"
Bai Xin sighed, but she also understood her.
Everyone had been feeling very suppressed lately, and seeing her mother toil away and force a smile daily made Yao Mingyue feel guilty.
At times like these, the drunker and more spirited Liu Rushuang appeared, it meant she was truly letting go of the stress—providing some relief to the children watching.
With flush cheeks, Liu Rushuang took a sip of hot water and quietly gazed toward the light: "Do you think, these three kids living together, will they... eventually really adapt?"
Bai Xin was struggling to follow her train of thought, just two girls and one boy living together... that's not illegal, right?
Of course, this thought made her blush a bit: "This… how would I know, young people's affairs."
"Hehe, Xiao Bai, your thoughts aren't so pure, huh?"
Liu Rushuang took the opportunity to tease her best friend.
"I'm not a kid anymore!"
Bai Xin knew she was being teased and retorted unconvinced.
"Mmm mmm mmm, indeed you aren't little anymore."
Liu Rushuang extended her hand and poked her in the chest.
"Ah..." Bai Xin, blushing, dodged her.
It had always been this way since the past; Liu Rushuang always liked to playfully tease her.
Liu Rushuang smiled, her gaze becoming a bit more complex, "Actually, some things inherently don't have a standard. I loved my husband, and although we couldn't prevent natural and man-made disasters, we still had a daughter, and that is my happiness.
And you, although you never married or had children, have your freedom... You have your own thoughts, living for yourself, that's also your happiness.
In others' eyes, one of us is a widowed single mother, and the other is a rebellious nonconformist.
We both may seem unfortunate, yet only we ourselves truly understand.
So, the definition of happiness isn't really for others to say, if the unfortunate things can't be undone, then cherishing the present is the best form of happiness."
Being not fully satiated is still better than starving to death.
Bai Xin nodded, "I know all this, but... I just worry about shortchanging the children."
"Just like marriage, nowadays, divorces are common, and many people who don't divorce end up in loveless marriages, merely partnering up to pass the days together for a lifetime. What's the point of that? Though my husband passed early, we always loved each other, there were regrets, but no regrets."
Liu Rushuang spoke slowly, the image of Mingyue's father still vivid in her mind even after so many years.
"Just like how some people diligently devote themselves to one job for a lifetime, yet their salaries are barely enough for subsistence. Yet, others are fickle, flitting from one part-time job to another, and in the end, they accumulate great wealth to give their families a good life.
Can you say, this so-called consistency and variety who is right and who is wrong? In the end, it's the outcomes we see. Instead of letting her spend her life with someone she doesn't love, better to let her strongly choose what she wants."
Bai Xin listened silently; she could understand Liu Rushuang's thoughts, indeed, it was out of helplessness.
Whose mother doesn't wish for her daughter to find the best resting place, yet so often, reality is so complicated and intertwined.
"It's just that there will be a lot of criticism from the outside..." Bai Xin sighed, not to mention these relationship issues.
She had just turned thirty and unmarried, and already many people were gossiping behind her back.
"Those so-called laws and morals, they're really just tools for stabilizing society."
Just like when two countries go to war, for the people of the defeated nation, it's a horrendous act of invasion.
Yet for the people of the victorious nation, the fruits of the country's victory bring them better days; this is the reward for their efforts.
So, at the end of the day, it all comes down to perspective.
And my entire perspective is my daughter, as long as she is happy, what others say or think doesn't matter to me.
Perhaps my worldview has issues, but my daughter is my whole world."
Liu Rushuang took a sip of water, watching the light in her daughter's room across the floor; her gaunt cheeks, which now slowly revealed a smile.
Bai Xin silently embraced her.
It took great determination for a mother to speak these words.
"Everything will gradually get better."
Liu Rushuang laughed again, "It's all still early, actually letting Mingyue face some hardships could be good. That girl named Nuannuan is really impressive, her arrival might not be a bad thing, at least she taught Mingyue what it's like to really like someone and might curb some of Mingyue's temperaments..."
Liu Rushuang quietly looked at the warm light next door, also very much looking forward to what her beloved daughter would eventually become.