"I’m going home to cook, Nian’an, you come with me." Ji Ying looked at the time and decided to head home to prepare dinner. She stared at Xu Nian’an and said, "Tonight, you’ll come to the hospital to take care of Yicheng."
"No need, I can manage on my own." Pei Yicheng declined the kind offer.
"Yicheng, even though your hand wasn’t injured, the doctor said you can’t strain it now!"
Ji Ying wouldn’t take no for an answer and insisted that Xu Nian’an stay overnight at the hospital. Before leaving, Ji Ying even made sure Xu Nian’an asked Pei Yicheng if he needed to use the restroom or anything, so that it wouldn’t be awkward later when only Nianhua was with him.
Xu Qinghe didn’t want to leave, but Ji Ying gave him a sidelong glance and said, "Go home and cook. Xiaohe is alone at home with the child. You should at least help her by holding the baby, give her a break."
Once the family had left, only Xu Nianhua and Pei Yicheng remained in the hospital room.
Xu Nianhua let out a sigh of relief and said incredulously, "I made it past my parents just like that?"
"With a son-in-law as outstanding as me, uncle and auntie are bound to like me." Pei Yicheng said narcissistically, thinking about being with Nianhua openly and keeping her close; he felt exceptionally happy.
Xu Nianhua looked down and chuckled softly, thinking to herself: Mom must be happy, but Dad, not so sure.
Just out of the hospital, Xu Nian’an felt his ear fiercely pinched.
"Ow, ow, ow." Xu Nian’an cried out in pain.
Ji Ying gave his ear a firm tug before letting go and said, "What did you say when you called? Not to tell Nianhua, not to worry her, and yet you not only told her but also brought her home!"
Today’s incident was thankfully resolved, but it had nearly ended with Nianhua getting hurt.
If it weren’t for Pei Yicheng, Nianhua would be lying in the hospital right now.
Xu Nian’an had known he couldn’t escape this; he said with a sense of grievance, "Mom, I kept it from my younger sister all along. Yicheng and I secretly went to the train station and didn’t tell her about it. Who would have thought, my sister was sending Yining off, and she just happened to be there at the right time."
Just thinking about it made Xu Nian’an feel so wronged!
He had clearly kept it a secret from his little sister.
"That much of a coincidence?" Ji Ying looked at Xu Nian’an skeptically.
Xu Nian’an nodded vehemently like pounding garlic. Seeing his mother’s disbelief, the grievance in his heart deepened even more. He said, "Mom, would I lie to you?"
"Nian’an, think about it, we didn’t even file a report, so how did they manage to arrest someone?" Xu Qinghe had been pondering this the whole way home.
Xu Nian’an said uncertainly, "We didn’t report it, but Cheng-ge definitely did. Ling Dong-ge called ahead, they must have caught someone. Unfortunately, they didn’t catch the real culprit."
His words carried a tone of regret; although he had suspicions, without concrete evidence, he didn’t dare to speak a word of it, afraid of saddening his little sister.
"No worries, the truth will come to light one day." Xu Qinghe sighed and said, "Yicheng has been... really good and attentive to our family, especially to Nianhua."
When he left the hospital, he had made a point to ask around, and the nurses had given him a complete account of that harrowing moment.
"Yicheng is truly good. So, since my sister will have to marry someone eventually, it’s better to marry Yicheng than someone unknown," Xu Nian’an declared, firmly standing by Pei Yicheng’s side.
Xu Qinghe gave him a look and said, "You think you have Yicheng all figured out? Hmm, he saves Nianhua once and wants to marry my daughter? It’s not that easy."
Suddenly, he felt a pang of sympathy for Yicheng, having a father-in-law so protective of his daughter meant Yicheng had to keep proving himself.