"But by doing this, doesn’t it make Qiaoqiao hate my family even more?"
"How was I supposed to know she’d react so strongly?"
"You really are good for nothing but screwing things up. How am I supposed to clean up this mess now?"
"How is it a mess? I just told some hard truths, is that really necessary?"
Ning Lingyu was furious. She knew after today’s incident instigated by Jiaming, everyone at home would definitely think she was behind it, especially her second aunt, who doted on Luo Qiao so much, treating her like a real daughter. She guessed her second aunt must have a big problem with her now.
There was no need to mention how close the grandpa and the third uncle and aunt felt towards Luo Qiao. What was she supposed to do?
What Yuan Jiaming had done this time, it was really going to be the death of her.
********
Lu Yichen drove away from the Yuan Family, and seeing that it was almost time for dinner, he went straight to Old Mo’s.
After ordering the meal, he took Luo Qiao’s hand: "Wife, don’t be angry. It’s not worth it."
Luo Qiao nodded slightly: "Yeah, I know."
Luo Qiao, seeing the children all looking at her, held Lu Yichen’s hand back and smiled softly at the children: "I’m fine, don’t worry. After we eat, let’s go play with your cousins."
Yanyan and Yueyue started laughing: "That’s great."
Lu Yichen, seeing a smile on his wife’s face, was finally reassured, but deep down he noted Yuan Jiaming’s behavior; he really didn’t expect Yuan Jiaming to be such an imbecile.
When they arrived at the Luo Family’s, some of the Luo brothers were playing cards at home. Seeing Luo Qiao’s family return, they put away the cards and came over to talk.
Luo Xuyuan asked, "Weren’t you visiting the Yuan Family today?"
Yanyan blurted out, "That Uncle Jiaming said bad things about mom, he’s a bad person."
Luo Qiao frowned: "Yanyan, no talking nonsense."
Upon hearing her mother’s words, Yanyan retorted, "I’m not talking nonsense, if you don’t believe me, ask dad."
Luo Xuyuan looked at Lu Yichen: "What exactly happened?"
Lu Yichen recounted the day’s events, and Luo Siyuan couldn’t hold back: "Has Yuan Jiaming lost his mind?"
Luo Xuyuan kept his opinion to himself but mentally blamed Ning Lingyu, thinking that he originally viewed his cousin as good, but he hadn’t expected her to learn to scheme as well.
Luo Xuyan spoke up, "Our uncle really went too far, I suppose he hasn’t stopped feeding her his nonsense."
The Luo’s Elderly Couple also looked displeased: "The audacity of him as an uncle is too much, isn’t it over already?"
Luo Qiao patted her grandma’s shoulder: "Okay, let’s all stop being angry. We’re only guessing the specifics behind this, but in any case, as for Uncle’s side, I will keep to the principle of staying as far away as possible. I don’t want any more interactions.
It’s truly vexing, just as grandma said, it’s endless. I loathe those who try to control others under the guise of their best interests. As for what you all decide to do, I don’t want to interfere, just don’t drag me into anything further."
Luo Xuyuan gently tapped Luo Qiao’s forehead: "What are you talking about? Didn’t we agree to stick together through thick and thin? What kind of talk is that now?
Besides, we’ve already told uncle clearly before that we won’t meddle in their affairs anymore after the first and second incidents."
What he didn’t voice was that the said woman now has a husband, stepsons and stepdaughters, she’s married into another family, and it’s unreasonable to still expect them to intervene. Uncle’s repeated actions meant they had done every bit they could.
The siblings reached a consensus and thus put the matter out of their minds.
Everyone suggested having hotpot for dinner, so the women started busying themselves in the kitchen.
Xiao Ya whispered to Luo Qiao, "Qiaoqiao, I think Yuan Jiaming dared to say what he did today because of your cousin. It’s likely she might come to you, so be mentally prepared."
Luo Qiao nodded: "Got it, second sister-in-law."
The two had just finished speaking when Luo Qiao was about to call someone to help slice the lamb into thin slices, the phone in the living room rang.
The call was answered by grandpa, but once he recognized who it was, his expression changed. Still, he called out: "Qiaoqiao, it’s for you."
Luo Qiao walked over: "Hello?"
"Qiaoqiao, it’s me."
"Oh, I recognize your voice. What do you want?"
"Qiaoqiao, don’t take to heart what Jiaming said this morning. Also, it really wasn’t my intention. I admit, I did bring up these topics in front of Jiaming before, but I never told him to do that."
"Cousin, if it’s about this, then there’s no need to continue. I’m not taking it to heart. We’re getting dinner ready at home, I’ll hang up now if there’s nothing else."
Luo Qiao didn’t give Ning Lingyu the chance to speak further and hung up the phone.
She was in no mood to listen to her excuses. After all, her cousin did admit to having brought those topics up in front of Jiaming. When it comes to family closeness or distance, it’s clear as day when troubles arise.