Qin Juan stood up and hugged her, “Tianxue, you will always be my good sister. I will often come back for a short stay with you, just don’t find me annoying then.”
“You’ve said it, so I’m holding you to it,” Wang Tianxue replied.
As they were speaking, a commotion came from outside; the bridal party had arrived.
Jia Liang borrowed a small car, with Houzi as the driver. Also coming along were Lu Dafa, who got along well with Jia Liang, and Su Wensong, who had come specially to attend the wedding.
Seeing Qin Juan dressed up, Jia Liang was visibly astonished.
The corners of his once joyful mouth almost reached his ears, and he looked so silly it was almost unbearable to watch.
The wedding was held at Qin’s Restaurant.
The restaurant was closed for the day, not because there were many guests, but because family should take such liberties.
The entire wedding took place in a joyful and lively atmosphere. Seeing Qin Juan and Jia Liang come together happily made Lin Chuxia and the Qin Family feel relieved.
During the wedding, Lin Chuxia gave them a wedding gift — a set of keys, one large and one small.
These two keys were not new; even the strings on them were worn out.
Jia Liang, upon seeing these keys, froze on the spot.
Lin Chuxia directly handed the keys to him, “I thought about tidying them up, since it’s a gift. But later, I felt you might prefer them as they were, and perhaps Big Sister has some thoughts. I figured it would be best to let you handle it yourselves. An City is our root. Maybe one day, I might want to go back to An City. It wouldn’t do for you not to have a place to stay there.”
Jia Liang finally reacted, hurriedly refusing, “Mr. Lin, this is too valuable. I was foolish back then, trusting the wrong person, and I should bear the consequences myself. I can’t accept this.”
“Who said I’m helping you clean up that mess? You made the mistake; of course, you should take responsibility. This is a wedding gift from me to you, unrelated to anything else, and it’s not just for you.”
She turned to Qin Juan and said, “Big Sister, later take this house deed to the housing authority and change the ownership to your name.”
Qin Juan didn’t understand what Lin Chuxia and Jia Liang were hinting at, but she always listened to her sister-in-law, “Alright, I’ll do it later.”
Old Mrs. Jia also craned her neck over and, upon seeing what Jia Liang was holding, exclaimed, “Isn’t that the key to our house? Didn’t you sell the house and give the keys to them? How come the keys are with you? Did they lose them and you found them? You should return them to the owners, since we know them.”
Jia Liang couldn’t hold back his laughter, “Mom, Mr. Lin bought our house back then, and she’s giving it back to us as a wedding gift for me and Juanzi.”
Old Mrs. Jia’s eyes widened in shock, “Oh my, how can such good things happen? Marrying a wife and getting a house? Liangzi, the wife you married…”
She didn’t know what to say, but she understood clearly. If Jia Liang hadn’t married Qin Juan, even if the house was bought by Mr. Lin, it wouldn’t be given to them so easily.
Jia Liang is working under Lin Chuxia, earning a salary. It’s just as it should be; it’s only right.
Jia Liang doesn’t owe Lin Chuxia anything, and likewise, Lin Chuxia doesn’t owe Jia Liang anything.
If anything, it is they who owe Lin Chuxia, as Jia Liang taking the right path and having his current success is thanks to Lin Chuxia’s support.
The house gift is meant for the sister-in-law; it’s the maternal family’s way of showing support for the bride’s family.
They just didn’t expect Lin Chuxia to be so considerate.
Back when they sold the house, it was out of necessity. Did she regret it? Yes, she truly did.
Living in a rented house was one thing. Even after the son bought a new house recently, in her dreams at night, she still dreamt of the home she had lived in for over thirty years.
She never thought that one day, that home would truly return.
“Liangzi, later you should burn some paper offerings and light incense for your father and ancestors. Meeting Mr. Lin and marrying Juanzi is because of your ancestral blessings, fortune you’ve cultivated over eight generations. Treat Juanzi well in the future, or I’ll be the first to teach you a lesson.”
Jia Liang nodded heavily, assuring everyone, “Don’t worry, Mom. You won’t need to teach me; I’ll take care of it myself.”
………
The night breeze gently swayed the treetops.
The light from inside the house cast flickering shadows in the yard, as if dancing gracefully in the wind.
The guests had long departed, leaving only the family sitting at the dining table for dinner.
Since her husband passed away, Old Mrs. Jia initially ate meals with her son.
At some point, her son stopped coming home for meals even when it was dinnertime.
She used to wait, but gradually she stopped.
Even though her son mended his ways over the past two years, he rarely came home for dinner due to his busy work schedule.
She had gotten used to eating by herself.
At this moment, however, the table was full of people.
Yes, at the square Eight Immortals’ table, each place had a person, making Old Mrs. Jia forget to serve herself any food.
A tender voice chimed in, “Grandma, please have some vegetables.”
Then a chopstick full of vegetables was placed in her bowl.
Old Mrs. Jia looked at the little girl, who was as delicate as a flower bud, and nodded happily, “Yes, Grandma will eat.”
“Mom, would you like some more porridge?”
Qin Juan noticed that Old Mrs. Jia hadn’t moved her chopsticks for a while and, seeing her porridge almost finished, asked with concern.
“Yes, a bit more, please.”
Old Mrs. Jia hurriedly drank the last mouthful of porridge from her bowl.
Jia Liang reached out to take the bowl, but Qin Juan, being closer, picked it up first, “I’ll get some more for Mom. You eat; you didn’t seem to eat much at lunch either.”
Jia Liang felt warmth in his heart, and before he knew it, Qin Juan had already turned around with the bowl to get more porridge.
His mouth unconsciously spread into a grin, and he watched her back for a long time without turning away.
When she came back with the porridge, he was still dazedly staring at her.
Qin Juan felt embarrassed by his gaze and secretly glared at him.
Facing her look, Jia Liang only felt more cheerful instead of embarrassed.
Old Mrs. Jia observed this exchange, and as she accepted the porridge bowl from Qin Juan, she also smiled with joy.
Smiling and smiling, her vision blurred.
She tugged at her sleeve, turned her face to one side, and discreetly wiped her eyes.
Little Ningning, not understanding why the adults were smiling, noticed Old Mrs. Jia’s expression and asked in confusion, “Grandma, why are you crying?”
Old Mrs. Jia quickly replied, “Grandma isn’t crying; Grandma is happy. From now on, Ningning can eat and sleep with Grandma every day, and that makes Grandma happy.”
Little Ningning immediately beamed with joy too, “I also like eating and sleeping with Grandma. Grandma, I’ll be with you every day from now on.”
Ningning knew that after her mom married Uncle Jia, she wouldn’t be able to sleep with her anymore.
But she wasn’t afraid; she was already a big kid and wouldn’t be scared to sleep in her own room.