“…Where did you go? We haven’t finished talking. Zhifan, give your father an honest answer – are you going to marry her or not?” Actually, in the over a year since the Chu family’s downfall, Fang Dahe had urged his son many times to quickly marry Xiangxue and protect her.
But Zhifan always had one excuse or another. Fang Dahe had long suspected his son was having second thoughts, and Chu Yu’s visit today only confirmed his suspicions.
The old father’s questioning didn’t change Fang Zhifan’s expression. Though somewhat annoyed, he maintained his composure: “Dad, don’t overthink it. There’s nothing like that. I will marry Xiangxue.”
Fang Dahe pressed further: “When will you marry? Why do we still have to wait?”
Fang Zhifan picked up his cup and took a sip of the now cold tea before replying unhurriedly: “Xiangxue is different from us. She was raised delicately since childhood, accustomed to fine food and luxurious living. Our families were never well-matched to begin with, so I want to save more money and propose properly when we’re more financially comfortable.”
Having raised the child himself, Fang Dahe understood him well. Though he often couldn’t see through what his son was really thinking, he could tell he was deliberately delaying the marriage. He truly couldn’t understand why – such a good girl: “You… don’t like Xiangxue?”
“I do.” The answer was firm, but Fang Zhifan knew very well that what he liked more was the Chu family’s money.
If the Chu family hadn’t fallen, he would have married her openly and proudly – after all, Xiangxue was not only beautiful but also easy to control.
Unfortunately, there were no “ifs” in this world.
Of course, Fang Zhifan knew even better that if the Chu family hadn’t fallen, such a young lady would never have married into a family like his.
The only reason he was still stringing Xiangxue along now was for the Chu family’s hidden private assets.
But whether the girl genuinely didn’t know or was just being cautious, no matter how he tried to probe indirectly, he hadn’t been able to uncover anything.
He had also secretly investigated the Chu family’s former properties, but found nothing there either.
To be honest, after more than a year of this, even someone as patient as Fang Zhifan was growing weary.
If not for his shrewd brother-in-law, he would have already used extreme measures against Chu Xiangxue.
Thinking of this, Fang Zhifan unconsciously spun the Double Happiness glass cup in his hand, considering the possibility of bringing Chu Yu down.
With his background, even in the military, he should be walking on thin ice these past couple of years…
Seeing that his son only wanted to brush him off with a few words before sinking back into thought, Fang Dahe felt even more choked up inside.
He didn’t understand why his son, who had been so sensible since childhood, was becoming more and more corrupted as he grew older?
How could someone… be so conscience-less?
“If you really don’t want to marry Xiangxue, I’ll go kneel at their doorstep and apologize.” Fang Dahe knew his own limitations. If Zhifan truly had no intention of marrying Xiangxue, forcing it would be useless. Why delay such a good girl?
So at this moment, he completely lost the energy to argue with his son. He simply stood up and staggered toward the inner room.
Fang Zhifan hurried to support him, his handsome face full of helplessness: “Dad, I told you, don’t overthink it.”
“I don’t need you.” Fang Dahe pushed his son away, wiped his tears sadly, then slammed the door shut with a “Bang!”
This time, Fang Zhifan didn’t follow. He stood frowning for a while before turning around, pushing open the main door, and walking a circle around their house.
After confirming once more that no one was around, he finally let his guard down completely.
June brought frequent rains.
The long-washed dark tiles exuded a coolness, with slippery moss growing in the cracks.
Lying on them was not only uncomfortable but also somewhat grimy.
Yet Chu Yu didn’t mind. Motionless, he pressed his ear tightly against the overlapping tiles, carefully listening for any movement inside the house.
Only half an hour after the Fang family had turned off their lights, certain that Fang Zhifan wouldn’t be coming out again, did he quietly climb down from the roof.
The distance between the two houses wasn’t far. In the darkness, Chu Yu walked for just ten minutes before returning to the Chu residence.
Not wanting anyone to discover he had just returned, he scaled the wall to enter the courtyard.
Inside, Chu Xiangxue, who had been waiting in the living room, came out at the sound. But as soon as she saw the dirt on her older brother’s clothes, her smile vanished: “Why are you back so late… Did you fall, Brother? Isn’t it raining outside anymore?”
Chu Yu looked down at himself. In the pitch dark earlier, he hadn’t noticed, but now he saw several patches of moss staining his clothes. He stepped back into the courtyard: “I didn’t fall. It’s from climbing the wall. Get me a towel.”
“Why climb the wall when there’s a perfectly good door? What’s wrong with you?” Chu Xiangxue quickly fetched a towel full of holes, handing it to her brother while muttering under her breath.
Ignoring his sister, Chu Yu took the towel and wiped himself down thoroughly.
Once he had brushed off most of the dirt, still in his pants, he stood in the courtyard and took a quick rinse.
After cleaning up and changing, he didn’t hurry back to his bedroom. Instead, he squatted by the water basin and began scrubbing his dirty clothes.
Just then, Chu Xiangxue emerged from her room, holding a half-empty bottle of medicated oil she had managed to find: “Weren’t you at Zhifan’s house? Why didn’t they light any mosquito coils? Your arms are covered in bites.”
“Leave it on the table for now.” After lying on the roof for nearly two hours, it wasn’t just his arms—his back was probably covered in bites too. But Chu Yu didn’t want to elaborate.
“You’re so patient. Doesn’t it itch?” Placing the medicated oil on the table, Xiangxue pulled over a small stool and sat beside her brother, resting her chin in her hands as she asked curiously: “Brother, what did you talk about at the Fang house? Why were you there so long?”
At this, Chu Yu paused his scrubbing and countered: “It’s midnight. Aren’t you tired?”
“I was tired earlier, but not anymore.”
“Aren’t you afraid of getting bitten by mosquitoes?”
She was actually quite afraid—Xiangxue hated itching. But she had a feeling her brother was hiding something, something about Zhifan, so after hesitating for a few seconds, she got up and ran back inside.
In less than half a minute, she returned to the courtyard at a jog, this time carrying a banana leaf fan, which she waved back and forth to keep the mosquitoes at bay.
Seeing that his sister was even driving away the mosquitoes around him, Chu Yu, who hadn’t intended to keep it a secret but hadn’t found the right words, decided to be direct: “Do you like Fang Zhifan?”
Although she had guessed the topic might revolve around Zhifan, Xiangxue hadn’t expected her brother to be so blunt. A little embarrassed, she thought carefully before replying: “At first, I didn’t like him. After all, we weren’t close before the engagement. But later, he started picking me up and dropping me off from work, and he’d comfort me… I suppose I like him a little?”
Chu Yu was surprised: “Just a little?”
Xiangxue thought again, then nodded: “Anyway, I don’t have that feeling described in novels—blushing and heart-pounding when I see someone I like. But Zhifan is gentle and considerate. Anyone would grow to like him after spending time with him.”
Chu Yu stopped scrubbing and turned to glare at his sister. “When did you read that novel? Don’t you know those kinds of books are forbidden now?”
“Not now!” Chu Xiangxue quickly waved her hands.
Chu Yu maintained his stern expression as he pressed further. “Then when was it?”
Xiangxue didn’t really want to answer, but she was somewhat afraid of her brother’s stern face. She could only hang her head, swatting at mosquitoes in frustration while mumbling dejectedly: “In high school, about seven or eight years ago when the restrictions weren’t as strict as now. Many classmates in our class read them, not just me.” So don’t scold me.
Chu Yu seemed oblivious to his sister’s implied plea, his curiosity piqued instead. “Did Gu Tongzhi read them too?”
“Of course! We were close…” Only after blurting this out did Xiangxue realize she had betrayed her good friend and future sister-in-law. She immediately straightened up: “Yes, I read them with Sister-in-law! Would you dare scold her?”
“…” Stunned by the term “Sister-in-law,” Chu Yu glared at his sister even more speechlessly. “What nonsense are you spouting?”
With her future sister-in-law as backup, it was now Xiangxue’s turn to roll her eyes. “Aren’t you officially dating? What’s wrong with me calling her Sister-in-law? Only an old fuddy-duddy like you would call your partner ‘Comrade’…”
Chu Yu couldn’t be bothered with his sister’s unreasonable pestering and steered the conversation back. “Brother thinks Fang Zhifan isn’t a good person and wants to call off your engagement. What do you think?”
“Call… call off the engagement?” Xiangxue was genuinely shocked. She forgot about the mosquitoes, remaining dazed for quite some time until a mosquito bite snapped her back to reality. After slapping and shooing them away for a while, she stammered: “Why? Isn’t Zhifan-ge quite good?”
Hearing the reluctance in his sister’s voice, Chu Yu felt pained that she had met the wrong person. But since prolonged pain was worse than short-term pain, and given his limited time, he had to act decisively. “I’ve always thought he was scheming. After returning this time and seeing the neighbor damaging our gate wall and you being insulted, I became even more certain—he definitely doesn’t genuinely want to marry you.”
Xiangxue felt her head buzzing. After a long pause, she stumbled over her words: “Then… then why did you bring so many nice gifts to Zhifan-ge’s house today?”
And she claimed she only liked him a little—the silly girl’s voice was already choked up. Chu Yu felt terrible too, but no matter how bad he felt, he had to speak up.
He scooped up a ladle of water, rinsed the foam from his hands, dried them, then patted his sister’s head comfortingly. “The gifts were for Uncle Fang. Uncle Fang is a good man… I don’t have much time to investigate Fang Zhifan, so I had to actively create an opportunity…”
His visit tonight was ostensibly to strengthen ties, but in reality, it was to inquire about the wedding date. Unsurprisingly, Fang Zhifan found an appropriate excuse to delay.
Though the subsequent eavesdropping didn’t yield definitive answers, Chu Yu had pretty much figured things out.
“…So you mean Zhifan-ge doesn’t want to get married but won’t call off the engagement either? He just wants to find out about our family’s assets through me?” After listening to her brother’s analysis, Xiangxue felt her head hurt even more. That brilliant, gentle, and refined Zhifan-ge—could he really harbor such petty intentions?
Chu Yu narrowed his eyes at his sister. “You don’t believe me?”
The Chu siblings didn’t look alike. Xiangxue had typical almond-shaped eyes, while Chu Yu had phoenix eyes. Whenever he glared at someone with a stern face, he appeared particularly fierce and cold.
Ever since she was little, Chu Xiangxue had been most afraid of her eldest brother looking at her like that. She immediately shrank her neck: “No… I definitely trust you more. After all, you’re family, while I’ve only gotten familiar with Zhifan this past year. I was just… just trying to recall whether he ever tried to pry information from me.”
“He definitely did, but with your brains, if you didn’t notice it then, you probably can’t remember now.” After disdainfully dismissing his sister, Chu Yu added sternly: “As long as he hasn’t found our family’s things, Fang Zhifan won’t stop pestering you. Keep your thoughts well hidden, don’t give yourself away.”
Chu Xiangxue wiped her tears, looking pitiful: “I know, I’m not stupid… Those are meant for Sister-in-law.”
“Keep the portion Dad gave you for yourself… Wait, is it really necessary to cry like this over such a man?” Chu Yu stood up and returned to the room, tossing his sister’s face towel at her irritably.
Chu Xiangxue buried her entire face in the towel, her voice muffled as she retorted: “Can’t I cry about my own foolishness?” Even now, she couldn’t recall when she had been probed.
“At least you understand what’s important.” Chu Yu offered this perfunctory praise before revealing his plan: “I’ve discussed with your sister-in-… ahem…”
He nearly got led astray by the silly girl. Successfully shifting the blame to his sister in his mind, Battalion Commander Chu continued: “Comrade Gu and I have agreed that after we get our marriage certificate, we’ll take you with us to accompany the military. In September, we’ll apply to be stationed at the troop closest to our parents’ farm.”
Upon hearing this, Chu Xiangxue completely forgot her heartbreak sorrow, her attention wholly immersed in the joy of soon seeing her parents: “You can really take me along?”
Seeing his sister finally smile, Chu Yu breathed a sigh of relief: “Mm, it was actually Comrade Gu who suggested it first.”
“I always knew Fang Bai was the best…” Chu Xiangxue touched her face emotionally, then soon opened her swollen eyes to look at her eldest brother, asking anxiously: “…Will the neighborhood office agree to this?”