Chapter 70: Exhibition

Ji Duo happened to be looking at Lin Qiao, and even with just a quick glance, their eyes met accurately.

However, Lin Qiao quickly looked away and turned her gaze to Xu Li, who was walking over.

Xu Li smiled and chatted with the little old man, “Isn’t my daughter-in-law exhibiting here? I came to take a look.”

“Your daughter-in-law is also exhibiting here?” The little old man was somewhat surprised.

Xu Li nodded with a smile and glanced at Lin Qiao beside her, “This is my daughter-in-law, Lin Qiao.”

She then introduced Lin Qiao, “This is Yan Maoshan, a professor at Qing University’s Chemistry Department.”

Lin Qiao had guessed that the man wouldn’t be as simple as he appeared, but she didn’t expect him to be a professor at Qing University. The fat man was even more surprised. Taking advantage of the distraction, he quickly slipped out of the exhibition area.

Lin Qiao noticed this out of the corner of her eye but didn’t pay attention. She politely greeted the professor, “Hello, Professor Yan. Thank you for earlier.”

“No problem. I think you wouldn’t have suffered a loss even without me.” The professor, dressed like an old farmer, had come to the exhibition without caring about such details and waved his hand dismissively.

After he left, Lin Qiao learned from Xu Li that the professor had taken the college entrance exam several times without success and had once repeated a year in her class.

“If there had been competitions back then, he could have been recommended and saved at least two years.” Xu Li said a few more words with a smile. Seeing Lin Qiao’s expression was fine, she called her son, “Come here.” She gently told Lin Qiao, “Let him watch the booth for a while, and you accompany me for a walk. How about it?”

Faced with firmness, Lin Qiao could be even firmer. But when faced with such gentle negotiation, it was hard for her to say anything harsh.

Moreover, except for keeping things from her, Xu Li had always been good to her. Lin Qiao could guess why she suddenly came back, so she didn’t refuse.

Unexpectedly, after walking a short distance, Xu Li suddenly called out softly, “Qiao Qiao,” and said, “I came back this time specifically to apologize to you.”

Apologize?

Lin Qiao turned her head and met Xu Li’s sincere and gentle eyes.

Seeing her look over, Xu Li nodded to confirm she hadn’t heard wrong, “I came back to apologize. Although we considered many aspects when making this decision, we were afraid of embarrassment, afraid of causing difficulties between you and the eldest son’s family, and afraid that you, a young girl, would come all the way to seek refuge, only to find our family unwilling and spreading rumors about you. Knowing this would make you sad and unable to stay home, we thought since you were going to marry the second son anyway, we wouldn’t tell you. But the whole family knew, and only you were kept in the dark. It was indeed unfair to you.”

Xu Li held her hand, “We underestimated you. Actually, you are a resilient child. If we had told you clearly at the time, you might not have been so upset. But hiding it made you feel like an outsider in the family. Knowing this, you were truly hurt and uncomfortable.”

Perhaps only women in similar situations can truly consider each other’s feelings. No matter how much Ji Duo said, it couldn’t compare to Xu Li’s few words hitting the mark.

Lin Qiao wasn’t so delicate and fragile. Compared to this so-called protection built on lies, she wanted respect. Even if the old couple treated her worse, like Ye Minshu did, she wouldn’t have reacted much when the truth came out, as she never considered them family.

The worst feeling is treating someone as important, only to find out they see you as a toy, a fool.

Lin Qiao was silent for a while and didn’t respond, instead asking, “Did Ji Duo ask you to come back?”

Xu Li sighed inwardly.

Qiao Qiao is a determined child, clear in her likes and dislikes. The old couple had always taken care of her, so she was willing to be filial to them. But similarly, if someone treated her poorly, like the eldest daughter-in-law, she never hesitated to retaliate. Once such a person cools down, winning them back is hard.

Xu Li shook her head, “He only told us that you knew about this. Your father and I felt we were in the wrong, especially your father, who thought it was better to come back and apologize to you.”

They only came to apologize and didn’t mention anything else. It seemed Ji Duo hadn’t told the family about her wanting a divorce. Given his personality, he was unlikely to discuss marital issues with others easily.

Lin Qiao asked about Old Mr. Ji, “What about Dad? Did he come back with you this time?”

“No, his high blood pressure flared up again,” Xu Li said helplessly. “You probably know about what happened during the New Year, right?”

Lin Qiao nodded. When Ji Ze mentioned that he was the one doing business, she understood that Ye Minshu must have found out, which made her sick with anger.

Xu Li sighed, “His blood pressure wasn’t good at that time. Once the matter of the eldest son’s transfer was settled, he finally relaxed. His blood pressure has been high these past few days, so I didn’t want to trouble him. I’ll have to go back after leaving here.”

“Then you should go back early. If it gets worse, come back to Yandu for treatment.”

“I know,” Xu Li nodded. “If you win an award, let us know.”

Lin Qiao agreed and accompanied Xu Li for a while before returning. However, she spoke noticeably less than before.

When they returned to the exhibition area, Ji Duo was still standing there, looking like a leader inspecting the place. But as soon as he saw the two of them, his demeanor inexplicably softened. He first looked at Lin Qiao, who had already lowered her gaze and was talking to Liu Cuiying and Chen Zhaonan. Then he looked at his mother, who gave him a helpless look.

Seeing that even his mother couldn’t help, he rubbed his forehead. He had informed the old couple mainly to see Lin Qiao’s attitude and didn’t expect his mother to solve their marital problems.

Knowing Lin Qiao had no intention of softening, he didn’t dwell on it and asked Lin Qiao, “Is there anything I can do?”

“Dad can’t be left alone. You should take Mom back,” Lin Qiao replied, not ignoring him but clearly trying to send him away.

Ji Duo stood there looking at her for a while. She was busy with this and that, not even glancing up.

Seeing her son’s unhappy face, Xu Li quickly pulled him away, “Alright, stop causing trouble.”

Ji Duo was silent for a while before asking, “What did you say to her?”

“What else could I say? I apologized,” Xu Li looked at him. “Do you think she wants to hear your explanation? Qiao Qiao is so smart. Don’t you think she can guess why the family kept it from her? What are you trying to say with your long explanation? Do you think you’re not at fault and hope she can understand?”

She retorted to her son and then looked at this son, who had been excellent since childhood and rarely faced setbacks, and decided to clarify, “Qiao Qiao doesn’t care about the reason; it’s you and the attitude our family showed by doing this.”

No matter how many reasons there were, they didn’t ask for Lin Qiao’s opinion and decided to hide it from her, which was disrespectful to Lin Qiao.

“Put yourself in Qiao Qiao’s shoes. If you were her and people conspired to hide things from you, could you stand it?”

Before Ji Duo could speak, Xu Li had already answered for him, “With your usual controlling nature, wouldn’t you dig deeper if you caught a hint?”

Ji Duo had nothing to say.

No matter how much he liked to control everything, unexpected events in life, like Shaoping and Shaozhen, like Lin Qiao, always occurred. Whether it was the unexpected marriage or the feelings that developed later, Lin Qiao was a variable that entered his life, one he couldn’t grasp but didn’t want to let go.

Ji Duo was silent for a long time and rarely took the initiative to ask others, “Then, Mom, what should I do?”

Xu Li wasn’t blind and could see a problem between the couple. After all, no matter how the grandparents were, nothing was more heartbreaking than the person beside you.

“Put aside your usual ways and think more from Qiao Qiao’s perspective.” Xu Li understood her son, “Home is a place for feelings. Who wants to hear you give orders and reason at home? Your elder brother may be soft-hearted, but when has your sister-in-law ever been wronged?”

Sometimes, a man being a bit muddled and easy to handle isn’t necessarily a bad thing for a woman. Like Ji Jun, who almost always listened to Ye Minshu. As long as Ye Minshu didn’t cause trouble, no one had to worry about her well-being. But her son was different, too calculating, and liked to hide things, cold and lacking warmth, which made her worry about Qiao Qiao being wronged.

“If I had a daughter and wanted a promising son-in-law, I would choose you. But if I wanted my daughter to live comfortably, I would rather choose your elder brother.”

This was the first time Ji Duo had been told he was not as good as his elder brother, and it was his mother who said it.

He was speechless, but Xu Li spoke from the heart, “Do you think I haven’t felt wronged in all these years with your father? Sometimes, I envy your sister-in-law.”

Ji Duo turned to look at his mother and saw a fleeting look of melancholy on Xu Li’s face.

But it was just a flash, and they had already reached the exhibition’s entrance. Xu Li stopped, “You can leave me here. I can see your mind isn’t with me.”

If it were before, with Ji Duo’s patience, he would have seen her off first. Today, he paused, “Then I’ll go back. I see she doesn’t have enough people.”

“Go, go.” Xu Li saw through him but didn’t say it. She added softly, “Since you’re married, put your heart into it and live well.”

Ji Duo said nothing, but his steps quickened after turning around. Before he reached Lin Qiao’s exhibition area, he saw from a distance that there were many more people in white shirts and blue pants with school badges on their chests—Lin Qiao’s students.

Ji Duo had an excellent memory and recognized several familiar faces. There was Junzi from Captain Liang’s family next door, Li Xiaoqiu from the office, and the troublemaker who called her “teacher’s wife” at the hospital…

Liu Cuiying was also surprised to see her son, “Why are you here?”

“Didn’t Qi Huaiwen say Teacher Lin was at the exhibition? It’s Sunday, so we came to help.” Junzi scratched his head and looked to the side.

The peach-eyed boy he was looking at was standing next to Lin Qiao, listening to her explanation. After hearing it a few times, he almost remembered it.

The other students also had their tasks. There were not only enough people but more than enough, leaving Ji Duo with nothing to do. Lin Qiao was surrounded by a group of young people not much younger than her. Her eyes were bright, her smile radiant, and her witty remarks often elicited laughter—something rarely seen when they were alone.

Ji Duo’s steps unconsciously slowed down and eventually stopped. He suddenly didn’t want to and didn’t dare to, break her good mood.

Lin Qiao didn’t notice the man in the distance. Shortly after a few students arrived, the exhibition’s judging panel came to her booth.

After viewing the projects from the prestigious schools, they came to her small booth from an ordinary, unknown middle school. The contrast was quite stark, but they saw something familiar, “Liquid soap?”

“Yes,” Lin Qiao nodded with a smile. “That row is all liquid cleaners, including hand soap, shampoo, dish soap, and laundry detergent.”

“Such detailed categories?” Someone leaned in for a closer look.

“The ingredients have been adjusted. For example, shampoo and dish soap use different surfactants. Dish soap has stronger cleaning power but is harsher on the skin. Shampoo uses milder ingredients, and hand soap has added antibacterial components…”

At a time when many people still used lye for washing dishes and hair, such detailed categorization was quite advanced. Lin Qiao gave a brief introduction and then shifted the topic to the industrial-strength degreaser.

Hearing it was an industrial-strength degreaser, many in the judging panel became interested. A few students immediately fetched water and the necessary items.

“In addition to the degreaser, I also have laundry powder, soap, and laundry paste for comparison with other degreasers previously purchased. To avoid disputes, I have changed the packaging, but the contents are untouched. You can check.”

“Young and meticulous,” someone whispered from the back.

Comparison is indeed the most direct way to show effectiveness, but it can easily offend others, especially if there are other cleaning product manufacturers present. Since she planned to sell the formula in the future, offending these manufacturers wouldn’t benefit her. By changing the packaging in advance, she avoided this issue. Even if someone familiar with the products could tell, at least she wasn’t directly naming and shaming other products.

“My demonstration uses oils and greases commonly used in dyeing fabrics. Those familiar with the dyeing industry know that oils and greases are widely used in industrial dyeing. Oils protect the fabric, and greases make it easier to dye, resulting in brighter colors…” She explained while interacting with the judging panel, and Liu Cuiying and Chen Zhaonan efficiently handled the demonstration.

Soon, the comparison results were clear. Using Lin Qiao’s degreaser, at least one less wash was needed to clean the oils and greases.

Unknowingly, the judging panel spent a long time at her booth. Only when someone quietly reminded them of the time did they move on to the next booth, still discussing.

Once the people left, Liu Cuiying finally seemed able to breathe, sighing, “Xiao Lin really deserves to be a teacher. If it were me, I wouldn’t even know what to say.”

“Does that mean I can’t cook either?” Lin Qiao joked, taking a sip from her military water bottle.

At this moment, the crowd that had been blocked by the judging panel finally had a chance to approach. Some asked about the degreaser, while others inquired about the liquid cleaners. Before long, Lin Qiao had given out several phone numbers, but since Ji Duo was a soldier, she gave out her unit’s number, not her home number.

After the crowd dispersed, Lin Qiao noticed Ji Duo had returned, carrying two boxes of soda. Some students curiously looked over as he placed the boxes on the ground. Those who knew he was Lin Qiao’s husband, like Junzi, immediately shouted, “Thank you, teacher’s wife!”

His mother promptly smacked him, “Teacher’s wife? Do you know how to address people properly?”

Ji Duo glanced at him and handed him the first bottle of soda.

Junzi was delighted, “See, even Commander Ji doesn’t mind. Besides, it was our Teacher Lin who said it.”

Ji Duo handed out a bottle to everyone, including Liu Cuiying and Chen Zhaonan, and finally gave one to Lin Qiao, “You did a great job.”

If Lin Qiao didn’t accept it, it would expose their marital issues and make everyone uncomfortable.

She took it as usual, “Thank you,” but didn’t drink it. Seeing Junzi gulp it down, she handed her bottle to him, “I don’t like this.”

“Thank you, Teacher Lin,” Junzi said cheerfully, then looked up to find Ji Duo staring at him again.

This time, despite the same look and expression, Junzi felt uneasy. Had he drunk too much cold soda?