Chapter 38: Confession

◎ Almost Overheated ◎

Wei’s mother is about to arrive. The problem that Jiang Che and Wei Xuan are facing right now is whether or not to continue the family business.

According to Jiang Che, the business should be paused. Not to mention that this situation is difficult to explain to others, but Wei Xuan is already nearly five months pregnant, and as the months go by, her belly will definitely grow larger, making it harder to do physical work. Even though the work isn’t heavy, it is still quite tedious.

But Wei Xuan disagrees: “I’m really fine. You see, I’m still quite nimble, and I heard that working more will make labor easier. It’s actually resting too much that makes it harder. As for Mom, I’ll handle it. I’ll talk to her, and she definitely won’t say anything about it.”

What Wei Xuan didn’t say is that in a few months, the policy will change, and doing small businesses will be completely legal. She wants to buy a storefront and open her own shop. She has the skills, and her business will definitely thrive.

But opening a shop requires money, and buying property requires money. It’s better to earn more now so there will be more options later.

Jiang Che couldn’t convince Wei Xuan. She was determined to do things her way, and he had no choice but to let her. He took on most of the work himself and tried to let Wei Xuan do less.

The day after the family banquet, Wei’s mother and Wei Xiaolong were sent to the county by Wei’s elder brother to catch the bus to the capital city.

Wei Xuan was worried that Wei Xiaolong and Wei’s mother might get lost in the city for the first time, so she provided not only their home address but also the addresses of Jiang Che’s factory and the supply and marketing cooperative, hoping they could find at least one of them.

Wei Xiaolong and his mother didn’t get lost; instead, they were stunned by the hustle and bustle of the capital. Seeing the road in front of them, which was two or three times larger than the one in the county, and the occasional car with four wheels passing by, they were completely shocked.

The people passing by the roadside were all dressed well, and it was rare to see anyone with clothes patched up.

Wei’s mother pinched the corner of her clothes, lowered her head, glanced at herself, then scanned her son from top to bottom, swallowed, and said to Wei Xiaolong, who was supporting her: “How about we go directly to your sister’s place and wait? She should be getting off work soon.”

Wei Xiaolong squinted and looked up at the sun hanging high in the sky. After a while, he silently nodded.

He knew that his mother was worried about losing face by going to Wei Xuan’s workplace, but this was also Wei Xiaolong’s first time in the capital. Despite looking calm on the surface, he was nervous inside. So, even though he knew that Wei Xuan still had plenty of time before getting off work, he silently agreed with his mother’s suggestion.

Wei Xuan had no idea that her mother and Wei Xiaolong had already arrived in the capital and were waiting outside her door.

She was, as usual, waiting for Jiang Che to pick her up after work. Since her belly started to show around four months, Jiang Che had been worried about her going to and from work alone. Every morning, he would first take her to the supply and marketing cooperative before heading to the factory himself, and in the afternoon, he would do the same—pick her up after work and ride home together.

Wei Xuan waited for about ten minutes before Jiang Che appeared. At this time, there was no sun, and the two of them leisurely rode their bikes, enjoying the cool breeze as they headed home.

Meanwhile, Wei’s mother and Wei Xiaolong had been waiting under the sun since midday until now, with the sun setting behind the mountains. They were nearly overheating from the heat and still hadn’t seen them return.

It was Jiang Che who noticed them first, though at that moment, he didn’t recognize that they were his mother-in-law and brother-in-law.

The main reason was that the two of them now looked a bit disheveled, sitting under a ginkgo tree about five or six meters from his house.

As they got closer, Jiang Che saw them clearly. He stopped the bike and cautiously called out, “Mom, Little Brother?”

Wei Xuan followed Jiang Che’s gaze and immediately recognized them. She quickly got off the bike and walked over briskly.

“Mom, Little Brother, how long have you been here? Why are you sitting here? Didn’t I send you the address of the supply and marketing cooperative? Why didn’t you go there to find me?”

When she got closer, she noticed that both of their faces were sunburned and red. She couldn’t help but ask again, “How long have you been waiting? Why are you so sunburned?”

At this point, Jiang Che had also gotten off the bike and walked over. He first pulled Wei Xuan aside, then bent down to help Wei’s mother stand up.

Wei’s mother stood up and rested for a moment before she felt less dizzy. Wei Xiaolong was in slightly better shape than his mother. He had only eaten a flatbread for lunch and was now both thirsty and hungry.

He licked his lips and asked Wei Xuan, “Sis, do you have any water? I’m really thirsty.”

“Yes, come inside,” she said, leading them toward her house.

As they opened the gate, Wei Xuan and Wei Xiaolong walked ahead, while Jiang Che supported Wei’s mother and followed behind.

After bringing them into the main room, Jiang Che told Wei Xuan to stay and talk to her mother and brother, while he went to the kitchen to get them some water.

Once Jiang Che left, Wei’s mother asked, “Do you two live here alone in this house?”

Seeing that her mother still had the energy to ask such things, Wei Xuan felt a little relieved.

When Jiang Che brought the water, Wei’s mother and Wei Xiaolong drank a glass each to quench their thirst. Jiang Che poured them more and told them to drink slowly.

Wei Xuan was both heartbroken and angry, repeating her earlier questions from the door.

Wei’s mother, a bit guilty, averted her gaze, and Wei Xuan fixed her eyes on Wei Xiaolong.

Wei Xiaolong couldn’t withstand his sister’s stare, and hesitantly explained the situation.

When Wei Xuan heard that they hadn’t eaten lunch, she didn’t have time to scold them. She quickly stood up and went to the kitchen to cook.

Even though Wei’s mother was in poor condition, she still wanted to help. Jiang Che was quick to intervene, reassuring her, “Mom, I’ll help Wei Xuan in the kitchen. You and Little Brother sit here and rest. When you’re done resting, you can help. I won’t stop you.”

Wei Xuan also told Wei Xiaolong, “Watch Mom. Just stay here and sit.”

“Okay, Sis.”

Wei Xuan first made a pot of mung bean soup, then cooled it in the well, planning to serve it to Wei’s mother and Wei Xiaolong to help them cool off from the heat.

She didn’t plan to cook rice tonight, fearing that after being in the heat, Wei’s mother and Wei Xiaolong wouldn’t have much of an appetite. Instead, she decided to make noodles, which would be quick to prepare, allowing them to eat sooner.

For the topping, she stir-fried shredded pork with pickled cabbage and chili—sour and spicy to whet the appetite.

Once the topping was ready, the noodles were also done. Jiang Che served a bowl of noodles, topping it with two spoons of the stir-fried mixture, and took it to the main room.

Wei Xiaolong, drawn by the delicious smell from the kitchen, was already so hungry that his stomach was growling. When he saw Jiang Che bring in the bowl, he quickly stood up to greet him, reaching out to take it.

Jiang Che sidestepped, avoiding his hands. “It’s hot, I can’t switch hands. Sit down, and I’ll bring it to you.”

Wei’s mother, seeing the noodles with meat in the bowl, felt a pang of heartache.

This was fine food, not something to be used so recklessly.

Jiang Che quickly reassured her, “Mom, just eat. If it’s not enough, there’s more in the pot. I’ve already made it, so if you don’t finish, it’ll be wasted.”

Wei’s mother felt this made sense, and she picked up her chopsticks and started eating. The delicious aroma made her realize she was once again hungry, even though she hadn’t felt like eating earlier.

After finishing the meal, the family finally had time to sit down and chat.

“Xiaolong, getting into university is really impressive! I heard that the number of applicants this year was especially high.”

Wei Xiaolong shyly explained, holding his cup of water, “Brother-in-law, it’s not as impressive as you make it sound. The school I got into isn’t that great, so the competition wasn’t as fierce.”

Jiang Che didn’t agree. Although he himself wasn’t good at studying, he admired people who excelled in academics. So, he thought highly of his brother-in-law for getting into university.

“Stop being modest. By the way, do you want anything as a gift for getting into university? Your sister and I want to give you something as a reward.”

Wei Xiaolong felt he had already received a lot of help from his sister. Not to mention the money and the meat coupons, the study materials his sister had sent him were also very important. So, when Jiang Che said this, he instinctively wanted to refuse. He hadn’t yet been able to help his sister, and he didn’t want to let his brother-in-law think of their family as poor relatives who were constantly asking for handouts.

Wei’s mother also tried to decline on behalf of her son: “Xiao Che, you’re too polite. You’ve already sent so much money and meat coupons home for Xiaolong to go to university. How can we let him accept more from you? Besides, Nier’s baby is about to be born, and you and Nier need to save more money for the child. Let’s forget about the gift. Xiaolong will stay here for the next few days. If you really want to do something, take him out to see the sights.”

Jiang Che was about to say more, but Wei Xuan gave him a look, signaling him to stop.

Jiang Che understood his wife’s meaning, and when he spoke again, his words had changed: “Alright, listening to Mom, then I’ll take Xiaolong out after work these next few days. We’ll start by visiting your school; it’s not far from here, only fifteen minutes by bike.”

“Okay, then I’ll thank you in advance, Brother-in-law.”

The group chatted and laughed for over an hour. Considering that Wei’s mother and Wei Xiaolong had traveled all the way here and must be tired, Wei Xuan called Jiang Che to boil some water so they could wash up and go to bed earlier.

There were only two beds in the house, so for the next few days, Jiang Che would have to sleep in the main room with Wei Xiaolong, while Wei’s mother and Wei Xuan would sleep on the heated bed.

Fortunately, the bed Jiang Che had bought wasn’t too small, so two grown men wouldn’t feel cramped sleeping on it.

While Wei Xiaolong was taking a shower, Wei Xuan brought the quilts that had been sun-dried a couple of days ago to the main room and helped them make the bed.

Wei’s mother was also helping her with the bedding. When Wei Xiaolong finished his shower and came out, Wei Xuan told Wei’s mother to go ahead and wash up.

When only Jiang Che and Wei Xuan were left in the room, Jiang Che, holding Wei Xuan, spoke with a pitiful look on his face: “Wife, won’t you be uncomfortable not sleeping with me tonight? I won’t be there to tell you stories and help you and Mom fall asleep. You both need to sleep well and not miss me too much.”

Wei Xuan pushed him away: “Alright, it’s just a few days, and we’ll see each other every day during the day, so what’s there to miss? Go out now, Mom is going to come in soon.” It was so embarrassing seeing Jiang Che cling to her like a koala.

Once she managed to get Jiang Che out of the room, Wei Xuan took out some clothes she’d set aside for her shower.

By the time she finished her shower and lay in bed, it was nearly 9 PM. Normally, she’d be asleep by this time, but tonight was different; there was still one more thing she needed to do.

She needed to explain the business matters to Wei’s mother first, or else it would be difficult to explain if her mother saw her tomorrow morning. So, Wei Xuan forced herself to stay awake and called out, “Mom.”

Wei’s mother had been dozing off, falling asleep when Wei Xuan went to take a shower. When Wei Xuan finished her shower and returned to the room, she had apparently shifted positions and wasn’t used to it, so she woke up when she heard the noise.

If Wei Xuan hadn’t called her, she probably would have fallen back asleep immediately. But hearing Wei Xuan call her, she struggled to open her eyes and mumbled in a groggy voice, “What is it, Nier?”

In the dark, Wei Xuan quickly gathered her thoughts and then explained everything from beginning to end.

Wei Xuan felt much lighter after talking about it, but Wei’s mother was completely awake, stirred by the conversation.