Chapter 220

“Didn’t you follow him secretly? If she’s a girl from Shanshui Village, he would definitely sneak over to take a look.” Qin Yilin asked again.

We’re all experienced people, how could we not understand?

Initially, after she and the child’s father showed mutual interest, they never met privately. But ever since then, the child’s father would occasionally send her something, and she would inevitably be called out by the elders to thank him in person.

Since then, he became diligent in sending gifts!

Unfortunately, after they got married, everything stopped. Hmph.

Hu’s Mother, also an experienced person, understood immediately.

“There were no outsiders in the house, so I didn’t lower my voice,” she said truthfully. “How could I not follow? But every time he finished work, he would go straight back to his sister’s house, never to the village. I originally thought he might sneak over while working, so I asked the child’s father to pay attention. But the child’s father said he worked hard during work and returned home eagerly after work, probably because he was hungry and wanted to come back for dinner.

Do you think this child is just naive? He likes what he likes, eats when he eats, and thinks about eating all the time!”

Shuiqing: … Her mother’s comparison isn’t right. How can you compare everything to eating? Nothing compares to eating!

Qin Yilin smiled reassuringly. “How can you compare everything to eating? But I’ve noticed his appetite is quite good. He doesn’t seem distracted at all, and as you all said, he hasn’t been to the village.

I guess, could you all be mistaken? Maybe there’s no one in his heart after all?”

Ding Jiajia paused with her chopsticks holding cold noodles, forgetting to put them in her mouth.

Hu’s Mother replied firmly, “His appetite during meals is really good, even better than usual at home. I thought it must be because the food here in Qing’er’s place is good and well-cooked, so he eats more; but you don’t know how absent-minded he is. Especially after dinner, he sits there perfectly well, suddenly smiles, and then frowns shortly after. One moment he’s laughing, the next he’s worried. Besides having someone in his heart, what else could explain this?”

After dinner, Shuiqing went to take care of her two daughters and Zhao Di, and most of the time after dinner was for everyone to wash up. She usually avoided a few of the older boys, so she had no idea when her younger brother was feeling distraught.

She tried hard to recall any unusual behavior from Wenhua during this time.

… It seems there wasn’t anything unusual, except for his unusually lively behavior during meals, uh, sometimes he seemed particularly reserved, and other times he seemed listless.

She glanced across at Ding Jiajia, noticing how her listlessness now mirrored Jiajia’s.

By the way, Wenhua’s listless times coincided with times when Jiajia was too busy to come for meals….

As Shuiqing thought about this, she took a deep breath, quickly suppressing her thoughts. Don’t panic, don’t panic!

This concerned her daughter’s reputation and the relationship between the two families. There couldn’t be any mistakes; she had to be careful.

The moment Ding Jiajia looked up and saw Shuiqing staring directly at her, her fair face turned red. In her haste, she set down her bowl and chopsticks and stood up. “I’m done eating, I’ll go out first.”

She was afraid she might lose her composure if she continued listening.

Qin Yilin, caught up in gossip, didn’t say anything, but Hu’s Mother, more concerned than a real mother, asked, “Jiajia, you didn’t eat much today. Is your appetite not good?”

“No, it’s just that it’s too hot today, and I ate too many pastries before the meal,” Jiajia replied softly.

Hu’s Mother relaxed, instructing, “I still have some pastries made by your sister Shuiqing in my house. I’ll bring them for you later. It’s hard-earned weight gain; we can’t let you lose it.”

Qin Yilin laughed, “Don’t worry, Jiajia eats well here every day. It’s visibly plump, I’m keeping an eye on it!”

Hu’s Mother still wasn’t reassured. She would admit Qin’s good, but when it came to cooking, it was truly abysmal. It was lucky they were eating at Qing’er’s place; who knew how long it would last when they went back?

“Pah, pah, pah, why isn’t she hoping for something better? Qin Meizi has been following Qing’er to learn cooking recently. Maybe she’ll master it soon, and Jiajia will enjoy the benefits.”

“Look at Wenhua, his arms are almost as thick as Jiajia’s waist. They’re the same age, but when they’re together, I always feel like there’s a generational gap.”

“But it’s not Jiajia’s fault. Jiajia is just right. It’s just that our son is too sturdy; you can’t find anyone as sturdy as him in the whole village.”

Ding Jiajia’s ears turned red, and she murmured softly with her head down before quietly walking out.

Hu’s Mother watched the obedient and clever girl and thought about her son’s worries again. “I wonder which girl it could be.”

On the other hand, Qin Yilin frowned and analyzed, “It does seem like he’s interested in a girl, but it might not be from Shanshui Village. Didn’t he go to the city to learn martial arts at the martial arts school? He might have taken a liking to someone in the city.”

Hu’s Mother continued shaking her head, “During those rainy days, he stayed at home without showing any signs of worry, eating, drinking, and sleeping well, behaving like a happy fool every day.”

If he took a liking to a girl in the city, she would worry herself sick.

“The day after the rain stopped, he wandered around the village for a bit. When he came back, he sighed. That’s why I think it might be a girl from Shanshui Village.”

Shuiqing’s gaze suddenly fell on her three sons. She remembered that two of them had followed him over there?

Jiang, He, and Hu trembled all over, burying their heads and eating vigorously.

They were still young, and Mom was worried about Uncle’s marriage. Uncle wasn’t young anymore!

Qin Yilin nodded as he listened, his eyes bright, “Mrs. Hu, your guess makes sense. Let’s think it over carefully. If it’s a girl I know, I’ll go to Wenhua and ask the girl’s parents for their thoughts.”

Hu’s Mother clapped excitedly, “That would be great! Qin Meizi, you’re so righteous! If it works out, you’ll be the matchmaker, and Wenhua should really thank you.”

“Ah, there’s no need for family members to be so polite.”

“Right, they’re family.”

Shuiqing silently watched the two old sisters analyze with great enthusiasm and excitement, feeling deeply involved.

Before, when her mother and she analyzed, she had been criticized for not being attentive enough. Now, she had finally found a confidant. But what made these two so confident that the girl Wenhua was interested in was from the village?

Hmm, that’s not quite right to say. After all, it really was a girl from the ‘village’, but why didn’t they think about those around them?

Wenhua wasn’t a rabbit; it’s normal to eat grass near the nest.

But Wenhua did show restraint. At least, she hadn’t noticed anything unusual before. Only now did she realize how many glances the young man had stolen from the other person.

For a rough and tough guy who usually played along, he was actually very delicate and thoughtful.

They also valued it, so they were reluctant to let the other person appear aggrieved and unhappy.

In the dining room, Jiang, He, and Hu pricked up their ears and listened in. They discovered quite a few girls of similar age to their uncle from various families in the village—Li Tiantian, from Auntie Li’s family, Zhang Xiaocao, from Aunt Zhang’s family, Xu Ting, the eldest granddaugther of the Xu’s family, and Fan Xiang, the little girl of Master Fan’s—and realized there were quite a few options!

A heavy knocking came from the wisteria door, causing everyone in the room to stop talking at once.