Font Size:
Even though Jiang Yining knows that He Chi doesn’t truly love her, hearing him say “I also like her” still causes her heart to race. With the situation at hand, Teacher Lin doesn’t say much more but warns He Chi to treat Jiang Yining well, otherwise, she won’t spare him. He Chi acknowledges her words, and then Teacher Lin leaves the room to give them space.
Once they are alone, Jiang Yining feels embarrassed and tries to explain that her earlier words were just off the cuff. He Chi, though, chuckles and remarks that despite her intention to stay out of it, she ended up helping him avoid a bigger mess.
Jiang Yining can tell that He Chi is teasing her.
She asks, “Teacher Lin hit you several times earlier, is it okay?”
He Chi nonchalantly responds, “It’s fine.”
The pain from those few hits doesn’t compare to the injuries he received during his police training. Given how protective his mother is of Jiang Yining, those few hits were nothing in comparison.
When He Yu Wen returns from buying groceries, he’s surprised to find He Chi and Jiang Yining casually sitting in the living room. Looking around and not seeing his wife, he asks, “Where’s your mom?”
He Chi raises his chin slightly and replies, “In the bedroom.”
He Yu Wen frowns, wondering if his wife went to sulk in the room, upset with He Chi.
He Yu Wen, concerned about Teacher Lin, sets down what he’s holding and heads towards the bedroom to check on her. Just as he’s about to go in, Teacher Lin opens the door, holding a sandalwood box containing her precious jewelry.
Seeing that her expression is normal, He Yu Wen sighs in relief and heads into the kitchen to start preparing meals.
It seems like Teacher Lin has something to discuss with Jiang Yining, so He Chi takes the initiative to help in the kitchen.
Jiang Yining still feels uneasy, and she softly calls out, “Teacher.”
Teacher Lin sits next to Jiang Yining, and with a calm smile, she says, “Yining, don’t overthink it. I was angry because He Chi didn’t inform me before going to register for marriage. It wasn’t that I dislike you as my daughter-in-law.”
She laughs a little and continues, “To be honest, I never imagined that you and I would have this connection. He Chi is not worthy of you.”
Jiang Yining looks up, her emotions complex, as she meets Teacher Lin’s gaze, “Teacher…”
Teacher Lin, in a warm tone, adds, “In my heart, you’re better than He Chi. For him to marry you, that’s a blessing he must have earned in several lifetimes.”
“Not even following the proper procedures, Yining, I’m sorry for putting you through this.”
Jiang Yining lowers her head in embarrassment. It was indeed her suggestion to go ahead with it impulsively, but her teacher just wouldn’t believe it.
In Teacher Lin’s eyes, Jiang Yining had always been the well-behaved, gentle, and ambitious girl. She was convinced that it had to have been He Chi’s idea. Even when Jiang Yining claimed that it was her decision to go ahead with the marriage registration, Teacher Lin didn’t believe her.
Teacher Lin opens a wooden box containing several exquisite jade bracelets, a jade pendant, and a jade hairpin.
“These were gifts from He Chi’s grandmother to me,” Teacher Lin explains softly. “I originally planned to keep them for He Chi’s wife, but now they’re yours.”
Teacher Lin frowns slightly as she examines the jewelry, adding, “The designs are too old-fashioned, they don’t suit your temperament. I’ll take you to buy some new pieces in a few days.”
Jiang Yining, overwhelmed, quickly protests, “Teacher, I can’t accept this.”
“Yining, just take it. Otherwise, I’ll stay mad at He Chi.”
Jiang Yining: “…”
She never realized before that Teacher Lin was this displeased with He Chi.
Left with no choice, Jiang Yining accepted it.
Then Teacher Lin took out a bank card and handed it to Jiang Yining.
“This is for you too — to buy some nice clothes, pretty jewelry, whatever you like.”
“I can’t take this,” Jiang Yining said.
Teacher Lin replied, “You have to. Just think of it as your bride’s red envelope for calling me ‘Mom.’”
As she spoke, Teacher Lin looked at Jiang Yining with eager, expectant eyes.
Jiang Yining understood what she meant. Her face flushed, and after a long pause, she finally opened her mouth and softly called out, “Mom.”
It was incredibly difficult for her to say that word. Her mother had passed away nine years ago, and she hadn’t said it in all that time. A wave of bitterness welled up in her chest, and Jiang Yining fought to hold back her emotions.
Teacher Lin knew Jiang Yining was missing her mother, so she held her hand gently and comforted her, “Good child, from now on, I’ll protect you.”
Jiang Yining was nearly brought to tears. Over the years, she had been fortunate to have both Zhang Qiao and Teacher Lin looking out for her — otherwise, life would have been unbearably hard.
Teacher Lin reached up and wiped the tears from the corner of Jiang Yining’s eyes. “Don’t cry.”
In the kitchen, He Yuwen was giving his son some advice.
“He Chi, now that you’re married, you need to settle down and live responsibly. As a man, you need to be more accommodating and tolerant of your partner.”
“You’re headstrong and haven’t really been around girls before. Yining is someone who tends to keep things bottled up — you need to be patient with her. In a marriage, communication is key.”
He Yuwen knew his son well — He Chi had good character and upbringing, but he had always been used to living independently.
Suddenly getting married, and without a period of dating or truly getting to know each other, he and Jiang Yining were bound to have friction in their future life together.
He Chi acknowledged, “Dad, I understand all of that.”
“Since I’ve decided to get married, I’ve never thought about divorce. Before I came back this time, I had already decided to stay in Lincheng for good.”
He Yuwen snorted, “If you dare get a divorce, your mom will break your legs.”
He Chi: “…”
During dinner, Teacher Lin asked, “Do you two need to buy a new place for your marital home?”
Jiang Yining looked toward He Chi.
He Chi said, “We’ll stay at my place for now. It’s close to Yining’s school. If there’s a need later, we can consider moving.”
Teacher Lin turned to Jiang Yining for her opinion. “Yining, what do you think?”
Jiang Yining nodded. “I’m fine with that. Let’s go with what He Chi said.”
After they finished discussing the living arrangements, He Yuwen asked, “When do you plan to hold the wedding ceremony?”
Jiang Yining didn’t want to have a ceremony at this stage. She and He Chi didn’t have a solid emotional foundation yet. She longed for a romantic wedding with someone she truly loved — but not now.
“I’d prefer to hold it later.”
Jiang Yining answered He Yuwen’s question first.
Teacher Lin said, “Alright, we’ll do the wedding however you like. Whenever you want, whatever style you want — just let He Chi find a professional team to handle it. No need to tire yourself out.”
Jiang Yining smiled softly. “Thank you, Mom.”
Teacher Lin was beaming with joy.
Seeing this, He Chi joked, “I’ve never gotten a smile like that from you before, Lin Teacher.”
That was something Chen Ran used to say all the time — so much so that He Chi’s ears had practically grown calluses from hearing it. The memory suddenly came back to him, and he blurted it out.
Jiang Yining couldn’t help but laugh.
Teacher Lin laughed too and scolded him, “That’s because you’re always making me angry.”
He Yuwen brought up something, “He Chi, you should really thank your mom. You wouldn’t have been able to marry Yining without her going to the temple to pray to the God of Marriage.”
“Teacher Lin has always been a firm materialist, but for your sake, she even resorted to that.”
Teacher Lin had nearly forgotten about it until He Yuwen mentioned it. She added, “It was Teacher Dong who introduced me to that temple. Seems the matchmaking god there is pretty effective. I should find time to go back and return the favor.”
He Chi really hadn’t known that his marriage had pushed Lin Teacher so far she’d turned to divine intervention.
Before they left, Teacher Lin specifically reminded Jiang Yining, “Yining, traditionally, both sets of parents are supposed to meet before the marriage registration. Since you two registered suddenly and your family might not know yet, I suggest not telling them just yet.”
“In the next few days, check if your family is free. I’ll have He Chi arrange a dinner for everyone to meet, and after that, you can let them know you’ve already registered.”