Chapter 13

Ji Jun only caught the words “second son.” “What’s up with the second son?”

Knowing his special feelings for his brother, Ji Duo, she wouldn’t say she was targeting him. “Nothing, just remembered he helped us out. Should we invite him over for dinner to thank him?”

“The second son doesn’t care about that.” Ji Jun found her suggestion a bit distant.

Ye Minshu smiled along. “Even if he doesn’t care, we should still say thanks. Can we really accept his help without a word?”

Only Ji Ze, being close, caught snippets of their conversation. Though he frowned at Ye Minshu, he said nothing.

Later, after dinner, he privately approached Ye Minshu.

“You said your uncle doesn’t have a girlfriend, so I wasn’t wrong,” Ye Minshu said dismissively.

Ji Ze, recalling how she even found someone to pretend to be his girlfriend, couldn’t help but warn, “Mom, don’t get any ideas. Grandpa is still sick.”

“I know. What ideas could I have?” Ye Minshu clearly didn’t want to discuss this further. “But you, don’t be foolish and actually go. If you get entangled, it’ll be hard to shake off. That girl has a cold, right? Delay for a couple of days and see.”

She didn’t need to say it; Ji Ze had no intention of going. Who wants to be tied to someone they’ve never met?

Seeing Ji Ze agree, Ye Minshu couldn’t help but complain, “You never come home when I ask, but now you let Grandpa catch you. Why did you have to come back? Staying at the base would avoid all this.”

“Grandpa is sick, isn’t he?” Ji Ze laughed it off, finding an excuse. “I’ll go check if Ji Ling finished her homework.”

“Does Ji Ling need you to check? She’s always up to something, running off whenever asked.”

Lin Qiao’s cold hadn’t fully recovered, so even without Ji Ze’s words, the old couple wouldn’t rush them out.

A few days later, Grandpa Ji’s blood pressure stabilized, and Ye Minshu took half a day off to pick him up from the hospital.

Having decided to disregard Ye Minshu’s wishes, Grandpa Ji no longer gave her the cold shoulder. “Is Xiao Ze done with his work recently?”

When Grandpa Ji mentioned Ji Ze, Ye Minshu instinctively felt displeased but didn’t show it. “How could he tell me these things? He’s never home, and I can only catch a glimpse of him when he visits you at the hospital.”

Her words sounded pleasant, and Grandpa Ji nodded without saying more.

As the car arrived at the Ji residence, they ran into the wife of the neighboring Chief of Staff Wang, who had just returned from outside. She couldn’t help but greet them, “At your age, you need to take care of yourself. Our Old Wang is younger than you, and he complained about his back yesterday.”

“That’s something to watch out for. Those who have been to the battlefield all have old injuries.”

Xu Li exchanged a few pleasantries with her, but the neighbor smiled upon seeing her. “Congratulations, your second son has finally come around.”

“Come around?” Xu Li was puzzled.

The neighbor winked and smiled. “Isn’t he finally got a girlfriend? She’s staying at your place. I ran into her a couple of days ago. She’s the child of your old war buddy, right? Such a pretty girl, even the art troupe can’t find someone so outstanding.”

“Who told you that?” Xu Li sensed something was off.

But she wasn’t one to show her emotions, so the neighbor didn’t notice. “Everyone knows. I heard not only your second son but Xiao Ze also has a girlfriend. It’s a double celebration. When are you planning the weddings?”

If it were just about Ji Duo, it could be explained as a misunderstanding. But mentioning a double celebration made it tricky. Were they saying the Ji family was untrustworthy, having a betrothal but finding another match, or that an uncle and nephew were competing for the same woman?

Xu Li pursed her lips and gave Ye Minshu a deep look.

Old Mr. Ji’s smile faded. Once the neighbor left, he asked, “Is Qiao Qiao at home?”

Aunt Zhang, who had come out to ask about lunch, sensed the tension and quietly said, “She asked me about a nearby high school and went out.”

“High school?” Old Mr. Ji, having been in the hospital, was unaware of Lin Qiao’s activities.

But Aunt Zhang, who interacted with Lin Qiao daily, knew a bit more. “She seems to have nothing to do and asked me about finding a job in Yandu a couple of days ago.”

Old Mr. Ji, deep in thought, didn’t ask further and stepped inside. “Xu Li, call the eldest.”

Ye Minshu, who had been quietly following, suddenly looked up.

Old Mr. Ji didn’t even glance at her. “Call the eldest and tell him I need to see him immediately.”

In his younger days, Old Mr. Ji had a fiery temper, and age hadn’t changed that much. Those who knew him well understood that if he got angry, it wasn’t serious. But if he didn’t get angry, it meant trouble.

Seeing Xu Li pick up the phone, Ye Minshu panicked. “Dad!”

Old Mr. Ji raised his hand to stop her from speaking and sat down on the sofa without a word.

Xu Li lowered her head and dialed the phone. Within half an hour, Ji Jun rushed in, sweating. “What’s wrong? What happened?”

He thought it was another health issue with Old Mr. Ji, but upon entering, he saw Old Mr. Ji in a Zhongshan suit, sitting in the middle of the long sofa, expressionless. His wife, Ye Minshu, stood to the side, her face full of panic, helplessness, and embarrassment.

“Did you upset Dad again?” he couldn’t help but glare at her.

It had always been like this. Whenever Ye Minshu upset Old Mr. Ji, Ji Jun would be the first to confront her. He wanted to protect his wife, so he would scold her first. After she softened, Old Mr. Ji wouldn’t have much more to say.

But today, before Ji Jun arrived, Ye Minshu had already been left standing for half an hour. Hearing his words, she glanced at Old Mr. Ji but didn’t dare say anything.

Old Mr. Ji watched their silent exchange coldly but didn’t expose them. When Ji Jun realized the situation was more serious than he thought, he put down his teacup. “You agreed to the engagement with the Lin family, didn’t you?”

Ji Jun didn’t understand why he brought this up again and glanced at his wife. “Yes, we agreed.”

“Then why, if you felt wronged, unwilling, and dissatisfied with this old man managing your son’s affairs, didn’t you say so back then?”

Old Mr. Ji’s words, “wronged,” “unwilling,” and “dissatisfied,” hit hard, making Ji Jun sweat even more. He stood awkwardly for a while, unable to figure out what Ye Minshu had done to anger Old Mr. Ji so much. He could only try to smooth things over. “It’s been over ten years since our families had any contact. Minshu felt their family was untrustworthy and only thought of us when something went wrong.”

This was why Old Mr. Ji hadn’t told them about the incident back then. Even without saying it, they could twist the reason to this. If he had told them, Ye Minshu wouldn’t care if the letter had been intercepted.

Old Mr. Ji looked at him coldly. “So your wife found someone to lie that Xiao Ze already had a girlfriend?”

Before Ji Jun could respond, “So she pushed this matter onto the second son.”

“Onto the second son?” This time, Ji Jun was genuinely shocked. He turned sharply to Ye Minshu. “What did you do?”

“What could I do? Someone asked me who Lin Qiao was, and I said she had an engagement with our family. I was just telling the truth. How was I to know they saw Lin Qiao with the second son, wearing his jacket? By the time I wanted to explain, the news had already spread.” Ye Minshu had clearly prepared her explanation, looking aggrieved. But since the matter involved Ji Ze, she would have kept it quiet, not spread it.

Ji Jun opened his mouth, looking at the face he had seen for over twenty years, but couldn’t say anything.

Old Mr. Ji was also angered by her words. “Not only that, but there’s also talk outside that the second son and Qiao Qiao have already set a date for the wedding and will hold a banquet soon. They even say Xiao Ze is dating his high school classmate and getting along well.”

In the half-hour he waited, he had someone investigate the situation. It was impressive how much effort the eldest daughter-in-law had put in.

“You don’t need to say it; I know what you’re thinking. You think Qiao Qiao, coming from the countryside, isn’t good enough for your family? It’s only been a few years, and you’re back to this. Have you forgotten when I was sent down? Forgotten that I also came from the countryside?”

That’s different. Old Mr. Ji could read, so he wasn’t in a bad situation even in the countryside. Besides, with his current status, who cares about his background? Ye Minshu thought to herself but could only lower her head and accept the reprimand in front of Old Mr. Ji, not daring to say anything.

Old Mr. Ji knew his words were probably in vain. If they could understand, they would have done so long ago, not after twenty years. He looked exhausted. “You should go back. I shouldn’t meddle in your family’s affairs.”

This was clearly a sign of distancing himself from them, which was more serious for Ji Jun than a scolding.

He couldn’t help but call out, “Dad,” and Ye Minshu panicked too. But Old Mr. Ji waved his hand. “Eldest, I’m already seventy, and I just got back to this mess. Can you let me rest? Go back and don’t come over unless necessary.”

Old Mr. Ji had always been strong-willed, and this was the first time he admitted he was old and tired.

Ji Jun, full of shame, said nothing more and left the Ji residence with his head down. Back home, he sat silently in the living room, smoking one cigarette after another.

Ye Minshu, knowing she had crossed a line, didn’t dare disturb him and quietly opened a window for ventilation. Even this small movement caught his attention. “Did you really not do it on purpose, spreading rumors about the second son and Lin Qiao?”

Not waiting for her answer, Ji Jun took a deep drag of his cigarette. “I don’t understand. What did the second son ever do to you?”

Ye Minshu hadn’t wanted to provoke him, but she couldn’t hold back. “What do you mean? It’s fine for that girl to be with your son but not with the second son? Do you think your brother is closer than your son, or that his children are more noble than mine?”

Having been cold-shouldered at the old house for half an hour, her eyes reddened, and tears fell. “Ji Jun, did you regret marrying me?”

“When did I ever say that?” Ji Jun, overwhelmed by her tears, said, “What does this have to do with what we’re talking about now?”

“Who says it doesn’t? If my background weren’t bad and I could help you, would a girl from the countryside be forced on Xiao Ze? You’ve worked for over twenty years and still can’t compare to the second son, who’s ten years younger?”

“What does this have to do with the second son? He has his own abilities!”

Ye Minshu, usually gentle and considerate, was suddenly difficult to communicate with. “Are you targeting the second son?”

“Why didn’t they let her son marry her back then and instead chose our son?”

This complaint even extended to Xu Li. Ji Jun stood up from the sofa. “Why are you being so unreasonable? If it weren’t for our mom…”

“If it weren’t for our mom protecting you, you would have been gone in the chaos.” Ye Minshu continued for him. “I’ve heard this for over twenty years. Yes, she lost a six-month-old child and hurt her body to protect you. It took over ten years to have the second son. But even if you’re not her biological child, she doesn’t have to be so biased…”

“Shut up!” This hit Ji Jun’s sore spot. He kicked the table, shattering it, and raised his hand.