Chapter 62: The Pitiful Female Supporting Character from a Patriarchal Family in the 2000s (9)

In the afternoon, there were not many people in the shop.

Ai Xiaoling caught a ride with Ye Zhou’s delivery trip. She wanted to visit Ai Xiaofen.

Ai Xiaofen looked much better than in the past few days, with more smiles on her face. She was very happy to see Ai Xiaoling and excitedly shared, “I’ve been handling private rooms these days. They said I have good luck. I managed to sell several bottles of baijiu. I get a five yuan commission per bottle. In one night, I earned an extra twenty or thirty yuan.”

“Really?” Ai Xiaoling was happy for her.

Ai Xiaofen held her hand. “When I get my salary, I’ll pay you back.”

She still remembered the money Ai Xiaoling owed. When she looked for a job this time, Ai Xiaoling spent a lot again to help her buy living necessities for the dorm. She felt very guilty about it.

“No need.” Ai Xiaoling shared the snacks she brought with Ai Xiaofen.

The two sisters took advantage of the restaurant’s quiet afternoon and sat under a canopy beneath the trees outside, chatting privately.

Ye Zhou looked at the two and did not disturb them. He turned and got in the truck. “I’m going to deliver the goods. I’ll pick you up on the way back?”

“Okay.” Ai Xiaoling turned to smile at him, her tone sweet. “Then I’ll wait for you here.”

“Alright.”

When Ye Zhou got in the truck, he heard Ai Xiaofen say, “This little boss is really nice. He even brought you over.”

Hearing this, Ye Zhou slowed down while shifting gears.

He only heard Ai Xiaoling laugh and say, “He and his mother are both warmhearted. They’re good people.”

Just as Ye Zhou was about to smile from her praise, he heard the next line from Ai Xiaofen, “Guess who I ran into the other day?”

“Who?”

“That boy you used to like——”

Ye Zhou’s eyes instantly dimmed. His chest felt like it was weighed down by a stone, heavy and suffocating.

She had someone she liked?

The rest of their conversation was spoken in a lowered tone. Ye Zhou tried hard to hear clearly. Ai Xiaoling even asked about the boy’s current situation. It seemed she still had deep feelings.

Ye Zhou didn’t even know how he left. After delivering the goods, he found a place and bought a pack of cigarettes, sitting in the car smoking one after another.

He did not have a strong addiction to smoking. He smoked during his rebellious years in junior high, but quit after that.

Now he just felt extremely frustrated.

After staying alone for a long while, Ye Zhou remembered he still had to pick up Ai Xiaoling from the restaurant.

By the time he arrived, Ai Xiaofen had already started working. Ai Xiaoling was waiting by the roadside. When she saw him, she waved and smiled sweetly. “You’re finally here. I thought I’d have to wait a while.”

“Fasten your seatbelt.” Ye Zhou reminded her softly.

“Okay.” Ai Xiaoling fastened her seatbelt, then suddenly sniffed the air. Her bright eyes turned to Ye Zhou, her gaze locked on him.

Ye Zhou’s heart tightened. “What is it?”

“You actually smoke?” Ai Xiaoling raised her hand and pointed at him. Her tone was filled with disbelief.

Ye Zhou looked a little uneasy. He started the car and drove forward.

“I’ve never seen you smoke. I thought you didn’t.” Ai Xiaoling rolled down the window to let the smell out, muttering, “Smoking is harmful to health. Secondhand smoke is also harmful.”

In short, it’s bad for others and yourself.

Ye Zhou hadn’t expected her nose to be so sensitive. He had aired himself out for a long time before coming.

Feeling guilty, Ye Zhou stayed silent the whole way.

Instead, Ai Xiaoling was in a good mood and talked a lot.

She told him that Ai Xiaofen was doing quite well now. The job she found was also good. The manager there was divorced, and after the divorce, her life got even better. She even bought a house.

Ai Xiaofen felt encouraged and no longer pitied herself because of the divorce.

“Does my sister look like me?” Ai Xiaoling tilted her head and asked Ye Zhou.

“A little.” Ye Zhou replied.

Ai Xiaofen looked gentler. Ai Xiaoling was lively and energetic. The sisters had opposite personalities, but their facial features were somewhat similar. However, in Ye Zhou’s eyes, Ai Xiaoling was much more outstanding and beautiful.

“A junior high classmate of mine saw her and asked if she was my sister.” Ai Xiaoling sighed at the wonder of genetics.

Ye Zhou heard something else in her words.

That boy had started asking about her again? Did the two of them like each other during their innocent youth? Or did they actually date?

A wave of frustration surged in Ye Zhou’s heart.

He did not want to hear about that boy anymore. He changed the subject and asked, “Has your allergy fully healed? Have you felt any discomfort lately?”

Last time at the hospital, the doctor said it might be a pollen allergy. Many people were like that during this season.

If she still felt uncomfortable, she needed to go to the hospital to check for allergens.

Ai Xiaoling lowered her head and carefully examined her arms. There were still some scratch marks, a few even broken and scabbing. She shook her head. “It’s healed. I don’t feel anything now.”

Luckily, her skin was good. Even scabs would fade after a while.

Ye Zhou: “That’s good.”

After returning, Ye Zhou parked the car. Ai Xiaoling waited by the side. The two of them walked up the stairs together and parted on the second floor.

Ai Xiaoling turned back with a smile and told him goodnight and to sleep early.

Ye Zhou nodded, but when he got back, he tossed and turned in bed and couldn’t sleep all night.

The next day, Mother Ye was shocked when she saw the dark circles under his eyes. “Son, when did you grow panda eyes?!”

At the counter, Ai Xiaoling also looked over.

Ye Zhou lowered his head and quickly got into the car and drove off.

“Did you not sleep well?” Mother Ye called out after him.

Ye Zhou didn’t answer her. He vaguely heard Ai Xiaoling’s laughing voice say, “Aunt Ye, really? Did you see it wrong?”

When you like someone, you start to care a lot about your appearance.

After delivering the goods, Ye Zhou noticed that his hair was getting a little long. In the past, he never cared about how he looked. He just got his hair cut casually.

An old man on the street would cut it for two yuan. It was convenient, quick, and cheap.

Ye Zhou thought long and hard, and in the end, he went to the mall and found a shop that looked decent.

He got his hair washed and cut, shaved, and even had a shoulder and neck massage. It cost fifty yuan. Ye Zhou took the chance to nap a bit and indulged for the first time. When he woke up, he felt refreshed and clear-headed. He thought the money was well spent.

He was in a pretty good mood originally. But as soon as he drove back to the store, Ye Zhou’s expression changed again.

In front of the building materials store counter, both Mother Li and Li Wenjie were there, along with a man he did not recognize. That man was chatting happily with Ai Xiaoling.

“You and Xiaoling were classmates in middle school?” Mother Ye smiled as she asked the man.

Zhang Bin nodded. “Yes, we were classmates in elementary and middle school. A few days ago, I ran into Xiaoling’s sister at a restaurant. Her sister told me she now works at a building materials store nearby. My aunt said she wanted to check out the hardware store in this area and asked if I wanted to come along. I figured I could look around afterward. I didn’t expect to actually find her here.”

“What a coincidence,” Mother Ye said with a smile as she poured water for everyone.

“You’re working at the Construction Bureau now? That’s promising.” Ai Xiaoling smiled and gave him a thumbs-up as she praised him. “I’ve lost contact with most of our classmates. You might be doing the best out of all of us. You’re the pride of our class.”

“Don’t flatter me like that. I’m embarrassed.” Zhang Bin laughed and continued chatting with her.

Mother Ye took Li Wenjie and his mother inside to choose a style, while Zhang Bin stood at the counter and kept talking and laughing with Ai Xiaoling. Their laughter came frequently as they chatted happily.

Ye Zhou saw this scene and felt a tightening in his chest. He didn’t even feel like getting out of the car.

If it had been anyone else, he could’ve tolerated it. After all, Ai Xiaoling was just that kind of person. She could talk cheerfully with anyone and get along easily. That was her charm.

But the man just had to be someone she liked, and on top of that, he worked at the Construction Bureau with a bright future ahead of him.

Ye Zhou had grown up in a single-parent household, but his mother was an optimistic person who gave him all her love. He was quiet by nature but never lacked self-confidence. Yet at this moment, a sense of inferiority surged within him.

He felt he came from a broken family, had no stable job, could not sweet-talk, and did not know how to make a girl happy.

He was completely useless.

The Li family settled on a style, and Ai Xiaoling was writing up the order.

Mother Li looked at her and praised, “Such a capable young lady. Your handwriting is beautiful too.”

“Isn’t she? I hardly manage the store anymore. She runs everything,” Mother Ye said with a smile. “Whoever marries Xiaoling will be blessed.”

“Has your son started dating yet?” Mother Li asked curiously.

“No,” Mother Ye understood the hint in Mother Li’s words and sighed. “I actually wanted him to get to know Xiaoling better before. But there’s just no spark between them. He’s a gourd. I’m more anxious than you.”

Mother Li clearly thought that since Ai Xiaoling was such a good girl, why not keep her as a daughter-in-law for herself?

Mother Ye wished she could too.

But she had already mentioned it to Ye Zhou several times. He never responded or acknowledged it. He completely ignored it.

Wasn’t that a lack of chemistry? What could she do—force him to get married at knifepoint?

“Aunt Ye, don’t talk about that anymore,” Ai Xiaoling said with a helpless smile, trying to ease the atmosphere. “If you keep teasing us like that, it’ll be awkward for me and the little boss to meet each other.”

“I won’t say any more.” Mother Ye was also afraid that Ye Zhou would take it the wrong way.

“Fate will come naturally when the time is right,” Zhang Bin said.

The Li family left first. Zhang Bin, following behind, asked Ai Xiaoling, “Want to go have tea together? We haven’t seen each other in ages, old classmates.”

“I’m still on the clock,” Ai Xiaoling declined politely.

“Next time then.”

……

That evening, Ye Zhou came out from his shower and heard Mother Ye and Ai Xiaoling chatting on the stairs.

Mother Ye was criticizing the Li family. “I observed today. That Li Wenjie does seem to have some interest in you. After all, you’re pretty. But his mother—I think she just talks nicely.”

“She even called me again to ask how many siblings you have and whether they’re all married. As soon as she heard your sister was divorced, she really latched onto it. I can tell what she’s getting at. That Zhang Bin works at the Construction Bureau now, right? Li Wenjie’s mom is probably hoping he’ll keep an eye out and maybe introduce someone with a stable job for her son.”

“Is she looking down on my unstable job?” Ai Xiaoling laughed lightly.

“A blessed daughter doesn’t marry into an unlucky family. His mom is hard to get along with. I think it’s better that nothing happened!” Mother Ye comforted her. “Aunt Ye will keep looking. We’ll find someone better.”

“I’ll leave it to Aunt Ye then.”

Ai Xiaoling was just being polite. She didn’t take it to heart at all. Why lose face over it?

Ye Zhou had a complicated feeling in his heart. Li Wenjie was out of the picture now, but that Zhang Bin—the one Ai Xiaoling liked—had said he wanted to ask her out next time.