Chapter 71

During dinner, Wang Mingfang, as if taking credit, told Lu Baichuan about Yao Hongmei’s pregnancy. Lu Baichuan was naturally happy, as the family was about to welcome a new member. As for whether it was a boy or a girl, he didn’t care. He didn’t have that kind of outdated thinking.

Since Lu Xiaoxue, the chicken leg specialist, wasn’t home, Wang Mingfang, with a smile, picked up a large chicken leg and put it in Yao Hongmei’s bowl, encouraging her to eat more to nourish her body and give birth to a big, healthy grandson for the old Lu family.

Yao Hongmei was taken aback. This was a treatment she had never received before. She unconsciously touched her belly, divided the chicken leg in half, ate one half herself, and gave the other half to her daughter Yingying.

Wang Mingfang saw this and was a little unhappy, but she held back from saying anything. She picked up another chicken leg and put it in Lu Jingzhe’s bowl, saying:

“Your father’s cough hasn’t gone away, so he can’t eat chicken. This chicken leg is for Jingzhe. It’s rare for him to come back.”

This aunt’s shameless and obsequious flattery truly opened Xia Qingning’s eyes. Last time, when they were returning the money, their relationship was so tense. Now, she could still act as if nothing had happened and offer her services. She was truly not an ordinary person!

Looking at the chicken leg in his bowl, Lu Jingzhe wrinkled his brow in disgust. Xia Qingning also noticed his micro-expression. She thought he would reject it and put it back, but to everyone’s surprise, the chicken leg landed in her bowl after a moment.

This move surprised everyone at the table. He Shanshan, who was sitting in the corner, widened her eyes like copper bells, thinking, how did the chicken leg end up in Xia Qingning, that stinky girl’s, bowl? It shouldn’t have gone to her, no matter who else it went to!

“Qingning can eat it too. Qingning’s body needs to be nourished.” Seeing this, Wang Mingfang immediately reacted and went along with it.

Xia Qingning didn’t have any problems with the chicken leg. Since it was in her bowl, she might as well eat it. It’s just that Lu Jingzhe was really an enigma.

She thought for a moment. Although he was disgusted, he didn’t act like a clueless brute and throw it away. Instead, he gave it to her, making her the beneficiary. This personality was actually quite clear-headed.

Not long after dinner, Xia Qingning saw Maimiao rushing over. She seemed very embarrassed and hesitant to speak.

Seeing her like this, Xia Qingning knew she had something to tell her, so she took her to her room.

Maimiao hesitated for a moment before starting to tell Xia Qingning what had happened.

It turned out that the matchmaker who had introduced He Shanshan to a partner had just gone to their house and said she wanted to introduce her to a partner. The person was the young man who had gone on a blind date with He Shanshan a few days ago.

The matchmaker said that the young man had accidentally seen Maimiao when he came over that day. He couldn’t stop thinking about her after he went back. He immediately asked the matchmaker to come and express his intentions to He Shanshan.

The young man originally wanted to visit today, but he was afraid that Maimiao would feel awkward, so he asked the matchmaker to come first and ask if she was willing to give him a chance to meet and get to know each other.

He also said that if Maimiao had any concerns now and didn’t want to meet, he could wait another year. After a year, when things had calmed down and there were no rumors, he would ask the matchmaker to come and propose again.

Maimiao was very conflicted. She really wanted to meet him because she could feel that the young man was sincere and had good manners.

He didn’t come directly to her door but asked the matchmaker to come first and ask for her opinion. This left a good impression on her.

Also, he didn’t give up and was willing to wait another year. This was enough to show his sincerity.

Lastly, his family’s conditions were indeed good, and the young man was also good-looking. Maimiao felt that she was not young anymore. She had never met anyone so suitable before. She didn’t want to miss out.

The only concern now was that he had gone on a blind date with He Shanshan. If he came to see her now, others would definitely gossip.

Considering all of the above, Maimiao couldn’t make up her mind, so she came to Xia Qingning to discuss it.

She didn’t know when, but Xia Qingning had become her backbone!

Xia Qingning knew that Maimiao trusted her and that’s why she told her such a private matter. She thought for a moment and asked:

“What’s Li Yi’s attitude?”

“My mom told me to make my own decision.” Maimiao said nervously, “But how can I make such a big decision?”

“Li Yi letting you make your own decision actually means she’s already agreed.” Xia Qingning reminded her. If Li Qiulian didn’t want to agree to this marriage, she would have rejected it then and there. Why would she specifically ask Maimiao to go back?

“Is that so?” Maimiao blinked her round eyes and said with a sudden realization, “No wonder she didn’t say a word of objection and was even polite to the matchmaker.”

Xia Qingning naturally understood Li Qiulian’s thoughts. Actually, everyone was not stupid. How could they reject such a good marriage just because they were afraid of gossip?

Moreover, Li Qiulian didn’t have much of a relationship with He Shanshan and her mother. It was already good enough that she didn’t get into a conflict with them because of Su Hui. Why would she care about their face and ruin her daughter’s good marriage?

“But I’m still a little worried that people will gossip. What if they say I’m stealing He Shanshan’s blind date? That would be so embarrassing!” Maimiao still said with concern.

“People’s mouths are on other people’s faces. We can’t control them.” Xia Qingning’s tone was very calm. She continued, “Even if you reject them now, won’t people still gossip? Why do you care what they say? Living our own lives well is the most important thing.”

Fearing that she still had concerns, Xia Qingning thought for a moment and simply used the original Xia Qingning’s story as an example to guide her, saying:

“Look, back then, my situation with Lu Jingzhe was so big. Didn’t everyone gossip behind our backs? Didn’t I still live a good life? And now, when they see me, don’t they still call me Lu Erfu, the second wife of the Lu family?”

Lu Jingzhe, who had finished washing up, didn’t know that Maimiao had come to see Xia Qingning. He was about to go into the room when he heard Xia Qingning say this. He unconsciously furrowed his brow, and a layer of displeasure appeared in his eyes.

Hearing Xia Qingning talk about the past, Maimiao’s topic suddenly went off track. She asked with a mischievous smile:

“Qingning, I’m also curious. How were you so bold back then? It was Jingzhe ge, you know. Everyone in the courtyard was afraid of him.”

Xia Qingning didn’t want to explain too much to her. Anyway, everyone would know the truth soon. She just replied calmly:

“It wasn’t me being bold. It was the bad guys being too evil.”

Lu Jingzhe, who was outside the room, was about to leave, but he suddenly heard Xia Qingning’s words and involuntarily stopped.

“Ah?” Maimiao looked at Xia Qingning in surprise and wanted to continue asking, but she heard Xia Qingning no longer continue the topic. Instead, she said, “Besides, Xiao Wu likes you. It’s not something to be ashamed of. Don’t worry so much. Just get to know him properly first.”

Maimiao wasn’t a stubborn person. After listening to Xia Qingning say so much, she quickly understood. She said with a slight shyness:

“Okay, then I’ll let him come over tomorrow.”