☆ 22. Choose One

“What did you say?”

Ji Meng doubted that there was something wrong with her hearing as she looked at Zheng Wu in disbelief.

Zheng Wu pressed his lips together, his hands clenched into fists, the veins on the back of his hands bulging. His ears felt hot, as if steam might erupt from them any moment, this was his first confession.

“I said I want you, I want to pursue you!” Zheng Wu raised his head and stated again, firmly and earnestly.

He had been thinking about this for several days.

These days had been busy and exhausting, but whenever he closed his eyes, the image of her standing on the runway in a long, deep green dress would flash in his mind, radiant and dazzling.

When he woke up, he felt an urgent desire to see her and be with her.

She had no idea that even a single appreciative glance from her could make him tremble all over, with his heart uncontrollably pounding in joy.

This feeling was different from the infatuation he felt at the age of fifteen.

Back then, when the Ji family fell on hard times, he stayed by her side to protect her, all because of Ji Qiao’s request and Uncle Ji’s kindness towards him.

As a child, with busy parents and no one to take care of him, he was often a snotty mess that nobody liked. Only the Ji family took him in, and Ji Qiao would play with him.

So when her family encountered trouble, he couldn’t just ignore her.

Over time, she became his habit.

Hearing her say that she liked him made him feel terrified, he didn’t want to lose her.

For her, he became a thief for the first time, stealing money from home to buy her things for the countryside, giving her the coupons she needed to spend down there.

After she left, he was discovered and beaten half to death by his family, but he never revealed her name.

Yet she had deceived him.

When he grew older, he managed to find out her exact location in the countryside through friends. When he went to see her, he found her in the arms of another man, and his heart was filled with both hatred and anger.

But perhaps he had grown up and matured, he didn’t impulsively confront her or even show up in front of her.

He took the train home alone, fell into a deep sleep, and became so busy that he forgot about her.

He thought that the beating and the loss of money had repaid the kindness the Ji family had shown him.

Earlier, his second sister-in-law had returned and told his mother about her, mentioning that she had become a widow at a young age.

She said it was pitiful. ‘Could a liar also be pitiful?’

He listened in silence without expressing opinions.

It wasn’t until he saw her at the small market that morning, where she didn’t even recognize him, that the feeling of unwillingness rekindled in his heart.

From that unwillingness came concern, and then he fell completely.

In just over ten days, he was certain that he wanted no one else but her.

He thought that if he encountered that same scene again, he would definitely not back down and walk away.

Instead, he would go up and take her away.

He couldn’t let go of her.

“Let’s treat what happened back then as a time when we were young and ignorant. Let it go. Now, give me a chance to get to know you again, to get closer to you.”

“I know you love your daughter, and I will treat her well, raising her as my own.”

After Zheng Wu finished speaking, his bright eyes fixed intently on Ji Meng, filled with yearning and hope.

Ji Meng’s feelings were complicated, he must really care for the original body.

After being so terribly deceived, he still liked her.

It really felt like a sin.

“Sorry, I don’t have any plans to find a father for Qiuqiu right now.”

Ji Meng grabbed the bottle of orange juice from the table, took a big gulp, gritted her teeth, and looked up at Zheng Wu to reply. Seeing that Zheng Wu had more to say, she quickly added:

“Even if I do find someone, I won’t consider anyone younger than me!”

Her refusal was quite decisive.

Zheng Wu shuddered all over, looking at Ji Meng with a hoarse voice as he asked, “You won’t even give me a chance to try?”

“Sorry.”

Ji Meng pressed her lips together and said again, then placed the three hundred yuan in front of Zheng Wu and stood up.

“My word counts. If you ever need help in the future, you can look for me. As long as it’s within my ability and I can do it, I won’t delay.”

After Ji Meng finished speaking, she didn’t even have time to throw her bag over her shoulder before she hurriedly fled.

The private room had an old wooden door that was somewhat worn out, slightly crooked, and difficult to close once opened.

With the door half-open, it was easy to see outside.

It wasn’t mealtime yet, and the corridor outside was empty. That graceful, slender figure moved through it and quickly disappeared from view.

Inside the room, Zheng Wu sat in a daze, his eyes glued to the door, and his eyelids turned red in an instant.

He had guessed that this would be the outcome.

But he knew that if he didn’t say anything now, he might never have the chance to voice it in his lifetime.

She was a captivating light, and more and more people would notice her in the future.

“What’s the matter?”

After Ji Meng left the restaurant, she grabbed the women’s bicycle that Ji Qinghe had bought for her a few days ago. She turned back to glance at the entrance of the state-owned restaurant and couldn’t help but let out a sigh.

Standing quietly for a moment, Ji Meng raised her hand to check the time, it was four in the afternoon.

It was still early. It was the weekend, and Qiuqiu wasn’t in school, so she was with Ji Qinghe at the clinic.

After thinking for a moment, Ji Meng rode her bike to the department store.

Now that she had made some money, she wanted to buy something for Ji Qinghe and Qiuqiu to share her joy.

Qiuqiu didn’t have many toys, so Ji Meng bought her a rubber doll wearing a floral dress.

When she had taken Qiuqiu shopping here that day, she noticed her secretly looking at the doll display several times, but at that time, she didn’t have much money and didn’t dare to buy anything.

Thinking about how the little girl smiled with her eyes squinted while holding the doll, Ji Meng couldn’t help but let the corners of her mouth lift.

For Ji Qinghe, she bought him a pair of leather shoes.

Ji Qinghe was generous with her and Qiuqiu, buying them whatever they wanted, but he was very frugal with himself, not even replacing a pair of cloth shoes that had holes in them.

After buying the shoes, Ji Meng also got some food and rode her bike to the tailor to pick up the clothes she had ordered for herself and Qiuqiu.

These days, she had been busy working during the day and attending night school in the evenings, relying on Ji Qinghe to bring her meals, and had completely forgotten about the clothes.

With her bags filled, Ji Meng rode her bike to the clinic where Ji Qinghe was, planning to get him to finish work early today so that the family could have a nice meal together.

As she arrived at the clinic, before she could even park her bike, she heard Qiuqiu calling out to her: “Mom, you’re here!”

“Yes, I’m back.”

Ji Meng turned her head, and the little girl had already rushed down a few steps to hug her leg. She smiled and embraced her in response, then looked up to see Ji Qinghe and an elderly man in a dark gray Zhongshan suit just coming out of the clinic a few steps away.

“This girl is so dependent on her mother. No wonder she ran outside just now, it turns out she saw her mom.”

The elderly man was very tall, with graying hair, numerous wrinkles on his face, and age spots, but he looked energetic and spirited, exuding a friendly yet authoritative presence.

At this moment, he smiled at Ji Meng and Qiuqiu, speaking cheerfully.

Nowadays, there was only one family that maintained a good relationship with the Ji family and had some influence, and just one glance was enough for Ji Meng to guess who it was.

She straightened up and hurriedly called out, “Uncle Fu!”

“Ah, Mengmeng.” Fu Yuanshan replied with a smile, looking at Ji Meng.

In recent days, Ji Meng had been wearing clothes sold at the market to promote her designs, and she had specifically dressed up for the occasion.

Today, she wore a cream-colored diamond-patterned knit top and a brown twill A-line skirt, paired with beige low-heeled leather shoes she had bought at the mall. Her thick, cloud-like black hair was tied back with a light yellow hairband, and she wore light makeup, looking both fashionable and elegant.

She was a lovely girl, yet it seemed fate had been unkind to her.

Fu Yuanshan sighed inwardly, his thoughts becoming more firm.

He then asked Ji Meng, “Mengmeng, your father said you are working at the market. Are you getting used to it?”

Fu Yuanshan was now at retirement age, but he still attended meetings for important matters, and this time he had been out for a month.

Ji Meng knew how high the status of the elder in front of her was, but unusually, she didn’t feel uncomfortable, perhaps because Fu Yuanshan’s attitude was genuinely warm and his gaze kind.

So, Ji Meng smiled and replied lightly, “It’s okay, I’m quite used to it.”

“When did Uncle Fu arrive? I bought some vegetables, let’s go home and have dinner together.”

“I would love to eat here, but I just got back and have some matters to attend to, so I have to leave now.”

“However, I just talked to your father, and once you’re done here, I’ll bring Qiyan and Junyan over so we can all have a meal together.”

Fu Yuanshan said with a smile, then looked at Ji Meng and asked, “What do you think, Mengmeng?”

“No matter what happens in the future, our two families should keep in touch and visit each other often. A lot has happened over the years, and Uncle Fu really hopes that you all can do well and help each other.”

Was this to maintain a connection since the marriage proposal didn’t succeed?

Ji Meng was momentarily taken aback and felt a bit hesitant.

Over the years, the Fu family had helped the Ji family a lot, and it was indeed necessary for the two families to keep in touch and have meals together to become familiar with one another.

However, if they had a meal together, the male lead would surely come along.

Wouldn’t that mean the male lead and Qiuqiu would meet?

Due to the plot in the book, Ji Meng didn’t want Qiuqiu to have any connection with the male lead, as she was very worried that there might be emotional entanglements between them.

“I’m fine with it. I was just busy a few days ago, but now I’m free. Uncle Fu, Qiyan, and Junyan can come anytime, I’ll cook. Just don’t expect much from my cooking.”

In the end, Ji Meng agreed. The Ji and Fu families had been family friends for generations and lived in the same city. Unless they cut off all ties, it was impossible for the two children to go through life without any intersection.

And as long as she was around, she would ensure that Qiuqiu would have a bright future and wouldn’t give any scum the chance to make her daughter a substitute.

“Haha, how could I complain? Then it’s settled.”

Seeing Ji Meng agree, Fu Yuanshan felt very pleased, his eyes full of smiles. After pondering for a moment, he made a decision: “Let’s do this—next weekend, we’ll come over together.”

Fu Yuanshan said, then sighed, “It’s been over ten years since the two families have had a good meal together.”

“Alright, Old Ji, I need to leave now, there’s a meeting waiting for me. You should take care of yourself. Now that Mengmeng is back, think about your younger generations, not just yourself.”

“We’ve endured hardships on the farm, now we can manage just fine.”

Fu Yuanshan specifically came to see Ji Qinghe this time. When the incident with Ji Qiao occurred, he was at a meeting and originally called his second son to come over, but he hadn’t received a reply from him.

He was worried, so his guard drove him over as soon as he returned today.

Ji Qinghe had already thought things through. Hearing this, he simply nodded, “Mm, I understand.”

Seeing Ji Qinghe’s straightforward response, Fu Yuanshan felt relieved. After saying goodbye to Ji Meng and Qiuqiu, he got into the car as the guard brought it over and left.

“Why did you buy so many things? Didn’t Dad say that if you need anything, just tell him and he would buy it?”

After sending off Fu Yuanshan, Ji Qinghe glanced at the items in Ji Meng’s bike and couldn’t help but say.

In recent days, his daughter had been busy making money and didn’t even have time to eat, which made Ji Qinghe feel very distressed. He didn’t want her to waste money.

“The market goods were all cleared out, and I made a nice profit, so I bought some gifts for you all,”

Ji Meng replied, knowing Ji Qinghe’s thoughts. She smiled and added without unloading the car, “Dad, I got off work early today, and I don’t have night classes tonight either. You should close up early too, and we can go home and cook something delicious.”

“Alright, your brother Kui took the kids to the hospital for a check-up today, so he’s not here. The clinic isn’t busy, and I was planning to close early anyway,”

Ji Qinghe replied with a smile as he took the keys to lock the door.

When the three of them returned home, Ji Meng first handed the gifts she bought for Qiuqiu and Ji Qinghe to them.

When Qiuqiu saw the doll, she couldn’t put it down and quickly hugged it, then asked Ji Meng a bit anxiously, “Mom, is this doll expensive?”

“It’s not expensive, Qiuqiu. Don’t worry about playing with it. Mom can afford it now,”

Ji Meng reassured her, knowing the little girl cared about prices. She gently patted the girl’s head in response.

On the other side, Ji Qinghe touched the leather shoes and clothes that his daughter had bought for him, his eyes turned red, but he couldn’t help saying,

“Why did you spend that money? I have clothes to wear, just buy them for Qiuqiu.”

“I already said they are gifts, so everyone should have them. I bought something for myself too,”

Ji Meng likes to make money and spend money. She is not a very frugal person. Seeing that they all like it, she is only happy in her heart. She said it casually.

Thinking of something, she asked Ji Qinghe, “Dad, since things are about done here at the market, should we head over to Qingyu in advance?”

Ji Meng had asked Qiuqiu if she minded having a sister to play with, and Qiuqiu not only didn’t mind but was very happy about it.

Ji Meng recalled that the two cousins in the book hardly had any conflicts and should get along well, so she thought it would be good to arrange this in advance.

This way, Qiuqiu could have a companion.

However, she hadn’t brought it up before since she was busy and didn’t have money at the time.

When Qingyu was mentioned, Ji Qinghe’s expression became a bit more serious. He carefully put away the shoes and clothes, pulled up a chair, and sat down to talk to Ji Meng.

“I mentioned this to your Uncle Fu before. He said that since Qingyu’s father has passed away and she will be with her mother as we previously agreed, if they change their minds, and the other side is tough about it, we wouldn’t be in a favorable position. There’s also Qingyu’s mother over there, and since Qingyu is still young and doesn’t understand, if there’s a misunderstanding, it would be bad if she resented us.”

“What he means is that we shouldn’t rush. He will arrange for someone to investigate over there, and if we find out Qingyu is being wronged, we will go and bring her back.”

Children naturally depend on their mothers, and the matter of separating a mother and daughter indeed needs to be handled carefully.

“Uncle Fu makes a good point.”

Ji Meng thought for a moment and felt this made sense. In the novel, the female lead, Qingyu, indeed had feelings for her mother. Even after being deeply hurt, when her mother came to her in destitution, she still couldn’t help but step in to help her from behind.

As she said, her mother had given birth to her and raised her, and at least when her father was around, she had treated her well.

If at this moment her mother did nothing and they forced the mother and child to separate, it would indeed have bad consequences.

“Then let’s wait and see for now.”

In the end, Ji Meng said. She remembered that Qingyu’s mother had remarried shortly after Ji Qiao’s death, so it wouldn’t be long before something happened.

“Mm.”

Ji Qinghe replied, and after a moment’s pause, he thought of something and looked at Ji Meng, “Mengmeng, do you know why your Uncle Fu suggested that the two families have a meal together?”

Ji Meng’s hand, which was about to tidy up the doll’s packaging, paused slightly. She looked up at Ji Qinghe, “Does Uncle Fu have other intentions?”

“He hopes you can choose one of your brothers, Qiyan or Junyan.” Ji Qinghe said with a slightly pursed mouth, and after a moment, he spoke again.

“Ah?” Ji Meng was completely taken aback.

“How could that be?”

“Today, I told your Uncle Fu about your situation and my thoughts.”

“What he means is that both Qiyan and Junyan are single, and he wants you young people to give each other a chance and try to get to know each other. If it works out, the two families could become in-laws, if not, you can just regard each other as siblings.”

“Your Uncle Fu wants us not to take the first marriage or second marriage too seriously. What matters is the feelings between the two people. If you really care, then choose Qiyan, he’s also a widower with a child, and the circumstances are similar.”

Ji Qinghe relayed Fu Yuanshan’s exact words to Ji Meng. Hesitating for a moment, he shared his own thoughts:

“I think what your dad does makes sense. Now, the Ji family only has you left, and I’m very worried. If either Qiyan or Junyan can look after you, it would be much better.”

Hesitating, Ji Qinghe didn’t express his deepest worries.

That day, when he saw her shining performance on stage, he realized his daughter was not an ordinary person, she wanted to achieve great things.

But these days, even though they say ^[1]“women can stand half the sky” (女人能顶半边天) expresses the idea that women are equally capable and should be regarded as equal partners in society, capable of contributing to … Continue readingwomen can stand half the sky, it is still very difficult for a woman to establish herself in the world.