Chapter 11

Song Guanshu held a deputy section-level position, but Jiang Ling had no idea about it.

She smiled and said, “I don’t care about his status. Whether he’s an ordinary worker or holds some kind of position, I still like him.”

Wei Ming was left embarrassed, his expression turning unpleasant.

He shook his head, trying to salvage his dignity. “Men are becoming more and more popular. You all just don’t understand the appeal of older men.”

Section Chief Tang and Lu Jianjun both fell into the category of older men, and the two nodded in agreement.

The senior ladies in the Accounting Section had all been married for many years and had witnessed their husbands’ transition from youth to middle age. Upon hearing his remark, they all wore the same expression: hard to describe and difficult to explain.

Married middle-aged women who had already had children were bold when it came to discussing marital matters, unfiltered whether crude or not. One of them said, “Oh please, save it. Are you trying to fool us like we’re unmarried girls? Older men are no different from useless junk. It’s over in two minutes. Even taking off their pants is a waste of time.”

The male comrades around were all blushing with embarrassment, and at the same time, some were seething with anger, their male pride clearly bruised.

This was obviously a topic that couldn’t be continued. These private matters were hard to argue over, and bringing them up hit a sore spot for some. Their guilt was showing.

Section Chief Tang put on the airs of a leader and said, “Xiao Jiang is still an unmarried young lady. Watch your words a little when you talk. Don’t go corrupting her.”

Jiang Ling thought to herself, This is nothing. There’s really no need to shield me.

However, in everyone else’s eyes, an unmarried woman was still just a child, and you couldn’t talk dirty in front of a child.

Jiang Ling shook her head with a smile. “It’s fine. I’m getting married soon anyway. Listening to you all talk about what happens after marriage will help me be more experienced in the future.”

This older sister, upon hearing that, didn’t pay the slightest attention to Section Chief Tang’s warning.

“I’ve been through it myself, let me tell you. When you’re looking for a partner, you’ve got to pick someone young. A man’s prime doesn’t last long. Once he’s past that period, he’s no good anymore. Never choose someone with too big of an age gap.”

Words like this, she wouldn’t say to her own daughter or niece—it would be too awkward. But with an outsider, it was different. She could say whatever she pleased.

Jiang Ling certainly understood the reasoning behind it. At the same time, her mind was running: How old was Song Guanshu this year?

The novel didn’t mention the villain’s age in detail, only that Xie Lang called him “Brother.”

Song Guanshu was older than Xie Lang, but he had a youthful face and actually looked younger than Xie Lang.

Wei Ming’s face turned as dark as the bottom of a pot. What kind of nonsense were they even talking about? He felt downright offended.

But he couldn’t interrupt. He gave Section Chief Tang a look, signaling him to do something about these people. Yet Section Chief Tang merely yawned and pretended not to see his expression.

In the past two years, Wei Ming had often felt that his strength no longer matched his will. To make matters worse, his wife still hadn’t gotten pregnant and was particularly eager about the matter.

What was supposed to be one of life’s greatest pleasures had now left him with a psychological shadow.

Section Chief Tang and Lu Jianjun were older than Wei Ming. While they didn’t suffer the same kind of trauma from having their wives constantly chasing them into bed, they too were no longer up to the task.

Both of them had their own unspoken hardships.

Wei Ming had originally intended to cause trouble for Song Guanshu, but ended up setting himself on fire instead. In order not to draw any further attention, he didn’t say another word for the rest of the day.

When the end-of-day bell rang, Jiang Ling dashed off toward the canteen without a shred of attachment to the office.

She happened to run smack into Jiang Lian, who was coming in from outside.

Jiang Lian had come looking for Jiang Ling. She helped straighten her sister up and said, “Why are you rushing around like that? You can’t be walking so fast out there. What if there’s ice somewhere and you slip? What then?”

She had something to say to Jiang Ling. After nodding in greeting to the clerks in the Accounting Section, she pulled her outside.

Jiang Ling was afraid of the cold. Before the end-of-day bell rang, she had already changed into her outdoor clothes in advance, bundled up in layer after layer, with only her eyes showing.

Jiang Lian dragged her out. As they stepped out of the office building, the north wind howled against their bodies.

This year had been an especially cold winter. Though it was already the beginning of spring, the temperature showed no sign of warming up.

It was freezing outside and not convenient for conversation, so they ended up going to Jiang Ling’s intended destination—the canteen.

The canteen was serving leftover lunch. Jiang Ling got a steamed bun and a serving of plain vegetables.

Jiang Lian watched her younger sister eat the food with a pained expression. Both of her younger sisters were extremely delicate and picky when it came to food and clothing.

“Leftover vegetables without any meat are really hard to eat.” At the moment, she was craving meat terribly.

Jiang Lian smiled and said, “Next time, Big Sister will take you to eat at the state-run restaurant.”

Jiang Ling pouted. “Forget it. You’d better save the money to buy meat for Xiao Ya and Xiao Shi, and make them some new clothes.”

Jiang Lian was eager to resolve the family conflict. After not coming home the night before last, she had made a point to get off work early last night and return home to reassure her husband and children. She had already told them in advance that she would be late today. So as soon as she got off work, she went straight to find Jiang Ling.

“Last night I gave Xiao Ya and Xiao Shi canned tangerines to eat. They said it tasted really good.”

“I told them it was bought by their uncle. They asked me to pass on their thanks to their aunt and uncle, thanking him for letting them enjoy canned tangerines that are usually only eaten during the New Year.”

Jiang Lian’s in-laws were all workers, and her mother-in-law held a small leadership position in the factory.

Their family’s situation was far better than that of many worker households.

But Jiang Lian’s husband’s family was extremely patriarchal. Her parents-in-law and husband were unwilling to let her two daughters eat anything good. Whatever nice food the household had always ended up in the stomach of the only son in her husband’s younger brother’s family.

Jiang Lian had to hand over her wages to her husband. Even though Jiang Zhifu knew she wasn’t living well at her in-laws’, he would never give her any extra support.

With no one helping her and no allowance of her own, Jiang Lian couldn’t even buy snacks for her daughters. Xiao Ya and Xiao Shi had hardly ever tasted anything good.

Canned fruit was a rare delicacy.

Jiang Ling shrugged. “It was Song Guanshu who paid for it. No need to thank me. If I run into him next time, I’ll pass the message along.”

Jiang Lian looked serious and asked her, “Are you planning to keep living in the factory dormitory?”

Jiang Ling said, “What else can I do? Mom and Dad have already kicked me out. There’s no way I’m moving back.”

“What I mean is, you and Xiao Song have already gotten your marriage certificate. You two should be living together.”

Jiang Ling dropped her playful expression and spoke seriously, “I haven’t told anyone around me that I’m already married. I only said I’m dating Song Guanshu. Sis, please don’t tell anyone that I’ve registered the marriage.”

Jiang Lian was a bit confused now. Jiang Ling had registered her marriage with Xiao Song, yet didn’t want anyone to know she was married.

Jiang Lian looked serious. “You’d better not do anything to betray Xiao Song. You’re already married. Messing around with other men and women is considered hooliganism. You could end up in prison.”

Jiang Ling shook her head helplessly. “Big Sis, can’t you think better of me? Don’t you know me well enough by now? Am I the kind of person who fools around with others?”

She wasn’t—but Jiang Lian couldn’t think of any other explanation.

Jiang Ling didn’t want anyone to know that she and Song Guanshu had already registered their marriage, mainly because she didn’t want to live with him.

Now that she was married, the logistics section might not approve her dormitory application for the sake of preserving family harmony.

And if she had just gotten married but was already living apart from her husband, someone from the Women’s Federation would definitely come to talk to her.

The truth was, neither she nor Song Guanshu wanted to live together.

Jiang Ling casually made up an excuse. “After all, our parents haven’t given their approval. If others find out we’ve registered the marriage, it won’t look good.”

Jiang Lian was so angry she felt like hitting her. “That didn’t stop you from registering the marriage in the first place. And if you really cared about how Mom and Dad felt, why did you bring back the gifts Xiao Song brought? Are you out of your mind?”

Jiang Lian knew their parents very well. “Just that one move of yours, and there’s no way Mom and Dad will ever accept Xiao Song.”

Jiang Ling let out a light sigh. “Time will wash everything away. Mom and Dad may not approve now, but that might change in the future.” For all she knew, she and Song Guanshu might be divorced in a few years anyway.

Jiang Ling pulled out her tried-and-true tactic—acting spoiled. “Big Sis, think about it. If I suddenly tell everyone I’ve gotten married, they’d be so surprised. They might even talk about me behind my back. You know better than anyone how nasty the mouths of those aunties at the factory can be. They’d probably say I rushed into marriage because I was trying to hide a pregnancy.”

Jiang Lian scratched her head. What her little sister said did seem to make some sense.

“You and Xiao Song living apart like this won’t help your relationship as a couple. Don’t blame me for speaking harshly, but men are quick to change their hearts. You need to keep an eye on him.”

That kind of warning might apply to other men, but it didn’t fit Song Guanshu at all. He was a man with no room for women in his heart.

In the original novel, his relationship with “Jiang Ling” was poor. They were married only on paper, a couple in name only. Song Guanshu had never shown even the slightest trace of ambiguity with any woman. If he wasn’t causing trouble for the male and female leads, then he was on his way to causing trouble.

“I’m sure Song Guanshu would never have a change of heart.”

His heart had never been with her in the first place, so how could it change?