Ji Xiunian blinked, and it took her a few seconds to nod. “Today was a blind date, yes.”
Zhou Lang said nothing.
She hadn’t expected such a frank answer.
“Are you… alone right now?”
“I have my family.”
Oh. Anyang, of course, Zhou Lang thought.
“From what Xiao Zhen said just now, you plan to keep doing this until you find someone suitable?”
“We’ll see.”
Ji Xiunian gave her a small nod. “I’m off, then.”
She didn’t know why she’d suddenly felt the urge to leave… Whether Zhou Lang would say next that she was no longer alone.
She hailed a taxi and gave the address.
By the time she reached the Jiang Family Old Residence, Jiang Wei was in the courtyard putting Jiang Lan through pull-ups. The moment Jiang Lan saw her, he clung to her like a drowning man to a lifeline. “Auntie! Dad’s abusing me!”
Ji Xiunian looked at Jiang Wei, her expression mild. “Big Brother, send Little Lan inside to rest. I have something to discuss with you.”
Her tone was light, yet for some reason it made Jiang Wei shiver. “Jiang Lan. Inside. Books. And don’t come back down.”
The half-grown boy flipped nimbly off the bar and darted inside in a blur, stirring up a gust of wind—cheerfully off to play video games in his room.
Ji Xiunian gave Jiang Wei a level look. “Shall we talk in the living room?”
Jiang Wei: “…Uh. Yes. Yes, of course.”
Ji Xiunian sat on the sofa, shoulders and neck straight, back upright, hands folded in her lap, her gaze clear. “Big Brother, I’d like to talk about today.”
Jiang Wei: “…”
There it was. So she’d been holding her tongue outside to save his face, and now she’d come home to settle accounts.
Ji Xiunian’s expression remained gentle and serene, but he knew, with perfect clarity: Ji Xiunian was angry.
She was gentle by nature—but she was no pushover, and she had a temper.
“You’ve arranged blind dates for me many times, and I have clearly refused many times. Isn’t that so?”
“It is…”
“Today I took Anyang to the hospital. You appeared out of nowhere, stopped the car halfway, and told me the man had already arrived—having calculated in advance that I would go along. Isn’t that so?”
“Little Nian, Big Brother…”
“Big Brother. Let me finish first.”
Her voice was gentle and calm, yet utterly firm and resolute. There was no accusation in her eyes, and that somehow made it all the more unnerving.
Jiang Wei lowered his head.
And so a great burly bear of a man could only sit and take his scolding like a good boy. On the base, he regularly drilled recruits until they wailed for their mothers. Who would guess that such a formidable military officer… was terrified of his little sister at home.
It wasn’t quite fear—after all, Little Nian never scolded him, much less raised a hand to him.
But Ji Xiunian was gentle in a way that held firm principles. She almost never got angry; most of the time she was the easiest person in the world to talk to. Yet the gentler a person was, the more unnerving their true anger became.
“Big Brother, in your heart, am I still that teenage girl who needs you to arrange everything for her?”
“…Of course not.”
“I am an adult, with more than enough experience of life and work, and more than enough ability to manage my own emotions, arrange my own work, and plan my own life. Isn’t that so?”
“…It is.”
“Good. One last question. Big Brother—should you respect my decisions and my choices?”
Jiang Wei let out a long, heavy sigh. “Little Nian, Big Brother was wrong. I should respect your wishes.”
After all that talking, Ji Xiunian’s posture remained perfectly straight, her gaze limpid, carrying the purity of one polished by long experience of the world. “Big Brother, I know you care about me and want what’s best for me. But I believe I can live well on my own. I don’t need someone to look after me, and I don’t need marriage to give me stability or a sense of belonging. I am the foundation and bedrock of my own life.”
Jiang Wei stared at her, his eyes suddenly reddening—and smiled. “Mm. Big Brother knows he was wrong. Our Niannian has grown up.”
Ji Xiunian sighed softly.
Big Brother, honestly… a hard man everywhere else, and yet the moment he came home he turned into this emotional mess.
She had no choice but to let her smile show, softening her voice. “There. I wasn’t blaming you. I just had to talk this through, so you won’t worry about me anymore.”
Jiang Wei nodded. “Big Brother understands. Only—Niannian… don’t blame Anyang. You know how that boy is. He always believes he’s a burden to you. No one wants more for you to live well than he does. And he’s only just come out of surgery—let him rest properly…”
Ji Xiunian was silent a moment. “I’ve thought about it. The truth is, I have faults in this too. I don’t know how to talk to that child. When he was little, he actually hated me…”
Her smile turned faintly bitter as she said it.
She failed entirely to notice a figure in the shadow of the staircase quietly taking a step back.
Jiang Wei sighed helplessly. “That boy…”
Ji Xiunian fell silent too.
“Forget it—let’s not talk about this. Big Brother will make a phone call. I was supposed to meet someone else as well; I’ll apologize to them, and we won’t go tomorrow.”
“There’s another one?”
“Yeah. My teacher’s nephew. I’ll go apologize.”
“It’s fine.” Ji Xiunian rubbed her temple, weary. “It’s so late—the old gentleman is probably already asleep. Canceling this abruptly would be rude. And if I remember right, he’s the one who referred a doctor for Anyang… Fine, I’ll go. One meeting, and no contact afterward.”
Jiang Wei couldn’t help his unease. “You really aren’t angry anymore?”
Ji Xiunian smiled. “Is my temper really that bad?”
“No, no, not at all. It’s just… you can be rather stubborn.”
“Stubborn… perhaps a little.”
“A little? Try a lot… Little Nian, Big Brother wants to ask you something.”
“Mm. Go ahead.”
Jiang Wei’s expression turned serious. “Do you still carry a torch for that girl from the Zhou family?”
The smile drained from Ji Xiunian’s face. “Why would you ask that out of nowhere?”
“Never mind why I’m asking. Answer my question first.”
“Is it that important?”
Jiang Wei’s face was grave. “Of course it is.”
He remembered going off on a mission and coming back to learn that his gentle, soft-spoken little sister—just to see her lover—had actually dared to leap from a balcony. A shattered leg, and afterward… so long lying in a hospital bed. Every time he thought of it, he wanted to slap himself across the face.
A few days ago he’d heard that girl from the Zhou family had come back too, and his heart had sunk straight down. Whatever it took, this time he would not let Little Nian be hurt one bit.
Ji Xiunian looked at him quietly, still evading. “Big Brother…”
Jiang Wei seemed to read everything in her eyes. His throat worked several times; all the impulsive words, the questions, the pleas to stop—all of it went down his throat, and only one sigh of a question came out.
“Niannian. Is it worth it?”
“Langlang. Is it worth it?”
Shen Shan’s eyes brimmed with tears as she seized Zhou Lang’s hand. “Tell your mother the truth. Did you see that girl from the Ji family, and that’s why you’re divorcing Jiaru?”
Zhou Lang was helpless. “Mom, I’m not lying to you.”
Half an hour earlier, Zhou Lang had come home.
Shen Shan had been watching a tearjerker melodrama, leaning against her husband and dabbing her tears. “Langlang? What are you doing home?”
Zhou Lang smiled, though her expression was grave. “Dad, Mom. There’s something I need to tell you.”
Zhou Duo looked at her, gaze bright and sharp, and smacked the video game controller out of their son’s hands. “Zhou Xiang. Your room.”
Zhou Xiang: “Why can’t I listen?”
Zhou Duo: “Stay here if you want a beating.”
“Hmph! I’m going out for a walk!”
Only after their son had stomped off, grudgingly, did Zhou Duo pat the sofa. “Sit.”
Zhou Lang sat, lashes lowered, voice even, coming straight to the point. “Dad, Mom. I’m already divorced.”
Shen Shan’s tears hadn’t even dried. “What?!”
She slammed the remote down and switched off the television.
Zhou Duo remained composed. “Explain. Clearly.”
“Jiaru and I had a contract marriage—a business alliance. Two years, then we went our separate ways. The divorce was over a decade ago.”
“Langlang, you really aren’t lying to your mother?”
“Why would I lie about something like that?”
“But not long ago, you went to Grandpa Duan’s birthday celebration.”
“To repay a debt of gratitude. Nothing more.”
Shen Shan stared at her in disbelief, but gradually her expression shifted. “No wonder… Abroad we weren’t even in the same city; I never knew how you actually lived. I kept wondering why, after coming home, you and Jiaru lived in separate apartments. I even thought you were separated…”
Zhou Lang: “We never so much as shared a bed.”
Zhou Duo’s face darkened. “Mind your words.”
Zhou Lang: “…We were completely clean. Nothing between us, not one thing.”
She added, “We never even held hands.”
Shen Shan still couldn’t quite give up. “But Jiaru is such a gentle, well-mannered girl, and our cooperation with the Duan Family has always gone smoothly. Your mother doesn’t believe it. Did you truly divorce long ago—or did you want the divorce only after coming home?”
Zhou Lang: “Mom, I have never wronged Jiaru. If you have something to say, say it plainly. All this beating around the bush and laying of groundwork—aren’t you tired?”
Shen Shan, tearful, glanced at her husband. Zhou Duo’s face was stern. “She’s told you to ask. So ask.”
“Was it because of that girl from the Ji family that you divorced?”
“…It had nothing to do with her.”
“Then you’ve been divorced all these years, acted the part all these years—why suddenly lay your cards on the table with us?”
“…Mom.”
Zhou Lang looked her in the eye. “What is it you want to hear from me?”
Zhou Duo’s face was iron; he said nothing.
Even now, he wanted nothing more than to strangle Ji Changhong with his own hands.
Zhou Lang smiled suddenly. “It’s not that I don’t hate. And of course I feel guilty toward you all—toward Dad, toward you, toward A-Xiang.”
Shen Shan cut her off. “You owe no guilt. I don’t want to hear about guilt. I only want to ask one thing… Langlang. Is it worth it?”
Zhou Lang nodded slowly, her voice flat yet carrying the weight of a thousand pounds. “There’s no need to ask whether it’s worth it. I only know this: I follow my heart.”
Zhou Duo waved a hand. “Go on back for now. Let your mother and me think.”
Zhou Lang rose. “All right. Dad, Mom… rest early.”
Shen Shan, uneasy, followed her a few steps and called after her. “Langlang… follow your heart—your mother can’t object to that. But you can’t do anything against the law, or against public decency, you hear…”
Zhou Lang was laughed into a smile by her. “Mom, you’ve been watching too many dramas. I’m not cheating on anyone, and I’m not playing mistress to anyone. What on earth are you imagining?”
“Then why suddenly come out with all this tonight… Anyone would think you were about to run off and elope.”
“Elope?” Zhou Lang burst out laughing. “At most I’ll go on a blind date. Eloping is a bit much. I only told you in advance so you wouldn’t misunderstand and think I was cheating.”
“A blind date? With whom?”
“That’s a secret.” Zhou Lang nudged her mother back toward the house. “All right, I’m off. Rest early.”
She had barely stepped out the door and made it a few paces when someone called her. “Zhou Lang.”
“Yining? You’re here too?”
“I was in the kitchen.”
Zhou Lang stopped. “Oh. So you heard.”
Xue Yining’s expression was cool. “I’m sorry—I was eavesdropping on purpose.”
“And yet you don’t look the least bit sorry.”
“You’re welcome to see it that way.”
Xue Yining asked, “You can forgive Ji Xiunian for abandoning you. Can you also forgive Ji Changhong—on behalf of your parents, on behalf of A-Xiang, on behalf of the countless Zhou Family workers who lost their jobs back then?”
Zhou Lang: “Of course I have no such right.”
Because of her love, Ji Changhong had crushed Zhou Enterprises. The family had nearly gone bankrupt; her father had been framed and imprisoned; their properties had been seized; her mother, driven from their home, had gone into labor early—thankfully, her little brother had been born safe.
Otherwise, would she not have blamed herself for a lifetime?
Xue Yining: “Then you…”
Zhou Lang: “Yining, give me some time. I will get to the truth. And please believe me—she is a person of principle, with a clear sense of right and wrong.”
Xue Yining scoffed. “Forget it. I won’t try to talk you out of anything.”
Zhou Lang knew neither would persuade the other, and saw no point in saying more. “I’m leaving.”
Her car was parked in the courtyard.
As she drew near, she saw Zhou Xiang leaning against the car door on the phone. Before she could speak, he thrust the phone into her hand. “Ji Anyang!”
Zhou Lang blinked. “Anyang? What’s wrong?”
Ji Anyang sounded embarrassed, taking forever to get to the point. “Sis, I wanted to ask your advice—is there any way…”
Zhou Xiang had never been a patient boy. “His family set up a blind date, and because of him she couldn’t get out of it! He’s asking if there’s any way to keep his mom from having to meet the guy!”
Zhou Lang tilted her head, and the corners of her mouth slowly curved upward. “Oh? I can do that. I’ll help.”
Ji Xiunian took a taxi to a restaurant.
Jiang Wei had sent her the location and table number in advance, along with a description of the man: tall, thin, a doctor.
She was looking down at the description on her phone, thinking about how to wrap up the meeting quickly after a few polite exchanges, when she rounded a corner and nearly walked straight into someone.
“Careful.”
The voice was deeply familiar. A hand steadied her.
Ji Xiunian looked up. “Zhou Lang? What are you doing here?”
Zhou Lang arched a brow. “Attending a dinner on a friend’s behalf. And you?”
“I’m meeting someone for a meal.”
“Oh. What a coincidence.”
They walked on side by side.
“I’m heading up.”
“I’m on the second floor too.”
Zhou Lang’s tone was idle, almost conversational. “What kind of friend?”
“Just a friend.”
“Oh. This restaurant’s not bad. Order a few of the signature dishes while you’re at it.”
“You… you’re walking the same direction as me?”
“That’s right.” Zhou Lang waved her phone. “I booked a table in advance.”
The corridor ran out beneath their feet. Just before pushing open the door, Ji Xiunian looked abruptly at Zhou Lang.
Zhou Lang smiled too, pushing the door fully open and gesturing her inside with perfect courtesy. “So it’s the same room. What a truly remarkable coincidence.”
