L&H - 92

Fu Jichen left the company and headed directly to the old family estate.

In the past, it was always his grandfather who called him; his grandmother rarely phoned to ask him to come home.

On the way, he sent a message to Ji Qingyuan: [I’m buying flowers for Yu Qing today. I’m letting you know in advance so you don’t accuse me of betraying you when I bring flowers home later.]

Ji Qingyuan asked: [How many roses?]

Fu Jichen: [52.]

Ji Qingyuan decided to buy the same number.

Not long after, the car turned into the Fu family’s old estate.

In the courtyard, his grandfather was pruning the trees again.

It was midsummer, and the vegetation was lush and thriving. In the garden, his grandmother had planted various types of roses, which were now blooming vibrantly in full splendor.

The remnants of the setting sun bathed the courtyard in golden light.

Under the shade of the trees, his grandmother sat in a wicker chair, wearing glasses and fully absorbed in reading a book.

On the side table next to her lay an open notebook and a fountain pen.

His grandmother had a habit when reading—she would copy out her favorite passages and jot down her thoughts beside them. Over the years, her notes had filled an entire shelf.

On the fruit platter sat slices of watermelon, while another tray held chunks of pink melon flesh, accompanied by a fork placed neatly on the side.

This was specially prepared for him.

Fu Jichen got out of the car and walked over. “Grandma.”

His grandmother bookmarked her page and closed the book. “Not busy today?”

“Not too bad,” Fu Jichen replied as he sat down and took a bite of the watermelon—it was refreshingly sweet. “This melon is delicious. I’ll take some back for Yu Qing.”

Grandma: “There’s half a melon left in the kitchen for you. The housekeeper bought it from his hometown—it’s sweeter than usual.” She added with concern, “Didn’t you say you were going on vacation? Why are you back so soon?”

Her worry deepened. “Is Yu Qing feeling unwell?”

Fu Jichen shook his head and fed her a piece of watermelon with a fork.

Grandma waved her hand. “I just ate a small slice—I can’t have too much, my blood sugar is high.”

Fu Jichen explained why he had returned so hastily. “Yu Qing said there was no need for a vacation because she didn’t want to disrupt my work. After the baby is born, we’ll plan a proper trip and go out for a few more days.”

Grandpa put away his pruning tools, washed his hands, and came over. “How’s the Xinjian Technology project going?”

Fu Jichen gave a detailed update to his grandfather, including their plans for the next few years.

Grandpa nodded approvingly. “Not bad. I even feel like investing.”

He then asked, “How are your efforts paying off?”

This question wasn’t about the project but referred to obtaining their marriage certificate.

Fu Jichen: “We’re taking it step by step. Yu Qing’s emotional block…” He paused. “It’s not something that can be resolved in a day or two. Her relationship with her mother is probably what it is now.”

Li Bing’s personality made it clear that after so many fractures, she and Yu Qing could never return to how things once were. In her eyes, patching things up held no meaning.

That crack would always remain—there was no point in deceiving themselves.

It was better not to look back and instead move forward.

“The thing Yu Qing desires most, and her only weakness, is maternal love.” But despite giving everything, she still hadn’t received it.

When Yu Qing was little, Li Bing had gone abroad to pursue her career. Yu Qing wanted to live with her mother, but her mother refused, assuming it was because Yu Qing was too young.

By the time Yu Qing was a teenager and no longer needed her mother’s care, her mother still refused to live with her.

Later, during a university trip, Yu Qing encountered her mother again—but her mother still didn’t accompany her.

In Yu Qing’s eyes, even her own mother didn’t want her.

In this world, who could truly belong to someone forever?

Grandma comforted him. “If you’ve truly let go, whether or not you have the certificate doesn’t matter.”

Grandpa chimed in. “The problem is that he just can’t let go.”

Fu Jichen: “….”

Grandma gave Grandpa a firm slap under the table, then stood up and said to Fu Jichen, “I’ve prepared a big gift for you—you’re sure to like it.”

“What is it?”

“I’ll go get it.”

Grandpa consoled him with a few words. “You and your brother grew up with everything handed to you on a silver platter, just like Lexiao. You were raised with every luxury imaginable. It’s impossible for you to have all the good fortune to yourselves. Suffering and happiness are two sides of the same coin—no one can guarantee they’ll always get heads every time they flip it. Loosen up a bit.”

Fu Jichen nodded. “I’m not thinking about these things right now. Yu Qing is changing—I can feel it.”

Not long after, Grandma returned, carrying a heavy tote bag.

Fu Jichen took it—it contained her notebooks and personal diaries.

Grandma: “I’m lending these to you. They’re filled with advice on relationships, marriage, and how to handle life’s trivial matters. Not everything will apply to you, but these are the experiences I’ve accumulated over a lifetime—they’ll surely be useful. If Yu Qing doesn’t know how to deal with certain things, then you can learn to handle them.”

________________________________________

Fu Jichen stayed at his grandparents’ house until after 8 PM before heading back. He also took the watermelon with him.

When he arrived at the Yu family villa, everyone except Yu Jingze had already returned.

Yu Qing walked over and hugged him. “Why did you bring watermelon back?”

“For you—it’s very sweet.” Fu Jichen handed the watermelon to the housekeeper and asked her to cut it.

He placed the notebooks and diaries in the common area of the house.

Ji Qingyuan was playing with Baby. He glanced at the bar counter. “Why are there so many notebooks? They look quite old.”

Fu Jichen: “You can read them too. These are my grandmother’s sixty years of marital insights, along with snippets from when she met my grandfather while studying abroad. Just don’t damage them—I have to return them.”

Yu Jingxin was particularly interested in these. Growing up, no one had ever taught her how to handle the trivial issues that arise in marriage. “I’ll write a reminder here.”

Yu Qing: “I want to read about Grandma and Grandpa’s romance when they were young.”

“There are several volumes. Take your time.” Fu Jichen suddenly remembered. “There are also letters tucked inside the notebooks—ones they exchanged during their courtship.”

They weren’t overly sentimental; they mostly dealt with everyday matters.

What his grandmother had given him was surely suited for him.

Fu Jichen asked Yu Qing to let go of him. “I’ll go get something else from the car.”

“What other treasures?”

“You’ll know soon.”

The roses were still in the trunk.

Yu Qing helped Yu Jingxin make a sign for the first time with such ceremony. Like Yu Jingxin, she had never seen what a happy family looked like.

And these were things Fu Jichen had grown up seeing.

Yu Jingxin sighed. “I never expected Grandpa and Grandma Fu to be so romantic.”

Soon after, Fu Jichen entered, holding a bouquet of roses.

Yu Qing looked at the roses and raised an eyebrow. “What’s the special occasion?”

Fu Jichen handed her the flowers. “I didn’t accompany you to your prenatal checkup.”

Through the roses, he gave her another hug. “I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.”

Yu Jingxin turned to Ji Qingyuan. “Why did you buy me flowers today?”

Ji Qingyuan: “I wanted to. No reason.”

This answer passed Yu Jingxin’s scrutiny.

She arranged the notebooks according to their labeled sequence and handed Yu Qing the volumes documenting Fu Grandpa and Fu Grandma’s courtship. She started reading from the first volume about their marriage.

Yu Qing ate a slice of watermelon and prepared to find a vase for her roses.

Fu Jichen was worried the thorns on the stems might prick her hands, so he brought scissors and asked her to stand aside and direct him while he trimmed the stems.

Yu Qing hugged his waist and rested her cheek against his arm. “Cut it a little shorter—two centimeters.”

When Yu Jingze returned, amidst the notebooks and roses, he felt completely out of place in this atmosphere.

________________________________________

That Friday night, Yu Qing and Yu Jingxin planned to go shopping.

Yu Jingxin mentioned to her the details regarding Wenning Media taking over the concert promotion. “Are you really okay handing this over to Leng Wanning? If she messes it up, the losses for Lemongrass could be incalculable.”

Yu Qing held a long dress in front of her and sized it up. “If she really wanted to sabotage things, she wouldn’t have taken on the project. She could easily find a black mark and stir up controversy. Since she accepted, I don’t need to worry. Now that she’s willing to collaborate with me, lower her stance, and offer me the lowest price, why not take advantage of it? In business, having one more partner is better than having one more rival.”

She looked at Yu Jingxin. “You don’t need to worry about me—I have everything figured out. I know who I can collaborate with and who I can’t. Zhou Siyuan is someone I can’t work with.”

As they spoke, Yu Qing received a call from Zou Lexiao.

Zou Lexiao asked where she was and expressed her desire to meet up.

“I’m completely heartbroken.”

“Delete your brother’s contact information too.”

Yu Qing was surprised. “What happened?”

After a moment of silence, Zou Lexiao said, “It’s hard to explain in one sentence. I’m drinking, and I suddenly wanted to talk to you.”

The quiet bar Zou Lexiao went to was located on the first floor of the clubhouse. It was a members-only establishment, true to its name—quiet and serene, with a live singer.

People came here either to listen to music or to savor the bartender’s craft.

Yu Jingxin told Yu Qing, “Let’s go there—it’s very peaceful.”

Yu Qing had been to the clubhouse once before to deliver a bag to Feng Mai, but she had only reached the courtyard and didn’t know what the interior was like. “Have you been there? Is it suitable for a pregnant woman like me?”

Yu Jingxin: “Yes, I’m one of the owners.” During the six months Ji Qingyuan was away, she would often visit when she wasn’t working overtime.

When there was no one to confide in, she would come here to drink and listen to music.

The live singer was someone she had personally hired, and the bartender was poached from elsewhere with a high salary.

Yu Qing looked at her. “Just how many investments do you have?”

Yu Jingxin teased her. “For every bit of money you’ve spent, I’ve invested just as much.”

Yu Qing: “….”

Her heart sank.

When Yu Qing and Yu Jingxin arrived, Zou Lexiao had already had two drinks. She set down her glass. “I’m not drunk, and I won’t get drunk.”

Yu Qing patted her head. “Everything seemed fine the other night. What suddenly happened? What did my brother do to wrong you?”

Zou Lexiao shook her head. “Chasing a man who doesn’t love you is too difficult. All the things I wanted to say to him, all the jokes I wanted to make to lighten the mood—he’d give me one cold glance, and I’d lose all my courage.”

She looked at Yu Jingxin. “I finally understand you. After four years, why you and Ji Qingyuan drifted further apart.” Rumors in their circle might not always be true, but they don’t come out of thin air.

“All the grievances I carried—when I faced him, I couldn’t bring myself to speak.”

“For those few days, I waited for his call every day. The first thing I did when I woke up was check if he had messaged me. Before going to sleep at night, I still hadn’t heard from him, so I convinced myself he was too busy to spare a thought.”

She exhaled. “Enough—I shouldn’t say more; it’s not good for your baby’s prenatal education.” She looked at Yu Qing. “I envy you so much. Second Brother treats you so well.”

Yu Qing smiled. “Then I envy you for having such a happy family. I’ve never had even one day of that—and I never will in this lifetime. But there will be other good men for you.”

Zou Lexiao wiped the corner of her eye. “I suddenly feel so rich.”

“Qingqing.” A familiar voice called out.

Yu Qing and Yu Jingxin turned simultaneously—it was Li Yanzhuo.

Li Yanzhuo had spotted Yu Qing’s car in the courtyard. The only place suitable for her was the quiet bar—the private rooms in the clubhouse had cigarette smoke and were noisy.

Yu Jingxin greeted Li Yanzhuo with a smile. “Long time no see.”

Li Yanzhuo ruffled Yu Qing’s hair and then said to Yu Jingxin, “It has been a while.”

Yu Qing looked at the two of them. “You know each other?”

Li Yanzhuo: “Yes, we met abroad.” He thought for a moment. “I think we’ve known each other for about five or six years.”

At the entrance, a few more people walked in.

After they arrived at the clubhouse, Fu Jichen and Ji Qingyuan, feeling uneasy, followed to check on them.

Yu Jingze, having nothing to do at home, tagged along with Fu Jichen and Ji Qingyuan to the clubhouse. Unexpectedly, he saw Zou Lexiao in the quiet bar and then spotted Li Yanzhuo as well.

Ji Qingyuan glanced at Li Yanzhuo, his expression remaining calm.

Fu Jichen shook hands with Li Yanzhuo—they were already acquainted, so there was no need for excessive pleasantries.

Now there were seven people, but the table only had six seats.

Who would sit at the adjacent table became a multiple-choice question.

Then, without any verbal agreement, everyone silently and simultaneously turned to look at Yu Jingze.

Yu Jingze: “….”