As soon as Mei Langchi finished speaking, the first to react was Xie Lingzhi. Ever since she found out her son married a woman from the countryside, she hadnât been happy. She had been holding onto this anger, waiting to question her son. Who would have thought her son would get into trouble at this critical moment?
She hadnât even caught her breath and was busy interrogating her son when this person arrived. Xie Lingzhi quickly came out of the kitchen, looking sarcastically at Ye Qing in front of her, "Get out. We donât need a daughter-in-law like you in our family."
Xie Lingzhiâs words left Ye Qing in an awkward position, her face somewhat embarrassed.
The word âMomâ that was at her lips changed to âAuntieâ instantly, and the grievance on her face was real. Anyone who was treated like this upon entering a house wouldnât feel good.
"Mom, you donât need her, but I do. Iâm doing quite well with Ah Qing now, so much better than the women youâve arranged for me. I want a wife who knows how to care for me, not a daughter-in-law you helped plan out."
Mei Langchi had always been rebellious about this matter. He had anticipated such a situation. Having Ye Qing over was merely to let them meet, not to seek their approval or disapproval.
"You... Xiao Chi, are you trying to anger me to death? Jiajia is such a good child, and you wanted a divorce because of her. Do you know that a shameless woman like her is not suitable to be the head lady of a family?" Old Mrs. Mei, who valued family status the most, was not willing to accept that her most cherished grandson eventually brought home a granddaughter-in-law from a poor countryside family.
Pointing at Ye Qing, she didnât care if Ye Qing was embarrassed. An elderly lady, each word she spoke was hurtful.
"Anyway, we will never acknowledge this daughter-in-law, neither your father nor I."
Xie Lingzhi didnât even prepare meals for her son. She took off her apron and sat on the sofa in a fit of pique, implying that if you disagree, donât expect a good New Year.
Since Mei Langchi introduced Ye Qing, the grandfather and father in the room hadnât spoken a word, making their stance quite clear.
Ye Qing wasnât even glanced at when she entered, making their stance equally clear.
"Iâve already been divorced once and now made another mistake, do you still want me to divorce at this critical moment?"
"Bastard, is this the attitude you should show to your elders?" Mr. Mei squinted his eyes, exuding a sense of authority.
"All of you are forcing me; how can I have a good attitude? All my life, Iâve listened to everything youâve said, but in the end, itâs all lies," Mei Langchi said, deliberately glancing at Mei Shuping in the end.
Mei Shuping, feeling guilty under his sonâs gaze, turned his head away.
"Everybody quiet down. Itâs been a long day; itâs New Yearâs Eve...."
"What sins have we committed? First, the son is disappointing, then the grandson is disappointing. Now heâs married a vixen, and what peaceful days will we have in the future," Old Mrs. Mei interrupted her husbandâs attempt to accept this granddaughter-in-law ambiguously.
If they let this woman into the house today, regardless of satisfaction, it would mean acknowledging her. She would never agree to it.
Her grandson had just gotten divorced and married a girl from the countryside; where will her dignity as an elder go in the future?
Ye Qing was clever, she understood what this old lady meant. Fortunately, she had a backup plan. When Old Mrs. Mei sat on the sofa pretending to cry and everyoneâs eyes focused on her, Ye Qing quickly squeezed Mei Langchiâs hand and pointed at her belly, and Mei Langchi immediately understood her meaning.
The two exchanged a look instantly. Then Ye Qing pretended to be dizzy, holding her belly, appearing weak.
Mei Langchi immediately held her waist, showing a worried expression, loudly saying, "Ah Qing, whatâs wrong? Are you okay?"
Ye Qing leaned weakly against Mei Langchi, feigning weakness and said, "My stomach hurts a bit. Langchi, the baby." After saying that, her eyes quickly filled with tears.
Upon hearing this, Mei Langchi immediately shouted to everyone in the living room, "Ah Qing is pregnant, sheâs carrying your grandson. If you donât want this grandson, just keep making trouble."
"What?" Now Old Mrs. Mei stopped "crying," and Xie Lingzhi was left dumbfounded, inwardly sighing that this shameless womanâs fate was indeed good; she had just married and was already carrying her sonâs child.
Seeing them remain silent, Mei Langchi directly picked up Ye Qing and headed towards the room.
Just as Mei Langchi laid Ye Qing down in the room, Ye Qing secretly planted a kiss on his cheek.
They exchanged a quick smile.
"Ah Qing, sorry for putting you through this. It doesnât matter if my family doesnât like you, youâll be following me with the army anyway, so we wonât see each other much throughout the year."
"Hmm. I know." Ye Qing naturally understood this logic and wasnât bothered by it. However, the Mei familyâs elders were really too much today, not giving her any regard. But itâs okay; thereâs plenty of time, and one day sheâll make them esteem her.
...
Outside in the living room, Mr. Mei sighed and said, "Letâs just leave it like this for now. Take her for a checkup tomorrow; after all, itâs the bloodline of our Mei family."
Mentioning the Mei family bloodline, Mr. Mei thought of the child from his eldest son. That child certainly had a backbone, saying he wouldnât acknowledge them and indeed wouldnât recognize them.
With the Mei familyâs status and connections in Beijing, who wouldnât want to cling to them? That child doesnât even glance at them.
Alas, as one gets older, thereâs supposed to be peace in the golden years, but instead, there are endless worries.
Thinking about it, what worries him the least is the second sonâs family: marriage, having a child, and even all these years of military service and other matters were all managed by himself.
And his second grandson, much less troubling than his eldest grandson.
But thatâs how people are. Whichever child behaves poorly, parents tend to favor that child more. Over the years, the old couple indeed favored the eldest son more.
However, the eldest son just wonât settle down, causing one problem after another.
They are old now, who knows when they might pass away. They also donât want to meddle too much.
They have lighted the path for their son for most of his life; itâs time to let him solve things on his own.
Mei Langchi soon came out from the room, holding a pregnancy check-up slip that Ye Qing gave him.
"Take a look, itâs been more than a month already."
"How unlucky is our Mei family to have such a disgraceful daughter-in-law," Xie Lingzhi said, clearly indicating she accepted Ye Qing as her daughter-in-law.
Mei Langchi felt relieved in his heart but still kept a stern face. "What do you mean disgraceful? Your daughter-in-law is a college graduate and now a designer. Go ask around the compound; apart from family-given status, which woman can compare to your daughter-in-law?"
"Youâre blinded by that woman, only knowing her good points now." Although she disliked this woman, she couldnât neglect her first great-grandchild. Old Mrs. Mei paused and added, "Tomorrow, your mom and I will take her to the hospital for a check-up."
At these words, Mei Langchiâs eyes flickered. He didnât respond but was thinking about how to avoid tomorrowâs check-up.
After giving birth to Hua Hua, Ye Qing went through a tubal ligation directly, and if she goes to the hospital tomorrow, the family will undoubtedly find out.
Their Hua Hua couldnât come out yet, and he didnât want the family to know about it right now.
...
Thus, Ye Qing relatively settled down in the Mei family. Good or bad, welcome or unwelcome, no matter. At least people outside know sheâs the daughter-in-law of the Mei family.
Out there, sheâll at least be given some respect.
...
Not far away, Liang Qian was arguing with Mei Shuqing like a couple of stubborn mules.
"Are you really not going this year?"
"No, the eldestâs place is a mess, and heâs angry at me now. Why should I go there and curry favor?" Mei Shuqing lounged on the sofa, sipping tea.
"Itâs New Yearâs, youâre at home, not visiting the elders, is that appropriate? I heard Langchi came with that woman yesterday," Liang Qian began to not like the stories she heard from Xiao Wan about Ye Qing and Langchi.
"Theyâve already gotten their marriage license. Not seeing the parents, where could they hide her? Why bother with all that? Whereâs Junzi, by the way? Out injured, and heâs already moving around recklessly."
"Who knows, he went out early this morning and hasnât returned yet."
Just as Liang Qian finished speaking, Mei Langchi appeared at the doorway, "Mom, were you looking for me?"
"Itâs rare for you to be home for the New Year. Canât you stay with your dad and me? Running around all the time, itâs freezing cold, where did you go again?"
"... I went out to see a friend," Mei Lang Jun replied awkwardly, and went straight upstairs.
"Junzi, stay home this afternoon and get ready. Momâs taking you to meet a friend." Liang Qian looked up and urged.
Mei Lang Jun immediately knew what she meant and hurriedly replied, "Mom, Iâm heading out with a friend this afternoon. Not sure when Iâll be back. You go on without me."
"No way, today you must come with Mom. Your Aunt Li hasnât seen you in a long time and wants to meet you," Liang Qian shouted from downstairs.
```