When Zhou Minglang and Li Huaiqing met, they were very surprised to see each other.
Li Huaiqing was pondering that she hadn’t been out for a long time. After returning, how can Huairou have a very happy conversation with him.
And Zhou Minglang felt amazed—today’s Li Huaiqing was really too beautiful.
“Huairou, what’s the matter?” Li Huaiqing asked softly.
“Oh, aren’t we going to the Gao household for dinner tonight? I thought it would be inconvenient for the two of us. It happened that Mr. Zhou came to buy flowers, so I just casually asked—Mr. Zhou was enthusiastic and offered to pick us up, and I agreed. Jie, you’re so good-looking!” Li Huairou said sincerely. She was not satisfied and pulled Zhou Minglang together with them. “Isn’t she?”
Zhou Minglang nodded. “Very beautiful!”
Li Huaiqing felt a little shy for some reason; her face was also a little hot. “That’s not good, it’s too much trouble for you.”
Zhou Minglang immediately replied, “It’s no trouble, I just happened to be free.” In fact, he had canceled a meeting with a client and a dinner party. He had deliberately spared the time.
“Well, Jie, it’s late, so we should go. Let’s go.” Li Huairou said quickly, fearing long nights fraught with dreams.
[Meaning that an undue delay may bring trouble]
“Then I’ll be troubling Mr. Zhou.” Li Huaiqing also knew that she couldn’t move the wheelchair by herself, so she planned to ask Auntie Zhang to come and help.
“Lele, you also pack up and close the shop and go home! Thank you for your hard work today,” Li Huaiqing said softly.
“Okay, Jie.” Lele heard that she could leave work early today and was so happy. Her idol was going to have a livestream today, and she happened to be able to go back early so she could take a bath, change clothes, put on makeup, order takeout, and prepare.
Zhou Minglang easily carried Li Huairou into the car, then helped Li Huaiqing collect the wheelchair and conveniently opened the door for her. “Here, you can get in the car!”
Li Huaiqing nodded slightly. “Thank you!”
Zhou Minglang smiled and drove.
At the door of the Gao house, Mama Gao sat listlessly on the sofa. Although Papa Gao was also in a bad mood, he thought that the thing had already happened. Instead of just being upset, it was better to cheer up.
“Alright, don’t do this. If Huaiqing and Huairou see you later, they’ll worry,” Papa Gao comforted.
Hearing Huaiqing and Huairou’s names, Mama Gao finally sat up straight. “Oh, I forgot about them. Have Xiao Chen pick them up. Where’s my phone? Quickly call Huaiqing.”
“Xiao Chen went to buy something. He isn’t here,” Papa Gao replied.
Mama Gao remembered that Bai Duoduo wanted to eat those crystal shrimp dumplings from the western part of the city. The store did not do delivery, so Gao Lang asked Xiao Chen to go buy the dumplings.
“Huairou is in a wheelchair, so getting on and off is inconvenient. It’ll be so hard for Huaiqing alone!” Mama Gao complained.
Bai Duoduo felt a little sad when she heard this, she pushed Gao Lang and said, “You go outside and wait, then help out.” She was the future hostess of the Gao family; in becoming a sister-in-law, she must have the temperament of a sister-in-law.
After hearing these words, Papa Gao and Mama Gao felt a little bit relieved.
Gao Lang was a little unhappy. “What big-shots. They still need to be greeted at the door?”
Bai Duoduo glanced at him. “You are a brother—shouldn’t you take care of your sisters? Don’t complain, go ahead!”
Gao Lang was about to refuse, but seeing the smiles on his parent’s faces, he suddenly realized—his parents wanted to see this, right? A relationship between brother and sister, a harmonious family. Forget it, wasn’t it just acting? He could do that!
Gao Lang took out his cell phone, called Li Huaiqing, and asked whether they had gotten in the car? Where were they now? Then, they’d go to the door and wait to be ready to help.
After a while, when he saw a car approaching, Gao Lang frowned slightly. It was not Li Huaiqing’s car.
After he saw a man get out of the car, his eyes widened. Li Huaiqing! How good you are! Unexpectedly bringing him!
Papa Gao and Mama Gao also heard their voices. “Is Huaiqing here?”
Mama Gao hurried out. Bai Duoduo thought for a while and followed them out.
As a result, they saw a man carrying Li Huairou into a wheelchair—he was looking down and saying something to Li Huaiqing.
“Will that trouble you too much?”
Li Huaiqing was a little embarrassed. “It’s okay, I’m free anyway. When it’s over, call me and I’ll pick you up again,” Zhou Minglang replied.
Li Huaiqing still wanted to refuse. Li Huairou had already agreed, “Thank you, Minglang-ge!”
Li Huaiqing hadn’t spoken yet when Mama Gao came over with a smile. “Mr. Zhou, right? Thank you, Mr. Zhou. If you don’t have anything to do, let’s sit down and have a meal together!” Was it developing this fast? Huairou really was a clever little fiend! Well done!
Zhou Minglang hurriedly refused, “No need, I have something to do. I shall take my leave first.” Then he looked at Li Huaiqing. “I’m leaving, remember to call.”
Then he quickly got in the car and drove away.
Mama Gao looked at Li Huaiqing with a smile. “Huaiqing, do you have anything to tell me?”
Li Huaiqing was embarrassed. “Auntie!”
“Auntie, I’ll tell you,” Li Huairou cut in with a smile.
Mama Gao smiled happily and walked over to push Li Huairou’s wheelchair. “Okay, we’ll have a good chat later.”
Li Huairou made an “OK” gesture.
The two went in while talking and laughing.
Li Huaiqing combed her hair, looked at Gao Lang and Bai Duoduo—who was standing next to him—and passed the gift in her hand to Bai Duoduo. “Congratulations. I don’t know what you like. This bracelet looks pretty so I just bought it, I hope you like it.”
Bai Duoduo took the gift and smiled softly. “Thank you.” Then she looked Li Huaiqing up and down. “You’re so beautiful today.”
Li Huaiqing felt a little uncomfortable and touched her hair. “Huairou said that I always have straight black hair, and she made me change my hair style and color. The first time I tried curly hair, I always felt a little strange.”
“Why? I think your curly hair is very beautiful.” Although Bai Duoduo was smiling on her face, she was a little sad in her heart. Gao Lang liked long, straight black hair—he thought this type of girl was the most beautiful. After getting to know Gao Lang, Bai Duoduo never changed her hairstyle again and tried her best to maintain it.
But this was also a good thing. It showed that Li Huaiqing had moved on, and perhaps she’d have a new relationship soon. In this case, it was good for everyone.
“A-Lang,” Bai Duoduo called as she looked back, but she happened to see the fleeting surprise in Gao Lang’s eyes.
“What’s the matter?” Gao Lang quickly stepped forward and hugged Bai Duoduo.
“What do you think of Huaiqing’s new hairstyle?” Bai Duoduo said, holding back her jealousy.
Gao Lang smiled. “You know I like long, straight black hair.”
“Then what if I want to change my hair style and color?” Bai Duoduo asked.
“I like whatever your look is,” Gao Lang answered sweetly. “It’s just that you’re pregnant now; those chemicals aren’t good for your health. After the baby’s born, you can get any hairstyle you want.”
Bai Duoduo was instantly reassured—she felt really special.
Li Huaiqing walked in front and had heard the two people’s crookedness, but she had no reaction at all in her heart. She was very plain; she’d changed her hairstyle only for her own happiness, not to cater to anyone’s preferences.
In the living room, Mama Gao and Li Huairou were chatting together in full swing. Papa Gao was sitting off to one side, peeling oranges and handing them over from time to time. Mama Gao complained that the oranges were too sour and asked him to choose the sweet ones. Papa Gao was very speechless—he didn’t know which oranges were sweet and which oranges were sour. He had to accept his fate and peel them one by one, then try them one by one, picking out the sweetest ones and passing them over.
There was no need to think about what the two were talking about.
Li Huaiqing was a little helpless. She really didn’t plan to fall in love—what if she got married and left Huairou alone? But the two people wished for her to get married right away. They’d better not think she didn’t know that these two people had been chatting about, secretly, behind her back.
“Auntie, uncle.”
“Huaiqing, sit down and eat some fruit first. There are only two dishes left; after a while, we can eat.” Mama Gao smiled and brought strawberries to Li Huaiqing, who had just exchanged news with Li Huairou. She was satisfied with the latest news.
Li Huaiqing picked up a strawberry and took a bite. “It’s so sweet. Auntie, you should eat it too.”
“Huaiqing, Auntie heard that Mr. Zhou said he would wait for you to finish your meal before sending you home. Go send a WeChat message to ask him. Where is he right now, has he found a place to eat? If he still hasn’t found one, have him come over to eat! In any case, he is not an outsider.”
“Mom! Why is he not an outsider?” Gao Lang unthinkingly retorted after hearing this.
Mama Gao rolled her eyes. “We women are speaking! Could you please stop talking?” If you can’t hold your tongue, couldn’t you shut up and stop talking?! Can’t you learn from your dad? No eyesight at all!
Bai Duoduo pulled on Gao Lang’s arm and motioned for him not to speak. Then she smiled and sat down next to him on the sofa.
Li Huaiqing was a little embarrassed. “Auntie, wouldn’t that be inappropriate?” The relationship between her and Zhou Minglang was really not what Auntie thought.
“What’s wrong, child, why are you so impolite? People are kind enough to pick you up and you don’t even say a word of concern, how rude! Others will question the quality of our family tutor. Hurry up, send him a WeChat message,” Mama Gao said deliberately, her face calm.
When Gao Lang heard that it involved their family tutor, he couldn’t help but roll his eyes. He wanted to say something, but he shut up under the deterrence of Bai Duoduo’s glare.
Li Huaiqing was also a little helpless, but it was all about the tutoring. She could only accept her fate and picked up her cellphone to send Zhou Minglang a WeChat message. After typing a few words, she quickly deleted them and typed a few more words. She thought about it. No, she deleted the message again.
“What’s the matter?” Mama Gao asked with concern.
“I don’t know how to ask,” Li Huaiqing admitted truthfully. Before, she and Zhou Minglang had almost never chatted, and she really didn’t know what to say.
“I’ll help you!” Li Huairou directly grabbed Li Huaiqing’s cell phone, typed a message, and sent it. “Done.”
“What did you say?” Li Huaiqing asked as she took back the phone. When she looked down, it was a simple question: “Have you found a place to eat?”
It only took a second for Zhou Minglang’s WeChat reply to come. “Found one.” Then he posted a photo of a simple bowl of egg noodles.
Li Huaiqing was a little embarrassed; the villa area where the Gao house was located was in the suburbs, and there were no commercial districts nearby, so it was difficult for him. How long it must have taken for him to find a noodle shop! In addition, Gao Lang and Bai Duoduo were also sitting next to each other, so she felt that it was embarrassing to sit there. She simply continued to chat with Zhou Minglang.
“I’m sorry, I wasted your time today.”
“No, the environment here is good. There’s a park next to it, and the scenery is good—I’ll go shopping after eating.”
“You said xxx park, right? I used to go there to take walks, and it was really beautiful there…”
Mama Gao and Li Huairou looked at Li Huaiqing, lowered their heads, and clutched their phones. They glanced at each other and laughed—this was a good start, wasn’t it?
