Chapter 13

Because of Zhou Yanming’s two absurd accusations, Xu Shaoting finally realized what grievances his wife had suffered. He took his wife back to the family dinner, and during the meal, he deliberately picked on the aunts and their children.

Li Qingyi finally got her revenge.

She called me afterwards: “Yuanyuan, I love you so much. I really owe you this time. I had someone send you a bag-see if you like it. If not, pick another one.”

“But are you very close with Zhou Yanming?” She paused, sounding a bit embarrassed. “Xu Shaoting says he has a sharp tongue. If he says anything unpleasant, don’t take it to heart.”

Sharp?

I realized Zhou Yanming’s sharp tongue was mainly aimed at the two of them, especially Xu Shaoting.

My tone drifted, a little guilty: “I won’t be upset.”

Actually, my relationship with Li Qingyi hadn’t cooled off just because she got married. It’s just that everyone’s priorities shift.

We still liked to gossip with each other whenever we had time.

After I started seeing Zhou Yanming, I noticed that the times when these two messaged us overlapped a lot.

Maybe because of their cautionary tale, Zhou Yanming and I had had enough of complicated relationships, so we were very straightforward with each other.

Sometimes, watching my best friend and her husband argue, Zhou Yanming and I would compare notes and realize it was another case of “you don’t say, I just guess.”

We were practically acting as marriage counselors.

While mediating, we’d also lecture our respective friends about the importance of communication.

But that night, my phone rang.

Without looking, I reached out and accidentally answered. On the other end, Li Qingyi rambled on for a few minutes about recent events, then suddenly asked, “Yuanyuan, what’s wrong with your voice? You sound a bit strange.”

“I’m fine, just a little sleepy.”

The call ended quickly.

Zhou Yanming lifted his head, his kisses trailing upward, leaving me covered in wet marks.

He buried his face in my neck and laughed: “Are we having an affair?”

…

Zhou Yanming was a quick learner. From his initial awkwardness, he soon became skilled and even liked to try new things.

When our clingy friends had another fight, I overheard Xu Shaoting complaining to Zhou Yanming on the phone:

“I don’t know what’s up with my wife lately. She’s been so irritable, worrying about her hair loss and weight gain every day. She’s still so cute and pretty, though…”

Li Qingyi said, “I don’t know why, but lately I get annoyed just seeing him. Yuanyuan, do you think the novelty has worn off? Does being so annoyed mean I’m a bad wife?”

If you weren’t before, you are now.

I told her to think carefully about her marriage and not act impulsively.

It’s normal to feel tired in marriage-it’s not like dating. I told her to give it some thought.

And she thought about it for two months.

Two months later, Li Qingyi suddenly told me shyly, “Yuanyuan, I’m pregnant.”

…

Unexpected, but not surprising.