Chronicle of the 70s-Chapter 322 - 311: Iro’s Visit

Li Xianglu felt helpless about Qin Zhen constantly bragging about his daughter, and when she looked up, she saw Lu Anna also give a helpless look, which made her smile with understanding, and they both shook their heads in unison.

The house got much livelier with more people around, especially with the three little ones, and bursts of laughter from the adults and children could be heard from the yard from time to time.

It was the middle of July, and the weather was hot. Li Xianglu, Lu Anna, and Qin Xi only had Saturdays and Sundays off, and they hardly had any time during the rest of the week.

Qin Zhen also matured gradually after becoming a father, stopping his aimless wanderings and staying well behaved at home, helping to look after the children.

Li Jianqing was supposed to help with looking after his little nieces and nephews, but Li Xianglu thought it was a good time to go scavenging for junk, believing there was a high chance of finding valuable things. Even old books could be tidied up and sold for a good price.

So Li Jianqing continued scavenging, which Leng Qing especially supported, helping him sort things whenever she had time. She even helped him bring water and a straw hat when he went out in the hot weather, and once when Li Jianqing forgot his straw hat, she chased after him for several hundred metres to deliver it.

All these things were noticed by the family, but nobody said anything because Li Jianqing was somewhat cold and polite towards Leng Qing, obviously without any other intentions.

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, it was July 20th, with only ten days left before reporting to the military unit. Li Jianqing planned to scavenge for the last day today and then stop going out, as he found his two little nephews and nieces too cute to ever get enough of hugging.

Just after six o’clock, as Li Xianglu was riding her bike home, she saw Qin Xi and Lu Anna also coming back on their bikes in the distance, so she stood at the door and waited for a while. Then she turned around and saw from afar a tricycle stopped at the west alley entrance.

Li Xianglu was puzzled. She propped up her bike and walked to the corner to look, and her expression immediately changed.

Standing beside the tricycle was her older brother, and a woman in a green dress was embracing him.

The reason she didn’t say they were embracing each other was that Li Jianqing’s hands were held high, while the woman was clinging desperately to his waist. Only the woman’s back could be seen, and it was clear that Li Jianqing was trying to break free while the woman was holding on for dear life.

At that moment, the door opened, and Leng Qing, seeing the bicycle next to her and turning her head in confusion, saw Li Xianglu with her back turned, looking around the corner, so she walked over.

Then Leng Qing also saw the scene.

At this time, Qin Xi and Lu Anna, who were cycling along the main road, also arrived. They originally saw Li Xianglu waiting for them, but after noticing that Leng Qing and Li Xianglu had gone toward the corner, they curiously pushed their bikes over as well.

So now there were four people standing there, making a conspicuous group, and with Qin Xi and Lu Anna not hiding their voices, they startled the two people in question.

When Li Jianqing saw his sister and the others, he suddenly tried to step back, but the woman holding on to his waist nearly fell over. Li Jianqing caught her in a swift move.

The woman then leaned against Li Jianqing’s body, and at this moment, Li Xianglu could see the woman’s face even more clearly—it was Iro.

Everyone saw clearly.

Qin Xi glanced at Li Xianglu, whose expression was a complex mix of emotions, and started walking back with her in tow. Li Xianglu furrowed her brow, wanting to say something, but unable to find the right words, so she followed Qin Xi back.

Not long after Li Xianglu and the others returned, they saw Li Jianqing and Iro enter.

Li Jianqing walked in front, his facial expression extremely grim, while Iro followed behind, fingers intertwined and her expression full of turmoil.

Li Xianglu looked and frowned, "Jianqing, you go wash up first."

Li Jianqing opened his mouth as if to say something, but upon seeing his sister’s upset demeanor and catching the cues from his brother-in-law, he nodded and left.

It was then that Li Xianglu turned to Iro and asked, "Iro, why didn’t you come inside when you arrived at our place?" Then she called out, "You haven’t been here since we moved. This place is bigger than our old house. Come on, let’s sit in my yard for a bit."

Lu Anna also came in meanwhile, while Leng Qing was frowning at Iro and didn’t follow them, heading to the front yard instead.

Iro sat in Li Xianglu’s secondary yard area, where a small stone table looked quite pretty. Next to it, a round, stone-built garden space included a quaint grape arbor with branches intertwining. Dense bunches of green and purple grapes hung from the arbor, reminiscent of the garden they had before. They still really enjoyed gardening.

With an apologetic face, Iro took the herbal tea that Li Xianglu handed her and after taking a sip, she said, "I’m sorry, Xiao Xiang, it wasn’t intentional."

Li Xianglu frowned. What wasn’t intentional? Not intentionally holding onto Jianqing or not intentionally seeking out Jianqing? None of these seemed right. Iro was now married, and moreover, in a military marriage. Jianqing had been assigned elsewhere, and if there were any issues with his conduct, how could he manage in the future? Four years of university would be wasted.

Seeing Li Xianglu’s frown, Iro hurriedly blurted out, "I’m about to divorce Wan Mingxiang."

Upon hearing this, Li Xianglu’s expression turned even more troubled. Being "about to divorce" still meant not divorced yet, right? If people misconstrued that Iro’s divorce was because of Jianqing, then Jianqing would be labeled as a marriage wrecker in a military marriage, a situation so complex it couldn’t be easily clarified.

At this moment, Lu Anna didn’t say anything either. After all, she and Iro were childhood friends as well as good friends, and she was also Li Xianglu’s sister-in-law. To speak now would mean declaring her stance, and siding with either would result in the loss of friendship with the other.

Moreover, Lu Anna herself disagreed with Iro’s actions. Her father, brothers, and husband were all military men, so she understood all too well just how much the military valued the personal conduct of its soldiers. What if Li Jianqing’s prospects were ruined because of Iro’s impulsiveness?

Thus, even though Lu Anna saw the pleading look in Iro’s eyes, she simply shook her head faintly without a word.

Li Xianglu thought for a moment and then subtly voiced her concerns.

Upon hearing this, Iro’s face drastically changed color, "No, that’s not it. My divorce isn’t because of Jianqing. It’s because Wan Mingxiang hit me, and I can’t bear living with him any longer. I want to divorce, but he won’t agree."

Li Xianglu felt she couldn’t make Iro understand her point. Even if Li Jianqing truly hadn’t interfered with Iro’s marriage to Wan Mingxiang, they were at a crucial juncture of divorce. Yet Iro had so openly sought out Jianqing and even embraced him in front of an audience. Although that corner was less traveled, in broad daylight, surely passersby must have seen it.

Wasn’t it the fear of the unknown, ’just in case’? If someone had such intentions, then Jianqing’s reputation could be destroyed.

Just as Li Xianglu was about to say more, Li Jianqing appeared, dragging someone with him, and upon seeing this, Iro’s complexion changed drastically, turning ashen as if all her blood had been drained away.