Second night watch.

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"Girls should behave properly when standing, sitting, and walking. How many times have I told you, why are you still so careless?" Father Zhou frowned at his daughter and criticized, "You’re about to get married, yet you still act like this. How can your mother and I be at ease? Huh..." He noticed his daughter’s red eyes and sensed her emotions were off, so he grabbed her arm, "What’s wrong? Did that boy Xiang Tao bully you?"

"Could it be that you suggested not getting married, and he actually agreed?" Mother Zhou anxiously grabbed her daughter’s other arm and couldn’t help but glare at her husband, "It’s all your bad idea; hasn’t it caused trouble now?"

"That bastard! If he dares to just slide down the road like that, I’ll beat him up!" Father Zhou angrily said, looking at his daughter, "Hanying, tell Dad what’s going on. Dad will stand up for you!"

"Dad, Mom..." Zhou Hanying bit her lip hard and took a long time before continuing, "The wedding is indeed going to be canceled, but it’s not me who brought it up..."

"That brat suggested it?" Father Zhou jumped up, "He’s got guts, daring to say something like that. Daughter, I’ll go find him right now and ask him what exactly my daughter did to not please him..."

"Dad..." Zhou Hanying urgently pulled her father back, "Please sit down and listen to me."

"What’s there to say?"

"I haven’t talked to Xiang Tao. When I went to his house, I saw him and Li Yuxiang hugging at the alley entrance, and then..." She bit her lip hard and didn’t continue.

"I always said Li Yuxiang wasn’t a good person, but you kept treating her like she was. You, my child, seem smart but are actually naive. She befriended you before because of your brother.

Later on, she befriended you to gain benefits from you. Now that Xiang Tao has made something of himself, she shifts her target to him. Ah, you, my child..." Father Zhou rubbed his daughter’s head and coldly snorted, "We don’t want someone so weak-minded, but we can’t just let that boy get away with it. Tell me, should I go beat him up, or wait for your brother to come back and deal with him directly?"

Upon hearing her father’s words, Zhou Hanying stared blankly at the ground, lost in thought. Father Zhou and Mother Zhou didn’t bother her, letting her think things through on her own.

"Dad..." After a long time, Zhou Hanying raised her head and looked at her parents, "I’ll handle this myself. I can’t always rely on Dad and Brother to solve everything for me.

I want to ask Xiang Tao directly why he did such a thing behind my back. If he simply told me he likes Li Yuxiang, I would definitely break off the engagement with him straightforwardly.

I can’t accept his current behavior, nor can I forgive him. If he can’t give me a reasonable answer, I will report him so that he won’t even qualify to be a soldier, let alone an officer!"

"Good, good, good..." Father Zhou repeated several times, patting his daughter’s shoulder, "That’s the way of a daughter from the Zhou family. Dad won’t interfere; just let me know after you resolve it!"

"Hanying..." Mother Zhou lovingly stroked her daughter’s cheek, "How did you end up facing such a situation? Stay away from Li Yuxiang in the future, no matter how nicely she speaks, don’t associate with her, okay?"

"Mom, rest assured, whether she schemed against me this time or truly got together with Xiang Tao, I won’t consider her a friend anymore. Someone who undermines their friend’s relationship doesn’t qualify as a friend. I was blind before; ending up like this serves me right. But if Xiang Tao is really like that, I should thank Li Yuxiang. It’s much better discovering my husband’s unreliability before marriage. Isn’t that so, Mom and Dad?"

"Yes, it’s great you can think this way..." Father Zhou nodded and sighed, "These people, their foresight is too shallow. Just because your brother is on a mission, they couldn’t hold out, huh..."

Before her father mentioned it, Zhou Hanying hadn’t considered this. When reminded by her father, she immediately realized Xiang Tao’s intentions with her might not be as pure as she thought!

Now, seeing clearly Xiang Tao’s true nature, she really ended up benefiting from it!

Thinking this way, her hatred for Li Yuxiang diminished considerably, but she definitely wouldn’t treat her as a friend anymore.

...

Before Luo Xiaoqiong and Yun Doudou arrived, Chuxia’s family had already tidied up the house. So, when the group arrived, everything was arranged neatly within just half an hour.

Before coming, it was mentioned that Yun Doudou and Zhou Hanying would be coming along. Chuxia wasn’t the least bit surprised about Yun Doudou joining, but she was indeed a bit puzzled about Zhou Hanying, given she had a job.

At the time, she didn’t ask much over the phone, but when the other party arrived, she observed a bit more closely and noticed that Zhou Hanying seemed to be in low spirits, and she guessed that there was likely a problem with his relationship.

For girls, when emotions suddenly turn like this, what else could it be besides relationship issues? So, she pretended not to notice and held the other party’s hand, saying a bunch of welcoming words — at this moment, making the other party feel settled was the most important thing.

That evening, Yun Doudou found an opportunity to pull Chuxia into a room to quietly talk about Zhou Hanying.

"... When she came to apologize to me, I noticed her mood was off, so I asked her. Initially, she didn’t say anything. Although I wasn’t keen on getting involved, since she hadn’t been particularly warm to me, I thought, Zhou Hanliang isn’t back yet. If something were really wrong and Zhou Hanliang got hurt, I’d feel guilty. So I pulled her into my room, and after relentlessly pressuring her, she finally told me the truth.

Then I went with her to the Zhou family. The in-laws’ opinion was not to bother with Xiang Tao, but since we’re all girls, we naturally understand Zhou Hanying’s feelings. I suggested to let her take a break and clear her mind. After some hesitation, the in-laws agreed.

My mom helped with applying for leave. The factory director was straightforward and said she could return to work whenever she wanted..." Yun Doudou hesitated, looking sheepishly at Chuxia, "Did I overstep by involving you like this?"

"Huh?" As the conversation shifted so quickly, Chuxia was momentarily stunned before she understood, then glared at her, "What are you saying? With Zhou Hanliang and Zhou Mikang’s relationship, if something happened to his sister, it’s only right for me to help!

As for Guoguo’s situation, it’s even more understandable. It’s my fault; I casually asked before but didn’t persist, even though Master said there might not be a solution, it’s always worth trying."

"Sigh..." Mentioning the sister’s illness made Yun Doudou involuntarily sigh, "I know, this thought is a bit too extravagant, but given the chance, I hope to grasp it, in case there’s an improvement. I don’t need much, just for her to grow a little more.

Actually, she’s very eager for friendships and love, but in her current state, even if someone is willing to befriend her or marry her, we wouldn’t dare, right?"

"Yes." Chuxia tightened her grip on her hand, "Don’t overthink it. We’ll do our best, but thinking too much won’t help, especially in your current situation. Focus more on happy things."

"I know..." Yun Doudou laughed, looking at Chuxia, "How do I feel that your tone with me now is just like my mom’s? Could it be that once someone becomes a mom, they become this nagging?"

"Such ingratitude..."

Yun Doudou anxiously interrupted her: "Yes, yes, my mom always says that!"

Chuxia: "..." She was truly speechless; someone even older than her was saying she sounded like their mom, and with a sigh, she stood up, "Alright, let’s go out, your parents definitely want to talk to you more."

"They are probably more interested in chatting about Guoguo. For so many years, they’ve never been separated from Guoguo."

"Why do I detect a hint of jealousy in your words?" Chuxia playfully slapped her, "You better not tell me you’re jealous of Guoguo, that would be truly despicable."

Rolling her eyes back at her, Yun Doudou didn’t respond.

Yun Fengshan’s work was very busy, and early the next morning, he left with Lan Ailian. As they left, Lan Ailian’s eyes were red, just as Yun Doudou said; she was more focused on her eldest daughter. For so many years, the eldest daughter had always been by her side, and suddenly being apart was indeed hard to accept.

As for the eldest daughter’s condition, they also consulted Elder Qi yesterday, and his response was that there wouldn’t be significant improvement, but he didn’t give up hope entirely, promising to try and see what happens.

Actually, with conditions like Yun Guoguo’s, impatience is truly not helpful. Her brain injury didn’t happen overnight, and her limbs aren’t affected. To see a significant difference, it’s not something that can be achieved quickly.

Lin Mengran and the others didn’t know Luo Xiaoqiong and Yun Doudou were coming. So, when they arrived at the Lin Family and saw the two of them with big bellies, each of them was wide-eyed.

After learning the details, they questioned Chuxia about not notifying them earlier!

"Had I told you earlier, would there have been any surprise?" Chuxia smiled at them, "Mainly, I was afraid it would affect your emotions, seeing as you’re all about the same age, and others are about to become moms while you haven’t even married. If you overthink and do something irreversible, what then?"

"You scoundrel!" Lin Mengran glared at her angrily, knowing she was hinting at herself — not long ago, Zuo Jiang proposed to her, and she refused; after that, she’s been in constant regret. Now, someone was completely exposing her sore spot!

"Big sister, I’m puzzled about why you rejected him?" Luo Xiaoqiong looked curiously at Lin Mengran, "You were the one who had an eye on Zuo Jiang first, and you pursued him actively. Why are you getting cold feet now?" (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote with recommendation votes and monthly tickets on Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)