Jiang Xiaobai could feel that her eyes had welled up, but she didn’t like the state she was in, therefore she looked away to evade Xiao Su’s gaze.
Then, she withdrew her hands and mocked, “What are you talking about? I’m an adult, so what could happen to me? Moreover, I don’t need you to look after me.”
Jiang Xiaobai’s action was swift, but when she looked away, Xiao Su caught a glimpse of her reddened eyes. He thought he saw it wrongly and wanted to be certain, therefore he leaned in to her.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” Jiang Xiaobai raised her hand to stop him. “Don’t look.”
She almost sounded like crying. Xiao Su thus furrowed his eyebrows together and grasped her wrists before adjusting her posture so that she would face him.
Jiang Xiaobai never expected that he would do such a thing and met with his gaze without warning. After a moment of shock, she hurriedly hung her head low.
“Are you crying?”
“No.” Jiang Xiaobai’s voice sounded sulky. “I’m just sleepy because I haven’t had enough sleep. Why should I cry?”
Although they hadn’t been together for a long time, Xiao Su knew a thing or two about her.
He knew that Jiang Xiaobai was the kind of woman who would cry out loud in front of him when she was emotionally stirred by a drama. She would bawl so loudly that she wouldn’t mind others’ perceptions of her.
However, when she was sorrowful, she would remain silent and wouldn’t want others to find out.
Therefore, Xiao Su soon realized that she was really upset.
“What happened?”
“Nothing happened.” Jiang Xiaobai shook her head as she didn’t know how she should tell him. Moreover, she wasn’t certain if his mother had told him about it.
“Xiaobai.” Xiao Su sounded helpless and sighed, “Look how dejected you are. Do you think I’ll believe you when you say nothing’s happened?”
She didn’t want to show her emotions, but when she saw Xiao Su’s face and his gaze, she just couldn’t help expressing the grievance in her heart.
What was she doing? Why were her emotions so out of control?
Having been seen through, it was useless to keep denying.
Jiang Xiaobai directly admitted, “Yes, you’re right. I’m not happy.”
“What’s wrong?”
Upon observing his expression, Jiang Xiaobai realized that he really was clueless.
“Xiaobai?”
“Nothing.” Jiang Xiaobai shook her head. “It’s just that I suddenly thought of something unhappy, and I don’t want to tell you at the moment.”
Her words rendered Xiao Su speechless, but he could only let her be as he hugged her closer to himself.
“Is it about me?”
“Yes,” Jiang Xiaobai admitted.
“Then you should tell me about it. Isn’t there a saying ‘whoever started the trouble should end it’?”
Whoever started the trouble should end it?
Jiang Xiaobai remained silent upon hearing that.
In fact, Liang Yahe had called her before Xiao Su got off work. Jiang Xiaobai already knew about the fortune-telling matter, so Liang Yahe never beat around the bush and directly told her what she thought about it.
“Xiaobai, your mom already told me about your situation. I know that we shouldn’t have gotten your fortune read behind your back, but you have to trust me that we wanted a good outcome instead of a bad one. We’re not happy with the result. Even your mom and I haven’t slept the entire night. I didn’t want to tell you at first, but after giving it a thought, I think I should respect your will and let you decide.”
“Mrs. Xiao?”
“Xiao Su is a man, so my husband and I have given him enough freedom since he was young. He’s been living on his own for the past few years. After the plane crash, he was left with a scar on his face. It didn’t look nice, but at least he survived. Therefore, now we never demand anything from him. We just want him to live a good life and marry the woman he loves so that he would spend the rest of his life in happiness. Since Xiao Su has chosen you, as his parents, we wouldn’t object to it.”
At this point, Jiang Xiaobai understood what Liang Yahe was trying to say.
“Mrs. Xiao, do you want me to make my own decision?”
“Yes.” Liang Yahe heaved a sigh and said gently, “Both my husband and I really like you. If you’re willing to be part of our family, we’ll be more than happy. However, even if you don’t want to marry him, we’ll still be your family. No matter what trouble you’ll face in the future, you can always come find us.”
Jiang Xiaobai’s eyes reddened, and her nose turned sore. She couldn’t utter a word.
“Mrs. Xiao…”
“Xiaobai, don’t cry. I’m not telling you this to force you to make a decision. I just feel that as women, our lives are difficult and we’re different from the guys. Your youth is only so short, so you have to be more selective when choosing your partner. Don’t marry the wrong man. As a woman myself, I can totally relate to it. Don’t blame your mom. I’m sure she only decided to tell you after struggling internally for a long time herself.”
Biting her lip, Jiang Xiaobai couldn’t utter a word.
“You don’t have to tell me now as I can wait. I won’t tell Xiao Su about it, so you’ll make that decision on your own. If you don’t think it’ll work, I’ll be the bad person and stop Xiao Su from marrying you. However, if you think you’re okay with it, we’ll pretend that nothing has happened and you’ll live happily with him.”
After the call ended, Jiang Xiaobai sobbed uncontrollably. She only managed to compose herself after crying for a long time. Upon washing up, she calmed down and waited for Xiao Su to come home.
Now Xiao Su was asking her what was wrong. Facing his gaze, Jiang Xiaobai thought of what Liang Yahe told her.
He was Liang Yahe’s child. Although they didn’t start off loving each other, they had come to a point where Jiang Xiaobai felt that Xiao Su had done a lot for her.
She wasn’t talking about money, but the efforts Xiao Su had put in for her. He was making changes for her and cared about her feelings.
In light of that, Jiang Xiaobai felt that it wouldn’t be fair to him if she never told him about this outcome.
He was a man with his own thoughts and feelings, therefore he had a right to know the truth.
She shouldn’t be the only person making the decision.
With that thought in her mind, Jiang Xiaobai pressed her lips together and stared at Xiao Su.
“There’s something I need to tell you.”
Xiao Su could instantly feel that her gaze and expression had turned serious, thus he tensed up as well. “What is it?”
