1987 My Era

Chapter 696, Accepting Fate (Seeking Monthly Tickets!)

8 month 30 day.

In the morning, Song Yu accompanied Tian Run'e and her daughter Li Lan shopping.

Li Heng then drove his second sister's van to Chen Xiaomi's house to pick her up.

Jie Zi Jin.

He parked his car near the entrance of Yandaixie Street, walked into the alley, and knocked on the door of a courtyard house on the right side of the middle section.

This is Chen Xiaomi's new home; she moved here less than six months ago.

Although this is his first time here in this life, he has been here several times in his previous life, so he is quite familiar with the place and is here to pick up Zijin.

"Boom boom boom!"

"Boom boom boom!"

After two knocks, the gate creaked open.

Somewhat surprisingly, it was Zhong Lan who opened the door.

Separated by the door, Zhong Lan stared in astonishment at the young man outside.

Li Heng was equally bewildered as he looked at the "stranger" inside the door.

Neither of them expected that they would meet in the capital in this way.

They did see each other across the road in Shangwan Village during the Spring Festival two years ago. But that was all they saw each other across the road.

Later, when Li Heng went to the Chen family to pay a New Year's visit, Zhong Lan didn't come out to greet him; she stayed in her room. Even the old man of the Chen family couldn't do anything about it.

Their eyes met, and Li Heng moved his lips, managing to utter two words with difficulty: "Auntie."

Zhong Lan stared at him for a while, then turned and left, sitting down in a corner of the yard to pick vegetables, ignoring him the whole time.

At this moment, Chen Zijing quickly came out of the house, followed by Chen Xiaomi and Chen Zitong.

Clearly, the three women also heard the knocking.

Sensing something amiss, Chen Zijing glanced at her mother, then looked at Li Heng, before running over and smilingly embracing her beloved, "You're here."

Li Heng opened his arms to welcome her, smiled and said, "Yes, I've kept my wife waiting."

Upon hearing the word "wife," Zhong Lan snapped the celery in her hand in two, thinking: Her eldest daughter was completely ignoring her, provoking her, and was actively moving into Li Heng's arms right in front of her. Li Heng was even worse.

Chen Zitong, Miaomiao's biological mother, Miaomiao's older sister, and Li Heng, then deliberately shouted loudly:

"Brother-in-law, long time no see! Have you bought a gift for your dearest sister-in-law yet?"

Look! Look! That tone was so enthusiastic, it almost made Zhong Lan furious.

Li Heng picked up Zijing and spun her around, then put her down and said, "I bought her. She's in the car. I'll take you to get her later."

"Buy my ass! He never expected his sister-in-law to be here."

But when it comes to gifts, that's no problem for him. Knowing his penny-pincher nature, he simply gave him a big red envelope and that was it.

After exchanging a few pleasantries with Chen Zitong, Li Heng called out to Chen Xiaomi, "Auntie."

Chen Xiaomi smiled as she closed the courtyard gate and asked, "Have you had breakfast yet?"

Li Heng replied, "I ate before coming here."

Chen Xiaomi asked, "School's starting soon, when are you going back to Shanghai?"

Li Heng replied, "My plane ticket is for tomorrow noon."

Chen Xiaomi glanced at Zijin, "Leaving tomorrow?"

Li Heng guessed what Chen Xiaomi was thinking and added, "I'll come again during the National Day holiday, specifically to keep Zijin company."

He was telling the truth; it wasn't some temporary fix or a lie.

Upon hearing this, Chen Zitong was quick to give a thumbs up: "Brother-in-law, you're awesome! You'll have to treat me to a big meal sometime!"

Li Heng readily agreed: "No problem."

Chen Xiaomi felt a little better and said with a smile, "Since you're leaving tomorrow, why don't you take Zijing out for a walk? We're cleaning the house today, and it's dusty everywhere, so we won't keep you here. Come visit us during the National Day holiday."

The house hadn't been cleaned, but with his sister-in-law there, Chen Xiaomi believed Li Heng understood what she meant.

Li Heng replied, "Okay, then Zijing and I will be going now."

As he spoke, he took Zijing's hand and turned to walk out of the courtyard gate.

Chen Zitong skipped and hopped after him.

Chen Xiaomi personally escorted him to the door.

After watching them leave, Chen Xiaomi thought for a moment, then returned to the courtyard and sat down on the stone bench next to Zhong Lan. She carefully observed her sister-in-law's expression for a while, and finally asked, "Sister-in-law, are you sulking?"

Zhong Lan glanced at her and said irritably, "You still know how to call me sister-in-law, but you didn't treat me like your sister-in-law just now." Chen Xiaomi smiled and then said earnestly, "I know you're unwilling, but Zijing herself has taken a liking to Li Heng."

We've already wasted too much of her life, we already owe her so much. What path should she take from now on? We, as her elders, should respect her choices.

It would have been better if this hadn't been mentioned. But once it was, Zhong Lan dropped the celery in her hand and suddenly looked up: "Owe me? You keep saying you owe me."

But are you really willing to turn a blind eye and not see how many women that little bastard has been messing with outside?

Just a few days ago, I saw him holding Song Yu's hand at Quanjude, shopping with Tian Run'e and her husband, and Li Lan.

I was already being very lenient by not calling him out on it. Xiaomi, what more do you want from me?

Chen Xiaomi was not surprised by these questions, but instead asked a direct question: "If we hadn't forced Zijing to come to Beijing that summer three years ago, and if Zijing had stayed in Shaoshi to study at No. 3 Middle School, do you think these troublesome things would still have happened?"

Sister-in-law, ask yourself honestly, haven't you only ever picked fights with Li Heng all these years, without ever seriously reflecting on your own actions?

Zhong Lan frowned, feeling uncomfortable with her sister-in-law's words, which seemed very unfamiliar. "You... is that little rascal really that good, making you say such things about me..."

Unexpectedly, Chen Xiaomi interrupted him directly: "Whether he is good or not, I don't know. I only know that the apple of the eye of the Yu family, who makes the old man tremble, has fallen in love with him; Zhou Shihe from the Zhou family, which is comparable to the Yu family, has also fallen into his love trap."

In addition, there is Song Yu, a stunning beauty, and Xiao Han, an elfin girl who is head over heels in love with him.

If we continue to hold her back, we'll ruin even her last refuge in the Li family.

Zhong Lan took a deep breath: "You know he's a womanizer outside, so why are you still defending him? Are you just trying to infuriate me?"

Objectively speaking, Chen Xiaomi said, "He is indeed extravagant, but you, sister-in-law, come from an official family. With Li Heng's current status, reputation, and wealth, is having a few female confidantes really such a big drawback?"
If this is considered a major flaw, then think carefully: would the Yu family still tolerate Yu Shuheng resigning from her university professorship to pursue Li Heng?

Why didn't the Zhou family strongly stop Li Heng and Zhou Shihe from associating? Both the Yu and Zhou families approve of Li Heng, so does that mean our Chen family is more powerful than these two families?
"Furthermore, if you, sister-in-law, are truly so naive and only have this much understanding, then it's a real waste that Zijing is considered a daughter of the Chen family. In that case, I'll have to look down on you too."

Zhong Lan frowned, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back; these words had a great impact on her mental state.

Seeing her sister-in-law humiliated by her words, Chen Xiaomi didn't let the opportunity pass and seized the chance to deliver another blow: "Let me say something else that you don't want to hear, sister-in-law."

To understand how special and dazzling Li Heng is in the literary world, you, who are not among them, simply cannot comprehend the awe and wonder we insiders feel.

Do you often read the newspaper? Look at the waves that "Dust Settles Down" has made in the last two months.
Look at Li Hengyi's new book, our People's Literature magazine was immediately overshadowed by Harvest magazine, and its sales once again dropped to second place.

How many years does it take to produce someone with such extraordinary talent, capable of turning the world upside down with a flick of the wrist? 50 years? Or 100 years? Or even longer? Sister-in-law, you don't understand, you really don't understand!

Actually, I deeply admire his talent. It's just that Li Heng didn't fancy me back then; if Zijing hadn't been in the way, I would have willingly been his mistress. And I believe many women in the literary circle have had similar thoughts. That's the allure of literature, the allure of top-tier writers. Otherwise, why has the phrase "literary figures' romantic escapades" never been considered a derogatory term throughout history?

That stab was incredibly effective. Zhong Lan laughed in exasperation, "Speak! Keep talking! Say everything you want to say all at once, and see if you can turn today into my death anniversary!"

Chen Xiaomi chuckled, then spoke candidly, "Li Heng is quite remarkable now. And Zijing is someone we've watched grow up; her standards are sky-high. Even if you forcibly break them up, can you guarantee she'll find someone as young and successful as Li Heng again…?"

Zhong Lan questioned, "What's the point of saying all this? Now the Yu family's daughters are all involved, plus Zhou Shihe, Song Yu, and Xiao Han. Which one is worse than Zijing? If she follows Li Heng like this, will she end up well? Will Li Heng marry Zijing?"

"Marry Zijing?"

Chen Xiaomi asked a question in return, and then objectively analyzed without any mercy: "With your cold face, sister-in-law, with the existence of opportunists like our Chen family, and with the scene of us forcing Tian Run'e to marry Zijin when Li Heng had already gained power."

No way, not even a second thought.

If you were Li Heng, would you marry the daughter of someone who forced your mother to kneel down?
"It's not that they didn't have a choice; it's just that there's a long line of them waiting, and any one of them would be perfect. Any one of them would be beautiful, and any one of them would have a better family background than our Chen family."

At this point, Chen Xiaomi paused and continued, "However, back in the day, the two of them became friends in middle school. At that time, Li Heng was penniless. When he had nothing, our Zijing followed him without hesitation. This kind of feeling is very pure and without impurities."

Given Li Heng's intelligence, it's impossible that he was unaware of the importance and preciousness of this feeling. Therefore, this is Zijing's greatest asset, the capital that will ensure her a life of wealth and honor.

Sister-in-law, I hope you'll stop being so stubborn and stop ruining Zijing's life. Please, as a mother, show some kindness this once. I don't pray you'll do anything to improve Zijing's life; I just ask that you stop causing trouble.

Chen Xiaomi's words today were very heavy, each sentence like a knife, each sentence piercing the heart.

Silently, hundreds and thousands of bloody holes had been pierced into Zhong Lan's body, turning her into a blood-soaked figure.

The courtyard fell silent for a moment. Chen Xiaomi looked at her sister-in-law. Zhong Lan fell into a long silence.

After a long, long time, Zhong Lan asked hoarsely, "Zijin has gone with that little bastard, what guarantees her future happiness?"

Chen Xiaomi slowly uttered a sentence: "The eldest son of the Li family. And his status in the Li family of Gulou."

Zhong Lan was stunned: "Eldest son? Didn't you say that Yu Shuheng had already resigned, and Zijing still has two years left before graduating from her undergraduate program? How could she possibly have an eldest son?"

After much hesitation, Chen Xiaomi recounted her conversation with Zijing in the car two days prior, concluding with:
"Li Heng promised her the first child, but whether it will be the eldest son depends on Zijing's fate. But in any case, this shows that Li Heng loves Zijing very much, and that's enough."

Zhong Lan listened without saying a word, but asked in a low voice, "In this situation, what will the old man think?"

Chen Xiaomi joked, "In this land, the old man has some ability, but not much, just a little bit."

You know, the world is a vast place, and many talented people emerge. My dad has indeed gotten old and lost his former sharpness; otherwise, would he have tolerated us treating Tian Run'e that way back then?
The old man remains silent now, never mentioning Zijing's matter openly at family meetings, simply because he's still proud and arrogant. But now, times have changed, and his petty calculations are insignificant compared to Li Heng's status and position, and to the Yu and Zhou families.

Zhong Lan's expression was strange, whether it was mockery or something else: "Even someone as strong-willed as Grandpa would accept his fate?"

Chen Xiaomi sighed with mixed feelings, "Ha, sister-in-law, do you know what it means to accept your fate? It means being powerless in the face of the tide. That's what it means to accept your fate. You should accept your fate too."

For the first time ever, Zhong Lan didn't get angry. Instead, she fell into deep thought and stared blankly into space.

P.S.: It's the beginning of the month, so I'd really appreciate it if you guys could vote for me with your guaranteed monthly tickets. Thanks!

(End of this chapter)