The sudden twist left Zhou Ning stunned. Zhou Xiaoyu stood up excitedly, but Cui Guanglin simply got up and left. Mr. and Mrs. Cui gazed blankly at their departing son, continually bowing to their uncle, aunt, and grandfather.
"I don’t know what got into the kid today, probably the pressure from teaching a senior high school graduation class is too much. We’ll give him a good talking-to when we get ho and then visit to apologize."
After Mr. and Mrs. Cui left, Grandpa stood up, and the uncle began to complain to his wife:
"What were you thinking, bringing that up? A pleasant eting turned so awkward."
Unhappy, the aunt stood up abruptly, pointed at the uncle’s nose, and shouted:
"Don’t try to play the good guy here. What did I say that was wrong? Shouldn’t we check his health first? He looks weak like a sickly chick, not even as tall as Xiaoyu. How can I give Xiaoyu to him without a check-up? He flips out and walks away at the slightest word. This is his upbringing? I think we should forget this marriage."
The uncle was about to speak again, but Grandpa tapped his walking stick on the ground, and both the uncle and aunt fell silent.
"My daughter-in-law is right. Xiaoyu isn’t in a rush to find a partner. This issue must be treated seriously. Xiaoyu, don’t be upset. Although choosing a partner is your business, I support your mother on this matter."
Zhou Xiaoyu was close to tears, and Zhou Ning patted her back.
"Don’t worry. I’ll speak to Cui Guanglin later. Your aunt acted rashly, but it’s only because she cares about you. Co, you can go shopping with for a while."
With that, Zhou Ning pulled Zhou Xiaoyu downstairs, turned back nodding at the aunt to signal not to worry. Even if he knew the aunt was right, in front of Zhou Xiaoyu, he needed to be patient in persuading her.
Leaving the hotel, they didn’t take a taxi but slowly walked in the direction of ho. Zhou Ning didn’t say anything comforting, and when Zhou Xiaoyu cried, he didn’t coddle her. After a long while, Zhou Xiaoyu finally looked up at Zhou Ning.
"Do you think my mom is just picking a fight, trying to split us up?"
Zhou Ning shook his head.
"On the contrary, I think your aunt really wants to help you get married. But marriage isn’t child’s play. You’ve worked with Cui Guanglin for over a year and think you know him well, but as a family mber, I hope you can understand and clear up all aspects of this person to prevent unforeseen issues down the line."
Zhou Xiaoyu pouted and kicked at the pebbles on the ground.
"We could have talked about this slowly with Cui Guanglin. Speaking about it in his face, how embarrassing is that for him?"
Zhou Ning ruffled Zhou Xiaoyu’s ssy hair, and seeing her mood improve, he sighed and said:
"As the party involved, it’s easy to be blind. Let’s look at it from another angle. If your parents were discussing marriage with the Cui family and Mr. and Mrs. Cui suggested that it’s best to have a health check-up before marriage, would you object?"
Zhou Xiaoyu was taken aback and instinctively shook her head, then frowned deeply.
"Of course, I wouldn’t..."
Zhou Ning raised a hand.
"Stop. Don’t say anything else. That’s the most important thing. Naturally, you wouldn’t oppose it, right? So why did Cui Guanglin object? And why did he leave so angrily? What was the occasion today?
It was the first eting between both sets of parents, and after chasing you for so long, your uncle and aunt had finally expressed consent over your relationship—implying marriage as the intention. Even if you were dissatisfied, you would probably just grumble to Cui Guanglin later. Would you have stord off on the spot?"
Zhou Xiaoyu looked aggrieved, and seeing this expression, Zhou Ning didn’t say anything more.
"Alright, that’s in the past. You should go to work when you need to, and avoid contacting Cui Guanglin for the next couple of days. Everyone needs so ti to cool down. Actually, this incident is a blessing in disguise, as it’s always better to discover a person’s flaws before marriage than after."
Zhou Xiaoyu stamped her foot.
"Brother, aren’t you also trying to break us up?"
Zhou Ning shook his head.
"I’m simply stating the facts and have no intention of breaking you two up. Even if Cui Guanglin has health issues and you still want to marry him, I’ll support you. But hiding such things... that’s a question of character, understand?"
Zhou Xiaoyu stared at Zhou Ning for a long while. Although she was blinded by love, she heard the concern in Zhou Ning’s words.
"So, I should ignore him for these few days?"
Zhou Ning shook his head.
"You don’t have to ignore him. We’re trying to solve a problem, not hold a grudge. If he contacts you, sit down and talk calmly about why he reacted so strongly today. It’s okay to have issues as long as we face them together.
Of course, if he doesn’t reach out, then take so ti to calm yourself. If after the honeymoon phase is over, and he walks away or embarrasses you, ask yourself if you can tolerate him, if you genuinely feel like you can’t live without him, then continue. Otherwise, I suggest you reevaluate your relationship."
Zhou Xiaoyu sighed deeply and leaned on Zhou Ning’s shoulder.
"Alright, I’ll listen to you."
Zhou Ning rubbed her head.
"Co on, hurry ho."
As they turned around, soone under the streetlight was watching them. But with his back to the light, Zhou Ning couldn’t see the person’s face. Zhou Xiaoyu tugged at Zhou Ning’s sleeve.
"Do you know him?"
Zhou Ning was slightly startled, but after they took a couple of steps forward, they recognized Mr. Xia under the streetlight. Zhou Ning smiled and waved.
"Mr. Xia, what a coincidence?"
Xia Momo’s expression was sowhat stiff as she nodded at Zhou Ning and pointed ahead, saying:
"Yeah... coincidence... hello... goodbye!"
With that, she walked briskly in the opposite direction, and Zhou Xiaoyu raised an eyebrow, poking Zhou Ning’s arm.
"Brother, that girl is jealous."
Zhou Ning was startled.
"Jealous?"
Zhou Xiaoyu rolled her eyes and shook the hand that was clutching Zhou Ning’s sleeve.
"Misunderstood, you don’t see that? And I don’t know who was just giving a lengthy lecture, talking like a love expert."
Saying this, Zhou Xiaoyu turned towards the direction Xia Momo had left and shouted energetically:
"Mr. Xia, wait for a second, my brother wants to talk to you!"
After speaking, she gave Zhou Ning a push and took a few quick steps towards ho, still sneaking glances back.
"Brother, you should head ho early too, I’ll go ahead, otherwise mom will nag again!"
Zhou Ning looked around, helpless, but still walked toward Xia Momo; the words of Zhou Xiaoyu made him realize that Xia Momo thought he and Zhou Xiaoyu were a couple.
"Mr. Xia, why are you avoiding when you see ?"
Xia Momo used her hands to tidy her hair, appearing sowhat embarrassed.
"Not avoiding, just didn’t want to disturb you and your... "
"That’s my sister, my cousin from my second uncle’s family, a few days younger than . We were eting her boyfriend’s family for dinner today, and things weren’t pleasant, so I was just comforting her."
Xia Momo nodded in sudden realization, the explanation easing her forr embarrassnt and discomfort.
"Your sister is so tall, is everyone in your family tall?"
"Yeah, my cousin is even taller than at 192 cm. It’s late; let walk you ho."
Xia Momo didn’t refuse, and the two walked down a road behind the Cultural Palace; Zhou Ning knew her ho was behind the Cultural Palace.
"Have you been busy these past few days?"
"There’s a case that’s kept occupied for many days straight. The culprit’s characteristics are too scarce, there’s been no real progress in the investigation, and if we keep investigating in this direction, it might embarrass many people, so I haven’t been in the mood for anything else."
Xia Momo nodded.
"I know you have rules, you don’t need to go into detail with . But don’t worry, I think you are very conscientious at work. You always manage to notice things from angles others overlook. While so might call that luck, I don’t think it’s just luck.
It’s like how we paint with watercolors; each brushstroke isn’t aid at perfect conformity with the object, but rather the reflection of light. You’re like that. Others see the process and outco of events, but you can spot subtle issues in the bigger picture."
Xia Momo’s words made Zhou Ning feel slightly embarrassed; he thought her evaluation of him was too high.
"You’re making blush with all this praise. Regarding the case, I really can’t say much, but chatting with you has eased my mood a lot. Doing exclusions also ans we’re moving towards the truth."
Xia Momo nodded and stopped walking.
"I’m ho now, thanks for walking back."
"Don’t ntion it. Go on up; I’ll watch from here until you’re inside!"
Xia Momo smiled and nodded, then turned to enter the building. When she saw a light on and a waving figure at the window of a third-floor apartnt, Zhou Ning waved back and then turned to leave.
Thinking of Cui Guanglin, Zhou Ning’s brow slightly furrowed. The kid looked soft, almost like a frail scholar, but he unexpectedly had quite the temper. Could it be that he really had so condition he didn’t want to be known? And had Zhou Xiaoyu attempted sothing with him? That wasn’t sothing he could ask. If Cui wasn’t capable in certain aspects, Zhou Xiaoyu would understand, wouldn’t she?
Zhou Ning scratched his head, thinking of Mr. He from the ergency departnt at the Eighth Hospital. They had t a couple of tis afterward, and he got along well with Zhou Ning. He called He Shancun’s phone, and it was answered after two rings.
"Hello, Zhou Xiaozhou? Don’t tell you need to monitor another patient. I’m off work now, and I won’t be at your service!"
Zhou Ning touched his nose; the burst of words clearly indicated that Mr. He was in a bad mood.
"What’s up, Mr. He, in a bad mood? I’m off work too. I just wanted to consult you on sothing. Should I call you back later?"
"For dical consultations, visit the hospital. I don’t do consultations over the phone!"
"Then I take back what I just said. Are you busy, Mr. He? What do you say to so barbecue and a drink on ?"
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