Feng Fanghua used to say everywhere that Jing Qing was their future daughter-in-law, claiming that no young man in Rongcheng was a match for Jing Qing, except for her son. But now...
The two women sat in the chairs next to each other and chatted for a while. Feng Fanghua, feeling tired and uninterested, stood up to find her granddaughter: "Huanhuan, we’re leaving!"
Huanhuan was a bit reluctant, but she soon parted from the little boy.
Feng Fanghua thought to herself that she couldn’t let her granddaughter hang out with such snobbish people in the future.
She couldn’t expect that they would end up attending the same kindergarten in a year or two.
At lunch, this lady ran into Jing Qing and spiced up the conversation she had with Feng Fanghua before repeating it to her, which immediately made Jing Qing unhappy and her expression turn cold.
The effect of Qin Mu’s advertisement was even better than she had expected, and now, hearing these things, Jing Qing’s temper would flare up, even though she was normally not the most easygoing person.
In front of outsiders, she was patient and gracefully composed, but at home, she was quite bad-tempered.
That afternoon she went to look for Helian Hao, who involuntarily furrowed his brows upon seeing her: "What are you doing here?"
"I want you to break off your relationship with Qin Mu."
"Otherwise, you can’t marry into our Jing Family."
Jing Qing knew that Helian Hao was the only friend of Qin Mu in Rongcheng. She wanted to end the only friendship Qin Mu had in Rongcheng, to dishearten Qin Mu and have him hurt by Helian Hao.
There was nothing more painful than being hurt by one’s best friend.
"Either you break it off with her, or you don’t marry my brother. The choice is yours."
After entering, Jing Qing turned and said to her coldly.
"Who do you think you are? The person I’m marrying is your brother, not you. What right do you have to dictate who I befriend? You want me to break off my friendship with her just because you say so? I’m your sister-in-law, not a servant of your family."
"Hmph, what’s the difference?"
Jing Qing laughed coldly without even looking her in the eye.
Helian Hao also laughed, and as he was about to close the door, he opened it again: "Get out."
Jing Qing had never heard anyone speak to her like that, and feeling insulted, she immediately walked out. However, just before she reached the door, she turned back to say: "If you continue being friends with Qin Mu, even if you marry into the Jing Family, you won’t have a good life, because everyone in the Jing Family hates her, and naturally, we hate her friends too."
"I can just not get married at all. Who are you threatening?"
"Hmph, that would be for the best!"
Jing Qing hadn’t finished speaking when Helian Hao angrily slammed the door, almost deafening her with the loud bang, making her own words seem insignificant at that moment.
Soon after, Jing Feng called her: "You went to see Xiaohao? Are you sick?"
"What if I am sick? If she continues her association with Qin Mu, I’ll make it hard for her once she joins our family."
"Get back to the set," Jing Feng said angrily, then hung up the phone.
And Jing Qing, having descended the stairs and seated herself back in her car, burst into large tears as she felt an icy chill at her fingertips from loathing.
Fuming, Helian Hao called Jing Feng and then Qin Mu: "I don’t need the dress anymore, sell it to someone else."
Qin Mu’s hand, holding the pen, slacked, and the pen made a ’snap’ as it fell on the desk, followed by the sound of a woman’s sobs on the other end.
"Are you at home? I’m coming to see you!"
The voice at the other end sounded even more aggrieved. Qin Mu immediately put down her work and rushed over, finding Helian Hao already in tears with her eyes red and swollen.
When she opened the door for her, she vigorously wiped away her tears, nearly swelling her eyes shut.
"She actually said that if I don’t break off my friendship with you, I’m not allowed to marry into the Jing Family. Fine, I won’t marry! I never really cared about it anyway. It’s only because her brother was shamelessly begging me."
Helian Hao complained, all the while wiping her runny nose with a sense of injustice.
"You can’t make such a rash decision about this matter, and you mustn’t speak carelessly about not marrying Jing Feng, understand?"
Qin Mu could only admonish her.
"Why can’t I say it? Are only their family members allowed to speak? I’m not trying to climb their social ladder; why shouldn’t I speak my mind?"
"It’s not about whether you dare to speak or not; this involves the relationship between two families, and if you say such things to Jing Feng, how hurtful do you think it would be to him?"
It was this last sentence that truly touched Helian Hao’s heart.
Hurting Jing Feng was the last thing she wanted, but she just couldn’t swallow her anger.
His sister bullied his bride-to-be like that. Why should his bride-to-be have to be so accommodating?
"Just pretend to break off the friendship with me. After all, once you’re married, you’ll be living alone with Jing Feng. What can she do to you then?"
Suddenly, Helian Hao began to regret her decision, afraid that she would have to endure the displeasure of his family as soon as they got married.
That was not the life she wanted.
"Do you know? I feel like my values really don’t align with his family’s."
"What about Jing Feng?"
"He, of course, aligns with me, but a marriage without the blessing of the family won’t be a happy one."
"But once, my mother-in-law asked me more than once to leave Mu Yichen, and what about now?"
"Hmph, that mother-in-law of yours, who knows when she might go crazy again and drive you away."
"At that time, unless my relationship with Mu Yichen fell apart, no one could make me leave."
Qin Mu laughed softly.
Helian Hao asked out of curiosity.
"Because, once you’re family for a day, you’re family for a lifetime. Besides, I never saw his parents as outsiders, it’s just that they have the choice to see me as an outsider."
Jing Feng had been there for a while, listening to the two women chat. Fortunately, he didn’t hear Qin Mu’s advice to Helian Hao to break up with him. Knowing that Qin Mu was not extreme, he walked in through the door. As for Helian Hao, no matter what she said, he would not let go.
They had been together for so many years, and they would be for many more to come.
Qin Mu got up when she saw Jing Feng come in. Helian Hao pulled at her, not wanting her to leave, but Qin Mu let out a helpless sigh, gently patted her hand away, and then left.
Jing Feng escorted her to the corridor: "The grievances between you and Jing Qing are now settled, and as her brother, I naturally have to side with my own sister. You need to understand that."
"You don’t need to say anymore to me, just don’t get angry with Mu Yichen when he supports me. After all, you’re both just protecting the people you should be protecting."