Mrs. Xie rolled her eyes at him. "Honestly."
"As parents, we need to think more about our daughters who have married out," Mr. Xie said.
"If you really cared about Jing Ling, you’d find a way to bring her back," Mrs. Xie said.
"Jing Ling is married and has a job. It’s not that simple," Mr. Xie said, looking troubled.
Unless Jing Ling got divorced, he couldn’t see a way to bring her and his granddaughter back home. But Mr. Xie didn’t approve of divorce. Things were different for men and women. A capable man could easily remarry after a divorce. A woman, however, would become the target of gossip, making it much harder for her to find another good man.
Jing Er’s divorce from Xu Chunyan had been forced by the circumstances. And yet, not long after, he had married Lin Yaru in a practically seamless transition.
"Why don’t we bring my brother-in-law back with her?" Jie Jingchen suggested.
"Bring him back to do what? Are you going to support him?" Mr. Xie glared irritably at Jie Jingchen.
"You could arrange a job for him at the machinery factory," Jie Jingchen said.
"Your brother-in-law has rural household registration," Mr. Xie reminded him.
"The household registration can be sorted out," Jie Jingchen said.
"Hmph!" Mr. Xie snorted. "Who do you think you are? Solving his household registration? Jing Si, I’m not trying to pour cold water on the idea, but even if we could handle things on our end, what about his? Do you think he’d follow your sister to Shijiu City? Would his mother ever agree? Your sister’s mother-in-law is no pushover. She’ll throw a fit—crying, screaming, threatening to hang herself—she has her son completely under her thumb. If she tells him to go east, he wouldn’t dare go west."
"Jing Si." Mrs. Xie reached out and patted the back of Jie Jingchen’s hand. She shot a sidelong glance at Mr. Xie and said pointedly, "Just drop it. Listen to your father. He has experience in these matters."
"That’s right, I have experience," Mr. Xie blurted out. But the more he thought about it, the more he realized something was off. His wife wasn’t praising him; she was being sarcastic.
’Back then, his own mother had used the same tactics—crying, screaming, threatening to hang herself—to keep him under her thumb, making his ex-wife suffer endlessly.’
The corner of Mr. Xie’s mouth twitched. He promptly shut up and continued eating his noodles.
Jie Jingchen understood perfectly. ’It was just a suggestion, and he wasn’t going to press the issue. Since his parents weren’t on board, he wouldn’t insist. Besides, he hadn’t even asked his older sister what she thought.’
"Mom, are you really not pregnant?" Jie Jingchen asked, returning to the subject.
"I’m really not," Mrs. Xie told him firmly.
"Alright, I get it." Jie Jingchen stood up. "Enjoy your meal."
Mrs. Xie watched him leave. ’I can’t shake the feeling Jing Si was on a mission when he asked me that.’
The moment Jie Jingchen returned, Qin Mei asked impatiently, "Well? Is she pregnant?"
All eyes turned to him, waiting for his answer.
"No," Jie Jingchen replied definitively.
The expressions around the room were a mix of relief and disappointment.
"It’s probably for the best. It’s dangerous for older women to give birth," Qin Mei said. "With the state of medicine these days, having a baby is like taking a trip to hell and back."
"What’s so dangerous about it?" Sun’s mother said. "In the next village over, there’s a couple in their fifties who just had a son."
"Aunt Sun, why don’t you go home and have a late-in-life baby with Uncle?" Qin Mei said, looking at Sun’s mother with an innocent smile.
Sun’s mother froze for a second. "Nonsense! An old woman like me having a baby? I’d die of embarrassment!"
Qin Mei stopped teasing her and whispered something in Jie Jingchen’s ear.
"I’ll go with you," Jie Jingchen said.
"You should stay here. My sister and I will be fine," Qin Mei said, refusing his offer. "Too many people will attract attention, and a bicycle can’t fit three anyway."
"I’m not comfortable with you two going alone," Jie Jingchen insisted.
"Don’t worry, I’ll protect your sister," Qin Mei assured him.
Jie Jingchen frowned, a hint of frustration in his eyes. ’He was worried about *her*.’
"Let’s go, Sis." Qin Mei pulled Jie Jingling away with her.
"Where are Fourth Brother’s wife and Big Sis going?" Jie Jinghun asked curiously.
"I don’t know," Jie Jingchen answered, his expression grim and his tone cold toward Jie Jinghun.
"You wanted to go with them. How could you not know?" Jie Jinghun said, placing a hand on Jie Jingchen’s shoulder.
Jie Jingchen knocked the hand off his shoulder. His amber eyes turned sharp, flashing with a cold light.
Qin Mei pedaled the bicycle with Jie Jingling on the back, heading toward Old Zhang’s house.
At a grocer’s near Old Zhang’s house, Qin Mei stopped. They bought a lot of things, and when Jie Jingling tried to pull out her money and ration tickets, Qin Mei stopped her.
"I’ll get it, Sis." Qin Mei held Jie Jingling’s hand, stopping her from reaching into her pocket.
"Amie, these are for my teacher. I should pay." Jie Jingling felt embarrassed letting Qin Mei foot the bill; these items weren’t cheap.
"Don’t worry, Sis. I have money," Qin Mei said generously, taking the money and tickets from her satchel.