"You don’t understand," Mrs. Xie contradicted him. "Jing Ling is so sensible; how could she not be aware of the stakes? She knelt and begged you to arrange a job for Zhang Haoyuan simply because she wanted to see how you would react. And the truth is, you disappointed her."
Mr. Xie was at a loss for words. He had disappointed Jing Ling, yes, but Jing Ling had nearly driven him to despair.
"Yan Qiu, the situation is serious. I can’t..."
"Can’t what?" Mrs. Xie cut him off. "Stop making such high-and-mighty excuses. Jing Ling is your daughter. For her sake, you can afford to be a little less rational. You can try to risk it all for once."
"Risk it all?" Mr. Xie gave a self-mocking laugh. "She’s not my only child. I also have four sons, Jing Er among them, and another daughter, Jing Qi. I have my parents, and my brothers and sisters. I can’t indulge Jing Ling just because I feel I’ve wronged her. I have to think about them, too."
"And I don’t?" Mrs. Xie demanded.
"It’s different for you," Mr. Xie said.
"That’s right, I have fewer people to worry about. I only have Jing Si, Jing Wu, Jing Qi, and my parents. I don’t have any brothers or sisters," Mrs. Xie said.
"Yan Qiu, that’s not what I meant." Mr. Xie raised a hand and rubbed his temples. He was busy with work, and matters at home were already wearing on him. Now Jing Ling had to add to the chaos.
"Don’t say another word, Jie Jianguo," Mrs. Xie said, her temper flaring. "You are a complete failure as Jing Ling’s father. I’ve told you already—all Jing Ling wanted was to see where you stood."
Hearing her tone, Mr. Xie could tell she was about to lose it. "Why are you getting so worked up?"
"You can sleep by yourself tonight. I’m going to go sleep with Jing Ling." Mrs. Xie grabbed her nightgown from the pillow, left her husband, and walked out of the room.
"Yan Qiu!" Mr. Xie finally reacted and ran after her, but Mrs. Xie shut the door just in time. He nearly smashed his nose on the wood. Mr. Xie took a step back and stared at the door. He hesitated for a few seconds, but decided against opening it and going after her.
’Knowing my wife’s temper, even if I went after her, she wouldn’t listen to a word I said. It would just wake the children and the in-laws, and that would be a major embarrassment.’
Mr. Xie went back to the bed and lay down. He rested his head on his arm, staring up at the ceiling as he sank into deep thought. ’Was I really wrong?’
’Is it wrong to be so cautious? Did I really have to do what my wife said and just recklessly satisfy Jing Ling’s every demand?’
’No. He didn’t dare. He wasn’t a fool.’
After her shower, Qin Mei came out of the bathroom to see Jie Jingchen leaning against the headboard, reading. ’There’s nothing more attractive than a man engrossed in a book.’ But Qin Mei had something on her mind and was in no mood to appreciate the sight. On any other day, she would have absolutely found a way to tease him a little.
Jie Jingchen watched Qin Mei climb into bed and lie down without saying a word. ’She definitely has something on her mind.’
Jie Jingchen set his book down and lay back. He pulled the cord for the lamp, and the room was plunged into darkness. Qin Mei wasn’t sleepy. She kept shifting from her side to her back, tossing and turning like a pancake on a griddle.
"Something on your mind?" Jie Jingchen asked.
Qin Mei froze. The words her father-in-law had said to his daughter echoed in her mind. She rolled over, turning her back to Jie Jingchen. "It’s nothing."
’So she’s not going to tell me.’ Jie Jingchen’s expression hardened. He reached out and gently turned her over to face him. "Meimei."
"Let’s just go to sleep. It’s really nothing," Qin Mei said.
"You want to interfere?" Jie Jingchen asked bluntly.
Qin Mei played dumb. "Interfere with what?"
"With arranging a job for Zhang Haoyuan," Jie Jingchen spelled out.
’Is this guy a mind reader or what?’ This time, Qin Mei didn’t try to play dumb. She just remained silent, which was a tacit admission.
"Meimei." Jie Jingchen wrapped an arm around her waist, giving it a gentle squeeze.
"I want to put Sis’s mind at ease," Qin Mei said. ’She knelt and begged Father-in-law. It was heartbreaking to see.’
Jie Jingchen fell silent, his expression grave.
"Jie Jingsi, your dad is the director of a machinery factory. He doesn’t dare take risks, which is why he refused your big sister. Your mom’s a doctor, and the Zhang family comes from a long line of traditional Chinese medicine practitioners, so a hospital job would be a perfect fit. But the way the Zhang family is now... people are keeping their distance. Unless your mom wanted to arrange for Zhang Haoyuan to go to Xiangjiang, but that’s risky too. It might even trigger..." Qin Mei’s voice died away.
After a moment’s thought, she added, "But I’m different. I don’t have a formal job, so I don’t have the same concerns. It would be easy for me to arrange a job for him."
"Easy?" Jie Jingchen said, his tone disapproving. He didn’t mock her, but asked, "Do you have any idea what the Zhang family’s situation is right now?"
"I know, but I’ll be extremely careful," Qin Mei promised.
"Meimei, if this isn’t handled properly, have you considered what it could do to your brothers’ futures?" Jie Jingchen asked.
"What?" Qin Mei was taken aback. "I’m a married daughter. How could something I do affect my family back home?"
The moment the words left her mouth, she regretted them. ’That sounded so heartless. Is only my parents’ house my home? Isn’t my husband’s family my home, too?’