NOVPUB
Chapter 237: Chapter 237: He Dares Not
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It wasn’t until the third day of Zhang Lijuan’s visit to the city that Tong Yao was informed over a phone call. This came as a surprise to her, Zhang Lijuan had shown more clarity than she’d expected, seizing the golden opportunity to marry into wealth.
It wasn’t that she was underestimating Zhang Lijuan; under the conditions she was in, if she didn’t marry Si Boyi, like most women, she might likely end up tilling a few acres of land for a living. By her forties or fifties, she’d be leaving her home to do laborious jobs -- living a life of stability but with strains.
If she was unlucky, she might lead a hard life without even achieving stability.
Being with Si Boyi would be different. His current salary alone would be enough to provide a decent lifestyle for the two of them in the city.
Lin Fengying was still young and healthy, requiring no extra care, and could even help look after their children. For a commoner, this kind of life could be considered a good one.
Si Boyi mentioned to Tong Yao about Zhang Lijuan’s arrival but didn’t seem to get any response from her, leaving him feeling in doubt. He stuttered and asked, "Sister-in-law, I really don’t know what to do, do you have any suggestions?"
"What could your sister-in-law suggest? In my opinion, just let Lijuan return back home sooner! I wonder what a mess our mom must be making these past few days." Si Xiaohui stated cheekily, on the side, had it not been for Lijuan being quite industrious and helping her second brother with washing and cooking, she would have already driven Lijuan out.
Having three people share one bed was utterly uncomfortable; whenever they stretched their legs, they were bound to make contact, it was quite uncomfortable.
Si Chen wasn’t present, so Tong Yao didn’t feel it was her place to make such grand decisions, but since Si Boyi had asked for her opinion, it indicated he respected her stance as his sister-in-law. If she just threw her hands up and abandoned the matter, it would seem too cold-hearted of her.
"Let’s do this! Over the next two days, find some time to take Lijuan back home. Take mom along and find the village head to act as a matchmaker. Explore the idea of marriage with Lijuan’s family! Anyway, whatever is there or not there between you two, in Chen Jinlan’s sight, there is definitely something. Even if she doesn’t agree, there’s not much she can do now."
At this point, Jinlan would definitely concede. She would allow the village head to act as the matchmaker, providing some face to the Chen family. Besides, Jinlan would give a little face to the village head, avoiding saying harsh words in front of him.
If things go as expected, this would be settled. As for how their life turns out, it’s up to Si Boyi and Zhang Lijuan themselves.
"Alright, I’ll do as you suggest."
With Tong Yao’s words, Si Boyi seemed assured, his depression was finally alleviated. He wished he could take Zhang Lijuan back home right at that moment. n𝚘𝚟𝚙u𝚋.co𝚖
Although these few days he had spent with Lijuan had been blissful, making his heart flutter every single day, he couldn’t feel at ease with Jinlan not giving her consent. He even had dreams of Jinlan making a ruckus at home, beating up Fengying.
Only when things got settled would he genuinely feel at ease and wouldn’t bring any more troubles to the family.
"Tonight, I’ll discuss this matter with Ah Chen when he gets back. If there’s anything, you can call us on this number. It’s a new line I’ve installed for the milk tea shop over here." Tong Yao, who disliked being long-winded, briefly chatted about Si Boyi’s matter and hung up.
Gu Hongwei, who was nearby, overheard the conversation and was surprised that Si Boyi and Zhang Lijuan had become a couple. He was partial to the fact that Lijuan had a crush on Si Chen and knew about it but he didn’t engage in gossip. He didn’t expect Lijuan to have ended up with Si Boyi, developing into what seemed like an elope situation.
He wondered whether Tong Yao knew about Lijuan’s crush on Si Chen and if she did, it must be quite awkward for her, right?
After all, as an outsider, he felt this kind of relationship was a bit uncomfortable.
Tong Yao had no clue about Gu Hongwei’s thoughts. She was occupied contemplating whether or not there was anything substantial between Si Boyi and Zhang Lijuan. If the two really had something between them, they might get married soon. Although she could find the time to return home, she wasn’t sure if Si Chen could manage it.
As the elder brother, if his younger brother got married and he didn’t show up, he might feel regretful, right?
The first thing Si Chen did when he got home from work, following his usual habit, was go to the restroom to wash his hands. Tong Yao followed behind him and told him about Si Boyi and Zhang Lijuan, and shared her opinions with him.
On hearing that Zhang Lijuan had come to Li City to find his younger brother, Si Chen furrowed his handsome brows slightly. As he dried his hands with a towel, he said, "What you suggested is correct, the best course of action at the moment is indeed to involve the village chief in arranging the marriage."
Tong Yao blinked, her lips curling into a playful grin, and she cheekily asked, "What if Boyi and Lijuan have gone all the way, and estimated to get married before the new year, do you have time to go back and attend their wedding?"
Si Chen hung the towel back on the rack and said calmly, "He wouldn’t dare."
"???"
Tong Yao looked puzzled, unable to understand why Si Chen was so certain. This kind of thing wasn’t guaranteed, after all, very few people, like Si Chen, would hold back their desires.
Besides, Si Boyi’s situation was different from theirs, he had already dated Zhang Lijuan for several months, they had feelings between them.
"Boyi is old-fashioned and slow-witted." Si Chen simply stated the reason.
Although their time spent together decreased after Si Chen went to college, he still had a good understanding of Si Boyi’s character.
Tong Yao snorted and walked over to the dining table, sat down, and handed a pair of chopsticks to Si Chen, who came over shortly after, "Boyi might not dare, but what if Zhang Lijuan takes the initiative to seduce him?"
She bumped into the city, most likely with the mindset of letting the matter be settled, Tong Yao didn’t believe that Lijuan would behave once she reached the city.
In reality, Lijuan indeed didn’t behave herself. However, Boyi didn’t fall into the pit. In order to avoid Lijuan, he even had to go out for a run at night, daring only to return when Lijuan was asleep.
Naturally, Tong Yao was unaware of this.
Si Chen analyzed, "Boyi is shy, he wouldn’t have the face to bring Lijuan to stay outside. Zheng Xiaoshuang and Xiaohui are also living in the back room, he knows what he should and shouldn’t do."
Si Boyi’s character leans towards the Si family tradition, he’s pretty straightforward and doesn’t overthink much, just sticking to the let-live policy. That’s exactly why Si Chen was fine with him managing the milk tea shop.
Tong Yao made a face, "Now that you put it that way, I feel as though I’ve been narrow-minded."
"You don’t understand Boyi well enough yet, it’s pretty normal for you to overthink." Si Chen indulgently served Tong Yao some dishes and asked, seemingly remember something, "Have you called our parents recently? What about the house situation?"
Tong Yao’s family matters weren’t a secret to Si Chen. In fact, Yao’s elder brother flaunted the reality of his wealth a lot of times, and hence Si Chen often found himself worried over the possibility of Tong Yao’s elder uncle exploiting the fact he had male heirs to bully Yao. That was why he was inquiring about the matter now.
Just because they lived in the city didn’t mean they won’t have conflicts over land distribution. But when it came to issues of property and financial interests, many people, based on the fact they had sons, often bullied the weaker side.
Take, for instance, Tong Yao’s elder uncle; he was the kind of person who felt that just because he had sons, he was entitled to the entire inheritance, whereas Tong Yao’s father had no son and hence didn’t deserve it.
