Transmigrated as an Unwanted Ugly Girl

Chapter 473: Chapter 248: A Serious Relationship

As noon approached, fine, dense snowflakes began to drift down from the sky, melting the moment they touched the ground. But after a short while, the fine flurry slowly turned into flakes. A thin layer of snow quickly covered the dry ground, and the rooftops and treetops gradually turned white. This light, shallow dusting made the fields and the village seem ethereal and soft.

However, Zheng Changhe, who was waiting for Qingmu at the Fuxi Grocery Store, was in no mood to admire the snowy scenery. He grew anxious, frowning as he said to Laixi, "Why isn’t Qingmu back yet? He promised me he wouldn’t eat at his maternal grandmother’s house. If he’d said he was staying for lunch there, I would have left long ago. Why would I be stuck waiting until now?"

Laixi looked at his uncle’s impatient expression and held back a laugh. ’If it weren’t for my help,’ he thought, ’you’d probably still be at the market selling fish. Of course you wouldn’t be waiting until now—you wouldn’t even be back yourself.’

But he didn’t dare say this out loud. He just said to Zheng Changhe, "Uncle, what’s the rush? It’s not often Qingmu gets to go over there. Putting everyone else aside, he has to go see his fiancée, doesn’t he?"

Hearing this, Zheng Changhe thought for a moment, then smiled.

’Look at me, getting all muddled,’ he thought. ’At my age, how could I forget what I was like when I was young? Right after I was engaged to the kids’ mother, wasn’t I always running off to Liujiatang, too? Qingmu is much better than I was. He hasn’t even been to Liujiatang twice this year. Sigh... It’s all because things are too busy at home.’

Having come to this realization, he settled down to wait. With the snow coming down so hard, he couldn’t bear to leave first and let his son walk home alone.

He said to Laixi with a chuckle, "I bet your grandmother made him stay for lunch!" In his heart, though, he was thinking, ’It was probably his future in-laws who kept him for lunch.’

Laixi was about to speak when he saw someone emerge from the wind and snow outside. Who else could it be but Qingmu? Wearing a bamboo hat and carrying a pair of bamboo baskets on a shoulder pole, he seemed to push his way out of the swirling curtain of snow. Laixi quickly said, "Uncle, cousin’s here! And it looks like he didn’t stay for lunch."

’His grandmother and uncle are in Liujiatang, not to mention his fiancée,’ he thought, admiring Qingmu. ’Yet Qingmu just made a quick trip and came straight back without even staying for a meal. I could never do that.’

Zheng Changhe had been anxious while waiting, but now, seeing his son hurrying back through the blizzard without even having eaten, his heart ached for him. He rushed out of the grocery store to meet him. "Qingmu, you haven’t eaten, have you?" he asked, reaching out to take the carrying pole from him.

Qingmu quickly waved him off, carrying the pole directly into the shop before setting it down. He took off his bamboo hat and, smiling at Zheng Changhe who had followed him inside, said, "I’ve already eaten. Dad, you must be hungry, right? My aunt cooked some fish and packed several other dishes for you and Laixi."

Laixi was overjoyed. "Oh, wow! I was just wondering what to do for lunch. Usually, when it’s just me, I can throw anything together. But with Uncle here today, I couldn’t very well make him eat my cooking. Who knew you’d show up! My mom’s food is way better than mine." He let out a genuine sigh of relief. He had been about to go to the little tavern to order a dish but had been worried his uncle would scold him for wasting money.

Zheng Changhe rubbed his hands together and laughed. "Ha! And here I was thinking that if I just held out a bit longer, we could hurry home and eat."

As Qingmu took the dishes out of the bamboo baskets, he frowned at his father. "You would’ve been faint with hunger! Honestly, Dad. You just sold the fish, didn’t you? You could have gone to the tavern with Laixi for a meal. It wouldn’t have cost that much."

Zheng Changhe scratched his head sheepishly and grinned. "It’s not about saving money. I just think no food tastes as good as a meal at home. The moment it started snowing, I got a real craving for Juhua’s braised tofu with greens. She renders the fat from a piece of pork until it’s fragrant and crispy, then pours it all in. You eat it hot off the stove, and it warms you right up."

Laixi swallowed hard. "No wonder you weren’t in any rush, Uncle! You were just dreaming about the delicious food my cousin Juhua makes. I tried to get him to eat twice, but he insisted on waiting until he got home." With that, he took the dishes to the kitchen to heat them up.

Qingmu looked at his father with a helpless expression. ’Juhua’s cooking is good, sure,’ he thought, ’but you can’t be this obsessed! Otherwise, when she gets married, is she supposed to come all the way back home just to cook? Or are you just planning to go over to your son-in-law’s house to eat?’

Then, an image of Liu Yunlan surfaced in his mind, and a sweet thought followed. ’Yunlan is a great cook, too. I’m sure she’ll be able to keep Mom and Dad happy. That way, Juhua can rest easy. Otherwise, knowing my sister, she’d definitely make two portions of everything she cooks—one to send back home!’