Reborn in the 1970s — Married a Proud Rough Man

”Alright, it’s too hot out. Don’t linger on the way, hurry on home. Be careful not to get heatstroke,” Granny Li said, sounding like she was sending her own child off to school.

”Goodbye, Auntie. We’ll chat again some other day.” Qin Mei stood up. ’Chatting with the granny is quite relaxing. When I chat with Second Auntie, the conversation always takes a turn. It’s not that I’m against making money; I just want a simple chat. To be blunt, I just want to hear some gossip.’

After finishing the last bite of her ice cream bar, Qin Mei geared up again. Granny Li couldn’t help but ask, ”Fourth Wife of Jing, aren’t you hot?”

”I am,” Qin Mei admitted honestly.

”Then why are you dressed like that if you’re hot?” Granny Li said with disapproval.

Qin Mei just smiled and waved to Granny Li, then chummily slung her arm over Jie Jingchen’s shoulder. Because of their height difference, it was a bit of a strain for her.

They didn’t go home. Instead, they went to the Lin family’s house. The courtyard gate was closed, so Qin Mei pulled Jie Jingchen over to a shady spot to sit down.

”Why did you bring me to the Lin family’s house?” Jie Jingchen asked, confused. ’I should probably suggest she quit this habit of eavesdropping.’

”Just now, when I was chatting with the auntie, she revealed some shocking news to me,” Qin Mei said mysteriously, leaning close to Jie Jingchen’s ear.

”You should call her Granny Li,” Jie Jingchen corrected. He had absolutely no interest in her so-called shocking news. ’On a day this hot, getting her to leave the house is like pulling teeth. And now she’s run over to the Lin’s to eavesdrop... I’m speechless.’

”Jie Jingsi, that’s not the point. The point is the shocking news,” Qin Mei said, pinching his arm.

”I’m not interested.” Jie Jingchen just wanted to stay far away from the Lin family.

”Well, I’m interested, so what now?” Qin Mei gave Jie Jingchen a push. Seeing that he wasn’t talking and was just staring at her with a strange look, she said, ”Fine, you can go back.”

Jie Jingchen raised a hand and pinched the bridge of his nose. ”What’s the shocking news?”

Qin Mei smiled. She slung her arm over his shoulder, pulling him down closer, and whispered in his ear, ”Lin Yaru has gone mad.”

”So what if she’s gone mad? What does that have to do with us?” Jie Jingchen said flatly.

Qin Mei let him go and crossed her arms, studying Jie Jingchen with a scrutinizing gaze. ”Never mind your past ambiguous relationship...”

”Meimei, there wasn’t even a hint of ambiguity between her and me,” Jie Jingchen interrupted.

Qin Mei rolled her eyes. ’According to the neighbors, the two of them were practically at the point of discussing marriage.’ ”Lin Yaru is your second brother’s wife now. Your second sister-in-law has gone mad, and you’re not the least bit curious?”

”Not curious,” Jie Jingchen said coldly.

”Well, I am,” Qin Mei said.

Jie Jingchen stared at her for a few seconds and sighed. ”Meimei, if any neighbors pass by and see us sitting here, who knows what they’ll think. And if the Lin family comes out, it’ll be awkward for us.”

”It’s fine. As long as we don’t feel awkward, they’re the ones who will,” Qin Mei said nonchalantly.

On a day this hot, people who had jobs were at work, and those who had school were at school. Anyone at home wouldn’t want to go out. The probability of running into a neighbor was low—though, of course, it wasn’t zero.

”Yaru! Jing Er! Time to eat!” Li Axiu’s voice rang out.

The courtyard gate was closed, so Li Axiu had to shout loudly. Both Jie Jingchen and Qin Mei heard her. It was an odd time to be eating—too late for breakfast, too early for lunch.

’Qin Mei often ate breakfast at this time, since she always slept in. But she was an exception. Most people these days preferred to sleep early and wake early. Lin Yaru was still on vacation and pregnant, so she could get special treatment. But what about Jie Jingwei? Just because he got married and his father-in-law gave him a few days off, was he just going to let himself go and slack off for a few days?’

A moment later, Li Axiu shouted again, ”Yaru! Jing Er! Time to eat!”

’The Lin family seemed quite harmonious. Qin Mei started to suspect Granny Li might have been pulling her leg. Maybe after eating two of her ice cream bars, she’d just cooked up some intel she knew Qin Mei would want to hear.’

’After all, who wouldn’t want to see their husband’s ex living in misery? Death would be too cruel, but going crazy was just right.’

”That Auntie is really something else, making up a story about Lin Yaru going crazy,” Qin Mei remarked.

Jie Jingchen glanced sideways at Qin Mei and asked, ”Now that you’re sure she hasn’t gone mad, can we go back?”

”What’s the rush? Since we’re already here, we might as well sit for a little longer. It’s not like we’ll get heatstroke, and besides, we have nothing to do at home anyway.” ’It wasn’t easy to drag herself out of the house in the first place. Next time the sun was this scorching, she wouldn’t have the courage to leave at all.’

’Jie Jingchen wanted to say that if she were willing, there were plenty of things they could be doing at home. He would rather go back to work at the machinery factory than sit here with her eavesdropping on the Lin family.’

’His eldest sister had left, and he had to go back to work tomorrow. It was a good thing his Second Uncle was trying to sideline him at the factory; otherwise, if he had to ask for leave, his uncle might not have approved it.’

’His Second Uncle’s attitude toward him had changed ever since he proposed the plan to send Jie Anqi to Xiangjiang. When he first started at the machinery factory, his uncle had high expectations for him. But now, his uncle had turned on him, trying to turn him into a useless figure at the factory.’

BANG! BANG! BANG! The sound of someone banging on the gate was accompanied by Li Axiu’s annoyed shout. ”Yaru! Jing Er! Didn’t you hear me? It’s time to eat!”

Qin Mei jumped in surprise. ’Li Axiu had clearly lost her patience. Not that she could blame her. If she had called calmly twice and gotten no response, she would’ve flown into a rage too.’

”If you’re not eager to eat, you’ve got a problem,” Qin Mei muttered under her breath.

Jie Jingchen gave her a complicated look. ’She had the nerve to criticize others when she was the least enthusiastic person about eating, especially breakfast.’

’Whenever he made breakfast and called her to eat, if he disturbed her sleep, she would definitely fly off the handle.’

”Jie Jingsi, how late do you think they were at it last night? It’s almost noon and they’re still not up,” Qin Mei asked curiously.

’This girl has such a dirty mind.’ Jie Jingchen fell silent for a moment, not wanting to discuss other people’s sex lives with Qin Mei.

Jie Jingchen’s refusal to play along didn’t affect Qin Mei’s rant in the slightest. ”It’s not like it’s their wedding night. That level of passion is really something else. Teacher Lin is pregnant, for crying out loud. Your second brother is such a beast, not even considering the baby in her belly. If he causes a miscarriage, it’ll be too late for regrets.”

Jie Jingchen remained silent.

Qin Mei propped her elbow on Jie Jingchen’s shoulder and rested her head in her hand. ”Sigh! Men really are no good. All of them think with their dicks... Jie Jingchen, I think that person over there looks like your second brother.”

Jie Jingchen had already seen him. He glanced sideways at Qin Mei. ”It doesn’t ’look like’ him. It *is* him.”

”Isn’t your second brother supposed to be inside?” ’Now things are going to get really awkward.’

Riding his bicycle with Lin Yaru on the back, Jie Jingwei spotted the two of them sitting outside the Lin family’s courtyard from a distance. His expression instantly darkened. Lin Yaru was sitting behind him and hadn’t seen them. His first instinct was to turn the bike around and leave, but on second thought, ’This is the Lin family’s house. Why should I be the one to hide from them?’

”What are you two doing here?” Jie Jingwei stopped his bicycle in front of them, his voice ice-cold and laced with anger.

”Just passing by,” Jie Jingchen said, his tone sharp and completely devoid of guilt.

Hearing Jie Jingchen’s voice, Lin Yaru jolted. All the blood in her body seemed to boil in an instant. The owner of that voice was the man she longed for day and night, the man who haunted her dreams, the man she loved to the point of madness.

’It was so sudden. She was desperate to see him, yet terrified to be seen.’

’Between the pregnancy and her listlessness, she looked utterly haggard. Her skin was sallow, and she was even starting to develop spots on her face. She was a complete mess. She didn’t want the man she adored to see her in such a terrible state.’

’In front of Jie Jingchen, she had always been poised, radiant, and lovely.’

”’Just passing by,’” Jie Jingwei repeated, squeezing the words through clenched teeth. A fire of pure rage burned in the depths of his eyes.

After a few seconds of silence, Jie Jingchen said lightly, ”My brother-in-law called my wife. We were on our way back after the call, and my wife got tired from walking, so she’s resting here. Is there a problem?”