Chapter 61 The Right Path

The Nana whom Jin Wenning mentioned was her classmate living at No. 15 just ahead. Nana’s paternal aunt was a sophomore at the Normal University, currently on suspension and staying at home, and she had spent a period of time tutoring Ningning and the other neighborhood children.

After Li Yancheng found out that she was tutoring these kids at home, he spoke with Nana’s father and asked him to persuade his younger sister to stop. Although it was a well-intentioned deed, there was no telling who might casually start spreading malicious rumors.

Fortunately, the college student was sensible. Just the day after he spoke with Nana’s father, she stopped the tutoring sessions.

And it was a good thing she did. That very afternoon, someone came knocking to investigate. Finding no evidence of tutoring, they merely gave Nana’s aunt a stern lecture and left. Had she not stopped in time, no one could have guessed what might have happened.

That incident gave the family quite a fright.

Nana’s father was someone Li Yancheng addressed as an older brother. A few days later, once the matter had completely blown over, he specifically brought his university student sister over to express his gratitude.

Nana’s young aunt was named Zhang Weiyu. She was quite ordinary in appearance, but she was a college student. In this day and age, a college student was truly something extraordinary, and this status alone made her a more than fitting match for Li Yancheng.

Yet the problem was that money could not buy personal preference. Leaving aside whether the young woman was willing or not, Li Yancheng himself was not interested.

He did not deny his own vulgarity and superficiality in the slightest; when looking at women, he always looked at their faces and figures first, just as he had in his previous life.

Even if Zhang Weiyu had been a Ph.D. holder, he wouldn't have fancied her.

"Ningning, don't go playing matchmaker for me. You three, I know you all mean well—her brother, sister-in-law, and niece—and I appreciate it, but please let me take my time with this matter."

Remaining unmarried seemed to feel like an original sin. In his past life, the moment he started living alone with his child, his parents, siblings, relatives, and friends began incessantly trying to set him up, driving him to the verge of quitting his job and moving to another city with his son.

Little did he expect that after transmigrating here, while he no longer had family, friends, colleagues, and neighbors picked up right where they left off. At the hospital, his colleagues spared no effort in introducing potential partners to him.

He knew they all had his best interests at heart, but he genuinely had no plans to marry just yet.

Seeing the water in the pot on the stove come to a boil, he picked up the dried noodles from the table and walked over. Jin Zhihai hurriedly snatched them from his hands, preparing to drop them in himself.

It was already overstepping to have an entire family barge into someone else's home for a free meal; having the host cook as well would be far too much.

"I'll do it, I'll do it. You just rest."

"Fine then, cook away, and crack all six eggs into it."

"Alright, since you're not trying to save ingredients, I'm more than happy to."

"Sorry to be such a bother, Dacheng," Xing Lihua still felt somewhat embarrassed.

"Don't mention it. When the time comes and I actually want to find a partner, I'll be counting on you to introduce someone."

"Haha, no problem at all. There are plenty of singles at my workplace; I'm guaranteed to introduce someone you'll be satisfied with."

Little Ningning curled her lips to the side. Sighing like a little adult, she shook her head helplessly.

Sigh, she certainly had to worry plenty over this older brother of hers.

"Oh, by the way, Dacheng, did you go to our bureau's hospital this morning?"

Jin Zhihai, currently tending to the noodles in the pot, suddenly recalled the fleeting figure he had caught a glimpse of that morning and asked out of curiosity.

"I did. What, did you see me?"

"Then my eyes weren't playing tricks on me. I thought I was seeing things—what were you doing over at our bureau's hospital?"

"Ah, a friend asked me to drop by and take a look at a patient. I didn't stay long before leaving."

Seeing that Li Yancheng seemed reluctant to elaborate, Jin Zhihai turned his head, gave him a deep look, and pressed no further.

He clearly remembered that the small two-story building his childhood friend had visited served as the designated ward for a specialized unit. Without official authorization, even personnel from the municipal bureau couldn't step foot inside.

When on earth had this guy started rubbing shoulders with people from that department? Jin Zhihai’s mind was filled with doubt.

He found that he was increasingly failing to understand this childhood friend he had grown up with; the changes in him were simply too massive.

...

While they were still busy preparing their late-night snack, Yang Luo had already driven back home in high spirits.

Though married, he still lived with the elderly folks in a traditional courtyard house—specifically, a single-family compound with its own private entrance.

The alley where his family lived was a dead end. The entrance leading to it was guarded by sentries, meaning it was not a place just anyone could wander into.

By the time he returned, the old couple living in the main house had long since gone to bed, leaving only a single lamp illuminated in the east wing where he and his wife resided.

This lamp, which usually filled him with a sense of reluctant dread, finally gave him a glimmer of warmth after more than two years of marriage.

Standing at the threshold, he took a deep breath and pushed the door open impatiently.

Upon entering, the outer room served as the living room, while the bedroom was located on the right.

Sun Yiqing was sitting propped up against the headboard in bed, reading a book. Hearing the commotion at the door, she put down her book, peeked out, and saw Yang Luo stepping through the bedroom door.

This left Sun Yiqing momentarily stunned. In her memory, whenever her husband returned, he would linger in the living room and only slip in quietly after she had already fallen asleep. Why today...

"Yang Luo, have you eaten?"

"I've eaten."

"There's hot water I boiled in the kettle."

"I know."

The two of them had known each other since childhood. Although there was an element of a political alliance involved in their marriage, there was genuine affection between them as well.

Yet what she never expected was that her husband suffered from that particular affliction.

Upon learning of it on their wedding night, she neither cried nor made a fuss, nor did she blame Yang Luo for keeping it a secret beforehand. Instead, she actively assisted him in seeking treatment after the marriage. The reality, however, was that not only did the condition require a lengthy recovery, but there was also no guarantee of a cure.

In the blink of an eye, more than two years had passed, and she had essentially resigned herself to her fate.

But today...

Sun Yiqing felt certain her eyes must be playing tricks on her. She actually saw desire in her husband's eyes.

Just as their brief exchange ended, she watched as the man—who had never once come to bed while she was still awake in over two years—proactively undressed, climbed onto the bed, pushed his own quilt aside, and slid straight under hers.

"Luo... Yang Luo, what... what are you doing?"

Although a cold draft rushed in when the quilt was lifted, making her shiver instinctively, she completely forgot about the cold. She merely stared in blank astonishment as the man squeezed under her covers and pulled her tightly into his embrace.

"Hmm?"

Before she could even figure out what her legs had brushed against beneath the blankets, with a crisp "click," the bedside lamp was switched off.

"You... you... Yang Luo, you..." Sun Yiqing’s voice began to tremble.

Though she was still a novice in matters of romance, she would have to be a complete fool not to realize what was about to happen next.

"Shh. It's been over two years; it's time we made up for our wedding night."

The first time for a pair of inexperienced novices might not have been particularly graceful.

Yet, ultimately, it turned a brand-new page in their lives, setting their married life firmly on the right path.