In the silence, Xiao Cheng spoke slowly.
“Auntie, from the moment I confirmed my relationship with Aiyun, I’ve been giving serious thought to our future together. I like her, I love her, I cherish her. She is the only wife I have ever chosen. In this lifetime, I will marry no one else. Our connection and feelings for each other are unbreakable.”
“I know what your concern is—that being with me means Aiyun would have to marry far from home.”
“I’m from the capital. All my business is there, and for reasons beyond my control, I have to live there—at least for the next several years, I won’t be able to leave the capital and settle elsewhere.”
“I don’t want to be apart from Aiyun, so I selfishly have to ask her to leave her home and come with me to the capital. For that, I owe her an apology—and I owe you one too.”
“But as long as she’s with me, I will never let her suffer, never let her endure hardship or toil.”
“My parents passed away early, and before now, no one in my family could make decisions for me. But from now on, Aiyun can.”
“The hardest thing to predict in this world is the human heart. Even I can’t guarantee that I’ll never change. But right now, I can say with certainty that I won’t.”
“Yet anyone can say pretty words. In this life, what truly provides security is material substance.”
With that, Xiao Cheng pulled out a heavy bag from beside his feet, cleared a space on the table, and began laying out its contents one by one.
“These are all my important identification documents.”
“These are the deeds and property titles for everything I’ve acquired in Jiangming Province.”
“This is all the cash I have on hand right now. The rest of my savings are in the capital—I can’t move them over at the moment.”
“…”
“These are some of my properties in the capital. A large portion is tied up in investments and not currently in my hands. When they return, I will hand them all over to Aiyun.”
Stack after stack of documents came out—credentials were secondary, their reality hard to grasp. What struck harder was the mountain of cash Xiao Cheng had casually poured onto the table, glinting and towering. None of them had ever seen that much money at once. For a moment, they were all stunned into silence.
At the same time, they could truly feel Xiao Cheng’s sincerity.
If a man were just playing around, why would he lay bare all his cards so thoroughly—especially someone as powerful and influential as Xiao Cheng? Faced with such troublesome, demanding in-laws, he could easily have walked away.
After all, there were plenty of girls prettier and more outstanding than Lin Aiyun in this world. He didn’t need to humble himself to please them.
Lin Aiyun knew this better than anyone. In her past life, the moment they married, he’d placed all his assets—big and small—in her hands, keeping only a small private fund for buying her surprise gifts. That was it.
Watching a similar scene unfold again, she couldn’t help but be moved. She rose instinctively, murmuring: “Xiao Cheng.”
He glanced at her reassuringly, then continued, addressing Zhang Wenhua: “Auntie, I don’t want Aiyun to be separated from you either, to suffer the pain of longing. So if you’re willing, I would like to bring you all to the capital to live with us. We’ll take care of you together, and your younger brother can study in the capital and go to university there.”
“If you’re not willing, that’s fine too. After we’re married, I can guarantee at least two visits back here every year to see you. If she misses you, or you miss her, just send a letter, and we’ll come back.”
“I’ve looked into it—there used to be a train from the capital to the provincial capital of Jiangming almost every day. Though service has been suspended in recent years due to higher authorities, I’m certain the situation will be resolved within two years.”
“Then, distance will no longer be a problem.”
These words stunned everyone present. None of them had expected Xiao Cheng to go this far.
Even among married couples, few would lay themselves bare like this—let alone a couple who weren’t even married yet, just meeting the parents for the first time.
But Zhang Wenhua understood: he was determined to resolve all their concerns in one go, rather than dragging things out and wasting time and energy.
And clearly, he had succeeded.
He had won her over with sincerity. She could find no more reason to object. More importantly…
She turned to look at Lin Aiyun. The love and gratitude shining in her daughter’s eyes were unlike anything she’d ever seen—even when she’d been throwing tantrums to marry Meng Baoguo.
A parent could never truly win against their child.
“We can discuss all that later.” Zhang Wenhua didn’t agree outright. She fixed her gaze on the young, capable man before her. After a pause, she continued: “You know our family’s circumstances—we’re nowhere near as wealthy as yours. But Aiyun was raised with love; she’s never known hardship. If you ever make her cry, even if it costs me my life, I won’t let it go.”
“Auntie, rest assured—that will never happen.” A smile broke across Xiao Cheng’s face despite himself. Zhang Wenhua’s words had already shown her stance.
“Mother! Why are you talking about risking your life?” Lin Aiyun cozied up to Zhang Wenhua, her voice soft and cajoling.
Zhang Wenhua shot her a look. This girl didn’t realize she was helping secure a safety net! But seeing her daughter’s happy face, she managed a small smile and said in a low voice: “But if—if things ever don’t work out, don’t hurt our Aiyun. Just send her back to me, and her father and I will take care of her.”
Having said that, she felt it was too much of a mood-killer to bring up such a downer right after giving her blessing. Before Xiao Cheng could respond, she changed the subject: “If you have time the day after tomorrow, come with us to meet Aiyun’s father.”
“I do—it would be my honor.” Xiao Cheng saw that Zhang Wenhua was deliberately steering the conversation away, so he didn’t press. But when he caught Lin Aiyun secretly wiping tears, his heart twisted. He couldn’t resist stepping past Lin Wenkang to stand beside her and pat her shoulder.
With the elders still present, he could only suppress the urge to pull her into his arms, settling for a silent offer of a handkerchief—a gesture of quiet strength.
“Alright, stop crying. You’re not a little girl anymore.” Zhang Wenhua pretended not to notice his hand on her daughter’s shoulder, her tone light and teasing.
“No matter how old I get, I’ll always be your daughter.” Lin Aiyun turned and buried her face in Zhang Wenhua’s neck, her voice low.
Zhang Wenyue’s eyes reddened at the sight. Thankfully, Lin Wenkang was there to lighten the mood, cracking jokes until everyone was smiling again.
Zhang Wenhua told Xiao Cheng to put away the things he’d taken out, then naturally steered the conversation toward betrothal gifts and dowry. Regardless of how wealthy he was, she insisted on sticking to local standards—anything flashier would attract unwanted attention and cause trouble.
In those days, there was no such thing as a marriage certificate. A couple was considered married once both families held banquets and invited friends and relatives to witness the union.
When asked when the banquets should be held, Xiao Cheng said the sooner the better—but he wouldn’t let Aiyun be shortchanged. They’d have one in the village, then another back in the capital. But since the distance was great, not all of Lin Aiyun’s relatives could be invited—only those closest to them. Xiao Cheng offered to cover all travel expenses.
Zhang Wenhua said they’d wait until after meeting Lin Jianzhi the day after tomorrow, check the auspicious dates, and settle on a date.
With the important matters settled, it was growing late. This time, Zhang Wenhua didn’t hesitate—she let Xiao Cheng drive them back.
The walk there hadn’t been long, and with the car, they arrived even faster. By the time they reached the Ding household, the sun hadn’t even set. Most people were out enjoying the cooler weather, sitting on chairs in the open space at the alley entrance, chatting and relaxing.
The sudden sight of a grand sedan driving into the alley piqued everyone’s curiosity. They followed it, eager to see which household it was visiting.
The sedan stopped in front of the Ding residence. The Dings had always been a topic of conversation in the neighborhood, ever since their son married an exceptionally beautiful country girl. And Lin Aiyun’s arrival had only stirred up more talk.
“Does Ding Weidong have relatives rich enough to own a car?”
“Not that I know of—never heard him mention it.”
The crowd buzzed with speculation, keeping a safe distance. Before long, a striking young man got out of the driver’s seat—well-dressed, handsome, and impossible to ignore. The moment the women caught sight of his face, a few young wives and girls couldn’t help blushing, though their eyes never stopped lingering on him.
They were already scheming: the Dings weren’t playing fair—living as neighbors all these years and hiding such a fine relative without so much as an introduction or a connection.
They’d have to pay a visit later and do some digging.
The women threw all kinds of meaningful glances his way, while the men scoffed and warned their wives not to stare. But seeing the car, they knew better than to make a scene.
Xiao Cheng swept his gaze over the onlookers and looked away. Smiling, he walked to the passenger side, let Lin Aiyun take his hand as she stepped out, then opened the rear door to help Zhang Wenhua and Zhang Wenyue out.
“Let me help carry the things inside.”
“Thank you. Kangzi, go help your Brother Cheng.”
When the trunk opened, Zhang Wenhua was taken aback—not only were there the gift boxes from the restaurant, but also several bags of fruit and assorted nutritional supplements. She gave Xiao Cheng another look.
It seemed he’d been determined to win her over from the start, planning everything—even the drive back—in advance. He wouldn’t have prepared these gifts otherwise. Of course, it could have been just in case.
But Zhang Wenhua leaned toward the former.
Once everything was inside, they found the others were also home. Since it was everyone’s first meeting, Xiao Cheng followed Lin Aiyun in greeting them all.
Knowing he’d brought gifts for everyone, the Ding family thanked him politely.
Zhang Wenyue offered him a drink. Halfway through it, he rose to leave. Lin Aiyun immediately stood as well: “Mother, I still have that embroidery piece at his place. If we’re going home the day after tomorrow, I won’t have much time to work on it. I’d like to use these next couple of days to get as much done as possible.”
“So soon?”
Zhang Wenhua frowned. She knew Lin Aiyun had been making good money from embroidery.
At first, she’d been surprised—when had her daughter picked up this skill? But then she recalled that Aiyun had always handled the mending and stitching around the house, and her work had always been quite good. She must have gotten guidance from Auntie Hui. Combined with Lin Aiyun’s perfectly reasonable explanations, Zhang Wenhua had let it go—and was even proud of her.
“Mm, the buyer needs it soon.” In truth, only a little finishing work remained. She could finish it in one day if she focused, but…
Without batting an eye, Lin Aiyun put on a troubled expression and continued: “If I miss the deadline, I might have to pay a penalty.”
The moment the word “penalty” was mentioned, everyone grew concerned.
But Xiao Cheng, who’d spent a few days watching her embroider, knew her skill level well. He caught the unusual remark and glanced at her. Meeting those big, watery eyes, his gaze shifted.
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