1990s: Spring Water Family

Chapter 267 The Truth Two Years Ago: Her Cousin Was a Ray of Light in Her Eyes
"You're very clever; you've already guessed it, haven't you?"

My cousin, feeling heavy-hearted, continued, "Yes, just like you thought. My aunt was pregnant two years ago. At that time, you didn't know they weren't your biological parents, so she was conflicted. She didn't want to hurt you, but she couldn't bear to part with her child. So she went to my mom's house alone to ask for my mom's opinion."

"What can my mother say? She's the older sister-in-law; she can't make decisions for the couple."

"Later, my uncle said that having one daughter like you was enough for them, and they would rely on you when they got old. They didn't need to have another child. I can imagine that my aunt was very sad when she heard this, but for your sake, she agreed to my uncle's decision and secretly had an abortion."

“Besides my mom, even my grandma didn’t know about this. Now do you understand how good they are to you? You’re truly blessed to have such loving adoptive parents.”

--
"Dad, Mom"

As Nana listened, tears streamed down her face. She ran home crying and threw herself into her aunt's arms.

"Nana, you're finally back."

The aunt was also very emotional and hugged her daughter, tears streaming down her face.

Grandma and Uncle gathered around, asking him how he was doing.

My cousin, not wanting to disturb the family reunion, closed the door and quietly left.

-

Wangfuchizi West Street, old house.

Gu Bin drove his cousin and Zhang Juan home again, and by the time he drove back to his own home, it was past 1 a.m.

Lin Xiyu was having trouble sleeping because she had to feed her child that night. She opened her eyes alertly when she heard the slight shaking of the large iron gate.

Gu Bin didn't want to disturb their rest, so he tiptoed in, trying his best not to make any noise.

Even so, she recognized the familiar footsteps, lifted the covers, got out of bed, and walked out of the bedroom.

"Why are you not sleeping yet?"

Seeing that she was only wearing a thin coat, Gu Bin was afraid she would catch a cold, so he quickly took off his own coat and wrapped it around her.

"Can't sleep."

Lin Xiyu smiled coquettishly.

"Thinking of me?"

Gu Bin is addicted to teasing his beautiful wife.

"What do you say?"

Lin Xiyu raised her eyebrows slightly.

"It seems I guessed it right."

Gu Bin smiled indulgently, then took the opportunity to lower his head and steal a kiss on the lips.

"Hiss, it's a bit cold."

A gust of cold wind blew by, and Lin Xiyu shrank her neck further into her coat: "I'm relieved to see you back. You should go back to sleep now, I'm going back to my room to rest too."

"You want to leave after just one kiss?"

Gu Bin hugged her tightly, feeling her sweet and soft scent, and was reluctant to let go.

"I'm not cold, you are."

Lin Xiyu saw that he was only wearing a wool sweater and felt genuinely cold for him.

Are the babies all asleep?

Gu Bin glanced into the bedroom where the babies were sleeping.

"Sleep."

Lin Xiyu knew what was going on.

Gu Bin coaxed with a smile, "Come to my room, let's sleep together."

"no."

Lin Xiyu hesitated, "Dabao is the most restless one. He wakes up several times a night, and he might wake up again soon."

"Never mind him."

Without saying a word, Gu Bin scooped the person up in his arms.

"Hey, hey."

Lin Xiyu wanted to protest, but she was afraid of making too much noise and waking up the babies.

A triumphant smile appeared on Gu Bin's lips as he carried the person back into the house.

-

"Did my cousin really say that?"

A short while later, the two lay in the warm quilt, but Lin Xiyu couldn't muster any romantic thoughts; her mind was completely occupied by her cousin's astonishing words.

"It's a bit far away, so I can't hear very clearly."

Gu Bin was speechless at his wife's lack of romantic understanding.

"Oh my god, my aunt aborted her child for Nana's sake."

Lin Xiyu was deeply disturbed: "She had been waiting for so long, drinking Chinese medicine for so many years, starting right after she got married, for a full ten years! Ten years! She finally got pregnant, and she was willing to have an abortion?"

"Perhaps there are other details."

Gu Bin secretly guessed, "What your cousin said may not be true. Maybe she just wants to provoke Nana and make her understand gratitude."

"I think it's probably true."

Lin Xiyu knew her cousin well: "Sister Leilei is very straightforward; she wouldn't make up something like that."

"That means your aunt and uncle really love Nana."

Gu Bin didn't want to argue with her in the middle of the night, so he nodded in agreement.

"No matter how painful it is, there's no need to abort the child."

Lin Xiyu still felt deeply regretful: "How wonderful it would be to have your own biological child. If my aunt hadn't miscarried back then and had given birth to her own child, her chances of getting cervical cancer would have been much lower, and things wouldn't be like this now."

"Honey, don't think about it anymore."

Gu Bin tried to persuade him, "It's all in the past, there's no point in saying anything now. But you must remember, never mention this to your uncle and aunt."

"Am I stupid? Why would I bring this up?"

Lin Xiyu said coquettishly, "I would never do something like reopening old wounds. I'm afraid Grandma would beat me if she found out."

"Your maternal grandmother probably really didn't know about this."

Gu Bin analyzed rationally: "I also think it's a bit suspicious from this point of view. Your uncle is a very filial son. He knows that Grandma has always hoped to have a child of her own. If she is really pregnant, how could he bear to disappoint her?"

“You’re right. Maybe Uncle did this for Grandma’s sake.”

Lin Xiyu had a different perspective: "It was because he was worried about his grandmother's age and didn't want her to go through the trouble of taking care of his child that he made this decision."

"That's also possible."

Gu Bin nodded in agreement: "After all, your maternal grandmother is already 86 years old. It's already quite remarkable that she can take care of herself at this age and not be a burden to her children."

"Ugh."

Lin Xiyu sighed deeply again: "I really can't think about it anymore. The more I think about it, the more regrettable it feels. If I continue to be anxious like this, I'll almost have a nervous breakdown."

"I don't want to think about it anymore, let's go to sleep."

After his wife's antics, Gu Bin lost all interest in anything else, turned off the light, and prepared to go to sleep.

You mean my cousin?

Lin Xiyu was overthinking things and still couldn't let go, so she pushed him again.

A soft snore sounded in his ear. Gu Bin had stayed up most of the night and was extremely tired. He fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

"Uh."

Lin Xiyu was both amused and exasperated.

With no one to talk to, she stopped thinking about it, snuggled deeper into the covers, and closed her eyes next to Gu Bin.

Gu Bin was half asleep when he smelled a familiar scent of hair. He reached out and pulled the person into his arms.

The babies were unusually quiet during the night and slept soundly until dawn.

The couple also benefited, falling asleep in each other's arms and sleeping soundly until they naturally woke up.

-

My cousin stayed up most of the night and was exhausted. She went home and fell asleep as soon as she got home. When she opened her eyes, the clock was already pointing to noon.

She lives in an upscale neighborhood with heating, and she wakes up with a dry mouth and throat after a night's sleep.

The water dispenser was in the living room. She rubbed her messy curly hair, squinted as she walked over, filled a glass with water, and gulped it down in one go.

After finishing my drink, I stood there blankly, holding the empty glass, feeling like something was off.

He looked around and his eyes suddenly widened.

Looking back at the water dispenser and then at the empty water glass, I was stunned for a long time before I realized that I wasn't dreaming.

Is this my own home?
When did it become so clean?
There wasn't a single dirty piece of clothing on the sofa, the coffee table was spotless, and even the wooden floor under her feet was so clean that she almost hesitated to step on it.

"Sister Leilei, you're awake." She was still in a daze when a petite figure came out of the kitchen carrying a plate.

"hiss."

My cousin was shocked to find a stranger in her house. She was so startled that her scalp tingled, and she stood there stunned for a good ten seconds before she realized that she knew this person and that she was the one who brought her home.

"Did you clean all of this?"

Seeing Zhang Juan's embarrassed expression, she also awkwardly laughed and touched her nose, trying to make amends.

"Yes."

Zhang Juan nodded somewhat reservedly.

Did you fry the eggs too?

My cousin glanced at the irregularly shaped, slightly burnt eggs on the plate, raised the corners of her lips, and tried to appear as gentle as possible.

"Yes."

Zhang Juan said with some guilt, "I'm not very good at using a gas stove, and I accidentally burned it."

"It's better than mine."

My older cousin knows how to compliment people; one sentence from her made the little girl smile.

"Sister Lei, are you hungry? I saw there are instant noodles in the refrigerator, I can cook some more."

"Eating instant noodles won't do!"

My cousin was very generous: "Wait here, I'll wash my face and take you to the little restaurant downstairs. We'll have a nice meal."

"no need."

Zhang Juan was afraid of spending money and was about to refuse when her cousin rushed into the bathroom like a gust of wind.

-

Downstairs in the residential complex, there are small restaurants along the street.

"My dad thinks I'm bad at studying and ugly, and that I'll never find a good family when I grow up; he says I'm a money-loser."

When pressed by her cousin, Zhang Juan choked up as she recounted the reason for the beating.

"He must be blind to think you're ugly."

My cousin loathed Zhang Ershan from the bottom of her heart; just thinking about him annoyed her.

"My eyes are small."

Zhang Juan is very self-conscious.

Do you think my eyes are big?

My cousin deliberately opened her eyes wider.

"Uh."

Zhang Juan glanced up, but didn't dare to say a word.

"I'm not trying to make you feel bad, but my eyes really aren't big. I've always had small, squinty eyes since I was little, and everyone who sees them laughs at me for having small eyes."

My cousin chuckled to herself: "So what? Girls change a lot as they grow up. I'm still a beauty when I grow up. I have small eyes, a small nose, and a small mouth. When they're all together, I look absolutely pleasing to the eye."

“We don’t compare ourselves to those great beauties; we win with our temperament. Look at her, with her hair up like that, wearing a wool coat, leather boots, and a scarf draped over her shoulders, and her back straight, she exudes the aura of a strong woman.”

"That's why I say, there's no need to feel inferior. Everyone has their own strengths. As long as you have confidence and embrace the sunshine with your head held high, you'll discover a different world. The once gray sky can become azure, and the air you breathe will smell fresh."

"."

Zhang Juan glanced at the sky outside out of the corner of her eye.

It's all gray outside the window; it feels like it's about to snow again.

"You don't believe what your sister says, do you?"

Her cousin saw her little gesture and smiled knowingly.

"No, no, I believe you."

Zhang Juan was startled and her heart skipped a beat. Fearing that the other woman was tired of her, she hurriedly denied it.

"Here, let me show you a picture."

My cousin smiled jokingly, then magically pulled a photo out of her wallet and handed it to her.

The photo shows a little girl who looks only two or three years old, with her hair in a topknot, looking at the camera with a silly grin.

Zhang Juan was a little confused and didn't understand her cousin's intention.

"Isn't this little girl pretty?"

Seeing her lost in thought, her cousin asked her directly.

"Uh."

Zhang Juan was embarrassed and didn't dare to speak.

Whether she's pretty or not is another matter, but her eyes are definitely small.

A personification of squinty eyes, with single eyelids, the kind where you can't even see the pupils when the eyes are open.
"This is a photo of me when I was a child."

My cousin casually dropped a bombshell.

"what?"

Zhang Juan glanced at the photo, then at herself now, and her mouth dropped open in astonishment.

The difference is too great; it's almost like a magic trick where someone disappears into thin air.

"This photo is probably the most beautiful one I took when I was a child. My grandma found it when she was looking through her photo album not long ago and gave it to me so I could keep it as a memento."

My cousin got her wish and saw her stunned expression, and smiled with great satisfaction: "Do you believe me now? I didn't lie to you, did I?"

"I believe it."

Zhang Juan nodded very sincerely.

Do you want to know why I've changed so much?

My cousin smiled and threw out the bait again: "Would you like to be like me?"

"think."

Zhang Juan's eyes showed anticipation.

"Actually, I haven't deliberately styled myself."

My cousin smiled jokingly and gave an unexpected answer: "The person is still the same, except that the age has changed, nothing else has changed."

"."

Zhang Juan couldn't understand and was clearly confused again.

"Let's put it this way."

My cousin patiently explained to her, "My appearance hasn't changed, but my mindset, temperament, and clothing style have. There's a saying that goes, 'There are no ugly women, only lazy women.' As long as you dress appropriately and take good care of yourself, everyone can be a beauty."

"Uh-huh."

Zhang Juan took the saying "There are no ugly women, only lazy women" to heart, and her eyes lit up.

-

"The food is here."

As the two sisters were talking, the restaurant owner came over with a tray.

My cousin thought Zhang Juan was malnourished, so she specially ordered a clear chicken soup to nourish her body.

The chicken soup smelled wonderful; it was a flavor I hadn't tasted in a long time.

Zhang Juan sipped her drink slowly, tears gradually welling up in her eyes.

"Their chicken soup is pretty good. If you like it, let's come again in a few days."

My cousin felt terrible seeing this, so she scooped another spoonful of chicken soup into her bowl.

"no need."

Zhang Juan didn't want to cause her any trouble, so she instinctively wanted to refuse.

"I'm rich."

My cousin exudes confidence: "No need to be so polite with me."

"Thank you sister."

At that moment, her cousin was like a ray of light in Zhang Juan's eyes, and she couldn't help but feel a bit of admiration for her.

After all the dishes were served, my cousin, taking advantage of the lively conversation, tentatively asked her, "What were you saying just now? What's wrong with your studies?"

Zhang Juan paused in her eating, then lowered her head in shame.

"I wasn't a good student when I was a child."

My cousin laughed heartily, showing no self-awareness what a bad student should have. Instead, she was a little smug: "So what? I still make a lot of money now and have plenty of cash to squander. I'm not bragging, but in our JN city, most people aren't doing as well as me. I earn more in a year than they earn in a lifetime."

Zhang Juan raised her head, and her eyes lit up again.