The Adopted Cannon Fodder Made a Comeback

So Gu’er ignored Cao Qiu and pulled Feng Ling aside to ask how she was doing.

"Sister Gu’er, let me tell you, this trip was a real eye-opener. Life abroad is so different from ours, and people think differently, too. It made me realize how silly I used to be, always worrying about pointless things. I’m going to make an effort to learn more from now on."

Feng Ling had become much more cheerful, and she started calling Gu’er ’Sister Gu’er’.

"It’s good to get out and see the world. From now on, whenever you want to go somewhere, you can have Li Zhi take you. We often need to source goods in Guang City, Shenzhen, Wen City, and Harbin, so you can have him take you along to have a look."

Gu’er agreed. ’Getting out and seeing more of the world really broadens your horizons.’ She decided that in a couple of years, when her children were a little older, she and Sun Jiaming would take them traveling, too.

Feng Ling glanced at Li Zhi, blushing slightly as she lowered her head.

’Oh?’

Gu’er immediately understood. ’Looks like things heated up between Feng Ling and Li Zhi during their month in Russia.’

"What are you staring at? You haven’t seen me for a month—you think I’ve changed or something? Is there a flower growing on my face?"

Li Zhi felt a little awkward under Gu’er’s gaze and retorted.

"You have changed."

Gu’er nodded.

"How so?"

Li Zhi was surprised. He had just been spouting nonsense.

"No flower has bloomed on your face, but it’s definitely written all over with... love."

Gu’er said with a straight face. It took Li Zhi a moment to understand her meaning, then he glared. "Sun Jiaming, are you going to rein in your wife or not? Look at her! She’s bullying me!"

"Is she? I didn’t see a thing. But I do have to agree, you’ve got ’love’ written all over your face."

Sun Jiaming nodded with the utmost gravity, looking perfectly serious.

"You... you people! You’re just whipped!"

Unable to win the war of words, Li Zhi could only indignantly accuse Sun Jiaming of being whipped.

"Yeah, I am whipped. So what? Let’s see you try not listening to your wife when you get one."

Sun Jiaming was not ashamed in the slightest; in fact, he seemed proud of it.

"I won’t be! I..."

Li Zhi trailed off, instinctively glancing over at Feng Ling. When he saw her watching him, his voice dropped. "In the future... I’ll listen to whoever is right."

Gu’er burst out laughing, and the others joined in, making Li Zhi blush.

"Buddy, when is a woman ever wrong? Even when she’s wrong, she’s right. The wife is always right. The golden rule is ’happy wife, happy life.’ You dare say your wife is wrong? Just you try it and see if she doesn’t make you kneel on a washboard tonight."

Sun Jiaming said, speaking like a seasoned veteran.

"Gu’er, do you really make Jiaming kneel on a washboard?" Marina, taking him seriously, pulled Gu’er aside and whispered.

Gu’er flushed. ’Of course I don’t!’

"Of course not! I listen to everything Gu’er says," Sun Jiaming chimed in, not blushing in the least. "Besides, my Gu’er is a reasonable person. How could she ever make her man kneel on a washboard? We were talking about Li Zhi."

"Feng... My wife won’t be like that in the future! She’s a reasonable person, too. And I’ll listen to my wife!"

Li Zhi sputtered, in such a hurry to defend himself that he nearly blurted out Feng Ling’s name.

"See? You said it yourself—you’ll listen to your wife. So don’t give me any more grief about it in the future."

Sun Jiaming wore an I-told-you-so expression.

Dingzi, Marina, and Gu’er all nodded in confirmation.

"Fine, just keep ganging up on me! None of you are good people," Li Zhi said, fuming. "Feng Ling, don’t you learn from them. Not a single one of them is a good influence."

’Feng Ling’s heart was in turmoil. People had told her in the past that Li Zhi was in love with Gu’er and that their relationship wasn’t innocent. They said Sun Jiaming was just a fool pretending not to know, or that he only tolerated it because he was afraid of Gu’er’s father, Lin Shan. The rumor was that Sun Jiaming was fully aware but chose to be a cuckold and say nothing.’

’She had asked Li Zhi about it. He’d admitted to having a crush on Gu’er but swore that there was absolutely nothing going on between them—that their relationship was completely innocent and that he considered Sun Jiaming a brother.’

’At first, she’d suspected there really was something going on between Gu’er and Li Zhi. But after interacting with them today, she realized she had been wrong. Gu’er, Li Zhi, Sun Jiaming, Dingzi, and even Marina—they were all good-hearted people. They treated one another like best friends, like trusted siblings. That was why they got along so harmoniously, why they could joke around so easily, and why they could say whatever they wanted without holding anything back.’

’Suddenly, she felt a pang of envy. She envied their bond. She wanted friends like this, a sister like this. She longed to become a part of their group, to laugh and joke around without a care in the world, just like them. They weren’t family, but they were closer than family.’

’But she knew that to receive something, you first had to give. Feng Ling understood this. So, she resolved to become a part of their circle—for her own sake, for Li Zhi’s, and for the things Gu’er had told her before.’

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I wasn’t home during the day, so I’ve combined two Chapters into one update.