Chapter 179: Aunt Yun’s Gift
Wang Anning was so heartbroken she was on the verge of tears.
Li Tiantian quickly comforted her, "Mom, it’s okay. At least we’ve found out now. We won’t let him suffer anymore."
The image of the young man’s indifferent eyes suddenly surfaced in Li Tiantian’s mind. Even though she and Su Zhaozhao had faced danger to save him, he had seemed completely unfazed.
Remembering what Su Zhaozhao had said, Li Tiantian told Wang Anning, "Mom, I think Wei Chuan is really sick. It’s a serious psychological illness. Why don’t we find a therapist for him?"
Wang Anning sighed. "We’ve tried several before, but it was no use. Wei Chuan is too stubborn, and besides, he’s very smart."
At this, Wang Anning couldn’t help but let out a long sigh.
The consequence of his intelligence was that he could see right through any therapist’s treatment plan at a glance.
So, whenever a therapist came for a session, he would lay out their entire treatment plan for them.
Those therapists either fled in fright or, if they tried to proceed, Li Weichuan would simply resist their treatment methods.
In the end, there were no results whatsoever.
Just thinking about it made Wang Anning’s chest tighten with anxiety.
"Mom, didn’t you say Zhaozhao is incredible? Why don’t we let her try?"
"But Zhaozhao isn’t a professional therapist. So many specialists have failed. Could Zhaozhao really succeed?" Wang Anning frowned.
It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Su Zhaozhao; she just felt that Su Zhaozhao was a bit too young.
The older, highly experienced therapists they’d hired before couldn’t handle him, to say nothing of Su Zhaozhao, who wasn’t even a professional.
"I think she can. Look, Zhaozhao is beautiful and young, and she saved his life. How could she not be a better fit than anyone else? Wei Chuan might be cold, but he’s not the type to repay kindness with malice, right?"
’Besides, who could possibly be rude to Su Zhaozhao?’
’Even I, a girl myself, can’t help but speak more gently around her, which is a complete departure from my usual boisterous personality.’
"But would Zhaozhao be willing? I’m also worried that Wei Chuan’s condition might frighten her."
After all, Su Zhaozhao seemed like such a delicate, gentle girl. Her speech, different from their northern accent, was soft and sweet, like cotton candy.
If Li Weichuan ended up scaring her, wouldn’t Xie Huaizheng come after them?
She didn’t want to get on the bad side of the Xie Family over this.
"I’ve already asked Zhaozhao, and she’s willing. We can tell him when my brother comes back for summer break," Li Tiantian said to Wang Anning. "Let’s just hope that this time, Wei Chuan will be willing to emerge from his shell."
In truth, they all knew this was an ailment of the heart. If Li Weichuan wasn’t willing to accept help and step out of his darkness, no one could force him.
That evening, Su Zhaozhao and Xie Huaizheng went to Zhou Xiaoyun’s house for dinner.
Zhou Xiaoyun had gone out of her way to prepare a huge feast, even more lavish than the one she’d made for Su Zhaozhao’s first visit.
There was even a whole roast chicken!
Su Zhaozhao’s mouth watered the moment she laid eyes on the roast chicken.
’Oh my god, I haven’t eaten anything like this since coming to this world,’ she thought. ’Roast chicken, Peking duck... I used to take them for granted and eat them whenever I pleased.’
’But here, chicken is usually either stewed in a soup or stir-fried; it’s rarely prepared this way.’
’And this chicken looks perfectly roasted. The skin is a gorgeous reddish-brown, glistening with oil. It has to be crispy.’
’The meat inside is perfectly white and tender—it must be incredibly juicy.’
Su Zhaozhao had a strong feeling this chicken was going to be absolutely delicious.
Su Zhaozhao’s longing was so obvious that Xie Huaizheng chuckled softly.
He picked up a piece of the chicken thigh and placed it in Su Zhaozhao’s bowl.
Su Zhaozhao turned to look at Xie Huaizheng. ’He could tell I was dying to dig in.’
Xie Huaizheng simply gestured for her to eat. "Go ahead."
Zhou Xiaoyun and her husband picked up their chopsticks as well. "That’s right, don’t be polite. Especially you, Zhaozhao. Eat up! Don’t stand on ceremony, just treat this as your own home."
Zhou Xiaoyun truly thought of Su Zhaozhao as her own daughter.
’She’s so beautiful and has such a wonderful personality, and to think her parents don’t cherish her... Good heavens, it just makes you want to dote on her all the more.’
’To think her father and stepmother could treat such a wonderful daughter so poorly.’
Zhou Xiaoyun’s heart truly ached for Su Zhaozhao.
During the meal, Xie Huaizheng and Liu Guosheng had a couple of drinks as they reminisced about the past.
Liu Guosheng couldn’t help but remark with a sigh, "I never expected you two to get married so quickly. I thought you’d spend a while longer just getting to know each other."
"When you love someone, of course you marry them as soon as possible." Xie Huaizheng’s lips curved slightly. He couldn’t wait.
’Every time I kissed Su Zhaozhao before we were married, I felt like I was going to die from holding back.’
’Besides, so many other men were interested in Su Zhaozhao—that Lin Shumo, and Xu Jiaming.’
’Fortunately, Lin Shumo was the gentle type; he wouldn’t do something like trying to steal another man’s woman.’
’Xu Jiaming, on the other hand, definitely would. He knew she was my fiancée, yet he insisted on fighting for her.’
’So, he couldn’t blame me for stirring up a little trouble behind the scenes that forced him to return to Shencheng City.’
’Otherwise, I could just imagine him sneaking back over here.’
To prevent any further complications, he’d simply married Su Zhaozhao as quickly as possible and brought her here to the military family compound.
’This way, I wouldn’t have to worry about her staying at the guest house and attracting unwanted attention.’
After dinner and some more conversation, Zhou Xiaoyun came out of the bedroom with a bag and handed it to Su Zhaozhao. "Zhaozhao, this is a wedding gift Old Liu and I prepared for you. You absolutely must accept it."
"Aunt Yun, you’re too kind!" Xie Huaizheng said with a smile.
"Oh, just take it. It’s nothing valuable, just something I knitted myself. I only hope you won’t mind."
"Not at all, not at all! Handmade things are the most precious," Su Zhaozhao said to Zhou Xiaoyun. "It’s not just about the sentiment behind it; the quality is often better, too. And what’s more, it’s unique in all the world. Huai Zheng and I are both delighted."
She spoke with such genuine emotion, and the light sparkling in her eyes was clearly not faked.
Zhou Xiaoyun and Liu Guosheng were both overjoyed, thinking that Xie Huaizheng had truly married a wonderful wife.
Xie Huaizheng’s lips curved as well as he looked at the thoughtful young woman beside him.
She wasn’t lying. She genuinely loved handmade things.
Su Zhaozhao was indeed telling the truth.
In this era, when people gave gifts, they were either something from a brand name or, more commonly, handmade.
Brand-name items were gifts from the wealthy, while those from ordinary families would give things they had made themselves.
But to Su Zhaozhao, handmade items were far more precious than anything one could buy in a store.
In the era she came from, production had advanced to a point where machine-made goods were cheap, making handmade items the more expensive luxury.
Whether it was the gift from Wang Anning or the one from Zhou Xiaoyun, she loved them both.
She and Xie Huaizheng said their goodbyes and left.
The two of them decided to take a walk on their way back.
The moment they stepped out of the family compound, Su Zhaozhao eagerly opened the bag to see what was inside.
Inside, she found two tiny pieces of clothing: a small pink sweater and a small blue one.
Huh?