She had hinted at these things obliquely on the phone, but to her surprise, He Hong was extremely confident, as if none of it mattered. She acted like once they saw the girl she brought, they would all agree.
At first, Cui Ping thought He Hong was still as ‘dense’ as before, missing the subtext.
But now, seeing the girl He Hong had brought in, she realized she was the ‘dense’ one!!!
No wonder He Hong was so confident. With this girl’s stunningly beautiful face, forget her loving it—a hundred times yes, a thousand times yes to having such a pretty girl as her daughter-in-law. Even her mother-in-law would surely nod and approve the match upon seeing her.
“Heh heh heh~ Shushu, this is your Aunt Cui Ping.”
He Hong saw Cui Ping’s reaction, smiled in satisfaction, and had Qiao Shu greet her.
Qiao Shu, naturally obedient and sensible, called out crisply, “Hello, Aunt Cui. I’m Qiao Shu.”
Listening to the little girl’s clear, sweet, and pleasing voice—like a mountain spring that could cleanse the heart—Cui Ping sighed inwardly even more. This girl in front of her was not only stunningly beautiful, but her voice was like heavenly music from the immortals, making one’s heart feel utterly comfortable.
She had never thought that someone calling her “Auntie” could sound so delightful, lifting her mood completely.
“Ai! Alright, alright, alright!”
Seeing the cheap grin on her old rival’s face, He Hong puffed out her chest proudly. She understood that her stuck-up old rival had been completely conquered by her little girl with just this one meeting.
If she married over later, there definitely wouldn’t be any mother-in-law and daughter-in-law issues. Just looking at Cui Ping’s worthless smile showed that she would treat Qiao Shu well and dote on her.
Moreover, Cui Ping had given birth to three sons and had no daughter, so she had always envied He Hong for having one and secretly wanted a daughter of her own.
If Qiao Shu really married over, she would surely treat her like her own daughter and cherish her.
That was precisely why He Hong had put Cui Ping’s youngest son at the top of the blind date list.
Unfortunately, while she had considered everything for Qiao Shu, she hadn’t anticipated that the person involved—Cui Ping’s youngest son—didn’t want to go on the blind date!
“Cui Ping, where’s that boy of yours?”
He Hong glanced at the young girl standing beside Cui Ping but didn’t see Cui Ping’s son’s figure. She couldn’t help asking in confusion.
“Ah, uh, well, that kid of mine—he, he suddenly had something come up at the research institute! Right! Something urgent, so he went to the research institute…”
At that moment, Cui Ping regretted it immensely. If she had known earlier that He Hong was introducing such a beautiful fairy-like daughter-in-law, she would never have let her youngest son leave right away!!!
“Something came up? Isn’t today the weekend? He’s still so busy on the weekend???”
He Hong didn’t suspect Cui Ping’s words. She just pondered that Cui Ping’s son was so busy with work that even weekends required overtime. Wouldn’t that leave her little girl home alone, with no one to properly care for and protect Qiao Shu???
Thinking of this, He Hong felt that Cui Ping’s youngest son didn’t seem like the best choice after all.
Cui Ping had no idea what He Hong was thinking. She was solely focused on covering up the fact that her son had left because he didn’t want to go on the blind date.
After all, she knew He Hong’s temper well. If she found out, it might ruin the blind date between her youngest son and this fairy-like daughter-in-law!!!
So, she absolutely had to keep both He Hong and Qiao Shu steady!
However, while Cui Ping thought this way, unfortunately, she had a ‘pig teammate’ beside her who was utterly bewitched by Qiao Shu.
“Heh heh heh, yeah, that kid of mine—he’s valued so much at the institute that he’s often too busy to even come home…”
Originally, when He Hong heard that Cui Ping’s youngest son was so busy he couldn’t even return home—like her own son—her enthusiasm had started to wane.
And when she heard the little girl beside Cui Ping blurt out the truth under Qiao Shu’s questioning, she immediately lost any interest in a match with Cui Ping!!!
“He works at the research institute? And he’s busy even on weekends—he’s truly impressive.”
Qiao Shu held great respect for researchers of this era, just like she respected soldiers. She equally admired the scientists of this time.
So, upon learning that Aunt Cui Ping’s son was a researcher who hadn’t even come home on the weekend and was still busy with scientific work, she felt even more reverence for this man she had yet to meet!
However, as soon as her admiring words left her mouth, Tian Tian—who had been shyly staring dazedly at Qiao Shu’s beautiful face—seemed bewitched by something and spoke up softly.
“Not at all. Third Cousin didn’t go to the research institute because of institute business. He just didn’t want to go on the blind date. He did it on purpose…”
Tian Tian hadn’t even finished her words when Cui Ping interrupted her.
“Tian Tian! What nonsense are you spouting—!”
The usually steady and composed Cui Ping roared loudly then, her voice nearly cracking, startling both He Hong and Qiao Shu.
“Sorry about that, she was just talking nonsense. He Hong, don’t misunderstand.”
After successfully shutting Tian Tian up, Cui Ping began apologizing to He Hong.
But He Hong, who was already somewhat dissatisfied with Cui Ping’s son being too busy, felt her impression of him shatter completely upon hearing that he had deliberately skipped the blind date.
“Hmph, Cui Ping, I was thinking since we’re old acquaintances who know each other inside out, and your son seemed excellent, I’d bring Shushu over for a visit. But since your youngest doesn’t want to meet our Shushu, let’s forget it. After all, our Shushu is so beautiful—countless people are lining up just to meet her, and they don’t even get the chance.”
He Hong snorted coldly, completely ignoring Cui Ping’s flattery, and took Qiao Shu’s hand to leave.
However, Cui Ping truly liked Qiao Shu too much. She rarely set aside her pride and warmly grabbed He Hong’s hand.
“Good sister, don’t be angry. It’s that boy of mine who can’t recognize a treasure. Don’t hold it against him! Since you’re already here, why not sit down for some coffee or tea? Right! My second son recently got some especially aromatic coffee beans from his friend abroad. We haven’t seen each other in ages—why not have some coffee and chat?”
Seeing her old rival Cui Ping fawning over her like this, He Hong felt quite satisfied. She thought about it—since she was already here, she might as well sit and chat.
“Fine then.”
Seeing He Hong acting so superior, Cui Ping felt annoyed inside, but as soon as she glanced at the obedient, excessively beautiful little girl beside He Hong, her anger vanished instantly.
“Come on, let’s go sit and chat in the greenhouse. Let me tell you, our Glass Greenhouse is gorgeous—my second son set it up. You know my second son; he’s no good at studies or martial pursuits. He used to worry my old Chu and me sick—we feared he’d turn into a good-for-nothing. But who would’ve thought, with the country’s economic reforms and opening up, our second son turned out fine. Without a penny from the family, he quietly became a big boss. All these trendy furniture and decorations in our home—he brought them in…”
Listening to Cui Ping proudly boast about her second son, He Hong couldn’t help sighing inwardly. Cui Ping really had a knack for raising children.
She had three sons, all outstanding talents. The eldest joined the military. Though his age was similar to her own eldest daughter He Yingzi—only a few years apart—his rank was several levels higher than her daughter’s.
The second went into business. He might not seem as impressive as the eldest, but he had money.
Ever since the Chu Family’s second son started doing business, the Chu Family had become the wealthiest in the entire Air Force Compound.
Trendy items from abroad and domestically could all be found in Cui Ping’s home.
Of course, while the Chu Family’s second son was high-profile in making money, he knew how to conduct himself. He followed the national policies, never made any mistakes, and even took a portion of his earnings to do high-profile charity.
So, even though the Chu Family drew some envy because of the second son, no one could find fault with him, and nothing happened to the Chu Family.
As for the third son, he had been called a little prodigy since childhood. He graduated from the youth class at university young and entered the research institute. Though no one knew exactly what he did there, the fact that he enjoyed a dedicated car for commuting showed he was highly valued and capable.
That was exactly why He Hong had considered the Chu Family’s third son the prime blind date candidate for her little girl!
Unfortunately, it now seemed this third son of the Chu Family wasn’t the best choice either.
“How about it? Pretty, right?”
Soon, Cui Ping led He Hong and Qiao Shu to a glass-covered greenhouse in the backyard.
Even Qiao Shu, who had come from the future and seen glass greenhouses, couldn’t help praising it inwardly. The Chu Family’s Glass Greenhouse was truly beautiful.
Especially the flowers inside, clearly designed by professionals. Every flower’s color harmonized perfectly, beautiful enough to refresh the mind and soul.
Qiao Shu inhaled the floral fragrance in the air. Her earlier depressed mood—upon suddenly realizing that this trip to the Air Force Compound wasn’t to visit an old friend her future mother-in-law hadn’t seen in ages, but another blind date—had improved greatly. She felt it was nice to sit in such a beautiful greenhouse, sip tea, and admire the lovely flowers. Looking at these gorgeous blooms also sparked many inspirations for her.
She thought that writing a fairy tale about a flower kingdom next time might be good~
“Come on, let’s go inside and sit to chat.”
Cui Ping quietly glanced at Qiao Shu beside He Hong. Seeing how much the little girl liked the greenhouse, she breathed a sigh of relief inwardly.
As long as the little girl liked it, it was worth specially choosing the Glass Greenhouse! Earlier, she had sent Tian Tian to call her third son, hoping he would obediently listen and come back soon! Otherwise, once they left, with He Hong’s temper, she definitely wouldn’t bring the little girl back for another blind date with her son.
Unfortunately, after Cui Ping led He Hong and Qiao Shu into the Glass Greenhouse to sit, drink tea, and chat, her eagerly awaited youngest son didn’t return. Instead, her second son arrived first.
And who could have imagined that her second son—who had always been picky and uninterested in marriage—would take one look at Qiao Shu and fall for her! He even started thinking about marriage…?