You're my wife, don't doubt it!

Xiao Yao and Shen Jie exchanged a glance and walked into Xiao Yao's bedroom together. Shen Tianyun was wearing a white short-sleeved shirt, green shorts, white ankle socks and slippers, leaning against the wardrobe door waiting for them, holding an unopened can of Budweiser in her hand.

"Mom and Dad." Shen Tianyun smiled and raised the beer can in her hand towards Xiao Yao and Shen Jie.

Xiao Yao stepped forward and snatched the beer can away: "You're just a middle school student, how can you drink alcohol?"

"Middle school students can't drink it, but high school students can?" Shen Tianyun retorted sarcastically.

"During the time we were away from home, did you do your homework? Did you read your books?" Xiao Yao asked.

"Aren't you annoying?" Shen Tianyun said reproachfully.

The two embraced tightly, then Shen Jie embraced her, and finally the three of them hugged each other.

“Little Daddy and Little Mommy, they’ve gone off to have fun and have a good time,” Shen Tianyun murmured. “They haven’t called me for days, they don’t miss me at all.”

“Mom and Dad went to summer camp,” Xiao Yao said. “Mom and Dad miss you so much.”

"You don't believe me, you old geezer—"

"Why did you tell Grandma everything about us?" Xiao Yao said softly, "I haven't figured out how to tell her yet. You've done something really important for us."

"Speaking of which, Grandma really has a strong ability to accept new things," Shen Jie said.

“At first, she thought I was talking nonsense,” Shen Tianyun said, “but after I personally showed her my room through the mirror, she believed me—no one can deny the facts in the face of irrefutable evidence.”

“That’s not necessarily true,” Shen Jie shook her head and said, “Many people see things they can’t understand, things that are beyond their worldview, things they don’t want to believe, and would rather think they’re hallucinating or even have a mental illness than believe it.”

Chapter 334 You won't even spare your own daughter?

2023-09-24

Grandma bought some groceries and came back. Shen Jie volunteered to go to the kitchen to "help," while Xiao Yao stayed in the room with Tianyun, who couldn't leave the bedroom.

The boy sat sideways on the edge of his bed, holding Shen Tianyun's hands with both of his. The latter also sat sideways on the edge of his bed, one leg dangling on the ground and the other leg wrapped around the bed, with one small foot under her bottom.

Xiao Yao vividly recounted to Shen Tianyun the various events he and Shen Jie had experienced during their time away, omitting the intrusion of the shadows by the sea, the meeting with the "organization," and the absurd things that happened on their second night in Dongru.

Shen Tianyun listened attentively, occasionally offering a comment or asking a question, while Xiao Yao, while chatting, would sometimes reach out and pinch Tianyun's cheek or touch her ear.

"What are you doing? It tickles." Shen Tianyun pouted in dissatisfaction.

The setting sun streamed through the old windows, casting a warm orange glow on the mottled stone floor of the old apartment building. Shen Jie stood in the photo room, initially intending only to help her grandmother chop some vegetables. However, the situation gradually escalated into a disaster.

When she was cutting green peppers, she accidentally slipped the knife, and the peppers fell to the floor and rolled everywhere.

The girl quickly squatted down to pick it up, but the moment she bent down, the kettle that had just boiled began to hiss, and hot water spilled onto the stove.

Grandma quickly turned off the stove, trying to stop Shen Jie: "Jie Jie, be careful, don't hurt yourself—I can do it myself."

Shen Jie still insisted politely, but her grandmother gently took her hand and said, "Girl, I can tell from your hands that they're not from a working family. You're dating my grandson, and I can't let you get hurt here."

"You'll have to learn to do some basic things eventually, right?" Shen Jie said.

“Even if you want to learn,” Grandma said with a smile, “there’s no need to rush—don’t set my old lady’s soap shop on fire again.”

Having said that, Shen Jie let the old lady do the work by herself, while she stood aside and chatted with Xiao Yao's grandmother.

Xiao Yao sat on a square stool in the room, massaging Shen Tianyun's legs while listening to the chaos coming from the kitchen. Amidst the chaos, Grandma and Shen Jie's laughter mingled together, becoming the most beautiful notes in this dilapidated house. Despite being more of a hindrance than a help, this moment was filled with family affection and warmth.

The boy felt content, his heart leaping with joy, and filled with peace. Han Han said, "Holding a book in your hands is as reassuring as a woman lying in your own bed," but even when sharing a bed, even when spending every day together, even when slightly crossing boundaries, Shen Jie was always just like a lover. And at this moment…

She is like a wife.

"Do you even know how to do it? Stop focusing on one spot and straining," Shen Tianyun said, annoyed. "Ouch—what mischievous idea are you thinking of with that silly grin on your face?"

"No, no," Xiao Yao said happily. "Oh my, my Yunyun has really grown up now, hasn't she?"

"? Hmm." Shen Tianyun took a bite of some kind of fruit. "Ah."

"It feels like just yesterday I was a middle school student," Xiao Yao said. "Hehehehehehe."

Shen Tianyun: "..."

“You know how young you were back then,” Xiao Yao gestured, “you were only about that age back then.”

"Oh, father who raised his daughter with so much hardship, please keep acting, I love watching." Shen Tianyun took another bite of fruit.

“Look at you now,” Xiao Yao said, fully immersed in his role, “you’ve grown so long.”

"You're taller than my mom, all thanks to you," Shen Tianyun complimented.

"Hey, Yunyun," Xiao Yao said, "Do you know who Daddy loves most in this world?"

"Me." Shen Tianyun held her iPhone, her fingers flying across the screen, seemingly fiddling with something.

“Yes!” Xiao Yao said, “So do you know who Dad will definitely save the last bowl of rice for when our family has only one bowl left?”

"I!"

"Yes! So, does that mean Dad isn't hungry and doesn't want to eat this bowl of rice?"

"No, it's because you love me more than you love yourself," Shen Tianyun said casually, while holding a fruit pit in her hand and craning her neck to find a trash can.

“Yes, do you know how much money your father has spent on you from childhood to adulthood?” Xiao Yao asked.

Shen Tianyun lightly kicked him: "What's wrong? You're getting cocky now? You, have you ever spent a single penny on me?"

"How come I haven't spent any money on you?" Xiao Yao was taken aback. "Buying you milk tea and pan-fried buns, don't those count?"

"Alright, alright," Shen Tianyun finally found the trash can, the fruit pit in her hand arcing through the air before landing precisely outside the trash can: "You, you'll be a sophomore when school starts again, and you still like playing house so much."

Shen Tianyun told Xiao Yao about her life during this period.

Almost every day, she would spend several hours here in 2004, not only to make it easier to contact Xiao Yao and Shen Jie, but also hoping to meet "Grandpa" and have a good talk with him about life.

But no one ever broke into the house, and the outside was shrouded in perpetual fog, so you couldn't see what was happening outside; it was utterly desolate.

This morning, Shen Tianyun fell asleep on Xiao Yao's bed, only to be caught red-handed by her grandmother when she returned home.

Grandma naturally assumed Shen Tianyun was Xiao Yao's girlfriend. After some stern questioning, Shen Tianyun revealed the truth and took Grandma back to 2034 to show her various future technologies.

Shen Tianyun hadn't expected her grandmother to believe her so easily.

"That's why the elderly are the main target group for telecom fraud," Xiao Yao joked.

"Don't talk nonsense," Shen Tianyun said, "Great-Grandma's mind is very clear and quick-witted, and she's incredibly sharp!"

“Grandma,” Xiao Yao replied, “Grandma seems to know everything. Sometimes I do something bad to try and fool the old lady, but I’m always exposed immediately.”

"You, you," Shen Tianyun said disdainfully.

“But it’s good that you talked things out with Grandma this time,” Xiao Yao said sincerely. “I originally wanted to talk to Grandma about it when she came back this time, but I’m the kind of person who’s indecisive and procrastinates. I always don’t know how to say it, and then I put it off until tomorrow, and then the day after tomorrow…”

For example, the situation of confronting Shen Jie and coexisting was like this.

“Indecisiveness is bad, you need to change it,” Shen Tianyun said. “You will suffer a great loss in the future because of this personality trait.”

"What do you mean?" Xiao Yao asked quickly.

Meanwhile, Shen Jie sat on a small stool in the photo room, clumsily picking vegetables while watching her grandmother cook and listening to her recount her experiences at sea.

"They say you can visit a dozen or twenty countries, mostly island nations or small countries. You'll spend little time on land; most of the time you'll be at sea, surrounded by water and sky..."

Grandma reminisced about the tiring trip that had just ended, while Shen Jie quietly stayed by her side and listened.

"The price? Thirty-nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine, or forty-nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine, per person. The old man's son paid for it, I can't quite remember for a moment."

"There are many fun and delicious places on the cruise ship, but the main reason for this is to keep my husband company."

“That’s great,” Shen Jie said sincerely. “I wonder if Xiao Yao and I will still be able to travel like this when he gets old.”

After saying this, she felt a little embarrassed when she remembered that the "old man" her grandmother mentioned was not Xiao Yao's biological grandfather.

“It’s great,” Grandma continued, describing her trip: “This old lady doesn’t have much time left…”

"Grandma, what nonsense are you talking about?"

"I've never been abroad in my life, and going to so many places all at once makes me feel very satisfied," Grandma said. "Most of the people on the boat are also elderly people who are out for fun, so I don't have to worry about not having company. Occasionally I feel a little bored, but most of the time... what's that word? They're all singing and dancing."

“Grandma,” Shen Jie blurted out, “when the time comes, I can let you experience a higher-quality sea voyage. We have—”

He was halfway through his sentence when he suddenly bit his tongue: What does what our family has to do with me?

"Jiejie," Grandma seemed to see through Shen Jie's thoughts and said with concern, "Yunyun said you had a falling out with your family and ran away?"

Shen Jie thought for a moment, then nodded silently: "Okay."

“Logically speaking, since you children are making such a fuss, I, as your elder, should send you back to your parents,” Grandma said.

"Huh?" Shen Jie's heart skipped a beat: "I don't want to."

“But since this is such a special situation, I won’t interfere anymore,” Grandma continued. “Just turn a blind eye and stay here for a while.”

"Thank you, Grandma." Shen Jie secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

“However, this can’t go on forever,” Grandma said. “We still need to find a way to reconcile with our family.”

“Yes, I’d like to, but…” Shen Jie said.

"My dear, I'm so sorry to have troubled you and made you feel so wronged..." Grandma said, then tried to hug Shen Jie again, but then realized that her hands were covered in oil, so she wiped them on her apron again and again.

“Grandma…” Shen Jie stood up and silently rested her head on her chest.

It has only been about two months since I first met my grandmother, and we have only met a handful of times. Today is the first time I have revealed my identity. At this moment, the two women, one old and one young, are getting along like grandmother and granddaughter.

Meanwhile, Xiao Yao, after massaging Shen Tianyun's legs, started massaging her feet, displaying the typical doting fatherly demeanor. Just as he was getting into it, Shen Jie, carrying a plate of food in each hand, kicked open the door: "Dinner's ready—what are you doing? Take your hands off me! You're not even sparing your daughter?"