Slow to mature after marriage

old house.

As usual, the old lady personally oversaw the preparation of dinner at the old house. Braised pork ribs, steamed sea bass, a pot of slow-cooked soup, and two small dishes of bright green stir-fries. Mu Siwan ate quietly, while Bo Yan sat beside her, barely touching his chopsticks, his gaze occasionally falling on her profile before quickly looking away.

After dinner, the old lady took Mu Siwan to the living room for tea, while the old man called Bo Yan to the study.

The chessboard was already set up. The old man sat in a wicker chair, wearing reading glasses, holding a chess piece in his hand, slowly placing it on the board. Bo Yan sat opposite him, but his mind was not on the game; he placed his pieces carelessly, losing two games in a row.

The old man held his teacup and glanced at him from above the rim.

"You seem distracted. What are you thinking about?"

Bo Yan snapped out of his daze and realized that his cannon had been captured by the old man, putting him in a precarious situation on the chessboard. He decided to give up and pushed the piece aside.

"Grandpa, you noticed?"

"Your thoughts are written all over your face, do you think I wouldn't see them?" The old man put down his teacup and asked slowly, "Why did you suddenly target the Mu family? Is there some problem with your relationship with Wanwan?"

Bo Yan shook his head: "We're fine. It's just..."

He paused for a moment, his thoughts somewhat jumbled.

"Just what?"

Bo Yan frowned, remained silent for a moment, and then suddenly spoke: "Grandpa, it seems that your marriage with Grandma was also a business arrangement. How... did you two get along?"

The old man smiled slowly, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes crinkling together, but his gaze was sharp.

"What's wrong? Are you having relationship problems?"

Bo Yan did not deny it.

He recounted everything from their blind date to their marriage, from their hasty wedding three years ago to their current cohabitation. This included the three principles they agreed upon before marriage: no emotional involvement, no interference in each other's lives, and mutual respect. He also described how he gradually developed feelings for her and began to deviate from those principles. He included Mu Siwan's obtuseness and avoidance, and the sudden appearance of his "white moonlight" (ideal love).

After hearing this, the old man slammed his fist on the table, his beard bristling with anger.

"You made such outrageous rules before marriage? I should just kill you!"

"I really deserve to die for this," Bo Yan said in a low voice, his tone carrying a rare, honest self-reflection.

"So I deserve this situation now. I just want to ask you for advice on how to break this deadlock."

The old man stared at him for a few seconds, and seeing his guilty attitude, his anger subsided considerably. He leaned back in his chair and snorted.

"Now you disagree with those three principles? You want to have a romantic relationship with some young girl? You want to ask me, an old man, for advice?"

Bo Yan hummed in agreement.

The old man and woman were a rare loving couple in their circle, having walked hand in hand for most of their lives without ever arguing. He hadn't thought much of it before, but now he understood how difficult it was to achieve that.

He was truly at his wit's end. Matters of the heart are more difficult than any business negotiation. Unable to find a breakthrough, he decided to seek advice from the old man.

The old man picked up his teacup, took a slow sip, put it down, and his gaze fell on the unfinished game of chess on the board.

"Ah Yan," he began, his voice unhurried, "at first you hoped that you would abide by that principle, that you were equal on the surface, but in reality—you were very arrogant."

"You feel that you have given her a 'fair' agreement, that you don't owe her anything, so she can't ask anything of you. You stand on high ground, looking down on this relationship, and feel that this is dignified."

The old man raised his eyes and looked at him.

"Later, you developed feelings for Wanwan, and you naturally assumed that Wanwan should have feelings for you too. When she didn't give herself to you, you got anxious and felt something was wrong."

"In relationships, the two things that are most taboo are arrogance and taking things for granted." The old man held up two fingers.

The study was quiet for a moment.

The wind outside the window rustled the bamboo curtains. The chess pieces lay quietly on the board, clearly separated.

"There should be no arrogance or taking things for granted between husband and wife."

The old man withdrew his hand, picked up the teacup, and gently blew away the foam, speaking very softly.

He took a sip of tea, put down the cup, and looked at Bo Yan.

Only sincerity.

"Sincerity is the most important thing."

Bo Yan remained silent for a long time.

He finally raised his hand, placed his palm on the chessboard, and gently flicked it, disrupting the entire unfinished game. Then, one by one, he separated the pieces, put them back in their places, and rearranged them.

"I understand," he said solemnly, raising his eyes. "Thank you for your guidance, Grandpa."

-

On the other side, the old lady pulled Mu Siwan and Bo Ning to sit on the sofa and talked on and on about her youth.

"Back then, your grandfather wasn't like this at all," the old lady said, a smile playing on her lips. "He always had a stern face, like someone owed him money. The first time we met, he looked me up and down and said, 'Your circumstances are average, but my father says your family background is respectable, so I have no objections.'"

"Isn't it infuriating?" The old lady patted Mu Siwan's hand. "I wanted to throw the tea in his face. But then I thought, if I threw the tea, I'd have to pay him back with a cup, so I let it go."

Mu Siwan chuckled softly, but her brows and eyes relaxed.

She recalled her first meeting with Bo Yan. The man slowly raised his eyes to look at her, his tone neither hurried nor slow, but ultimately, apart from his face, he wasn't particularly likable.

She listened quietly, but a thought surfaced in her mind.

I wonder what will happen between her and Bo Yan in the future?

If she and Bo Yan strictly adhere to those three principles, they should be able to grow old together like this.

Although there are no feelings involved, we can eat together, go home together, read books and watch movies together on the sofa, just like we are now.

That's fine too.

Mu Siwan was very satisfied.

Bo Ning rolled over from the side, rested her head on the old lady's lap, and crossed her legs, looking like a shameless rascal.

"Oh dear, it's always these same old stories. I'm sick of hearing them." She rolled over, looked up at the old lady, and winked mischievously. "Grandma, isn't this what you usually do when you complain about Grandpa being too much of a troublemaker?"

The old lady gave a soft hum, reached out and ruffled Bo Ning's hair with a gentle, indulgent touch.

"One thing at a time," the old lady said. "It's true that your grandfather was troublesome at first, fussy and difficult to deal with, like a real old man. I've lived with him for decades, can't I even say a few words?"

She looked down at Bo Ning, her tone becoming more serious: "You can't date someone like your grandfather, understand?"

Bo Ning blinked, her expression flickering for a moment before she quickly returned to her carefree demeanor.

"What did you say?" She buried her face in the old woman's lap, her voice muffled. "I'm not even close to being there yet."

Bo Ning remained silent for a while, then turned her face back, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Mu Siwan.

"Sister-in-law, you and Mu Xueshen grew up together. Do you know what kind of girl he likes?"

"I mean... if a girl talks too much, won't he find it annoying?"

Mu Siwan stared at her thoughtfully.

Bo Ning's ears were red at the tips, burning from the auricle all the way to the earlobe, making her look like a cat with its fur standing on end trying to remain calm.

"Just say what you need to say," Mu Siwan said after a moment's thought. "If he finds it annoying, he'll leave on his own."

"So..." she blinked in surprise, "he didn't leave because he wasn't annoyed?"

Mu Siwan nodded.

Bo Ning suddenly laughed, but then realized her laughter was inexplicable, so she quickly suppressed her laughter and picked up a water glass from the coffee table, pretending to drink water.