Volume One, Chapter 15: Shao Ting'an Carried Zhao Xinran into the Alley

“Why are you so worked up?” Su Li patted his back and smiled. “You don’t get this agitated even when your own sister is dating.”

“Teacher Su, you’re changing the subject too quickly. Brother Ting’an just hasn’t caught up yet,” Zhao Xinran said shyly as she got up to fetch a towel.

Shao Ting’an’s eyes lingered on her curvaceous figure, causing him to cough even harder.

After finally recovering, he awkwardly smiled. “You two should watch your words at the table—I almost choked.”

Su Li chuckled to herself, thinking that her own guilty conscience was making her sensitive to their words.

From the moment they left home until now, Su Li hadn’t told Shao Ting’an that she had hit Shao Tingting today.

It wasn’t until they arrived at the Shao household and Shao Tingting launched into a tirade that Shao Ting’an found out.

“So this is the perfect wife you insisted on marrying!” Shao Mu, Sun Meijuan, who had never liked Su Li, despised her for their lower social standing. Now that her own daughter had been struck, her face was naturally sour.

Su Li wasn’t angry; it was intentional. Although Shao Tingting deserved it, she never would have laid a hand on her before.

But these days, even spending another day with Shao Ting’an and Zhao Xinran was torture.

Now, Shao Tingting, emboldened by her family’s backing, stepped forward and raised her hand to strike Su Li.

Su Li deftly dodged behind Shao Ting’an; Shao Tingting’s slap landed squarely on his chin instead.

“Shao Tingting!” Shao Ting’an glared at his sister in anger, stunned by the sudden slap.

Suppressing a smile, Su Li stepped forward to examine Shao Ting’an’s face. From his chin upward, half of the right side of his face was bright red—clear evidence of how hard Shao Tingting had hit him.

“Son, let me see how bad it is,” Sun Meijuan said, pulling Su Li away and scolding her. “Why did you dodge? If you hadn’t, Tingting wouldn’t have hit Ting’an.”

“If I hadn’t dodged, you’d call me stupid and say I deserved it, wouldn’t you?”

Just as Sun Meijuan was about to lose her temper, Su Li quickly smiled and said, “Mom, I was wrong. I usually don’t mind how Tingting treats me, but today, in front of my friends, I felt especially humiliated and lost my temper.”

“I’m not your mother. A daughter-in-law like you, our family can’t tolerate,” Sun Meijuan sneered at Su Li. “Almost a year married, and there’s no sign of a baby. I really don’t know why we brought you into this family.”

“Ting’an, your wife hitting your sister is definitely wrong. You need to put her in line,” said Shao Baoguo, a bureau chief who sat stiffly on the sofa, watching the farce with a serious face.

“Put her in line? Do you think my brother would bother?” Su Li looked down and said plaintively, “Mom, Dad, I’m at least her sister-in-law. I’m not asking for respect, but she shouldn’t be allowed to insult and humiliate me in public.”

“Her every word and action represent the Shao family’s reputation. If she’s this arrogant, who would dare come to propose marriage?”

“You say she’s arrogant? I haven’t even said you’re a spendthrift, but you turn it around on me,” Sun Meijuan snapped, then looked at Shao Ting’an. “Son, do you know how much she spent on that dress today?”

Shao Ting’an remembered the pink dress from that day and asked blankly, “How much?”

“Forty-five.”

Before Sun Meijuan could continue, Shao Tingting hurriedly chimed in, “Brother, forty-five. Although our family isn’t short of money, do you know what kind of family the Su family is? They’re treating us like a cash cow.”

When Shao Baoguo heard the price, he slammed down his glass and went back to his room.

“I’ve never seen such a spendthrift,” Sun Meijuan huffed, sitting back down angrily.

For a moment, Shao Ting’an was at a loss for words. His expression toward Su Li grew colder.

Trying to placate them, Su Li hurriedly explained, “Mom, I usually don’t spend much. In a few days, Ting’an’s new type of harvester will be launched. I just wanted to look nice to cheer him on.”

Hearing this, the three of them had no reason to argue further.

“First, go wash the clothes in the basin, then head to the kitchen to chop the vegetables and meat. We’re having dumplings tonight,” Sun Meijuan said impatiently, clutching her chest. “You’ve made my heart pound with anger.”

Su Li gritted her teeth silently. Like mother, like son—each one better at putting on an act than the last.

Every weekend, they piled up a mountain of laundry, regardless of the season, forcing her into servitude. Today, she really wasn’t going to do it.

“Fine, I’ll wash it right away,” Su Li blinked. “Mom, since you’ve been through it, let me ask—could my delayed cycle mean I’m sick? I saw a doctor a few days ago, and they said I had some inflammation.”

Sun Meijuan jumped up abruptly. “How long has it been?”

Su Li frowned, thinking. “It’s been over a week.”

Sun Meijuan, though she disliked her daughter-in-law, loved her grandson. She urged anxiously, “You’d better get checked for pregnancy. I’ve never seen anyone so foolish—checking for inflammation but not pregnancy.”

“Okay, I’ll wash the clothes first and get checked during the holiday in two days.”

“No need to wash clothes now. I’ll do it myself. You should get checked immediately.”

Shao Ting’an, still sore from the slap, was unsettled by the news that Su Li might be pregnant.

After leaving the Shao household, he gently asked, “Didn’t you check a few days ago?”

“They found inflammation, but I didn’t mention the missed period.”

“It’s late today. Check again another day.”

Su Li nodded, secretly thinking, Pregnant? As if with you!

After the Tuesday afternoon exam, Su Li lingered in the office deliberately.

Li Mo delivered a camera and hurried off to work on her assignment. Su Li waited until most teachers had left before taking out the camera. Following Zhang Qiang’s instructions, she took a photo of her own desk.

After this small trial, she carefully packed the camera back into her bag. With the camera, collecting evidence of Shao Ting’an and Zhao Xinran together would be much easier.

Usually, after exams, Zhao Xinran would go home with her, but today she said she wouldn’t visit her house at night to avoid disturbances, which Su Li didn’t think much of.

However, as she rode her bike to the gate, she saw Zhao Xinran wearing her pink dress getting into a rickshaw.

Su Li paused for a moment, a faint smile curving her lips. She, too, had once been young and infatuated, thinking of Shao Ting’an day and night, longing to see him.

Zhao Xinran had just crossed the line with Shao Ting’an and was probably feeling restless—of course she would want to see him.

Su Li quietly followed to the factory gate, watching Zhao Xinran get off the rickshaw and quickly turn down another street.

It led toward the steel mill. She was familiar with the area, having often brought meals to her father there.

At the corner, Su Li stopped and glanced at Zhao Xinran standing outside the machine factory.

Quite bold—having an affair without a care to hide it?

Within minutes, Shao Ting’an came out pushing his bicycle.

Su Li checked her watch: not even five o’clock, still before quitting time.

Shao Ting’an was notorious for being a workaholic, never working overtime less than usual. Who would have thought he’d leave early today?

Seeing the two apparently heading toward her, Su Li quickly got back on her bike and turned into an alley.

Sure enough, as she turned her back in the alley, she spotted Shao Ting’an carrying Zhao Xinran as they turned into the opposite alley.

Su Li watched them enter a courtyard and quietly followed.

It was a small, standalone yard. The little gate was draped with cobwebs, and the worn wooden door was thick with dust.

Standing on a stone stool outside the wall, she peered in. Shao Ting’an and Zhao Xinran were already embracing and kissing right at the doorway.

Su Li pulled out her camera and snapped furiously. These two were really generous—just got the camera and they were handing over material.

After finishing, she deliberately waited outside until an elderly woman came over.

“Ma’am, does anyone live here?” she asked.

The woman smiled warmly. “This is an empty courtyard, belongs to some official, they say.”

Su Li was momentarily stunned, recalling that Shao Ting’an had once mentioned the factory would assign him a private courtyard.

Looking around, she realized this was the new home she had only briefly sat in during her past life. Back then, it had been renovated before handed to her.

“Ma’am, do you have a gong?”

The woman’s eyes widened as she stared at Su Li. “Why would I need a gong?”

“I saw a man and a woman go in together. They’re probably having an affair.”

The woman slapped her thigh and turned to leave, then paused and looked back at Su Li with sharp eyes. “Why should I believe you?”

Su Li whispered into the woman’s ear, “I saw the man’s hand slip under her skirt when they went inside. If they get caught, it’ll ruin the reputation around here. How will young people find good matches for marriage?”

Fearing the woman might still not believe her, Su Li pulled out two yuan and slipped it into her hand.

The old woman’s cloudy eyes brightened instantly. “You’re right! I’ll go get the gong.”