Inescapable person

  On the 20th of that month, at Yi Shuihan's wedding, whether or not the Yi family would attend was still a question mark.

  In the eyes of the Yi family, Yi Shuihan and Ling Yuwei are a golden boy and girl with beauty and talent, while Gu Anlan and Yi Shuihan? That can only be considered a forced match.

  An Lan never thought she would go out before marriage, nor did she think she would meet Ling Yuwei. But sometimes, things you don't think about will still happen, just like how she didn't think she'd run into Yi Shuihan when she returned to Bin City, and even more so, marry him.

  On the afternoon of May 18, she accompanied her mother to the Niurong Dress Store to pick up a cheongsam. Qin Xin had loved wearing cheongsams since childhood, and even at forty-seven or eight years old, she still had a special fondness for them.

  This cheongsam was ordered by Qin Xinyi two days ago, and she is an old customer of Niur's. Boss Wang knew Qin Xinyi's size, so after selecting the color and style online, it was settled.

  Qin Xuan must have worn this cheongsam to attend An Lan's wedding, although the wedding was not well-received and she didn't think her daughter would find happiness by marrying Yi Shuihan.

  Generally speaking, a daughter's wedding is a big deal, and as her mother, she still had to go in person to bless her daughter, even though on the day of the wedding, there was not a single elder from the Yi family present except for Yi Shuihan.

  For the sake of Qin Garden, sacrificing her daughter's happiness, Qin Xin's heart was not easy, but she had no other choice, who made her only have this one daughter to rely on?

  Niangniang is located on Bincheng Binnan Road, belonging to the old city of Bincheng. The old city area now has very few people strolling around, because most of the houses here are distant buildings left over from the 30s and 40s of last century.

  Those faded mottled red bricks and white walls are like the elegant ladies of last century's high society who wore cheongsam, although they have already aged and their beauty is no longer, that air of elegance and nobility emanating from their bones remains forever.

  Time has carved their faces, but also left an indelible mark, even in the twilight years, they still have a lingering charm.

  Niang's house was the one on the edge of this large area of ancient buildings with lingering charm, a two-story building, the gate still used the old carved wooden door, the stairs to the second floor were outside the gate, next to the stairs there were countless ivy climbing up, in the early summer dusk, each hiding its charm, quietly dormant.

  Wang Jie's full name is Wang Yanjie. She and Qin Xuan were once classmates, and the two had a good relationship. An Lan had also visited Niuyi with her mother when she was young, calling Wang Yanjie "Aunt Wang". However, all of Wang Yanjie's customers called her "Wang Jie", as she said being called "Aunt Wang" made her seem old. Although An Lan had been used to calling her that since childhood, it was hard for her to change the habit, and she still politely called out "Aunt Wang" whenever they met.

  Wang Yanjie couldn't help but exclaim to Qin Xin: "It's like, exactly the same as you when you were young, this nose, these ears, this mouth, it's just a younger version of you, only..."

  Wang Yanjie looked into Anlan's eyes and said, "An'an's eyes don't look like yours. Her eyes are bigger and more spirited than yours. But I remember that Gu Yunbo has small eyes. Anlan's eyes..."

  "Go, go, go! When did my eyes get smaller?" Qin Xuan glared at Wang Yanjie: "I'm just older now, so my eyes seem smaller. My eyes were as big and beautiful as Anan's when I was young, okay?"

  An Lan watched as her mother joked with Wang Jie, and she couldn't help but feel a sense of relief in her heart. She thought that her mother seemed to have more vitality after leaving the deep courtyard of Qinyuan.

  Her mother was only one year younger than Wang Yanjie, but she looked like she had aged five or six years more than Wang Yanjie. She didn't know how her mother took care of herself at home every day.

  The cheongsam was quickly brought out, a set of sapphire blue embroidered style, purely handmade, paired with Qin Xinyi's fair skin is very good, but Qin Xinyi's white skin lacks a few points of luster.

  Qin Xuan was very satisfied with this cheongsam, and turned a few circles in front of the mirror. Wang Jie took the opportunity to praise her a few words, An Lan also echoed Wang Yanjie saying that she looked good, the sapphire blue suited her perfectly, and the embroidered flowers were beautiful, so there was no need to make any changes.

  After Qin Yan went to the dressing room to change her clothes, Wang sister came to An Lan's ear and whispered: "An Lan, tomorrow you help your mother put on some makeup, apply some foundation and blush, this will make the cheongsam look better.

  An Lan nodded, she also knew that her mother's pale skin was dull and lacked luster. She thought this might be due to a lack of love, and she couldn't understand why her mother had tolerated her father for so many years.

  Wang sister seemed to have noticed Anlan's doubts, and patted her shoulder, sighing softly: "Your mother has her own bitterness, but your father Gu Yunbo is actually not a bad man."

  An Lan looked at Wang Jie with a hint of surprise, thinking that she and this middle-aged woman from the older generation still had a generational gap after all. In any case, she didn't think that a man who married two wives and even kept both women in his home was a good man.

  In her mind, she would rather have a father who was a scoundrel and had abandoned her mother when she was very young, so that way, she thought her father was heartless but at least not hypocritical.

  Wang sister sighed and said: "An Lan, you're getting married soon, of course, your mother has said that there are countless difficulties in marriage. When you have children later, you will gradually understand the hardships of your parents..."

  An Lan thought, her mother's hardships she now understands, because they can all be seen, but her father's hardships she really doesn't know where to find?

  A man openly hugs and holds hands with others in his home, but in today's monogamous society, his father Gu Yunbo has one wife and one concubine at home. What is not easy? What is called easy?

  Chu took the cheongsam, and An Lan mother and daughter went to eat. Originally, Qin Jin said he wanted to eat Su Jin Xian in the old city, but when they arrived at that old store, the restaurant was under renovation and temporarily suspended business.

  Su Jin Xian's branch in Xin Cheng District, Qin Xiang said An Lan has been back in the country for so long and hasn't taken her to eat at Su Jin Xian, which is famous in Bin City. Now that An Lan is about to get married, she will be someone else's person after this. Today, no matter what, he must take her there to eat once.

  Xincheng District is a prosperous area of Binhai, and the branch of Suzhou Fresh is located on the bustling commercial street. This is where high-rise buildings have been built in the past decade, as well as world-renowned brand-name stores and global chain malls.

  If the old city is a late-blooming woman in the Red Mansion, then the new city is a young and vibrant lady-in-waiting, who at this moment is welcoming every guest with her lively figure and charming face.

  Su Jin Xian is a vegetarian restaurant, in the bustling commercial center, although many people eat there, but far from the old city area need to queue, perhaps it's because young people in the new city area have chosen more international fashion western restaurants.

  An Lan and Qin Xuan walked in just as the people sitting by the window finished their meal and were preparing to leave, so they were arranged at that table.

  As for Su Jin Xian, An Lan actually didn't like it very much. After all, there were only vegetarian dishes inside. To put it bluntly, most people who came to eat here believed in Buddhism. Even if they weren't like her mother, who chanted scriptures every day, they would probably go to the temple to burn incense during festivals and holidays.

  The meal went relatively smoothly, Su Jin Xian made vegetarian dishes, but the flavor of the dishes was indeed very good, especially the mushroom class, which retained its original fragrance, and An Lan also ate a lot.

  Originally, after dinner, the mother and daughter should have gone home. But Anlan's mobile phone received a text message, saying that the Art Center asked her to go over, because several parents were clamoring for a refund of tuition fees due to her absence from class, and she had to go to give those parents an explanation.

  It's not a small matter, the art school is on vacation, but it's hard to ask for leave at the art center, especially since she's in charge of a small violin class, and there's only one violin teacher. She's been absent from class for several days recently, and parents have opinions, which is normal.

  An Lan first sent her mother back to the Quan Garden and then took a taxi to the Art Center, walked upstairs, and in the violin classroom, there were indeed four or five parents sitting, all of whom were parents of children who reported to her advanced violin class.

  She went in and first apologized to the parents, saying that she had delayed the children's classes for a few days due to personal matters, but she would make up for the missed lessons by doubling them. If several lessons were missed, she would give away more free lessons.

  The parents, who were originally furious, saw that she was sincere and did not continue to scold her. They said that it was understandable for her to be busy with personal matters, but it was unacceptable for her not to attend classes because of this, and also not to notify them in advance. Her phone was also turned off, making it impossible to contact her, which made the parents unsure whether they should send their children to class or not, and as a result, they had been waiting in vain every day, sending their children to school every day, only to wait in vain again.

  An Lan apologized again to the parents and promised that after the 20th, such things would not happen again. From then on, she would never be absent or ask for leave again.

  A parent who heard her say that she wouldn't be absent from school after the 20th couldn't help but ask in doubt: "Teacher Gu, you're getting married on the 20th, are you sure you won't go on a honeymoon after getting married?"

  An Lan was taken aback by his words, and she smiled wryly in her heart. Her marriage to Yi Shuihan was just a transaction, after all - he wanted to use it to get past this public relations crisis, while she needed the marriage to protect her mother's Qin Garden.

  The so-called wedding is just a play, and it's already good enough if Yishuihan can dress up neatly with her on the 20th and get through the play together, how could there be a honeymoon?

  She smiled and replied to the parent: "Recently, Mr. Yi and I have been quite busy, so our honeymoon will probably be postponed until everyone has some free time."

  Her parents also thought it was reasonable, so they echoed her words: "That's right, the honeymoon can be made up for, and if we plan a vacation to spend our honeymoon, we can have more time and make it more enjoyable."

  An Lan nodded, no longer discussing the matter with the parents, and the parents generally speaking were also understanding. After confirming that they would have class on the 21st afternoon, they took their children home.

  An Lan let out a long sigh of relief, and after the parents left, she chatted with the leaders of the art center for a few more sentences. Of course, the teachers at the art center also congratulated her on being able to marry into a wealthy family through the matchmaking meeting, shouting that they wanted to go drink wedding wine and eat wedding candy.

  An Lan smiled and said that she would bring the wedding candies for everyone on the 21st. As for the wine, if the leaders of the art center do not object to drinking in the office, she can also bring two bottles over.

  She chatted and laughed with the teachers for a while, then left. Although the leader of the art center jokingly asked her if she wanted to help her get some shares, she politely declined, saying that this time the bride's side was not treating guests.

  Neither the teachers from the art center nor those from the art school were invited by her, or to be more accurate, she didn't send out a single invitation, including Zhuo Bufan who had helped her a lot.

  She had just walked out of the art training center, but was stopped on her way. She looked up along the shadow and saw a woman in a fashionable summer dress standing in front of her.

  "Miss Gu, shall we find a place to talk?"

  Ling Yuwei's face was painted with delicate makeup, and her large black-framed glasses covered half of her face. The large mask then covered the other half of her face. Fully armed like this, if she hadn't spoken up, An Lan wouldn't have recognized her at all.

  An Lan hesitated for a moment before nodding, she was going to marry Yi Shuihan, and Ling Yuwei was an obstacle that couldn't be avoided, it was always something she had to face, since she wanted to talk about it, then... let's talk.

  Next to the art center is Old Tree Cafe, with a very realistic artificial waterfall at the entrance, and that classic phrase found in many coffee shops: "Either I'm at Old Tree Cafe or on my way there."

  Ling Yuwei was fully armed, and Anlan also wore a mask. Fortunately, the waiter at Lao Shu Coffee did not recognize that these two were the women who had been hotly discussed online for the past two days. When Ling Yuwei asked for a quiet spot, he led them to a secluded corner.

  "What do you want to talk about?" An Lan spoke up first after the waiter finished taking their order and left.

  "I want you to announce that you're giving up the engagement ring at the matchmaking meeting," Ling Yuwei said straightforwardly, "If you give up the ring, it's equivalent to giving up marrying Shui Han."

  An Lan's mouth twitched slightly after hearing this, then she calmly asked back: "Why should I give up? Cinderella relied on a pumpkin carriage and crystal shoes to marry a prince, but I have a prince falling from the sky and hitting me on the head, if I still give up, wouldn't that be stupid?"

  Ling Yuwei's face turned slightly red, then she quickly said: "Miss Gu, I remember at the matchmaking conference you didn't want to participate in the last competition, at that time you just wanted to take 100,000 yuan and leave, this shows..."

  "It was then, now is now," An Lan quickly cut off Ling Yuwei's words. "As the saying goes, this one time, that one time, so, Miss Ling, don't take a detail from back then to make things difficult for me, okay?"

  Ling Yuwei was choked by An Lan, her face turned pale, and her temper finally came up: "Miss Gu, you obviously went for the young master of the Yi family. At that time, when you saw it was Shui Han, you didn't even want to continue the competition until the end. What's the point of this now? Do you think marrying someone who doesn't love you will bring happiness?"

  An Lan couldn't help but laugh at this, slowly unwrapping the sugar packet in her hand: "Miss Ling's intention of talking to me was actually to care about my happiness? It seems that Miss Ling and I haven't gotten close enough to care about each other's happiness yet?"

  Ling Yuwei's face turned slightly red with anger: "Miss Gu, I naturally don't have the mood to care about your happiness, but must I not care about my own happiness? You clearly know that Shui Han and I have been in love for five years, you also clearly know that we are about to get engaged. Do you think it's good to suddenly destroy someone else's marriage like this?"

  An Lan immediately stopped stirring her coffee and looked at Ling Yuwei with a surprised gaze: "Miss Ling, are you already married to Mr. Yi? When did you get married? How come I didn't know? If that's true, isn't it ridiculous for Mr. Yi to hold a marriage selection conference? Is the Yi family deceiving the public like this?"

  "No, I'm saying that you're ruining our family's feelings," Ling Yuwei hastily explained, her tone slightly urgent. "Miss Gu, I think you should have heard too, Hanhan and I have been in love for five years, we've been together for five years, and now you're inserting yourself..."

  "True feelings can't be destroyed," An Lan interrupted Ling Yuwei's words coldly, "Miss Ling is so eager to find me because you're afraid your feelings aren't solid enough?"

  Ling Yuwei's face turned red and white again, then she hastily denied: "No, my feelings with Shui Han are very deep, I believe that even if you marry him, he won't like you, the one he loves is still me!"

  "So what's Miss Ling still worried about?" An Lan's tone was clearly sarcastic.

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  Everyone, Hu Yang is not getting up after staying up all night, so from tomorrow onwards, it will be updated at around 6:30 every morning. Please come and read the article after 7 o'clock in the morning from now on, thank you everyone!