"Repeat what you just said."
"I said I like Jin Hanshuang."
Lu Yunshu's tone was still so determined and composed.
Lu Fangru, on the other hand, did not understand.
She couldn't comprehend, nor could she believe it.
"How can the person you like be her?"
Lu Yunshu countered, "Why can't it be her?"
Lu Fangru: "That's Jin Hanshuang, Shen Minghai's wife."
Lu Yunshu: "So what? Shen Minghai is no longer around. Does Hanshuang have to remain a widow for him all her life?"
Lu Fangru: "..."
Lu Fangru: "How much older is she than you?"
Lu Yunshu: "Seven years."
Lu Fangru frowned: "You know she's seven years older than you."
Lu Yunshu nonchalantly: "It's only seven years."
She brought up Lu Mengyang: "I'm also seven years older than Yangyang. Doesn't she still call me sister? Since it's the age gap between an elder sister and a younger sister, what's wrong with me and Hanshuang?"
Lu Fangru: "..."
That makes sense, can't argue with that.
The aunt and niece looked at each other, unable to reach a conclusion.
After a moment, Lu Fangru suddenly let out a light laugh.
A bit helpless, and with a touch of melancholy seeing the child grown up.
"You are very clear about what you are doing."
Lu Yunshu wasn't telling her this to seek her persuasion.
The child surely knows who she likes and never intended to hide it from them.
She has always been decisive, from a young age until now.
"Wait a minute," Lu Fangru suddenly recalled something, "So the person you've always liked... is her?"
Lu Yunshu nodded.
Lu Fangru grasped the key point, her expression serious, "So this means, you liked her even when Shen Minghai was still around?"
Lu Yunshu continued to nod.
Honest to a fault.
Lu Fangru: "..."
She didn't know what to say.
It was truly unbelievable!
Her niece actually liked a married woman and had liked her for so many years.
Could there be some hidden story here?
After a while, Lu Fangru continued with a serious expression, "If Jin Hanshuang likes women, why did she marry Shen Minghai in the first place?"
Lu Yunshu was waiting for her to ask this question.
If this matter wasn't clarified, her aunt wouldn't accept that she liked a married woman.
So, she conveyed the answer Jin Hanshuang had given her to Lu Fangru, word for word.
At the same time, she hoped her aunt could understand Jin Hanshuang's choice.
After hearing it all, Lu Fangru understood.
How to say it, it was also within her expectations.
Because Lu Cheng had guessed back then that Shen Minghai married Jin Hanshuang for the sake of appearances, and today it was finally confirmed.
As for Jin Hanshuang's choice, others cannot criticize.
There is nothing wrong with a person wanting to make their life better.
But Lu Fangru suddenly didn't know what to say.
She didn't know whether to lament that two people with different sexual orientations could still get married, or to lament that her niece had a crush on Jin Hanshuang for so many years.
Or maybe, she should lament why her niece happened to like someone from her brother's rival family.
"......"
Another long silence.
After a while, Lu Fangru spoke in a deep voice, "Yunshu, you better tell me that before you liked her, you knew she liked women, and that they were just a couple in name only."
Lu Yunshu obediently nodded.
Lu Fangru instantly felt relieved.
Thankfully, the child had known the truth all along.
But this love still came as a surprise.
The room fell silent again.
Lu Fangru didn't speak, and Lu Yunshu didn't either.
Her aunt needed time to process the information, and she quietly waited.
She was used to this by now.
Everyone reacted the same way when they found out she liked Jin Hanshuang.
The person who reacted the most even bumped their knee on the table and tried to stop her from seeing her girlfriend.
Thinking of this, she quietly looked up at Lu Fangru across from her.
Her aunt shouldn't stop her from seeing Hanshuang... she needed to ask.
"Aunt."
"Hmm?"
"You won't stop me from seeing Hanshuang, right?"
Lu Fangru looked at her.
Then she said, "Don't worry, I haven't thought that far yet."
Her mind was busy, processing too much information.
Lu Yunshu understood and remained silent.
Lu Fangru looked at her again, then picked up the fruit plate and handed it to her, "You go back to your room first. Aunt needs to think. Take the fruit with you."
Lu Yunshu did not refuse.
Pushing too hard would only backfire.
She believed her aunt would come around.
But before leaving, Lu Yunshu emphasized, "Auntie, Hanshuang is really nice, I like her a lot, and I'm very happy with her."
Lu Fangru was stunned for a moment.
Lu Yunshu looked at her with sincere eyes, "Really."
In the more than half a year they've been together, they felt fortunate to be with each other every day, very happy every day.
Except for the few days when Shen Wenxin obstructed her and didn't let her see Jin Hanshuang.
Lu Fangru looked at Lu Yunshu silently.
Lu Yunshu was not lying.
She knew her niece very well; she could tell immediately if she was lying.
Lu Fangru sighed and patted Lu Yunshu's arm.
She said, "Okay."
She said, "Got it."
She said, "You should go back to your room."
Finally, she said, "Go call your uncle for me."
Lu Yunshu obediently agreed.
She knew that the second person in the family to be shocked was coming.
Lu Yunshu turned and left the study.
But when she reached the door, her aunt suddenly called her back.
Lu Fangru looked at her with a complex expression and asked, "You just said you made peace with Shen Wenxin, does Shen Wenxin knowââ"
"She knows."
"And she...?"
"She has no objections anymore."
"Oh..."
Lu Fangru covered her mouth, her expression becoming more complex.
That child actually knows and has no objections...
Lu Fangru furrowed her brows and remained silent for a long time.
Silent, silent, and suddenly inexplicably burst into laughter.
Lu Yunshu: "?"
......
"Why was your aunt laughing?"
A gentle voice came from the phone.
On the screen, Jin Hanshuang looked at Lu Yunshu with curiosity.
Recalling her aunt's words, Lu Yunshu also laughed helplessly, "Aunt said... our family hierarchy is all messed up."
Jin Hanshuang: "?"
She thought for a moment, "It is a bit..."
Unconsciously, she tried to sort out the current relationships in her mind.
After sorting it out once, she didn't want to continue.
It was too messy, better to let everyone be.
Jin Hanshuang tilted her head and looked intently at Lu Yunshu, "You seem to be in a good mood."
Lu Yunshu nodded.
Not unhappy.
At least not as anxious as when she first came out to her aunt.
Seeing her like this, Jin Hanshuang was relieved.
Although she was not present, she could guess a bit from Lu Yunshu's reaction.
Lu Fangru's reaction should have been within Lu Yunshu's expectations.
Since it's something within their control, they could be a bit reassured.
As long as her Yunshu wasn't unhappy, it was fine.
"Thank you for your hard work."
Jin Hanshuang gently touched the edge of the phone, as if caressing her little puppy lover.
"My Yunshu has been brave once again."
Her girlfriend was always so straightforward.
But she was so cute, very brave, and honest, and she liked that a lot.
"But... will your aunt agree to us being together?"
Lu Fangru said she needed to think about it, but who knows what the outcome will be after thinking it over?
What if after thinking it over, she still finds it hard to accept?
Would they have to face objections from both families one after the other?
Lu Yunshu recalled her aunt's laugh.
"I don't know, but there's always hope."
"After all, she isn't my dad."
......
Lu Fangru and her husband sat in the study, staring at each other in shock.
The two of them processed this explosive information together.
Having someone to share the shock with made Lu Fangru feel more at ease.
More at ease, and relievedârelieved for her niece.
Fortunately, her brother Lu Cheng didn't know about this, otherwise, who knows how he would have reacted.
Next, she heard her husband, Cheng Shu, exclaim in sudden realization, "So Yunshu's rebellious phase was about this..."
Lu Fangru: "?"
She couldn't help but laugh.
"Isn't this rebellious phase coming a bit too late?"
"Kids, you know, they're always kids to us. It's never too late for a rebellious phase."
Cheng Shu still smiled kindly.
Lu Fangru said, "But Yunshu said she was very happy."
Her niece said that liking Jin Hanshuang made her very happy, and being with Jin Hanshuang made her very happy.
The person who watched the stars with her niece, who made her niece happy, was Jin Hanshuang.
Jin Hanshuang's presence brought joy to their child.
Lu Fangru and Cheng Shu looked at each other.
In each other's eyes, they saw a softnessâa tender feeling knowing that their child was now very happy, and they couldn't help but feel happy for her.
This isn't a rebellious phase, this is love.
The child has grown up and understands what love is.
But Jin Hanshuang's special status made it difficult for them to easily compromise.
After all, she was Lu Cheng's arch-enemy's wife... even if it was just in name only.
But their child really liked her...
The couple fell into a dilemma again.
After a few minutes, Cheng Shu spoke up, "Ah Ru, do you remember what you told me before? You said, let the past be the past, and we should live well in the present."
Lu Fangru looked at him.
Cheng Shu said gently, "Since Yunshu and that child from the Shen family have moved on, we should too. As long as the child is happy. Moreover, if you really couldn't accept it, you wouldn't be sitting here thinking about it for so long."
He knew his wife too well.
She was smart, outstanding, and loved both children dearly, respecting every choice they made.
Because she had considered Lu Yunshu's feelings, she hesitated and wrestled with what to do.
But what could they do?
The child already liked her so much...
Lu Fangru sighed.
Yes, if she couldn't really accept it, she wouldn't be thinking about it for so long.
She stood up and walked towards the door.
Cheng Shu's gaze followed her, and he curiously asked, "Where are you going?"
Lu Fangru replied, "To find Yunshu and arrange a meal with Jin Hanshuang after the New Year."
She turned back to look at her husband, "As parents, we need to see things for ourselves to be reassured."
Instead of guessing and imagining, it's better to see her future niece-in-law in person.
Niece-in-law... Jin Hanshuang...
How strange.
Lu Fangru frowned as she left the study.