Life Plan

Chapter 29, Marriage

Zhou Ya pushed open the door and sat down as if they were old friends, unpacking a brand new set of tableware: "I live next door to you. This house has an old renovation, so the soundproofing isn't good."

"You heard everything?"

I heard most of it.

"so?"

"I've heard those things before." The table was mostly filled with spicy dishes. Zhou Ya seemed even more relaxed than when she was eating instant noodles by the window the day they first met. After her nose started running from the chili, she wiped it clean and continued talking as she chewed, "This broth smells so good, what did they add?"

"It tastes like pepper," Liu Chichi answered instinctively, then asked curiously, "Is this their signature dish? Didn't you order it?"

"I ordered it, but I ordered the soup without the broth."

Liu Chichi was still processing what was going on. She couldn't understand why she would order soup without the base ingredients in a private restaurant specializing in Sichuan and Hunan cuisine.

As if sensing her thoughts, Zhou Ya added without looking up, "Eight dishes and two soups, all with light flavors."

Zhou Ya was born into an ordinary family in a small town. From a young age, she knew that she was smart and beautiful, and her vision was also broader than that of her peers.

Her parents both worked on construction sites, traveling all over the country with their contractors. She grew up with her grandparents and was a typical left-behind child.

While her friends were all steadily progressing to the town's middle school, she begged her parents to send her to a better school in the city, where she lived on campus and could only go home twice a month by bus.

The bus swayed and rattled for six hours to get her home, while the local girls in her class, wearing skirts, could get home in just over ten minutes in their parents' cars.

Many people complimented her on her looks, and her mother even bought her several dresses, but she never dared to wear one on the day she went home because it was too inconvenient to take the bus.

Zhou Ya was very envious of them. At that time, she had only one wish: if only she could live in the city too.

After graduating from junior high school, several girls in the town agreed to go out to work, but Zhou Ya knew that with her current abilities, she wouldn't be able to live in the city just by working.

She wants to read more books.

Her middle school entrance exam results were not ideal, but her beauty brought her good popularity. There were many boys and girls willing to provide her with information. After asking around for an afternoon, she learned the term "borrowing fee".

With her persistence, her parents paid a large sum of money for her to attend a secondary school, and she successfully entered a high school. The girls she met there came from wealthier families; they wore more exquisite jewelry, and she would occasionally learn which girl's parents were agents for which brand.

Her beauty still brought her some popularity, but this popularity became a source of trouble for her. She began to hate the way boys talked about her, as if she were not a person, but some kind of glamorous trophy.

Another girl in the dorm, who had also paid the school selection fee, was much more worldly-wise. Her parents had already planned for her to study abroad after graduation, even before she entered high school. Zhou Ya believed in the principle of "one is influenced by one's company," so she tried to get close to her and learn from her about places that required taking a train or even a plane to reach.

Zhou Ya knew that this city was not the final destination she wanted. Fortunately, her hard work and diligent study brought her the results she desired. When filling out her college application, she knew how important this choice was. What she focused on was not the major or the university, but the city.

At that time, she was determined to go to a bigger world, to study, and to make money.

So many years have passed, but she remains beautiful. In the big city, there are even more tempting voices, which are no longer vulgar but gentle and persuasive.

Those voices pity her for how hard she's come to be, yet they also criticize her background and abilities; they show her an easier path, yet create anxiety for her.

She majored in clinical medicine as an undergraduate, but switched to nursing during her postgraduate studies. People told her that nursing was a more suitable job for women than clinical medicine—easier, with a shorter career progression, and a guaranteed position that would make it easier to get married.

When patients scolded her at the hospital, she lowered her head and apologized. The patients, afraid to confront the doctors, vented their anger on her. Many times she regretted changing her major, but occasionally she found a sense of accomplishment through the encouragement of her patients.

She got her first promotion opportunity, then a second, and barring any unforeseen circumstances, she would naturally become the head nurse, but those voices began to frequently appear in her ears.

They said that women have very little time in the marriage market, and she began to feel anxious about her age.

Many men showed interest in her, and after working a shift that kept her up all night, she decided to get married.

He was a man from a well-off family. After they got married, she moved from her dormitory into the big house she had dreamed of since childhood. She excitedly imagined that her child would become the kind of person she had admired when she was a child.

Unfortunately, due to her husband's health issues, she embarked on the path of IVF to maintain the pregnancy, while continuing to work. However, after her first miscarriage, she resolutely chose to resign amidst her husband's disapproving gaze.

With a postgraduate degree, a well-maintained appearance, a stable job, a simple family structure, and no romantic experience, she almost perfectly fits the stereotypes about women and naturally obtained a satisfactory marriage.

During those happy times in her life, she was grateful for every choice she made.

The arguments began after her husband's job changed and his income dropped significantly. After being accused of being penniless by her husband for the third time, she couldn't help but think back to her own work many years ago.

Back then, she had her own income, her own social circle, and everyone praised her for being smart, beautiful, and having excellent work skills. Under the mask, her beauty was her least noteworthy advantage.

But now, being a beautiful mother is her only identity, and everyone praises her for being lucky.

In that instant, Zhou Ya wondered if she had made the wrong choice. Her classmates who got married early had wealthy parents, while she seemed to have nothing behind her.

She had no parents to support her, nor could she become her own support.

Liu Chichi looked at her hesitantly, as if she wanted to say something but couldn't. Zhou Ya seemed to understand what she wanted to ask, but her eyes were unfocused when they met: "I won't get a divorce. I want to give Xiao Qiao everything I can give her."

She occasionally thinks about divorce, but each time the thought arises, she forcibly suppresses it, wanting to maintain a perfect life for her daughter. But now, the only person she can rely on is her husband.

"Is this your reason for returning to the workforce?"

Liu Chichi watched as she finished the entire spicy grilled fish by herself, leaned back in her chair and let out a burp without any regard for her image. She unbuttoned two buttons at the collar of her shirt dress, and without stopping, she reached into another dish.

"Our family income has dropped, so every little bit helps." The peppercorns exploded in Zhou Ya's mouth, making her gums tingle slightly, but she couldn't help but laugh. "Never mind, there's no point in pretending. I thought he would respect me if I started working."

Liu Chichi is a very empathetic person. She thought that there was no major conflict between the two of them, so she couldn't help but soften her heart and said, "Then, I'll help you pick up the child when I have time."

"No need. My in-laws' health checkup results weren't very good, so they moved in with us. I've already resigned from my job."

Zhou Ya's expression remained unchanged. Compared to all the work of taking care of the elderly and the child, picking up and dropping off the child was just a trivial matter.

The husband's income was insufficient to maintain their current lifestyle, requiring support from his parents, and naturally, he also had to demonstrate a corresponding commitment to their care. The money went into the man's pocket, but the one who truly needed to diligently serve the elders was not him, but Zhou Ya.

Just a few days ago, her husband had been pointing his finger at her and scolding her for not taking good care of the child, and for making the property management call, which delayed his work. Now, he's softening his tone and trying to coax her, hoping that they can each take a step back and live a good life together.

This restaurant was specially chosen by her husband when he was pursuing her. It served all her favorite dishes, and as she entered, she couldn't help but reminisce about their sweet times together. The restaurant was also chosen for the welcome dinner for her parents, consisting of eight dishes and two soups, all served without the broth.

The husband suggested that they compromise: she chose a place she liked, and the dishes should be whatever they wanted.

Zhou Ya found it absurd. Did she like the dining table and ceiling of this house?

She was willing to choose other restaurants to suit the elderly couple's tastes, which seemed like a compromise on both sides, but in reality, she was the one who compromised twice. Yet she didn't utter a single word of objection, and even served the food with a smile.

Similarly, she didn't eat a single bite. She simply stood in the courtyard and finished smoking a cigarette when, by sheer coincidence, she heard Liu Chichi's voice. Curiosity drove her closer, and she heard the usually timid and weak graduate become unusually excited.

Are you trying to persuade me by saying all this?

"No, I just wanted to say that it's been a long time since anyone listened to me." Zhou Ya paused, her lips turning a slightly swollen crimson from the chili peppers, and her eyes glistening with tears. "Or perhaps, I wanted to say this to myself when I was eating here alone that year."

The regret she expressed back then was genuine; she almost became the head nurse.

The unspoken rule of society is to turn people into identity cards, and the identity card of a full-time housewife has too limited scope of use. Their names are not heard in the workplace, their friendships at this stage are maintained through their children, and if their husbands don't care about them either, they are practically invisible in society.

Zhou Ya wiped her mouth and hands clean, buttoned up the collar of her shirt dress, and even tidied up the stray hairs that had fallen beside her ears. She took out the powder compact she always carried with her from her bag to cover her bright red lips.

In the blink of an eye, she was once again an elegant and unassuming lady, and she pushed open the door and left. Soon after, Liu Chichi received a phone transfer of 1200 yuan, more than the cost of the meal; she wondered what the payment was for.

The dishes were completely cold. Liu Chichi picked up her chopsticks, hesitated, and then put them down. She left the restaurant, bought a box of instant noodles at a convenience store, and sat by the window waiting for three minutes. The rising steam blurred the glass, and she saw her own lifeless eyes.

Liu Chunhong's message was pinned to the top: 【How was our meeting today?】

She didn't know how to reply. This was unlike any of the questions she had ever done before. She couldn't find a solution and had never seen a reference answer.

It was already late when I left the convenience store. My mother had arranged for me to wear the dress she was wearing that day, and the autumn wind felt like a knife scraping my bones.

At her doorstep, Liu Chunhong was waiting for her with a coat in her arms. The warm woolen coat instantly warded off the chill, and Liu Chichi could even feel the warmth pumping from her heart.

She looked at Liu Chunhong: "Mom, why aren't you asleep yet?"

"I noticed it got colder tonight, and I was worried you'd get cold, so I waited for you here."

"Are you waiting for me?"

"If I don't wait for you, who else will I wait for?" Liu Chunhong affectionately pressed her face against hers, checking her forehead temperature. "The cold wind is making you talk nonsense."

The stairwell was dimly lit, and Liu Chunhong couldn't see her daughter's reddened eyes. Liu Chichi also pretended not to notice her mother's carefully dressed appearance. At that moment, she suddenly remembered what Zhou Ya had said: "One must live a little more obliviously to truly experience happiness."

She lay on the bed, looking at her small bedroom, where everything from the bedside table and wardrobe to every little decoration was arranged according to her mother's wishes.

She had no hobbies because she had never owned anything of her own. She stared at the dark, round hole in the door; the lock had been removed by her mother many years ago. She had no privacy.

She couldn't help but recall He Qing's words from that afternoon: marriage is like being reborn.

is it?

Liu Chichi's eyes were glazed over with confusion. What did Zhou Ya mean by that? Could marriage bring her a new life?