The hotel's food is excellent and tasty. The small private room has a TV and a great atmosphere.
But everyone felt that there was no festive atmosphere, as if it was no different from an ordinary dinner party.
Mother Lin aimed at Song Ren and kept "attacking" him.
The others could only try to make jokes, and even Lin Fan and his father were unable to help.
"I'm sorry." Outside the bathroom door, Lin Fan was waiting for Song Ren.
Her mother was going crazy, and no one could stop her. If it weren't for the fact that it was New Year's Eve, she would have slammed the table and walked out.
Lin's mother's impatience made Lin Fan feel that she was a hot trouble, so her mother was so eager to find a "next home" for her.
"It's okay. Don't think too much. Auntie is Auntie, and you are you." Song Ren bent down to wash his hands and told Lin Fan not to worry about it.
"That being said..." Lin Fan still felt guilty. If he hadn't accompanied her back, he wouldn't have encountered so many problems.
Song Ren was never a talkative person. Today, in order to deal with Lin Ma, he had already said a lot.
"It's okay." Song Ren wiped his hands and patted Lin Fan's shoulder. "Trust me, it's okay."
Lin Fan looked into Song Ren's eyes steadily and finally chose to believe him.
She was already feeling anxious, and she couldn't get stuck in this mood, so she could only pass the trouble on to Song Ren.
Song Ren patted her shoulder again, smiled and pushed her towards the box.
Apart from the fact that Lin Ma kept staring at Song Ren, the meal was generally quite pleasant.
After dinner, Lin's mother invited everyone back home. It was only a little after 7 o'clock, and no one wanted to refuse, so they went back to Lin Fan's house.
A group of people sat in the living room, watching the Spring Festival Gala, eating snacks and chatting.
How many years has it been since Lin Fan felt such an atmosphere?
Even Lin Ma's intense surveillance of people had eased a lot.
During this time, everyone found an opportunity to call home to express their concern and ask about their families' situation. After the phone calls, everyone was so happy that they couldn't hide it.
Lin Fan couldn't help but feel guilty. If he hadn't wanted to accompany her, these people should have been celebrating the New Year at home.
Song Ren comforted her by saying that if it weren't for her, they wouldn't have had this vacation at all. Therefore, Lin Fan was the biggest contributor.
Although Lin's mother didn't say anything, she was secretly watching the interaction between the two, with joy flashing in her eyes.
At 10:30, the four of them said goodbye to the Lin family. Usually, Lin Fan would go to bed at this time.
Lin Fan hurried downstairs to see the guests off, and Lin's father also went downstairs with his daughter to see the guests off.
Amidst the politeness and refusal of several people, they parted at the gate of the community.
Lin Fan apologized again to everyone for Lin Ma's intrusion and disrespect. Lin's father also asked everyone not to take it seriously, saying that Lin Ma's original intention was to care about her daughter.
A few people hurriedly said not to worry about it, and only walked towards the hotel after Lin Fan and Lin's father returned.
"No one cares about my sister's health." Gao Fei suddenly said after walking a distance.
They stayed there for such a long time, but they didn't hear a single word of concern for Lin Fan's health. Not even the smiling father Lin asked about his condition.
"When I hear Auntie talk about Sister Lin, she's almost always criticizing her." Ji Yu has been paying attention to this aspect since he discovered it. It seems that Auntie Lin is used to this way of communication, and she always starts with a scolding.
"More than that," Li Chunhua sighed. "When Auntie was talking about Lin Fan, Uncle didn't stop her in time, just letting her say what she wanted. No wonder Lin Fan is depressed. She's like this in front of all of us."
They were all guests visiting the Lin family for the first time, so if there were any conflicts, they should avoid these guests.
Lin's mother was different from the average person. She had probably restrained herself. Thinking back to what she had said on the phone, they seemed to empathize with Lin Fan's struggles over the years.
Song Ren remained silent. Speaking of feelings, he felt the most deeply. He was a little overwhelmed by Lin Ma's enthusiasm. What if that enthusiasm was replaced by a cold rebuke?
Back in the room, Song Ren called Jin Sichen.
At the beginning, Jin Sichen said that Lin's parents were an important cause of depression, and also told him to pay special attention to Lin Fan's condition when he returned home.
After spending most of the day together, Song Ren had to admit that it would be better for Lin Fan to live away from his parents.
On the other side, Lin Fan and his father walked back in silence.
"Xiao Fan, I embarrassed you again today." Dad Lin said suddenly.
“…No.” Lin Fan was silent for a moment and replied.
She was already used to Lin's father's tolerance. Even when Lin's mother made such a big mistake before, and Lin's father was so angry that he was sent to the hospital, he could still forgive Lin's mother. This must be true love, she thought.
"You must be wondering why your father is so tolerant of your mother?" Dad Lin seemed to know what she was thinking and took the initiative to bring up the topic.
"I was puzzled before," Lin Fan said. "Seeing how you two interact, I can't sense any obvious love between you. Most of the time, it's just conflict and dislike."
"I don't quite understand. Why do you want to maintain a marriage like this? For companionship in old age?" Lin Fan didn't want to persuade her parents to separate. She just found it strange. Why did they stay together when it was so painful to quarrel every day?
Father Lin suddenly stopped, as if he had made up his mind. Although he had already gone downstairs, he took Lin Fan to the courtyard of the community.
Even though Lin Fan was full of questions, he realized that his father had something to tell him that was hidden from his mother.
"Why don't I divorce your mother?" Father Lin said, standing in the deserted pavilion with his back to Lin Fan. "Because I feel like I owe her my life."
?
Lin Fan frowned. She had never known her parents' marriage to involve such serious problems.
"Back then, when your mother was with me, I was still a poor boy." Father Lin still had his back to her. His voice was light and distant, as if it could be blown away by a gust of wind. "Everyone disagreed with her being with me, but she refused to listen."
Lin Ma's stubbornness and obstinacy can be seen from her behavior back then.
"I wasn't sure if she was truly deeply in love with me or if she was going against everyone. When everyone around me told me to give up and not to try to get the best of me, I was ready to back out."
At that time, Lin's father was a poor boy from the countryside. He had just been demobilized and had nothing except a good-looking face.
Lin's mother, who had a city hukou, graduated from high school, was beautiful and full of youth, and was in the prime of her life.
"Your mother-in-law wouldn't let your mother be with me. I thought, forget it. With so many people opposing it, it's not going to end well." Father Lin sighed, "I didn't expect your mother to be so stubborn and drink the pesticide directly."
Lin Fan was shocked. She had never known there was such a hidden secret.
"The person was rescued, but your mother has never dared to drink bottled drinks since then." There was pain in Lin's father's voice.
Lin Fan thought about it carefully.
Indeed, Mother Lin rarely drinks bottled drinks from outside, especially green tea, black tea, and those yellowish drinks. She would not touch them even if her mouth was dry.
So that's the reason.
The young man had never imagined that human emotions could be so intense. She was willing to die to marry him.
Everyone was frightened by Lin Ma, and no one objected to the two being together anymore.
The two people who were originally in love were suddenly about to get married.
The young man felt that he owed the girl a life, and tried his best to earn a good life for his wife.
Lin Fan knew most of what happened next.
The reason for love is that it is deep and lasting. Why did it change slowly later? Please vote.