How are you not happy now?

“Yeah, I’m not happy anymore. I just regret it. I should’ve known that enjoying a few more years of my youth was the most important thing. Ever since getting married, my life has been completely bogged down by my husband and kid. When my girls ask me to go out, I never have the time and just have to say no.”

“Well, that’s not so bad. Those are the troubles of a happy life. There are plenty of women who get married only to find out their husband is a terrible person. That’s real torture. At least you married into a good family.”

“Don’t even get me started. It just annoys me to think about it. We were unbelievably happy as newlyweds, but with the daily grind of married life, I feel like my husband isn’t as passionate about me as he used to be.”

‘They’ve probably just grown tired of it.’

“That’s normal. Who’s joined at the hip every single day? That wouldn’t be normal.”

The women chattered amongst themselves.

Just as the topic seemed to be drifting away from her, and Jiangg Ning was about to breathe a sigh of relief, the woman steered the conversation right back. “By the way, what’s your skincare secret, Ningning? I want to learn from you. I’m so envious of your skin! Look at yours and Yaoyao’s—your faces are as smooth and clear as peeled eggs.”

“I don’t do anything special, really. Just use face masks, stay hydrated, and try not to eat too much greasy food.”

“Then you must have some method for maintaining that figure of yours?”

“Oh, that I do. I work out every day. I set aside an hour at night to focus mainly on my abs, legs, and back.”

“Isn’t that tiring?”

“Of course it’s a bit tiring, but you get used to it after a while.”

“I guess the main reason my figure has gone downhill is just laziness.”

The short-haired young woman, who had only been married a few years, sighed.

A woman beside her said, “There you go, you’ve finally figured it out. There are no ugly women, only lazy ones.”

At that, all the women burst out laughing.

“Are you and Yaoyao still in Lanjing?”

“Yes.”

“Why don’t you come back to Mingzhu City for your careers? It’s so much nicer here, and the city is more prosperous.”

“Uh…” Jiangg Ning thought for a moment. “I think both are fine, but the main reason is that Lanjing University accepted my job application. The universities here in Mingzhu have higher requirements; it’s not easy to get a position.”

She was, of course, lying.

Back when she was sending out her resume, she had mass-applied to a whole batch of decent universities across the country.

But not a single one was in Mingzhu City.

Her goal had been to take Jiangg Yao somewhere farther away.

“If you ask me, it’s really better to stay here at home. At least you can work and look for a husband at the same time. Even if you find someone somewhere else, it’s hard to get married.”

“Huh? Why is that?” Jiangg Yao asked, looking up in confusion.

“Because you’d be an outsider!”

“COUGH, COUGH, COUGH—”

Jiangg Yao nearly choked on that comment. She turned her head away, speechless.

She couldn’t comprehend the way these women her age thought. She had never been able to connect with them, and that was even truer now. Their interaction was sustained only by a shallow family connection.

If it weren’t for that connection, she wouldn’t even want to be sitting here.

Jiangg Yao couldn’t care less about things like family background, age, or education. Whether for dating or marriage, the only thing she cared about was whether or not she actually liked the person.

‘As long as she liked him.’

She wouldn’t care if Chen Yuan shoveled manure or panned for gold.

“To put it bluntly, a woman’s youth doesn’t last long. It’s a good thing you two aren’t married, or else after having a kid, you’d be old and washed-up just like me.”

This relative was clearly tactless, but she was very keen on talking.

The moment she said that, the other women around them fell silent.

Some started cracking melon seeds, others busied themselves with their phones, and one called over to her child.

Worried she might feel awkward, Jiangg Ning quickly chimed in, “That’s true. I remember you were in great shape before you got married.”

“You bet! I was stick-thin back then, even more so than you two are now.” She grabbed Jiangg Ning’s arm and nodded confidently. “At least a whole size smaller.”

The woman was clearly pleased with herself, her eyebrows raised in a cocky arch.

Jiangg Ning just smiled, thinking that would be the end of it.

But in the next moment, the woman started up again.

“All that aside, you two really need to get serious about getting married. You’re already getting on in years. Once you’re over thirty, you won’t be able to compete with the young girls today.” She pointed to a college student nearby. “Like this young lady here. How can we compete with that youthful energy she has?”

“That’s true. Girls in college are in their prime—they’re so bright and full of life. I’ve come to appreciate that a lot during my time at Landa University.”

“Appreciate it all you want, but you need to think more about marriage. Don’t wait until nobody wants you. It’ll be too late for regrets then.”

“Don’t you worry about me. Some old man will still want me when I’m eighty-one. If you’re in such a rush for a wedding, why don’t you get married again? I can even introduce you to someone,” Jiangg Yao shot back, her lips parting to reveal a flash of pearly teeth.

“Hey—Yaoyao, how could you say that? I’m just looking out for you, and you’re being sarcastic…”

“And aren’t I looking out for you?”

The other women covered their mouths to hide their smirks. They had never seen Jiangg Yao clap back at someone like that before. It seemed she had changed quite a bit in the last two years.

…

“I’m exhausted.”

Her whole body aching, Jiangg Yao walked into the living room and flopped onto the sofa. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt this tired.

It was even more exhausting than a full day of shopping in Lanjing.

More than anything, it was a mental exhaustion from enduring the relatives’ constant bombardment and having to tiptoe around the elders.

Thankfully, this only happened once a year.

If it were like this every day, she would genuinely become depressed.

Lying on the sofa, she stared blankly at the ceiling, as if trying to quiet her turbulent thoughts.

“There’s no way I’m leaving the house tomorrow. I’d rather do a twenty-four-hour, high-intensity livestream than go to another family gathering like that…” Jiangg Yao mumbled wearily.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep