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Chapter 101 Hit the ball straight

"You can cook?"

Lin Chuan's slicing of vegetables was so smooth that Yang Xiaoling couldn't help but ask.

Lin Chuan pointed to the large bowl, his tone somewhat smug: "That's right, I'm a great cook, I made this meal, you try it and see if it's good."

Lin Chuan found a plate to put the pig's head meat on, opened the kettle lid, placed the plate on top to steam it, and then turned around to see that Yang Xiaoling hadn't eaten.

"Why aren't you eating? Don't you have an appetite? I brought you some brown sugar. How about I make you a cup of brown sugar water first?"

Yang Xiaoling's face began to burn as Lin Chuan stared at her. Lin Chuan's actions today had left her feeling extremely unsettled.

Especially with Lin Chuan returning to bring food, the signal couldn't be clearer.

Yang Xiaoling looked at Lin Chuan, closed her eyes, and said loudly, "Do you... have feelings for me?"

As Yang Xiaoling spoke, her voice grew softer and softer. If Lin Chuan hadn't had such good hearing, he probably wouldn't have heard the last three words.

Seeing Yang Xiaoling's seemingly reckless attitude, but ultimately too shy to look at him, Lin Chuan found it particularly amusing.

After admiring Yang Xiaoling's shy expression for a few seconds, Lin Chuan slowly said:

"Since you've figured it out, I won't hide it anymore. Yes, I like you, I want you to be my girlfriend, and I want to marry you."

Since Yang Xiaoling had already asked the question, Lin Chuan didn't pretend and went straight to the point.

Lin Chuan's words made Yang Xiaoling's heart pound; she felt as if her chest was being pounded like a drum.

These days, big cities may have become more open-minded and advocate free love, but small mountain villages haven't even widely adopted television yet, so people's thinking hasn't changed much.

Finding a partner mainly relies on introductions, and reputation plays a significant role in this process; those with a good reputation are more likely to be accepted by others.

Lin Chuan's reputation was already quite good, but after receiving the admission notice from No. 1 Middle School, it reached its peak in their area.

Not to mention that Yang Xiaoling spent the afternoon with Lin Chuan, whose looks, physique, and conversation were all top-notch.

Young girls are prone to romantic feelings, and with Lin Chuan, who is top-notch in every way, showing interest in her, it's inevitable that she'll start to overthink things.

After Lin Chuan left, she thought about many random things and had some guesses, but she didn't dare to take them seriously.

Hearing Lin Chuan's admission, Yang Xiaoling felt a sliver of secret joy, but mostly she was panicked. Her mind went completely blank. It took her a long time to suppress her chaotic thoughts:

"You, didn't you get into the top high school?"

"Yes, getting into the top high school and liking you don't conflict."

"But you still have to go to school."

Lin Chuan was somewhat embarrassed and didn't know how to put it. These days, people are very attached to studying. If he said he wasn't going to study anymore, anyone would try to persuade him otherwise.

Lin Chuan didn't want to lie to Yang Xiaoling, but he was afraid that if he told her, she would try to persuade him, and if he couldn't persuade her, she might even go to her mother. This was a very real possibility.

"I don't know how to explain this. Just know that I'm not joking. You'll understand after a while."

Lin Chuan used a delaying tactic. It's already the end of July. In another month or so, once Zhao Yang's father gets him expelled from school, everything will be much easier to discuss.

Zhao Yang's dad, you'd better step up your game!

Yang Xiaoling was silent for a moment, then asked very seriously:

"We've only met a few times, how could you possibly like me? I'm not even good-looking."

"In my eyes, you are the most beautiful. I fell in love with you at first sight. I liked you from the first moment I saw you and always wanted to marry you. But I was afraid that you would marry someone else while I was studying, so I couldn't help but come to find you."

Lin Chuan started talking nonsense, but his voice sounded very sincere because he really wanted to marry Yang Xiaoling.

Yang Xiaoling's previous life was a marriage to Lin Chuan. She didn't know what kind of person he was, only that he became paralyzed the following year, and the two had no children.

Yang Xiaoling took care of the other party for twelve years. Twelve years later, Yang Xiaoling was only in her early thirties. At that time, some people proposed to her, and her parents-in-law agreed, but she herself did not agree.

She stayed at her husband's house to care for her parents-in-law until their deaths. Her mother-in-law kept praising her before she passed away.

If you meet a woman like this, you should marry her immediately; marrying her would be a huge win.

"You're lying. When we first met, you were still wearing open-crotch pants."

A smile appeared on Yang Xiaoling's lips as a scene flashed through her mind.

Lin Chuan, wearing open-crotch pants, stood with his arms outstretched, his back to her, facing a group of children.

She doesn't remember the cause and effect of this incident, only this one scene.

Forgetting is the main theme of life, but some things always inexplicably flash through my mind.

This image flashed into her mind when she saw Lin Chuan today.

She only remembers being very scared at the time; she remembers nothing else.

But it doesn't matter; the little boy in the open-crotch pants in the picture seems to be protecting her.

Lin Chuan scratched his head: "Ah, how do you remember when we first met?"

Yang Xiaoling rolled her eyes at him, hesitated for a moment, then picked up a piece of egg with her chopsticks and put it in her mouth.

The eggs were fried slightly overcooked, resulting in a caramelized and fragrant texture. Paired with the salty and sour broth, the flavor was exquisite.

"How is it? Is it delicious?"

"Um."

"Try the pig's head meat again." Lin Chuan placed the pig's head meat in front of her, still muttering to himself:

"This pig's head meat tastes even better with minced garlic and chili, but it's good that you're eating something lighter right now, as it might be a bit greasy. Next time I'll add some peanuts and cucumber strips to cut through the richness and make it even tastier."

Yang Xiaoling picked up a piece of pig's head meat. The warm pig's head meat was soft, chewy, and tender. The aroma of spices combined with the rich oil made Yang Xiaoling's eyes light up.

"Not greasy at all, it's delicious."

Lin Chuan felt that greasiness was a good thing, not a bad thing, because people nowadays lack oil and fat.

"It's delicious, have some more!"

Lin Chuan pushed the plate towards Yang Xiaoling, looking at her with a happy expression.

Yang Xiaoling picked up another piece and put it in her mouth, but didn't eat any more. She got up, took another large bowl, picked up a few pieces of pig's head meat, and walked back to her room.

Yang's father lay on the bed, staring blankly at the IV drip, feeling somewhat irritated.

He knows his own body well; he has indeed overworked himself over the years, but he can't stop. If he stops, the burden of the family will fall entirely on his daughter.

His daughter is very sensible. She clearly has excellent grades, but she deliberately did poorly on the high school entrance exam so that she could stay at home and help him. Every time he thinks about this, he feels extremely distressed.

He only regretted that he was not capable enough to provide his daughter with a good life, but fortunately, his daughter is now grown up.

He'll work for a few more years, find a good husband for his daughter, and then he can leave this world with peace of mind.

Thinking of his daughter's in-laws, he felt a headache coming on. Because of his own reasons, Yang Xiaoling rarely interacted with the villagers and didn't like to talk. No one had come to arrange her marriage even though she was all grown up.

It seems I'll have to take the initiative to inquire about this myself, to find out which good families are in the surrounding area.

Thinking of good families, he inexplicably thought of the Lin family. Lin's father was one of the few people he had a good impression of and considered a friend.