Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Zhai Hua was very pleased with the dress and knew that Qiao Nan had put in a lot of effort into the dress. But this also made her attitude and what she said at the Qiao family’s residence to be ungrateful.
Even though this might be harsh, but she was definitely being heartless.
Staring at herself who looked different in the dress, Zhai Hua had conflicting emotions.
If she wore such a beautiful dress from Qiao Nan, it would seem that she owed her. She was open and above board. She would never owe others anything. What should she do now?
Zhai Hua felt even more upset at the thought of Shi Qing’s accusations. She had practically watched her as she grew up. She cared about her as much as she did her brother, Zhai Sheng. However, she was so ungrateful. She had spent so much time with her, but after staying at the Qiao family’s residence for a short period of time, she grew to like Qiao Nan and side with her.
If Shi Qing had not sided with Qiao Nan and spoken up for her, she would not have felt so guilt-stricken.
Qiao Nan made the clothes for the Zhai family before making clothes for herself. It could be seen as trying to please the Zhai family, but it also proved that she had the Zhai family in mind.
Qiao Nan made use of her skills to prepare presents that were suitable for the Zhai family instead of accepting the gift from the Zhai family. In fact, Zhai Hua understood her kind intentions.
It was inappropriate to say that Qiao Nan was trying to win favor or influence them using somebody else’s property. The fabric was not worth much. Instead, the design and handiwork would cost about half of the price of the fabric that Qiao Nan bought.
For people who appreciated style and tailoring skills, the clothes that she and her mother wore were worth a significant amount of money. Qiao Nan would be able to earn a lot from selling them.
Since Qiao Nan made those clothes, she must have known their worth.
In any case, Qiao Nan did not sell them and gifted her hard work to Zhai Hua.
Oh, this ended up in a mess…
Shi Qing was to be blamed for shooting her mouth off. If she had not pointed it out, even if Qiao Nan knew what was on her mind, she would have pretended to be clueless. But now that Shi Qing had pointed it out, Qiao Nan could not pretend not to know.
Qiao Nan would marry Zhai Sheng eventually and become one family with them. It seemed that she did not teach Shi Qing well. She did not let her know that she should not meddle in other people’s family affairs.
“What’s on your mind? You are staring into the mirror. Are you so fond of the dress that Nan Nan gave you?” Miao Jing, who was clueless, teased Zhai Hua. Zhai Hua had never stared at her new clothes in such a manner before.
“Miss Zhai Hua looks so beautiful.” The helper praised Zhai Hua from the bottom of her heart. “This dress may look ordinary, but it gives a special feeling. It is so much better than the clothes that we bought at the market. The young lady has good tailoring skills. She will make a good wife in the future.”
As the helper of the Zhai family, she knew who Qiao Nan was.
Although the young lady named Qiao Nan rarely came to Zhai family’s residence, the four owners of the Zhai family had a very good impression of her. Apart from Chief Zhai, Madam Zhai and the children liked Qiao Nan very much.
Therefore, the helper would not be so foolish as to say anything bad about Qiao Nan in front of Miao Jing and Zhai Hua. Besides, she really felt the clothes were much more beautiful than those that were sold on the market.
“Are they beautiful?” Miao Jing turned to check out the back of the suit in the mirror. She was very pleased with the clothes. “Auntie, I will change out of them later. Please help me wash and iron it. I will wear it tomorrow.”
“Me too!” Zhai Hua interjected.
“Sure.” After they changed out of the clothes, the helper washed and ironed the clothes before putting them into their wardrobes. The pretty dresses hanging in the wardrobe looked fabulous after being cleaned and ironed.
“What’s up with you?” Miao Jing noticed that Zhai Hua seemed to be distracted after she changed out of the dress and was concerned about her.
“N-nothing.” Zhai Hua did not dare to tell Miao Jing what happened when she went to take the clothes.
She would not be able to answer to her mother if Qiao Nan changed her attitude toward the Zhai family. What should she do when Zhai Sheng was back?
Should she end her leave in advance and go back to the army to take part in the training?
That was a good idea. She would do just that!
“Mom, I have had enough rest. I will go back to the army ahead of time. There are so many other comrades in the army who seldom go back home. Their total amount of time spent at home in one year is shorter than the time I spend at home this time. We should not allow ourselves to enjoy such privilege just because we hold higher positions in the army. I decide to share joys and sorrows with my comrades. I will return to the army.”
Zhai Hua knew that it was about time for Zhai Sheng to come back home, so she decided to flee before he came back.
If Zhai Sheng came back and discovered what was going on, it would be too late for her to escape.
She wanted to break down and cry. Qiao Nan was the outsider, while she was their family, yet she had to hide from her brother because of an outsider. Even if her brother would marry Qiao Nan eventually, he should not side with her before they married and be annoyed with his sister.
Though they were family, her brother was all ready to take it out on her for the sake of Qiao Nan. In that case, Zhai Hua could not go home and had to hide in the army for the time being.
Her brother was so heartless to side with the young lady.
The two of them grew up together. She was her elder sister, yet her younger brother had never showered her with such concern.
“Why are you going back this early? You have a few days of leave. Why don’t you stay at home for a few more days? You haven’t been home for ages. Your brother came home more frequently than you.” Miao Jing could not bear for Zhai Hua to leave. Ever since the last recent talk with her children, she no longer felt awkward with them, especially Zhai Hua.
Her daughter was able to understand her difficulties and was willing to chat with her, but she still refused to go shopping with her.
She wanted to build a good relationship with her daughter, but her daughter was like a wild lad who only had the army in mind. She could not bear to part with her.
“Mom, you are the wife of the chief of the army, and you are the mother of Zhai Sheng and me. It seems that you have to keep up with the times.” Zhai Hua slapped on Miao Jing’s shoulder, having no regards for her elder. But Miao Jing did not take issue with her.
“Fine, in our family, the three of you are able to keep up with the times, except for me. The three of you are soldiers, but I’m not. Why do I need to keep up with the times?” Miao Jing felt funny and annoyed. She would always use this excuse to evade the issue.
“But you are a family member of the cadres in the army,” Zhai Hua said with a smile. “Mom, you must be worthy of your status as a family member of the cadres.”
“Just go. Since you are willing to go to the army, there’s nothing I could say. The three of you take the army as your home. Your dad, Zhai Sheng, and you are the same. All of you don’t have time for me. But it doesn’t matter. Nan Nan will accompany me. If Nan Nan did not need to study now, I wouldn’t care if all of you are back at home or not,” Miao Jing said grumpily.