So That’s How It Is
Su Su only realized who the person was when Lin Shan called her “Sister Qin.” She couldn’t understand why the female lead was wrapped up like that or where she was going.
Normally, people in the village rarely went to the commune. Even if there was a land-boat performance, they wouldn’t go so far as to borrow a donkey cart—most young people would just walk together. The distance wasn’t much for them.
But Su Su couldn’t do that. Her body had just been… put through a lot, so there was no way she could walk all the way to the commune. That’s why Lin Chuan had immediately gone to borrow a donkey cart.
What she didn’t expect was that someone would hitch a ride halfway. Didn’t she feel awkward at all?
Su Su couldn’t understand it. Wasn’t the female lead supposed to be proud and strong? After suffering so much at the Lin family’s hands, how could she still calmly get on their cart? For people at this time, the commune wasn’t far—now that the snow wasn’t as thick, walking would have been fine.
Unless… the female lead had no choice but to take this cart?
Thinking back to the story and calculating the timing, Su Su finally turned her head to glance at Qin Yueyue. Could it be that she had already realized she was pregnant?
Su Su had already guessed that the male and female leads had secretly gotten together. When the male lead had been taking care of Lin Chuan, he had seemed distracted, often lost in thought. Now the female lead was acting strangely too—was she going to the hospital for an abortion?
But it hadn’t even been two months yet. Wasn’t her reaction a bit too fast?
Or… was she just going out to have fun?
Still, now that Su Su was married to Lin Chuan, no matter the reason, she absolutely wouldn’t let her man be “cuckolded.” Of course, she’d have to keep an eye on things—she couldn’t let them be alone together.
Looking like she was afraid her man might be taken advantage of, Su Su wrapped one arm around Lin Chuan’s and hugged him tightly, completely forgetting she’d just been angry with him earlier.
Qin Yueyue was quite calculating. Normally, she would have walked to the commune. But this time, she wasn’t going for fun—she was going to the hospital to check whether she was pregnant.
The mountain road was rough, and she was afraid that if something happened while walking, she might miscarry. If no one found out, fine—but if she were discovered and carried back, the matter would spread quickly. Her reputation would be ruined. She couldn’t take that risk, so she reluctantly got on the Lin family’s donkey cart.
The Lin family no longer treated her warmly like before. Aside from Lin Shan, everyone gave her the cold shoulder. She felt bitter, but since she wanted to stay low-profile, she didn’t say anything.
After riding for a while, Su Su said, “Lin Chuan, I need to use the toilet.” Ever since… that happened, she’d felt uncomfortable, and sitting in the cold made her want to go even more.
Lin Chuan stopped the cart. “I’ll take you.” He got down, handed the reins to Lin Hai, and helped his wife walk forward.
“I’ll go too.” In early pregnancy, one often needs the toilet frequently, and Qin Yueyue was also feeling the urge.
She walked behind them while Lin Chuan and Su Su went ahead. After a short distance, Lin Chuan said, “Walk five more steps, that spot will do.” Then he stepped further away, giving them space so the two women wouldn’t feel awkward.
Qin Yueyue hadn’t expected that Lin Chuan, who used to be so wooden, would become this attentive after getting married—helping his wife even with something like going to the toilet.
She had once disliked Lin Chuan’s roughness and preferred Lin Donghe’s attentiveness. But now, comparing the two, she realized Lin Chuan was actually even more considerate—especially when it came to caring for women.
Yet he ignored her completely. Clearly, he was worried Su Su might get jealous.
After finishing, the two women walked back. Su Su was lively by nature—despite feeling a bit uncomfortable, she still wanted to play. She thought the snow on the ground was so white and beautiful that she scooped up a handful, squeezed it, and made a small snowball.
Seeing Lin Chuan standing in the distance, she mischievously tossed it at him, just playing around.
Unexpectedly, without even turning his head, Lin Chuan raised a hand and caught it. After seeing what it was, he shook his head and smiled helplessly. This man rarely smiled, but when he did, it felt like warm sunlight.
Su Su found herself staring, a little dazed, then couldn’t help laughing at his expression.
“Comrade Su, you’re already nineteen, right? Why are you still like a child?” Qin Yueyue said. Shouldn’t a married woman—especially a teacher—be more mature?
But Su Su stuck out her tongue and replied carefreely, “I just like playing like this. Won’t you let me?” She clung to Lin Chuan’s arm as she spoke.
Lin Chuan had originally thought about tossing the snowball onto her head, but seeing her delicate face, he couldn’t bring himself to do it. He threw it aside and simply said, “Mm.” Let her play—it was fine to be like a child. At worst, he could think of it as raising a daughter.
Su Su didn’t speak to Qin Yueyue anymore. Maybe it was bias, but she always felt the female lead’s words weren’t pleasant. In truth, Qin Yueyue wasn’t a bad person—otherwise, with her reputation, she wouldn’t have been able to endure in the village. She clearly had her own ways of handling things.
Lin Chuan helped Su Su back onto the cart. Suddenly, someone behind them cried out. Turning back, they saw Qin Yueyue had slipped into a snowdrift. It wasn’t a serious fall, but she remained crouched there instead of getting up.
“Lin Shan, help her up,” Lin Chuan said calmly, then climbed onto the cart himself. He had no intention of helping his former fiancée.
Su Su liked this about him—he wasn’t overly attentive to everyone like some kind of “central heating.” That was different from the male lead, who had a tendency to be kind to everyone without realizing it, unintentionally hurting them.
For example, getting involved with someone before marriage—even if he wanted to take responsibility, he should consider whether the woman actually wanted to marry. Otherwise, it would only harm her.
As for herself—now that she was married, if something happened, she’d have no choice but to keep the child.
Lin Shan jumped down and helped Qin Yueyue onto the cart. He noticed she was moving very carefully and asked, “Sister Qin, are you hurt?”
“No, just afraid of falling again.”
In truth, Qin Yueyue was afraid that sudden movements might harm the baby. But Lin Hai couldn’t resist commenting, “My sister-in-law is wearing leather shoes and didn’t fall. You’re in cloth shoes—what are you afraid of? Hurry up, the performance’s about to start.”
“Mm.” Qin Yueyue didn’t argue with a teenager and quietly got on the cart.
They soon arrived at the commune.
The single main street was already packed with people from surrounding villages, all gathered around a prepared performance troupe. The drums had already started, drawing everyone’s attention.
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