Chapter Forty-Four: Relentless Pursuit

Because she discovered that her son had not broken up with Deng Chun, Xu Wenrui’s mother was unusually furious. However, perhaps due to her previous opposition to Xu Wenrui’s relationship with Wu Beibei, which had led to fierce arguments and even strained their mother-son bond, Xu Wenrui’s mother had learned a lesson from that experience. This time, rather than confronting her son directly, she maintained a cold demeanor throughout the meal, repeatedly targeting Deng Chun. Whether it was her behavior, her manners, or her appearance, everything was met with biting criticism.

Even though Xu Wenrui’s father recounted the incident in the gentlest terms, Yan Xue could still sense the extent of Xu Wenrui’s mother’s personal attacks on Deng Chun—humiliation was not too strong a word.

As for Xu Wenrui, he only made a few vague remarks in defense of Deng Chun at the table, never fully taking her side.

Later, perhaps Xu Wenrui drew some lesson from Wu Beibei’s fierce persistence and subsequent failure, for not long after, he abandoned his own efforts and returned home to tell his parents he had ended things with Deng Chun.

Initially, Xu Wenrui’s parents were quite satisfied with this outcome: the girlfriend they disapproved of was gone, their son showed no intense emotional turmoil, and the transition was smooth—all parties were pleased.

Unexpectedly, after some time, Xu Wenrui’s mother suddenly received a phone call from Deng Chun. The moment Deng Chun spoke, she pleaded with Xu Wenrui’s mother not to interfere, hoping the family would allow her and Xu Wenrui to be together, not to make things so hard for Xu Wenrui, emphasizing that their love was genuine and that it was wrong to separate them.

This call enraged Xu Wenrui’s mother, who, overcome with anger, said many harsh words. But Deng Chun seemed impervious to the attacks and humiliation, stubbornly repeating the same phrases: she and Xu Wenrui loved each other deeply; without the family’s opposition, Xu Wenrui would not be so troubled.

In the end, Xu Wenrui’s mother realized she could not communicate with Deng Chun and simply hung up. No sooner had she done so than Deng Chun called again. When Xu Wenrui’s mother blocked her number, Deng Chun used a different one. Due to her work, Xu Wenrui’s mother could not refuse all unknown calls, and after a relentless barrage of phone harassment, she was nearly driven mad.

She asked Xu Wenrui if this was some scheme he and Deng Chun had devised to defy the family, but Xu Wenrui coldly replied that he had broken up with Deng Chun long ago and had no interest in such games, urging his mother to ignore Deng Chun, whom he called mentally unstable.

Yet Deng Chun’s calls persisted, unpredictable and relentless. In the end, unable to endure it any longer, Xu Wenrui’s mother changed her phone number, exhausted by the ordeal.

“After all that, my wife loses her temper whenever she hears Deng Chun’s name. If she had to answer another call from Deng Chun, it would nearly kill her!” Xu Wenrui’s father said miserably over the phone. “Our family’s situation is chaotic enough already—we can’t afford to make things worse. Even if Deng Chun means well, I accept her good intentions; please thank her for me, but tell her not to call again.”

Since Xu Wenrui’s father had shared all this, Yan Xue knew she could not push the matter further. Instead, she asked whether Xu Wenrui had reconciled with Wu Beibei after breaking up with Deng Chun. Xu Wenrui’s father said he did not know, but insisted Wu Beibei would never be accepted; the family disapproved because, despite her lively appearance, she was a habitual liar and seemed to lack both character and proper upbringing.

As for why Deng Chun was also strongly rejected, Xu Wenrui’s father was full of grievances.

“Do you think our family is difficult to get along with? Wu Beibei is pretty, but we don’t accept her because she’s dishonest. Deng Chun’s honesty is hard to judge, and you’ve seen her appearance, which is not particularly good, so we don’t accept her either.” He said to Yan Xue, “Actually, appearance isn’t the most important thing. When it comes to finding a partner, our child’s own preferences matter most; we’re not tyrannical about that. But Deng Chun—her personality is really off.”

“What do you mean by ‘off’? Can you be more specific?” Yan Xue sensed that her call for advice would yield something worthwhile.

“Just look at her behavior after the breakup, calling my wife over and over from different numbers—don’t you think that’s strange? Who does that? It’s not just that girls are usually shy and prideful, feeling embarrassed. Even the most persistent, thick-skinned suitor wouldn’t go that far.

By then, we couldn’t even tell if she truly wanted us to relent and approve her relationship with Wenrui, or if she was simply angry about the breakup and wanted to punish us for it.

But that’s all after the breakup. Before that, we once ate out with relatives over the weekend and called Wenrui to join us. For whatever reason, Wenrui brought Deng Chun along. My wife was not happy, but with relatives present, she kept up appearances and didn’t show her displeasure or ask Deng Chun to leave.

During the meal, Wenrui’s cousin-in-law, the pregnant one, had previously suffered from severe morning sickness and had just begun to regain her appetite. She was about to take some food when Deng Chun turned the platter away. At first, we thought it was an accident, but soon realized that every time Wenrui’s cousin-in-law tried to take food, Deng Chun would turn the table. Wenrui’s cousin grew annoyed, and when Deng Chun tried again, he held the lazy Susan firmly and asked, with a grim expression, what she was doing.”

“Yes, what was she doing?” Yan Xue was puzzled. “Did they know each other before? Was there some past grievance?”

“No, they’d never met before. If they had, and didn’t get along, we’d just think Deng Chun was petty and picking a fight at the wrong time. But they were strangers; this was their first meeting.” Xu Wenrui’s father sighed repeatedly, as if even now he could not understand. “Wenrui’s cousin was clearly upset. His wife, pregnant, finally able to eat, with someone always interfering—anyone would be angry.

He asked Deng Chun what she was doing, and if she could let his wife eat in peace. Deng Chun ignored him and told Wenrui’s cousin-in-law that she was turning the table for her own good, since she didn’t look particularly slim, and after pregnancy she should be careful. If she gained too much weight, it would be tolerable, but if the baby grew too large, it could lead to difficult labor, hemorrhage, even death—two lives lost.”

“She said that at the table, right in front of everyone?” Yan Xue was genuinely shocked.

“Yes!” Xu Wenrui’s father sighed again. “No matter how rational you are, those words are unpleasant to hear. The pregnant woman was Wenrui’s aunt’s daughter-in-law, and after Deng Chun spoke, the whole family was unhappy. Wenrui’s aunt immediately rebuked Deng Chun, saying a young, unmarried woman had no right to lecture others about such matters.

That was already polite, out of respect for our family. We were embarrassed and apologized, trying to smooth things over. While we apologized, Deng Chun insisted she was innocent, telling Wenrui’s aunt that you don’t need personal experience to speak on such issues; she was only thinking of the cousin-in-law’s best interest. Otherwise, if something really happened, it wouldn’t be her child or her wife at risk—it had nothing to do with her, and she could have easily minded her own business.

When she said that, Wenrui’s aunt was so angry she nearly threw her chopsticks. At that moment, Wenrui’s other aunt’s young grandson asked what ‘death’ meant. Deng Chun responded quickly, explaining to the child what death was, telling him that everyone dies—his parents, grandparents, and himself included. The child was so frightened he burst into tears; the scene was utter chaos.”