Immediately, Li Guizhen’s expression changed, and she muttered, "You didn’t discipline your son properly. I was just worried."
"Leave! If you want to live peacefully with Li Mingyi, stay out of Jiajia’s affairs." Yang Jianjun’s tone carried a threat, as if he had some leverage over Li Guizhen.
Li Guizhen was somewhat afraid of this side of Yang Jianjun and reluctantly left. She didn’t appear before Yang Jiabo for the next few years. Rumor had it she got married and was doing alright.
"Dad..." Yang Jiabo called softly.
Yang Jianjun ignored him and turned to Wei Jing instead. "You should go too."
"Alright." Wei Jing felt Yang Jiabo’s grip on his hand tighten, so he patted it reassuringly. "Uncle, my feelings for Jiajia are genuine. Please take some time to calm down. I’ll come back tomorrow."
Yang Jianjun didn’t respond, sitting on the sofa and staring blankly at the floor. Wei Jing understood his love for Yang Jiabo, he needed time to process. Once everyone had left, Yang Jianjun and Yang Jiabo sat silently in the living room, lost in their thoughts. Yang Jiabo didn’t know how to begin. He had hurt his father, who cared deeply for him, and guilt weighed heavily on him.
The two sat quietly until sunset, when Yang Jianjun let out a long sigh and asked, "When did you two get together?"
"Two months ago." Yang Jiabo watched Yang Jianjun carefully, not missing a single change in his expression.
"Wei Jing took such good care of you, even hiring doctors for you. I should’ve noticed sooner." Yang Jianjun was frustrated. His son had been right under his nose, yet he’d let someone "steal" him away.
"He’s the person who treats me best in this world, after you, Dad."
"Does his family know?"
"No, but we don’t plan to keep it a secret forever."
"Jiajia, what if I asked you to break up?" Yang Jianjun tested.
Yang Jiabo didn’t answer, lowering his head as tears fell. He didn’t want to hurt his father, but he also couldn’t bear to leave Wei Jing. If forced to choose, he wouldn’t know what to do.
Yang Jianjun sighed again, his tone grave. "Have you thought about what you’ll face if you stay together?"
"I have. I even tried to run from it. But being with him makes me feel at peace."
The father and son spoke openly for a long time. Yang Jianjun neither agreed nor disagreed.
The next day, before dawn, Wei Jing returned—clearly worried about Yang Jiabo. This time, Yang Jianjun didn’t send him away. Instead, he spoke with him alone all morning. Yang Jiabo waited anxiously, his mind racing with guesses about their conversation.
When they finally finished, Yang Jianjun’s expression remained stern, but Wei Jing gave Yang Jiabo a reassuring look. That evening, Wei Jing’s parents, Wei Changdong and his wife, were invited to the farm.
The three parents sat on opposite sides, their expressions grim. Before them sat Wei Jing and Yang Jiabo, side by side. Yang Jiabo had never felt so nervous, he hadn’t expected to face both sets of parents so suddenly.
After interrogating the two, the parents shooed them out and closed the door for a "parental meeting." Not only was Yang Jianjun struggling to accept their relationship, but Wei Changdong and his wife were also deeply shaken.
"Don’t worry, they’ll agree," Wei Jing said, holding Yang Jiabo’s hand as they strolled around the farm to ease his nerves.
"What if they don’t?"
"Then we’ll find a way to make them agree."
Wei Jing’s confidence rubbed off on Yang Jiabo, helping him relax and think positively.
After the meeting, Wei Jing left with his parents. Yang Jianjun and the Wei Jing’s parents reached some unspoken understanding - they wouldn’t force them apart, but they wouldn’t give them approval either.
For the next few years, Wei Jing never appeared in person but called Yang Jiabo daily. Yang Jiabo missed him terribly but couldn’t visit. He knew about the agreement between Wei Jing and his father.
If Wei Jing could convince his family and stay true to his feelings for three years without seeing Yang Jiabo, Yang Jianjun would finally accept them. Wei Jing knew this was Yang Jianjun’s way of delaying things to avoid hurting Jiajia. But it didn’t matter, he’d prove his sincerity, and Jiajia would stand by him.
After their temporary separation, Yang Jiabo noticed several beautiful, glamorous new employees at the farm. Wherever he went, he’d "coincidentally" run into them.
At first, he didn’t think much of it, but after repeated encounters, he finally caught on - this was his father’s "honey trap." Yang Jiabo didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He could only pretend not to notice and subtly keep his distance.
After a while, Yang Jianjun seemed to realize his plan had failed. Soon, the farm’s guests were mostly sweet, affectionate couples - some even bringing adorable children.
To "save" Yang Jiabo, Yang Jianjun seemed to be trying every trick in the book. Wei Jing faced similar tactics. Their families avoided extreme measures, opting instead for subtle influence.
Wei Jing’s family was large and full of clever minds. Between work and handling his relatives, he stayed busy. Ren Boying, aware of their situation, was green with envy but still helped brainstorm solutions.
Whenever Wei Jing and Yang Jiabo talked, they shared updates about their situations. Since their parents hadn’t outright rejected them, their future still held hope. Yang Jiabo, skilled in growing medicinal herbs and making health-boosting meals, often sent care packages to the Wei family. He never missed a holiday gift, either, even mailing farm-fresh fruits to keep his presence alive in their minds.
When Wei Feng learned about them, he stayed silent for three days before deciding to support them. What else could he do? One was his brother, the other his best friend. He’d always felt Wei Jing treated Jiajia better, now he knew the reason.
Time flowed like water. Just as Yang Jianjun and the Wei family tried to "boil the frog slowly in warm water," Wei Jing and Yang Jiabo did the same. Three years passed in a blink, and their feelings hadn’t faded—if anything, distance made them stronger.
[温水煮青蛙 (wēn shuǐ zhǔ qīngwā): lit. boiling a frog slowly in warm water; fig. gradual changes that go unnoticed until it's too late]
Though Wei Jing never appeared in person, traces of him were everywhere at the Yang farm. Yang Jianjun had exhausted every method to separate them. By now, he’d given up hope but couldn’t bring himself to approve outright—choosing instead to turn a blind eye.
The Wei family weren’t much different. Yang Jiabo had helped their family and was a good kid. If they couldn’t break the two apart, they had no choice but to grudgingly accept it.
It took nearly five years for Yang Jiabo and Wei Jing to finally win their families’ approval. By then, Wei Jing’s company was stable, entrusted to a manager. When needed, Yang Jiabo would accompany him on business.
When not working, the two lived a peaceful rural life on the farm. The land was fertile, whether growing crops or raising livestock, the quality was exceptional, keeping business thriving and demand high.
Yang Jianjun had no grand ambitions, and Yang Jiabo had no ambition beyond being a salted fish. Wei Jing was more than happy to keep him from overworking. Though the farm never expanded, it remained lively, filled with birdsong and blossoms - a place full of life.
[咸鱼 (xiányú): lit. salted fish, chinese internet slang describing someone content with a passive, low-effort lifestyle, similar to the "lying flat" movement.]
-End-
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