Chapter 446: A Fate “Fallen” Into

“Exactly!”

Lei Ben slapped his thigh, a radiant smile blooming across his face. “Didn’t we find out later it was all just a misunderstanding?”

“Auntie Song had pulled me in to help sweep the courtyard.”

“And it was during that sweeping… that I swept up my fate with Qianqian.”

Hearing that, Gu Ning’an chuckled. “So your marriage was arranged by Auntie Song?”

“Mhm!” Lei Ben scratched his head sheepishly. “Back then, I told Auntie Song I liked plump girls…”

“And wouldn’t you know it, she’s got a sixth sense or something… found me Qianqian, the one girl who caught my eye right away…”

Hearing how blunt her husband was, Zhou Qianqian shyly flicked out a sentence from her wooden box:
[Be subtle!]

“Oh, right, right…” Lei Ben nodded repeatedly, then began telling the story of how the two met.

As it turned out, Zhou Qianqian was born and raised in Lexiang County, but because she was mute from birth, her parents worried she’d be bullied outside and kept her sheltered at home.

They weren’t particularly worried about whether she’d ever get married—more afraid that if she did and ended up in a household that mistreated her, she wouldn’t even be able to talk back.

So, they decided not to marry her off at all.

Because of this, Zhou Qianqian had always been a quiet presence in town. Few people even knew that Old Farmer Zhou had a daughter.

Only Auntie Song, an old family friend of over thirty years, knew about her.

And after putting Lei Ben through test after test to see what kind of man he was, she became increasingly convinced he’d never mistreat Zhou Qianqian.

So, bold and straightforward as she was, Auntie Song brought Lei Ben along to visit the Zhou household.

At first, Qianqian’s parents were completely against it—Lei Ben was tall and burly, and looked like the type with a bad temper who might hit people.

But Auntie Song pounded her chest in assurance: if Lei Ben dared lay a finger on Qianqian, she’d personally tear him limb from limb.

With that serious promise from an old friend, her parents finally agreed to let the two meet.

And who would’ve thought that just one look, and it was mutual affection!

Lei Ben reminisced, “I remember the first time I saw her—she was wearing this loose hemp dress, looked like she’d stuffed herself in a sack.”

“But somehow… the moment I saw those big, glistening eyes of hers, I realized maybe being plump or not wasn’t all that important after all.”

Beside him, Zhou Qianqian picked up her box and flicked out a few bamboo slips:

[First meeting!]
[Big bear!]
[Very gentle!]
[Very goofy!]

Seeing this, Lei Ben scratched his head again in embarrassment. “Actually, Qianqian’s shy around strangers—I didn’t know that at first.”

“But that day, when we first met, she wasn’t afraid of me at all. She even came over and made a few gestures.”

“I didn’t understand what she was trying to say, but since she couldn’t talk, I figured I shouldn’t talk either…”

“But I still wanted to show off a little… so I performed a tiger-style boxing set for her…”

“I hadn’t warmed up though, and I was nervous… when I got to the crouching tiger move, my foot slipped and—bam! Flat on my back, sprained my ankle…”

Swish!
[Bear falls!]
[So silly!]

As she expressed herself, Zhou Qianqian smiled faintly. It seemed that no matter how much time had passed, that moment would always bring her joy.

Seeing her smile, Lei Ben took her hand. “It was that smile that stunned me completely—I could never forget it…”

“Later, on our wedding day, I found out her parents had deliberately dressed her in that sack-like dress.”

“They knew she had a good figure, and they were afraid it might attract the wrong kind of attention, so they covered her up like that.”

“That day, Auntie Song gave me this strange look and whispered in my ear…”

‘So, would you say Qianqian counts as plump?’

“If it hadn’t been so crowded, I would’ve dropped to my knees and shouted, ‘She counts! She absolutely counts!’”

Swish!
[Lei Ben’s a fool!]

Swish!
[Always thinking about dirty things!]

As she scolded him, Zhou Qianqian pinched a bit of soft flesh at Lei Ben’s waist and pressed another slip from her box:
[Big bear, fall!]

“Eh?” Lei Ben froze, then muttered, “Wife, let me fall at home… we’re in front of the teacher right now…”

Gu Ning’an laughed. “It’s fine. Fall. I want to see just how much your tiger boxing resembles a bear.”

“Alright then, I’ll take a dive!” With that, Lei Ben took his stance in an open area and performed the Crouching Tiger Pounces move!

He hunched his back, planted his legs in a bow stance, formed tiger claws with his hands, leapt—and promptly flopped onto the ground clumsily.

And honestly, with his build and the way he fell, he really did look just like a big ol’ bear that had slipped.

Clap clap clap!

Zhou Qianqian clapped enthusiastically and held up a slip:
[Husband is the best!]

Lei Ben, apparently hooked on falling, went on to demonstrate side falls, sideways crashes, backflips, forward rolls…

Throughout it all, Gu Ning’an saw a quiet kind of romance in this middle-aged couple’s eyes—something uniquely theirs.

Lei Ben hadn’t said much directly, but Gu Ning’an could piece it together: before meeting him, Zhou Qianqian’s world must’ve been colorless.

Lei Ben had crashed into her life like a ray of sunlight one day.

From then on, right up to now, her once-dull world had become bright and warm.

And the same was true for Lei Ben—Qianqian had added color to the plain thirty years of his life, making it full of flavor.

Fate… such a wondrous thing. When the right two people meet, it becomes a mutual salvation.

Off in the distance, Lei Ben returned from his dramatic “fall,” dusted himself off, and sat back down. After gulping a big mouthful of tea, he said, “Anyway, Qianqian and I getting together—it’s thanks to a lot of people.”

“But the one who gave that first little push… was you, sir. Without you, I wouldn’t have become friends with Auntie Song, and she wouldn’t have introduced me to Qianqian…”

Gu Ning’an waved his hand. “No, that was your fate. Even without me or Auntie Song, the two of you would have met through something else.”

“When fate’s involved, even if you, Lei Ben, were far away, you’d still end up one day in Lexiang County… meeting the reclusive Zhou Qianqian.”

Lei Ben thought for a moment and said, “So what you’re saying is… Qianqian and I were destined to be?”

Gu Ning’an gave a noncommittal smile. “Perhaps.”

“Mhm!” After a pause, Lei Ben turned to his wife and said, “Wife, once we get home, add a new one to your box: ‘Fated husband, Lei Ben!’”

“How’s that?”

Zhou Qianqian nodded.
[Okay!]

Gu Ning’an: …