The Reborn Sidekick Rejected The Male Lead-Chapter 331 - 321: Persuasion

It was almost ten o’clock when Jiang Nanzhou came back, reeking of alcohol.

He probably thought that Lu Jingqiu had already gone to sleep, so he entered the bedroom cautiously.

But as soon as he closed the door, the light in the room turned on. Lu Jingqiu was sitting up in bed, looking at him with a slight hint of anger, making his heart lurch. Feeling a bit guilty and careful, he said, "Wife, you haven’t slept yet?" After speaking, he saw that his wife still had an expressionless face as she looked at him.

Jiang Nanzhou knew why, and quickly sat down at the edge of the bed, saying, "You already know, don’t you?"

It was then that Lu Jingqiu finally spoke with self-reproach, "If I didn’t know, would you have planned to keep it a secret from me forever, even ready to give up the opportunity to further your studies for me, and then years later tell our child regretfully how, for our sake, you gave up such a good opportunity, in exchange for a few brief years we had together?"

Jiang Nanzhou saw that Lu Jingqiu was really angry, and he hurriedly grabbed her hand, explaining, "Qiuqiu, I have no regrets, and I will never regret it."

"But I would have regrets."

Jiang Nanzhou laughed, "Yes, if I didn’t go, I would always fear that once you found out, it would weigh on your heart, feeling sorry that you and the child held me back. But, wife, have you ever thought, if I truly went, it would be three years of living apart. These three years may not seem long, but they are also the most important three years of our child’s birth and growth. Perhaps, that would be our regret.

No matter what we choose, there will always be regrets. I don’t want to be away from your side when you give birth."

"Giving birth... I am afraid, but it’s not without solution. There’s always a way out; we can’t just give up such a good opportunity because of this.

I admit, it will be tough, me being alone with the child for three years without you by my side. Life isn’t always smooth sailing, it’s just a separation, not as if we won’t see each other. Don’t we still have summer and winter breaks? Out of the twelve months in a year, at least two or three months we can be together, right? That’s already enough. Indeed, the first three years of a child’s life are crucial. But it is just one phase of their growth process.

In the future, there are far more critical stages for our child than these three years — elementary school, middle school, high school; aren’t all of these stages more important? By then, what our child will truly need is the nurturing and companionship of us as parents. As long as we are capable and able, being there for him is enough. I don’t want you to give up such a great opportunity for this reason, Nanzhou. There are not many chances in life; once missed, they’re hard to find again. If we have it, we should hold onto it.

If you succeed in your career, only then can you provide the best security for our child and me in the future, right? We need you, but we don’t want you to give up what you love because of family. Dad is right; in the future, education is what matters most.

Look at how favored university graduates are by employers right now. Shang Ze and Shen Mu haven’t even graduated yet, and they are already holding positions in their units. And about your squad over there, Dad has often said that those technical soldiers are in high demand, let alone someone as talented as you.

Further studies are the best opportunity for you right now. I don’t want to hold you back because of the family."

Jiang Nanzhou looked at his wife’s eyes, growing redder as she spoke, and quickly moved forward to embrace her. He patted her back silently, consoling, "You are not holding me back; I was thinking too narrow-mindedly. Today, Uncle scolded me well, saying I’m too sentimental. But I am sentimental, and I can’t bear to leave you. Wife, I really don’t want to leave you."

"It’s not leaving, it’s just a temporary separation, at most two years. I will graduate in two years, and then I’ll bring the child to Beijing to be with you, how about that?"

"Qiuqiu, let me think about it a bit more," he said.

"Still thinking? Can opportunities wait? If you hesitate any longer, I’ll call Grandpa tomorrow."

"Grandpa knows."

"He knows? He..."

"He told me to consider it myself."

She huffed, "I think Grandpa definitely wants you to go. He just can’t bring himself to say it because he’s afraid it would seem unfair to me, his granddaughter-in-law.

You also, what’s there to feel sorry about? It’s just three years, your husband is going to advance his studies, not to the battlefield. What a great thing! I can think openly, so what’s holding you back?"

Jiang Nanzhou felt a bit heartbroken by Lu Jingqiu’s casual words. It wasn’t so easy. Three years of leaving her alone to take care of the children on her own, and to study, how could he be at ease?

Seeing that he didn’t answer, Lu Jingqiu asked again, "If you’re going to school, when do you need to report?"

"In December."

"Isn’t that coming up? Why not wait until next year?"

"Special admission is different from regular enrollment."

"Husband, go, don’t hesitate. During the New Year, I’ll go to Capital City to find you, and then we’ll be reunited."

"During the New Year, the child will be four months old, right? I’m not at ease."

"I can take care of myself. Don’t forget, I spent three years in the countryside, laboring every day in the fields and I made it through. Now, I’m just going to school, how lucky is that? Don’t worry, I’ll take care of my health. If you miss me, just give me a call.

Shang Ze told me that our alley might get telephone service soon. It’ll be convenient once we have a phone."

Jiang Nanzhou hadn’t expected his wife to think of so much, even of the telephone. He couldn’t bear to leave her, and after thinking it over these days, how could he not know how important this training was for him?

But now that he had a wife and child, he couldn’t just up and go as before, without any ties.

After the couple had opened up to each other, Lu Jingqiu asked him about the details of the competition that had so impressed his leaders and earned him a spot for advanced studies. If it had been anyone else, they wouldn’t know how to contain their joy, but he even made the leaders wait.

Jiang Nanzhou got into bed and held her while he talked about the competition of those few days.

He spoke very technically, and Lu Jingqiu didn’t quite understand, but she knew one thing: that experience of studying abroad had helped him grow a lot and learn many things. These things were very important for their country’s development of high-tech weapons.

The leaders all knew that he had excellent learning abilities and wanted to properly cultivate those skills.

Lu Jingqiu knew very well her husband’s learning capabilities. His English was so good, and he could understand the principles behind mechanical things at a glance, which she greatly admired.

That night, Lu Jingqiu persuaded Jiang Nanzhou a lot. She was not by herself here; her uncle, her second cousin, and Shen Mu, this younger "brother", were all here.

Several close friends also lived nearby. If there was anything, one word and everyone would help out.

She would also get regular checkups at the hospital, write to him every month, and if the alley got a phone, she would call him the first chance she got.

Lu Jingqiu took out the mother and child health booklet she’d made at the hospital and showed him the due date, which was during the holiday.

Lu Jingqiu said with a smile, "Look, even heaven is helping us. When I’m in my postpartum confinement, it’ll be during the holiday, so you can come back and take care of me. I’ll be relying on you then."