Became a National Couple with My Ex Chapter 56: I Believe in Him

Bian Xu was staring ahead, lost in thought. He only snapped out of it when she tugged at his sleeve. Looking down at her tentative fingers, he grabbed her hand and wrapped it in his palm.

"I’m not mad. And I definitely don’t feel…" He paused at the unfamiliar word, furrowing his brows as he tried to recall its meaning. "Wronged."

Liang Yixuan frowned slightly.

She just felt things were unfair for Bian Xu.

His family had always disliked the idea of being in the public eye, yet they set their biases aside and welcomed her. Meanwhile, Bian Xu had gotten up early on the weekend just to drive her to see her grandma, and now, right at the doorstep, they had to turn back because her mom suddenly showed up.

Bian Xu seemed to drift into his own thoughts again, as if trying to remember if he’d ever actually felt wronged before. After a moment, he chuckled dryly. "Liang Yixuan, now that you mention it, I think the only time I ever felt wronged in my twenty-four years was when I let you treat me like a tool, held back for half a year, and then got dumped. Not only dumped, but not even useful anymore."

He nodded with a straight face. "So that’s what it feels like to be wronged."

"…"

Liang Yixuan's hand was still in his, so she used her fingertip to lightly tickle his palm. "I’m trying to be serious here."

"Isn’t this serious?" Bian Xu raised an eyebrow. "What I’m saying is, you’re the only one who can ever make me feel wronged. Your mom—other than being your mom—has nothing to do with me. I can not go in today, but that’s because I care about you, and you care about her. It’s not because I care about her."

Since he didn’t care, this wasn’t an emotional issue for him—just a situation to deal with.

Liang Yixuan let out a sigh and shook her head.

Fine, she’d misjudged him again.

Bian Xu jerked his chin toward the house. "Alright, go on in."

Liang Yixuan blinked in surprise. "Aren’t we going back together?"

"Your mom showing up in Nanhua right now? What else could she be here for? Even if she doesn’t run into you here, she’ll definitely track you down in the city. At least here, your grandma is around—it’s better."

Of course Liang Yixuan had guessed that. She’d just had a "declaration of war" with her mom not long ago, and last night she made her relationship with Bian Xu public. Her mom had definitely come for that.

You can run for a while, but not forever.

She pressed her lips together. "But it’s the weekend… Won’t it be boring for you to go back alone?"

"Office workers really need to stop worrying about us freelancers. Every day’s the weekend for me. What, when you go to work in the future, should I just sit around doing nothing at home?"

"…" Misjudged him. Again.

Liang Yixuan pulled her hand out of his and unbuckled her seatbelt. "Fine. Freelancers are amazing. We office workers are just nosy."

At that very moment upstairs, Grandma Cao Guizhen and Liang Qin were arguing in the bedroom.

"Xuan’s already grown up. How long do you plan to keep controlling her?" Grandma asked from her seat on the bed.

Drying her face with a towel, Liang Qin replied from the bathroom, "If I don’t keep her in check, she’s going to follow in my footsteps."

"And how’s that a bad thing? She’s doing great right now!"

"When I was her age, wasn’t I already the lead soloist at the Northern Ballet?" Liang Qin’s voice trembled. "And then I threw it all away because I had her."

"That’s not fair—how can you blame Xuan for that? You chose to get married, and you chose to have her!"

"No, I don’t blame her. I’ve been blaming myself all these years—for being blind, for making the wrong choices. But now that my daughter’s about to make the same mistakes, you expect me to do nothing?"

"The world’s different now. And Xiaoxu isn’t anything like Lin…"

"Don’t bring up that Lin guy!" Liang Qin cut her off. After a moment, she went on more calmly. "Sure, times have changed. But the risks of pregnancy for people in our profession haven’t. I know my daughter. She’s way too serious about that boy. If I don’t stop her now, are we just going to sit around waiting for her to regret it later?"

"I’ve looked into it. His family is well-off, yes—but the more traditional the family, the more they expect their daughters-in-law to have kids. And with Xuan’s personality, if she does marry into that family and they even hint at wanting children, she’ll either sacrifice herself or feel guilty if she doesn’t. Either way, she’ll never stand tall in that household."

Grandma shook her head. "So what, you think Xuan should never get married or have kids just to keep dancing? People in your field only perform until their thirties, then there’s still a long life ahead!"

"Art requires sacrifice. Whatever happens later, we’ll deal with it then. But right now, the answer is no."

"That’s just your opinion. She should choose her own path. If you force a path on her and she’s miserable, she’ll resent you for the rest of her life. Is that what you want as her mother?"

Liang Qin’s face darkened. "As long as she achieves her dream, I don’t care if she resents me."

Back in front of the house, Liang Yixuan stepped out of Bian Xu’s car, took a deep breath, and walked toward her grandma’s home.

When she entered, the front room was empty. She glanced around the first floor and called out toward the stairs, "Grandma?"

The bedroom upstairs was quiet. Just two minutes earlier, the argument had ended. Hearing her voice, Liang Qin turned to Grandma and said, "I’ll go down." She opened the door.

Standing at the base of the stairs, Liang Yixuan saw her mother step out of the room. She lowered her eyes and said, "Mom."

Liang Qin nodded and walked down the stairs. She sat on the living room couch and gestured to the opposite seat. "Sit."

Liang Yixuan put down her bag and sat across from her.

"Mom’s not going to beat around the bush anymore—I’ll just say it directly," Liang Qin exhaled slowly. "I’ve tried to talk you out of this relationship twice, and it didn’t work. So today, I’ll take a step back—I’ll allow you to date that boy."

Liang Yixuan was surprised for a second, but she quickly sensed there was more to come.

Sure enough, Liang Qin continued: "But I don’t think this decision is very responsible. Maybe it seems too early to talk about this now, but I have to give you a wake-up call."

"Xuan," she said seriously, "because of the nature of your career, as long as you want to keep advancing, having children early isn’t an option. And if you miss the optimal age, your health may decline and you might not be able to have kids at all. You still have years before you retire—have you thought about whether that boy and his family can accept that? And even if they say they can, would they really be fine with it, with no regrets or complaints?"

Liang Yixuan slowly clenched her hands.

"You can date him," Liang Qin shook her head, "but I don’t think this relationship will end well for either of you."

That familiar feeling of suffocation gripped Liang Yixuan’s chest again.

She lowered her head and closed her eyes, taking a few slow breaths. Then she looked up.

"Mom, do you know? Growing up, I often felt like I couldn’t breathe when you talked to me like this."

Liang Qin froze. "Xuan, I just—"

"You’re doing it for my own good. I know," Yixuan interrupted. "But who in this world can say for sure that the way they lived was the best way?"

Liang Qin’s expression flickered slightly.

"It’s hard to say what’s right or wrong—because no one gets to see what the other choice might have led to. All I can do is be honest about what I want, and what I don’t want."

She blinked slowly and said, "Mom, I know you’re trying to step back so that I’ll give up on Bian Xu myself. But I won’t. Even if I can’t see our future clearly, I still want to be with him now. I don’t know if the problems you’re worried about will really happen in the future—but I do know one thing: I trust him."

After another tense and unresolved conversation, Grandma Cao Guizhen came downstairs to mediate.

Liang Qin didn’t say much more in front of her mother, and Yixuan also didn’t want to trouble her grandmother. So the mother and daughter pretended everything was fine. They did some chores, made small talk, and spent the day with Grandma.

By the time evening fell, Liang Qin said it was time to head to the airport.

Liang Yixuan walked her mom to the gate. As they said goodbye, she saw that her mother looked like she was about to say something again. So she quickly spoke first: "Mom, our troupe is casting leads for a new production right now. I’m on the shortlist—I’ll do my best."

Her mother’s thoughts were pulled in a new direction. She nodded, clearly tired.

"I heard you didn’t take part in the last major show?"

Yixuan’s expression stiffened slightly.

She hadn’t told her mother that she’d missed the audition due to Achilles tendonitis.

"You mean Giselle, the one opening in January? I was on a European tour then, so I wasn’t available for casting," she said, making up an excuse. "The one we’re planning now is also a big production, just a few months later."

"Got it. Do your best this time. Go on—head back."

Liang Qin waved her off and walked away. When she reached the end of the street, she suddenly noticed a silver sports car parked there with its headlights on.

As she passed, the driver got out.

She froze when she saw the familiar figure.

Looking back toward the house (now out of sight), she frowned and looked at the man approaching.

"I’m not here to wait for her," Bian Xu said, fastening the button on his blazer and stepping forward in leather shoes. "I’m here to wait for you."

Liang Qin crossed her arms.

"So, Mr. Bian, you’re here to personally report the results of the conversation?"

"Yes."

Liang Qin turned her head and scoffed lightly.

"If you’re here to declare war, don’t bother. I’ve heard enough today."

"Then let me say something you haven’t heard," Bian Xu said with a small smile.

Liang Qin straightened and looked at him seriously.

Bian Xu’s expression grew more firm.

"First, I’ve never liked the idea of rules. Who decided that a ‘complete life’ has to include marriage and children? For me, being with your daughter is a complete life. If she feels she doesn’t need to—or if she’s struggling because of outside pressure, like yours—then forget kids. I don’t even care whether we get married or not."

Liang Qin froze for a moment.

Bian Xu raised his hand slightly.

"Second," he continued, "as an artist myself, I’ve had people warn me not to sacrifice my health for music—but I never listened. So I would never try to stop her from dedicating herself to ballet. I understand her passion, and I support her career. My family is on the same page. And even if someday they aren't—just like you can’t change how I feel about your daughter, they won’t be able to change me either."

Liang Qin slowly lowered her folded arms.

"Third," Bian Xu went on, "I’m guessing your strong opinions about who your daughter should date come from your own past. Maybe... maybe you just can’t stand to see her happy—because whenever you see her happiness, it reminds you of how unhappy you were. If that’s the case, then you’re a poor excuse for a mother."

Liang Qin’s hand, hanging at her side, began to tremble.

"But if that’s not the case—if you do want the best for her," Bian Xu said, with a slight tug at the corner of his mouth, "then rest assured: I’ll make sure your daughter ends up luckier than you."