"Granny is getting old." Qin Mei's words made Mr. Xie feel a wave of defeat; old age was an unavoidable reality.
"Is her life in danger?" Mr. Xie asked again.
"No." Qin Mei shook her head.
Mr. Xie breathed a sigh of relief. He thought about how they had misunderstood Qin Mei, but the apology was stuck in his throat. 'After all, I'm her father-in-law. If I apologize to my daughter-in-law, what will become of my pride?'
"I'll go talk to your granny." Mr. Xie tried to slip away.
"Dad." Jie Jingchen stopped Mr. Xie. He hadn't called his father over just to clear Qin Mei's name. He threw out two choices. "Will you wash it? Or will Mom?"
Mr. Xie suspected he had misheard. "Jie Jingchen, I'm your father."
"Granny is your mom," Jie Jingchen said, his face expressionless and his tone rigid.
Qin Mei watched the two of them, the tension between them thick enough to cut with a knife. One was imposing, the other short-tempered and irritable.
