"Mama, can we find Jian’an another child bride?"
Hearing Little Niangao bring this up again, Lin Xiaoguai furrowed her brows, "You seem particularly fixated on this, don’t you?"
Initially, she had thought her son was just jealous and unhappy, but now it seemed there might be another reason.
Shen Yinian bowed his head, fiddling with the basketball in his hands, and pursed his lips, "I don’t like Zhang Xin. Recently, because of her, Jian’an has missed a lot of his lessons."
Because of intellectual reasons, Yu Jian’an wasn’t attending school, but after Shen Yinian started getting along well with him, he suggested tutoring Jian’an. Lin Xiaoguai, considering her son always handled his studies well and could review by teaching Jian’an, agreed.
Mrs. Zhang was very grateful for this, and Yu Jian’an took his studies seriously. Although he learned slowly, he was very diligent and would murmur words to himself whenever he had free time.
As of now, basic reading and writing were no longer problems for him.
Caught by surprise at Shen Yinian’s words, Lin Xiaoguai thought it over and said, "That’s because Zhang Xin’s eyes haven’t healed completely. Once she’s better, she’ll go to school, and then Jian’an can have time to study."
Shen Yinian was indifferent. With Zhang Xin going to school, wouldn’t he also be in school? He would still only be able to tutor Jian’an after school, and Zhang Xin always seemed to linger...
He didn’t like Zhang Xin, not at all, but seeing his mama’s stance, it seemed she had no plans to interfere.
He sighed with a hint of disappointment.
"Your son seems to have quite an issue with Zhang Xin?" Lin Xiaoguai mentioned to Shen Chi when he came home in the evening.
"If it were me, I’d have an issue too," Shen Chi replied, unsurprised, simply raising an eyebrow.
Lin Xiaoguai narrowed her eyes, "You seem to know something?"
Shen Chi sighed, "Haven’t you noticed that, compared to Jian’an, Zhang Xin prefers to stick closer to Little Niangao?"
At the mention of this, the term "love triangle" popped up in Lin Xiaoguai’s mind, but she quickly shook her head. The kids were too young for those kinds of feelings—Zhang Xin probably just felt closer to the livelier and more likable Little Niangao, due to Jian’an’s more reserved nature.
Shen Chi, however, wasn’t as optimistic. Wanwan might have forgotten, but children from the countryside tend to mature early, especially girls. Perhaps she was an exception because her father-in-law wanted her to focus on her studies, but other countryside girls? Which one of them wasn’t already thinking about marriage at an early age?
It wasn’t that country girls were desperate to marry, but the saying "Marriage is a second rebirth" was best exemplified by them.
Although Zhang Xin was quiet, he didn’t believe she was unaware of what Yu Jian’an meant to her.
But her behavior... clearly wasn’t that of someone content with her lot.
Yet the children were still young, and they couldn’t really intervene much—only hope that Zhang Xin would grow up to be more sensible.
While Lin Xiaoguai was pondering over where to set up the Charitable Foundation’s business office, Shen Chi informed her of the news that Luo Ming’s family planned to visit.
"They’re concerned about Tongtong’s situation and wanted to come early, but since there isn’t a suitable house yet, I thought of letting them stay at Zhi Xin Garden for a while," Shen Chi said.
Aside from the five members of the Luo Family, they were also bringing two nannies. Although their own house could accommodate them, it would be somewhat inconvenient, so he thought of having them stay at Zhi Xin Garden, which had plenty of guest rooms.
"That’s certainly fine, but I remember you’ve been house hunting for several months now, how come you haven’t found anything yet?" Lin Xiaoguai asked, puzzled.
"Everything else is fine, but this is my first time looking for a house. The Military Department has been busy lately, and I can only look during holidays, so this outcome isn’t surprising. Plus, Brother Ming is quite particular about his living standards. It’s not just a holiday villa he’s looking for now, but a home, so of course, he’s even pickier," Shen Chi also felt helpless. If he had known Luo Ming would be so troublesome, he wouldn’t have taken on such a responsibility. Unfortunately, he didn’t have many connections in the real estate field.
Lin Xiaoguai, thoughtful at his words, asked, "What do you think about the villas in Zhi Xin Garden?"
"You’re willing to sell?" The villas in Zhi Xin Garden were naturally nice, but Shen Chi knew that Wanwan was planning to wait until the housing prices rose before selling.
"Moneymaking is just a sideline; Luo Ming is your friend, so why not sell him one. I’d seize any opportunity to make money, but as for being overly concerned about wealth, hardly anyone would believe that," Lin Xiaoguai said.
Shen Chi smiled and curled his lip, "Okay, I’ll tell him when they arrive."
"But those villas are still unfinished, and they’ll need to be decorated before they can be inhabited. I was actually planning on picking out a villa to serve as the current business office for the Charitable Foundation, and then hire a decoration team for both," Lin Xiaoguai added.