"That’s exactly why I asked you,"
The two of them exchanged a smile, feeling this matter was a perfect fit. Liang Xiao immediately said, "How about I reply to the editor right now?"
"Sure."
Liang Xiao immediately responded to the editor, mentioning that the tax issue needed further negotiation, so she wouldn’t receive a follow-up message anytime soon.
...
After dinner, Fan Tianyu personally drove them back home.
Fan Tianyu was very conscientious. He got up early in the morning to clear out his room, taking all his personal belongings to the living room, while the room was prepped with new items for Liang Xiao, "Xiaoxiao, you can stay in this room. I used to sleep here, but everything has been replaced with new stuff, so you can use it directly."
Liang Xiao felt a bit embarrassed, "Um, Brother Tianyu, if I stay here, where will you sleep?"
"I’ll sleep in the living room," Fan Tianyu replied as if it were a matter of course, and he didn’t see any issue with it.
The more Liang Xiao heard, the more embarrassed she became, "Or maybe I can sleep in the living room. Or I could sleep with Zhenzhen."
Actually, that was the initial plan; however, everyone thought Liang Xiao, who usually shared a dorm with others at school, might want some alone time after coming out. Her own family had many members, bustling with activity. How could she find peace there? Moreover, Mei Mengchen wanted to share a room with her sister, so the only one who could be inconvenienced was Fan Tianyu.
Fan Tianyu really didn’t mind. If he weren’t concerned about a household full of women and children, he would have bunked with Mei Mengcheng. It wasn’t a long-term situation for him anyway, and besides, the living room had air conditioning. Sleeping there wouldn’t be cold, and the sofa was also a sofa bed that could be laid flat for sleeping, so it wouldn���t be uncomfortable. In short, it wouldn’t be hard for him.
"I can’t let a girl sleep in the living room. It’s not convenient. Alright, listen to me. It’s settled like this."
Once Fan Tianyu delivered his final verdict, the matter was decided.
Mei Mengzhen looked up at the clock. It was indeed getting late, "It’s already past 10 o’clock. Let’s hurry up and wash up for bed."
Right, ten o’clock. Fan Tianyu asked in surprise, "It’s already ten, where is Tianhua? Where did she go?"
Mei Mengzhen, about to take her brother back to their room, responded with confusion to Fan Tianyu’s question, "Isn’t she at work?"
"She works in the office. Our company finishes at 6 p.m. She should be home by 8:30 after dinner, and I didn’t even see her at dinner today. Where did she disappear to?"
"Resting?"
"Our company rests on weekends. It’s Friday today, why would she rest on a P day?"
"Then she must be out on a date. Normal people have three or five good friends, maybe she’s gone out to eat or watch a movie with her friends. Or she’s with her boyfriend. Tianhua is such an adult, you’re not worried she’ll get lost, are you?"
Fan Tianyu scoffed, "As if anyone would want someone like Tianhua. Which guy would be blind enough to fancy her?"
No sooner had he spoken than the front door was unlocked, and in came Tianhua, holding a big bouquet of roses—you can say it was the perfect slap in the face.
The key point was that Tianhua, who just entered, must have heard what Tianyu said because the atmosphere was too calm, like the eerie quiet before a storm, and being too calm could easily flip everything upside down.
In the living room, Fan Tianyu, Mei Mengzhen, her brother, and Liang Xiao all stood rooted to the spot, not daring to move. They watched as Tianhua emotionlessly changed her shoes, walked to the dining table to place the flowers, set her bag on a chair, removed her coat, and then started rummaging through the kitchen.
Liang Xiao curiously asked Mei Mengzhen in a low voice, "What is Sister Tianhua looking for?"
Mei Mengzhen thought she knew the Fan family well enough. She speculated, "Probably the rolling pin."
After saying that, she shouted to Tianhua, "Sister Tianhua, if you’re looking for a rolling pin, there’s no need to search. We don’t have one, since we don’t cook." The last part made her almost burst out laughing, but she managed to hold it back until the end.
Indeed, Tianhua stopped searching as soon as she heard that, then calmly shut the cabinet door.
Continuing her search around the stove, she eventually picked up the most conspicuous kitchen knife and even gestured with it in the air for quite a while. Not only Fan Tianyu but all the onlookers trembled, their minds racing to imagine a bloody, violent scene.
Mei Mengchen looked at Tianyu, then at Tianhua, and with his childish voice, reminded, "Sister Tianhua, the books say that killing people is illegal."
Holding the knife, Tianhua replied without expression, "Don’t worry, I won’t kill, I’ll just chop the person into half-dead state, and then I’ll stop. Maybe you should go back to your rooms so you won’t get splashed with blood; I’m afraid it’ll keep you awake all night."
Now that was a great suggestion.
"Alright."
Without hesitation, Mei Mengzhen agreed and urged the innocent Liang Xiao and Mei Mengchen, "Let’s quickly get back to our room."
Liang Xiao helplessly nodded, dragged her luggage, and actually went back to her room.
Fan Tianyu’s eyes pleaded with Mei Mengzhen for help, but she ruthlessly ignored him.
She was about to head back to her room when she hesitated, then turned to Tianyu and said, "Sister Tianhua, not everything has to be resolved with a knife."
Fan Tianyu, who had resigned himself to an inevitable beating or worse, suddenly felt death or injury might have been better options after hearing Mengzhen’s next words.
Mockery can sometimes serve just as well as swords in sibling disputes.
Mei Mengzhen told Tianhua the story of how Tianyu was cuckolded, to which Tianhua listened intently and then set down the knife to laugh at Tianyu.
Of course, she knew what she did wasn’t right, but how else could she have averted a bloody disaster?
Having told the story, Mengzhen looked at Tianyu and said, "Brother Tianyu, I didn’t mean to betray you, but I couldn’t just watch you die in my house. After all, it’s Chenchen’s house; I can’t let it become a haunted house. How would Chenchen live here in the future? He still needs to get married."
Fan Tianyu choked on his disappointment, realizing her words were to protect the house, not him. Sisters, whether they be younger or cousins, are all burdens, and none are an exception.
On the verge of tears, Tianyu hugged Mengchen and lamented, "Chenchen, brother is suffering."
Young Mengchen, naive and innocent, comforted him, "Don’t worry, Brother Tianyu. Even if sister laughs at your green hat, Chenchen won’t. Green hats are pretty! Chenchen likes green. How about I give you another one? If it’s from Chenchen, our sisters definitely won’t laugh."