Su Xiaoqi paid no mind to Shen Yun's thoughts.
She had quickly tidied her clothes and hair and hurried to the main hall.
Everyone greeted her warmly upon seeing her.
They expressed their worry that she had overslept.
"You must be exhausted," Zhao Shi said, her heart aching.
For the past two days, her eyesight had been poor, and Su Xiaoqi had been constantly mindful of her, reminding her of various precautions.
Zhao Shi's concern warmed Su Xiaoqi's heart. She smiled sweetly at her and went to gently press one of her arms.
"Thank you for your concern, Mother-in-law. I am fine, just a bit sleepy."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Shi immediately glared at Shen Yun, "Yun'er, don't stay up too late reading at night.
Don't disturb your wife."
When they heard the first half, everyone thought Zhao Shi was simply concerned about Shen Yun's health, as usual.
She was worried he might overexert himself by reading too late.
Who knew she had another half to her statement?
Shen Yun appropriately put on a wronged expression.
He stepped forward, mimicking Su Xiaoqi's actions by holding Zhao Shi's other arm and lightly pressing it.
He complained that his mother cared more about his wife than her own son.
He, her biological son, was ranked behind Xiao Qi.
Zhao Shi had her son on her left and her daughter-in-law on her right.
Thinking of how smoothly their lives had been since Xiao Qi arrived, she felt immensely pleased.
She reached out and patted Shen Yun's hand, pushing him gently. "Go, go. You're already this old, and you're still acting spoiled with me, an old woman."
Shen Yun felt wronged again and looked to Su Xiaoqi for comfort. "Wife, I'm not that much older than you, am I? Look how Mother pushed me aside."
Su Xiaoqi was surprised by the rare way Zhao Shi and Shen Yun were interacting today.
Her heart also relaxed. She playfully raised her peach blossom eyes and chided, "Yes, you're not much older, only by six or seven years."
At the same time, Su Xiaoqi thought to herself, "Three years make a generation gap, and we're two generation gaps apart."
Shen Yun held his mother with one hand and had already secretly reached for Su Xiaoqi's hand with the other.
As expected, he heard Su Xiaoqi thinking about him again and sighed helplessly.
He had no idea what this generation gap she spoke of was.
After their playful banter, the atmosphere in the house became lively.
When Zhao Xiaozhu returned with food for Zhao Ye, Shen Erdan also came back.
Seeing him holding an empty food box, Su Xiaoqi asked curiously, "Er dan, who were you delivering food to?"
Shen Yun explained, "Uncle. He's not feeling well and can't eat the food cooked by Aunt.
I went to see him earlier, and he hadn't eaten for two meals.
Little sister made some light, easily digestible food for Uncle."
Shen Yun had tried his best to speak tactfully and pleasantly.
But Su Xiaoqi, being astute, understood immediately.
Tch, what a Qian shi. It wasn't that the dishes she made didn't suit Zhao Liushun's taste.
She simply didn't want to serve him.
As the saying goes, no filial son before a sickbed for long.
What's more, Zhao Liushun was a bachelor uncle.
Serving him for a day or two was fine, but serving him for ten days or half a month would likely be difficult.
Su Xiaoqi was quite familiar with Qian shi's character and actions.
That's why she had previously asked Zhao Ye to help take care of him.
However, Zhao Ye couldn't do anything about the food, so they had to seek help from the Shen family today.
"That's fine. My eldest uncle's family always uses a lot of Sichuan peppercorns; the taste is indeed too strong.
Little sister can just make Uncle's portion of the meals from now on," Su Xiaoqi said, immediately giving Shen Xiaomei some recipes beneficial for bone healing.
She told her to make them for Zhao Liushun next time.
Shen Yun glanced at her, fully approving of her actions.
He then looked at his maternal grandmother, who sat in the center and had not spoken.
Before Xiao Qiao arrived, she had said that his wife might not be easy to deal with.
However, the facts proved that he understood Xiao Qi after all.
He knew she would agree, not because she was righteous or understanding.
Just by looking at how she maintained kindness towards the little beggars on the street.
Even more so towards his uncle, with whom she had a somewhat good relationship, she would only do better.
She had even thought of details they hadn't considered.
"Grandmother, Mother-in-law, Husband, I have a suggestion," Su Xiaoqi said before the food was served.
Shen Yun's heart stirred. Su Xiaoqi had already pulled her hand out of his.
But he saw through her thoughts at a glance.
He softly encouraged, "We are all family, Wife. Please speak."
Su Xiaoqi said, "According to the plan, the house should be almost built.
It will be ready by June 10th at the latest. It's now the end of May.
It's only a few days away. There will be extra rooms then.
Why don't we move Uncle into the new house? It will be more convenient for the family to take care of him."
Hearing this proposal, everyone except Shen Yun was somewhat surprised.
Because every family has its own matters.
Unless they were forced like Zhao Xiaozhu, with no home to return to, who would run to live in someone else's house?
Seeing that no one had reacted, Shen Yun expressed his stance in a timely manner, "We'll do as Wife suggests."
Zhao Shi had already formed the habit of listening to Shen Yun in all matters, and he was her own younger brother, so she naturally had no objections.
As for Old Yu Shi, there was even less to say. He was her biological son.
If her legs weren't bad, she would have gone back herself to take good care of him.
Since the elders had no objections, the younger generation certainly wouldn't have any other thoughts.
The matter was thus happily settled.
Shen Yun would handle the rest.
At this moment, everyone had a new impression of Su Xiaoqi, thinking that she was incredibly gentle and kind.
She was someone who thought wholeheartedly about their family.
Even Old Yu Shi, who usually disapproved of her extravagant spending, began to look at her with newfound respect.
Alas, seeing the admiring glances, Su Xiaoqi felt a little embarrassed.
Uh, actually, she wasn't that noble and selfless.
She suggested this purely because she considered Zhao Liushun her patient.
After all, she had put a lot of effort into treating him.
Now that there was hope for his recovery, how could she stand by and watch Qian shi ruin it?
Of course, Su Xiaoqi also had selfish motives.
She could see that Shen Yun had intended to do this for a long time.
Even if she hadn't said anything today, he would have brought it up.
In any case, this matter would only have one outcome: the day the new house was built would be the day Zhao Liushun moved in.
If she proposed it now, she could still earn Shen Yun's praise and the gratitude of the Shen family.
Why wouldn't she do it!
No sooner said than done.
The next day, taking advantage of Shen Yun's day off, the young couple took some fresh pastries Su Xiaoqi had brought back yesterday and went to the end of the village to see the new house being built.
"Wow, they're building so fast," Su Xiaoqi said, looking at the completed house with a shocked expression.
Shen Yun explained,
"Uncle and Second Uncle have been master craftsmen for decades.
They are called upon to build houses in villages for miles around.
With so many people, the construction is naturally fast."
Indeed, Su Xiaoqi saw fifteen of them working around the blue brick house. Some were laying lines, some were sealing the roof, some were tiling, some were carrying bricks, and some were building the courtyard wall...
Everyone was busy with their own tasks, yet the work was smooth and orderly.
Su Xiaoqi said, "Their work is excellent. After the house is built, we should still give each of them a bonus."
Judging by the progress, they would finish the house in early June, in just a few more days.
Shen Yun smiled and nodded.
His young wife earned money like ten people.
She spent money without blinking an eye.
But she was also a person of character, without much calculation or hidden agendas.
He liked that.
The young couple conveyed Su Xiaoqi's decision to everyone, thanked them, and then offered the bitter buckwheat tea and fresh pastries they had brought.
Everyone praised the food enthusiastically.
They said that after building houses for most of their lives, they had never drunk such good tea or eaten such delicious pastries.
And they were being offered extra money on top of the agreed-upon wages.
This was truly a good opportunity that was hard to find even with a lantern.
In the past, other homeowners would always find fault with them, hoping to deduct more money upon handover.
Su Xiaoqi chatted happily with everyone, inadvertently leaving Shen Yun, who had initiated the conversation, behind.
He was left sitting alone under a ginkgo tree, reading a book.
As he was engrossed in his reading, a figure suddenly blocked his view.