Chapter 228: Chapter 211: Retribution for Good and Evil (Part 1)
After playing, the little girl kept giggling...
Su Xiaomeng chuckled and muttered, "If I don’t give you a dose of reality, you’ll think she really likes you..."
Yin Shixiu touched his own face, then squinted his eyes, leaned his face close to Shuangshuang, and rubbed her with the little bit of stubble on his chin, "Little girl, being so naughty, hitting Dad, huh?"
Shuangshuang was avoiding Yin Shixiu’s stubble, giggling sharply, then suddenly, Prince Huang, who was originally drinking milk from his bottle, pounded the bed forcefully!
Yin Shixiu didn’t pay attention and continued playing with Shuangshuang.
"Papa!"
Unexpectedly, the shout from Prince Huang was so sharp that it immediately brought Yin Shixiu’s actions to a halt, and he leaned closer to the dissatisfied-looking Prince Huang...
"What’s up? Huanghuang wants a rub too?"
Prince Huang licked his lips, held his bottle, blinked his eyes, and murmured twice...
So Yin Shixiu went over and gave Prince Huang a few rubs too, making him comfortable enough to continue drinking milk.
Not long after, Grandpa Su and Grandma Su came in, each giving the two little treasures a red envelope, and then Grandpa Su patted Yin Shixiu on the shoulder, "Xiaomeng’s grandma and I are countryside folks, not as well-off as you, the big boss, so the red envelope isn’t big, but it’s a little token of appreciation from the great-grandparents for Shuangshuang and Huanghuang..."
Yin Shixiu nodded and accepted the red envelopes on behalf of the children.
Su Xiaomeng leaned in front of Grandma, stretched out her hand, "Grandma, don’t I get one this year?"
Grandma Su, who doted on her granddaughter dearly, saw her being this cheeky, patted her head, "How could my good granddaughter not get one? Even as a mom now, you’re still the beloved granddaughter of Grandpa and Grandma, right?"
Saying this, she took out another red envelope from her bosom and gave it to Su Xiaomeng.
Su Xiaomeng couldn’t help being happy, raising her eyebrows at Yin Shixiu, boasting, "My grandpa and grandma love me, don’t they?"
Yin Shixiu said nothing, perhaps because these two elders were kind and gentle, that’s why Xiaomeng had such a good personality.
In the countryside, whether the elderly have money when they’re old entirely depends on whether their children are filial enough.
The savings of their youth were all spent on their children, and in the end, all they hope for is for their children to take care of them in their old age.
Su Xiaomeng accepted the red envelopes, and after Grandpa Su and Grandma Su left, she discussed with Yin Shixiu about giving Grandpa and Grandma some money when it was time to leave.
Yin Shixiu had no objections, after all, Grandpa Su’s children seemed pretty honest and wouldn’t take the old folks’ money.
After Shuangshuang and Huanghuang finished their milk, they were sleepy. Su Xiaomeng and Yin Shixiu lulled the children to sleep before going out.
Little Mengxin was quite concerned about the third grandpa, so she pulled Yin Shixiu along to the yard to find him.
To Su Xiaomeng’s surprise and sadness, the third grandpa, sitting in a wheelchair, could barely recognize her...
She couldn’t understand how the third grandpa, who was fine last year at this time, could become muddleheaded and unable to recognize people by this year.
It wasn’t until dinner, when Su’s mother went into the room to help Xiaomeng bathe Shuangshuang and Huanghuang, that she told Su Xiaomeng.
Actually, after Su Jianyi and Zhou Wenxiu took the third grandpa back to the city last year, they soon sent him to a nursing home.
Big brother Su Chenggong had argued about this twice at Su Jianyi’s house.
But in the end, the third grandpa is Su Jianyi’s father, and he holds the right to care for him, so it’s unreasonable for the big brother to argue.
Su Chenggong treated the third grandpa like his own father; Su Jianyi was unwilling, so he even went to the nursing home trying to secretly bring the third grandpa back...
But who knew, the nursing home would only release the third grandpa if Su Jianyi personally handled the paperwork...
"Aren’t they just afraid that Uncle Chenggong will take away the third grandpa’s property? But haven’t all those fields in the third grandpa’s hands already been transferred? What else are they worried about?"
"Your third grandpa still has the land deed for their old house, not just those fields."
Su Xiaomeng furrowed her eyebrows, upset in her heart.
"He’s afraid that Uncle Chenggong will coax away all of your third grandpa’s property."
"Mom... how can they be so bad? Couldn’t Su Jianyi become an official because the third grandpa supported him back then? Third grandma died early, and the third grandpa didn’t remarry for his sake, spending most of his life lonely, and in the end, all they’re eyeing is the little bit of property the third grandpa has..."
"Alright, it’s enough that you know in your heart. Your third grandpa is like this now, and there’s nothing anyone can do."
Su’s mother said, feeling sad too, but some things, one can only watch from the sidelines.
At night, Xiaomeng stayed in the room with the kids, and her aunt Su Xiaomei brought her two children to play in her room.
Du Qian and Du Qing were extremely happy to see their younger siblings, and question after question popped up...
"They look exactly alike! So cute!"
Du Qing said, and Du Qian immediately pointed at Shuangshuang, "It’s obvious she’s chubbier, isn’t it? Look at how round her face is."
He said this while pinching Shuangshuang’s cheek, and Su Xiaomei quickly said, "Xiao Qian, you can’t pinch your sister, it’ll hurt her."
"Oh. Mom, I pinched very lightly..."
He said this, but couldn’t resist touching Shuangshuang again, "Mom, her face is so soft, I feel like I want to take a bite."
Su Xiaomeng laughed, "Then just give her a kiss."
Du Qian glanced at Shuangshuang, blushed a bit, and then looked at Su Xiaomei, asking, "Mom... can I kiss my sister?"
With Su Xiaomei’s approval, he finally leaned in, gave a kiss, and then smacked his lips saying, "Mom, sister smells so nice..."
"Then you can take her home," Su Xiaomeng teased.
"Hmm... can I?"
Du Qian actually believed it.
Su Xiaomeng nodded, "But Qingqing has to stay here and be your cousin’s daughter."
Du Qian hesitated at this, thinking it over, and decided that as cute as Shuangshuang was, he couldn’t give up his own little sister.
Who knew Du Qing would blink and ask Su Xiaomeng, "So if I give you my brother, can I take your brother home?"
Meanwhile downstairs, the men were gathered, having set up a small table for drinking.
Yin Shixiu used the excuse of having two kids to take care of that night to decline the alcohol, staying only because Su’s mother asked him to... to keep an eye on Su’s father.
Sitting diagonally across each other at the small table were Su Chenggong and Su Jianyi, creating a tense atmosphere.
Yin Shixiu observed the situation and knew a quarrel was inevitable.
When the topic turned to the issue of the land Su Chenggong had purchased earlier, the argument indeed started.
Yin Shixiu stayed silent, watching as Su Chengji, after a couple of drinks, wanted to intervene, so he pulled him back.
No matter how much Su Jianyi and Su Chenggong argued, they couldn’t reach an understanding, and since Su Jianyi was concerned about saving face, especially in front of so many relatives, he didn’t want things to get too ugly.
If Su Chengji were to intervene, the situation might become irreparable.
As expected, the argument escalated, and Su Chenggong refused to sell the land back to Su Jianyi, leaving the table in anger.
Su Jianyi frowned, simply remarking that Su Chenggong didn’t have his priorities straight.
Others were biased but didn’t take sides publicly. Once Su Chenggong left, they all tried to persuade Su Jianyi that this matter couldn’t be rushed.
The mindset of ordinary people, Yin Shixiu could approximately understand; after all... he was an official.
Nowadays, when children study and look for jobs, almost everything requires connections. Having a relative who’s an official, especially a high-ranking one, makes many things easier to handle.
This concerned Su Jihong’s son, Le Xiaojun’s son, Le Qianjun, who is two years older than Xiao Meng, about to graduate from a second-tier undergraduate university and anxious about finding an internship.
Le Xiaojun wanted Le Qianjun to take the civil service exam, with Su Jianyi’s position naturally in mind.
So he casually brought it up...
Upon hearing this, Su Jianyi immediately understood his implication and said, "It’s not as easy to be an official as it used to be. It’s not that I, as your older cousin, don’t want to help, but unless I become a deputy mayor, there’s really nothing I can do. I’m just a secretary now..."
"I understand, I do. It’s a bit difficult for you, cousin, but my Qianjun isn’t dumb, he can pass the civil service exam, it’s just that we worry... if by chance..."
Le Xiaojun presented himself very humbly, feeling the need to ask for help...
But Su Jianyi’s face turned cold, "Xiaojun, even if it’s Li Hao, he found his job through his own ability, without relying on me as his father. He knows it’s not easy for me to be an official..."
At this point, Le Xiaojun felt a little embarrassed, his expression not too good...
"But your son did study abroad, after all..."
"If you put it that way, there’s nothing I can do. Back when I took the civil service exam, I did it all by myself. No one could help me with that."
Su Jianyi sighed, looking truly troubled.
Le Xiaojun felt upset. Being relatives, not even this small favor was granted, yet he had to watch the condescending attitude of the Su Jianyi family every day...
It was hard not to feel a bit angry inside, unclear on the significance of recognizing such a relationship.
He took a sip of tea and shortly after, excused himself from the table.
After Le Xiaojun left, the atmosphere grew even more awkward.
Su Xiaomei’s husband, Du Fan, although also from a rural background, had some education, and he broke the tension by asking, "Has Li Hao returned home? Is he planning to develop a career here?"
Mentioning Su Li Hao, Su Jianyi was still full of pride, "Yes, he plans to stay here and develop his career."
"Li Hao is likely to go to Beijing or Shanghai, right?"
"Why would he go to Beijing or Shanghai?"
"Li Hao has been abroad for so many years, why not enter a top company upon his return? Otherwise, wouldn’t it be a waste..."
"He interviewed with Yirui Technology Company in Chengdu before the new year and will formally start working there after the new year."
The others around the table didn’t know much about Yirui Technology, but Du Fan had some insight, given that he regularly watched the news. He knew the company was a subsidiary of a leading domestic internet group enterprise.
He wasn’t sure about global or national rankings, but he recalled multiple news segments in the latter half of last year discussing this company in connection with a ride-hailing software.