Chapter 230: Chapter 213: The Childhood Sweethearts Don’t Match
Yin Shixiu held her hand, his other hand reaching out to wrap around her neck...
Su Xiaomeng’s eyes filled with a smile, she laughed, "Much warmer now."
Yin Shixiu leaned in, kissed the small lips, and mumbled, "...sorry."
"Oh, Honey, That’s all right."
Yin Shixiu was amused by her, his emotions stirred as he kissed her lips again, kissing her little lips, then her ears... Su Xiaomeng stopped him before he could go further...
"Shuangshuang and Huanghuang are here..."
Su Xiaomeng saying this unexpectedly only made Yin Shixiu more excited. He got up, carefully stepped over his son and daughter, turning onto Su Xiaomeng...
"Get off me!"
Su Xiaomeng softly scolded.
But Yin Shixiu only made a "shh..." sound.
Immediately, Su Xiaomeng’s heart leapt to her throat, most of her attention focused on the sleeping Shuangshuang and Huanghuang beside her...
Little kids’ sleep is unpredictable, no one knows when the little ones might wake up.
When someone was satisfied, he sneaked into the bathroom to wash up, while Su Xiaomeng, already tense, was exhausted just from one time, drenched in sweat...
After Yin Shixiu finished washing, she went into the bathroom.
Early the next morning, Yin Shixiu was already awake, while Su Xiaomeng rarely got to sleep in.
When Su Xiaomeng woke again, everything they needed to take to the Ren Family was already prepared.
Su Xiaomeng freshened up, put on a coat matching Yin Shixiu’s, and pushed the stroller to the Ren Family’s place.
With two more people, the ambiance was noticeably livelier.
Su’s mother and Mrs. Ren have always been close; as soon as she got there, she went to help Mrs. Ren without much small talk.
Thanks to what Su’s mother said last night, Su Xiaomeng wasn’t too surprised to see Rong Qiao.
However, Rong Qiao seemed unaware that Yin Shixiu would be there... Though it should have been expected, she simply didn’t think of it.
"Brother Shixiu... Happy New Year."
Yin Shixiu nodded slightly, "Happy New Year."
Ren Yixuan stepped forward to take the gifts from Yin Shixiu and Su Chengji, greeted Su Chengji, but was noticeably colder towards Yin Shixiu.
"Happy New Year."
When Su Xiaomeng’s eyes met Ren Yixuan’s, she greeted naturally.
Not only that, she also greeted Rong Qiao, whose previous encounter wasn’t exactly pleasant.
"Xiao Meng, hurry over and sit, the dishes will take a while, have some snacks first, all made by your Aunt Ren early this morning."
"Oh, sure! Thank you, Uncle Ren."
Mr. Ren walked over to the stroller, looking at the adorable babies, "Xiao Meng, you’re really something, having twins at once, both look so energetic."
Su Xiaomeng chuckled lightly, muttering, "This should be... more about Shixiu being impressive..."
Mr. Ren paused for a moment, then squinted at Su Xiaomeng, "Marrying really makes a difference..."
Su Xiaomeng blushed, gently nudging Yin Shixiu.
"Not incorrect, and it’s not the work of one person, right, Mr. Ren?"
"Haha, yes, yes!"
Ren Yixuan quietly brewed a few cups of tea on the side, listening silently...
Rong Qiao also leaned in to look at the two babies, muttering softly, "They really are quite cute..."
Mr. Ren chuckled, "Xiao Qiao, if you and Yixuan end up together, your kids will definitely be cute too."
"Uncle..."
Rong Qiao, with a blush, lightly scolded, but her tone clearly carried a hint of joy...
Mr. Ren looked at the silently sitting Ren Yixuan beside him, saying, "Son, Xiao Meng and Mr. Yin already have a pair of children. Your career is stable, shouldn’t you speed up a bit too?"
If Ren Yixuan hadn’t brought Rong Qiao back this time, he and his wife would have hesitated about inviting the Su family over for dinner as usual.
After all... as parents, they somewhat knew what their son was feeling.
Xiao Meng suddenly marrying someone else, their son must not have felt good.
Fortunately, their son brought his girlfriend back, and this Rong Qiao is quite pretty and seems sensible.
Since their son was willing to bring her back, it must mean he planned to settle down.
As a result, he and his wife didn’t hesitate to invite the Su family for dinner and celebrate the New Year together.
"Xiao Qiao is still young, no rush."
Ren Yixuan said calmly.
Rong Qiao leaned closer to Ren Yixuan, "No matter how young, younger than Xiao Meng? Yet Xiao Meng is already a mother of two... You two grew up together, aren’t you anxious?"
Ren Yixuan glanced at Rong Qiao, smiling, "Of course, if you are in a hurry, we can hurry up and get it done."
Such blunt words spoken in front of elders were somewhat... inappropriate.
Mr. Ren cleared his throat, then awkwardly said to Su Chengji, "Young couples in love... no boundaries. Chengji, Mr. Yin, please don’t mind."
"What’s there to mind? If Mr. Ren is getting married, I’d certainly be happy for him."
Yin Shixiu said lightly.
Ren Yixuan squinted his eyes... staring back at him.
"Um... Uncle, is there anything you need my help with?"
Su Xiaomeng, sensing a bit of awkwardness, couldn’t help but ask Mr. Ren.
"Aren’t those two kids keeping you busy enough?"
Mr. Ren laughed, then said to Ren Yixuan, "I have cards in my study. The four of you can make up a table and play for a while."
Ren Yixuan followed his father’s words and brought out two decks of cards.
Su Xiaomeng wasn’t in the mood for playing cards. She thought Yin Shixiu probably wasn’t interested in poker either and was planning to refuse, but to her surprise, Yin Shixiu casually said, "Texas Hold’em, do you know how?"
Clearly, he was speaking to Ren Yixuan, not including Su Xiaomeng and Rong Qiao.
Ren Yixuan raised his eyebrows, his sharp but slightly dimmed gaze fixed on Yin Shixiu, who sat himself on the sofa...
Seeing no response from Ren Yixuan, Yin Shixiu finally looked up at him and asked, "Don’t know how?"
Ren Yixuan still said nothing, just held the cards and sat down opposite Yin Shixiu.
He drew a deck of cards from the box and started shuffling them proficiently. After shuffling, he placed the cards in the center of the coffee table, extended his hand, and made a gesture to invite, "Not hard, I know a little."
Yin Shixiu looked at Rong Qiao, "You probably know how, right?"
Rong Qiao nodded and, without waiting for Yin Shixiu to speak, picked up the stack of cards and dealt the first card to both Yin Shixiu and Ren Yixuan.
Two hole cards were placed in front of each of them, and Rong Qiao began to deal the first card.
The card face for Ren Yixuan was relatively high...
Ren Yixuan glanced at Yin Shixiu, squinted his eyes, not rushing Rong Qiao to deal the next card, but instead said, "Since we’re playing Texas Hold’em, if we don’t bet something, it seems a bit dull."
Yin Shixiu curled his lips slightly, "Then you place a bet."
Seeing his expression at that moment, Ren Yixuan knew... his suggestion was exactly what Yin Shixiu wanted.
"Betting money is too vulgar. Why don’t we bet something fresh, something fun, that can match the festive atmosphere? What do you think, President Yin?"
"Let’s hear it."
Su Xiaomeng sat next to Yin Shixiu, inexplicably feeling that this small coffee table resembled a little battlefield...
She tugged at Yin Shixiu’s sleeve, signaling him not to go too far, after all, they were at the Ren Family’s house.
Yin Shixiu took her hand naturally and said, without avoiding it, "Don’t worry, we’re just playing. Your childhood friend has self-control, more than that, he can’t afford to bet."
Su Xiaomeng was startled, realizing Yin Shixiu’s words were somewhat provoking. What was going on in Yin Shixiu’s mind at that moment, Su Xiaomeng truly had no clue.
Ren Yixuan’s gaze swept over the two people exchanging glances in front of him and said lightly, "Since Xiao Meng and I are childhood friends, I think Xiao Meng might be willing, for the sake of that friendship... to dance another dance for me?"
At Ren Yixuan’s words, the remaining three fell silent for a moment, and Yin Shixiu, with eyes as deep as ink, directly looked at Ren Yixuan and chuckled, "I’ve never encountered anyone using someone else’s tokens as a bet."
"Well, here you are."
Ren Yixuan didn’t back down at all, looking at Su Xiaomeng, "Of course, if Xiao Meng is unwilling, I’ll bet something else."
"You guys play your game, don’t drag me—"
Su Xiaomeng hadn’t even finished saying "into this mess" when she was interrupted by Ren Yixuan raising his voice forcefully, "I’ll just bet all the savings under my name. Although it can’t compare to President Yin’s vast fortune, it’s at least a bit of my sincerity."
"Ren Yixuan, what are you doing?"
The first to speak was Rong Qiao, not understanding why Ren Yixuan was doing something so immature.
Ren Yixuan glanced at Rong Qiao, "I’m playing a game with your Brother Shixiu, just watch, don’t interfere."
His cold and hard tone made Rong Qiao a bit uncomfortable, but soon... a smile appeared on her face.
Turns out... he was jealous because of her.
Su Xiaomeng was equally shocked...
Ren Yixuan looked up at her, "Xiao Meng, how about it? Are you willing?"
Su Xiaomeng’s throat choked. She told herself in her heart that Ren Yixuan and Yin Shixiu were just joking around. Who would casually bet all their life savings on a game of Texas Hold’em?
But on the other hand... she was very afraid.
Ren Yixuan... had always been a man of his word.
"Yixuan, stop joking around."
Su Xiaomeng quickly smiled, trying to ease the inexplicable tension in the atmosphere, "Even if you do bet, Shixiu won’t take it."
"...Why wouldn’t he?"
Yin Shixiu said lightly, "Even if I lost, it wouldn’t ruin me, but if I won, it could be for Shuangshuang and Huanghuang’s milk powder money. It could be... a little token from their Uncle Ren."
After saying this, he looked at Su Xiaomeng’s slightly stiff expression, "Or... do you want to be his token?"
This was probably one of the rare moments after truly falling in love with Yin Shixiu that Su Xiaomeng felt genuine displeasure towards this man.
He had always been such a tactful person, even when speaking and interacting with people of a completely different social standing.
Why, then, was he so aggressive today at the Ren Family’s house?
"It’s just a game. If I dance for Uncle Ren and Aunt Ren for some amusement, I don’t think it’s a big deal."
Su Xiaomeng said and then stood up, heading straight to the small lounge next to the room.