Mrs. Jiang snapped back at Aunt Sun and descended the stairs feeling refreshed and clear-headed.
Anning was waiting in the car downstairs. When Mrs. Jiang got into the car, her face was all smiles. "That felt so good, finally putting that Mrs. Sun in her place. She’s always praising Liu Fang’s boyfriend—what kind of people are they, calling that impressive? Just look at how eager their entire family is to butter them up. Even if Liu Fang really did marry into their family, it’s no guarantee she’d have a good life."
"Isn’t that the truth."
Third, cradling her cat, was nestled in the car: "I think it’s iffy too. In my view, battling it out just to marry into a good family isn’t as good as making an effort to earn more money. The money you earn yourself is more satisfying to spend, and even if you get married later on, having your own career gives you a voice at ho."
While driving, Anning chatted with Mrs. Jiang: "You’re happy now, right? After we move, we won’t run into Aunt Sun much anymore. Don’t take them to heart too much, just focus on making our family’s life better."
Mrs. Jiang glared at Anning: "If only you guys could find a son-in-law, then I’d be truly happy."
After they moved, Third’s career as an internet celebrity also began.
Third brought ho a lot of clothes and would livestream from ho every now and then—either makeup tutorials or fashion advice.
Really, Third was not only good-looking with a great figure, but she also dressed well and her makeup skills were top-notch. With so training from Anning, she soon gained a decent following after a period of livestreaming.
Once Third had more followers, she started working with various clothing brands.
She would work with niche brands, helping them promote and endorse their products in exchange for clothing and a cut of the sales.
With her own room, Anning could finally focus on designing gas.
She bought a new computer and upgraded it herself before diving into ga design.
As the twelfth lunar month rolled in and the New Year approached, business at the Fuman Building grew more and more bustling, and Mrs. Jiang’s smile beca more frequent.
Just as Mrs. Jiang was preparing for the New Year shopping, Xiao Yuan called Anning to say he was going back to his hotown and asked if she wanted to join him.
After so thought, Anning decided to go back with Xiao Yuan.
Xiao Yuan took leave from work, and Anning told Mrs. Jiang she was going out to scout a project and would be away for a few days, anyway, she managed to fool both Mr. and Mrs. Jiang.
Xiao Yuan booked the plane tickets and confird the timing with Anning.
When Anning was about to leave, Mrs. Jiang offered to take her to the airport.
Anning told Third to take her instead.
Third had also gotten her driver’s license and wasn’t bad behind the wheel, so she could definitely take Anning to the airport.
Thinking it over and considering she didn’t drive herself, Mrs. Jiang agreed to let Third take Anning.
With their luggage, Anning and Third took the elevator down to the parking garage, and once they were in the car, Anning gave Third an address: "Let’s pick up your brother-in-law first."
Third rolled her eyes: "Sis, I’m covering for you to our parents and even driving you to the airport. You’ve got to give a good deal."
Anning smiled: "Since you’re helping us keep it a secret, after we get back, I’ll let your brother-in-law give you a little tweak. It’ll make you even prettier."
"Really?"
Third’s eyes lit up: "Is brother-in-law’s skill that impressive?"
"Believe it or not."
Anning took out her phone to chat with Xiao Yuan.
Thinking about the tweaks, Third quickly drove to pick up Xiao Yuan.
When Third drove there, Xiao Yuan was already waiting outside the residential area with his luggage.
When Third parked the car, Xiao Yuan put his luggage in the trunk and then got into the car. As soon as he did, Third asked, "Brother-in-law, my sister said you can do a tweak for , is that true?"
Xiao Yuan felt pleasantly warm hearing the term ’brother-in-law’: "It’s true. I’ve done several cases before and the results weren’t bad. I’ll try adjusting a bit for you when we get back."
"Then you’ve got to make even prettier. I’m living off my face now."
Third cheerfully chatted while he drove: "If you ruin my face and I can’t make money, I will just have to bum off you guys in the future."
"Sure, we’ll definitely fix it up nicely for you."
"Rest assured."
Third, patting his chest, promised: "I will absolutely keep you two’s secret. If you say not to tell, I’ll make sure our parents don’t find out."
Anning looked up at Third: "Just drive properly and stop blabbering."
Third dropped Anning and Xiao Yuan at the airport and left.
Xiao Yuan carried the luggage with Anning. After getting their boarding passes and checking in their luggage, they arrived at the departure gate, where Xiao Yuan brought out so snacks for Anning and then made a call to ho on his cell phone.
The last ti Xiao Yuan went back, he took the train, which was a long journey. This ti he and Anning flew, and they soon arrived in the city.
Mr. Xiao was waiting with the car at the airport. As soon as they got off the plane, they got in the car and rushed back ho.
On the way back, Anning greeted Mr. Xiao, whose smile was polite yet sowhat reserved, as if he was not able to fully relax.
As they traveled, he spoke with Anning: "Before you ca back, we already cleaned up the house, and the quilts have all been washed. Once you get back, if you find it uncomfortable or inconvenient, it’s okay to stay at a hotel in the county. It’s just that your sister’s house is not renovated yet, otherwise, you could’ve stayed there."
Anning laughed: "Let’s just stay at ho. No matter what, it’s better than a hotel. Hotel quilts look clean, but who knows how many people have used them. It’s more comfortable at ho."
Mr. Xiao’s smile beca much more genuine: "That’s true. Our ho’s quilts are clean, made from cotton we grew ourselves, and they’re so warm."
As soon as they got ho, Mrs. Xiao and Xiao Family’s three sisters ca out to greet them.
When Anning got out of the car, Mrs. Xiao and the three sisters were hesitant to approach.
Anning looked so beautiful and full of grace that Mrs. Xiao and the sisters felt timid upon seeing her.
Xiao Yuan took out the luggage: "Let’s go inside."
Mrs. Xiao then replied: "Yes, yes, let’s go inside quickly, co in."
To welco Xiao Yuan and Anning, the Xiao Family had really made an effort. Mr. Xiao and Mrs. Xiao thoroughly cleaned inside and out, the three sisters had washed the bedding, and Mrs. Xiao went to the county to buy pure cotton fabric, taking out stored cotton to make new bedding for Anning.
Fearing her own taste might not be good enough, when buying the sheets and quilt covers, she specifically asked the shop owner about the kinds young people like and picked the best and most plain colors from the store selections.
Even so, Mrs. Xiao was still nervous, afraid that her future daughter-in-law might not be satisfied and look down on these.
Once Anning arrived, she beca even more nervous and hardly dared talk to Anning once they were inside.
Xiao Yuan’s three sisters were also wary of speaking with Anning, busying themselves with serving tea and water and talking about cooking als. Anning saw this and quickly smiled, saying: "Don’t bus yourselves, sisters, please take a seat and rest. I’ve heard a lot from Xiao Yuan about uncle, auntie, and the sisters, but we’ve never t face to face. Now that we’re finally here, we should spend so ti talking, right?"
Her face was full of smiles, showing a particularly friendly deanor. Then she turned to Mrs. Xiao: "I didn’t know what auntie would like, so I bought you a gold bracelet. If you don’t like this style, you can exchange it for another in the county. When I bought it, I made sure to ask specifically, we have a branch there, so it’s possible to exchange for a different style."
Anning handed over the gifts she had bought for Mrs. Xiao and then told Xiao Yuan’s three sisters: "I brought back a bracelet for each sister. They are from the sa shop as auntie’s, so if you don’t like them, you can exchange them as well."
After distributing the gifts, Anning spoke with Mrs. Xiao: "My family’s hotown is also in the countryside, just without the mountains. I spent ti in the countryside when I was young and still rember so things. But looking at it, our place didn’t seem as interesting as here. Uncle ntioned our family’s reservoir and the mountain we look after. How about, when there is ti, auntie can take on a tour?"
Mrs. Xiao, seeing Anning speak so amiably, wasn’t that nervous anymore.
She smiled back: "Sure, I’ll take you around tomorrow. Our family has leased the mountain, although nothing much grows there in the deep winter, and the reservoir is frozen over. We are waiting for spring next year to develop it further. However, your uncle and I set up a greenhouse in the fields, planted so fresh vegetables, and also grew so strawberries."
"That’s great, I really like strawberries."
Anning’s smile glowed radiantly, staying close to Mrs. Xiao, seemingly very affectionate. This made Mrs. Xiao start to like Anning from the bottom of her heart.
"Eldest, hurry up and bring so strawberries. Look at you, you should have prepared earlier."
Mrs. Xiao directed Xiao Yufeng to wash strawberries, then held Anning’s hand and asked, "Hungry, right? It’s not easy traveling in this cold, I’m worried you might be cold."
Xiao Yui quickly stood up: "The rice is ready, I just need to stir-fry a couple of dishes, and we can eat."
Xiao Yufeng served up bright red strawberries that Anning ate almost half a plate of.
Xiao Yuan must have also laid out so asures in the fields at the foot of the mountain, because the strawberries grown by the Xiao Family were incredibly tasty, these out-of-season fruits were even better than their in-season counterparts.
User Comments
0 comments from readers