Chapter 36: No Matter How Trivial, All Must Be Reported to the Three Treasures Hall

  After my elder sister returned home, both grandma and grandpa were very happy. They said they wanted to take in my elder sister, but actually they didn't dare to hit her. They even respected my elder sister's wishes and promised not to force her to learn nursing knowledge anymore. Instead, they let her work at a clothing store. Although others thought it was a pity that she gave up studying nursing to sell clothes, this kind of thing is like feelings - you know it when you experience it yourself. This time, grandma and grandpa really understood. So, grandma had an idea and invited our whole family to their home for dinner.

  During dinner, Auntie said with intention: "Little Lu, in the past if your sister-in-law did something that wasn't quite right, don't take it to heart. You're a high school student and I only finished elementary school third grade. Sometimes when I'm anxious my words aren't very reasonable. We're all family, today I apologize to you."

  The old lady said, "Auntie, it's nothing. Let bygones be bygones. As you said, we're one family and we should all look forward with our heads held high."

  The aunt had a step down and said, "Who says it's not? This time it's really thanks to Xiao Shu and Xiao Xiao. Xiao Xiao is so young and can get along with her classmates so well. In the future, she will definitely be a good seedling and bring glory to the Nan family."

  "Hey, Auntie, don't mention that thing about me finding Xuan Yuan and his cousin again. After I got home that day, my dad and mom scolded me severely, saying I've become too arrogant and can do things without consulting them. And even worse, they said I've gotten myself into a situation where it's hard to repay the favor, especially when Dad heard about the Beishan Engineering thing, his eyebrows were furrowed so tightly, I reckon there's more to it than meets the eye. If it weren't for the urgency of the situation and that I managed to rescue my sister in the end, Dad would probably have made me kneel on the washboard."

  Mom smiled and said, "Hehe, big sister is joking, the baby is still young, who knows what will happen in the future. I hope she can study hard, get into college, that's all I want, it's enough to fulfill my unfulfilled wish of not getting into college. As for other things, let's just go with the flow."

  "En en, but as the saying goes, 'three years old looks old', this is not unreasonable. I still remember when Xiao Xiao was just born, her eyes were particularly bright and spirited, not like our family's clear and dull ones. Little Lu, do you still remember? One time when my sister was in a good mood, she gave Xiao Xiao one mao (a small amount of money), and she even shared it with you to build a house together, she was naughty from a young age."

  Everyone laughed when they heard it, especially my older sister teasing me that I've loved money since I was little, so she directly called me Nan Aicai. I retorted to her that a gentleman loves wealth, but takes it in a righteous way, what's wrong with me, a young woman, loving wealth?

  Auntie said, "Everyone, let's eat. Today's dishes are mainly made by your older brother, but I also made two of my signature dishes. Little Lu, try this braised fish, it's not bad."

  The old mother tasted it and said, "It's really good. Sister-in-law can tell me how to do it. I'll go home and show off my skills to the father-daughter duo, so they won't always look down on me."

  "Hehe, it's just a matter of saying it, but your cooking isn't that great normally, Little Uncle is better at it. Plus, you're the boss of the store now and are busier. I'm not busy either, Big Brother has done it more times than me too. Little Lu, does what you say go in your store? Can you take care of Qingqing a bit? Actually, we didn't want to bother you, but after thinking about it, there's no one suitable, and since she's an apprentice, others won't be as dedicated as family members."

  All mothers would say that, and besides, my mother has always liked my older sister. You know, even when my uncle and aunt were at odds with us in the past, my sister stood on our side. She said something helpless: "Second Aunt, you also know my dad and mom, what can I say? When things are good, they're good, but when things are bad, they're not. I didn't read much either, and I couldn't persuade them. To this day, I still feel heartbroken. Now that we can save my sister, my mother will definitely be overjoyed.

  "Ah, sister-in-law, you're being too polite," said the old lady with a smile. "I'm willing to take Qingqing under my wing, after all, I've watched her grow up. But let's be clear about one thing: family ties don't mean we can ignore the rules. I'll say it upfront so there won't be any misunderstandings later on - this shop isn't mine, so Qingqing can't get special treatment. Lately, we have been short-staffed, so Qingqing will follow me to learn the ropes for now. Since she's interested in this line of work, I'm sure she'll be eager to learn. However, whether she can stay on permanently depends on her performance during the probation period. I need to answer to the boss of this shop, and all I can do is give Qingqing more guidance and opportunities - the outcome still depends on Qingqing herself."

  "Xiao Lu, your words are enough, Qingqing. Don't thank me too much." The older sister was very happy, with a smile in her eyes, saying: "Thank you, Auntie. I will definitely study hard and not disappoint you."

  This matter has been settled, and I heard that my mom and sister went to the store and were very serious about getting familiar with the business. My sister's vision is really good, and her mouth is still usable after some practice. My mom's evaluation of my sister was spot on, if she let my sister continue studying nursing, who knows what kind of medical accidents would happen in the future? My sister is originally quite careless and lacks patience, plus she told me privately that in the past year of studying nursing, she didn't even know how to hang an IV drip, every time the teacher checked on her, she would run to the bathroom.

  On the weekend evening, my dad booked a table at the best private room in Yiran Hotel and invited Ding Beichen and Xuan Yuanrui for dinner. As per Ding Beichen's request, he didn't invite his family's old master, but we don't have much of a relationship with that kind of big shot anyway. If we had invited him, it would have been a bit strange. That guy Ding Beichen really is considerate and gave us an excuse to save face.

  At the dinner table, I found that Ding Bei Cheng was indeed a good drinker, clinking glasses with my dad and chatting idly while eating. They seemed to have hit it off immediately, but I still couldn't quite figure out what kind of person Ding Bei Cheng was - he seemed to get along well with everyone. Next to me sat Xuan Yuan Ruo and my mom, who kept urging him to try different dishes and scolding me, saying: "Baby, don't just focus on eating by yourself, take care of your classmate too! Xuan Yuan, try this dish, it's our signature dish - our baby has been craving it for a long time!"

  I thought to myself: Ah, mom, Xuan Yuan is not greedy, just look at his elegant eating posture and you'll know he won't overeat. His family must have a lot of delicious food too. Since he's not eating, don't waste it, I'd better eat more. Usually can't eat so much good food, today still not enough to make up for it. But on the surface, I still had to pretend to say: "Right, Xuan Yuan, don't be polite, this dish is good, that dish is also good, eat a bit more."

  Mom said, "Baby, you also give some dishes to Xuan Yuan's classmate to eat, don't just talk about it." Mother's orders are hard to disobey, so I casually gave a few dishes to Xuan Yuan. After tasting them, he said, "Auntie, they're really delicious! It's true that hearing about food is not as good as seeing it in person. Auntie, you don't have to be too polite to me, you can eat too."

  The old lady smiled and nodded, seemingly thinking that Xuan Yuan Rui was polite and a good student. Later, the old lady was called away by a phone call halfway through, and at that time, the old lady was still a bit embarrassed. Ding Bei Cheng said with an air of nonchalance: "Auntie has something to attend to, so she can leave first. We don't have anything important, we're just chatting. You won't mind, will you, cousin?"

  Mom called me before she left and told me to take good care of Xuan Yuan Rui. I blurted out that helping him with food wasn't hygienic, but he's actually very particular about hygiene, so what if he gets disgusted? Xuan Yuan Rui immediately responded that he didn't mind, clearly trying to make me lose face. This made mom repeatedly remind me to take care of my classmate, and I was once again deceived by Xuan Yuan Rui's sunny and polite exterior, when in fact he's extremely black-bellied on the inside.

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