Chapter 14: Daughter Has Grown Up

“Only my brother really understands me!” Shen Nanqing said with a gentle smile, her eyes full of warmth.

Shen Qian came out from the kitchen and saw them chatting and laughing together, feeling deeply relieved.

Last time, because of family matters related to the Qing family, Qingqing had a big fight with her father. Probably out of spite, she hadn’t come back for a long time. Her father was a man of principles who refused to give in, so the father and daughter were at a deadlock.

If she were to be honest, Qinghao Xuan himself was pretty decent. She’d watched him grow up and he took good care of Qingqing, but the people and issues in his family were complicated and hard to talk about. It was definitely not a good place for her to settle.

But fathers and daughters don’t hold grudges overnight. From the look of it, things were fine now.

Shen Qian wiped her hands on her apron, smiling as she raised her voice, “Enough chatting, come eat now!”

“Yes, yes, let’s eat first,” Shen Father strode over to the dining table, pulled out a chair, and invited Shen Nanqing, “Daughter, sit here and try the fish your mom specially cooked for you.”

Su Hua chimed in, “I have to say, little sister is really lucky. When I went to buy the fish, it was the last one left. If I had been a little later, there wouldn’t have been any.”

“Thanks to mom and sister-in-law, I’ll definitely enjoy it,” Shen Nanqing said with a smile.

Every parent likes others to praise their children, and Shen Father was no exception. He glanced approvingly at his wife, then turned back to help in the kitchen, moving skillfully, clearly no stranger to pitching in.

The meal was lively and full of noise. The whole family sat around chatting, with children occasionally making childish comments that made everyone laugh nonstop.

After the meal, Shen Nanqing took out gifts she had bought for everyone. For the kids, she got candies and snacks; for her mother and sister-in-law, exquisite handkerchiefs and snow cream.

Actually, Shen Nanqing thought qipao dresses suited Shen Qian’s temperament better, but unfortunately, qipaos didn’t quite fit the spirit of modern society.

She thought of a saying: time never defeats a beauty. Her own beauty undoubtedly came from Shen Qian’s true heritage.

Shen Qian had fair skin, delicate features, and slender eyebrows like crescent moons, full of gentleness. Though time and life had left their marks on her, it still couldn’t hide her elegant, refined demeanor.

“This is for me?” Shen Father was slightly surprised. He hadn’t expected to receive a gift. When Shen Nanqing came home before, she only brought treats for the kids—never anything for the adults.

It wasn’t that Shen Nanqing didn’t want to give gifts, but she spent money like water. If it weren’t for Xu Ruyan repaying her debts, she’d truly be broke.

“Of course it’s for you,” Shen Nanqing said as she put a fountain pen in his hand. His hands were covered with calluses but broad and strong, comforting to hold.

She said, “The one you always use should have been replaced long ago. You’re a factory director, yet you have to shake your pen every time before writing. It looks embarrassing.”

Her father felt warmth in his heart. His rough fingers gently stroked the pen. It wasn’t that he couldn’t afford a pen, but the old one held a special meaning.

It was the first prize he won after entering the factory. After all these years, he’d never brought himself to change it—it had sentimental value.

He took off the pen pinned to his chest, replaced it carefully with the new one Shen Nanqing gave him, gently stroked his chest, treasuring it like it was gold inlaid.

Shen Nanru saw his parents immersed in emotion, the room warmed with happiness, and with a smile teased, “Hey! Little sister, you’ve really grown up! Everyone’s got a gift, so what about me? Little sister can’t be biased, you know.”

“Don’t worry! Even if I forget anyone, I won’t forget you, second brother,” Shen Nanqing joked as she handed him a beautiful notebook. “I see how seriously you work. You should always jot things down. I hope from now on you record all your achievements and keep rising in your career.”

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Li Nanru loved hearing that and laughed, “Looks like your second brother’s care for you wasn’t in vain.”

While things were warm and tender at the Shen family, the atmosphere at the Li household was heavy and tense.

“Did Shen Nanqing really say that?” Li Gaoyi raised an eyebrow slightly, took a deep drag of his cigarette, and exhaled, the smoke curling through the air.

“Why would I lie to you?” Li Yanhong replied firmly. Thinking about the deputy factory director’s position, a shadow of gloom clouded her heart, her eyes flashing with resentment.

“As the head of the family, what do you think we should do next? That girl probably went back and badmouthed you to her father, didn’t she?” Li Yanhong said with great concern.

Li Haojun’s eyes darkened slightly. It was all because his mother spoiled Li Haoxuan so much that he’d become reckless and thoughtless.

He had been stuck in the team leader role for far too long. If his father couldn’t be promoted to deputy factory director, then he would never get his chance to shine.

“With Shen Nanqing’s temper, she definitely said bad things about her dad,” Li Haojun’s narrow eyes narrowed further. “We can’t do much now. Let’s first go to the Shen family and have Shen Nanqing back down. Once we stabilize her, we can wait for little brother to come back and make further plans.”

“That’s all we can do.” After saying this, Li Gaoyi threw his unfinished cigarette to the ground and stomped on it forcefully, extinguishing the glowing ember.

The important things in their house were all kept in a locked cabinet, and it was only natural to bring something when asking for favors.

Li Yanhong took a bunch of keys from her pocket, opened the cabinet door, and took out some pastries she had bought especially for Li Haoxuan last time.

She put the pastries into a basket, hesitated for a moment, then opened the packaging and took some out, muttering, “Can’t take them all — maybe Haoxuan will be back tomorrow. He loves these pastries; have to save some for him.”

Li Gaoyi saw his wife dawdling and grew impatient: “Stop dithering, hurry up!”

Li Guifen looked at her mother-in-law locking the cabinet with a bitter expression. The two children could only stare longingly at the basket. Her heart involuntarily churned with sorrow as she pinched Li Haojun hard.

Li Haojun shrugged her hand off and shot her a cold glare, warning her not to be stupid.

His mom’s favoritism was true, but his dad valued him as the eldest son. That was why he turned a blind eye to his wife’s behavior—probably to curry favor with Shen Wenbo.

As long as his dad’s factory director position was secure, that role would eventually be his.

The moonlight was like flowing water. The Shen family’s small detached house hid beneath the swaying shadows of trees, with dim yellow light spilling from the windows and casting silhouettes inside.

Unknown conversations floated through the house, punctuated occasionally by bursts of laughter.

Li Yanhong stared at the two-story small building and the garden full of flowers and plants, her hands clutching the basket tightly. A surge of jealousy welled up inside her like a rising tide.

If it weren’t for Ye Qilan’s shameless seduction of Shen Wenbo back then, the mistress of this small detached house would have been her.

“Is Director Shen home?” Li Gaoyi hunched his back and knocked on the courtyard gate, his rough, hoarse voice calling out. His body cast a distorted shadow in the dim yellow light.

The laughter inside abruptly stopped. The voice carried the gritty, burnt quality of smoke and fire, each word squeezed out like from a broken bellows, making it extremely unpleasant to hear.

The Shen family knew this voice all too well.