Would others think she was being a saint? 

Lu Nan didn’t know. 

She blurted that sentence not because of the two red envelopes. 

And not entirely because of her father’s undisguisable fatigue and graying hair. 

It was simply that her family situation was so complicated, outsiders likely couldn’t understand it at all. 

In her past life, she had analyzed it countless times. 

What kind of feelings should she hold toward her father and mother, and what kind of attitude should she adopt? 

The answer was: no solution. 

Lu Nan’s feelings towards them were never pure love or hatred. 

In fact, Ms. Huang was easier to figure out. She wasn’t very scheming, had a straightforward temper, and was someone whose emotions always ran deep. It was relatively easy to get along with her — a little flattery and occasional firmness would do. 

But Old Lu was different. His mind was much deeper than Ms. Huang’s. After so many years in business, his heart had indeed grown hardened. 

Especially since the Lu family seemed to share a common trait: they didn’t like to invest too much in things they weren’t certain about. 

Lu Nan was like that. Lu Yang was like that. Old Lu was the same. 

After Ms. Huang repeatedly cut off his chances to bond with his children, Old Lu probably just gradually stopped caring. 

Lu Nan thought that she and her father were at least more familiar with each other than strangers, and there was a subtle mutual concern. 

But such emotional ties were fragile when faced with reality. 

They would always, consciously or unconsciously, weigh gains and losses. 

So, rather than father and daughter, they were more like distant relatives. 

Even Ms. Huang, despite cursing her ex-husband year after year, never actually wished for his bankruptcy — at most, she wished some misfortune upon him or “blessed” him to die alone. 

Naturally, Lu Nan didn’t want Old Lu to go bankrupt either. Setting aside the fact that he still had a duty to support Lu Yang, Lu Nan herself was a shareholder in his company. 

Not that he would necessarily listen to my warning anyway, Lu Nan thought. 

She knew this very well. 

So some things were better left to run their course. No need to try too hard. 

After all, in her previous life, Old Lu didn’t go bankrupt in the end—just had a hard time holding things together. From the outside, a dying camel is still bigger than a horse. He never looked too miserable. 

Lu Nan stuffed the red envelopes into her bag and drove to her grandmother’s house. 

As promised, her eldest uncle had saved her some barbecue. Lu Nan didn’t eat much, but her cousin Jingjing and her husband had hearty appetites. Watching them, Lu Nan felt a bit emotional, but not envious: the two had been together from university to working life, basically from school uniforms to wedding gowns. 

Around ten o’clock, they left. Ms. Huang reminded everyone again to come early the next afternoon for tea and chatting before heading out for dinner together. 

Everyone assured her they wouldn’t forget. 

On the way back, Ms. Huang hesitated several times, wanting to say something. 

Lu Nan knew what she wanted to say, so she told her younger brother, “There are two red envelopes in my bag. One of them is yours.” She didn’t say who had given them. 

Ms. Huang leaned over from the passenger seat to peek: “Count it, see how much it is.” 

Still so impatient, can’t even wait to get home to count, Lu Nan thought. 

Lu Yang grunted and began counting. Since the bills were all brand new, some were stuck together tightly and hard to separate. 

By the time Lu Nan had driven more than ten kilometers, her brother finally finished: “Ten thousand.” Same as in previous years — ten thousand for each. 

Mr. Huang gave a cold snort: “Sugar-coated bullets.” 

The boy dared not make a sound, unsure whether to put the envelope in his pocket or not. 

“There are wet wipes in my bag. Wipe your hands — money is dirty,” Lu Nan said, trying to comfort her brother, then teased, “Mom, don’t worry, we’ll just eat the sugar and throw back the bullet.” 

Her daughter had become much bolder over the past six months. Unlike before, when she either stayed silent or argued back stiffly, now she had a knack for dissolving conflict effortlessly. Ms. Huang found that her own anger would quickly be doused by her daughter. 

When they got home, Ms. Huang went to change into pajamas and freshen up. 

Lu Yang, still feeling a bit awkward, whispered, “Mom?” 

Lu Nan nodded. 

“Wow,” Lu Yang sighed in amazement. 

“Behave. The target’s anger level is at 50%. Don’t go looking for trouble.” 

The next day, it was Ms. Huang’s treat. She had picked the restaurant in advance, and Lu Nan helped her with the slightly trickier task of choosing dishes. 

The relatives gathered at Lu Nan’s house for the afternoon before heading to the restaurant. 

Today, Lu Nan brought out two bottles of the 15-year Heavenly Fragrance and National Beauty (Classic Liquor). 

To be honest, her eldest uncle and younger uncle both enjoyed drinking, but when it came to alcohol tolerance, even together they probably couldn’t outdrink her eldest aunt. 

Since Lu Nan’s younger cousin (eldest uncle’s son) was already of legal age and had a driver’s license, the elders could drink freely. 

The designated drivers were arranged, and the others eagerly waited for the waiter to open the bottles. 

Ms. Huang didn’t handle alcohol very well, so Lu Nan spun a decanter in front of herself: “I’ll represent our family.” 

Her words drew cheers from her uncles. 

Her eldest aunt added, “Let’s split into men’s and women’s teams today and see who wins!” 

That comment immediately fired up the “youngsters'” competitive spirits. 

Thus, on the men’s side: the eldest uncle, younger uncle, eldest aunt’s husband, and cousin’s husband; 

On the women’s side: eldest aunt, younger aunt, and Lu Nan. 

Four against three — there was no need to fuss over fairness. Among family, no one cared who drank more or less; as long as everyone was having a good time, that was all that mattered. 

However, with Lu Nan on the women’s side, they were never going to lose. She drank all the way to the end without even a change in her expression. 

As the gathering wrapped up, the eldest uncle, a little tongue-tied from the alcohol, said, “Lu Nan, your alcohol tolerance is seriously impressive.” 

Meanwhile, the brother-in-law whispered to Cousin Jingjing, “Luckily, when we got married, Lu Nan was just a bridesmaid. If she had come up and toasted me with a glass of white liquor, I probably would have collapsed under the table right then.” 

Cousin Jingjing replied, clearly siding with her own family, “Oh, I didn’t even know! Otherwise, I would have slipped her some extra red envelopes back then to help you block those drinks.” 

Brother-in-law shook his head. “No, no, that wouldn’t have been right. Blocking drinks is the best man’s job. How could you ask your sister-in-law to step in?” 

“I was just joking. I wouldn’t have dared suggest it seriously. Otherwise, my mom would have scolded me to death—she’s always adored my younger sister, Lu Nan,” said Jingjing as she picked up the car keys. “Alright, I’m driving.” 

Reunions are always short-lived. On the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, the eldest uncle’s family left. 

Lu Nan was set to leave on the seventh, and on the eleventh, Ms. Huang would return to Hailin. On the sixteenth, Lu Yang would start his new school term. 

Given the schedule, Ms. Huang asked her younger brother to drive Lu Yang to school — with the start of term, he had to bring bedding and winter clothes, which were bulky. Before the younger uncle could say anything, his wife quickly agreed, saying, “Don’t worry, second sister. On the sixteenth, he’s got the mid-morning shift free. We’ll definitely get Lu Yang settled in properly.” 

Before leaving, Lu Nan, without needing to ask, knew Ms. Huang had already collected her younger brother’s red envelopes. She secretly slipped him 200 yuan and said, “It’s not much, but you can buy yourself some snacks.” Still, Lu Nan suspected he’d probably save the money instead — quite like Ms. Huang herself. 

When Lu Nan left, she carried a lot of food with her. Inspired by a seafood seller at the market, Ms. Huang packed a foam box filled with sticky rice dumplings, rice cakes, dumplings, and even a jar of pork lard, all prepared by their grandmother. 

Ms. Huang couldn’t resist a slightly sour remark: “Look at that — out of all the grandkids, Grandma treats you the best.” 

Grandma quickly shushed her second daughter. “Be quiet, Yang Yang might hear you.” 

Before departing, Lu Nan also slipped Grandma a thousand yuan. It wasn’t that she was stingy; Grandma received monthly allowances from the government and regular support from her four children, so she wasn’t in need of money. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been able to save up several gold bracelets for Lu Nan in the past. 

Giving money was more a way for Lu Nan to ease the guilt she felt for not being able to spend more time with Grandma. 

Thankfully, with modern shipping so convenient, Lu Nan planned to send Grandma treats and little gifts regularly, hoping to make her the most envied elderly lady in the village. 

*** 

On the morning of the eighth day of the Lunar New Year, Lu Nan walked into the city office full of energy: “Happy New Year, everyone!” 

There was a half-hearted echo of “Happy New Year” in response; people were physically present, but mentally still on vacation. 

Lu Nan shook her head with a smile and said, “The main task for the next couple of days is to gather sales data from all channels over the holiday period. Today is Wednesday — I’m giving you three days. Submit your data to me before the end of the day Friday. I’ll be attending a monthly meeting in Hailin City on Saturday morning and likely won’t make it back the same day. We’ll hold a ‘back-to-work’ meeting on Monday morning, and I’ll pass along the provincial office’s instructions.” 

To be honest, giving three days was a very smart move — efficient employees could wrap things up in two days and enjoy an extra day off, while slower ones would have to work straight through. Lu Nan’s management of time and workload was sharp — not so strict as to make people fearful, but enough that no one dared slack off. 

After settling her team’s tasks, Lu Nan set out with small gifts to visit the distributors in Hua’an City. 

The easiest visit was to Wenxiu Grand Hotel, which handled a single restaurant channel in Wenxiu City. Before the New Year, Lu Nan had met their manager through a referral from Guo Yu. The hotel had made it clear that they would renew the contract before its April expiry, with the renewal amount remaining at one million yuan — the same as last year. 

Since the hotel had achieved 80% of its sales target last year — a number Lu Nan assessed to be about their upper limit — this visit was primarily about maintaining good relations. 

There were no issues with two other distributors handling circulation channels in Huaqian City and Weipu City. Their contracts were expiring in March, but both owners confirmed that renewals would be signed soon, with the first shipment payments to be made right after the New Year festivities. Although the contract values were modest at 500,000 yuan each, they consistently met their targets every year — Lu Nan noted they had potential for growth. 

The only slight problem was with Sifang Construction. They had a lot of unsold stock and clearly weren’t eager to make payments. Their contract wouldn’t expire until the end of June, and for now, President Zhang showed no intention of discussing renewal. 

Lu Nan nodded understandingly. As she was about to leave, President Zhang asked, “Manager Lu, if I assign Liu Yang to liaise with you going forward, would you be alright with that?” 

“Of course. President Zhang, you truly know how to appoint the right people.” Lu Nan smiled and left the Sifang Construction office, letting out a small sigh. 

Liu Yang — was this what it meant to get exactly what you asked for? 

Lu Nan only gave it a passing thought. After all, they were all adults, and they need to take responsibility for their own decisions. 

She hardly had time to worry about others anyway. The toughest challenge was still ahead — she had to deal with Hongtu Liquor Company next.