CHAPTER 464: CHAPTER 4 CONVERSATION_2

"Okay, I’ll listen to you."

After dinner, Li Fangmei finally woke up and was extremely pleased to see Lin Xiaoguai and her family had come. She grabbed Lin Xiaoguai’s hand and asked, "When did you come back? Why didn’t you wake me up?"

"Why would I wake you up? Didn’t you always say you couldn’t sleep well because of old age?" Lin Xiaoguai took a comb and helped Aunt straighten her messy hair.

"It’s different now. I’ll be sleeping more, so naturally, I want to spend more time with you all." After saying this and seeing her niece’s eyes turning red, Li Fangmei quickly said, "Alright, I won’t make you cry anymore. Why are you still crying like a child?"

Watching Lin Xiaoguai seriously comb her hair, Li Fangmei reminisced, "I still remember when Wanwan was little, just about this tall." She gestured a height and continued, "I used a comb dipped in water to make your lamb horn braids. All the village boys came to see you. Some even wanted to touch your braids, but you slapped their hands red and firmly said they couldn’t ruin them because you wanted to keep them for Dad to see. Every time I think about it, it makes me so happy."

Lin Xiaoguai, a tad embarrassed, wondered why Aunt brought up this story, especially with Shen Chi and the kids around.

"Grandma, what was Mom like when she was a kid?" Little Spring Breeze, who was not shy at all, curiously asked as he leaned over the bed.

Though Shen Chi and Shen Yinian didn’t speak, their perked ears were enough to show their curiosity.

"Is this your youngest son?" Li Fangmei affectionately touched Little Spring Breeze’s head.

"This is Little Spring Breeze." Lin Xiaoguai said softly.

"Good, all good children." Li Fangmei’s gaze swept over the five kids with overwhelming joy in her eyes.

"Grandma, you haven’t told us about Mom’s childhood yet?" Little Spring Breeze gripped Li Fangmei’s hand like he was twisting candy.

Li Fangmei, who always loved when children grew close to her, burst into a broad smile, "Your Mom was very well-behaved when she was little, especially good to her family, but not always so to others."

"Mom fought when she was a kid?" Little Spring Breeze immediately laughed, thinking if that was the case, he would have something to counter with if Mom ever stopped him from fighting!

Lin Xiaoguai could easily guess his thoughts and promptly glared at him.

"Your Mom didn’t need to fight," Li Fangmei said with a squint and a smile. "Wanwan was pretty since she was a child, a standout beauty among the village children. She was clean and well-behaved, simply standing there would make her stand out from the mud-covered kids—like a crane among chickens. The boys would all try to please her, and the girls liked to talk to her. Just a frown of her eyebrows would spell disaster for anyone who angered her."

Back then, children were much more innocent. If it were these days, a girl like Lin Xiaoguai would definitely be the target of bullying—boys with their ’bully the ones you like’ and girls jealous of someone prettier.

"Wow, Mom was so impressive." Little Spring Breeze looked admiringly. Was this what Dad meant by winning battles without fighting?

"Right, impressive, right?" Li Fangmei said somewhat proudly, "Not just in Fengyuan Village, even kids from neighboring villages loved coming to see Wanwan, the ’beauty’ well known far and wide."

"Aunt~" Lin Xiaoguai protested.

"Look at you, all grown up and still shy like a child." Li Fangmei laughed even more joyously.

Shen Chi and others also laughed along. Although close to death, Li Fangmei didn’t carry the gloom of someone about to leave. Her words were filled with acceptance and openness.

Later, Lin Xiaoguai fed Li Fangmei, and Shen Chi and others went out, leaving her to speak alone with Li Fangmei.

"To me, I have lived a life worth living," Li Fangmei turned to her with a smile, "I’ve been poor, rich, bitter, and sweet in this lifetime, but I’ve never regretted marrying into the Lin Family. Compared to me, Wanwan, you are more fortunate. You were born in a better era, met Shen Chi who could protect you from hardships, and are blessed with children."

"Yes, I am very fortunate," Lin Xiaoguai sincerely replied.

Seeing her sincerity, Li Fangmei laughed, her final worries vanishing.

After Li Fangmei fell asleep, Lin Xiaoguai carefully tucked her in and quietly left.

"Xiao Guai!"

Lin Xiaoguai looked up and immediately smiled, "Xiao Xi, why so late?"

"Got held up by some work," Lin Xiaoxi put down his briefcase and said, "How was the trip? Did you get lost anywhere?"

"Smooth, why wouldn’t it be smooth?" Lin Xiaoguai rolled her eyes at him, "Though much has changed here, do you really need to question my sense of direction like this?"

"I was just thinking it has been several years since you visited our old home," Lin Xiaoxi rubbed his nose.

Lin Xiaoguai usually brought the kids here once a year, sometimes with Shen Chi, sometimes alone, generally during Qingming to sweep the tombs, or around the year’s end tired of omnipresent banquets to find some quiet here.

"Speaking of which, where are Xiao Mao and Xiao Yu?" Lin Xiaoguai asked, "Why haven’t I seen them?"

Lin Xiao Mao and Lin Xiao Yu grew up in Lin Xiaoxi’s home, not as bright as their sister, so they stopped schooling after junior high to work. They found partners and got married under Li Fangmei’s arrangement, and now they are mothers.

As for Lin Xiaoniao, while busy with her career even after marrying Luo Jiahe, she had repeatedly delayed having children and was overtaken by her younger sisters. Luckily, Luo Ming and Wen Shuzhen were open-minded parents, and the Luo Family was willing to wait for her career to stabilize; they were living quite well.

(To be continued. If you like this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation or monthly ticket. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)