CHAPTER 561: CHAPTER 545: BROTHER’S CONCEALMENT

"His son knows how to cut hair. Last year, he learned hairdressing for a year outside and got involved with the shop owner’s daughter over there. The bride price they asked for was a lot, so they thought about selling this house. They have several properties; selling this one doesn’t matter much to them."

"...Oh," Lin Wan and Zhang Shuhua exchanged a glance, signifying that they didn’t understand the rhythm of the wealthy.

"Xiao Wan, do you think this place is good? If it is, Aunt Jin and I will buy it. I think it’s pretty good." Uncle Jin was actually quite satisfied with it.

"I also think it’s pretty good." This floor, besides a few load-bearing pillars, has no dividers. It seems it was built for business purposes. And there’s even a small yard about one meter wide at the back, said to be over a hundred square meters, but it’s almost two hundred square meters in reality.

"It’s just that the place is too big," Aunt Jin felt it was somewhat large.

"Aunt Jin, this place isn’t expensive at five thousand yuan." Zhang Shuhua was actually envious; if she had the money now, she would definitely buy a shop. Having her own shop would mean no more rent to pay in the future.

"It’s a good deal, but with just a few kinds of display items, they won’t stand out."

"Aunt Jin, how about you buy it and rent half to me? Although I also make pastries, I make bread. We could complement each other, and it wouldn’t cause any conflict. It wouldn’t affect business." Zhang Shuhua really thought it suitable, but was afraid Uncle Jin and Aunt Jin wouldn’t understand thoroughly. In fact, having both businesses together might improve business.

"It’s actually not bad," Lin Wan paused to think. Uncle Jin and Aunt Jin mostly make various bean cakes, salted egg yolk pastries, fruit jam boxes, and traditional Beijing pastries.

Zhang Shuhua learned to make bread, which is a different flavor, so let’s see how others choose.

But Lin Wan didn’t dare say much. If Uncle Jin and Aunt Jin felt it wouldn’t work, it wouldn’t be good to push it.

"Bread? I’ve seen that stuff; it’s quite good. Is the girl planning to open her own bakery?" Uncle Jin asked.

"Yes, I studied in Shanghai for a year. I came back this time just to open a bakery, and recently I’ve been looking for a place."

"Alright, we’ll think about it."

Hearing this from Uncle Jin, Zhang Shuhua felt there was hope for the deal.

Lin Wan felt that if there were no conflicts, having both businesses together would be really good.

After Uncle Jin talked to the owner, they set the deal.

The house was made of blue bricks, around five or six years old. It had been rented to several families before, so it was quite dirty. Because of this, Uncle Jin managed to get two hundred yuan off the price.

Once the house was bought, a renovation would probably be necessary.

After setting the deal, they wandered around the street for a while, observing the foot traffic before heading back.

...

"Doctor, how is Mr. Lin doing?" At the district hospital, Secretary Zheng stepped forward to ask the doctor coming out of the emergency room.

"We’re not sure yet. His file mentions a blood clot in his brain, but we didn’t find any during the examination. We’ll need to wait until the patient wakes up to know more."

"When is he likely to wake up?"

"It’s unclear; it depends on the patient’s physical condition. Maybe tonight, maybe in two or three days, but it shouldn’t take too long."

"That’s good, that’s good," Secretary Zheng breathed a big sigh of relief. Lin had fallen into a coma on the way to the hospital. Lin Shou had always said that a long-standing body is valued the most. If something happened to Mr. Lin here, this little secretary’s career might as well be over. Luckily, it was just a temporary coma.

In the hospital room, Lin Guozhi lay motionless on the bed, while the blood in his brain continued to churn...

...

"Xiao Wan, do you think Uncle Jin and Aunt Jin will agree to rent me their storefront?" Zhang Shuhua really liked that place, with its heavy foot traffic. With more people, there would be more spending.

"That depends on Uncle Jin and Aunt Jin’s discussion when they get home," Lin Wan couldn’t say for sure either.

"That’s true, sigh, I’m just overly anxious." Zhang Shuhua looked at the watch on her wrist and said, "It’s getting late; I should head back. Once Aunt Jin hears back, I’ll come over again. Just in case, I’ll also look for other places in the next few days. Xiao Wan, if you need any help, just let me know; I’m free these days."

"I don’t have much here, but you should focus on gaining some weight. You used to look much healthier."

Zhang Shuhua looked down at herself, chuckled, and said, "Yeah, I also think being too thin doesn’t look good."

After seeing Zhang Shuhua off, Lin Wan went to Shilan’s house to bring Little Star back. In the afternoon, Shilan had made some egg custard for Little Star, who ate half a bowl on her own. As soon as Lin Wan picked her up, she fell asleep.

While Little Star was asleep, Lin Wan took an ironed piece of clothing and re-cut and sewn it into a pair of capri pants.

She tried them on and found the fit quite good.

Little Star slept for more than an hour, and during this time, Lin Wan altered ten pairs in total. She specifically called Shilan over to try on a pair as well. They fit nicely!

Around five o’clock, when Mom came back, Lin Wan had already cooked dinner and fed milk to the just-awoken Little Star. She then took two pairs of pants and prepared to head to school.

"Xiao Wan, is your brother not coming back tonight because he has to accompany his superior?" Liang Hongmei asked worriedly before Lin Wan left.

Thinking of her brother’s mysterious demeanor, Lin Wan couldn’t bring herself to say much to Mom. "Uh... Yes, Mom, don’t worry. My brother has a good sense of judgment; he won’t mess around in front of ’leadership’.

"I know your brother has a good sense, but I just can’t shake this feeling of unease. My right eyelid has been twitching all afternoon."

"Mom, maybe you haven’t been sleeping well lately?"

"Sigh, maybe. Alright, you go to school. Be careful on the road."

"Got it, Mom."

....

While the mother and daughter were talking about Lin Yinghui at home, across town at a newly opened guesthouse, the "newlywed" couple were joyfully looking at their wedding photos.

"Look at you, how can you be so careless, bumping into people while walking and ending up with such a big bump? It’s so visible in the photo," Mu Qing reprimanded, pointing at the red mark on Lin Yinghui’s forehead in the photo.

Lin Yinghui chuckled foolishly, "I was worried about missing you, so I rushed." With that, he pulled Mu Qing into his arms, "Qingqing, it’s so good not to have missed you! Did your family know you suddenly came here?"

Mu Qing shook her head, "They don’t know. How could I let them know? I had Mei Lang Jun press the marriage report for me. Once the paperwork cleared, I hurried over. The sooner, the better. If my parents found out that the marriage report had your name instead of Mei Lang Jun’s, they would definitely not agree."

"Qingqing, I’m sorry I can’t give you a grand wedding now, but don’t worry, since we’re legally married now, once we’ve... completed the ceremony, even if your parents are opposed, it won’t matter."

"Yes, Ah Hui, I only have two days’ leave this time. If you miss me, remember to come and visit me. In two years, I’ll retire from the military. Then, I won’t leave this place again," Mu Qing said, resting in Lin Yinghui’s arms. They are now legally husband and wife, without having to restrain themselves like before.

"Okay, when your parents find out, regardless of whether they agree, I’ll give you a wedding. We’ll do it the way you like it most, and we’ll have Xiao Wan design our wedding attire. When Li Congnan got married a while ago, Xiao Wan designed their clothes beautifully. If you wear them, you’ll definitely look even more beautiful than they did."

"It doesn’t have to be with so many people. Just us family is enough. I married you not for show; you’ll have to listen to me on this."

"Alright, alright, I’ll listen to you. Our whole family will listen to you in the future, and you’ll be in charge of the money," Lin Yinghui laughed like a child who just ate a piece of candy.

Mu Qing gave him a sidelong glance, "You haven’t told them at home, have you?"

"No, I haven’t. I won’t tell them just yet. Xiao Wan is quite the sharp one; she probably figured something out yesterday, but I didn’t tell her clearly. It’s mainly about my mom; if she finds out we’ve registered, she’ll definitely want to meet your parents. We’ll keep it a secret for now."

"Will Auntie be angry when she finds out?"

"It’s Mom."

"Oh... Will Mom be angry?" Mu Qing felt a bit shy.

"Back then, Xiao Mei and Han Yi secretly got their marriage certificate behind our backs. To this day, my mom still doesn’t know they got registered early. We’ll just do the same as Xiao Mei."

Mu Qing laughed, "Xiao Wan is so bold. Is she not afraid that mom will be mad?"

"She always does this, and my mom can never do anything about it."

"Hmm," Mu Qing said, wrapping her arms around Lin Yinghui’s neck and giving his lips a gentle kiss.

Lin Yinghui didn’t hold back this time. With his new wife in his arms, it was their wedding night after all. From now on, they could be open about it.

....

Shilan was on the 5 AM train. Lin Wan got up early in the morning, placing the still-sleeping Little Star in Mom’s room.