Quick Wear: Cousin, Come to the Bowl Quickly

Pushing open the familiar door, everything was as it had always been.

The room was clean and tidy, and had a faint scent of floral water, indicating that it had been carefully cleaned.

A fluffy down comforter covered the soft bed, and the hair clips she had carelessly left behind before leaving home remained on the dressing table. Looking at these familiar objects, a sense of comforting weariness instantly overwhelmed Lin Xi.

"Ah—my bed!" she exclaimed, kicking off her shoes and throwing herself into the soft, fluffy bedding. She sighed contentedly, "Mom, you always said I didn't know how lucky I was, and I didn't believe it. But now I understand. Being able to sleep in such a soft, fragrant bed, without having to sleep in the open and live in fear, is simply the greatest blessing in the world!"

Mrs. Lin sat on the edge of the bed, looking at her spineless appearance, feeling both sorry for her and amused. She reached out and gave her bottom a light pat, saying, "Now you know how wonderful the home is? Let's see if you dare to do it again!"

Lin Xi turned over, wrapped her arms around her waist, buried her face in her mother's soft, warm waist and abdomen, almost greedily inhaling the comforting fragrance emanating from her mother's body, her voice muffled, her tone filled with complete dependence, "I dare not, I will never leave again... I want to stay with Dad and Mom, for the rest of my life."

Mrs. Lin felt a ticklish sensation from her daughter's rubbing, and her heart melted. She reached out and gently combed her daughter's thick, long hair, her gaze so tender it could melt water. "Okay, Mom will take care of you for the rest of your life."

She paused for a moment, a mischievous smile playing on her lips, "It's just... poor Jingyuan."

Lin Xi, who was snuggling close to her mother, froze upon hearing this, her ears turning red. She mumbled incoherently, "He...what's so pitiful about him? Mother, what are you saying..."

Mrs. Lin suppressed a laugh and gently patted her bottom again, her tone becoming more serious, "Still pretending to be stupid with your mother? Do you really think your mother is like your father, that roughneck who cares about nothing but war, unable to see anything?"

She leaned down slightly and lifted Lin Xi's face from her arms, her tone teasing, "From the moment we got off the ship, except when he was answering your father's questions, Jingyuan's eyes have never left you."

As she spoke, she pinched Lin Xi's flushed cheeks and gave a soft snort, saying, "And just now at dinner, the two of you were exchanging glances, even under the table, you kicked him, he touched you... Did you really think your old mother was blind?"

Lin Xi instantly recalled how, at the dinner table, she had repeatedly tried to kick Shen Jingyuan's shin with her toes under the table, hoping he would bring up the matter between them. However, he remained sitting upright and motionless, only managing to reach out and gently squeeze her ankle as a gesture of reassurance when she "harassed" him for the fourth time. Then, he continued talking to Commander Lin as if nothing had happened...

She thought the man was utterly despicable and resolved to ignore him for the next few days, never expecting that her own mother would witness it all.

Thinking of this, Lin Xi's original anger turned into embarrassment. Her cheeks flushed red, and she closed her eyes and buried her face in her mother's arms again, unable to speak for a long time.

Mrs. Lin looked at her red ear tips and sighed softly, her tone full of affection and emotion, "Back then, your father and I thought of entrusting you to Jingyuan, but you were so unwilling, you were so reluctant. Who would have thought that, after all the twists and turns, God would still send you two together?"

Hearing the sigh in her mother's voice, Lin Xi couldn't help but clutch the soft sheets beneath her. After a moment of hesitation, she finally mustered the courage to look up and meet her mother's gaze, her eyelashes trembling as she asked, "Mother, you...you don't object to us being together?"

"Why would we object?" Mrs. Lin affectionately stroked her head, her gaze gentle yet resolute. "Jingyuan is a child your father and I have watched grow up; his character and abilities are impeccable. I feel very reassured entrusting you to him."

She paused, then gently tapped Lin Xi's brow with her fingertip before adding meaningfully, "Besides, eyes don't lie."

The heat that had just subsided on Lin Xi's face returned in an instant. Her eyes darted around, and her voice was barely audible, "W-what kind of look is that...?"

"What other look could it be?" Mrs. Lin was amused by her daughter's obvious attempt to cover up her mistake. "Of course, it's the way he looks at you, and the way you..." She paused deliberately, watching her daughter prick up her ears, before slowly saying, "...the way you look at him."

Lin Xi's ears turned bright red, but she stubbornly insisted, "Aren't they all just two eyes and two eyebrows? What's the difference..."

“Of course they’re different.” Mrs. Lin reached out and gently stroked the tip of her upturned nose, her eyes filled with the knowing and teasing of someone who had been through it all. “Do you think the way your mother and father look at you is the same as the way A-Yuan looks at you? Do you think the way you look at that doll you used to hold onto when you were little is the same as the way you look at all the clothes and jewelry in your closet now?”

This analogy left Lin Xi speechless. She could only bury her face in the blanket and mumble, "What's the difference? I like them both."

Seeing that she was being stubborn, Mrs. Lin was in no hurry to expose her, and instead asked, "By the way, Xixi, do you still remember Xu Yucheng?"

Upon hearing the name, Lin Xi jumped up from the bed like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, her eyes wide with shock. "I remember! Of course I remember! I'd remember him even if he were ashes!" The indignation in her voice remained vivid even after several months.

Mrs. Lin couldn't help but chuckle as she looked at her puffed-up face, as if she were about to pounce and bite someone.

"Judging from your expression... that photo that 'accidentally' fell out of Xu Yucheng's body, it really was you who put it there, wasn't it?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Xi's indignant expression froze instantly, her eyes began to dart around, and her voice lowered, clearly showing her guilt, "W-what photos... I don't know..."

"Do you really think your parents are fools?" Mrs. Lin gently tapped her forehead, but her tone was not reproachful. "Even if Xu Yucheng is confused, he is still an educated person who has studied abroad. Even if he really had other intentions, hiding photos might be possible, but how could he carry such a deadly thing on his person at that critical moment, and then it just so 'coincidentally' fell out and I and your father saw it?"

Seeing that her trick had been easily seen through by her mother, Lin Xi stopped pretending, pouted, lay back down, tugged at the corner of the blanket, and said angrily.

"Who told him to fall in love with someone else and then pretend to be so righteous and pursuing true love! It's as if our Lin family forced him and wronged him! If he didn't want to, he should have just said so earlier. Instead, he wanted to publicly annul the engagement at my coming-of-age ceremony. Isn't he deliberately trying to slap me in the face and slap our Lin family in the face?"

Mentioning this matter, Mrs. Lin's smile faded, and a cold look appeared between her brows. "Yes, our Lin family's daughter, whom we have pampered and raised, is not meant to be a stepping stone for the Xu family to enhance his reputation for 'freedom of love'."

Lin Xi's heart skipped a beat, and she turned to look at her mother, "Mom, did Dad... make a move?"

She asked the question with some hesitation, after all, although the Lin family was a powerful local force in Shanghai, Commander Lin and his wife rarely used their power to oppress others.

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Lin scoffed dismissively, "Why did your father need to personally intervene? At the banquet that day, almost all the prominent families in Shanghai were present, and they watched as the Xu family father and son were 'invited' out."

"I only need to let out a little hint that the Lin family and the Xu family are now on separate paths. Surely the shrewd people in this circle can guess who offended whom?"

Mrs. Lin's tone was flat, but her words carried a chilling undertone.

The Xu family was originally just a small, third-rate family that barely managed to get by. They only managed to improve their business and gain a foothold in Shanghai by attaching themselves to the Lin family and taking advantage of Commander Lin's reputation.

Now that the Lin family no longer provides protection, those who are eager to curry favor or take the opportunity to kick the Xu family while they're down to show their stance will naturally "helpfully" help the Xu family recognize reality.

In the past few months, the Xu family's business has suffered repeated setbacks. I heard that they even lost a large sum of money under someone else's careful scheme, almost crippling them.

Unfortunately, Xu Yucheng was still causing trouble. He repeatedly made a scene in the city while pursuing a female student, losing all face. In the end, his father broke his leg in a fit of rage, and he can only stay at home to recover from his injury, which finally brought some peace.

The Xu family has fallen from grace; they can no longer even enter the circle they once looked down upon.

However, Commander Lin was kind-hearted and remembered their past relationship. He did not completely wipe out the Xu family, but simply allowed them to return to the state they were in before they became dependent on the Lin family.

As for the gap and torment brought about by "it is easy to go from frugality to extravagance, but difficult to go from extravagance to frugality," how the Xu family will endure it is their own business. In any case, with the Lin family above them, the Xu family can forget about ever turning their lives around again.

Lin Xi listened quietly, her face expressionless, as if she were listening to a story unrelated to herself. Only when she heard that Xu Yucheng was "pursuing female students in a grand manner" did she raise an eyebrow almost imperceptibly, revealing a faint smile that was almost mocking, but she did not ask about the fate of the two.

As Mrs. Lin spoke, she kept an eye on her daughter's expression. Seeing that apart from her initial indignation, she did not show any sadness, her last bit of worry finally dissipated, and she breathed a sigh of relief without making a sound.

"Alright, it's getting late. You must be tired from your journey. Go wash up and get some rest." She reached out and ruffled Lin Xi's soft hair, then made to get up.

"Mom!" Lin Xi quickly grabbed her hand, looked up at her with pleading eyes, and hesitated to speak.

Mrs. Lin tried hard to keep a straight face and appear serious, but seeing her daughter's wet eyes, she couldn't help but smile and gently pat her hand. "Alright, about you and Jingyuan, your father... your mother will talk to him."

Lin Xi's eyes lit up, and she was about to breathe a sigh of relief when she saw her mother change the subject, as if she had suddenly remembered something, and a smile with a hint of anticipation appeared on her face.

“However… perhaps…” Mrs. Lin deliberately dragged out her words.

"But what?" Lin Xi's heart jumped again, and she couldn't help but ask.

"It's nothing..." Mrs. Lin decided to keep it a secret, smiling as she withdrew her hand, ignoring her daughter's suddenly resentful look. "Go to sleep early, don't overthink things."

After saying that, he turned and left the room with that meaningful smile, considerately closing the door behind him.

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Wuhu, two chapters today, this little world will end tomorrow, kisses are on the way, Drive is a little after the epilogue, most likely featuring Big Eyes, I'm really scared of Tomato's censorship, love you all, sending hearts