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Chapter 334: Chapter 334: Sweet Aftereffects
The family courtyard.
After taking a bath, Si Chen sat at the dinner table. Tong Yao served him a bowl of bone soup and casually said, "Xiaohui said Auntie and Uncle are getting divorced, and mom has already gone home. Did you know about this?"
"I knew." Si Chen nodded lightly and said softly, "She came to find me at the hospital today. I gave her all the twenty yuan I had on me."
Tong Yao finished serving the soup and sat at the dining table, puzzled, "I found it strange that Auntie would suddenly mention divorce, and that Mom would hurry back to Li City."
Si Chen frowned slightly, "Let them sort it out themselves. You don’t have to let Xiaohui and Song Yu in next time they come."
"Xiaohui seems to want to stay in Kyoto. If the two of them can’t find jobs, their money won’t last long." Although Tong Yao had no intention of helping Xiaohui, she knew that Si Chen was not a ruthless person and he wouldn’t just let Xiaohui end up on the streets.
She wanted to know Si Chen’s thoughts.
However, Si Chen furrowed his brows and said, "If they can’t find work or run out of money, they’ll look for Uncle. Even if he doesn’t want to help Xiaohui, he’ll at least give fare money to Xiaohui to go back to Li City."
As their actual father is still around, it’s not his turn to worry. Meantime, Si Chen had no intention of dealing with Xiaohui.
"..."
Tong Yao blinked, muttering in her heart: This guy really doesn’t intend to help Xiaohui, throwing all the trouble to Si Weimin instead.
Yet this was fine, as she too had no intention of dealing with Xiaohui. Whoever wanted to play the saint could go ahead. She wasn’t vying for that role.
Knowing that Si Chen’s mood soured whenever Xiaohui came up, Tong Yao didn’t bring up the matter again. Instead, she talked to Si Chen about buying a house. He had no objections, and even offered his full support.
Only, he had also considered the odds of securing a house and he raised an eyebrow, "The houses in this phase are very popular, and we may not be able to secure a purchase slot."
Given the scarcity of houses these days, privileged people usually have inside access. There aren’t many slots open to the public, and the chances of getting one are quite slim.
Tong Yao grinned and said, "I learned about this from a customer. She seems well-connected. I’ll try to get on her good side and see if she can help."
Don’t judge Tong Yao by her usually fiery temper and direct confrontations. When she wanted to network, she could be quite savvy.
Si Chen knew that Tong Yao was lively and that as she moved more towards business in the future, it wouldn’t hurt to know more people. He pondered for a moment and advised,
"Even if we don’t get a slot, don’t believe in someone else’s words easily. Think through everything before making a decision."
Even though Si Chen doesn’t understand business, he does understand that the marketplace is like a battlefield. With her beauty, some ill-natured people may try to take advantage of Tong Yao’s situation. Despite her cleverness and understanding, she’s still quite young and lacks life experience. Si Chen worried that she might be cheated.
Knowing that Si Chen was worried about her getting cheated, Tong Yao obediently said, "Don’t worry. If I’m not sure about something, I’ll discuss it with you first."
Si Chen nodded, putting a piece of chicken into Tong Yao’s bowl, his eyes on her small face, "Eat more, you’ve lost weight recently, haven’t you been eating well during the day?"
Tong Yao touched her face, puzzled, "No way, I eat loads these days!"
Tong Yao’s love for food was no secret. She had tried all the delicacies in the vicinity of the campus. She also had a constant supply of fruits. In any case, when it came to food, she spared no expense for herself.
The thought that consistently lingered in her mind was - don’t make yourself suffer. Life is short, enjoy the food that you want to eat. She worked hard to earn money to raise the quality of her life, didn’t she?
To improve the quality of life, food was of paramount importance. She needed to eat and dress well.
Observing her clueless and cute demeanor, the corner of Si Chen’s mouth curved upwards, "Maybe I was mistaken."
Realizing Si Chen was teasing her, Tong Yao pouted and huffed, "Have you gotten so used to seeing Lin Man at the hospital, that when you compare the two of us, you think I am thinner, and that’s why you said that?"
Considering that Si Chen and Lin Man worked in the same hospital, Si Chen could see Lin Man more often during the day than he saw her. Tong Yao suddenly felt a sense of bitterness.
She wouldn’t stick to Si Chen for 24 hours a day, but there was a persistent person around Si Chen. Anyone in her place would feel a bit uneasy.
After dealing with the house, she’d focus on Lin Man. She wanted to see just how thick her skin was to be eyeing her own cousin’s husband.
Speaking of Lin Man, Si Chen raised an eyebrow and said, "Today, it was her who took Mom to the department."
Tong Yao frowned, frustrated, "Lin Man hasn’t given up on you yet. If she gets closer to mom, she might say bad things about me. In addition to us not having children yet, Mom might actually want to switch daughters-in-law."
Tong Yao wasn’t overthinking. Such incidents are quite common in reality. With Lin Fengying currently being upset with her, if someone else were to fan the flames, there might be hopes for divorce between Si Chen and her.
Seemingly contemplating Tong Yao’s words, Si Chen solemnly said, "In that case, I will have to work harder."
Tong Yao was perplexed, "What does this have to do with you working harder?"
Si Chen said matter-of-factly, "The main issue she can raise in front of mom is children. If we work harder and have a child, there will be no forms of petty vindictiveness."
Tong Yao blushed slightly at the realization of being trapped, recalling their intimate moments. She took a piece of chicken and put it into his bowl and feigned composure, "In that case, you will need to eat more."
Even though the couple had been married for over a year, they still behaved like newlyweds in many aspects. In her two lifetimes, Tong Yao had only interacted with Si Chen as a man. She wasn’t sure if all newlyweds were as sweet, but it was true for them.
And the aftereffect of their sweetness was that they would be so tired every night that they couldn’t get out of bed...
Before falling asleep, a drowsy Tong Yao pondered whether the arrival of a child would dilute their intimacy.
In the following days, Tong Yao’s life was full and busy, both day and night. She was as busy as a spinning top.
Xiaohui and Song Yu evaporated off the face of the earth and never showed up again. Only Yuan Caizhen paid a visit once. At that time, Tong Yao was not in the store, so Yuan left. Later, Tong Yao tried calling her house once but no one answered.
Tong Yao got to know from Yuan’s mother that Yuan Caizhen wanted a divorce, but Si Weimin did not, so they were separated.
After the arrival of autumn, the weather gradually turned cool. For half a month, it had been gloomy and rainy. When it rained, people preferred not to go out. The wealthy woman seldom came for tea until the rain stopped. When it did, she brought a little white Teddy dog with her.
To be able to talk to her without looking too eager, Tong Yao had specifically brought the little raccoon to the tea shop as a lucky charm. Seeing customers, it would bow its head, and soon enough, the rich lady was attracted to the little raccoon.
