Li Weibo returned and reported to his mother, "Mom, that uncle is unbearable. He speaks very formally and is quick with housework. His speed is something neither Uncle's wife nor Aunt can match."
Tian Jing smiled at her second son. "That's Mr. Zeng's personal secretary and life assistant. He's a professional. Don't say anything reckless."
Li Weibo shivered. A personal secretary like that? Who could stand it?
...
Zeng Lin was indeed very fast.
He came to pick up Zeng Jingchu at eleven o'clock.
Zeng Jingchu waved at him. "Why are you so stupid? It's almost time for dinner. Why should I leave?"
"Hurry up and buy me clothes and shoes. I need a suit because I have a wedding to attend tomorrow. Then I'll need things that are easy to put on and take off."
"The day after tomorrow, my legs will be broken and reconnected. You'll have to take care of my eating, drinking, and everything for a hundred days."
Zeng Lin's expression remained unchanged. "Yes! Lin will go now. Does Young Master Zeng need anything else?"
"Yes!" Zeng Jingchu nodded. "Two sets of toys and clothes for a two or three-year-old child, and snacks, because my son has an older brother who is a few days older."
"Yes!"
Zeng Lin was sent out by Zeng Jingchu to run errands.
Zeng Jingchu patted his chest. Freedom was something to be fought for, bit by bit.
...
After lunch, Li Zhengguo took his elder brother and brother-in-law to the backyard to install the water heater and fixtures. With these installed, the bathroom was finally fully usable.
Outside the quadrangle, the courtyard area was bustling with activity.
Sister-in-law Niu and Sister Guilan were chatting and laughing while they worked.
Yu Ziyu sat to the side, listening happily. Li Weili also pulled Han Lushi out to watch the lively rural banquet preparations.
When Shen Jianrong arrived, she saw this bustling scene.
"Ziyu."
Yu Ziyu turned around abruptly and ran towards Shen Jianrong in surprise. "Mom, how did you get here?"
"Took the train, silly girl," Shen Jianrong said, putting an arm around her daughter. "I see you're having quite a bit of fun."
Yu Ziyu's eyes curved into a smile. "Yes, it's very lively and fun. Why didn't you call us to pick you up at the train station?"
Shen Jianrong said dismissively, "Pick me up for what? I know this place, don't I?"
Han Lushi and Li Weili also walked over.
"In-laws."
"In-laws."
"Hey, hey!" Shen Jianrong carefully examined Han Lushi and nodded. "There were too many people that day, and we didn't have time to say much. Comrade Han, you're very good. Lili has good taste."
"Right?" Li Weili said with a blushing smile, "My eyesight is excellent, hahaha."
Han Lushi took the travel bag from Shen Jianrong's hand. "In-laws, please go inside and rest."
"I'm not tired," Shen Jianrong shook her head and handed her shoulder bag to Han Lushi as well.
"Please help me carry these bags inside, Comrade Han. I want to see the lively banquet preparations too. It's rare to have this opportunity."
"Right, right, Mom, you see how happy Aunt Niu and the others are working." Yu Ziyu pulled her mother to Sister-in-law Niu.
Li Weili waved at Han Lushi. "You take the bags in first, I'll wait for you here."
Seeing Li Weili grab the handrail of the steps, Han Lushi felt relieved and entered the quadrangle.
Tian Jing, upon hearing that her in-laws had arrived, hurried out to greet them. However, she saw her in-laws sitting by a water basin, scrubbing the singed pig trotters with Sister-in-law Niu.
Shen Jianrong saw Tian Jing and shook her head at her. "Don't ask me to come inside. I think this is great, it has a real atmosphere."
Tian Jing was amused and speechless. These mother and daughter really had the same personality.
"Alright, if you want to play, then play. Ziyu has been having fun for days."
Han Lushi wasn't particularly interested in such liveliness, but Li Weili liked it. After he came out, he continued to accompany her.
Zeng Lin, after purchasing all the items, came again to pick up Young Master Zeng.
Zeng Jingchu no longer had an excuse. Moreover, the quadrangle was very busy, with people constantly coming and going, carrying things past his room. It was noisy and inconvenient.
As he was being carried away by Zeng Lin, Zeng Jingchu still told Tian Jing that he would come over for dinner.
Tian Jing disagreed. "I'll have Xiaobo send you over two dishes. You're disabled, don't come here to cause trouble."
Zeng Jingchu: "..." He would get a stomachache eating out of a frame.
After seeing Zeng Jingchu off, Tian Jing felt completely at ease.
If it were Zeng Jingliang and Yuan Feng coming, she could accept Zeng Jingliang for Yuan Feng's sake.
But having Zeng Jingchu stay made her uncomfortable. She didn't mind him coming over for a meal occasionally.
The work continued until the sun began to set, and Sister-in-law Niu and the others dispersed.
Xiao Yuan continued with the basic tasks.
Only then did Shen Jianrong enter the quadrangle, not the living room, but the kitchen.
She greeted Mother Li and Ouyang Meihua, who were busy preparing dinner in the kitchen, and then promptly started stoking the fire.
Ouyang Meihua said with a smile, "You think it's fun because you haven't burned firewood before. If you had to do it three meals a day, you'd know."
Shen Jianrong shook her head. "You're talking about someone rushing to cook. Like now, when the family cooks together, stoking the fire is the happiest part."
"You have a point," Ouyang Meihua agreed. "Every time we come here and cook together, there's no rush, no pressure. We chat while we work, and it feels like the work is done very quickly."
Shen Jianrong nodded. "It's better when there are more people and it's lively. In the future, Ziyu's children should be brought back often to experience the joy of a big family."
Mother Li nodded. "That's a must. They'll only develop deep relationships if they come back often and interact with the children at home."
...
After dinner, Shen Jianrong chatted with Tian Jing about the fates of the Shen family members.
Shen Xiaohui was finally divorced due to the trouble caused by her elder sister-in-law, who had returned to her maiden home.
Tu Changhua was initially against it, but he couldn't withstand the dual pressure from his elder sister and mother.
Shen Jianming had retired, and Ma Xingxiang had been sentenced. Shen Xiaohui not only had no value to exploit but also cast a shadow on the Tu family.
Shen Xiaohui received some assets and returned to her maiden home alone.
Shen Xiaoping, as the legal representative, was sentenced to two and a half years in prison.
When Huang Zongliang visited Shen Xiaoping, he reprimanded her for using tax evasion for personal gain, causing economic and reputational damage to the Huang family.
As long as Shen Xiaoping agreed to leave with nothing, he wouldn't make her return the embezzled money, nor would he make her pay the back taxes and fines.
Shen Xiaoping's condition for agreement was to change the legal representative.
Huang Zongliang readily agreed. Since Shen Xiaoping was no longer a member of the Huang family, the business license would definitely need to be changed.
Ma Xingxiang and Zhao Qilan were both sentenced to three years.
Initially, due to the large bribe amount, they were sentenced to one and a half years. However, their respective maternal families reported their obstruction of justice.
They were convicted of both crimes.
Shen Jianming and Shen Jianhui "gloriously retired to the second line" and told Ma Xingxiang and Zhao Qilan to reform themselves well, as they awaited their completely new return.
"I don't care about the Huang or Tu families. I just didn't expect my elder and second brothers to also... sigh!"
Tian Jing chuckled and said, "It's all a show. Life is like a play, entirely dependent on acting."
Shen Jianrong froze for a moment, then nodded in agreement.
"That's right, life is like a play, entirely dependent on acting. Those who got into trouble were the ones who failed their performance, and those who didn't are the ones with superb acting skills."
After speaking, she sighed again. "Those two are my own brothers, after all. I find it hard to accept."
"No matter how detestable Ma Xingxiang and Zhao Qilan are, they are my sisters-in-law. I feel a sliver of sympathy for them."
It was a mirror effect of sympathizing with the weak, a psychology that most people experience.
Tian Jing didn't explain to Shen Jianrong, as an explanation might be perceived negatively.
"Why was Shen Xiaoping's condition for agreeing to the divorce to change the legal representative?"
Shen Jianrong revealed a sarcastic smile. "Because she was afraid the Huang family would continue to make her a scapegoat."
"At the same time, she asked to see me. After seeing me, she asked me to help her get revenge on the Huang family."
"I ignored her. She was so consumed by her anger to destroy the Huang family that she didn't even consider she had a daughter of a few years old in the Huang family."
Tian Jing countered, "If it were you, what would you do? Be willing to go to jail for someone else? Be willing to be kicked out with nothing?"
"I would definitely not be willing!" Shen Jianrong immediately disagreed.
"I would... Forget it, forget it, it was my fault. I shouldn't have spoken about Xiaoping like that. So, are you agreeing to help Xiaoping?"
"I didn't agree," Tian Jing shook her head. "After you called last time saying Shen Xiaoping was pushed out as a scapegoat, I decided to ruin the Huang family."
"Mrs. Gong already has a good husband, that's enough. As for her maiden family, it doesn't matter."
Shen Jianrong shivered. Captain Tian, are you planning to live up to your fearsome reputation?