After her son left, Mrs. Zhou asked her husband why he agreed to their son's decision and why he agreed to move.
Mr. Zhou asked his wife, "Didn't you used to say you liked living in a yard where you could grow vegetables?"
"You also said that if the daughter-in-law wasn't good, we would live separately and rely on each other."
Mrs. Zhou nodded, "I did say that, but Xiaomai is very good."
"Because she is so good, we have to give them space and let the young couple be free."
"We consider ourselves enlightened in-laws, but we are still in-laws, not biological parents."
"Even biological parents have friction when living together, and distance makes the heart grow fonder, while proximity breeds contempt."
"After moving out, we can eat as we please, and our son and daughter-in-law won't always have to accommodate us."
"Yulin won't run to his grandmother every time his mother scolds him."
"If you help your daughter-in-law, Yulin will be unhappy. If you help Yulin, can't Xiaomai criticize her son?"
Mrs. Zhou froze. "Do you think I'm spoiling Yulin too much?"
"Yes." Mr. Zhou nodded. "I go out for strolls when I have nothing else to do, precisely because I don't want to see you unconditionally doting on Yulin, and Xiaomai feels stifled by not being able to criticize Yulin."
"Then why didn't you say so earlier!" Mrs. Zhou blamed her husband.
"Didn't I say so? The moment I mentioned it, you got angry with me, and in front of Xiaomai, you said I..."
Seeing his wife's eyes flash with anger, Mr. Zhou quickly changed his words, "Uh, yes, blame me, it was my fault for not saying it, it's my mistake."
"Shall we move out? Yulin can be sent to us, and you can spoil him however you want."
"Without you around, Xiaomai can criticize naughty Yulin as much as she wants."
"Spoil him?" Mrs. Zhou thought carefully. "I have been spoiling Yulin a bit."
"No, Chengbing and Xiaomai are planning for a second child. Yulin needs to learn how to be a big brother."
Mr. Zhou smiled. His son was finally no longer obsessed with his career, and his daughter-in-law was no longer a muddled mother-in-law.
...
The next morning, the courtyard was bustling with activity. A stern-faced middle-aged man came to find Captain Tian.
Tian Jing came out and didn't recognize him.
The man said to Tian Jing, "I'm here to work as a nanny. Captain Zeng sent me to find Captain Tian."
Tian Jing led the man into the front courtyard to Zeng Jingchu's room. "Hey, your nanny is here."
Bored to death, Zeng Jingchu turned over and was immediately shocked, questioning the man, "You? Why are you here?"
The man bowed respectfully to Zeng Jingchu. "Second Young Master."
Zeng Jingchu waved his hand for him to leave. "Go, I don't want to see you."
The man remained still. "Young Master Biao asked me to come, Lin."
Zeng Jingchu grabbed his phone on the bedside table. "Then I'll call him and ask him to send someone else."
But a vine tangled around his phone.
He looked towards the door. "Tiantian?"
Tian Jing played with the phone and said to the man, "The key is under his pillow. Hurry up and clean and tidy the room, and take this person away."
"Yes!" The man showed no surprise at the sudden appearance of the vine. He walked to the bedside.
Zeng Jingchu rolled his head on the pillow. "Tiantian, I don't want him to take care of me. He's just a block of ice, he's a constraint, he'll stifle people."
"It's better if you die," Tian Jing said indifferently. "That way Yuan Man won't have to bother trying to treat your leg."
"I'm telling you, my patience has reached its limit. If you don't leave now, I'll break your legs myself."
Zeng Jingchu became obedient. He took the key from under the pillow and threw it to the man.
"Zeng Lin, just tidy up the first and second floors. The third floor was where my niece used to live, so don't touch it."
"Yes!"
Zeng Lin calmly caught the flying key, then backed out of the room and said to Tian Jing, "Please ask Captain Tian to have someone show Lin to his accommodation."
Tian Jing called her second son. "Xiaobo, take this uncle to our villa and show him the usable items in the room. If he doesn't want to use them, tell him to buy his own."
Li Weibao nodded. "Okay, Uncle, please follow me."
Zeng Lin bowed to Tian Jing, took two steps back, then turned and followed Li Weibao.
Tian Jing threw the phone in her hand to Zeng Jingchu. "You can make your call now."
Zeng Jingchu rolled over on the bed. "It's no use. Whether I call or not, it's useless. Now that Zeng Lin is here, my carefree days are over."
Tian Jing became curious. "He looks like a servant, but why does it sound like you're the one being controlled?"
Zeng Jingchu nodded. "Yes! He is a servant, the son of the Zeng family's external steward."
The Zeng family has an internal and an external steward. The internal steward manages the affairs of the Zeng family's inner chambers.
The external steward manages the trivial matters around the head of the Zeng family.
Trivial matters include food, clothing, housing, etiquette, and daily schedule arrangements.
Both internal and external stewards are descendants of the previous generation and grew up playing with the current Zeng family masters.
This Zeng Lin grew up with Zeng Jingchu and others.
With the development of society, Zeng Jingchu couldn't accept the meticulousness of Zeng Lin, who had been educated by the previous generation's steward.
Zeng Lin also often lectured him on the etiquette expected of a head of household.
He wasn't the eldest son. Although his elder brother's health was not good, it hadn't been determined that his elder brother couldn't be cured, nor had it been determined that he would be the head of the family.
Moreover, he had been traveling around looking for people, his mind had wandered, and he was even less willing to be a candidate for the head of the family.
The two would argue whenever they met due to their different views. No, it was Zeng Jingchu arguing alone, while Zeng Lin would always listen silently when Zeng Jingchu got angry.
After all his businesses were moved back to China and he found Tian Jing, and after his elder brother got married, his father passed the position of family head to him and went to travel the world with his mother.
After arranging the company matters, he traveled around, avoiding Zeng Lin, who had become his external steward.
Who knew his cousin would directly assign him to his side…
Tian Jing leaned against the doorframe, looking down at him. "Zeng Lin's skills seem quite good."
Zeng Jingchu nodded. "Yes, that's a necessary skill for an external steward."
Tian Jing's lips curved. "If he were by your side, your leg wouldn't have been broken, right?"
Zeng Jingchu paused.
Tian Jing continued, "Captain Zeng did the right thing. You should have someone like him following you. By the way, where is Jixiang's?"
Zeng Jingchu didn't understand Tian Jing's meaning. "What?"
"Where is Jixiang's external steward?" Tian Jing said with a smile. "He won't return until he's eighteen, so he'll need a dedicated external steward even more, won't he?"
"Yes!" Zeng Jingchu excitedly slapped the bed and picked up his phone to call his cousin to get Zeng Lin's phone number.
After getting it, he called and asked Zeng Lin about his child.
Zeng Lin's stern face cracked slightly. "Second Young Master, Lin has never considered personal matters."
"No!" Zeng Jingchu disagreed. He didn't like external stewards, but that didn't mean he wouldn't arrange a capable external steward for his son. "My son is already over two years old. Hurry up and have another one, or you'll be too late to catch up."
Zeng Lin was stunned for a long, long time before replying, "Lin will do his best."
Zeng Jingchu hung up the phone and pounded the bed, laughing. "Hahaha, I've finally gotten my revenge."
"Tiantian, did you hear his pause and tone?"
"It's a pity I didn't see his expression in person. It must have lost its usual composure, hahaha."
"Immature!" Tian Jing turned to leave. "I believe Zeng Lin will get it back from you."
Zeng Jingchu said to Tian Jing's retreating back, "I'm not stupid, won't I pay it back?"
Tian Jing didn't look back, but a smile played on her lips.
She thought about how Zeng Lin's expression must have changed when Zeng Jingchu asked about children. It was indeed a pity not to have seen it.
Yesterday she sent away a "classical" Mr. Sun, and today another rigid Zeng steward. If she didn't find someone to bully, she would really have to beat someone up.