Chapter Ninety-Two: Mommy & Auntie Three...

Time flies, and another three years have passed.

Du, du.

Hearing the knock, the woman who was looking up at her documents at her desk looked up and smiled when she saw the girl knocking.

"Seventh Sister-in-law, here's some warm milk." Ran Aijie walked in with a cup, placed it on the desk, and glanced at the stack of documents beside her. "Will this take much longer to process?"

"It'll be ready soon." Tang Wanru drank her milk and then resumed processing the documents.

More than half an hour later, she finally received the documents; it was already 11 p.m.

Ran Aijie frowned and asked, "Do you have to work this late every day?"

After winning the first prize in the International Mathematical Olympiad, Ran Aijie did not take the college entrance examination. Instead, she was selected to attend the gifted youth program at Peking University and is now a third-year student in the Department of Mathematics at Peking University.

She has been studying in Beijing for the past few years and only recently returned to Jiangcheng for winter vacation.

Ran Aijie knew that Tang Wanru went to work at her family's company after graduation, but she didn't know that her job was so busy.

Tang Wanru is in poor health and cannot overwork herself.

"I've been quite busy at the end of the year." Tang Wanru turned off the desk lamp and stood up.

Out of consideration for her health, Tang Renliang did not intend for her to take over the company completely. He simply asked her to familiarize herself with the company's business so that even if a professional manager was hired to run the company in the future, she would know the company's operating status and not be completely clueless.

Seeing the dark circles under her eyes, Ran Aijie thought for a moment and said earnestly, "Sister, don't overwork yourself. I'll come to the company to help you after I graduate next year."

The Tang family raised her to adulthood; it's time for her to repay them.

Tang Wanru was surprised for a moment, then patted her arm, "What nonsense are you talking about?"

With Ran Aijie's qualifications and abilities, she will surely achieve great things in her field of expertise.

Kyoto University has teaching and research collaborations with several prestigious universities in the United States. Most graduates of the gifted youth program, like Ran Aijie, go abroad for further studies. Whether they stay abroad or return to China, they will become top talents in their respective fields.

Having Ran Aijie come to help at her family's company is a complete waste of talent.

"But I want to help you..."

"No buts."

Before Ran Aijie could finish speaking, Tang Wanru interrupted her sternly.

Having lived together for so many years, Tang Wanru could guess what she was thinking.

She brought Ran Aijie back not because she wanted anything in return. Ran Aijie had her own path to follow and didn't need to sacrifice her future for the Tang family.

Ran Aijie pursed her thin lips slightly.

Tang Wanru's expression softened slightly. She wanted to pat Ran Aijie's head as she used to, but when she raised her hand, she realized that Ran Aijie had grown taller in the past six months.

Time really flies.

The child who only reached her waist when they first met is now a head taller than her.

She patted Ran Aijie on the shoulder, "It's getting late, go to sleep."

The two of them came out of the study together.

Ran Aijie's bedroom was a little further inside. When she got to the door, Tang Wanru had already entered the room.

She stopped, turned around, and watched as the light leaking onto the hallway floor from the next room gradually diminished until it was completely blocked out, before lowering her eyes and entering the room.

The 29th day of the 12th lunar month.

New Year's Eve.

Family reunion, bidding farewell to the old year and welcoming the new.

The Tang family is small and not very lively; only three people ate the reunion dinner that evening.

Tang Renliang didn't like watching TV. After dinner, he sat in the living room for a while and then went back to his room, leaving Tang Wanru and Ran Aijie to watch the Spring Festival Gala together in the living room to stay up late on New Year's Eve.

During dinner, Tang Wanru drank a glass of red wine. She has a low alcohol tolerance, and she was already sleepy halfway through watching TV.

Ran Aijie sat on the sofa, holding a thick book in her hands.

Suddenly, she felt a weight on her shoulder.

The familiar scent filled the air, and Ran Aijie's heart skipped a beat.

She turned her head to look at Tang Wanru and realized that she was breathing evenly and had fallen asleep.

A playful strand of hair slipped from her forehead, brushing against her cheek and resting on the tip of her nose, rising and falling gently with Tang Wanru's breath.

Ran Aijie raised her hand, and Tang Wanru's warm breath sprayed onto her palm.

Her hand trembled uncontrollably, and strands of hair slipped from her fingers and fell onto Tang Wanru's cheek.

The trembling startled the person leaning on her shoulder. Tang Wanru stirred but didn't wake up. She closed her eyes, changed her position, and leaned against the other side of the sofa armrest to continue sleeping.

Ran Aijie snapped out of her daze, looked down at her palm, and after a while, slowly clenched it, turning her head to look at the sleeping Tang Wanru.

Tang Wanru rested her head on her arm, her sleeping face serene, her eyelashes curled, her cheeks rosy, and her pink lips slightly parted beneath her pert nose.

Ran Aijie felt a little thirsty.

The fireplace seems to be burning exceptionally hot tonight.

She picked up the water glass on the coffee table, drank it all in one gulp, and continued reading with her head down.

After a while.

Ran Aijie sighed softly and closed the book she hadn't turned a single page in over ten minutes.

He put away the book and looked gently at the other side of the sofa.

The clock hands on the wall went round and round.

As the TV program neared its end, Ran Aijie turned her gaze away and got up to walk to the other side.

"sister."

Ran Aijie squatted down beside the sofa and called out softly.

Tang Wanru didn't react; she was sleeping soundly.

"Sister," Ran Aijie called out again, raising her voice.

Tang Wanru frowned, her dream disturbed.

"Sis, it's almost midnight." Ran Aijie called out to her, then leaned over and nudged her shoulder.

At the same time, Tang Wanru turned over.

A soft, warm sensation brushed against Ran Aijie's lips, and her body froze instantly, her heart leaping in her throat.

The familiar scent sprayed onto her cheeks again, and she swallowed involuntarily.

Ran Aijie lowered her eyes, looking at the face so close to hers, and a strange impulse welled up in her heart.

She slowly lowered her head.

As they drew closer, she couldn't help but hold her breath.

Whoosh! Bang!

The sound of firecrackers awakened the body that was being controlled by emotions.

Ran Aijie was startled and, realizing what she was about to do, immediately sat up straight again.

When she came to her senses, she saw that Tang Wanru had already opened her eyes groggily.

Brilliant fireworks exploded in the sky outside the window, their vibrant colors reflecting on Ran Aijie's face and concealing the fleeting panic on her expression.

After staring at each other for two seconds, just when Ran Aijie thought Tang Wanru seemed to know what she had just done, Tang Wanru turned her head to look out the window and then at the clock on the wall.

"It's past midnight." She covered her mouth and yawned, then sat up from the sofa and put on her slippers.

Ran Aijie silently observed her movements.

Suddenly, Tang Wanru turned around and looked at her.

Ran Aijie stiffened again, and subconsciously tugged at the hem of her pants, feeling a little guilty.

"I almost forgot." Tang Wanru looked down, opened the drawer of the coffee table, took out a red envelope, and handed it to Ran Aijie.

"Here you go, this is your New Year's money."

Her expression was natural. Ran Aijie steadied herself, smiled slightly, and accepted the gift, saying, "Thank you, sister."

Tang Wanru rubbed her head and said, "Why are you being so polite with your older sister?"

The first day of the Lunar New Year.

When Ran Aijie came downstairs, Tang Wanru was eating, and Tang Renliang had already eaten and was reading the newspaper.

"Xiao Jie is up?"

When Seventh Sister saw her come downstairs, she served her a bowl of porridge.

"Uncle, Sister," Ran Aijie greeted them, taking the bowl from her seventh sister-in-law's hand. "Thank you, Seventh Sister-in-law."

"Why do you look so pale?" Seventh Sister glanced at her face and thought she was feeling unwell.

Tang Wanru and Tang Renliang both looked at her.

Ran Aijie paused for a moment, then quickly regained her composure. "People were setting off firecrackers all night, so I didn't sleep well."

As she explained, she subtly glanced at Tang Wanru.

She didn't sleep well last night. It was one thing that someone set off firecrackers, but more importantly, she felt uneasy.

When she came to her senses yesterday, she saw that her sister was awake, but she didn't know how long she had been awake.

If you woke up when the firecracker went off, did you see what she did?

"If you're sleepy, eat your meal and then go to sleep for a while." Tang Wanru picked up a shumai for her, her expression no different from usual.

"Hmm." Ran Aijie quietly breathed a sigh of relief, but then a wave of indescribable disappointment washed over her.

"Xiaoru, would you like some more porridge?" Seventh Sister asked Tang Wanru.

"I'm not drinking anymore," Tang Wanru said, putting down her bowl.

Seeing that she had stopped eating, Tang Renliang put down his newspaper and asked, "How have things been going with Lu Jia lately?"

The Lu Jia he mentioned was the daughter of an old friend, two years older than Tang Wanru. She had just transferred to Jiangcheng at the end of the year and was working at the Jiangcheng Public Security Bureau.

Some time ago, Tang Renliang ran into an old friend he hadn't seen for many years. During their chat, they talked about their single daughters. After learning about each other's situations, the two hit it off and decided to play matchmaker.

"It's alright," Tang Wanru replied casually.

They said it was okay, but when they first met, they could tell that neither of them was interested in that kind of thing, so they agreed to just make do with each other to appease their families.

Tang Renliang instructed, "She used to be in the Jiangning military unit and isn't very familiar with Jiangcheng. Since you have time during the Spring Festival holiday, take her to learn more about the city."

"I know, Dad. Don't worry about me. I'm not a child anymore. I know what I'm doing," Tang Wanru said with a smile.

"Alright, alright, as long as you know what you're doing." Tang Renliang said with a smile, then asked Ran Aijie, "What about Xiaojie? Is she dating anyone at school?"

Hearing his words, Ran Aijie, who had been eating in silence with her head down, raised her head and said calmly, "No."

“Dad, what a question you’re asking. Xiao Jie is only eighteen. It’s too early for her to be in a relationship,” Tang Wanru chimed in from the side.

"That's true. You're still young, so your studies should be the priority. Your sister keeps telling me that a scientist will emerge from our family someday, so don't disappoint her," Tang Renliang said earnestly.

Tang Wanru gave Tang Renliang a strange look. She had never said such a thing, and there was a hint of something more to her father's words.

"I know."

Ran Aijie obediently agreed, but a bitter feeling welled up in her heart.

She kept her head down and didn't see Tang Renliang on the other side of the table, who was staring at her.

He saw what happened last night from the second floor.

Tang Renliang was extremely shocked.

The adopted daughter fell in love with her biological daughter.

The two are eleven years apart in age, yet they are on the same household registration and are even relatives within the fifth degree of kinship.

Even Tang Renliang, who prides himself on being open-minded and supporting his children's freedom to choose their own partners, found it difficult to accept this situation.

If they were together, their spittle alone could drown them both.

Fortunately, my daughter doesn't seem to have any romantic interest in that area, so things haven't gotten to the point of no return.

Tang Renliang had just mentioned Lu Jia to Tang Wanru in the morning, and Lu Jia called her in the afternoon, inviting her to watch a movie together. It was easy to guess that her parents were also urging her to go.

After watching the movie and having dinner, Lu Jia took Tang Wanru home.

After escorting the person to the small gate on the east side of the Tang family's house, Lu Jia joked, "I've successfully completed the mission once again."

"The revolution has not yet succeeded, comrades must continue to strive," Tang Wanru remarked with emotion.

"Once the New Year is over, my parents will go back to Jiangning and won't keep an eye on us anymore," Lu Jia explained somewhat embarrassedly.

"It's all about helping each other," Tang Wanru said with a wave of her hand and a smile.

"Then I'm leaving, see you later." Lu Jia didn't stand on ceremony when she said that.

"See you later."

After she left, Tang Wanru turned to go inside when she heard a voice call out, "Sister."

She turned around and saw Ran Aijie walking out from under the east wall of the gatehouse, carrying a bottle of ink.

When she came over, Tang Wanru asked, "Did you go to buy ink?"

"Okay." Ran Aijie walked to the door.

Tang Wanru glanced at her and asked, "You heard everything?"

The small door was less than ten meters away from where Ran Aijie came out, and she and Lu Jia hadn't kept their voices down while talking.

And given her intelligence, she should be able to guess pretty accurately.

"Mmm," Ran Aijie responded softly again.

The voice sounded calm, but the person inside was overjoyed.

It's all fake; her sister isn't dating anyone.

"Keep it a secret for your sister." Tang Wanru patted her shoulder.

Ran Aijie nodded, hesitated for a moment, but still couldn't help asking, "Sister, why did you do this?"

If her sister wasn't interested in the person she was introduced to, she should have just said so. Why pretend to be together?

When Ran Aijie asked this question, she felt a strange, inexplicable sense of anticipation.

“If not her, then someone else will.” Tang Wanru shrugged and said casually to her, “Anyway, I don’t plan to get married for the time being, so I’ll just use this as an excuse for a while.”

In the first few years, it was a little better because she was young, but in the last two years, her father has introduced her to several so-called friends' children.

"So, sister, you're not planning to get married..."

"Children shouldn't have so many questions," Tang Wanru interrupted her, and went straight in through the door.

Lying in bed at night, Ran Aijie closed her eyes and remembered Tang Wanru's words, "If not her, then someone else."

I feel very depressed.

After staring at the ceiling for a long time, Ran Aijie made a decision in secret.