Xia Jingtong and Xia Zicheng frowned, their disdain written all over their faces.

Xia Yuntao and Wang Shuyi were also observing their son, daughter-in-law, grandson, and granddaughter. When they saw the disgust on Xia Jingtong and Xia Zicheng's faces, they both sighed inwardly.

Ning Ya is older and more composed than Xia Jingtong and Xia Zicheng.

She quickly stepped forward and took Wang Shuyi's hand, "Mom, you're alright, that's wonderful."

Last time Dad called us, he said you…

Ning Ya wiped away her tears halfway through her sentence.

Then, with an excited and relieved expression, she said, "Thank goodness, thank goodness, you're alright, otherwise Aze and I would have felt guilty for the rest of our lives!"

Wang Shuyi patted Ning Ya's hand and said, "Let's not talk about the past. Old man, you and Lao San should go inside first before we talk. It's quite cold standing in the wind like this. Don't let Tongtong and Xiaocheng catch a cold."

Xia Ruizhe then released Xia Yuntao and said, "Yes, Dad, let's go inside and talk."

Once inside, the shabby state of the house shocked Xia Ruizhe and his family.

Not only were there few pieces of furniture in the room, but every piece was missing parts, and the paint on the table had even been wiped off.

While Ning Ya, Xia Jingtong, and Xia Zicheng looked disgusted, Xia Ruizhe was already heartbroken and shed tears, saying, "Mom and Dad, how come you live in such a place? You've suffered so much all these years."

Xia Yuntao and Wang Shuyi couldn't help but twitch their eyes when they heard his words.

This acting is really over the top.

They didn't believe that Xia Zicheng hadn't told Xia Ruizhe and the others that they had previously lived in the old Western-style house.

Seeing that Xia Ruizhe was determined to continue acting, Xia Yuntao simply joined in the performance with his son, letting out a heavy sigh.

He told Xia Ruizhe that his business had failed before the new year, which forced him to move here from the old house.

They also mentioned that Xia Zicheng happened to be back when their house was taken away, and asked Xia Ruizhe if Xia Zicheng had told them about it.

Xia Ruizhe understood perfectly well that the old man was pointing out that he had overacted.

He gave an awkward twitch at the corner of his mouth.

Xia Yuntao, as if he hadn't seen it, sighed heavily again and said with emotion, "This time, Dad was too careless, which is why he fell into someone's trap and was deceived to this extent."

But it's okay, now you're back with Tongtong and Xiaocheng.

"It's a good opportunity for our family to start over. I believe that as long as we are united, our Xia family will rise again one day."

Because of Xia Yuntao's words, Xia Ruizhe momentarily doubted his own judgment.

Could it be that this old man has really gone senile, and in order to support the country's economic development, he not only emptied his own savings for his funeral, but also sacrificed his old house?

However, he dismissed the possibility in an instant; the old man's lifelong habit of cautious investment would not change.

He will always keep his savings for his funeral and his old house.

Now he says he lost so much money, it can only be an act for them.

In order to make the performance more convincing, Xia Yuntao bought a house with only three rooms: a main room and two bedrooms on either side.

Xia Ruizhe's family suddenly returned, so they had to be squeezed into one room for the time being.

Xia Ruizhe and his wife slept in the bed, while Xia Jingtong and Xia Zicheng each slept on a makeshift bed on the floor. A curtain was temporarily pulled between each bed.

Xia Jingtong and Xia Zicheng almost exploded when they saw the accommodation.

It was Xia Ruizhe who gave them a timely look, stopping them.

After arranging the accommodations, Wang Shuyi took Ningya to the kitchen to cook.

The kitchen still uses firewood.

Knowing that Ning Ya didn't know how to cook with firewood, Wang Shuyi took out the rice for dinner and started the fire herself, letting Ning Ya wash the rice and cook.

Ningya's face darkened when she saw Mi.

Finally, she couldn't help but ask Wang Shuyi, "Mom, are we eating this rice today?"

The rice was dark and unprocessed, clearly old and had a faint musty smell.

Even the Xia family's dogs wouldn't eat this kind of rice when the Xia family was wealthy.

Wang Shuyi couldn't help but sigh, "Oh, Ya Ya, Mom knows this rice isn't very good. I'm sorry to have to make it so hard for you and the children."

But after your dad lost all his money, we really didn't have any money to buy better rice. We can only eat this rice for now; as long as it fills our stomachs, that's fine."

Ning Ya's eye twitched.

He became even more suspicious that the elderly couple was putting on an act.

If it's an act, do they really need to go to this extent?

After all, Wang Shuyi comes from a prestigious family and has been pampered since childhood, so she is very particular about food and clothing.

In the past, when she ate, she had to have eight cold dishes, eight hot dishes, and three delicious soups. Even the rice she ate had to be Wuchang rice or other varieties of rice that were once tribute rice to the imperial family.

After going abroad, she had to lower her requirements for food, but she still managed to find a Chinese chef through various inquiries and, given the availability of ingredients, tried to make the meals as refined as possible.

Is she really eating this kind of rice just to put on an act for them?

That evening, when Xia Ruizhe and his family of four were lying in a room, Ning Ya brought up all these issues with Xia Ruizhe.

Xia Ruizhe is now starting to doubt his own judgment.

But what if we have doubts?

Xia Jingtong and Xia Zicheng also came over with expressions of dissatisfaction and disgust.

Before they could speak, Xia Ruizhe frowned and glanced at them, then said in a deep voice, "Whether the old couple are faking it or not, I don't have the money to buy you plane tickets back to the US."

If you have the ability to raise the money, then buy your own plane tickets and go back.

"If you can't get any money, then you'd better stay here and listen to what your grandparents say. Treat them with the same respect you had back in the US when they were rich, understand?"

Xia Jingtong and Xia Zicheng both pouted in dissatisfaction, but at least they didn't argue with Xia Ruizhe and instead returned to their respective bunks.

Xia Ruizhe warned his two children not because he respected his parents, but because he still held a sliver of hope that this was a test from his parents.

That night, Xia Yuntao and his wife didn't sleep well either, because from another bedroom, a piercing scream would occasionally come from inside.

This place is damp, so there are naturally many kinds of insects.

Xia Jingtong and Xia Zicheng slept on the floor, where there were even more insects. Every now and then, an insect would crawl over their bodies, startling them so much that they would scream!