Romance

The Shen family's old house is located in the northern suburbs of the city.

A grand villa perched halfway up a hill, its white roof and white walls bearing the texture of an oil painting, stained by time. A row of tall sycamore trees extended their massive branches from the yard, their branches stubbornly sprouting new buds where they had been cut to avoid power lines.

The half-high wall is planted with climbing roses. In spring and summer, their fragrance, whether strong or weak, will inadvertently enter your nose, but the flowering season has passed now.

The black iron gate looks like it has just been painted, and the color is bright and vivid.

The driver drove into the courtyard. A vast garden surrounded the mansion, and the grass stretched out before him. Five minutes later, the magnificent gate came into view. Secretary Ma opened the door and held onto the door frame to let Ye Yuanyin out.

The Shen family was a large family. Besides the main house for receiving guests, there were four side rooms to the east, west, south, and north, where various family members lived. There was also a dining room, built entirely in Chinese style, where they hosted banquets for guests several times a year, decorated magnificently.

As soon as I entered the hall, someone chuckled. They were the children of Shen Shen's second uncle. The boy was called Shen Pei'an and the girl was called Shen Meiyue. They both currently worked at Shen's Group.

They both greeted her in unison, "Sister-in-law."

Shen Meiyue stared at the pair of white sneakers on her feet that didn't fit in with her outfit, laughing so hard she fell backwards. "Oh my god, is this the latest season's outfit? You're so creative."

The ridicule or contempt of others did not affect her understanding of herself in the slightest. Ye Yuanyin was firm and sincere in his heart and politely thanked her.

Today's appointment was made by Dian Dian'an's grandfather. He was old and worried he might die someday, so he wanted to gather everyone together to experience the family affection they had neglected when they were busy starting from scratch.

Xidian's aunt had already arrived, her temper simmering for a long time, ready to start a fight the moment he arrived. Seeing that only Ye Yuanyin had arrived, she couldn't suppress her rage anymore, and asked her with a look of surprise, "Why didn't Xidian come?"

Ye Yuanyin replied: "He is busy."

Her aunt criticized her even more harshly: "You're newlyweds, what's he supposed to be busy with? Can't you keep your husband by your side? How dare you marry him when you don't even have this little ability?!"

To avoid controversy, she chose silence over explanation.

The Shen family made their fortune in real estate, and Chen Dian had no intention of relying on the family's achievements to become a small department head, mediating between the interests of the various branches. Not only did he have to work very hard, but he also worked very hard but only earned a fixed income that was deposited into his account every month.

His ambition did not stop there, so he deviated from the path his family had planned for him. After graduating from university, he served in the army for two years. After retiring, he went to the United States to study and worked for one of the world's top Internet companies for two years. After leaving, he took a different approach and founded KZ Technology.

Although his main focus was on his own company, according to his grandfather's wishes, he also managed some of the Shen family's businesses. This was the downside of family businesses: the complex nepotism and entanglements hindered everything. He was also a man of his word, and even the slightest conflict of interest would make his aunt so angry that she would draw her sword against him.

Ms. Shen had no place to vent her anger, picking the softest persimmon to squeeze. She glanced at Ye Yuanyin unhappily and asked sternly: "The elders asked you a question, why didn't you answer? You have no manners! Now even you dare to look down on me?"

"How could that be?" Ye Yuanyin said matter-of-factly, "Aunt, I've never been involved in the company's affairs. I really don't know what he's busy with."

"You don't know anything?! You're really stupid. Think about it, no matter how he ranks up who he wants to marry, you're not the one he'll marry. How can you possibly control him if you get such a huge advantage for free? I advise you to at least get more benefits from him. If you get divorced one day, and you let Chen Jing sleep for so long for nothing, don't you feel at a disadvantage?"

"Lian Xing, shut up!" A kind-looking old lady approached. Her hair had turned completely white, and she wore a loose black cheongsam with gold threads. Her eyes seemed to hold a deep pool of water, and the passage of time had flowed by, leaving behind only a sense of ease and dignity. "You're the one who's breaking the rules."

"mom!"

"This is my home. It's not your turn to tell me what to do." Dian Yan'an's grandmother was from Cantonese, old-fashioned, and had a strong personality. She especially didn't like others showing off in front of her. "Don't make a fool of yourself in front of the new bride."

She took Ye Yuanyin's hand and said kindly, "Child, come and keep me company."

*

It was already past nine o'clock in the evening when Chen Yan entered the door.

Grandpa and grandma had their own entertainment, and only the young people were left in the living room. As the National Day holiday approached, my aunt's son Zhou Ye also returned from out of town, and several of them were drinking, playing cards and games.

He looked into the room and did not see Ye Yuanyin.

Shen Pei'an from his second uncle's house was facing the door. When he saw him coming, he quickly stood up and greeted him: "Brother, you're here." Shen Meiyue and Zhou Ye also stopped making noises and stood up one by one to call for help. "Brother." "Hello, cousin."

"You guys play."

He walked towards his grandparents' yard.

Since Chendianxia was young and her mother wasn't around, she'd always stayed with her grandmother. Chendian'an knocked gently on the door and saw her leaning against the bed, playing with her phone. Her grandmother lay with her back to her, seemingly asleep.

He hooked his finger at his sister, and Chenyuxia dropped her phone, climbed down from the mahogany bed with carvings on three sides, and ran towards him like a puppy.

"Brother, why did you come just now?" Chen Yinxia pouted and complained, whispering in his ear, "Xiao Ye is in such a pity, she got scolded by her aunt."

Sediment frowned and asked, "What did you say about her?"

Influenced by the world around her in this tumultuous family, with her father having died young, her mother constantly away from home, and her brother busy, Chen Yixia, though young, was very shrewd and unwilling to offend anyone. "You've said too much, I can't remember. It's unpleasant to hear anyway."

It was more serious than expected. Sediment An asked again, "Where is she?"

"Grandma let her sleep in your room."

"Got it. I'll go check it out." Sedimentary An warned again, "Stop playing with your phone."

"It's none of your business. Tomorrow is the weekend."

*

Ye Yuanyin did not stay in the room, but walked alone in the garden in a depressed mood.

Just then, her mother called and she picked up the phone.

"Ayin, why is your phone off?" Ama coughed a few times. The wind blew through the Shen family yard, highlighting the silence on her side. "Did something happen to you?"

She couldn't say that she didn't want to turn on the phone because she was avoiding You Jing.

"No, I always forget when I'm busy." Ye Yuanyin sat on the bench under the begonia tree and said, "I'm fine, Mom, don't let your imagination run wild."

Grandma felt relieved and said, "I just fired a kiln of black pottery. Let's pick out the best ones and send them to Teacher Sun. We can't help but be grateful."

Ms. Sun is You Jing's mother. She was her professor of art theory during her undergraduate studies and had also been her own financial sponsor. After her father's death, her mother, left to earn a living from manual labor, could no longer afford her high tuition. She always cherished the memory of those who helped her.

However, she could not tell her hard-working mother that most of the time, the black pottery she made in each kiln, which was made with sincerity and sweat, would be given to the maid or simply thrown away by Professor Sun.

"I know, Mom. Just send it to me and I'll deliver it."

"They have been so good to us, we shouldn't forget them."

"Um."

Hearing her daughter's displeasure on the phone, her mother considered for a while, but still asked cautiously: "Ayin, your voice doesn't sound right. Are you really okay?"

"It's really okay." Ye Yuanyin smiled with red eyes, "Mom, you have to take your medicine on time. Tell me if you need anything."

"I know," the mother said softly from the other end, looking at the gloomy sky in the courtyard, "If life over there gets too tiring, just come home. We can both survive no matter what."

Her mouth pursed and tears like beads fell silently.

Standing not far away among the lush flowers and trees, Chen Dian'an looked at them and suddenly felt guilty.

Grandma looked up at the old-fashioned electronic watch hanging on the wall, and with some effort she supported her heavy body. She said, "It's getting late. Go get some rest."

"Okay." Ye Yuanyin tried hard to suppress his tears and said goodbye to her in a muffled voice.

Just as Chen Yan was about to walk out from behind the flowers and trees that were blocking his view, he discovered that his aunt Chen Lianxing was also coming from the other side of the path, so he temporarily slowed down his pace.

Ye Yuanyin stood up and respectfully called out, "Auntie."

Chen Lianxing snorted. He had come here to pick a fight, but now, seeing her red eyes and a pitiful look, he was even more furious. "Why are you crying? If someone didn't know, they would think I bullied you. Why are you so scheming?"

"no--"

"Shut up!" Shen Lianxing didn't listen to her explanation and interrupted her rudely, saying angrily: "Even if you are dissatisfied, just hold it in! There is no room for you to speak here."

Ye Yuanyin's clenched palms revealed too many emotions, and she finally held it in amid the joyful pulsation of her wrist artery.

But Shen Lianxing would not let her go. People never get passports for malicious words, so she was always hurt badly in her own territory.

"Didn't I just say this? If you can't hold onto Chen Dian's heart, just swindle him out of his money. If you're poor, you should act poor! At a time like this, how can you still maintain your dignity? Don't sleep with him for nothing and end up getting nothing! Think about it carefully, why not just cooperate with me? You know I've been annoyed with him for a long time."

Sediment was waiting for her answer.

Ye Yuanyin smiled appropriately. When she spoke, due to her habit since childhood, her ending tone was soft and not clear and firm enough, which made people mistakenly think that she had a blurred line between people and things.

However, that is clearly not the case.

"Aunt, I have an account to settle for you."

"In 2017, my father-in-law founded the 'Walking Together' Foundation, and I was among the first group of students to receive funding to study abroad. In early 2020, to curb the spread of the epidemic, most of the Shen Group's shopping malls were closed. In March of that year, my father-in-law asked me to volunteer in the countryside as a representative of the group-sponsored students. Later that month, he came to visit me and decided on the spot to donate 20 million yuan in supplies to 12 schools. On April 1st, the shopping mall under my father-in-law's supervision reopened, and sales increased more than tenfold."

Later, Dian Xian's father died and his aunt took over the shopping mall.

Ye Yuanyin continued, "When you and your entire family were hiding from illness, I was the one traveling to every place where they could be infected, working tirelessly for your family's business. Just based on this, you have no right to deny me. This is the first point."

Shen Lianxing opened his mouth slightly, feeling unbelievable at her rude words.

Ye Yuanyin continued, "I am willing to do this not for anyone in your family, nor for the sake of stealing Dian'an's money."

"My father said, 'A drop of kindness should be repaid with a spring.' I did this to repay Uncle Shen, who warmly extended a helping hand to me when I couldn't continue my graduate studies due to lack of money. My father also said, 'Poverty makes one more resolute, and one's ambition will never be shaken.' Yes, I am very poor, but aunt, you are rich, and every word you say makes me feel ashamed."

"You?! Are you crazy? You uneducated girl!"

Shen Lianxing raised his hand angrily, but the overwhelming force was blocked by Shen Yan'an.

He looked over with cold eyes filled with cold disdain and embarrassment, "Aunt, stop embarrassing the Shen family!"

Shen Lianxing pulled his hand back and slapped him with all his strength.

"Ah—stop it, stop it!" Shen Pei'an, with an innocent face, hurried over, looking embarrassed: "Grandpa asked my aunt and eldest brother to come over. And—sister-in-law, he asked you to come too."

Ye Yuanyin turned around and saw his grandfather's strong figure walking away from them at the end of the garden corridor.

Her worried eyes fell gently on Shen Ji'an's face.

"It's okay, let's go." He rarely said a comforting word, let her move to the front, and separated the distance between her and her aunt.