"I'm so sorry, it's not very convenient at home. An'an and Nuan'an are older now, and they sleep in separate beds from us. And look, besides the living room, there's hardly any room to move around. It's not like before when we had more space and could put a bed in the living room."
Li Zhaozhao was displeased upon hearing this. He ignored Bi Qiaoan and looked at Shen Yanming instead: "Old Shen, I know this request is a bit difficult for you, but I really have no other choice."
When I first picked up my parents, I thought about applying for housing in Zone B for them, but unfortunately, those areas had already been divided up by the powerful and influential.
We ordinary folks are truly powerless.
Old Shen, I've never asked you for anything before, but this time I'm begging you to help me let my parents stay with you for the winter, is that alright?
Now it's winter, and with the heavy snow, I'm really afraid that one day when I go to see them, I'll find two cold corpses.
Li Zhaozhao started crying as he spoke. Xu Yajing couldn't bear to see her husband so sad, so she spoke up, "I know this request is a bit difficult, but our dormitory is really too small. If we could fit another bed in it, we wouldn't have to ask for help."
My in-laws are very kind people. They won't cause you any trouble or interfere in your lives. They can even help you take care of the children. We take care of their own food needs, and we even provide them with some subsidies.
Please consider our request carefully.
Xu Yajing was unaware that the others had stockpiled supplies, and thought she had offered a particularly tempting offer. After speaking, she waited for the couple to decide, but didn't notice that Shen Yanming's face was growing increasingly dark.
Li Zhaozhao also looked at Shen Yanming expectantly, completely unaware of the subtle sense of superiority and condescension in his wife's words.
Shen Yanming stopped tapping the coffee table with his fingers, sighed, and said, "Zhao Zhao, it's not that I'm stingy, but it's really inconvenient to bring your aunt and uncle here."
Upon hearing this, Li Zhaozhao became anxious and wanted to say something, but was interrupted by Shen Yanming.
“I have my own difficulties, but it’s not convenient for me to talk about them.” Shen Yanming looked up at his brother, his eyes devoid of warmth: “I can help solve this problem, but staying at home is impossible.”
He didn't want to be so forceful, but otherwise, the problem wouldn't be solved. Their relationship was destined to develop cracks.
Li Zhaozhao was quite unwilling; he never expected Shen Yanming to be so difficult to talk to. It was clearly a very small matter, so why wouldn't he help?
He began to resent Bi Qiaoan, thinking that it must be her pettiness that influenced Shen Yanming's decision.
Bi Qiaoan chose to ignore his resentful glare, thinking to herself what an ungrateful wretch. If it weren't for her and her husband, Li Zhaozhao and his family might not have survived.
But she could understand their thoughts; after all, they were her parents, and how could she choose to ignore them? And when she was desperate, she would definitely think of asking close and capable friends for help.
So although Bi Qiaoan was unhappy, she didn't blame the other person. It was just a difference in perspective; putting herself in their shoes, she would probably make the same choice.
The two sides parted on bad terms, and after sulking all night, Shen Yanming went to work again the next day, all smiles.
Although he was frustrated, what Li Zhaozhao said wasn't untrue. Even if he was unhappy, the problems with Uncle Li and Aunt Li still needed to be solved.
He paid out of his own pocket and hired several security guards to help "renovate" Uncle Li and Aunt Li's house.
Not only did they plaster the walls with yellow mud, but they also cleaned up every nook and cranny.
Shen Yanming surveyed the room and immediately had someone build a kang (heated brick bed) inside. If it weren't for the cold weather, they might have even had time to build a heated wall.
Mr. and Mrs. Li were unaware of their son's actions, so they were completely bewildered when they saw Shen Yanming bringing people over.
After they started work, he even asked, "Did Zhao send you?"
Shen Yanming did not deny it, but said, "It's too cold here in winter, and you can't get through it without a heated kang. Don't worry, I have plenty of firewood. Once the kang is dry, I'll have someone send you some. It's just that I'll have to trouble you to stay at someone's place for the next couple of days."
Mr. and Mrs. Li were also troubled by this matter. They had visited their son's place and found only a 1.5-meter bed, with the rest of the space filled with firewood and a stove.
Shen Yanming also felt that it was a bit unreasonable to ask such a question, so after thinking about it, he went to Li Gangtie for help.
After saying many kind words and even giving them ten kilograms of grain, they finally managed to get the elderly couple a room in the meeting room.
Li Gangtie originally didn't want it, but he couldn't bring himself to ask, otherwise Area A would never have peace again. So he negotiated a price with Qi Xili, which would also shut up the others.
After arranging everything, Shen Yanming went to tell Li's parents. Li's parents were extremely excited and thanked him repeatedly.
Shen Yanming was worried that Li Zhaozhao would be unable to find the elderly couple after they moved, so he went back specifically to tell them.
Li Zhaozhao felt extremely conflicted after hearing this, thinking that he, as a son, had never done so much for his parents.
Suppressing the bitterness in his heart, he said to Shen Yanming, "Thank you, brother!" and then went to help his parents move.
After that, they felt too embarrassed to ask Shen Yanming for any more food or firewood, so they provided it themselves. Three days later, when the kang (heated brick bed) was almost dry, the group helped the old couple move it back.
Li Zhaozhao felt much better after enjoying the warmth of the room. However, he couldn't let go of his pride and kept brooding inside.
Shen Yanming and Bi Qiaoan didn't care. They would stay together if they could, and if not, so be it. As long as they had a clear conscience, that was enough.
Time passed day by day, and November arrived quickly.
This year, Shanghai is three to five degrees colder than usual, and the couple doesn't want to leave the house at all.
Back in the capital, Li Sikai frowned as he felt the slowing growth of his faith points.
Upon seeing this, General Li asked, "What's wrong?"
Li Sikai said helplessly, "It feels like my faith points haven't changed in a long time. The space is on the verge of upgrading, but I just can't seem to get past that hurdle."
"How much more do you think is needed?"
Li Sikai didn't know what to say. Although it was the final step, it required a lot of faith points.
Seeing this, General Li stopped asking questions and patted the other person on the shoulder: "Don't think too much about it. First, maintain stable production in the space. As for the rest, I'll arrange for someone to investigate and see what's going on."
Li Sikai nodded and smiled gratefully at General Li, saying, "Thank you, Uncle!"
General Li pointed with his finger and said with a laugh, "Why are you being so polite with me!"
Li Sikai said nothing, but he knew in his heart that if it weren't for the great efforts of General Li to protect him, he would be living in misery every day. Unlike now, when he can wander around freely.
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