Chapter 0057 Winning Over
While Xingxing was asleep, Ruyi went to the bathroom to wash the baby clothes that had been accidentally soiled.
The baby is too small, and eating, drinking, and relieving herself can easily soil her clothes. The two adults spend their days feeding the baby and cleaning. Since there's no balcony, He Caiyu has to run up to the roof to hang the clothes to dry, climbing up and down every day, which is exhausting. Whenever Ruyi has free time, she washes the pile of baby clothes in the basin, trying her best to help her aunt.
After the baby clothes were washed, they were put into the washing machine to spin dry. He Caiyu came back and helped sort the vegetables and meat in the cart and put them into the refrigerator. The vegetables that were going to be cooked for dinner were placed separately on the counter.
While busy, He Caiyu asked, "Didn't you apply to the school to resume your studies?"
Ruyi paused for a moment before saying, "Xingxing is still so young, and we need someone to take care of her. I'd like to postpone it for another year. I've already asked the school, and it's possible. I'll try to explain to Professor Dai in the next few days..."
He Caiyu interrupted, "No, you need to go to the school to complete the procedures in the next couple of days. You've already been delayed for a year because of having a baby, and you can't delay any longer. I overheard some of your conversation with Professor Dai earlier. She said she has a research project that she's about to start, and it's a great opportunity. Don't miss it."
Seeing that Ruyi remained silent, He Caiyu said earnestly, "You need to take care of your child, but you also need to take care of yourself. If you want to study, then go ahead."
Ruyi certainly wanted to go, but she couldn't be so selfish as to leave her newborn child with her aunt for the sake of pursuing her doctorate. Moreover, her aunt was currently the only source of income for the family of three, and she was preparing to reopen her shop, which would be very busy for the next year. She couldn't run away at this crucial moment.
Seeing her concerns, He Caiyu said, "Don't worry about me and Xingxing. We'll move with you to the vicinity of Lan University to accompany you while you study. Otherwise, Lan University is so far from home, and if you only come back once a week, it will be a problem for the baby to drink milk." It's not that formula is out of the question, but Xingxing has gotten used to breast milk in the past few months and can't be weaned off it in a short time.
“Only by moving near Lan University can you express and freeze breast milk before going to school every day, and then use formula to gradually wean your child off breast milk. Only then can you go to school with peace of mind. Otherwise, you'll have to find a place to express milk every two or three hours every day, which will be quite a burden for you.”
"We'll hire a live-in nanny, preferably one with experience taking care of babies. She can put you to sleep and feed you at night so you'll have the energy to study during the day. As for the shop, we'll have to close it for now and stay with the nanny to take care of Xingxing. After all, no matter how professional a nanny is, she can't be as trustworthy as family. I'll feel more at ease with you going to school with me watching over you."
Ruyi roughly estimates that if they were to rent a place near Lan University, including a live-in nanny, they would need at least a three-bedroom apartment. Such an apartment would cost at least 7,000 yuan per month. A reliable live-in nanny would earn 10,000 yuan per month, and Xingxing's various expenses would amount to 2,000 to 3,000 yuan per month. For two adults, the estimated cost would be 3,000 yuan per month. The basic expenses alone would amount to about 23,000 yuan per month, which would be nearly 300,000 yuan per year.
She hesitated for a moment: "Do we have enough money?"
He Caiyu said it was enough. Even if Chen Yan didn't give her any, it would still be enough. Before she went abroad, she ran a shop, and every year at the end of the year, after deducting all costs and their daily expenses, she divided the profits in half, putting half into her retirement account and investing the other half in a financial fund. Over the years, she had accumulated a considerable sum of money, enough for them to live on for two or three years without working.
Ruyi was surprised; she hadn't expected her aunt to be so capable.
“But that’s your retirement money…” She felt ashamed. She was already 26 years old, and not only did her aunt have to support her, but she also had to touch her aunt’s retirement money.
He Caiyu disagreed: "Isn't my retirement savings meant to ease your burden? The money in the fund was originally saved for you. Use it to solve the immediate problem first, and we'll talk about the future later!"
Ruyi thought of Hao Jing's words; perhaps the immediate crisis wasn't real, and Hao Jing was just being stubborn. If Hao Jing were to set aside past grievances and immediately turn to Chen Yan, all her problems would be solved. But she didn't want to give in so quickly. The Chen Yan incident had left a deep scar on her; if she got used to being subservient now, how could she hold her head high in front of him in the future?
My aunt's money has to be used now, and it's better to owe her than to owe Chen Yan. I'll repay her properly in the future.
He Caiyu secretly told Chen Yan that Ruyi had agreed to return to school, move, and hire a nanny. She then sent him two photos. One showed Ruyi sitting by the bed, holding Xingxing and lulling her to sleep. Xingxing was drowsy in her arms, a strand of soft black hair dangling from her little finger—a very tender scene. The other was a solo photo of Xingxing lying in her crib, seemingly smiling happily with her toothless mouth, as if she had seen something. Chen Yan's heart melted. He swiped his finger across the screen, repeatedly looking at the two photos.
Chen Yan advised He Caiyu not to waste her time, as he had a ready-made apartment in Guanlan No. 1, fully equipped and only five bus stops away from Lanzhou University, making it very convenient for Ruyi to attend school. As for nannies, he had also found several suitable ones for He Caiyu and Ruyi to choose from. Finally, he instructed He Caiyu to play along completely, using the card he gave her to transfer money to a third party to avoid arousing Ruyi's suspicion.
After all that, He Caiyu had to admit defeat. Looking back, she realized that without Chen Yan, the lovely Xingxing would never have been born, demonstrating his decisiveness as a man. Besides, he was young, handsome, and wealthy, and most importantly, his love for Ruyi was unwavering and genuine.
If Ruyi misses him, even with the stars in her heart, she'll most likely never find anyone better.
He Caiyu pondered inwardly, her heart already tipping in favor of Chen Yan.
With Chen Yan's help, He Caiyu settled the rental and nanny hiring within a few days. Ruyi had just returned from visiting Professor Dai when He Caiyu told her that she had found a place. She was surprised and asked where it was.
He Caiyu didn't say, only showed her photos. The decor was simple yet luxurious, and the rent looked expensive. It wasn't clear from the photos how many rooms there were, but He Caiyu said four rooms, which would definitely be enough. Ruyi asked how much it cost, and she said it wasn't expensive, eight thousand a month, with a deposit of one month's rent and three months' rent paid in advance.
How could such a nice house only cost eight thousand? Ruyi was worried that He Caiyu was being scammed by the agent, so she asked her for the rental contract. He Caiyu slapped her forehead and said that she had forgotten the contract in the new house. The house had everything, and she could find a moving company to move it in the next few days.
Ruyi wanted to go and check out the house first, just in case there was anything fishy, but He Caiyu interrupted her unhappily: "You don't trust me? No matter how senile I am, I've still eaten thirty more years than you and run two shops. How could I be cheated when renting a house? I've already checked the property certificate with the landlord himself, and he even gave me the key code. There's absolutely no problem."
Ruyi had no choice but to help pack the luggage.
When they finally saw the gate of Guanlan No. 1 in the distance, He Caiyu's previous anxious and abnormal behavior became clear. Ruyi suddenly realized that the arrangements for renting a house, hiring a nanny, moving, etc., were mostly related to Chen Yan. She had been deceived by her aunt and Chen Yan in collusion!
Yes, Ruyi didn't lose her memory at all. She remembered everything about Chen Yan, good and bad, clearly. That's why she couldn't face Chen Yan honestly. Before she could completely sort things out, she didn't want to be pressured by Chen Yan anymore. During her days in the ICU, she racked her brains for a solution and finally decided to use amnesia as a buffer until she was completely over it or could naturally cut ties with Chen Yan.
Guanlan is an upscale neighborhood. Even two or three years ago, the cheapest apartments started at 30,000 yuan. How could you possibly rent one for a mere 8,000 yuan? Unless this sucker is Chen Yan.
When the truck stopped in front of the familiar building, she was absolutely certain that Chen Yan was the sucker. He had once said that half of this building belonged to him.
But she can't expose them directly because she's now "amnesiac".
As expected, the elevator stopped on the 8th floor. She and Chen Yan used to live on the 7th floor, one apartment per floor.
She entered the room, which had the same four-bedroom, two-living-room layout as downstairs, except that the south-facing guest bedroom had been converted into a cozy and adorable nursery.
Suppressing her anger at being deceived, Ruyi said to He Caiyu, "How could a four-bedroom, two-living-room apartment in this kind of complex only cost eight thousand? Did Chen Yan pay the rent?" To avoid revealing her feigned amnesia, Ruyi could only ask this. She now suspected that the so-called landlord was one of Chen Yan's people. Why would he pay rent? It was just a way to trick her into coming here!
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