The younger generation rarely sees each other due to their long-term absences, and they appear somewhat shy when they do meet. Lin Chen finds it even more difficult to deal with the elders in the family.
"Xin Xin, you're here!" As soon as Aunt Li Xiaoyan saw Liu Xin Xin, she ran over and hugged her tightly. They hadn't seen each other for a long time, and she clearly missed her very much.
"Who are these two?" Li Xiaohu noticed the smiles on Liu Xinxin and Lin Chen's faces, but his gaze was quickly drawn to Su Yanan. After all, he was only thirty years old and hadn't yet become indifferent to beautiful women.
"This is Lin Chen, my sworn brother; this is Su Yanan, my newly adopted daughter," Liu Xinxin introduced. "This is my aunt Li Xiaoyan, and this is my uncle Li Xiaohu."
"Hello, Auntie! Hello, Uncle! I'm Su Yanan," Su Yanan greeted sweetly. Lin Chen, however, felt extremely awkward, as if he had become an unwanted person.
"Wow, what a beautiful girl! Xin Xin, how did you find such a beautiful girl to be your daughter? How did that silly boy become your brother?" Li Xiaoyan only noticed Su Yanan at this moment and couldn't help but praise her.
Lin Chen nearly vomited blood upon hearing this. "I don't object to you praising Su Yanan, but why did I act so stupidly?" He looked helplessly at Liu Xinxin, hoping she could help explain.
Liu Xinxin said with a smile, "She's Lin Chen's colleague and also his fiancée. She's currently a manager at Tian Tian's company!" Hearing this, everyone was somewhat surprised. Just looking at Su Yanan's attire and demeanor, she didn't seem like a child from an ordinary family.
"Great, I've gained a wonderful granddaughter too!" Li Xiaoyan smiled and nodded at Su Yanan, then turned her gaze to Lin Chen, "How could such a good girl end up with such a silly boy?"
"Big sister, what's wrong with me?" Lin Chen quickly explained when he saw Li Xiaoyan's disgusted expression.
"Who are you calling 'big sister'? You're obviously no good!" Li Xiaoyan teased. Lin Chen looked at his aunt and was speechless for a moment. Seeing Lin Chen's embarrassed expression, Li Xiaoyan laughed heartily, and her laughter also infected the elders around her.
Su Yanan remained very quiet at this moment, not offering any explanation, but simply standing there quietly, smiling as she watched everything unfold.
"Hey, my mischievous little brother of mine has been causing quite a stir lately! He's even given up on a prestigious university like Haizhou University. Uncle Nan told me you were planning to retake the exam, so why are you working now?"
Liu Xinxin's words carried a hint of reproach, and the smile that had been on her face instantly vanished, replaced by a serious expression, as if she was quite surprised by Lin Chen's behavior.
Lin Chen scratched his head, looking slightly embarrassed. "Ahem, Sister Xin Xin, I really couldn't refuse that job. I had my own considerations."
Hearing this, Li Xiaoyan, standing to the side, flashed a hint of disdain in her eyes. She glanced at Lin Chen, then turned to Liu Xinxin, "Xinxin, you actually acknowledged this dropout as your younger brother? Isn't that lowering yourself?"
Upon hearing this, Liu Xinxin immediately retorted, "Auntie, don't underestimate Lin Chen. He's incredibly capable now. He helped me find this job, and the pay is fantastic. Besides, he must have his reasons for not going to school. His company is thriving, and he even made our Tian Tian famous!"
When Liu Tiantian was mentioned, the whole family looked proud, even though they didn't entirely believe it was Lin Chen's doing.
Seeing this, Lin Chen didn't bother to explain further and turned to walk towards the kitchen. Since his grandparents still lived in the countryside, the kitchen here, although equipped with gas, still retained the traditional earthen stove that used wood to burn firewood.
Meanwhile, Grandma was busy in the kitchen preparing a sumptuous lunch. Su Yanan, Liu Xinxin, and others were chatting in another room.
Suddenly, a slightly stuttering but strong voice rang out from inside the house, "Big sister, your little brother has come to see you!"
Lin Chen listened to the sounds outside the door, which felt both strange and familiar. Li Xiaohu glanced outside and whispered, "That jinx is here."
He is Liu Xinxin's distant cousin, Li Dalong.
After the meal was prepared, Auntie, Uncle, Liu Xinxin, and Su Yanan all went into the kitchen to help clear the dishes and serve the food. Knowing there would be many people, they prepared a very generous portion. With everyone's combined efforts, a sumptuous meal was quickly laid out on the table.
At this moment, Li Dalong also walked in. He looked at Lin Chen with a smile and said, "This must be Lin Chen. Xin Xin said he has always taken good care of the sisters. Not bad, not bad." Because he had worked in government departments for a long time, Li Dalong always stood up straight and spoke with a bit of an official tone.
"Who is this little girl?" Zeng Xinyue, Li Dalong's wife, followed them in. She hadn't wanted to come back, but out of respect for her husband, she had to. Once there, she found that these poor relatives all lacked refinement, spoke loudly, and laughed heartily, which made her even more reluctant to stay.
However, when Su Yanan appeared, her eyes lit up.
Seeing this, Liu Xinxin smiled and introduced, "Second Aunt, this is my newly adopted daughter, Su Yanan, and also my godbrother Lin Chen's colleague and fiancée." Liu Xinxin knew Zeng Xinyue's personality very well. Although she didn't like her, she was still an elder and had to put on a smiling face.
Upon hearing this, Zeng Xinyue frowned slightly. "Oh, how old are you to have such a grown goddaughter? Besides, you're pregnant out of wedlock, and you have a godbrother? I think you're just a sucker. But how come a sucker comes with a fiancée? Are the three of you going to live together?"
After a few words, the atmosphere in the room became extremely awkward, but Zeng Xinyue didn't seem to notice at all. She went all out: "I think this kid is only about twenty years old. I just heard you say that you dropped out of school?" Her tone was flat, even somewhat cold.
Upon hearing this, Lin Chen simply smiled faintly, "Yes, I dropped out of school. And Xin Xin and I are just siblings." His tone was calm and indifferent, as if he were discussing something trivial.
Lin Chen's slightly unruly words echoed in Zeng Xinyue's ears, causing her brows to furrow involuntarily and the temperature in her eyes to drop slightly, as if a cold wind in winter had silently penetrated the warm atmosphere.
"Sigh, how come kids these days won't even put in the effort for their studies? Back when my child took the college entrance exam the first year, he didn't even reach the second-tier university cutoff score, but he was determined and repeated a year, and managed to get into a first-tier university."
Right after graduation, he was spotted by a well-known company in the city and is now a department manager. You're still young; take advantage of your time to learn more and try to get at least a college diploma so you'll have a future.
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