"I'm sorry, I..." Nian Suian hadn't expected to hear that someone was no longer alive, afraid she might have stirred up painful memories for Sheng Xia.
Sheng Xia shook her head, "I'm fine."
"Mommy~ Don't be sad, Mommy." Jiaojiao, who had been sitting by the pool splashing her feet in the water, now keenly sensed her mother's emotions.
She called out to her mother while trying to scoot herself down.
"Jiaojiao, don't move. Mommy's not sad." Sheng Xia quickly stopped her daughter and put a children's swim ring on her before lowering her into the pool to play for a while.
"Jiaojiao's name was given by her. It's Sheng Mingjiao."
"Mommy!" Jiaojiao heard her name and thought Sheng Xia was calling her, so she responded immediately.
"Tell Auntie Suian what your name is."
"My name is Sheng Mingjiao! It means bright and clear moonlight!"
Sheng Xia had told her this a few times, and she remembered it. Now whenever someone asked her name, she would say it proudly.
"Oh my, what a beautiful name, sweetie."
Nian Suian then told Sheng Xia, "Chen Shu was here a couple of days ago, but he had to leave early due to some family matters."
"I don't know what it is, but Jiaojiao really likes him. I thought she'd forget about him after not seeing him for a few days, but surprisingly she hasn't. She still mentions him from time to time at home."
Hearing this, Nian Suian smiled and said, "The connections between people are hard to explain, especially with children. The reasons why they like or dislike someone are often unclear."
Otherwise, how could one explain it? Chen Shu had such a cold appearance, and Gu Junxing had said that even when Gu Zhijing was little and they went to dinner with Chen Shu and his family, Gu Zhijing would shy away from Chen Shu.
"You're right. But he is indeed very patient with children, so it's not surprising that Jiaojiao likes him."
During meals, Jiaojiao would often ramble with childish talk that Sheng Xia couldn't always follow, but Chen Shu would always respond to Jiaojiao. It surprised Sheng Xia that they could converse so well.
"It's all because our Jiaojiao is so adorable, everyone loves her."
Nian Suian's words weren't an exaggeration. In the evening, when Liu Jian returned from outside and heard that Nian Suian's friend had arrived, he suggested they all have dinner together so he could properly entertain the guests.
When Liu Jian saw Jiaojiao, his reaction was just like Nian Suian's when she first met Jiaojiao. He exclaimed that the child was incredibly cute!
"Oh my! I didn't know about this earlier. It's my first time meeting the child today. I should have brought a gift or a red envelope."
"Mr. Liu, you're too kind."
"Come on, we're all friends here. No need for such formalities. Just call me by my name," Liu Jian said with a wave of his hand. Then he turned to Jiaojiao, "Jiaojiao, are you having fun here?"
"Yes! Jiaojiao is swimming in a little dress!" As she spoke, she made a swimming motion, delighting Liu Jian so much that he immediately took out his phone to take a picture of her.
Seeing this, Sheng Xia reminded her daughter, "Jiaojiao, what should you do when someone takes a picture?"
"Cheese!" Upon hearing about the photo, Jiaojiao reflexively raised her hand in a peace sign! The three adults at the table were all amused by her.
"I'll send this to my mom so she can experience having a granddaughter."
"Are you sure that will satisfy her and not make her pressure you to have a child?"
"My mom knows better than that. Even if she told me to have a child, I couldn't produce one as beautiful as this."
Liu Jian indeed knew his mother well.
His mother's reactions upon seeing Jiaojiao's photo were:
First: Is this yours?
Second: It can't be, you couldn't produce such a beautiful child.
Third: Did you kidnap someone's child?
That evening, Jiaojiao kept calling Liu Jian "Uncle Liu," which delighted him to no end. The smile never left his face.
Children sleep early, so Sheng Xia took Jiaojiao back to their room.
Liu Jian was reluctant to see them go and escorted them to the elevator. When he returned, he said to Nian Suian, "If she were my daughter, I'd screen every boy within a ten-mile radius three times over."
This amused Nian Suian so much she almost spat out her tea.
After talking about Jiaojiao, Liu Jian's tone turned serious, "About that young girl you met last time, I had my assistant chat with her."
Liu Jian then told Nian Suian about some of Xin Yuchun's circumstances.
After listening, Nian Suian sighed, "No wonder. When I first saw her, I thought she must be very young, about the same age as Zhijing. To be so young and already having to earn money to support her family."
"Yes, I'm planning to give her a raise. I've already asked Zhao Yue to handle it. It's not much, but it should be enough for her and her grandmother to live on and save a bit. A young girl like her, just working part-time jobs like this, what kind of future can she have? She really should be in school."
Liu Jian didn't dare give too much, partly because with both elderly and young family members, if ill-intentioned people found out about too much money, it could harm them. Also, Liu Jian feared being suspected of having ulterior motives.
"You've thought it through very thoroughly." After this incident, Nian Suian's opinion of Liu Jian improved somewhat.
Before, she only knew him as someone with strong defenses and stinginess when dating, but she hadn't realized he had such a considerate side.
As they continued talking, Liu Jian forgot Gu Junxing's warning and his words started to wander again.
"Gu is home alone, guarding an empty house. Hasn't he urged you to go back?"
Nian Suian thought to herself, when is he not guarding an empty house? But out loud, she said:
"He's going on a business trip tomorrow. We don't know how many days he'll be gone."
"Business trip? Let me tell you, among all of us, he works the hardest. I used to tell him all the time that you can't earn all the money in the world. Why not do like me, buy a few buildings and just collect rent while lying down? As for the company, isn't it good to hand it over to professional managers?"
Nian Suian actually agreed with Liu Jian's words, "I think you're right. My ideal life would be to have money to spend without having to work."
"Exactly!" Liu Jian slapped his thigh, feeling like he had found a kindred spirit. "When I said this to Gu before, he said I had no ambition or ideals."
"Well, everyone has different ideals, different choices. But for him to put you down like that, that's not right."
If everyone could have money to spend without working, that would truly be entering communism!
...
(Side Story)
In a certain city
"Boss Gu, why don't you stay a few more days this time? Next week, Mr. Hans from Germany will be coming for a lecture. We could gather together then. These few days, let me properly host you and show you some hospitality!"
"President Sun, you're too kind. I should indeed chat more with you, but it's really unfortunate timing this time. Next week is my birthday, and my wife specifically instructed me to return home early. We'll have plenty of opportunities in the future."
"I see. In that case, you should indeed go back early to celebrate your birthday with your wife. That's certainly more interesting than spending time with us old men! Next time, bring your wife along when you have the chance."