Xue Xin slept on her stomach for a while, but soon her sleep became restless and she swayed uncomfortably.
Cheng Huanran gently helped her adjust her posture, then held her on his lap to ease her lying on her stomach.
Xue Xin finally slept peacefully until dawn thanks to her elder brother's caring care.
There was a gentle knock on the door, and Xue Ling opened it.
Cheng Huanran called out "Mom" through lip language, and then made a shushing gesture.
Xue Ling murmured at the door: "Go and squint for a while, and let me take care of her."
Cheng Huanran shook his head and pointed at his thigh to explain silently.
Whenever he moves, his sister will wake up and let her sleep a little longer.
Xue Ling observed his son's sitting posture, turned around, walked away, and came over with two big pillows in his arms.
Cheng Huanran smiled happily and thanked silently.
Xue Ling supported him behind his back and murmured: "You should also squint for a while. I'll call you later."
Cheng Huanran nodded lightly.
Xue Ling closed the door, put on her down jacket and went to the big kitchen.
The lights have started to turn on in the big kitchen, and Lao Li is preparing to make breakfast.
Xue Ling asked him to make some soothing soup and a pot of millet porridge.
"The fourth child has been staying up late lately and is not in good spirits.
Make some millet porridge for her to eat to refresh her mind."
Lao Li quickly answered.
Xue Ling couldn't sleep, so he went to the big living room to warm himself by the fire and drink water.
Early morning is the quietest time in Xinyuan. Even the sound of the wind outside can be heard clearly.
After a while, steady footsteps came from outside.
Xue Ling was slightly confused and turned around - he saw Chen Xinzhi walking slowly, pulling a large suitcase.
He raised his eyebrows slightly and said warmly: "Morning, madam."
Xue Ling quickly stood up and asked in surprise: "Xinzhi, are you back?
Didn’t you say you can’t come back in two days?
Earlier?"
Chen Xinzhi nodded: "The contract was signed smoothly, and a celebration dinner will be held for dinner.
The only ticket that I didn’t come back with today was last night.
I simply unpacked my suitcase and got on the plane and caught up on my sleep on the plane.
It was so early in the morning, there was no traffic jam from the airport to the city, and we were at the gate of Xinyuan in half an hour.”
Xue Ling hurriedly asked him to sit down and hurriedly went to pour water.
"It's only minus seven degrees outside, isn't it cold?
Come on, come on! Drink some warm water first."
Chen Xinzhi took it in thanks and drank most of the glass.
"I haven't lived there for several days, and it's freezing inside.
I might as well come over here to have breakfast and go back to catch up on my sleep later."
In fact, he wished he could see Xue Xin just a minute earlier. After not seeing him for several days, he was going crazy.
No, I ran straight here as soon as I got off the plane, not wanting to delay for a moment.
Xue Ling is also a person who has been there and understands it very well.
"now it's right.
It's very cold outside, so it's not easy to find food early in the morning.
I was cold and hungry when I got off the plane, and it was troublesome to cook for myself.
We are all our own people, so don't be polite.
You usually eat at the company, but if you come to the Siheyuan, you always eat here.
Anyway, if you walk around through the back door, it will only take a few minutes."
Chen Xinzhi smiled: "I'm not polite to my wife, so I shamelessly come to her door every time."
"very good."
Xue Ling looked at him and said, "Xinzhi, since you came back, I have always treated you as my own child."
Chen Xinzhi whispered: "I know...Thank you, madam."
"Stop calling me 'ma'am."
Xue Ling chuckled: "It seems very crude and not suitable for our current relationship."
Chen Xinzhi was slightly embarrassed and explained: "I was used to shouting in the past, but I can't change it for a while.
Moreover, I hope to call you ‘Mom’ when I correct myself.”
"Ha ha!"
Xue Ling smiled, thought for a while, and then said: "If your relationship is stable, when the weather gets warmer, discuss it with your mother and Duoduo and choose a good day for you to get engaged."
Chen Xinzhi: "..."?
?
?
Xue Ling couldn't help teasing: "What?
Too surprised?
Still don’t agree?”
"No no no!"
Chen Xinzhi shook his head repeatedly: "I - I was just so surprised for a while that I couldn't react."
A surprise pie suddenly fell from the sky and knocked him unconscious! If this situation were not so real, he would have thought he was dreaming!
You two have a mutual respect for each other. I don’t want you to be reserved when you come here, and I don’t want Xiaoxin to have to go on dates with you secretly.
Of course, being engaged does not bind you, nor does it stipulate that you must get married in the future. The autonomy of marriage is still in your hands."
Married people, legal couples recognized by the Marriage Law, can still separate and divorce, let alone others! "You should understand what I mean, right?"
Xue Ling explained again: "I just want you two to fall in love in a better and more secure way."
Chen Xinzhi smiled happily and kept nodding.
"Madam, I understand your good intentions! Thank you... thank you!"
In the beginning, my relationship with Xiaoxin was almost secretive, and I didn't dare to let them know about it.
It's not that he doesn't respect Xue Ling or Cheng Tianyuan enough, but that he doesn't want them to object.
Xiaoxin was not yet an adult at the time, so he really didn't have the confidence or courage to express his feelings to them directly.
Later, they acquiesced to him and agreed to let the two of them fall in love first - he was secretly happy for a long time and was extremely grateful to them.
After all, Xiaoxin was still a high school student at the time, with a lot of academic pressure and she was still young.
Other parents are strongly opposed to their children's premature love, and even ruthlessly stifle the first signs of it. They are very enlightened to agree, and it is not easy.
Now that Xiaoxin is in college, their relationship is getting closer and closer, but this is Xiaoxin's home after all, and he can't go in and out openly and openly with the word "boyfriend" all day long.
He would not tell Xiaoxin about his restraint and embarrassment, and was reluctant to let her know.
His wife saw it and planned to use the traditional model of "engagement" to give them two statuses first, which helped him solve the problem and hoped that he could better integrate into this big family.
She did this for her own good, and also to better protect and maintain the relationship between him and Xiaoxin, giving him enough confidence and patience to continue waiting until Xiaoxin successfully graduated and married her.
"Thanks!"
Chen Xinzhi stood up and bowed slightly to Xue Ling.
Xue Ling narrowed her eyes with a smile and quickly helped him stand up.
"Don't be hasty, wait until you get engaged, then bow to us elders.
When your mother is free, I will discuss with her and try to choose a good day on the weekend, so that there will be more people participating and it will be lively."
"good!"
Chen Xinzhi agreed, "I will find the best wedding planning center in the imperial capital to organize it.
As for the location, it can be a big hotel, or it can be over there in Xinyuan or the courtyard."
Although Xue Ling is open-minded, the word "tradition" is still engraved in his bones.
When a son marries his daughter-in-law, he can naturally choose his own wife.
When a daughter is getting engaged, she is going to be married off, and of course the place is dominated by men.
"It's better over there in the courtyard."
Xue Ling suggested: "Your yard is big and the grass is wide."