"Auntie, Daddy bought me a big car."
"A very, very big car....."
After dinner, the little foodie Xixi, while rubbing her round belly, boasted to her aunt.
"Really?"
"How big is it?"
Li Manni thought Xixi was talking about a toy car. She scanned the room but didn't see any trace of a car.
"This big..."
Xixi stretched out her arms as far as she could and said, "Daddy and I even put the Peppa Pig Family stickers on it."
"Uhh, a real car?"
Li Manni looked towards Yang Hao, who was clearing the table.
"Yeah, it's always inconvenient without a car. Later, I'll drive you back to school and take Xixi out for a spin..."
He couldn't hide the fact that he was wealthy again, and he had no intention of keeping it from Li Manni.
"Oh, okay."
Li Manni nodded gently, her eyes full of confusion. She knew about her brother-in-law's situation. The previous house was sold, with half of the money going to her sister and the other half used to pay off debts. It seemed that it still wasn't enough.
Actually, the brother-in-law could have used all the money from the house sale to pay off debts and then split the remainder evenly, but to gain custody of Xixi, he chose to compromise.
Because under the current circumstances, if the court were to decide, it was highly likely that they would grant custody to Li Manshu. The child was young, she was the mother, and she had a stable job—all these were advantageous factors.
Li Manni also knew that the house was sold for 2.9 million, 1.1 million was used to pay off the bank loan, leaving 1.8 million to be split evenly between them, giving each person 900,000. Yang Hao's share was used to pay off debts, while her sister's 900,000 seemed to be for buying a new home; she didn't know the details as they hadn't been in touch recently.
So, the custody of Xixi was essentially something that her brother-in-law had bought from her sister for hundreds of thousands of yuan, and her sister even added the condition of not paying child support, which Yang Hao also agreed to.
The things Li Manshu did can be summed up in four words: abandoning husband and daughter!
And because of this, Li Manni was utterly disappointed in her sister; she had never imagined her sister could be so cold and selfish.
"My financial situation has indeed improved, but the reasons are a bit complicated. I'll tell you slowly when there's time."
"In any case, from now on, you don't need to worry about me and Xixi making a living."
While Li Manni was washing dishes in the kitchen, Yang Hao approached her and volunteered an explanation.
"Mmm, that's good news."
Li Manni nodded and smiled, "Now you won't have to work so hard delivering food every day."
Actually, Li Manni was a bit worried about her brother-in-law's job as a food delivery worker; about half a month earlier, a Kangaroo delivery person had been hit by a car and killed while running a red light on an electric scooter to save time. The family sued Kangaroo Company for compensation, but Kangaroo said that the courier violated traffic regulations themselves, and was only willing to offer tens of thousands of yuan in condolence money.
At that time, she also went to interview the family of the victim. The Kangaroo courier who was killed was about the same age as Yang Hao, and his child was only seven years old.
Li Manni still couldn't forget the image of the small boy holding his father's portrait and weeping bitterly. That night, she even had a nightmare.
In the dream, her brother-in-law Yang Hao had become the victim, with Xixi holding her and crying non-stop, and her sister was trying to claim compensation from Kangaroo....
Now that the brother-in-law didn't need to deliver food, she could finally let go of the constant worry she had held.
"Manni, go and teach Xixi English."
"I'll take care of the kitchen."
Throughout university, Li Manni had studied very hard. In addition to the English she was already proficient in, she also took elective courses in Japanese and French, achieving fluency in both.
And it was time for Xixi to start learning English. Every time Li Manni came to the house, she would teach her some simple words and conversation.
"Okay."
Li Manni washed her hands and then took off the apron tied around her. She was wearing a black turtleneck sweater that was rather thin and form-fitting. Without the apron, her curvaceous figure was fully revealed.
Yang Hao's gaze lingered for a moment before he hurriedly looked back at the kitchen sink.
The impression of the little girl, truly, had grown up before he knew it...
"Brother-in-law, let me tie the apron for you."
Li Manni quickly tied the apron she had removed from herself around Yang Hao's waist, creating a rather delicate bow at the back.
The pink cartoon apron fit Li Manni just right, but on Yang Hao, it had a comical effect, as if a father had secretly worn his daughter's clothes.
Li Manni found the scene amusing and made a point of grabbing her cell phone to snap a photo before she stepped to the kitchen doorway.
Yang Hao wasn't too concerned about his appearance; instead, he was drawn to the faint lingering fragrance on the apron.
Strangely, Li Manni had been bustling about in the kitchen wearing that apron for quite a while, and it should have smelled of cooking fumes, but Yang Hao didn't catch a whiff of that. Instead, it was the faint, soothing fragrance that kept wafting into his nostrils.
This scent wasn't like perfume, often found on pretty girls—it would be an exaggeration to call it a body scent, but it was that kind of smell that felt very comfortable to smell.
So there's some truth to the saying that pretty girls always smell nice.
After tidying up the kitchen, Yang Hao returned to the living room.
In fact, in this one-room apartment, the living room and bedroom were combined.
The dining table from earlier had now been transformed into a study desk, with Li Manni teaching Xixi English.
However, having eaten too much just before, the little foodie was feeling rather sleepy, and Auntie Li Manni would occasionally flick her gently on the head to keep her awake.
Yang Hao didn't disturb the two and picked up his phone to discover that he had several unread WeChat messages.
Most of them were from Wei Facai. Earlier that morning, Yang Hao had repaid him fifty thousand yuan, and upon waking up and seeing this, Wei Facai had sent an inquiring message to Yang Hao. After reading it, Yang Hao had rushed to take Xixi to school and forgot to reply, and then he completely forgot about it.
Wei Facai was probably off work by now, and seeing no response from Yang Hao, he had sent several more messages.
Unable to go into details about the origin of the money, Yang Hao simply said that his family's old house was being relocated.
Indeed, there had always been talk of relocating the house where Yang Hao's parents lived, but it had never happened; given the current property market downturn, it was even less likely to happen, but it made a good excuse.
Sure enough, Wei Facai immediately sent a "Bullshit" emoji and rattled off some things about how Li Manshu must be regretting now; as a good brother, Wei Facai was quite indignant on Yang Hao's behalf.
Besides Wei Facai's messages, there were also a few from Zhang Guilin. She had sent her business card, saying that the person on it was her niece and suggested that since she was a girl, Yang Hao should take the initiative.
A little while later, she messaged again to ask if Yang Hao had added her...
Surely a tsundere leftover woman of a certain age!
Actually, Yang Hao had anticipated this when Zhang Guilin said she would recommend her niece to add him on WeChat.
To not disappoint Mrs. Zhang's kindness, Yang Hao took the initiative and added her recommended contact.
The person's nickname was in English: Alisa
In recent years, having an English name seemed trendy. However, the hairdressing industry, almost single-handedly, pushed down the tide of English naming—a contribution to cultural confidence.
Helplessly, you come up with an English name, Tony, after much thought,
Only to discover at the hair salon that you share the same name as your hairstylist!
Talk about awkward...
This Alisa quickly approved the friend request, then sent a message: "Are you Mr. Yang? Introduced by my second aunt?"
"Yes, Mrs. Zhang introduced me," Yang Hao replied.
Alisa: Then let's just go through the formalities.
Alisa: Do you have a house?
Yang Hao: No
Alisa: Do you have a car?
Yang Hao: Yes
Alisa: What brand?
Yang Hao: BYD
Alisa: I'll tell my second aunt that we're not suitable, hope you can cooperate.
Yang Hao: Okay.
The blind date concluded, crisp and clear.
Actually, Yang Hao felt that this kind of blind-date model was quite good as well: it was simple, straightforward without dragging things, and it didn't waste each other's time, which was much better than meeting at a fancy restaurant and spending a few hundred more on a meal.
The conversation with Alisa ended.
Yang Hao then received a new message, surprisingly from Li Manshu, asking who the woman at the Prada store was during the day.
Yang Hao couldn't bother to reply and pretended not to see it. If it weren't for the fact that the sender was Xixi's mother and that Xixi still had feelings for her, he would have blocked her long ago.
Close to eight o'clock, Yang Hao descended the stairs with two beauties, one large and one small.
Xixi, who had been drowsy during the English lesson, became energetic as soon as she went downstairs. She jogged ahead to lead her little aunt to see her "big car".
"Little Aunt, here, here!"
Xixi danced in front of the U8 and then pointed to a row of the Peppa Pig Family on the bumper, saying, "Little Aunt, there's also Peppa Pig here, Daddy and I stuck them on together."
Li Manni was taken aback by the size of the U8, as it was so big, five meters three in length, and over one meter nine in height, creating a strong visual impact.
Then she subconsciously glanced at the emblem, not recognizing it.
Just like most girls, Li Manni only knew those brands that everyone was aware of.
It was natural that she didn't recognize a niche model like the U8 that hadn't been long in the market.
However, Li Manni wasn't particularly interested in cars either. She walked over to Xixi's side, patted the little girl's head, and cooperatively admired the Peppa Pig Family stickers on the bumper, even commenting, "Daddy Pig is stuck on a bit crookedly."
"Hehe, Daddy did that..."
Xixi pouted and glanced at her father standing behind her.
"Get in the car, it's quite cold."
Yang Hao stooped down to pick up his precious daughter and rubbed his slightly grown stubble against her chubby cheeks, asking, "Is what Daddy stuck on crooked?"
Xixi, tickled by the stubble, dodged repeatedly while laughing and saying, "It's not crooked at all, not even a bit. Daddy stuck it on perfectly."
"Anyway, it was Little Aunt who said Daddy did it crookedly, you go prick Little Aunt!"
The wheels in Xixi's little head turned quickly, and she even knew who to blame as the instigator.
But upon hearing this, Li Manni's pretty face turned slightly red, thinking how blunt the words of children could be—such things aren't casually uttered!
Yang Hao, on the other hand, thought that his doting hadn't been for naught; she was a filial child!
In the midst of playful banter, Yang Hao placed his dutiful daughter in the back seat, and Li Manni also got into the car.
Li Manni had felt that the car was simply large when outside, but now, as she entered, she realized just how luxurious the interior was, seeming very expensive.
"Brother-in-law, what kind of car is this? It's very beautiful."
Li Manni curiously asked.
"A domestic car, BYD."
Yang Hao only mentioned the brand and not the model, afraid that the price of over a million would scare her.
"No wonder BYD's doing so well, the car really is beautiful!"
Li Manni remarked, noting that there were many different models of BYD in their office parking lot, though it seemed there wasn't the one she was currently sitting in.
However, Li Manni didn't think much of it, considering that domestic cars were flourishing with new varieties constantly seen on the streets—it wasn't strange at all to see models she didn't recognize.
At this time the traffic wasn't bad, and in around forty minutes, Yang Hao had delivered Li Manni to the entrance of her dormitory area.
"Goodbye, Little Aunt."
Xixi waved her hand, somewhat unwilling to part with her little aunt.
"Mm, goodbye Xixi!"
Li Manni kissed the little girl's cheek, but then she suddenly remembered that before getting in the car, Yang Hao seemed to have pricked her cheek with his stubble for a while, also giving it two kisses.
Uh, which side of the cheek did he kiss?
Or did he kiss both sides?
Meaning, I kissed the place he had kissed...
At the thought, Li Manni's cheeks flushed once again, and then she hurriedly scrambled out of the car.
However, she hadn't gone far when Yang Hao's voice suddenly rang out from behind her, "Manni, wait a moment."
"Oh?"
Li Manni turned her head, looking at Yang Hao with a puzzled expression.
She watched as he walked to the back of the car, opened the trunk, and took out a shopping bag to hand to her, "I've been wanting to give you a gift since you started working, but my financial situation wasn't great back then. Now it's better. Here, take this."
"This..."
By now, it was completely dark outside, and the logo on the shopping bag was not at all visible. Mainly, Li Manni wasn't paying attention to it; she just felt it was somewhat unexpected for her brother-in-law to suddenly give her a gift.
"A girl should always have a decent bag. Hurry on back now, it's quite cold!"
After speaking, Yang Hao turned and got into his car.
"Thank you, brother-in-law."
As she closed the car door, Li Manni's words of thanks reached Yang Hao's ears.
He lowered the window and waved to Li Manni, who was still standing there, then drove away.
As she watched the car disappear into the night, Li Manni turned to enter the dormitory area, but she hadn't gone far when her roommate Xu Wenqian caught up to her, running from behind.
"Manni, did you work overtime today too?"
Xu Wenqian worked at a new media company where overtime was the norm. The promised schedule of nine to six turned out to be that she wouldn't leave work until seven or eight o'clock every night.
"No, I went to my brother-in-law's house."
Li Manni answered truthfully.
"Yo, yo, yo, it's the brother-in-law again."
"I seriously suspect you're having an affair with your brother-in-law..."
Xu Wenqian teased as she linked arms with Li Manni. The two weren't just roommates of four years but had also become friends who talked about everything, so making jokes was no issue.
"What are you talking about!"
"I was just helping to look after Xixi," Li Manni quickly denied.
"Huh, did you go shopping?"
Xu Wenqian noticed the shopping bag in her friend's hand and asked nonchalantly.
"Given by my brother-in-law."
"Ah, it's the brother-in-law again. And you say there's no affair!"
Xu Wenqian, acting like she caught onto something, naturally snatched the shopping bag away, "Let's see what he gave."
"Eh?"
"Prada??"
Xu Wenqian glanced at the logo on the shopping bag unconsciously and then exclaimed.
Li Manni hadn't been paying attention, planning to look inside the shopping bag once she got back to her room, but when she heard Xu Wenqian's shout, she too turned her gaze to the shopping bag.
Li Manni, of course, had heard of the brand Prada. Her sister Li Manshu had two Prada bags, colleagues at work carried them, and the girls often talked about the brand during chats.
But Li Manni felt that luxury brands were too far out of reach for someone like her. If it weren't for her brother-in-law's support, she probably wouldn't have been able to focus on her studies in college and would've needed to work part-time like her sister had during her own studies, so she didn't pay much attention to luxury goods herself.
"Manni, didn't your brother-in-law go bankrupt?"
"How could he still give you such an expensive gift? Could it be a fake?"
Xu Wenqian said with a suspicious look.
"It shouldn't be fake. My brother-in-law's financial situation has improved. He even bought a car," Li Manni knew her brother-in-law well. He was down-to-earth and wouldn't buy a fake just to blag her, and there was no need for that either.
"Is that so."
Xu Wenqian curled her lips into a smirk, "Then there must be an affair going on!"
"That's a Prada bag, it must cost at least over ten thousand!"
"C'mon, Manni, give it to me straight! Confess and you'll be treated leniently, resist and face severity!"
Xu Wenqian's gossiping fire was already blazing.
Her sister divorced, and the sister steps in to take the spot!
Just thinking about this plot is thrilling. If the pen were passed to a certain writer like Aunty Yao, wouldn't she write a fifty-episode melodramatic romance drama??
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