Chapter 130: A son-in-law is half a son

[Gongdou] victory in hand, Lin Ci felt she had matured a lot.

Shen Xiyan sighed deeply, “Our big group isn’t harmonious at all. Why is everyone scheming against each other?”

Lin Ci snorted, “Such is the art of emperors—it’s all about balance of power. If I don’t do this, how can your [Hougong] ever be peaceful?”

Shen Xiyan was startled, “Hougong?”

Lin Ci straightened her pretty face, “It’s just a metaphor. Qin Sheng practically wants to carve the word ‘[Chengdi]’ on my forehead. After all, the one who knows you best will always be your enemy… let’s encourage each other!”

With those words, she found it rather boring, stretched hard, letting out a little yawn.

It was summer and her clothes were thin; she wore only a T-shirt, and as she stretched, a patch of fair skin at her waist and her cute bellybutton peeked out.

Shen Xiyan:

This was the time to get serious and teach Lin Ci the meaning of “[Xiangqin Xiangai]”, but he completely lost his resolve, all because Lin Ci was just too enchanting.

He seized the chance to sneak a couple of glances, “You’re showing!”

Lin Ci demurely fixed her clothes, smiling faintly, “So? Did your date go smoothly today?”

Shen Xiyan hurried to look at Lin Ci. Her smile was gentle, but her eyes hid a trace of [Nairan] and [Naonu].

Girls sure are petty.

“I already said it wasn’t a date!” Shen Xiyan protested loudly.

Lin Ci might have thought he really had something urgent, never expecting it was a “date”.

Lin Ci shot him a sideways glance, mimicking Qin Sheng’s tone, “When we met this morning, he could have just come straight, but he deliberately took a long, roundabout way to surprise me, only to get found out. How embarrassing, isn’t it?”

Shen Xiyan suddenly panicked for no reason, “Was… was that Qin Sheng’s story?”

She even showed me a video! Who would’ve thought Xiyan could be so gentle? How come I never noticed before?

Nonsense!

I’m always the gentlest to you.

“Maybe because you’re a girl, that’s why she’s hostile to you. You know how that is.”

“So I can’t even have a female friend? She’s not even your girlfriend.” Lin Ci complained bitterly, “If she actually became your girlfriend, wouldn’t even Wenwen get kicked out?”

You really hit the nail on the head.

[Yuanyan], struck.

But before that, the first thing Qin Sheng would do is get rid of you.

“Why aren’t you explaining for Qin Sheng?” Lin Ci sneered coldly.

“Why would I explain for her?”

Shen Xiyan puffed out his chest, “As long as my conscience is clear, that’s all that matters.”

“Clear conscience?”

Lin Ci poked Shen Xiyan’s chest furiously, “You went shopping for gifts with her and not with me, and you still dare say your conscience is clear? Shen Xiyan, has your conscience been eaten by a dog!”

“…Don’t get angry, don’t get angry, anger gives you crow’s feet.”

Shen Xiyan patted her head.

Her long hair, silky and soft, fell gently along her slender neck, resting on her shoulders and clothes. Shen Xiyan lowered his head, catching a glimpse of her exquisite collarbone.

The unique, gentle radiance of a youthful girl seemed to spread from her, flawless and alluring.

“If I get crow’s feet, it’s because you made me angry! I’m busy this week, so keep next week free for me.”

“Huh? Didn’t you already finish shopping?”

“What did you say?!” Lin Ci grabbed Shen Xiyan’s ear.

With so many people around, does Shen Xiyan not care about his face?

Unbelievable!

So he grabbed Lin Ci’s ear as well, his thumb and forefinger gently rubbing her earlobe.

The girl’s earlobe was exceptionally soft, like pinching a piece of cotton candy—tender and yielding, making it hard not to want to taste it.

Her ears were extremely sensitive; Shen Xiyan had barely pinched for a moment before she hunched her shoulders, forbidding him from doing it again, her voice muffled and aggrieved, “…If you don’t agree, I’ll tell Auntie.”

“What—how come you both use this trick?” Shen Xiyan felt his mind shatter. “Just one trick for everything, huh! And what could you possibly tell Auntie?”

Lin Ci threatened viciously, “I’ll say you looked at indecent things right in front of me, and even tried to teach me!”

“Hey! Now you’re just making things up with the second half, aren’t you?”

“Let’s see if Auntie believes you or me!”

Under Lin Ci’s murderous glare, Shen Xiyan caved.

Lin Ci was very satisfied with his tact, but she still couldn’t hold back her little temper, bumping him with her shoulder every so often, staying close to his side.

“What are you doing?”

“It’s not on purpose!”

As she said this, Lin Ci bumped him with her shoulder again.

For some reason, whenever she was with him, she felt especially violent, always wanting to pinch, touch, or step on him.

But in the end, it was because she cared; her heart felt sour and tingly.

“I think you’re doing it on purpose.”

“The earth is tilted, and gravity—I can’t help it.”

“Gravity, huh? So I have gravity too?”

“Yeah.”

Shen Xiyan felt both annoyed and amused, “So you want to fit perfectly with me?”

“What do you mean?”

Maybe the idiom was too profound, and Lin Ci’s clever mind couldn’t quite grasp it, so she let it go.

“If you don’t get it, just forget it…” Shen Xiyan refused to answer. “But can’t you keep a little distance from me?”

“No! The more I think about it, the angrier I get.” As Lin Ci spoke, she bumped him again.

“So you’re really getting back at me!”

“Hmph!”

Lin Ci turned her head to gaze out the window at the blazing sun, her dark pupils reflecting the bright sunlight.

At that moment, Su Hao, who had been following behind them, finally found a chance to speak and walked over, asking, “Are you both my sister’s friends too?”

Shen Xiyan:

Lin Ci: “…”

Su Hao glanced at Shen Xiyan, froze for a moment, then looked at him in terror.

His gaze shifted with fear, then naturally landed on Lin Ci.

Su Hao’s overall impression of her was very high. Although her looks were just a bit below Qin Sheng’s, her figure was excellent, and she had an aura of pure innocence.

“Your sister?”

Shen Xiyan pretended to think hard, then said with sudden realization, “You’re Su Jin’s little brother?”

“Yeah, I’m Su Hao.”

Brother Ritian, long time no see, no wonder he’s such a spirited kid.

“…Shen Xiyan, this is Lin Ci.”

Lin Ci was never fond of guys who dressed like that. She just nodded, counting it as a greeting.

“Then I’ll go look for my sister.”

“Okay.”

“He’s so annoying.” Lin Ci muttered, pouting.

“What’s wrong?”

“His eyes.”

He doesn’t look like a high schooler at all.

Normally, even if a high school boy wanted to look, he’d at least pretend to look away and sneak a peek. Who stares so blatantly like him?

“That’s how it is with ‘society people.’ Su Jin and her brother never got along.”

Shen Xiyan recounted the whole family backstory to her.

Though half of it was speculation, it always came down to ‘valuing sons over daughters.’

“That bad? No wonder Su Jin is always helping out…”

“Qin Sheng is about the same,” Shen Xiyan sighed. “Out of everyone you see here, only your family is truly happy.”

In a way, it was rather ridiculous.

A whole group of people, and not one complete family among them.

“Being an only child is best.”

“True. When you get married, your husband will be like half a son, so why bother having one yourself?”

Lin Ci shot him a sidelong glance.

Half a son?

A whole son!

And with grandsons and granddaughters to boot, what a bargain.