Chapter 140: Down and Out

"Where is my brother-in-law? Is he asleep?" Li Baixiu asked, trying to sound casual.

Jiang Zao smiled, her eyes filled with warmth. "He's busy with something else... on the phone with people from the company. It should be wrapping up soon."

"Do you two always sleep this late?"

Jiang Zao shook her head. "Today is different. He wants to give you a gift. I think you might not necessarily like it, but you definitely need it."

Li Baixiu took a few more sips of chicken soup and asked slowly, "Is my brother-in-law giving me a project to work on?"

"Don't you want it?"

"I do. I need to gain a firm foothold in the Li family as quickly as possible. Having my brother-in-law take the initiative to help will save me a lot of trouble."

Jiang Zao stroked Li Baixiu's hair and said, "He said that young men have high pride. The more anxious you are to get something, the less able you are to show it, and the last thing you want is for others to think you're close to me just for his help."

Li Baixiu's background was what it was. Although he usually didn't say anything, anyone could tell how much he cared about people criticizing him for being an illegitimate child.

"Sister, when you put it like that... I feel even more despicable. That was exactly what I thought at first—I wanted to get through to you..."

"Xiaobai, did you know I have a half-brother from the same father?"

Jiang Zao interrupted Li Baixiu and began to share her thoughts.

"I know, Zhou Jiayan mentioned it. Seems like he's somewhere overseas now."

Jiang Zao continued, "My father made mistakes, and his mother wasn't very nice to me growing up either. But I didn't do anything to him. Because in this broken family, I didn't want to make things hard for a victim just like me."

"A victim? Am I a victim too?"

Jiang Zao gently shook her head. "You're just an innocent person. I'm guessing that you actually don't want to go back to the Li family and become the successor who replaces Li Mingyi, right?"

A crack appeared on Li Baixiu's handsome face. He had always thought he hid it so well.

"Sister, how did you know?"

Jiang Zao said, "Never mind how I know. If you trust me, take my advice. Building your own empire from scratch sounds cool, but by the time you're truly strong enough to protect the people you want to protect, those people might no longer be waiting for you in the same place."

"Sister..."

"Xiaobai, standing on the shoulders of giants is nothing to be ashamed of. They determined your starting point, but you control their future. Though your temper is a bit rough, your heart is pure and kind. I believe you won't do anything too harsh to Li Mingyi, but Li Mingyi might not show you the same mercy. Often, just for self-preservation, you have to stay."

Li Baixiu fell into a long silence. The school bullying from his childhood was still vivid in his mind. The root of all his pain was the Li family; he had wanted revenge, wanted those arrogant people in the Li family to pay the price, and had never considered taking any other path.

Seeing him lower his head in deep thought, Jiang Zao decided to say no more. Supporting her belly, she stood up and slowly walked out of the study.

Back in the bedroom, Zhou Lichuan had finished his call and was half-sitting against the headboard reading a book.

"How did it go? What did the little guy say?"

Jiang Zao sat on the bed and sighed. "He didn't say anything. I came back before waiting for his feedback, letting him figure it out himself."

Zhou Lichuan sat up straight, put down the heavy book, and asked, "Zaizao, can I ask what you really think? About Li Baixiu's succession issue, and about Mom handing the household over to you in exchange for your loyalty to the Zhou family. I want to know all of it."

Jiang Zao thought for a moment and said, "The most useful excuse in this world is 'circumstances beyond one's control.' No matter how high-sounding it is, it's just cowards who dare not face their own hearts. I am no delicate, fragile little white flower by the roadside; a dodder plant grows to the point of killing its host in the end."

Hearing this, Zhou Lichuan happily flipped open the quilt, slid inside, wrapped his arms around Jiang Zao's lower back, and acted spoiled with complete disregard for his image.

"My Zaizao is so amazing, with unique insights and precise vision. What is life? If you want it, I'll give it to you."

Jiang Zao pushed away the close-up face. "Stop it. You're not cut out for this melodramatic 'give me your life' routine. Try something else."

"Try what?" Zhou Lichuan asked, looking up.

"Hmm... a loyal dog. I like that."

"Woof! The loyal dog is craving attention, can the master give him a bite?"

"No, my back hurts. Go to sleep, no making a fuss. A good dog doesn't disturb people, close your eyes."

Zhou Lichuan closed his eyes with a reluctant look on his face, burrowing into the crook of Jiang Zao's neck, breathing in the familiar scent of his wife.

Amidst the steady rhythm of breathing, he finally drifted off into a deep sleep.

...

More than half a month later.

A few spring rains brought in a wave of high temperatures, and the people of Jingzhou had changed out of ordinary coats into single-layer T-shirts.

Li Shu'an was walking past old apartment buildings in simple casual wear, holding her nose and hurrying past a stinking garbage can.

She stopped at the entrance of a unit, skillfully pulled out her keys, went up to the second floor, and opened one of the apartment doors.

Lin Rui was sitting at the dining table, clacking away at his computer, clicking the mouse every now and then, casually determining the flow of tens of thousands of funds.

Li Shu'an stood at the doorway, frowning. This apartment was ridiculously small, without even a desk; any work or discussion had to be done at the dining table. She had already mentioned several times that she wanted to find Lin Rui a new place to live, but he insisted on staying here and refused to listen no matter what.

Stepping on the cheap composite flooring, the high heels clicked out a rhythmic sound as she walked over to Lin Rui.

Lin Rui looked at her impatiently. "How many times do I have to say it? Change your shoes when you come in. The shoes make too much noise on the floor and get it dirty easily. I don't have that much time to clean."

Back when he lived in luxury at the Zhou family, Lin Rui had never thought he had mysophobia. Later, following Zhou Kuan, life was still somewhat decent, with people to take care of things so he never felt it was dirty or messy.

But after living on his own, he discovered how much he detested filth. He didn't even want to see a speck of dust.

When had Li Shu'an ever taken such attitude? She heavily dumped the bag in her hand onto the table beside the computer and said, "I offered to hire a nanny for you, but you turned your nose up at it. You think cleaning up yourself is too much trouble—what on earth do you want?"

Lin Rui looked up at her, suppressed his emotions for some unknown reason, and asked, "Did you bring everything I wanted?"

Li Shu'an's anger flared up. She pulled a document out of her bag.

"I have no idea why you want this. My clearance isn't high; this is the absolute most I could get."

Lin Rui flipped open the document, browsed through it, and said, "That's right, this is what I wanted. Having this is enough. You're amazing."

Li Shu'an rolled her eyes. "Amazing? With how amazing I am, I still haven't seen your attitude improve. I don't get it—you don't have anything to do at home every day, yet you throw tantrums over cleaning such a tiny place. Sorting stocks for other people makes enough pocket money for me to buy a bag, and I don't even know why you bother doing such pointless work."