Volume 1: The Golden Years Chapter 033 I Don’t Know Zhang Anren
At 7:35 in the evening, a dark-colored BMW 7 Series stopped in front of the Jiang family's door. It was Yuan Xudong and Zhu Suosuo who had arrived late. They got out of the BMW and walked towards the Jiang family's villa carrying large and small bags of gifts.
The door was completely open. Before entering the house, Yuan Xudong and Zhu Suosuo could feel a tense atmosphere in the air, like the calm before the storm, which was depressing.
Seeing Yuan Xudong and Zhu Suosuo entering the house, Jiang Pengfei quickly stood up from the sofa, opened his arms to greet them, and said jokingly with a smile on his face:
"Mr. Yuan, welcome!"
Yuan Xudong placed the gift on the coffee table in the living room, then hugged Jiang Pengfei who was walking towards him, and said modestly:
"Uncle, I'm not Mr. Yuan. You should just call me Xiao Yuan. It sounds more intimate that way."
Seeing that a young talent like Yuan Xudong was respectful and polite to him, Jiang Pengfei became more and more dissatisfied with Zhang Anren who looked shabby. It was a pity that his daughter was ignorant and Yuan Xudong was already together with Zhu Suosuo. He felt sorry in his heart, but smiled and said:
"Xiao Yuan, Suosuo, I heard from Nansun that you two are together?"
Seeing that everyone in the Jiang family was looking at him, knowing that they were waiting for his explanation, Yuan Xudong quickly said:
"After I left last time, I talked to Nansun. She told me that the person she likes is Zhang Anren. My pursuit will only make her feel troubled and painful. If I really like her, please don't interfere in her life. I thought about it seriously. If you really love someone, as long as the other person is happy, it's fine. It doesn't necessarily mean to own the other person!"
At this point, he looked at Zhu Suosuo beside him and said affectionately:
“After I decided to give up pursuing Nansun, I felt confused and painful inside, so I went out to drink, and by chance I saved Suosuo from a liar.
She was a simple and kind girl. Seeing how much pain I was in and grateful for my life-saving grace, she drank with me and got drunk. Unexpectedly, I did something that I shouldn't have done.
From the moment I woke up, I secretly decided to let Nansun go and wish her happiness. I can only be responsible for Suosuo for the rest of my life!"
Seeing the increasingly dangerous look in Zhu Suosuo's blushing eyes, and her loving little hands twisting the soft flesh on his waist, Yuan Xudong quickly changed the subject:
"You never know what's going on. I didn't expect Nansun and Suosuo to be as close as sisters. Don't worry, Nansun is Suosuo's good sister, and my sister-in-law, Yuan Xudong. She's such a kind sister-in-law. If you encounter any difficulties in the future, just tell me and I won't sit idly by!"
Hearing Yuan Xudong 's nonsense explanation, Jiang Nansun glared at him, ready to expose his lies. Yuan Xudong, who had been paying attention to her for a long time, didn't wait for her to speak, and quickly showed the gifts he and Zhu Suosuo bought to divert her attention:
"This is a little gift from Suosuo and I. Thank you for taking care of her since she was a child. I hope you all like it!"
After that, Yuan Xudong and Zhu Suosuo distributed the gifts they bought to everyone in the Jiang family. Yuan Xudong's gift was exactly the same as Zhang Anren's, both were relatively ordinary accessories and nutritional supplements, while Zhu Suosuo's gift was a valuable luxury item.
Everyone in the Jiang family just thought that Yuan Xudong deliberately used Zhu Suosuo to give them expensive gifts, and bought the same cheap items as Zhang Anren to save the other's face.
Thinking of this, Jiang Pengfei picked up a scarf given by Yuan Xudong and wrapped it around his neck, his face full of joy, and he said meaningfully:
"Giving gifts is all about the thought. As the saying goes, a small gift is worth a lot of thought. It doesn't mean the more expensive the gift, the better. It's not a gift you give to someone else to do something for you. You should choose according to your own financial situation!"
At this point, he looked at Yuan Xudong, who was smiling, and asked deliberately:
"Xiao Yuan, how much did you spend on these things?"
As soon as Yuan Xudong heard Jiang Pengfei's tone, he knew what he wanted to do. He would not refute Jiang Pengfei to protect Zhang Anren's face. The thought flashed through his mind, and Yuan Xudong pretended to be confused and said:
"I didn't know what gifts to buy, so I bought these things with Nansun, thinking that since you are all family, Nansun must know your preferences. The money is not much, less than 20,000 yuan after a 20% discount!"
Jiang Pengfei nodded slightly and smiled:
"My daughter is really filial. She knows that I am weak and afraid of the cold. This scarf is just right for me. Xiao Yuan, you are so thoughtful!"
After that, he glanced at Zhang Anren, who had a calm expression, and said frankly:
"You said you had no money when I asked you to buy stocks, but you were quite generous in buying these gifts. I know you are an assistant teacher at the School of Architecture in Magic City, and your monthly salary is less than 20,000 yuan, right? Now you have bought these things that are beyond your normal consumption level. How can I agree to let Nansun marry you?"
If you like someone, everything you do is right; if you hate someone, everything you do is wrong. Jiang Pengfei's attitude towards Zhang Anren perfectly illustrates the true meaning of this sentence.
Seeing Zhang Anren looking embarrassed and sitting there not knowing what to say, Jiang Nansun blamed herself. It would have been better for her to let Zhang Anren buy some cheap nutritional supplements as usual. Doing this now was simply humiliating herself. She couldn't tell Jiang Pengfei that she had paid extra money to ask Zhang Anren to buy the gift, as that would only make Jiang Pengfei even more dissatisfied with Zhang Anren.
Seeing that Jiang Nansun had no time to trouble him, Yuan Xudong was secretly pleased. In order to show Jiang Nansun's understanding, he looked at Jiang Pengfei who looked unhappy and advised:
"Uncle, Zhang Anren bought these gifts just to please you. It's a thoughtful gesture!"
Jiang Pengfei snorted coldly and said with disdain:
"My family doesn't lack these things. What he needs to do is not to please me, but to make Nansun live a good life. I asked him to sell the house and buy the bottom of the stock market so that the two of them can buy a big house in the city center, so that Nansun can..."
Seeing that Jiang Pengfei was about to ask Zhang Anren to sell the house in front of Yuan Xudong again, and fearing that he would be embarrassed in front of outsiders, Jiang's mother quickly laughed and said:
"Xiao Yuan, Pengfei, the food is ready, you can come and eat!"
After that, she looked at Zhang Anren and Jiang Nansun who were sitting on the sofa and said:
"Xiao Zhang, Nansun, the two of you come quickly and sit on grandma's left!"
As soon as she finished speaking, as if she remembered something, she looked at Zhang Anren who was getting up from the sofa and asked:
"Xiao Zhang, do you drink?"
"Auntie, I never drink!"
…
Everyone took their seats. Grandma Jiang sat at the top seat, Jiang Pengfei and Jiang's mother sat on her right, Jiang Nansun and Zhang Anren sat on her left, Yuan Xudong and Zhu Suosuo sat directly opposite Grandma Jiang. There were eleven dishes on the table, both hot and cold, meat and vegetables. Aunt Sun, the family's hired nanny, was still serving the dishes.
Seeing that everyone was silent, Zhang Anren took the initiative to pick up the chopsticks and pick up food for Jiang Nansun, just like he usually took care of Jiang Nansun in the school cafeteria and said with a smile:
"Nansun, this is your favorite fried tomato and eggs. I'll give you some!"
Seeing that everyone was looking at her, Jiang Nansun quickly asked Zhang Anren to put down his chopsticks and whispered in his ear:
"We can start eating when Auntie Sun has served the food and Grandma tells us to start eating!"
"Okay, I get it now!"
Seeing Zhang Anren put down his chopsticks with an embarrassed look on his face, Grandma Jiang smiled and said:
"Xiao Zhang, Auntie Sun cooks Huaiyang cuisine. I wonder if it suits your taste?"
Zhang Anren took a look at the table full of delicious Huaiyang dishes, and felt that the Jiang family still valued him. Thinking of this, he smiled and said as humbly and politely as always:
"Grandma, I eat casually. You don't have to cook such a big table of dishes for me!"
Grandma Jiang laughed twice and explained:
"I just added a lion head, nothing else!"
Seeing Zhang Anren's slightly stunned expression, Jiang Nansun quickly explained:
"We usually eat this way at home. Grandma likes the Huaiyang dishes made by Aunt Sun the most!"
"oh!"
Zhang Anren nodded in understanding and fell silent with an embarrassed look on his face.
"The food is here, this is the last dish!"
Aunt Sun picked up the last dish from the tray and placed it on the table. Then she placed a pot of hot wine in front of Jiang Nansun and said:
"Miss, this is your wine!"
After that, she took the remaining empty tray and was about to leave the table to go to the kitchen to eat alone. Suddenly, Grandma Jiang's unhappy voice sounded behind her:
"Xiao Sun, there are no round plates anymore. How does it look like to use a long plate for fish to serve stir-fried vegetables?"
"You're confused. Look, grandma has told me this many times, but I forgot it in this busy time. I'll go change it!"
Aunt Sun explained awkwardly while removing the long plate of stir-fried dishes from the table and walked back to the kitchen to replace it with a round plate for stir-fried dishes.
Seeing Zhang Anren looking at her, Jiang Nansun thought he was going to ask about her grandmother's request to change the plate, so she murmured:
"Grandma is just so picky!"
"That was not what I meant!"
Zhang Anren shook his head slightly, then looked at the hot wine in front of Jiang Nansun and said:
"Nansun, don't not drink?"
So this is what she wanted to ask. Worried that Zhang Anren might misunderstand that she likes drinking, Jiang Nansun quickly explained:
"Eat drunken crabs and drink some hot rice wine to relieve the cold. Grandma drinks this every day!"
"Then I'll drink some too!"
Seeing that everyone had a cup of hot rice wine in front of them, but there was nothing in front of him, Zhang Anren said something to Jiang Nansun, then stood up and looked towards the kitchen and shouted:
"Auntie, could you please give me another cup of hot rice wine?"
"okay!"
“Thank you, Auntie!”
Seeing Zhang Anren sitting down, Grandma Jiang looked at the well-behaved Yuan Xudong and Zhu Suosuo and said with a smile:
"Suosuo, you are Nansun's childhood friend, and you can be considered as my half-granddaughter who grew up under my nose. Grandma is so happy for you that you can find such an outstanding boy like Xiaoyuan!
This can be considered a match made in heaven, a gift from heaven to make up for the grievances and misfortunes you have suffered since childhood. For a girl, finding a man you can rely on for the rest of your life is the most important thing!"
Hearing Grandma Jiang's blessing, Zhu Suosuo quickly said coquettishly:
"Thank you grandma, you are so kind to me!"
Grandma Jiang nodded slightly, then looked at Yuan Xudong and said:
"Xiao Yuan, grandma is also here to wish you the best. Suosuo is a good girl with a kind heart. You must cherish her and protect her for the rest of your life, just like Pengfei's father. He has ensured that I have no worries about food and clothing for the rest of my life!
Grandma is a woman from the old times. She has followed the rules all her life. Now she is so old, she lives in the memories of the past every day. These rules are what I insist on. I can't change them even if I want to. I hope you young people can understand an old lady like me!"
Hearing this, Yuan Xudong naturally smiled and said:
"Grandma, don't worry, I will definitely cherish Suosuo. She can't run away even if she wants to. As for the rules grandma mentioned, as the saying goes, there is no order without rules. I like people who follow the rules, just like grandma!"
Hearing Yuan Xudong's words, Grandma Jiang nodded with a smile on her face, then looked at Zhang Anren on her left and said:
"Xiao Zhang, what's your name?"
