Chapter 15: Family

Wang Kai had assumed he was catching an affair in the act, but as Ning Weidong spoke, he focused his eyes and said in astonishment, "You—you are Ning Weidong!"

Ning Weidong, however, knew that one should not linger in a place of trouble; since the man of the house had arrived, there was no need for him to continue staying here.

Moreover, encountering such a thing was unlucky enough, so Ning Weidong said in a deep voice with an unpleasant expression, "Brother Wang, don't drag your family matters onto me. Who did I provoke or offend?"

Without waiting for Wang Kai and Shi Xiaonan to speak, he took a step, leaped onto his bicycle, and pedaled several meters away in one go.

Wang Kai knew he had made a mistake and did not know what to say.

Shi Xiaonan's face turned red and then white; she was a person who cared about her reputation.

Originally, Ning Weidong had kindly helped, but he had been splashed with dirty water; if he went back and let his mouth slip, spilling the matter out, how would she be able to stay in the courtyard?

Rumors have a life of their own and will automatically evolve into many versions.

Shi Xiaonan could even imagine that if tonight's matter really spread, the most likely version would be that she was being indiscreet outside, and Wang Kai went to catch her in the act but failed to catch anyone...

Thinking of this, Shi Xiaonan's head was buzzing, and looking at the still-dazed Wang Kai, she wished she could go up and slap him twice.

But in the end, she could not bring herself to do it; her good upbringing had instead become a shackle binding her.

She could only ignore him and limp her way home alone.

Only then did Wang Kai come to his senses; seeing that Shi Xiaonan was truly injured, he hurriedly pushed the bicycle to follow her and let her sit on it.

Shi Xiaonan could not refuse, and her ankle was truly hurting, so she finally sat on the back seat.

……

Ning Weidong returned home in a flash and did not take the matter just now to heart, nor did he spread the matter around as Shi Xiaonan had feared.

For one, it was not his character, and for another, it was harmful to others without benefiting himself; if things went wrong, he would only bring trouble upon himself.

Originally, the relationship between the original owner and Bai Fengyu already had some gossip in the courtyard.

However, Ning Weiguo was a Cadre of some standing, and he was usually thoughtful in his conduct, so there were some misgivings.

If Ning Weidong really were to get into some situation with Shi Xiaonan again, it would be impossible to explain.

It was a rumor with Bai Fengyu, and it would be a rumor with Shi Xiaonan too; why did others not have rumors spread about them? Entering the courtyard gate, he locked his bicycle and went to the Upper Room first to return the key.

Ning Weiguo was still writing under the lamp; he only raised his head when he heard the door and asked, "You're back?"

Ning Weidong responded and placed the bicycle key on the table.

This Eight Immortals table was used for many purposes.

Ning Weiguo put down his fountain pen and signaled for him to sit down.

Ning Weidong was slightly surprised and sat to the side: "Brother, is something the matter?"

Ning Weiguo gave an "um," organized his thoughts slightly, and told him about the matter of Lu Dama acting as a matchmaker to pair Ning Weidong and Bai Fengqin when he got off work.

Although he and Wang Yuzhen both felt it was inappropriate, it was mainly because the conditions of Bai Fengqin's family were too poor.

But no matter what, this matter still had to depend on Ning Weidong's wishes.

Ning Weiguo told him the situation in detail and also expressed his and Wang Yuzhen's attitude from the side, finally saying: "Weidong, what are your thoughts?"

Ning Weidong remembered seeing Bai Fengqin that morning.

That girl was indeed pretty, but she was not a suitable marriage partner.

Once one reaches a certain level in society, beauty is simply not a scarce resource; to put it more bluntly, beauty is just an extra, the icing on the cake.

For example, if one has a background and is also very beautiful, one's value immediately doubles. Or if one has ability, talent, wisdom... any quality added to beauty can raise a person's value to a higher level.

Only pure beauty is not worth much.

Ning Weidong's real age and experience had long passed the age of being controlled by hormones.

He said seriously: "Brother, you and Sister-in-law considered it very correctly. Moreover, I am indeed not in a hurry to look for a partner right now; my age, job, housing... the conditions are not mature."

Ning Weiguo did not expect his younger brother to have this reaction.

Before talking about this matter, he had imagined several possibilities, but he had not expected this one.

He could not help but sigh: "Weidong, you have truly grown up."

Ning Weidong smiled, stood up, and said: "You can give Lu Dama an answer, just say I am not worthy of that girl."

"Do you need to teach me? If I say you are fat, you start panting." Ning Weiguo laughed and scolded, then hesitated for a moment and said: "Don't worry about the house. Our Ministry has decided that they will build family apartments this year, and next year your sister-in-law and I will be able to move out. By then, we will tidy this place up properly, and it will be enough for you to take a wife."

Ning Weidong was stunned; he did not know about this.

Ning Weiguo added: "As for work... you just stay steady for now. In another two or three years, when I move up a bit, I will find a way to get you into the Office."

This was originally something Ning Weiguo had discussed with Wang Yuzhen; previously, they felt the original owner was unreliable and were afraid he would go out and talk nonsense, causing a bad influence, so they had kept it from him.

It was not until these past two days, feeling that Ning Weidong had changed—especially the calm attitude he had toward Bai Fengqin just now—that Ning Weiguo felt he was reliable and revealed it to him.

Coming out of the Upper Room, Ning Weidong felt a bit chaotic in his heart.

Although he was a transmigrator, he was not heartless; he could feel who was good to him.

In the room, Wang Yuzhen came out with a coat draped over her shoulders, looked at the doorway, and said: "The third one has really changed!"

Just now, the two brothers did not lower their voices when they spoke, and Wang Yuzhen had heard the gist of it in the inner room.

Ning Weiguo smiled and said: "Yes~ with such a big head, he finally knows how to think about things."

Wang Yuzhen said: "I was worried before whether he could manage to live on his own... come to think of it, I still have to thank Bai Fengyu."

Ning Weiguo heard her sarcastic tone and said, unable to laugh or cry: "How did it get to her?"

Wang Yuzhen curled her lips: "If he hadn't been stimulated, why wouldn't I believe the third one matured all of a sudden? If there was really something going on at his unit, Li Peihang couldn't have kept quiet. As for here in the courtyard, besides the one surnamed Bai, you tell me, who else could it be?"

Ning Weiguo was speechless.

Li Peihang was the Section Chief of the Security Division and Safety Section at the Red Star Factory, and he was a secondary vocational school classmate of Ning Weiguo and Wang Yuzhen.

It was him they had looked for when getting Ning Weidong into the factory and transferring him from the Factory Protection Team to the gatehouse.

Wang Yuzhen hummed again: "Bai Fengyu is also dreaming; with her sister's conditions, she wants to be a match for our third one."

Ning Weiguo said: "That's not how you put it; the girl is a high school graduate, after all."

Wang Yuzhen curled her lips: "So what if she's a high school graduate? If she can't get into university, it's all for nothing. Do you think I don't know what she's planning? With her sister's situation, it would be fine if she really got in, but if she doesn't... she's just an unemployed youth. If she stays at home, she has to be supported by her, so she has to hurry and find a suitor."

Wang Yuzhen caught her breath and added, "Besides, in a few years, we can find a way to help the third one adjust his job; he'll only be twenty-four or twenty-five then, and he'll be able to find anyone with any kind of background."

……

At the same time, just a few meters away in the west wing room, Bai Fengyu and her sister were also talking.

(End of this chapter)