Chapter 442

"Yaobao?" Jiang Rong's cousin only just learned that classmate Gu Zhi Yao had such a milky little nickname. She covered her face, her eyes shining with cuteness.

Jiang Rong pulled his cousin over, avoiding a bicycle that was passing by without slowing down, and said gently: "It's her nickname. Isn't it cute?"

"It is very cute." The young girl clutched her schoolbag strap, her eyes bright. "I didn't expect classmate Gu Zhi Yao to have such a cute nickname! Are you very close with her? I've never heard you mention it."

"Why would I mention this when I have nothing to do." Jiang Rong looked at his little cousin and shook his head helplessly. "I didn't know you were in the same school as her either."

"... Then why do you always bring up that person named Lu Baozhen." The little cousin rolled her eyes and muttered in a low voice.

Hearing this, the smile on Jiang Rong's face stiffened.

"Baozhen is different. She is very pitiful; don't have opinions about her."

Baozhen, Baozhen, Baozhen. If this isn't dating, who would believe it.

Jiang Rong's cousin curled her lip, as speechless as one could be.

"Who has opinions about her! I haven't even met your Baozhen, where would I get opinions about her? To lecture your own cousin for the sake of a woman, you're really something. No wonder Aunt is worried. Cousin, look at all the things you've done..."

Before she could finish her complaints, Jiang Rong flicked her forehead with his finger.

"You're a girl, don't be so sharp-tongued! Be careful, you won't be able to get married in the future if you're this shrewish."

The young girl slapped his hand away in disgust. "Don't try to change the subject, you're just in the wrong!"

Because of that Lu Baozhen, Aunt even cried. Cousin just doesn't know what's important; he's a fool.

"Cousin Rong, if you don't listen to Aunt, you'll regret it sooner or later." She said seriously.

Jiang Rong saw his cousin's seriousness and suddenly felt that she had grown up; she was a little adult now.

He straightened his expression. "Lu Baozhen is not my girlfriend; I just pity her, that's all. My mom misunderstood."

"You're not dating, yet you treat her to meals and take her to movies. You're really casual. Your future girlfriend is truly pitiful." The little cousin said sarcastically.

Jiang Rong was stung by these words and choked heavily, not knowing how to refute.

The little cousin felt her cousin's brain was sick, disgusted to the point of no return, and sped up her walking, leaving Jiang Rong behind.

A look of helplessness appeared in Jiang Rong's eyes, as if he were looking at an ignorant child.

He had just thought she had grown up, but didn't expect her to still be so childish.

He had grown up with Baozhen and was used to looking after her. Baozhen was so pitiful; if he ignored her, how sad she would be.

His mom didn't understand him, and his cousin didn't either.

Thinking this way, Jiang Rong's heart became even more determined.

He was an adult and had his own persistence; he couldn't go against the voice in his heart just because the voices around him were too loud.

After sending his cousin home, Jiang Rong didn't stay long and made a phone call to Lu Baozhen.

Lu Baozhen was overjoyed to receive the call from Jiang Rong, her voice filled with timidity and coyness. "Brother Jiang, do you have time to call me? I thought... I thought you wouldn't bother with me anymore."

"How could that be? I was busy before; didn't I call you as soon as I was done?" Jiang Rong said very patiently.

Lu Baozhen's smile was very sweet. "Brother Jiang is the best. You are my only friend; if you stop bothering with me, I will be especially sad."

"I definitely won't stop bothering with you." Jiang Rong said immediately.

"Aunt Jiang..." Lu Baozhen hesitated.

"Did my mom go to find you again?" Jiang Rong frowned, a trace of displeasure appearing on his refined face.

"No, no." Lu Baozhen said hurriedly, her tone full of panic and nervousness, as if she were afraid the person on the other end of the phone would misunderstand.

Jiang Rong said immediately: "My mom speaks harshly, don't take it to heart. She doesn't understand you and has misunderstandings about you, you..."

"I won't misunderstand. Aunt Jiang is your mother; I will work hard to make her like me and not make things difficult for Brother Jiang." Lu Baozhen said shyly.

Jiang Rong felt these words were strange, but didn't think much of it.

He comforted her with a smile: "You are a good girl; my mom will understand your goodness sooner or later. How have you been lately? Uncle Lu and Aunt Su haven't made things difficult for you, have they?"

"... No, no." Lu Baozhen said with insufficient confidence, her voice trembling slightly.

A chill flashed in Jiang Rong's eyes, and he said: "If they bully you, go find Director Qian and let her back you up."

Lu Baozhen's expression became strained.

That was easy to say, but Director Qian didn't like her, and going to her would affect her father's future, making her life even harder.

"They didn't bully me, they just said some unpleasant things; I'll just ignore them."

Jiang Rong's words were caring. "Mm, don't mind it. If you really can't stand it, go find Director Qian."

"Got it." Lu Baozhen didn't want to talk about this and changed the subject. "Brother Jiang, when are you coming back?"

She wasn't young anymore and had long reached the age for marriage. Her reputation in the family compound wasn't very good, and no one was introducing her to anyone, so she could only hold onto Jiang Rong.

But Jiang Rong's family didn't accept her.

Lu Baozhen was anxious to confirm her relationship with Jiang Rong.

Others were saying that Jiang Rong and she would become a family sooner or later, but in reality, she knew the situation herself. She was clear that Jiang Rong didn't have to have her; he just saw her as pitiful and treated her like a neighbor's little sister.

Jiang Rong was silent for a moment before saying: "I won't be able to go back for a while; I still have things to do here."

Afraid that Lu Baozhen would be disappointed, he added: "When I have time, I'll go back to see you. If you have anything, just call me, and I'll go back to see you immediately."

"Can I go see you?" Lu Baozhen asked timidly.

Jiang Rong hesitated.

"It's not very convenient; I'm staying at my uncle's house, and I'm afraid I won't be able to host you."

Lu Baozhen said hurriedly: "I can stay at a hotel, Brother Jiang, I want to see you."

"Alright then, come if you want. Call me before you come, and I'll pick you up." Jiang Rong compromised out of habit.

Lu Baozhen said with surprise: "That's great, then I'll go see you in a few days?"

"... Can do, tell me once you've booked your ticket." Jiang Rong said.

"Okay."

After hanging up the phone, Lu Baozhen left with light steps.

The person in the communications room saw her figure and shook their head.

Does this girl have no dignity? Mrs. Jiang dislikes her so much, yet she still hasn't broken off her relationship with Jiang Rong. With things like this, how could people look up to her?!

Before long, everyone who should and shouldn't know about Jiang Rong calling Lu Baozhen knew.

After hearing about it, Mrs. Jiang was almost angered to death.

Her chest heaved violently, and she almost bit her teeth to pieces. After calming down, she didn't go to the Lu family, but charged into the communications room aggressively to call Jiang Rong.

The mother and son had another fight.

Even after the arguing and the fuss, Jiang Rong didn't give up on the idea of picking up Lu Baozhen.

Mrs. Jiang hung up the phone and left in anger, hating Lu Baozhen even more. On the way home, she ran into her, glared at her bitterly, and left with heavy footsteps.

Lu Baozhen: "..."

When someone looked at her, she lowered her head timidly.

Yaobao got into their own car, excitedly touching this and that.

"Is this our car now?"

Lin Zhao pinched her daughter's nose tip lightly. "Yes, it is. After you finish your college entrance exam, I'll teach you how to drive. When you're on vacation, you can learn to drive along the way; it'll be convenient for whatever you do in the future."

"Really? Mom is willing to let me drive?!" Yaobao's tone rose.

"What's there to be unwilling about? It's our family's car; anyone can drive it if they want." Lin Zhao said.

On the way back, the person driving became Gu Chenghuai.

His gaze was fixed straight ahead, holding the steering wheel, very steady.

After the mother and daughter finished talking, he suddenly spoke: "Yaobao, is this your first time meeting Jiang Rong? Has he looked for you before?"

Yaobao was stunned for a moment and shook her head. "No, today is the first time; it was a chance encounter. He came to pick up his cousin, and when he saw me, he ran over to greet me; we didn't say more than a few words."

Gu Chenghuai's brows relaxed, and he said calmly: "Mm. You are a student now, studies are the priority; stay away from those messy people."

Yaobao nodded obediently. "I know."

Lin Zhao rubbed her daughter's hair and asked softly: "Are you doing well at school? Is anyone bullying you?"

"No, my classmates are all very friendly." Yaobao hugged her mother's arm. "I'm studying hard now, preparing for the college entrance exam, ignoring other things, and focusing only on my studies. I want to get into a good university and not lose face for Mom and Dad."

"Even if you don't test well, you haven't lost face for us." Lin Zhao's tone was gentle and firm.

Yaobao curved her eyes. "I have requirements for myself; I don't want to fall behind, and I don't want to be unable to keep up with my brothers."

Lin Zhao softened her brows. "Don't have too much pressure. You study well; as long as you don't make mistakes, getting into a good university won't be a problem."

Yaobao studied seriously and was always in the top three of her grade in exams; it would be strange if she couldn't get into a good university.

"Mm-hmm."

It wasn't long before Yaobao's college entrance exam. With the rare atmosphere being just right, Lin Zhao asked her about her college preferences.

"Which university do you want to test for?"

Yaobao looked at her. "The same one as Mom."

"Don't you want to learn a few more languages? Wouldn't it be better to test for a foreign language school then?" Lin Zhao said with a smile.

"But I want to go to the same university as Mom." Yaobao's tangled eyebrows were almost stuck together.

"I've already graduated, so there's no meaning in you going to the same university as me. I hope you make a decision you won't regret, so you should consider your application carefully." Lin Zhao said gently.

She knew that Yaobao's dream had always been to go to the same university as her, but she didn't want her to have any regrets.

Yaobao looked at Gu Chenghuai.

Gu Chenghuai saw her confused eyes in the rearview mirror and said: "Follow your heart; don't let yourself have regrets because of other reasons."

Yaobao nodded seriously. "I'll think about it again."

In the blink of an eye, it was the day of Yaobao's college entrance exam.

Lin Zhao wore a qipao to send her daughter to the "battlefield." Gu Father and Gu Mu, Lin Heling and Song Xiwei, Lin Shisheng and Gu Zhihang, and even Lin Fu and Zhang Yun were present.

A crowd of people waited at the entrance of the exam hall.

Standing there, they looked unusually conspicuous.

"Did you bring everything?" Gu Mu asked nervously.

Yaobao was very calm and even smiled to comfort her grandmother. "It's all here, nothing is missing. Grandma, don't be nervous; it's just an exam, it's nothing."

Lin Zhao patted her daughter's shoulder, her tone light and slow. "Test well, we'll wait for you outside."

Yaobao looked at the glaring sun and said: "Mom, don't keep standing under the sun; find a shop to go in and sit while you wait, don't get heatstroke."

"Rest assured, I'm here; no one will get heatstroke. You answer well, don't be nervous." Lin Zhao said.

She had entered the exam hall with Yubao and Hengbao; Seeing Qian Bao was a gifted student who had been recommended. This was her first time sending a child to the exam hall, which was quite rare.

"I'm not nervous." This was the confidence only a top student had.

Yaobao walked into the exam hall with the blessings of her family.

Lin Zhao and the others didn't stand there like fools; they took a car to the nearest drink shop to wait, and the family chatted while waiting.

The drink shop had large floor-to-ceiling windows; sitting inside, one could see the people coming and going outside. The brightly dressed young ladies had brilliant smiles, and the male comrades were also very high-spirited.

This was the best era.

Lin Zhao propped up her chin and looked outside, the corners of her mouth slightly raised, her mood extremely good.

"What are you thinking about? Why are you smiling so happily?" Gu Chenghuai sat beside her, looking at his beloved, his eyes full of tenderness.

"Don't you think it's especially cozy and comfortable to look outside like this?" Lin Zhao looked back at him and asked with a smile.

"Mm." Gu Chenghuai responded as such; he felt that with his beloved by his side, everything was good.

"You're right."

Lin Yu looked over and asked: "Is Zhaozhao so confident in Yaobao? Aren't you afraid she won't test well?"

"What's there to be afraid of? Even if she doesn't get in, it won't affect her living a life without worries about food and clothing." Lin Zhao wasn't worried at all. "Academic qualifications are just the icing on the cake; it's better if you have them, but it's nothing if you don't."

She and Gu Chenghuai had the confidence to support their children; they didn't need to be tiger parents.

Not to mention, Yaobao had three brothers, each more promising than the last, and they were all sister-obsessed; even if the little girl were a salted fish, she would be the happiest and most carefree salted fish.

"Thinking this way is right." Lin Yu's eyes were full of praise.

"I was still worried last night that you wouldn't be able to let go, and I was thinking about how to persuade you. I didn't expect you to be so open-minded; not bad."

Lin Zhao smiled. "Because that's what my dad told me. Whatever I did, he always said it was fine, and it didn't matter if I failed, because he was there. The feeling of having a backer behind you is really good, and I also want to be a backer for Yaobao and her brothers."

Although, looking at it now, the three sons didn't need one...

Lin Heling's expression paused slightly, his eyes softening as he looked at his daughter.

He was very happy to have had a positive influence on Zhaozhao.

"Xiao Jiu is as open-minded as Father." Lin Yu said with emotion. "I've seen this open-mindedness in Zhaozhao again; it's really good."

It was as if she saw some quality of her father being passed down from generation to generation, which warmed her heart.

Knowing that Lin Fu had avenged their father, the hatred hanging over Lin Yu's heart gradually dissipated. She had gone to the Lin family cemetery and cried bitterly, only then returning to being that fiery designer Lin.

She was preparing for her wedding with Cen Yan. After Yaobao's college entrance exam ended, there would be happy events in the Lin family.

The morning time passed quickly. Estimating the time, the Lin family members went to the exam hall entrance to pick up Yaobao.

Lunch was eaten at a hotel invested in by the Lin family. After eating, they arranged for Yaobao to take a nap. In the afternoon, the younger generation, including Gu Chenghuai and Lin Zhao, sent her to the exam hall; the older ones like Lin Fu and Zhang Yun didn't go again.

The weather was too hot, and it wouldn't be good if they got heatstroke.

Seeing Yaobao's relaxed expression, Lin Zhao knew she had performed well. She didn't ask much, and just like in the morning, she watched her daughter enter the exam hall, and the group left again.

This time they didn't go to the drink shop, but came to the nearest shopping mall.

Her daughter was about to go to college, so it was time to buy a few new clothes, bags, and jewelry.

Polka-dot waist-cinching dress.

High-waisted jeans, puff-sleeve short-sleeved shirt.

Knitted cardigan, pleated skirt.

Exaggerated and stylish earrings.

Thin-chain bag.

Lipstick.

Everything that should be prepared was prepared.

"Yaobao hasn't had her ears pierced yet; I'll take her to get them pierced another day. Once she has pierced ears, she can wear beautiful earrings." Lin Zhao muttered.

"Don't just buy everything for the child; pick some for yourself too." Gu Chenghuai said.

"I'm not lacking anything; Great-Aunt sent me so many, I can't wear them all for the time being." Lin Zhao said in a humble-brag way.

Lin Yu also sent things to Yaobao, but what she sent was hers, and Lin Zhao still had to buy extra, so that Yaobao's happiness would be doubled.