Chapter 288: Doing Business?

The four of them walked along the road, chatting and laughing, and in no time at all, they arrived at An Yinan's Xiao Yuan.

Beijing University was located right in the village, and An Yinan's Xiao Yuan was only a ten-minute walk from Beijing University; if one were to ride a bicycle, it would take less than five minutes.

"So close." All three of them were surprised.

An Yinan smiled, "Buying this Xiao Yuan was a matter of serendipity."

At the time, the Xiao Yuan that Wu Youzhi had found was elsewhere, but later the old gentleman specifically came over to ask if he could give the money from selling the Xiao Yuan directly to his second son, and that was how she ended up buying it.

"Come in and sit." The Xiao Yuan had already been tidied up, and An Yinan had added quite a few things according to her own habits; she had already put her change of clothes in the wardrobe, so she didn't have many things at school, and her basic necessities were all here.

"Wow, this Xiao Yuan is nice." Zhao Qiu Hua looked around in pleasant surprise.

"The previous owner kept it very well, and I tidied it up a bit before moving in, which is how it looks now. In another month, you all have to come help me plant vegetables." There was a vegetable garden in the backyard where seasonal vegetables could be grown, and there was also a small flower bed in the front yard; she planned to plant some strawberries there.

"No problem, just call us when it's time to plant," Li Xiue said with a smile.

An Yinan poured water for everyone, then looked around the circle, "Let's all talk about ourselves."

Li Xiue sighed, "I'll go first."

"I haven't been home since I went to the countryside. Before, my family would send me money, but ever since my brother got married, they haven't sent any more. I didn't think too much of it; after all, I'm better off than many others."

"But this time when I went home, I didn't have my own room, my own belongings, or even any trace of my own life; I felt like an outsider."

"My parents spoke with detachment, and my brother and sister-in-law spoke with impatience, as if I were a burden."

"I mentioned before that my family introduced a suitor to me; in fact, it was my sister-in-law who introduced him."

At this point, Li Xiue lowered her head and smiled, a hint of bitterness in her smile; clearly, the result was not satisfactory.

"That person is a relative of my sister-in-law, in his twenties, has no job, relies on his parents to support him, and is lazy and gluttonous. I refused, and my sister-in-law would throw things around every day, looking at me with nothing but disdain."

"My parents didn't say anything, and my brother's expression wasn't good either, as if I had disrupted their peaceful life."

"Frankly, from now on, I'd rather not go back if I can help it."

When she said this, Li Xiue felt a bit lost and sad.

After all, it was the place that gave birth to her and raised her.

But her parents' silence and her sister-in-law's casual slander made her feel like she couldn't breathe.

If it had been a good family, she wouldn't have been unable to marry.

But for such a lazy bum, were her parents blind? Were they deaf? Could they not hear or see? Letting their own daughter jump into a fire pit?

Especially her brother's reaction; she felt it was so strange. Was this still the brother who used to dote on her?

"That's actually quite good," An Yinan smiled.

The three of them all looked at her.

"A falling out is better than a hypocrite; at the very least, they didn't lock you up and keep you from leaving."

"And they didn't let someone else take your university spot."

"In the future, when you earn money, send some back to the elders; that will fulfill the debt of being born and raised. As for the rest, there's no need to overthink it."

An Yinan said softly, her eyes curved, and the atmosphere around her had a sense of peace.

It made Li Xiue's heart relax. Hearing An Yinan's words, she nodded, "Things being this way now, it doesn't seem so bad."

She had already been prepared, and since her admission notice was given to Xie Yuanyuan, even if her family wanted to have bad intentions, she hadn't given them the chance.

Both Zhao Qiu Hua and Li Xiue's admission notices had been given directly to Xie Yuanyuan.

Xie Yuanyuan was an only child, and over the years, everyone knew that Lao Xie's fatherly love was as heavy as a mountain.

"Next, let me talk," Zhao Qiu Hua smiled, and a kind of pink bubble filled the air. Needless to say, An Yinan had already guessed the result.

"After I got my admission notice, I took Qian Zhao home. Qian Zhao made it clear that he could marry into my family, and I could marry into his."

"Oh?" The three women widened their eyes in surprise. Qian Zhao was a man of few actions, but when he did act, it was astonishing!

Zhao Qiu Hua was uncharacteristically shy and glared at the three of them, "Do you want to keep listening or not?"

"Listen, listen," Xie Yuanyuan nodded her little head.

An Yinan and Li Xiue both smiled, continuing to wait for Zhao Qiu Hua to speak.

"Later, during the days I was at home, Qian Zhao was always helping with the chores. My parents, who were watching from the sidelines at first, slowly came to accept him."

"When we were about to leave, my mother pulled me aside and insisted that I treat him well and not bully him all the time." Zhao Qiu Hua felt a bit helpless when she said this.

Who exactly was the biological child here?

An Yinan laughed out loud, "That's the mother-in-law looking at her son-in-law; the more she looks, the more satisfied she is."

"Sigh, anyway, our matter has passed the parents' side." Zhao Qiu Hua was very lucky to have met such good parents, who had always respected her decisions over the years.

When Qian Zhao left home to go to the countryside, he had already severed ties with his family.

No one expected the two of them to reach this point, and their friends were all happy for them.

"What about you?" The three of them looked at Xie Yuanyuan together.

Xie Yuanyuan smiled, "Me? I just went home and ate, ate, and ate. Nothing else happened."

The little girl scratched her hair, looking at everyone in confusion. She didn't know why everyone else had so many things happen to them, while for her own part, it seemed like there was nothing besides good food every day?

An Yinan uncharacteristically rolled her eyes. Fine, if someone can eat to their heart's content, it's because someone else is bearing the burden for them.

"What about you?" Xie Yuanyuan looked at An Yinan.

"Me?" An Yinan thought about what had happened these days.

"I bought some houses and shops, and I'm planning to do business." As soon as An Yinan spoke, she dropped a bombshell.

Her friends would have to know about these things sooner or later, and saying it now would give everyone some mental preparation.

Moreover, she also wanted to pull her friends in with her; she even missed the time in Quanshui Village when everyone worked hard together, all pulling in the same direction.

"Do business?" The first to speak was Li Xiue.

For a moment, there was silence among the friends; this big move carried a "silence" attribute, leaving everyone shocked while not knowing how to respond.

An Yinan looked at the three of them, "You've never been kept in the dark about my skill in making clothes. I want to open a clothing store."

An Yinan returned to the room, then took out a notebook, on which she had written her plan for a chain clothing store.

"Chain clothing store?" Zhao Qiu Hua read aloud; she recognized every character, yet put together, they felt somewhat unfamiliar.

However, the more she read on, the greater the stirrings in her heart became.