Chapter 361: Chapter 360: There’s No Way She’d Date a Pauper

On the third day of her visit to Grandma Xu’s, Li Tingting, having heard that Xu Su had brought her boyfriend back to the village, showed up with her husband and child in tow. Perhaps in an effort to get closer to Xu Su, Li Tingting had even brought her own mother along.

Her aunt, Chen Shumei, had come with them.

They had arrived by car. When they got out, Luo Shaofeng and Chen Shumei were carrying arms full of gifts, while Li Tingting held her baby, who was only a few months old.

As soon as she got out of the car and spotted Xu Su in the crowd, Li Tingting beamed and strode forward to greet her warmly.

Xu Su responded with some awkwardness, and it wasn’t until her aunt, Chen Shumei, came over to run interference that Li Tingting finally stopped the cringey small talk.

Xu Su was very close to her aunt, Chen Shumei, but she wasn’t one to wear her heart on her sleeve. Things like tearful hugs with relatives were rare for her.

The farmhouse courtyard was rarely this lively. Grandma Xu and Xu Su’s two aunts bustled back and forth, carrying stools out from the main hall so the guests would have a place to sit. They cut up a watermelon and set out fruit platters, their hospitality on full display.

Zhou Mochen was in a corner, talking on the phone. The moment Luo Shaofeng entered the courtyard, his eyes fell on the modified black SUV parked inside, and they immediately lit up. He knew a thing or two; a stock model of this vehicle cost two to three million yuan on the road, and the one before him looked even more unique.

Thinking about how the rich loved their custom cars, he quickly scanned the area and locked onto Zhou Mochen in the corner. Realizing this wasn’t the same man from last year, he hesitated for no more than two seconds before heading over.

’It doesn’t really matter if he’s the guy from last year,’ he thought. ’A woman as beautiful as my sister-in-law would never date some broke-ass loser.’

Besides, a man who could afford a car like this couldn’t possibly be a broke-ass loser.

Zhou Mochen saw him approaching, glanced down, and after murmuring a few more words into his phone, ended the call.

Meanwhile, Xu Su had carried two long benches outside. When she turned around, she saw Zhou Mochen and Luo Shaofeng had actually struck up a conversation. She raised an eyebrow but paid them no mind. ’After all, it’s not like Zhou Mochen will be the one at a disadvantage,’ she thought.

Li Tingting, on the other hand, was utterly bewildered. The elders had already taken the baby from her arms to coo over, so she sidled up to Xu Su, unburdened, and asked in a low voice, "Susu, is that your boyfriend?"

When she heard her cousin was bringing her boyfriend home, she had naturally assumed it was the same man who had caused a huge scene at the wedding banquet for her sake last year. Thinking of his unfathomable background, she had rushed back to her grandmother’s with her husband and child as soon as she got the news, hoping to curry some favor.

Even the scraps that fell from between the fingers of a person like that would be enough for them to make a fortune.

Xu Su could vaguely guess what she was thinking. For her aunt’s sake, she couldn’t just give her the cold shoulder, so she simply smiled, nodded, and hummed an affirmative before going about her business.

Li Tingting was dumbfounded and secretly impressed. ’My cousin isn’t that old, but her love life is certainly colorful. She only dates top-tier, high-quality men. The one from last year was already exceptional, and this new one, you can tell at a glance he’s no ordinary person.’

’How to put it... that man in the corner looks completely out of place in this little farmhouse courtyard. Just standing there, he exudes an aura of wealth and power. He looks like someone you don’t mess with, someone who makes you afraid to even get close.’

’I have no idea how my cousin manages to tame a man like that,’ Li Tingting wondered, tilting her head to look at Xu Su, who was bustling about making tea for everyone.

...Her train of thought paused for a moment. Then, as if waking from a trance, she was suddenly no longer surprised.

She hadn’t really noticed at first glance, but while her cousin had already blossomed into someone so beautiful last year that it was hard to look her straight in the eye, in just one year, it was as if she had been completely reborn.

A nineteen-year-old girl is at that perfect age, transitioning from a flower bud on the verge of opening to a magnificent full bloom.

One could faintly glimpse the budding emergence of a true, peerless beauty—a sight so stunning it was earth-shattering.

In the face of such ethereal beauty, even other women found it difficult to feel envy, let alone jealousy.

The mere thought that this was her own cousin gave Li Tingting a sense of unreality. ’I must be dreaming,’ she thought. ’How could such a celestial beauty have been born in the countryside? And she’s my cousin!’

Li Tingting’s thoughts were racing. She stared blankly at Xu Su for a long moment before an idea struck her. She quickly took her infant daughter from her own mother’s arms, held her up in front of Xu Su, and cooed, "Be a good girl, baby. Look at your auntie. We’ll hope you grow up to look just like her. Even one-tenth of her looks would be enough."

’One-tenth would be more than enough,’ Li Tingting thought. ’Any more than that, and who knows if it would be a blessing or a curse.’

"..." Xu Su didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

The elders nearby, however, clapped and laughed, thinking Li Tingting’s idea was a good one.

Even Grandma Xu chuckled and said there was an old saying that if a baby looked at beautiful things, they would grow up to be more attractive.

As the adults chatted enthusiastically, the little one Li Tingting was holding looked at Xu Su and stretched out her arms, asking to be held.

Li Tingting smiled and said, "Go on, hold her. The baby likes you. You’re her auntie, you should cuddle her a bit."

"..." Xu Su reluctantly took the child. In her two lifetimes, she had never held a baby so small.

Steeling herself, she held the baby for a few minutes. She found infants to be such soft, pliable creatures; she was afraid the slightest bit of force would hurt her. Xu Su’s arms and legs went stiff, and she had no idea what to do.

It was Chen Shumei who noticed her discomfort and took the baby from her. She shot her own daughter an exasperated look before turning to Xu Su and saying, "Our Susu is practically a child herself. How would she know how to hold a baby? Go on, sit down and relax."

From his corner, Zhou Mochen appeared to be making idle chit-chat with Luo Shaofeng, but his attention was entirely focused on Xu Su. Seeing how stiffly she held the baby, he couldn’t help but let out a low chuckle. The sound was so full of doting affection it could make one’s bones melt.

Luo Shaofeng, who had been chatting away, paused and followed his line of sight.

"..." ’I feel like I just got a face full of their public display of affection...’

During this visit, Luo Shaofeng was far more courteous than he had been at the wedding. He was incredibly warm toward Xu Su and the rest of the Chen family, and when it came to Zhou Mochen, his behavior bordered on sycophantic.

In Xu Su’s eyes, he was just as bad as Xu Weiping and Chen Shulan had been in her past life.

Zhou Mochen knew everything that had happened at the wedding banquet last year, so there was no way he could bring himself to be pleasant to Luo Shaofeng. He didn’t need to express any open animosity; his cold, expressionless demeanor was enough to make anyone keep their distance.

Having made a special trip, Luo Shaofeng naturally wasn’t going to give up so easily. During dinner that evening, he frequently proposed toasts to everyone. After drinking with Xu Su’s two uncles, he singled out Zhou Mochen for another toast, spouting all sorts of impressive-sounding pleasantries. He then formally apologized for having upset his sister-in-law, Xu Su, at the wedding last year.

Everyone at the table was family, and as the saying goes, you don’t slap a smiling face. If Zhou Mochen wanted to leave a good impression on the Chen family, he couldn’t very well refuse to give Luo Shaofeng this bit of face. He reluctantly clinked glasses and drank with him.

After downing the glass of alcohol, Zhou Mochen’s expression became visibly colder, making him look quite intimidating.