Chapter 302 - 300: The Three Women of the Ping Family

Chapter 302: Chapter 300: The Three Women of the Ping Family

"Aunt Zhou, you shouldn’t put him on such a pedestal."

Looking at the composed Zhou Lian, Mrs. Ping sighed to herself. ’This couple is truly blessed by heaven! They’re both so intelligent, yet so cautious, but their personalities are completely unrestrained.’

"Let’s change the subject. Jin Chen and the two boys went back home, so why didn’t you go with them? Aren’t the schools on break now?" Mrs. Ping didn’t want to dwell on the topic, as it could strain their relationship. She asked Zhou Lian out of curiosity, since Li Jincheng taking the children back while leaving Zhou Lian alone in the Capital City was very out of character for him.

Hearing her, Zhou Lian replied with a helpless tone, "Aunt Zhou, even with her brother-in-law and sister-in-law here, I’m still worried about Shengnan by herself! Honestly, if his grandmother at home wasn’t so old, Jin Chen wouldn’t have gone back right now. With the end of the year approaching, all sorts of shady characters will come out of the woodwork. It would be an absolute joke to weather great storms only to capsize in a filthy gutter."

The three women of the Ping family—the mother-in-law and her two daughters-in-law—froze. A moment later, they all shared wry smiles. ’How could we have forgotten the most important rule after being in this circle, in this environment, for so long?’ They had all been thinking that Li Jincheng was perfectly meticulous, that there were so many guards here, and that no one even knew Shengnan was back in the Capital City, let alone living at this estate. They had let down their most basic guard. It’s easy to dodge a spear in the open, but hard to defend against an arrow in the dark.

The Eldest Young Madam let out a long breath. "Sister-in-law, thank goodness you reminded us. I’d completely forgotten about the rats in the gutter and let my guard down."

"Sister-in-law, it’s not that serious. Perhaps I’m just overthinking things. Still, it’s better to be safe than sorry," Zhou Lian said casually. ’It’s not that they forgot. It’s that they subconsciously trust Li Xiu too much. They believe he’s omnipotent, that as long as he’s around, nothing can possibly go wrong. That’s not a good sign.’

’In the future, our families will be interacting much more frequently, especially with the brothers Ping Jing and Ping’an. It’s time they understood that no matter how brilliant Li Xiu is, he’s still only human. There are some matters he can’t interfere in, and he won’t always do things perfectly. After all, no one can be completely infallible every single time.’

"Aunt Zhou, some matters and some people are all about the right timing, the right place, and the right people," Zhou Lian said calmly. ’These past few years, Li Xiu has been too high-profile in order to protect me and our family. It’s time for him to sheath his brilliance and bide his time.’

"That’s very true. I never realized you were so sharp and perceptive, my dear," Mrs. Ping remarked with a soft sigh. ’To be so broad-minded in her actions, yet also understand the need to sheath her brilliance... this couple truly has Seven-orifice Exquisite Hearts!’

Zhou Lian glanced at her watch and said with a smile, "Aunt Zhou, why don’t you stay for lunch? I’ll go check on the kitchen, and I’ll be back once the food is ready."

"Alright, you go on ahead," Mrs. Ping said to Zhou Lian, smiling.

Mrs. Ping watched Zhou Lian leave. A moment later, she saw her through the window, walking ahead, flanked by several bodyguards. Mrs. Ping let out a soft sigh. "I completely misjudged her. That couple is two of a kind."

"Mother, you didn’t exactly misjudge her. You always said that Zhou Lian was very smart and knew how to read a situation. We just never expected her strategic mind to be so formidable! But she never uses those kinds of schemes on us," Liu Shengnan said nonchalantly, holding her teacup.

Mrs. Ping and the Eldest Young Madam thought for a moment and realized it was true.

"Mother, from what I’ve seen, though her mind for strategy is profound, she always employs open stratagems and scorns the use of covert plots and dirty tricks. She carries herself with the distinct, aloof pride of a scholar," the Eldest Young Madam said quietly. "Yesterday was quite a shock for both me and Ping Jing."

Looking at her two daughters-in-law, Mrs. Ping smiled in satisfaction. "You are both good girls," she said gently. "It’s no wonder that fiendishly clever couple treats you with genuine sincerity."

"Is there more to it than that, Mother?" the Eldest Young Madam and Liu Shengnan asked in unison.

With a small smile, Mrs. Ping asked quietly, "You know Zhang Hongying, the Wang family’s daughter-in-law, don’t you?"

Seeing both daughters-in-law nod, Mrs. Ping continued with a smile, "Zhou Lian is much closer to her than she is to either of you. But, from what I know, Zhang Hongying never received that notebook from Jin Chen. When Zhang Hongying was pregnant, Zhou Lian made a point to mention it to her, but she never gave her a copy."

The Eldest Young Madam and Liu Shengnan instantly understood what Mrs. Ping meant. ’What a brilliant woman Zhou Lian is,’ they thought, ’truly able to walk through a field of flowers without a single petal clinging to her.’

"My sister really is worldly-wise without being jaded," Liu Shengnan said, a little excited. "The great families are most guarded about these things, but it’s different with us. Ping’an told me that if I ran into any trouble after coming back to the Capital City, I should go straight to her and her husband, without any hesitation or standing on ceremony!"

The Eldest Young Madam glanced at her sister-in-law and asked, confused, "Shengnan, what are you so excited about?"

"Sister-in-law, you know they taught me for six months, right? My sister once told me that relationships are built through mutual give-and-take. The more formal you are, the more distant you become. When you have a good relationship, the less you stand on ceremony, the closer you’ll be!" Liu Shengnan said, smiling at her mother-in-law and sister-in-law.

Mrs. Ping and the Eldest Young Madam exchanged a shocked glance. ’Isn’t that the truth about people? But for them to teach even that... what on earth did that couple teach her!’

"Shengnan, what exactly did you learn from your sister?"

Liu Shengnan thought for a moment before saying softly, "Hmm, let me see... Mom, you know about the books she had me read at first. Later on, she added psychology, interpersonal skills, and things like that. But she said I’ve only just scratched the surface and that I need to take my time."

"You read all those ’Classics’?" Mrs. Ping asked, her curiosity piqued.

"Yes, more than once. My sister made sure I understood them inside and out."

The Eldest Young Madam asked, confused, "’Classics’? What classics? Did Zhou Lian have you reading scriptures?"

"Not scriptures," Liu Shengnan said quietly. "It was the *Chang Duan Jing*, the *Guan Hui jing*, the *Guan Shu Jing*, *Ghost Valley Master*, and also the *Shi Ji* and *Zi Zhi Tong Jian*. These were all the books my brother-in-law had Ping’an study in the beginning."

"Wait a second, are you sure those are the books you and Ping’an were studying?" the Eldest Young Madam asked, staring at Liu Shengnan in astonishment. ’Many of those are lost texts! Where on earth did Li Jincheng and Zhou Lian get their hands on such priceless ancient manuscripts?’

Puzzled by her sister-in-law’s shocked expression, Liu Shengnan said softly, "Yes. Though Ping’an studied a lot more than I did."

"What is it?" Mrs. Ping asked, looking at her eldest daughter-in-law’s excited state with confusion.

The Eldest Young Madam took a deep breath. "Mom, Shengnan, do you realize that several of those books are considered lost texts? They’re priceless ancient manuscripts! I just... how did that couple get their hands on them?"

"From a recycling depot," Liu Shengnan said quietly.

Seeing the astonished expressions on her mother-in-law and sister-in-law’s faces, Liu Shengnan explained slowly, "I heard it from Ping’an. Because my sister loves old books, my brother-in-law scoured almost every recycling depot in the entire Capital City for them."