Chapter 325 - 274: Dad’s Double Standards (Part 2)

The old woman sat cross-legged on the bed, unmoved. ’Xue Rui would never actually do anything to me. Who does he think he’s fooling with this empty threat?’

However, when her gaze fell upon Lin Ruoxi, her heart suddenly sank. ’My granddaughter is going to take him seriously!’

"You little scoundrel! Xixi, don’t believe him. He’s just trying to scare you. He wouldn’t dare do anything to me," the old woman said, hastily exposing Xue Rui’s true intentions.

Xue Rui thought to himself, ’This old woman might be uneducated, but for her age, she’s incredibly quick on the uptake. How did she end up with a granddaughter as simple-minded as Lin Ruoxi?’

’Lin Ruoxi didn’t inherit a single one of her grandmother’s good qualities!’

Xue Rui pressed on relentlessly. "Watch me. This isn’t over until you apologize!"

Provoked by Xue Rui, the old woman’s temper flared. "I won’t apologize! Let’s see what you can do to me."

The moment the words left her mouth, she realized she had fallen for Xue Rui’s trick...

Tears instantly streamed from Lin Ruoxi’s eyes. She hugged Xue Rui tightly, her body trembling. "Rui, I’ll apologize to you for Grandma. I’ll make it up to you."

Although Xue Rui often argued with her grandmother, this was the first time he’d threatened to get physical. She didn’t know what to do.

Xie Jianfeng was standing right outside the window at that moment. He saw the scene unfold inside and thought, ’Is this girl simple-minded?’

’Would a strong young man really fight an old woman with one foot in the grave?’

But her fearful trembling was clearly an involuntary physical reaction. Could a teenage girl fake something like that?

Yu Minlan sighed. When Lin Ruoxi had been at the electronics factory with her, she was actually quite smart.

But she was always like this in front of Xue Rui. Concern clouded her judgment. Even after she calmed down and realized what had happened, she would never question or blame him.

The old woman’s thoughts were in a total mess. She took a deep breath, deciding to give in and apologize to Xue Rui to stop him from toying with her granddaughter any further.

However, Xue Rui noticed the old woman’s intention. He said softly, "Xixi, for your sake, I’ll let it go. I won’t hold it against her."

Lin Ruoxi slowly took the cane back from Xue Rui’s hand and gave him a gentle kiss on the lips. Her big, sparkling eyes instantly lit up with joy. "Okay! I’ll go home and cook for you, how about that?"

The old woman said slowly, "You brat. If you visit me less, I might live a few more years."

"Grandma, please don’t yell at Rui, okay? He only came because he was worried about you. It’s not right for you to be like this. He’s very magnanimous..." Lin Ruoxi placed the cane by the old woman’s hand and began whispering to her about how wonderful Xue Rui was.

Yu Minlan was already used to this. She patted her stomach and yawned. It was lunchtime, and the other seniors outside were getting ready to eat.

Xie Jianfeng wore a strange expression. ’A girl like this...’

’I’ve never seen one before!’

’But judging by Yu Minlan’s nonchalant expression, is this what they’re usually like?’

’Strange. Too strange.’

’The way that girl kissed Xue Rui was so natural. Don’t tell me he’s already had his way with her?’

’No wonder the old woman gave me such a hostile look earlier. So it was all Xue Rui’s fault!’

Xue Rui wiped the girl’s tears. Without a care for her image, she blew her nose and then said to her grandmother in a bright voice, "Grandma, Xue Rui and I are heading back now."

"Right. You don’t need to tell me things like that in the future." The old woman looked completely exasperated. She could just imagine what a perfect life Xue Rui was living, all at her granddaughter’s expense.

At that moment, Xie Jianfeng was squatting by the door, smoking. Seeing Lin Ruoxi come out, he hastily stamped out his cigarette butt. "Let’s go. It’s lunchtime. I’ll take you two out to eat."

Xue Rui cut in, "We’re tired of eating out. She knows how to cook. We can take this chance to go see the old house."

Xie Jianfeng paused. ’The girl did just say she was going to cook, didn’t she...’

"Um, Uncle, what do you like to eat?" Lin Ruoxi asked.

"Anything’s fine," Xie Jianfeng replied casually.

He figured a girl her age would have average cooking skills at best. That morning, despite having no appetite, he had forced himself to finish every last bite of the breakfast Gu Muxue had made. To be honest, he wasn’t very hungry right now.

The group returned to the familiar old residential complex. The luxury car attracted the attention of many old neighbors. Xie Jianfeng simply rolled down the window, thinking he’d ask some of the former neighbors what they thought of Lin Ruoxi.

"Jianfeng, you’re back? I just saw Xiaofang the other day," a woman said. Then she noticed Lin Ruoxi in the back seat and added with a smile, "Xixi, long time no see! Where have you been?"

Xie Jianfeng was surprised that these people were greeting Lin Ruoxi so proactively and familiarly.

...

"Xiaorui is a lucky boy. That kid can cook and even fix things. Xixi was the one who helped fix my old TV," an old man passing by commented.

The more Xie Jianfeng heard, the more puzzled he became. Lin Ruoxi’s reputation was almost too good. She was praised by everyone they met.

When they arrived at the grocery store, Xue Rui had Lin Ruoxi get out to buy vegetables.

"She cooks every day?" Xie Jianfeng asked in surprise.

Xue Rui didn’t answer, simply gazing at her figure outside the car window, which made Xie Jianfeng look over as well.

Lin Ruoxi’s technique for picking vegetables was clearly well-practiced, just like one of the aunties who spent all their time at the market.

It was a silent answer. At first, Xie Jianfeng had thought Xue Rui had arranged for Lin Ruoxi to cook just to put on a show for him. But now... it seemed like this was just her daily routine.

For a moment, he didn’t know what to say. Just that morning, he’d been praising Gu Muxue for being willing to step into the kitchen, but this girl was willing to go out and buy the groceries herself...