Chapter 59: How to Catch a Big Fish

Chapter 59: Chapter 59: How to Catch a Big Fish

Just as Xu Li’s mind wavered between yes and no, the cleaning ladies arrived.

They were just as Xu Li had described: reliable, hardworking, and not very talkative.

Xu Li told them to clean the bedroom first, and without a word, they went into Nan Zhi’s master bedroom—

Wiping down surfaces, mopping the floor, changing the bedsheets... They even scrubbed the bathtub, inside and out, until it was sparkling clean.

Xu Li said, "Don’t you love taking baths? You were so tired yesterday, so a soak will help you unwind. You should take a nap afterward. We can talk about everything else later."

’I need time to think.’

’Besides, with strangers here, it’s not a good time to discuss this.’

Nan Zhi wondered, ’How does Xu Li know that I like...’

’Oh, right. The Tactician liked taking baths, too.’

She clicked her tongue, feeling inexplicably irritated.

Suppressing her emotions, Nan Zhi turned to Nan Yi, who had been sitting quietly so as not to disturb the adults.

"What about you, Yiyi? Do you want to take a bath?"

The house in the shantytown was fine in most respects, but it lacked a private bathroom, which made bathing a real hassle.

Thankfully, it was early spring, so the weather wasn’t too hot.

If it had been summer, even Nan Zhi, who had endured countless hardships, would have found it unbearable.

That was why Nan Zhi was so eager the moment Xu Li suggested it.

Nan Yi was truly her son.

He looked a bit reserved and aloof, but the light shining in his eyes was unmistakable.

"Yes!"

His voice was even a few pitches higher than usual!

Nan Zhi found this amusing and decided to tease him.

"Do you want Mommy to help you?"

Nan Yi’s excited tone instantly deflated.

"N-no."

Two rosy clouds blossomed on his little cheeks.

Nan Zhi couldn’t resist reaching out and pinching his cheek.

"Look at you, getting all shy."

"Hmph," Nan Yi grumbled.

He turned his head and ran off.

Xu Li, standing off to the side, watched them for a long moment.

"Your relationship with Yiyi has really improved by leaps and bounds."

Nan Zhi’s reply was casual and light.

"Well, you can just assume the ’me’ of the past four years was mentally ill, or maybe schizophrenic."

Xu Li was dumbfounded.

’Who insults themselves like that?’

’And why was the timeframe so precise? Exactly four years?’

Nan Zhi walked into the bright, clean master bathroom and, acting on memory, opened a drawer. It was filled to the brim with bath essentials: essential oils, bath bombs, flower petals, and more.

’Great. A bank balance of 666, and a huge pile of bath bombs that cost several hundred yuan apiece.’

’People really don’t cherish things they didn’t earn themselves.’

Fortunately, Nan Zhi had already come to terms with her reality.

’Since they were already bought, how could she not enjoy them?’

So, she lit a scented candle, filled the tub with hot water, chose a "starry sky" bath bomb and dropped it in, then added rose essential oil and scattered some flower petals on top. The whole process was filled with a sense of ceremony.

In truth, Nan Zhi had never been the type to deny herself pleasure—

When hardship was necessary, she would never shy away. She would grit her teeth and bear it, persisting no matter what!

But when it was time to enjoy herself, she wouldn’t refuse that, either.

After a comfortable half-hour soak, Nan Zhi dried her hair and slipped into a soft, comfortable nightdress.

Stepping out of the bathroom, she felt completely refreshed and invigorated.

Nan Zhi was casually running her fingers through her hair when she suddenly stopped in her tracks.

"Hm? Yiyi?"

Like a little puppy waiting for its owner, Nan Yi was crouched silently at the foot of the bed, curled up in a ball.

He only jumped up when Nan Zhi emerged, his eyes filled with joy, but also a hint of grievance.

"Mama, what took you so long?"

Nan Zhi rubbed the back of her neck guiltily.

"Um... why are you crouching there? Why not get on the bed?"

Asking a question in return was, as always, the best way to change the subject.

Nan Yi’s eyes lit up instantly.

"I can?"

Nan Zhi laughed.

"Why not?"

Agile as a little monkey, Nan Yi clambered onto the bed and did a happy somersault.

Nan Zhi walked over, lifted the covers, and sat down on the bed.

"Come here."

Nan Yi obediently let Nan Zhi tuck him into the covers, settling in beside her.

"Ready to sleep?" Nan Zhi asked him.

But Nan Yi shook his head, simply gazing at her with his big, dark, glistening eyes.

Nan Zhi said, "I’ll sleep in a little while."

As she spoke, she took out her phone, making no effort to hide the screen from Nan Yi, and pulled up a resume.

It was Xu Li’s digital resume, which she had sent over as a gesture of good faith when they first began their partnership.

The Tactician, however, had never even glanced at it, leaving it forgotten on the phone until Nan Zhi unearthed it.

The resume contained Xu Li’s basic information, such as the fact she had an MBA from a top-10 Ivy League university, but it also detailed her professional experience.

After graduation, Xu Li hadn’t gone straight into the entertainment industry as an agent. Instead, she had first joined a restaurant group called Zhimei Ji.

By the time she left, she had already risen to a senior management position at Zhimei Ji.

And yet, she had resolutely walked away from it all, jumping ship to the entertainment industry to start over from the bottom as a junior agent.

Nan Zhi had done some research. Zhimei Ji was one of the top ten restaurant groups in the country. Its most famous establishment was the old, top-tier Zhimei Ji grand restaurant in Yanjing, a legacy establishment passed down since the Qing Dynasty. It held three stars in the Gourmet Record and was ranked 21st just last month.

What Michelin is to the West, the Gourmet Record is to the East. As the most authoritative ranking system for Chinese cuisine, the fact that Zhimei Ji could rank 21st among all Chinese restaurants worldwide spoke volumes about its prestige.

The most telling detail, however, was that the chairman of Zhimei Ji had the surname Xu.

...The answer, then, was obvious.

Xu Li had to be from the Xu Family of Zhimei Ji.

It was even highly likely she was the chairman’s daughter.

That would explain why she got an MBA and went straight to work for her family’s company after graduation.

But for some reason, she’d had a falling out with her family and entered the completely unrelated field of entertainment.

Nan Zhi was lost in thought, her knuckles tapping gently against the phone’s screen.

Nan Yi’s eyes widened with curiosity.

"Mama, what is it?"

"I’m thinking about how to pull a big fish into my net."

Nan Yi swallowed.

"Is... is it tasty?"

Nan Zhi burst out laughing.

This made Nan Yi bury half his face in the pillow, embarrassed.

Nan Zhi slowly stroked his hair.

"Do you want to eat fish? Then how about we buy some for tomorrow?"

"Mhm."

"Is there anything else Yiyi wants to eat?"

"I want to eat the sugar apples from the other day."

"Candied Apples?"

Nan Yi nodded.

He silently repeated the name of the dish to himself a few times.

Nan Zhi declared, "Then we’ll make Candied Apples tomorrow!"

As she spoke, she continued to stroke Nan Yi’s hair.

Nan Yi didn’t say anything, but his obsidian-like eyes narrowed in contentment, and a soft, cat-like purr rumbled in his throat.

They were quiet for a moment.

Then, Nan Yi spoke up. His voice was soft and childish, no longer belonging to the little boy who tried so hard to act mature and tough.

"I used to like our old home better," he said.

Nan Zhi froze. ’So he considered that little shack in the shantytown our home?’

"And now?"

"Now... now this house is nice too. It feels a little bit like a home."

His eyelids grew heavy, his voice fading.

Soon, he was fast asleep.

’No matter how capable he usually seemed, at the end of the day, Nan Yi was only four and a half years old.’

But Nan Zhi was now wide awake.

She stroked Nan Yi’s hair absently, her gaze lowered, lost in thought for a long, long time.