Chapter 12: The Restless Aunt

Upon opening her eyes again, it was already the next morning.

Before dawn broke, the wind and snow had stopped, the courtyard lights reflecting off the snow as if it were silver and frost. She got herself ready and went to the kitchen.

Mrs. Hui had just finished preparing her breakfast on the Central Island when she saw her come in, and said with a cheerful laugh: "I figured you'd be coming over soon, got everything ready for you, go ahead and eat."

"Thank you, Mrs. Hui." A warm current rose in Su Jinqi's heart.

She had been dependent on others since she was a child, and Aunt had never shown her the same warmth as a mother would.

As she ate, she chatted with Mrs. Hui and learned that she and Uncle Kui had served the Li Family all their lives, and that the old couple had no children, which made her feel admiring and appreciative.

"Mrs. Hui, I'm finished eating." Su Jinqi wiped her mouth, then added: "I'll be back later tonight, going to pick up my brother from the hospital, no need to save dinner for me."

Mrs. Hui asked with concern: "Will your brother come and stay with you after being discharged? What illness did he have?"

"No, he's in boarding school," Su Jinqi said: "He had some issues with his heart, but it doesn't seem serious now, so he has been discharged."

"Be careful on the road." Mrs. Hui patted her head, taking a liking to this polite girl.

Busy all morning, and when it was a little past ten o'clock, someone at the reception called for Su Jinqi, saying someone was looking for her. As she reached the lobby on the first floor, to her surprise, it was Aunt who had come to look for her.

"Qiqi." Li Su'e stood up from the sofa and asked seemingly considerately: "Have I disturbed your work? Aunt really didn't want to come and bother you, but your brother and I sent you WeChat messages, and you didn't reply. I worried that you might not be settling well in the Li Family, so I came to check on you, and also to see your husband in passing."

Su Jinqi frowned, grabbed Li Su'e's arm and headed towards the exit, hastily saying: "Aunt, everything's fine for me at the Li Family, you don't have to worry about me, please go back."

"Eh, now that I'm here, at least let me have a look at your husband," Li Su'e stopped in her tracks, her voice edged with ill intent rising.

Su Jinqi glanced frantically to the left and right, thankful that it was not the lunch break so aside from a few security guards, there were no other people in the lobby.

She covered Li Su'e's mouth and hissed through clenched teeth: "Aunt, have you forgotten what I told you? If people in the company find out about my secret marriage with Mr. Li, he will never spare you!"

Li Su'e nodded knowingly and cooperated by lowering her voice, "Jinqi, I won't mention your secret marriage, nobody knows. But still, I'm a senior relative, it's not unreasonable for me to see my nephew-in-law. Without the presence of our family, people might criticize."

"He's too busy to bother with you. Aunt, I'm still working; please go back first." As Su Jinqi spoke, she tried to guide Li Su'e towards the exit.

But Li Su'e was stubborn and not ready to comply, how could she leave without achieving her purpose? Meanwhile, Su Jinqi knew very well what Aunt was scheming and just wanted her to leave the company quickly.

Pushing and shoving ensued when suddenly someone called her from behind: "Su Jinqi, what are you up to during working hours?"

Jin Shanya stood behind the two, brows furrowed, asking.

Su Jinqi opened her mouth in surprise and watched as Li Jinghan briskly walked past her, murmuring softly: "Mr. Li..."

Li Su'e, with her sharp ears, caught on, her eyes widening like she had discovered a new continent. She watched as Li Jinghan left the company's main entrance and scurried after him, calling out in a fluster: "Mr. Li, Mr. Li, wait a moment!"

"Ah, Aunt!" Su Jinqi inwardly shouted in dismay and was about to chase after her.

But Jin Shanya grabbed her and asked sternly, "What does your aunt want with Mr. Li?"

"Who knows." Su Jinqi struggled free from Jin Shanya and ran out.

But she was still a step too late, as Li Su'e, like a clingy plaster, followed Li Jinghan into the car and closed the door.

"Wow, Secretary Su, your aunt seems really chummy with our Mr. Li," Jin Shanya said with surprise and a mocking tone.

Su Jinqi sighed, stepped forward to pull open the car door, but to her dismay, it was locked from the inside. Now, she felt like she was on death's doorstep. With her aunt's mouth, who knows what she might blabber to Li Jinghan. She might end up dead without knowing how it happened, her heart really sweating bullets.

Jin Shanya incredulously stepped forward to try the car door herself, also failing to open it. She sneered, crossed her arms, turned back to look at Su Jinqi with a mocking expression, sizing her up, "I really underestimated Secretary Su before. It seems I need to get to know you all over again."

"Secretary Jin, you've misunderstood, it's not what you think," said Su Jinqi, disheartened. Even if she had a mouth all over her body, she feared she couldn't make it clear.

Jin Shanya glanced at her, said nothing, but was pondering deep down what exactly was going on between her and Mr. Li.

After about five minutes, the car door opened, and Li Su'e stepped out, chattering nonstop.

"…Jinghan, thank you, Aunt. I'm leaving Qiqi in your care, rest assured! Let's keep in touch, and call me if anything comes up. If not, come over for dinner anytime…"

"Aunt!" Su Jinqi grabbed Li Su'e, still bent over speaking with Li Jinghan by the car door, closed the car door, and reprimanded, "What nonsense are you talking about?"

She glanced behind and hinted, then said, "Alright, you'd better go home now."

Jin Shanya walked over, got into the car, exchanged a glance with Li Su'e and nodded briefly, then got into the car.

After the car left in a cloud of dust, Li Su'e said with a chuckle, "I didn't mention the word 'marriage,' so that woman won't be suspicious."

"Heh, is that so?" Su Jinqi sighed deeply. "When you were calling Jinghan and leaning on the car door, that woman was standing right next to me. Aunt, you're going to be the death of me!"

"You are our family's lucky star, too precious for us to harm, how could I do that to you?"

"Aunt, what did you say to Mr. Li in the car? Did you ask him for a dowry?"

Li Su'e slung her bag over her shoulder and said righteously, "It's only right for him to give us dowry money. You're turning your elbow out, refusing it, so I, as the bold one, had to ask. Qiqi, this money isn't for me, you know our family's situation. Your brother isn't married yet, Jincheng's hospitalization cost a lot, and your uncle and I aren't in good health. What doesn't cost money? Our family's coffers are empty, you know!"

Su Jinqi closed her eyes deeply, gritting her molars, and asked, "How much did Mr. Li give you?"

"Six hundred sixty thousand!" Li Su'e raised her hand showing a "six" and said triumphantly, "I said, 'six six, big luck', and your husband didn't hesitate and directly signed the check for me."

She then added with a touch of regret, "Originally, I wanted to ask for more, at least a million. But then I thought, the dowry is a dowry, the three gold items are separate, the house is separate, and the car is separate; these all need to be counted individually, all totaling up to several million. The rest, I'll find an opportunity to talk to him about later."