Stepmother Reborn: Dad, my mom hasn't hit me for three days

After Zhang Xiuhua went to work, she went to the sports team to find Baolin.

It had been a month since the competition, and it was time for Baolin to come back. But the reality was that Baolin was not there, and the entire skating group was on holiday.

Zhang Xiuhua thought Baolin had returned home, but when she got home, she found that Baolin had not come back at all.

The children all went to school and Li Jianguo was alone at home. He sold all the animals and earned more than 10,000 yuan.

A man was writing and drawing in the room, busy with his brewery. Zhang Xiuhua sat opposite him and asked, "Isn't Baolin back?"

This made Li Jianguo stunned, "Isn't she in the sports team?"

Zhang Xiuhua sighed and opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but this was just her guess and she had no evidence.

Li Jianguo was also anxious when he saw her like this, "What happened? Did Baolin get into trouble?"

He said that it's very chaotic abroad, and it would be unsafe for Baolin to go there to compete since he is unfamiliar with the place.

Zhang Xiuhua saw that he misunderstood and waved her hands, "No, no! Don't think too much. I think Ergou and Baolin might be dating?"

Li Jianguo's eyes widened in disbelief. "Is this true? No way?"

How did these two get together?! They seemed to have been alone together.

Seeing that he didn't believe her, Zhang Xiuhua got anxious, "I really don't have any evidence. But don't you think it's strange? Ergou went abroad to watch Baolin's game and didn't even go home during the Chinese New Year. He also asked someone to tell us that he was going to another city for an inspection. Good guy, he went abroad for an inspection?"

Li Jianguo thought this guess was unreliable, "Maybe they bought production lines abroad."

"Okay! Your reason does make sense. Then let me ask you, if Baolin doesn't go home during the holidays, where can she go?" Zhang Xiuhua raised her chin, "Can you tell me a place she can go?"

Li Jianguo was stumped by her question. Baolin had a bad relationship with his biological father, so it was impossible for him to go to him. So Xiuhua's guess was really reliable. He scratched his head, "When did Baolin and Ergou get together? How come I didn't know anything about it?"

If it was before, he worked on the train and didn't know about the family affairs, it would be understandable. But now he is at home every day, and he doesn't know when his children are dating. This father is really incompetent.

Zhang Xiuhua curled her lips, "Ergou is too much. He didn't even tell us that he was dating someone."

Li Jianguo saw that she was complaining about Ergou and felt that this was a bit biased. "Baolin didn't tell us either. You can't just blame Ergou."

Zhang Xiuhua was not biased. She presented facts and reasoned, "With Baolin's personality, she would never hide anything. It must have been Ergou's idea!"

In her previous life, when Baolin was so young, her premature love affair was known to the whole village. In this life, she was 21 when she started dating, so it was even easier to keep it a secret from her.

Li Jianguo thought about it and realized it was right. "There is one good thing about this kid. He is open and honest and never does anything pretentious. It must have been Ergou's idea. When he comes back, we must criticize him."

He still couldn't believe it. "Is this true? You're not just guessing, are you?"

Zhang Xiuhua really had no evidence. "How about this, when he comes back, we will pretend we don't know and trick him!"

Li Jianguo nodded and agreed, "When will he come back?"

Zhang Xiuhua was upset. "How should I know? He's been missing all day! He doesn't even care about the factory. I used to think he was very career-oriented, but now he seems to be in love!"

Li Jianguo saw that she was a little impatient, "What's wrong with you? Are you unhappy that they are together?"

Zhang Xiuhua is not unhappy. She is worried that Baolin will get married and have children like in her previous life. "She is at the peak of her career now. Skating is different from other careers. When you are 30, your body can't keep up and you have to retire."

Li Jianguo understood, "Then let's have a good talk with the two children and ask them to have children later."

Zhang Xiuhua rolled her eyes and said, "Don't think that just because they are our children, we can make our own decisions. They have their own ideas."

"It's normal for them to have such thoughts. Let's try to persuade them." Li Jianguo put his arm around her shoulders. "Children and grandchildren will have their own blessings. Baolin is already a world champion. She won't have trouble finding a job even if she retires now. Don't worry about it."

Zhang Xiuhua sighed and asked him how the brewery was going. "Are you selling the land for the garment factory?"

Li Jianguo nodded, "I contacted him, and he offered 100,000 yuan, but I thought it was too expensive, so I left him alone for now. Let's get the certificate first."

Zhang Xiuhua didn't quite understand the process. "Don't we need to apply for land first to set up a factory?"

"Yes." Li Jianguo smiled, "Don't worry, they are inefficient. By the time it's my turn, the land may have been bought."

"Can you buy it? They want 100,000, but you only give 50,000. It's half the price." Zhang Xiuhua was not optimistic. The factory director was a ruthless person just by looking at what he did. When he found out that Li Jianguo wanted to buy his factory, he would definitely take the opportunity to raise the price.

Li Jianguo is very confident. "It's just an empty shell. There is no other way except to transfer it."

Zhang Xiuhua did not spoil his fun. She let him try whether he could succeed or not. When he hit a wall, he knew to turn back.

In a blink of an eye, she went back to work. After returning from Moscow, she went to the capital. She did not go directly back to the rental house, but went to the wholesale market to buy a lot of spices and vegetables. She wanted to make more delicious food and put it in the space.

But who would have thought that she would come in with bags and meet Jidong.

Zhang Xiuhua advised him, "Xiangxiang's mall has closed down, you should spend more time with her. There's no need to come to see me every time. I can do it alone."

Maybe because he was studying abroad before and didn't accompany her, so every time she came to the capital, Jidong would come over. Sometimes they would have a meal together, and sometimes they would just chat.

Jidong smiled and said, "Aunt, I came here specially to tell you a good news."

Zhang Xiuhua didn't understand why he could have good news.

"Xiangxiang has obtained the operating rights of the shopping mall." Jidong said impatiently.

Zhang Xiuhua asked tentatively, "The second mall?"

To be honest, she was still very surprised, after all, it was not long after the first shopping mall auction.

"No! It's still the same one as before." Jidong told the whole story.

After Xiangxiang failed, she was planning to bid for a second shopping mall. Unexpectedly, the person who had previously won the management rights of the shopping mall came to Xiangxiang and wanted to transfer the management rights to her. The annual rent was 10 yuan, and the contract was signed for years. The rent increased by % every year.

Zhang Xiuhua was stunned. "Does that mean she got a discount of 10,000 yuan?"

"Yes." Jidong nodded, "She is busy with the loan now and has no time to talk to me."

Zhang Xiuhua stroked her chin and said, "So that person does nothing and gets 20,000 yuan a year for nothing?"

"That's right!" Jidong knew what his aunt wanted to say, but he was used to it. "The other party only spent 20,000 yuan on the surface, but it was much more than that behind the scenes."

Zhang Xiuhua sighed, "So that's how many state-owned enterprises were hollowed out."

She didn't think too much about it. "When you have time, go help her and give her some advice. You've run a small shop before, so you have more experience than she does."

Jidong nodded, "I will."

"When are you two going to get married?" One of the apartments in the courtyard house that Zhang Xiuhua bought last year has been renovated and is not rented out, so it can be used as Jidong's new home.

Jidong was not in a hurry. "She hasn't graduated yet and is focusing on her career. I can't hold her back. I'm also very busy now. Let's wait a little longer. There's no hurry."

Zhang Xiuhua was not in a hurry. She handed him the property certificate of a courtyard house and said, "This is your new home. It has just been renovated. It will definitely be dirty after it is rented out. Go and take a look when you have time. Don't let the house go to waste."

Jidong took it and said, "Thank you, auntie."

Zhang Xiuhua sighed heavily, "It would be better if you two got married earlier. Then your uncle and I can live our own lives in the countryside. We don't have to worry about anything."

Jidong hugged her, "No way! You can't be lazy, I still want to eat the food you cook."

"Come on, forget it. Youcai is right here, and his cooking is much better than mine." Zhang Xiuhua glared at him.

“That’s different. Auntie’s cooking tastes like home.” Jidong said with a smile.

Zhang Xiuhua couldn't help laughing and asked him, "Where's your mother? Has she contacted you? You're dating someone, so you have to invite her to your wedding. After all, she's your biological mother."

Jidong shook his head, "I lost contact after graduation."

Zhang Xiuhua didn't know what to say. "As long as she lives well, that's fine. A strong-willed person like her will definitely live well in the South."

Jidong also hoped so. She had finally escaped from such a family and embraced a new life. Even if she had never come to find him, he hoped that she would live a good life.