Xie Sui hung up the phone and called Du Feiyang and Tang Ling over to discuss the return trip.
Du Feiyang said, "I'm definitely not going back. I'll stay here to keep an eye on things. I can't let Du Feiyun get ahead of me. Tang Ling, you go back with Brother Xie. But what about your sister-in-law and the kids?"
Xie Sui was also troubled. He didn't want to leave Wanwan and the children, and the newborn baby wasn't suited for travel. What if something happened? "They'll have to stay home for now. I'll definitely be back for the New Year. When the weather warms up in the spring, I'll bring them over. Doudou and Dingding can also go to elementary school there and receive a better education."
"That's true. Those two kids are really smart, the smartest children I've ever met," Du Feiyang added.
Tang Ling retorted, "How many children have you met? Brother Xie will have to work harder to travel back and forth. It's unavoidable."
"Alright, it's settled then. We'll return to the county town tomorrow. Once I've sorted things out there, I'll head back to Port City in three days to deal with these monsters and demons. If they delay me from spending time with my wife and children, I'll deal with them then."
Xie Sui finalized his plans, sent them away to rest, and went to see Wanwan and the children.
The room was warm. The two children, dressed in thin cotton clothes, were sleeping soundly, stretching their arms and legs.
Lin Wanwan was looking at the ledger, counting money.
"Wow, so much money! You're a little rich woman now."
Lin Wanwan rolled her eyes. "This is nothing. I heard you on the phone for so long. Is something wrong?"
"A little, but it's not urgent. I plan to go back to Port City. You and the children will stay home. We'll go over after the winter, and I'll spend every day with you."
Lin Wanwan didn't want to go. "I'm not used to it there. It's a strange place. You go ahead with your business. I'm not some delicate young lady who can't do without a man."
Xie Sui looked glum. "You don't love me at all."
Lin Wanwan said cruelly, "No, I don't. Are you satisfied?"
Xie Sui was, of course, not satisfied. He nuzzled her, seeking affection. Lin Wanwan was exasperated. The father of four children, acting so childish. Had he no shame? "Let's talk about it after the New Year. Don't distract me from my work, or I'll mess up the count."
"Hmph, is this little bit of money worth you bothering to count? Leave it to Second Sister. I'll fetch you water to wash up, and we can rest early."
Xie Sui suddenly became very excited, like a husky about to go out. Wanwan was out of her confinement period, and his good days were about to begin. Since he was leaving soon, he definitely had to enjoy himself.
After getting ready and getting into bed, Xie Sui was restless. Lin Wanwan, however, said, "The doctor said we can't be intimate for three months. I haven't recovered yet."
"Three months? Then I have to wait even longer. I might as well die."
Xie Sui immediately deflated, utterly despairing.
Lin Wanwan blushed. "You really feel that way? I don't feel anything."
"Nonsense. Women and men are different. I'm young and strong. If I don't feel anything, like a monk, wouldn't that mean something's wrong? Forget it, let's sleep. Oh, I can't sleep. Heaven help me."
Xie Sui's pleading look made Lin Wanwan blush. Finally, under Xie Sui's persistent coaxing, she doted on him for a while, comforting him.
The night passed uneventfully. Lin Wanwan woke up a bit late. Xie Sui had already gotten the children ready and was talking with Tang Ling and the others in the outer room.
Second Sister and Chen Weimin were packing to leave. His business also required his presence, and the months before the New Year were the busiest and most profitable of the year.
Lin's father and mother came in with Lin Weiguo and asked, "Can we go back with them too? We can't take too much time off from home."
"Alright, Weiguo, take care of your parents. Make whatever arrangements you think are suitable. Later, work with your brother-in-law to manage the business well. Let's have a big push at the end of the year and have a good New Year."
"Okay, brother-in-law. I'll work hard."
Lin's mother couldn't help but say, "Can't our Weiguo run things himself? It's not good for him to just be an assistant. Son-in-law, you're not being biased towards your own family and don't want to help my Weiguo, are you?"
Lin Weiguo's face changed drastically. He really wished he could stuff his own mother's mouth shut. Wasn't this going to ruin things for him? "Mom, what are you talking about? Things are already very good. Stop causing trouble. Brother-in-law, I didn't mean that. Don't listen to my mom's nonsense. She doesn't understand anything and just talks without thinking."
Xie Sui smiled. "If she doesn't think before she speaks, it means she doesn't hold me in her heart and doesn't care about me. If she respected me, she would think before she spoke. Mother-in-law, since you said that, let me be clear. A person's heart isn't placed exactly in the middle, it's inherently biased. You're biased towards your younger daughter, and I'm biased towards my second sister. It's human nature. Aren't I learning from you?"
"You, I..." Lin's mother's face was extremely unpleasant, but she couldn't refute him. He had spoken so bluntly that she had no room to argue.
Lin's father said, "Let's not talk about this. We don't understand business matters. We are very grateful that you are helping Weiguo. Our family is much better off now than before. Thank you. Your mother-in-law is short-sighted. I'll scold her later."
"It's good that Father-in-law understands." Xie Sui also gave him some face, considering him a sensible person.
Lin Wanwan came out, looking at her parents with complex eyes. "Have a safe journey. I won't see you off."
"We wouldn't dare ask you to see us off. You're so precious now, we parents can't possibly trouble you."
Lin Wanwan's expression changed. Xie Sui said, "Mother-in-law is right. My Wanwan is indeed precious. She's the treasure of our Xie family, and the whole family dotes on her, not letting her suffer even the slightest bit. She's truly not someone who can be ordered around by just anyone. They say a married daughter is like spilled water. Wanwan's water has already been spilled, so don't fret over her."
Lin's mother choked. This son-in-law's words were truly relentless. Du Feiyang found it amusing. In the future, when he got married, he wouldn't look for such a mother-in-law; she'd drive him crazy in minutes. It was an eye-opener to follow Brother Xie; he met all sorts of strange people.
Zhao Tiegang came to see him. Xie Sui took him to the kitchen to talk. "You're leaving already? When will you be back?"
"I'll definitely be back for the New Year. Uncle Zhao, is this about the village head matter? I'll handle it for you. Xie Chengping is wicked and not a good village head. However, Uncle Zhao, your prestige has been swept away, and you can't be the village head either. Who do you think is suitable, Uncle Zhao? Or let the whole village choose the most suitable person."
Zhao Tiegang smiled bitterly. "I don't want to be the village head either. What do you think of your cousin? He was a town head before and has experience. He's also a university student. Isn't that enough to be a village head?"
Xie Sui shook his head. "A university student isn't necessarily omnipotent. Cousin lacks emotional intelligence, is very proud, and is inflexible. He won't achieve much."
This was overheard by Xie Chen, who had just walked in. His face turned extremely unpleasant. Was he that worthless?
Xie Sui also saw him but showed no embarrassment. Instead, he beckoned him in. "Cousin, I'm telling the truth. It's no use if you're unhappy. You're doing well as a clerk in the government office now. It's stable and respectable, better than being the village head. Of course, if you don't listen to my advice and think I'm harming you, there's nothing I can do. Good advice is hard to swallow, and the truth is never pleasant."
Xie Chen's face was grim. "Xie Sui, I've never been as clever as you since childhood. But I really want to achieve something. I'm still young and don't want to waste my life in an office."
Xie Sui: "Then what are your thoughts? Do you want to be the village head? Do you think you can do a good job?"
"I want to try." Xie Chen's eyes were firm. He had failed once and was still unwilling. If he couldn't do well as a town head, couldn't he do as a village head?
Xie Sui was silent. "Let me think about it before I decide."