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墨書 Inktalez
Mina only moved to our house on the fourth day.
It should be her first time meeting my mother-in-law, but Mina is naturally clever. As soon as she saw her, she smiled and greeted, "Hello, Aunt Xiao."
My mother-in-law glanced at her just like when she received us at the Xiao Residence, then nodded slightly and said softly, "Come in, Anan is inside."
Mina stepped into the living room, but her eyes followed my mother-in-law into the kitchen and stayed there for quite a while.
I patiently waited for her to snap out of it before quietly asking, "What are you doing? Your eyes are going to pop out."
Mina quickly covered her eyes and then turned back to glance into the kitchen before mysteriously replying, "Now I finally understand why you feel uncomfortable."
This rare sense of understanding almost brought tears to my eyes. I glanced at her and said, "If you had come to my house earlier, I wouldn't have had to trouble her. You have no idea how anxious I've been at home every day."
Mina leaned in closer and whispered in my ear, "Is she making things difficult for you?"
I shook my head and simply pulled her into the bedroom to talk, so it wouldn't be awkward if my mother-in-law came out and caught us whispering.
It was clear that Mina wasn't as relaxed as before. When Sister Liu was around, she never tiptoed in our house and spoke loudly with me. But now she seemed to want to shrink herself down several times and burrow into my ear.
Only when we reached the bedroom door did the two of us seem to feel a bit safer.
She glanced toward the entrance and asked, "She hasn't done anything to you; what makes you feel uncomfortable?"
"It's precisely because she hasn't done anything that I feel uncomfortable. Think about it; she's Xiao Minxing's mother, my mother-in-law, yet she serves me at home every day and even helps us wash our underwear... I'm going crazy."
Mina's mouth dropped open, and after a long pause, she finally asked, "No way?"
"Yes! It's making me so anxious that every time I change out of them, I sneak away to wash them quickly, afraid she'll find out."
Mina asked me after a while, "Did Sister Liu do these things here before?"
I shook my head and said, "No, she only washed the outer clothes. I always washed my own underwear; it's not like I have golden hands. Besides, it's very private, and I wouldn't feel comfortable letting others do it."
Now I was also puzzled. Since Sister Liu didn't tell her, why did she come over to compete with me for laundry?
Mina couldn't figure it out either. She sat with a distressed expression for a while before asking for Xiao Minxing's opinion.
I recounted what Xiao Minxing had said earlier, and this girl fell silent for a moment. After a while, she looked at me and asked, "Do you think Xiao Minxing is trying to use this opportunity to get you closer to his mother and build a relationship?"
I didn't know about that, but I felt he really didn't need to do so because Mrs. Xiao couldn't possibly live with us forever, and we only returned to the Xiao Residence a few times a year.
Most importantly, their family had always been cold in terms of relationships. Xiao Minxing had never said much to me before; why would he suddenly want me to connect with his mom?
Even if that were true, he should know my personality somewhat. I treat others how they treat me. Faced with Mrs. Xiao's indifference, any compromise she made would only push me further away from her, erasing even my initial desire to understand her.
Mina wasn't very familiar with the Xiao Family before. Later, when she saw them causing trouble at Zhi Xing Company, she curiously asked me, "How can there be brothers like that?"
So now, even though she found my mother-in-law strange, she probably wouldn't think it was that kind of situation, which is why she made such comments.
I also didn't want to speak too poorly of the Xiao Family since I still didn't know much about them; I could only shake my head and act like I knew nothing.
My mother-in-law didn't make a special effort to entertain Mina. While we were hiding in the bedroom talking, she was busy with her own things and even brought in cut fruit and nuts for us to eat.
Mina gave me a strange look and only said when she went out, "Where can you find a mother-in-law like this? She just does her work without talking. Think about it; many mothers-in-law nowadays can't help but control what brand of underwear their daughters-in-law wear. Can you handle that?"
My mother-in-law's work ethic was commendable; after she came here, even I couldn't accept it because I was used to seeing her do nothing at the Xiao Residence.
"But it's strange," Mina continued. "The Xiao Family was the richest in Haicheng ten years ago. Back then, there was nothing they wouldn't dare do in the entire business circle. I've heard that they had many nannies and security guards at home. Logically speaking, Mrs. Xiao shouldn't need to work; why does she seem so familiar with it and take care of you without complaint?"
I couldn't answer Mina's question because I had been thinking about it for many days without coming to a conclusion myself.
At noon, Xiao Minxing unexpectedly returned for lunch. He casually greeted Mina but didn't stay long after the meal, saying he had other matters to attend to before leaving.
Throughout the entire process, he hardly spoke to Mother-in-law and didn't even glance at her, unlike how he used to treat Sister Liu. Instead, he was attentive to me.
Mother-in-law sat quietly at one end of the dining table, eating her food without saying a word.
The atmosphere was awkward; even Mina occasionally glanced my way.
After Xiao Minxing left, she pulled me aside and asked, "Tell me the truth, is this person really Xiao Minxing's mother?"
"Of course she is. There's no doubt about it. If she weren't, he wouldn't have brought her here," I replied.
Mina frowned for a while before saying, "How can you not see any affection between them? Xiao Minxing didn't even speak to her; he was more cordial when Sister Liu was around."
At this point, I couldn't help but share my thoughts with her: "To be honest, the entire Xiao Family doesn't have much to say when they meet. They either insult each other or fight for power and benefits. Whenever I visited their home with Xiao Minxing, seeing those people's expressions was overwhelming."
Mina wasn't surprised by this and simply said, "Isn't that how big families are? Do they greet each other like ordinary families do with 'I miss you, brother and sister'? Besides, the Xiao Family is wealthy; they've probably seen plenty of disputes over profits since they were young. It's just a continuation of that."
After saying this, she took a breath and looked at me seriously: "In that case, it seems that your Xiao Minxing being cold should also be influenced by his family. You can't entirely blame him."
I nodded. I should have realized these things earlier. In such a family environment, how could a warm-hearted child emerge? Xiao Minxing is already quite good; at least he appears cold on the outside but is warm on the inside. If he were like Xiao Minfeng and the others, I think being with him would be even more painful now.
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