"My entire apartment isn’t even a third the size of your living room."
"It’s just a place. It does feel a bit empty living here alone."
"Heh, Brother Jiang, are you scared? Is that why you asked me to keep you company?"
"You could put it that way."
"I’m going to take a shower first. I’ll keep you company when I’m done."
"Go on."
Jiang Xiaoqi went to the bathroom to shower. She came out wrapped in a bath towel and removed her colored contacts in front of the mirror.
Once she was done, she pounced on Lin Jiang.
"Daddy... I’ll stay with you all night, so you won’t be scared anymore."
...23,804 characters omitted here...
「Xiu Shui Mingju, Building 4, Unit 3, Apartment 1101.」
Chen Jingxian sat at home, looking at the accounts on her computer.
The noodle shop was opening tomorrow. She could check its accounts from her computer, which would help her analyze the shop’s performance and spot any issues early on.
RING RING RING—
Her phone rang. It was a call from Chen Jingjia.
"Sis, I’m in the elevator. Call it up for me."
"Got it."
After responding, Chen Jingxian hung up. She called the elevator, opened the front door, and got a pair of slippers ready.
Before long, Chen Jingjia arrived, carrying fruit.
"You didn’t have to bring anything."
"My dearest sister, you’re living here all by yourself. Of course I have to bring something when I visit. I can’t come empty-handed."
Chen Jingxian didn’t think much of it. Her sister always brought something when she visited, just not this much.
"Such a waste of money."
Chen Jingxian sat back down in her chair and continued to look at her computer.
"There’s food in the fridge. Get whatever you want."
"Mm-hmm."
Chen Jingjia nodded. Everything in this home was the same as before, but fundamentally, it was different now.
’Her ex-husband had paid off her sister’s entire mortgage, putting down over two million in one lump sum.’
"What are you busy with, sis?" Chen Jingjia asked, leaning closer.
"Looking at the books. They were a mess before, so I have to get them properly organized."
"Huh? Why are all the categories ’noodles’?"
"A noodle shop is obviously going to sell noodles. What else would it be?"
It dawned on Chen Jingjia. "Don’t tell me these are the books for Lin Jiang’s shop?"
"Mmm."
"His shop isn’t that big. Do the books need to be this complicated?"
"That was before. It’s different now. He opened a new shop across the street, over 300 square meters. It opens tomorrow, so I have to help him get this stuff sorted out."
"What? 300 square meters? That must have cost a lot of money."
"At least one or two million, I’d guess. But for him, that much money is just a drop in the bucket."
"True..."
Chen Jingjia’s reply was dejected.
’He bought a house for over a hundred million, casually throws ten million into an investment, and now he’s spending a million or two to expand his shop. It really is nothing to him.’
"Sis, have you been in touch with Lin Jiang much lately?"
"A fair amount. I go over and check on things when I’m not busy. After all, I still have to do his books."
"Um..."
Chen Jingjia trailed off, and Chen Jingxian glanced at her.
"What is it you want to say?"
"I saw Lin Jiang yesterday."
"You saw him?"
Chen Jingxian stopped what she was doing. "You two didn’t fight, did you?"
"No, nothing like that."
"I doubt it. He probably can’t be bothered to argue with you."
"I told him yesterday that I wanted to get back together, but he said no."
"What?! You asked him to get back together?"
For a moment, Chen Jingxian was at a loss for words.
"Yeah, but he rejected me. He must still be angry with me."
Chen Jingjia grabbed Chen Jingxian’s hand. "You two have been in touch a lot lately, and you’re even helping him out. Can you put in a good word for me?"
"Are you dreaming?"
As the older sister, Chen Jingxian didn’t hold back.
"You deliberately caused a scene at the wedding, insisting he give red envelopes to all our relatives. You threatened not to go through with it if he refused, embarrassing him in front of everyone. And now you say you want to get back together? What on earth are you thinking?"
"Sis, stop lecturing me. I admit I was wrong. I was immature back then. If Xu Lili hadn’t been badmouthing Lin Jiang all the time, I wouldn’t have done something like that."
"Don’t blame a dog for chasing a meatbun. You two are cut from the same cloth. If you didn’t have those kinds of thoughts in your head to begin with, nothing she said would have mattered."
"I admit I thought Lin Jiang was poor back then, and I was afraid he wouldn’t be able to give me a good life. That, plus what Xu Lili was saying, made me do something immature at the wedding. But I realize I was wrong now, so please stop scolding me," Chen Jingjia said guiltily.
"Just listen to yourself." Chen Jingxian was furious.
"You thought he was poor? What were you thinking back then? Even at his poorest, he still made more in a year than you did, didn’t he?"
There were many things Chen Jingxian didn’t want to say.
After all, they were divorced, and Chen Jingjia was still her sister. It was best to maintain the status quo.
’But now, for her to come running here asking to get back together... How does she have the nerve?’
"And another thing, what’s this about being afraid of a hard life after marrying him? Who hasn’t had to struggle? How do you make money without working hard for it? By finding some old man to be your sugar daddy?"
The more Chen Jingxian spoke, the angrier she got. In that moment, she unleashed all the frustration she had been holding in.
"Go look at those rich men. Which one of them hasn’t been through the wringer? They’ve lived half their lives and seen every dirty trick in the book. You think they’d let you just walk away with their money?"
"Oh, come on, Sis. At the end of the day, I’m still your little sister. Don’t be so harsh. That’s not what I meant."
"Then let me ask you one question. If Lin Jiang had no money, if he was just making eight or ten thousand a month, would you still want to get back together with him?"
Chen Jingjia fell silent. For some questions, silence is the best answer.
"Let me tell you, with Lin Jiang’s status now, he could easily find some third-rate starlet. Are you prettier than them? Do you have a better body?"
"Comparing me to a celebrity is a bit unfair."
"Fine, forget celebrities. What about college girls? With his money, he could find a university student in her early twenties, no problem, right? Now look at you. What do you have to compete with them?"
Chen Jingxian was so angry she rolled her eyes. All her pent-up frustration finally erupted.
"I don’t even know what to say to you. I’m your sister, so there are some harsh things I can’t bring myself to say, but you should know what I’m thinking."
"You just want to call me a manipulative gold digger, don’t you? I get it."
Chen Jingjia was surprisingly frank about it, not shying away from the labels.
"But no matter what, Lin Jiang and I were together for several years. Even though we’re divorced, it’s impossible that there are no feelings left at all. Our parents and his mom get along well, too. If we got back together, wouldn’t everyone be happy?"
"You know Lin Jiang’s temperament better than I do. Since things have gotten to this point, there’s no way you’re getting back together."
Chen Jingxian’s tone softened slightly.
"You’re not young anymore, but you’re not old, either. The most important thing is that you don’t have kids. Your marriage to him ended in less than a month, so it won’t be a problem for you to remarry. Just give up on Lin Jiang and find someone new."
"But I still can’t get over Lin Jiang. I just want to be with him. Please, go put in a good word for me. I can apologize to him. I’m even willing to sign a prenup. It’s also fine if his mom moves in with us."
Chen Jingjia had thought it through very clearly.
’Even if I found another rich man, he’d make me sign a prenup, too. All I’d get to enjoy would be a lavish lifestyle and an allowance of a few hundred thousand a month. If Lin Jiang did the same, I’d be reluctant, but I could accept it. Most importantly, Lin Jiang is young, and we have a history. We could have a child in the future, and everything would gradually change. It would be foolish to just focus on the immediate benefits.’
"There’s no way I’m saying any of that. Don’t even think about it."
"Sis~"
"You can ask me for anything else, but not this."
"Fine."
Chen Jingjia got up listlessly. "I’ll go wash the fruit for you. Don’t be angry anymore."
Chen Jingxian’s chest heaved with anger. After calming down a bit, she was a little frightened by her own thoughts.
’Was I being too emotional?’
Chen Jingxian herself hadn’t even noticed that her way of thinking had quietly changed.
At first, as his older sister-in-law, she had naturally hoped the two of them would reconcile.
But now, she no longer thought that way.

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