Are you suggesting I inherit three wives' households? I'll marry my eldest brother and bec

Chapter 427 He Doesn't Like Me

After dinner, the living room was filled with a relaxed atmosphere.

Some people sat around playing chess, the sound of pieces falling crisply; others curled up on the sofa looking at their phones, occasionally letting out a few soft laughs.

Shen Li turned to look at Nuan Nuan, her tone gentle: "Nuan Nuan, go for a walk with your aunt."

Lele immediately came over, her eyes sparkling: "Mom, I want to go with you!"

An An leaned back on the sofa with her eyes closed, silently thinking to herself: This younger brother really has no sense of propriety.

Mother deliberately called only my eldest cousin out, clearly she had something to say in private, but he just had to join in the fun.

As expected, Shen Li looked helplessly at the third child, Lele, and said sternly, "Stay home and keep your sister company. Don't always think about running around outside."

Lele, with a crestfallen face, deliberately dragged out her words as she acted out a scene: "In the end, I was wrong about you. Mom only has my cousin in her heart~"

Shen Li was amused by his words and raised her hand as if to hit him, but Lele giggled and dodged to the side.

Shen Li watched her son run away and muttered to herself: Who did this child take after in terms of personality?

Neither the eldest brother nor Xiangyang has such a lively and mischievous temper!

The moonlight tonight is exceptionally clear and full; such a tranquil and comforting night is truly rare.

The two walked side by side to the viewing pavilion by the garden and sat down. Looking up, they saw the lights of thousands of homes in Shenzhen unfolding one by one in the night, neon lights flashing, and a warm feeling spreading through the air.

Nuannuan gazed at her aunt beside her, a warm feeling rising in her heart.

Twenty years have passed in the blink of an eye, and my aunt seems to have never changed. She has shed her early naivety and become more intellectual and elegant. There is no trace of the vicissitudes of time in her eyes and brows. On the contrary, she occasionally reveals a childlike innocence.

So this is what true happiness is like for my aunt—treated gently by time, with light always shining in her eyes.

I'm so envious, but she has a loving aunt, so she's very happy.

Shen Li turned her head and caught a fleeting glimpse of melancholy in Nuan Nuan's eyes. She spoke softly, "Nuan Nuan should be twenty-three years old this year, right?"

"Mmm," Nuan Nuan responded softly, her voice low.

Shen Li smiled and said in a relaxed tone, "Yes, she's still young, no rush."

Nuannuan suddenly looked up at Shen Li, her eyes slightly warm.

In this world, perhaps only her aunt would say that she is still young.

The girls around her were arranged to marry by their families when they were eighteen or nineteen. Someone like her, who was still unmarried at twenty-three, had long become the subject of gossip.

But her aunt's words were like a warm current, instantly soothing the grievances in her heart.

"Auntie..." As soon as she finished speaking, her nose suddenly felt sore and her throat tightened.

Shen Li gently patted the back of her hand, her tone gentle yet direct: "I heard from your grandmother that you turned down all the blind dates your family arranged for you?"

Nuannuan lowered her eyes and replied earnestly, "Feelings can't be forced. I want to find someone I like who also likes me, even if it takes a few more years."

Shen Li suddenly changed the subject, saying with certainty, "You already have someone you like in your heart, don't you?"

Nuannuan looked up abruptly, her eyes filled with surprise, as if her thoughts had been instantly exposed.

Looking at her like this, Shen Li's smile deepened: "It seems I was right."

Nuannuan's tone carried a hint of disappointment and helplessness: "Auntie is still so clever; she can't hide anything from you."

It's immediately obvious that she has someone she likes.

Shen Li followed up, saying, "Your aunt can't make decisions about relationships for you, but if you're willing to trust me..."

"Why don't you tell me about it, and I'll help you analyze it. Your aunt has walked a more path than you have, so perhaps she can offer some insights."

She paused, then added, "Judging from your expression, this relationship isn't going too well, is it?"

Nuan Nuan hung her head and nodded dejectedly, her voice barely audible: "Yeah, he doesn't like me."

Shen Li couldn't help but laugh, feigning indignation: "Who's so blind? You know, our Nuannuan looks at least 80% like me. I was a campus beauty back then."

"Nuan Nuan is now beautiful and gentle, even more outstanding than I was back then. I'd like to see who dares not to like you!"

As Nuannuan listened to her aunt's playful tone, which included praise for her as well as for herself, her originally gloomy and sad mood was inexplicably healed, and the corners of her mouth couldn't help but curve into a smile.

She remained silent for a moment, but finally whispered the name: "Shen Hezhi".

Shen Li was taken aback, then frowned in thought: "Whose child is this? And why does he also have the surname Shen?"

It's important to know that in some places, marriage between people with the same surname is not allowed according to local customs.

Moreover, the Shen family in the capital only has their lineage; no other prominent families have ever heard of anyone with the surname Shen.

Seeing her puzzled look, Nuannuan added another name, her voice even lower: "His name used to be Pingping."

Shen Li's brain was working at lightning speed. After a moment, as if she had suddenly thought of something, the expression on her face instantly became complicated.

No wonder the child didn't dare to speak, it turns out it was him... Not to mention his family, even she felt that the Shen family would most likely not agree to this marriage.

She asked tentatively, "Are you talking about the child your great-grandfather brought with him back then?"

Nuannuan nodded gently, her voice tinged with caution: "Yes, later Fourth Grandfather adopted him and changed his name to Shen Hezhi, taking Fourth Grandfather's surname."

Shen Li fell silent, her fingertips unconsciously tracing the railing by the pavilion, her heart filled with mixed emotions.

According to seniority, this girl should call him "Uncle"!

Seeing this, Nuannuan quickly stepped forward and took her hand, her eyes full of pleading: "Auntie, you said you would help me come up with ideas."

Shen Li looked down at Nuan Nuan, who was squatting in front of him with earnest eyes, and deliberately sighed, jokingly asking, "Is it too late for me to regret it now?"

Nuannuan was stunned for a moment, then her eyes reddened, and she said aggrievedly, "Ah... Auntie, you can't do this."

Shen Li's joking expression vanished, and she asked seriously, "Does he like you or not?"

Nuannuan shook her head blankly: "I don't know."

"Don't know?" Shen Li raised an eyebrow, her tone tinged with confusion.

Nuan Nuan sighed softly, her eyes filled with confusion: "I always felt that he treated me differently, as if he liked me. But when I mustered up the courage to confess, he rejected me, saying he wasn't good enough for me."

Shen Li thought to himself: This child does have some self-awareness.

But then she thought about it again and wondered, "You two don't spend much time together, so how could you have developed feelings for each other?"

Nuannuan looked up, a hint of tenderness in her eyes: "We went to the same school, and after he skipped a grade, we ended up in the same major. We would run into each other in class and on research projects."

Shen Li then asked, "Are you older than him?"

Nuannuan shook her head: "No, he's two years older than me."

Shen Li looked completely surprised: "Huh?"

When that child first arrived at the Shen family, he was thin and frail, and looked much shorter than Nuannuan. She always thought he was younger than Nuannuan.

Looking back now, boys naturally grow later, and my thinness back then was just due to malnutrition.