It was nearly midnight when Lin Mu returned to Qin Zhu Courtyard. To his surprise, not only was Qin Luoli still awake, but his mother was as well. There was also one other person in the house: Qin Yan.

"Lin Mu, are you alright?" Qin Yan shot to her feet as he walked into the living room, a hint of nervousness on her face.

Realizing she might have shown too much concern, she smiled awkwardly at Qin Luoli. "Luo Li, if there's nothing else, I'll be on my way."

Qin Luoli didn't stop her, merely nodding with a smile. This caused Qin Yan's face to flush to the roots of her neck.

"Goodbye, Auntie." After bidding farewell to Lady Su, Qin Yan hurried away, looking for all the world like she was making a hasty retreat.

Lin Mu sat down on the sofa and asked, "Mom, why are you still up so late?"

Lady Su replied with a smile, "The older you get, the less sleep you need."

Qin Luoli shot Lin Mu a reproachful glare, as if to say that his mother had been waiting up for him. She then pulled her mother-in-law closer and said, "Mom, what are you talking about? You're still young! When we go out shopping, people say we look like sisters."

"You silly girl, always talking nonsense to comfort me."

Even though she knew her daughter-in-law's words were just meant to comfort her, Lady Su was still pleased. With such a daughter-in-law, what more could she ask for?

Still, she gave Lin Mu a reproachful look. This son of mine is wonderful in every way, except he has no intention of giving me a grandchild anytime soon. It's maddening.

Lin Mu was bewildered. What was that look for?

Qin Luoli, on the other hand, blushed faintly and shot another discreet glare at Lin Mu. This clueless blockhead!

"Xiao Mu, Mom wants to talk to you about something." Lady Su sighed inwardly, knowing her son and daughter-in-law were likely oblivious to her well-meaning intentions, and moved closer to him on the sofa.

Lin Mu smiled. "What is it, Mom? Just tell me."

Qin Luoli dutifully went to prepare a plate of fruit.

Lady Su hesitated for a moment before asking, "Xiao Mu, be honest with your mother. When do you two plan on having children?"

"Ah?"

Lin Mu's mouth fell open, completely unprepared for such a question. For a moment, he was at a loss for words.

In the kitchen, Qin Luoli was preparing the fruit plate, her ears perked to eavesdrop on the conversation. When she heard her mother-in-law's question, her pretty face instantly flushed crimson as she strained to hear Lin Mu's response.

"Mom, I don't have any plans for that right now," Lin Mu said with a wry smile. Never mind that it's completely impossible between me and Qin Luoli, I'm just not in the right mindset to even consider it.

In the kitchen, Qin Luoli let out a quiet sigh of relief, but a wave of disappointment followed. That jerk... does he really not want to have a child with me?

Lady Su glared at her son. "You're not getting any younger, you know. I'm still in good health, so if you have a child now, I can help you take care of them. Plus, Luoli is young, so giving birth now is safer. In another couple of years, that might not be the case."

Lady Su sighed. "You don't understand. For a woman, pregnancy and childbirth are like being reincarnated. If anything goes wrong, it can be very dangerous."

Lin Mu could only smile bitterly and offer reassurance. "Mom, when you had me, everything turned out fine, right? Don't worry, it'll be okay."

"You?"

Lady Su glared at him, her eyes betraying a hint of unease, but she pressed on. "Anyway, you'd better hurry things up, or else..."

Lin Mu could only surrender. "Alright, alright. I'll do my best, I'll do my best."

Against an enemy, Lin Mu could be domineering, powerful, and decisive. But against his own mother, all he felt was a headache coming on.

"Mom, have some fruit! This watermelon is really sweet."

Qin Luoli emerged with a plate of fruit, a faint blush still on her cheeks. Clearly, she had heard the entire conversation.

Lady Su picked up a slice of watermelon, took a bite, and asked, "Luo Li, what do you think? Just tell me directly."

"Ah?"

Qin Luoli's mouth fell open as her face turned red again. She stole a glance at the calm Lin Mu before saying, "Mom, I'm swamped with work at the company right now. I haven't really thought about it yet."

Lin Mu let out a small sigh of relief. This left Qin Luoli feeling a little hurt.

Lady Su sighed. "Well, since you put it that way, I can't force you." Glancing at them both, she added, "But there is one more thing."

"Mom, please, just say it," Qin Luoli said hurriedly. As long as we're not talking about having kids, anything is fine.

Lady Su said, "I've been thinking these past few days. I can't just sit around like this all the time, so I'm planning to open a shop and start my own little business."

"What? Open a shop?" Qin Luoli panicked slightly. "Mother-in-law, did I do something wrong? Is that why you want to start a business?"

Is she saying this because I'm not a good enough daughter-in-law? The thought made Qin Luoli nervous.

Lady Su took Qin Luoli's hand, her voice full of affection. "Silly girl, what are you thinking? It's just that I'm bored sitting around every day and want to find something to do."

Qin Luoli said, "But I got you all those memberships, didn't I? If you're bored, you can go to the gym, go dancing, get a spa treatment, things like that."

Lady Su shook her head. "I'm not interested in any of that. I'm healthy now, and you two don't have to worry about me, so I figured I'd find something to do on my own."

As Qin Luoli was about to protest again, Lin Mu spoke up. "Mom, why don't you first tell us what you want to do?"

Lady Su smiled. "I used to work in a canteen, but that place isn't doing well anymore, and several of my old friends lost their jobs. They came to me, hoping I could lend a hand. I figure, instead of working for someone else, why not open our own restaurant?"

A rare, gentle smile graced Lady Su's face.

"I see."

Lin Mu mulled it over for a moment. "It's not impossible, but you have to do your research thoroughly. Running a business isn't easy these days."

Qin Luoli nodded in agreement. "That's right, Mom. Running a business is very hard work. You have me and Lin Mu now, so why not just relax and enjoy your life?"

Lady Su smiled. "I'm not worried about myself, but what about my old friends? Back when the Lin Family fell on hard times, they helped us out a great deal."

Qin Luoli finally understood. So that's it. Her mother-in-law is doing this mostly for her old friends.

"Mom, I support you in this," Qin Luoli declared.

"My daughter-in-law is the best," Lady Su said, her face lighting up with a happy smile.

Lin Mu gave Qin Luoli a wry look. How can she change her tune so fast?

Then, Qin Luoli added, "But, Mom, you have to agree to one condition, or it's a no-go."

"Tell me," Lady Su said.

"I want to invest."

Seeing her mother-in-law about to speak, Qin Luoli quickly continued, "Mom, since this is a business, we have to consider all the factors: the storefront, renovations, employees, supply chains, and so on."

As the head of a large corporation, Qin Luoli naturally had her own business acumen. As she spoke, even Lin Mu found himself looking at her in astonishment.

In that moment, she was truly the president of the Qin Corporation, the influential woman who held sway over River City.

Finally, she turned back to her mother-in-law. "Mother-in-law, unless you agree to let me invest, I won't agree to you going through all that hardship by yourself."

"What business doesn't involve hardship?"

Lady Su chuckled. She was comforted that her daughter-in-law was looking out for her, so she nodded. "Alright. In that case, I agree."

"Thank you, Mom!"

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.