Thus, Leng Zhiting brought a girl named Xiaoyuan home, while her mother returned that night with her husband to care for their younger son.
Perhaps due to being an employee living under someone else's roof, Xiaoyuan stayed close behind Leng Zhiting, appearing quite scared of Huang He.
"Brother-in-law, can we not go home yet?" Leng Zhiting said while in the car.
"Why?" Huang He asked.
"I want to go to the mall. Look at what Xiaoyuan is wearing; it's too tattered. I want to buy her a whole new set of clothes at the mall!" Leng Zhiting said.
"But Xiaoyuan's mother said to take you directly to her rental unit. She's already prepared clothes, stationery, and books at home, so you can just take them back! Why buy clothes?" Huang He asked.
"Brother-in-law, don't be so stingy. Xiaoyuan is coming to our house, so we naturally need to make her feel at home. You wouldn't be unwilling to spend this little bit of money, would you?" Leng Zhiting said with a frown. She didn't recall her brother-in-law being this stingy. He had bought their mother a courtyard house worth tens of millions without batting an eye, yet now he was reluctant to spend on a few sets of clothes.
"Xiaoyuan, what do you think?" Huang He asked the young girl.
"I'm fine wearing my own clothes. I don't need new clothes!" the girl replied.
"See, Xiaoyuan said so herself," Huang He smiled.
"Brother-in-law, you can't ask someone like that. Of course, she wouldn't have the nerve to say she wants us to buy her new clothes. Your actions are so ungracious and stingy!" Leng Zhiting said indignantly.
"Zhiting, if you truly consider Xiaoyuan your friend, you'd best not do such a thing!" Huang He said calmly. Leng Zhiting completely failed to understand Huang He's words and sulked, mumbling to herself. Xiaoyuan, however, heard him and her brow relaxed. She then said, "Zhiting, we are good friends and good classmates now. If I not only live in your home but also have you buy me new clothes and new daily necessities, using everything of yours, then I would truly be living under your roof and would not be qualified to be your friend anymore. Because I owe you so much, I would feel I have no right to stand as an equal with you!"
"Why are you saying such preposterous things? It's just buying a few things, and suddenly we can't be friends anymore?" Leng Zhiting became agitated, but Xiaoyuan continued, "It's a simple logic. When you first joined our class, those boys like Wang Dapao bullied you. But you put aside your resentment and even helped them conceal the incident of breaking the glass, taking the punishment from the teacher. That's why Wang Dapao and the others have been obedient to you ever since, isn't it because they feel they owe you?"
"If you treat me this way, I will also feel like I owe you too much!" Xiaoyuan said.
"Alright! Alright! If you don't want to buy, then we won't buy!" Leng Zhiting waved her hand. She wasn't stupid; once she calmed down a bit, she understood what Xiaoyuan meant.
"Also, for the time I live in your home and eat your food, I will remember it all. I will repay you in the future!" Xiaoyuan added.
"Okay, remember it well. I'll collect it from you later!" Leng Zhiting said helplessly. Only then did Xiaoyuan's face break into a smile.
Huang He's car stopped at the entrance of Xiaoyuan's rental unit. This imported Mercedes-Benz commercial vehicle was particularly conspicuous in this run-down urban village.
Xiaoyuan went home alone to pack her things. Only the driver, Huang He, and Leng Zhiting remained in the car. Leng Zhiting had intended to help, but Xiaoyuan stopped her, saying she didn't want her friend to see what her home was like. Leng Zhiting then didn't insist.
"Zhiting, Xiaoyuan will be living with you. Remember, you need to ensure her three meals a day, daily necessities for living and studying, and a warm living environment are sufficient. Don't be too good to her, and certainly don't buy her any extra good things!"
"Also, if she willingly helps around the house, don't stop her. Let her do some chores," Huang He instructed.
"Brother-in-law, aren't you making it impossible for me to be a good person?" Leng Zhiting rolled her eyes.
"This is for her own good!" Huang He sighed. "Of course, I'm not stingy with money. Our family's living environment and Xiaoyuan's family's living environment are worlds apart. If you are too good to her, giving her the best of everything, and letting her completely adapt to our lifestyle, it will be a devastating blow to her. Because she will eventually return to her parents, and she will have to go back to her original life. The better you make her life with us, the harder it will be for her to bear the immense shock of the change in living standards in her original family. What will she become in the future? Will her life and values be ruined? Who can say for sure?"
At this point, Huang He couldn't help but recall the famous reality show "Let's Go," which he had watched in his previous life. The show had been airing for 12 years. Children from wealthy families remained wealthy children; after a brief transformation, they returned to their original lives. However, many children from poor families could never go back. They remained immersed in the wonderful urban life, unable to extricate themselves. They then complained that their parents and original families couldn't provide them with that wonderful life, began to give up on themselves, resorted to violence, and even did all sorts of inconceivable things. A child who was originally pure and kind was utterly destroyed by a television program, even though the program claimed to be helping children and was a prime example of "teaching without tiring."
"..." Leng Zhiting was silent for a moment, then nodded. "I understand!"
"Mm!"
"Brother-in-law!" Leng Zhiting suddenly asked again, "Is being born into a wealthy family a mistake?"
"Why do you ask such a ridiculous question?" Huang He couldn't help but laugh.
"Because I feel like living like this is so tiring. I originally wanted to do whatever I wanted, do what I thought was right, and help everyone I wanted to help."
"But now, I have to scheme about this and that, consider so many things. It would be better if I weren't rich and were just an ordinary person's child. This life wouldn't be so difficult!" Leng Zhiting said.
"Also, Xiaoyuan and I are the same kind of children. We are the same age and the same height. Don't look at her dark complexion; she's actually quite beautiful. We are about the same," Leng Zhiting continued. "But I live so happily, while she has to endure that kind of family situation. And this has nothing to do with our own efforts; it's all brought by our parents and relatives. With you, brother-in-law, I could even not work my whole life and still live a life of delicacies and extreme happiness. But Xiaoyuan, so young, has to bear the pain of separation from her parents. Where did things go wrong?"
"Good question!" Huang He nodded. "How about this, I'll give you a book later. If you can understand this book, you'll find answers to all these questions."
An hour later, in their mother-in-law's courtyard, Huang He handed Leng Zhiting a set of "Das Kapital" that the driver had specially bought. Leng Zhiting glanced at the books, which were thicker than all her textbooks combined, and fled in fright.
"This child, I thought she could really become a general," Huang He shrugged. Huang He couldn't be bothered to worry about the issues with this brat, Leng Zhiting. It wasn't that Huang He didn't care about Leng Zhiting, but she was just a child. As long as her values and personality weren't warped now, she could find answers to these questions in her future life and experiences, without needing to fuss over these things.
That evening, their mother-in-law specifically cooked extra dishes to welcome Xiaoyuan. At the same time, in front of his mother-in-law and Xiaoyuan, Huang He reiterated the requirements he had previously told Leng Zhiting. Their mother-in-law, having seen all sorts of people and situations, had no objection to this request and simply nodded slightly, indicating that she understood. Xiaoyuan, meanwhile, bowed her head and ate her rice. Although Huang He's words and actions seemed to be against her, for some reason, Xiaoyuan found his behavior incredibly comforting. The pain and petty thoughts brought on by living under someone else's roof seemed to dissipate at that moment. The more suffering she endured, the more pride she felt, but no one had ever known or respected her pride, except for this brother-in-law of her friend, this man nearly 15 years her senior.
"Xiaoyuan, what's the situation with your family? How did your brother get this illness?" their mother-in-law asked curiously during dinner.
"I'm not really sure. After all, my brother has lived in our hometown since birth, while I came out to work with my parents!" Xiaoyuan said softly.
"But I heard Grandma say on the phone that my brother's illness actually showed symptoms very early on. From around three or four months old, his head was a little larger than normal, but the family just thought it was a developmental issue and didn't pay too much attention."
"Moreover, my grandparents have always lived in the countryside. Later, even if they felt something was wrong, they didn't take him to a hospital in the city, thinking it was a waste of money."
"Now that he's almost a year old, his head has become twice the size of a normal child's, but his limbs are exceptionally short. A doctor visiting our village saw him and asked my grandparents to take my brother to the hospital, saying there might be a life-threatening danger if they waited any longer. When they got to the hospital, the doctor immediately issued a critical illness notice, which scared my parents into rushing back today!"
"It's really too pitiful!" Their mother-in-law couldn't help but shed a few tears upon hearing this.
"By the way, I remember your hometown is in Fuyang, right?" Huang He suddenly asked. "Is your brother the only one with this illness in the hospital? Or are there other children in similar conditions?"
"It seems there are three in the same ward. I don't know about any more. Grandma didn't explain clearly on the phone!" Xiaoyuan said.