Chapter 109: Win That Man Over And Win His Mom Too
‘If you don’t marry her, don’t bother coming home again.’
Xia Zhilan gave a firm order.
She really, really liked Lin Yibai!
Honest, brave, responsible, dependable. Xia Zhilan saw so many great qualities in that girl.
She thought about it and couldn't understand how other girls could even compete with her future daughter-in-law.
What could they use to fight back? Their heads?
Xia Zhilan patted her son and said seriously, “Anyway, it’s up to you. But if you let this one go, you might never find someone like her again.”
Xia Changyu was surprised. “Is it really that serious?”
Xia Zhilan raised her hands and replied, “What else do you expect? You want someone like Gu Xiaoxue again? You know what most girls are like these days... I’m not saying there aren’t good ones out there, but a good girl who actually stands in front of you? That’s like finding a rare treasure.”
Some girls might look better than Lin Yibai, but they don’t have her manners. Others might be more well-behaved, but they don’t look as good. So what more do you want?
A rare treasure is right in front of you and you don’t know how to value it. You want to go digging through mud for gold instead?
She didn’t feel like arguing with her silly son anymore.
Xia Zhilan thought she might as well go spend time with her lovely daughter-in-law.
Don’t worry, she is a good mother-in-law!
As soon as she walked into the photo studio, Lin Yibai looked up and greeted her sweetly, “Sister Xia, you’re here!”
Xia Zhilan’s heart was full of joy.
Just listen to that! She called her ‘sister!’ With such a sweet mouth, how could they ever have problems between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law?
She walked over and saw Lin Yibai holding a printed project plan. She was carefully reading and making notes, trying to find better ways to present traditional Chinese porcelain in a video.
Xia Zhilan asked, “What are you working on?”
Lin Yibai, with her rosy lips and white teeth, bit her pen and said, “I’m thinking about how we can include things like porcelain trays and traditional decorations in the video. Like, maybe I could have a beautiful piece in the background while I dance?”
Xia Zhilan said, “But isn’t your job just to sing and dance?”
Lin Yibai shook her head right away and explained, “Singing and dancing is just a side job. My main job is to run this whole project.”
Xia Zhilan didn’t quite understand. “So how do you do that?”
After thinking for a moment, Lin Yibai replied, “We need to launch one hot-selling product. If we can sell a ton of it, that means we’ve succeeded.”
But making a hit product isn’t easy.
For many companies, just one successful product in a year means they can relax and earn big.
This was exactly what Lin Yibai was struggling with. She was trying to figure out, what kind of people would actually buy porcelain?
She lowered her head and started thinking out loud, and Xia Zhilan sat up straighter, realizing how serious she was.
“Students don’t really buy porcelain, unless it’s cute or anime-themed. Young adults care more about style and home decoration. Middle-aged people buy dinnerware and tea sets. Older folks like antiques.”
“We also have to think about where we post the video. Most sites are filled with younger viewers.”
“Young adults.”
“Students.”
“……”
Lin Yibai’s pretty eyebrows furrowed even more. It’s no wonder she was still thinking about the target audience, she wanted everything to succeed!
But she knew she couldn’t have it all.
This was her first time handling a real project and writing a plan. She could only take small steps, learning as she went, and hope everything would turn out well.
Xia Zhilan, who was standing nearby, couldn’t help but feel sorry for Lin Yibai. She said softly, “You don’t need to work so hard! As long as the project can run, that’s already good enough.”
“You’re right, Sister Xia.”
“Haha, see! I told you, trust me, I won’t lead you wrong. There’s no need to work so hard for those greedy bosses. The money is theirs, but your body is your own!”
“Sister Xia, I think you misunderstood.” Lin Yibai took a deep breath and said, “It’s true the money belongs to those greedy bosses, but since I’ve taken on this job, I have to do my best.”
Just look at her... Xia Zhilan was bursting with emotion.
You stupid son! Can’t you see what a good girl this is? And you’re still just standing there, doing nothing?
Now she really felt really anxious. Bah, she's worrying on behalf of her son!
She was scared someone else might take this amazing girl away.
So she tried asking casually, “Um, Auntie... I mean, sister, has a little question for you, okay? Baiyi, do you have a boyfriend?”
Why this kind of question?
Lin Yibai didn’t really get it, but it wasn’t something to hide either. If she didn’t have a boyfriend, she didn’t have one. No need to pretend.
So she shook her head and said, “A boyfriend? Sister Xia, you can clearly see I don’t have one!”
Xia Zhilan was overjoyed and couldn’t hide her happiness. “Yes, yes, you’re right, Xiao Bai... I mean, how could ordinary guys ever match your beauty and talent?”
“Sister Xia, you’re being too kind.”
“I’m just being honest.”
“I admit I might look better than average, but there are still many things I need to learn, like how to deal with people, and having a good personality, for example.”
“Xiao Bai, you’re just being too humble.”
At this point, Xia Zhilan was shocked and delighted. She wanted to take both the flower and the flowerpot home. But was scared someone else would take them first. She blamed her silly son for not doing anything.
If he could just make this girl fall for him... Would she need to worry so much?
Then, Xia Zhilan made a big mistake that many people make when they really want something but can’t get it right away. She started to feed Lin Yibai some strange advice, like: “Girls shouldn’t settle for less!” and so on.
Basically, since her son hadn’t won the girl’s heart yet, she might as well raise Lin Yibai’s standards so high that she wouldn’t be interested in other boys. It was kind of selfish thinking.
But unfortunately, Lin Yibai didn’t agree with her at all. Because she was a guy.
She disliked words like “settle for less,” “lowering your quality of life,” or “sacrificing yourself.”
So she stopped what she was doing and explained, “I don’t think relationships are about settling. Marriage happens when two people truly like each other and want to build a life together. It’s about helping each other, it’s not settling at all.”
“And this whole idea about lowering your quality of life or sacrificing yourself. That's just silly. Why would someone think that way... unless they see themselves as a parasite from the beginning?”
Xia Zhilan was shocked to her core. It had been years since she met a girl this clear-minded.
She was amazed, impressed, and completely loved her. She also wanted to keep this “treasure” hidden, scared others would try to steal her away.
Taking a deep breath, she asked again, “Okay, let’s say... I’m just giving an example, let’s say that greedy boss Xia Changyu goes broke and loses everything. If you happened to be his wife, what would you do?”
“Is this question important?”
“Very important.”
“Then we’d get through it together!” Lin Yibai shrugged and said, “He’d work extra hours, I’d go back to work after having the baby, and maybe his mom would help take care of the child. Even if we owed hundreds of thousands, we’d probably pay it off by the time the kid starts elementary school. That’s just how life is, right?”
Good! So well said!
Xia Zhilan was so excited, but also filled with complaints inside. It was all that stupid son’s fault.
If he had done better, she might already have a grandchild by now.