Chapter 27 It’s Settled Like That

Chapter 27: Chapter 27 It’s Settled Like ThatExiting the Art Bar, Li Yifei stood at the entrance and lit a cigarette. If Xu Shanshan came out with him, his mission would be complete. If she didn’t, he couldn’t be bothered anymore. After all, his role as her brother-in-law was fake, so just doing enough was fine.

Before he had taken two puffs, Xu Shanshan ran out. Seeing Li Yifei right at the entrance, she pouted and hurried over, saying huffily, "Brother-in-law, what were you thinking? They are my friends, after all. How could you just lose your temper with them like that?"

Li Yifei turned to look at Xu Shanshan and said with a stern face, "Shanshan, I don’t want to preach to you, but in my eyes, they really can’t be considered friends. If you harbor the same sentiments as they do, then don’t expect to have any opportunities in your life."

Xu Shanshan snorted and said, "They are very talented."

"You call that talent?" Liu Yifei laughed, then shook his head and said, "Indeed, they do have a certain talent in some respects. But you should also be aware that success relies not only on opportunity and talent but primarily on efforts. If you put opportunity and talent first and overlook hard work completely, how can you possibly succeed?"

"Aren’t you also unsuccessful? How can you lecture me?" Xu Shanshan was somewhat displeased with Li Yifei’s harsh criticism of her friends.

"You’re right, I haven’t succeeded, but I can clearly recognize who I am. I know what I want to do, what I’m suited for. That’s all I have to say; you can listen or not, I’m not keen to interfere. After all, everyone has their preferred way of life. If you like it, I won’t stop you. When your sister asks, I’ll even put in a few good words for you."

Having said that, Li Yifei tossed his cigarette butt and strode forward.

Immediately behind him, Xu Shanshan’s footsteps were heard, and then two small hands grabbed his arm. Neither of them spoke, merely walked in silence.

A cold wind blew, and Xu Shanshan shivered. She was wearing a cashmere coat, which wasn’t very warm. The chill of the wind made her feel cold.

Li Yifei glanced at her and said, "Let’s take a taxi home."

Xu Shanshan, however, shook her head and replied, "I want to walk a bit more."

"Okay then, if you don’t mind, I can put my arm around you to keep you warm as we walk."

Xu Shanshan turned to look at Li Yifei and then, flashing a toothy smile, said, "Then thank you, brother-in-law." She let go of Li Yifei’s arm and hugged his waist instead.

Li Yifei put his arm around Xu Shanshan. Although they both wore thick clothes and didn’t feel anything special, simply holding a beautiful woman like this made Li Yifei feel a certain pride and satisfaction.

During the holiday season, the streets were particularly quiet. Most shops were closed, and not many people were walking around. However, the street lights were very bright, and many shops had lanterns hung at the entrances, which really enhanced the festive atmosphere.

"Shanshan, if you really like to pursue dance, I could introduce you to a famous dance teacher afterwards."

"A famous dance teacher? You know one?" Xu Shanshan immediately looked up at Li Yifei in surprise.

"Yeah, I know one, Qiao Ya. Have you heard of her?"

"Qiao Ya? Oh my god, you’re not kidding me, are you? She’s one of the most famous dancers in our country," Xu Shanshan released Li Yifei, her eyes wide as she stared at him.

"Why would I lie to you? But, don’t let your sister know about this. She’s very suspicious and might wonder if there’s something between Qiao Ya and me."

"Giggle, how could that be possible? Qiao Ya is a nationally renowned dancer. How could she have anything to do with you? But brother-in-law, what exactly is your relationship with her, and how can you introduce me to her?"

"We’re just friends. We met once because of an incident, so I still have some pull."

"Alright then, I’ll take your advice. It’s not like I’m actually going to study dance with her. After all, I’m getting on in age, and it’s hard to make much headway in that field now. But she’s my idol, and meeting her just once would be enough for me."

"That makes it even easier. After the holiday, I’ll arrange a meeting. How does that sound?"

"Brother-in-law, you’re incredible!" Xu Shanshan exclaimed excitedly, throwing herself at him and planting a kiss on his face.

Li Yifei broke out in a nervous sweat and said, "Tell me, Shanshan, you don’t go around kissing people on impulse, do you?"

Xu Shanshan playfully hit Li Yifei and chided, "What nonsense are you talking about? Can I kiss just anyone? Aren’t you my brother-in-law? We’re family."

Li Yifei sighed with relief. If Xu Shanshan had been frivolous, it would have disappointed him. It seemed that the girl still valued herself highly; she had just been negatively influenced by those friends.

"I came here on a mission. Can I go back and report completion now?" Li Yifei asked with a smirk.

"Sure, I just won’t contact them anymore. I know they’re not all that good anyway, it’s just that I enjoy watching their performances, which is why I hang out with them."

"Alright then, let’s head home," Li Yifei said cheerfully as he hailed a taxi, and they joyfully returned to the neighborhood.

"Remember! Don’t tell your sister or your uncle and aunt about this," Li Yifei reminded Xu Shanshan in the elevator.

Xu Shanshan nodded repeatedly, boasting proudly, "This is our little secret between us two."

"Right! Our secret, just between the two of us."

They shared a knowing smile as they exited the elevator and then went on to open the apartment door.

"Huh, you two came back so early?" Xu Zhenguo looked at the two people at the door in surprise.

Xu Shanshan chuckled lightly and said, "It’s nothing much, so I came back with my brother-in-law."

Xu Shanshan’s mother also looked at her with puzzlement and said, "In the past, you always came back at midnight. Now it’s not even nine o’clock. This is too out of the ordinary."

Li Yifei immediately took over and said, "Shanshan saw that I was bored there, so we came back early." Searᴄh the Nôvelƒire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

Xu Shanshan hopped over and hugged her mother’s arm, saying, "Alright, stop looking at me with that kind of look. I won’t go out with them anymore. Are you satisfied now?"

"Really?" The Xu Zhenguo Couple asked in unison. They had lectured Xu Shanshan countless times, and although she remained indifferent, recognizing that their daughter was already grown up, they didn’t feel it appropriate to press further and ultimately let her be. To their surprise, she had changed her ways today.

"Of course, it’s true. My brother-in-law gave me a good scolding, and I don’t dare to go (out with them) anymore," Xu Shanshan said, pouting her lips at Li Yifei with a look of grievance.

The Xu Zhenguo Couple glanced at Xu Shanshan and then at Li Yifei, feeling that something about this didn’t seem quite real. At this moment, Xu Yingying also came out of her room and said to Li Yifei, "Come in for a moment."

Li Yifei winked at Xu Shanshan and then followed Xu Yingying into the room, where he sat down directly on the bed.

Xu Yingying, with her arms crossed, looked at him intently and said, "What’s going on here?"

Li Yifei shrugged and replied, "Nothing much. I just didn’t like the look of those guys, so I gave them a piece of my mind. Shanshan might have been awakened by my scolding, and she decided to come back with me, even saying she won’t go (out with them) anymore."

"Is it really that simple?"

"Yes, it’s that simple."

"Then tell me the details of what happened."

Li Yifei recounted the day’s events at Art Bar. He mentioned the cocktail making, which Shanshan would certainly talk about, so he didn’t hide it. However, the fact that Shanshan kissed him and that he was taking Shanshan to meet Qiao Ya were naturally things he couldn’t disclose.

Walking around the room, Xu Yingying stopped and said with confusion, "This is really odd. That girl actually woke up to your scolding? Both mom and dad have scolded her before, and she never listens."

"You didn’t hit the nail on the head, and besides, she was already resistant to your criticisms. That’s why they didn’t work. I silenced those Angry Youths with my scolding and impressed them with my cocktail skills. That’s why Shanshan listened to me."

"Maybe that’s the case, but it’s definitely a good thing. I’m relieved if she doesn’t hang out with that messy crowd."

Li Yifei said with a grin, "Then I’ve quite successfully completed the task, haven’t I?"

Xu Yingying nodded and responded, "You did very well with this matter."

"Thank you for the compliment, Xu president."

Xu Yingying opened her wardrobe, took out a wallet, and pulled out a wad of cash, saying, "Here, take this as a reward."

Li Yifei immediately said, "Didn’t I say that this was just a complimentary service?"

Xu Yingying placed the cash next to Li Yifei and said, "I only asked you to keep an eye on Shanshan, but you ended up cutting off her association with those fair-weather friends. You definitely deserve a reward, so don’t be polite."

Grinning, Li Yifei said, "Then I won’t stand on ceremony. I wonder if there are any other tough issues in your family that I can help solve, seems like this makes money even faster."

Xu Yingying immediately gave Li Yifei a stern look and said, "Are you actually hoping for more problems in our family?"

Li Yifei stuffed the cash into his pocket, saying cheerfully, "I was just joking. Don’t take it to heart, president."

Seeing Li Yifei’s eagerness for money, Xu Yingying felt slightly displeased and said, "Enough, stop calling me president, lest my parents hear it."

"Alright, I’ll go out to wash up and get ready for bed."

Outside, Xu Shanshan was still narrating to her parents the heroic deeds of Li Yifei that evening: how he outmatched someone in a contest of strength, causing them to sweat profusely, and how he mixed a Nine-colored Rainbow cocktail that even astounded a professional bartender.

"Brother-in-law, come here quickly. My parents don’t believe what I said, you need to come and confirm it for me, tell them how amazing you are," Xu Shanshan called out to Li Yifei as soon as she saw him come out.

Li Yifei hurried over, smiling, "What’s there to be amazing about? It was just a bit of fun."

But Xu Shanshan persisted, urging, "It wasn’t just fun, mix a cocktail for my parents, so they can see for themselves."

Xu Zhenguo, quite interested, said, "Yifei, if you really have such skills, you should definitely mix one for me to try. I often enjoy good liquor but I’ve never really had the chance to try cocktails."

Since Xu Zhenguo put it that way, Li Yifei could no longer decline, so he picked a few bottles from Xu Zhenguo’s collection of fine liquors. Although Xu Zhenguo had many white spirits, there were only a few bottles of foreign liquor, such as Vodka or whiskey, which he had none.

Despite the incomplete selection of alcohol, Li Yifei managed to mix a decent cocktail. Xu Zhenguo, after tasting it, was full of praise. Xu Yingying, who had come out to watch, was also taken aback. As a president who had attended many wine events, she was very familiar with cocktails. The concoction that Li Yifei mixed was definitely superior to those made by ordinary bartenders.

Watching Li Yifei from the sidelines, Xu Yingying suddenly realized that Li Yifei indeed had some skills, and not at all like the rough exterior he presented.