Rebirth of the Rich Second Generation's Growth Diary

Chapter 41: Strategy
After Li Xu said that, he continued to read casually. In fact, he didn't pay much attention to the book. He flipped through a few pages at random, put the book down with some boredom, and turned his head to see what Xia Xiaohe was doing.

What disappointed him was that Xia Xiaohe also started doing other things. She didn't seem to have too many emotional ups and downs. She was concentrating on studying the textbook. Li Xu's eyes flickered, and he began to doubt whether there was something wrong with his thinking. Then he thought... forget it, after all, this kind of thing cannot be forced.

Although he had a strong desire to change the fate of this ambitious yet somewhat silly girl... and her brother... but interfering in other people's lives was not very justified. Since they were not related, it would be fine if she didn't want to.

It's just a pity.

The transition to noon school was normal.

The management of lunch in rural middle schools is very relaxed. Although there is a cafeteria, most students in the school do not eat in the cafeteria. Those who live in nearby villages will go back to eat. Those with better conditions have bicycles, with three or four people on one bike, and they leave in a hurry... But more students bring dry food and find a corner in the school to have lunch.

Xia Xiaohe belongs to the latter. Li Xu often sees her eating a steamed bun with pickles. She often eats one steamed bun for two meals. In the afternoon, she takes out the half steamed bun left over from lunch... In the cold weather, the steamed bun is hard and cold.

In his previous life, he had almost no contact with girls like Xia Xiaohe. Looking back now, he didn’t know how he spent those three months in a daze... How could I, such a kind person, not be moved at all at that time?
In this life, he would find ways to invite Xia Xiaohe to eat something good... For example, he would go to the restaurant in the village that he often visited. However, after a few times, the little girl said she didn't want to go at all. Later, Li Xu didn't force her, otherwise it would seem too... But today was a little strange. After school, Xia Xiaohe suddenly took the initiative and said to him: "Let's go eat spicy hot pot!"

Li Xu was a little surprised, but he quickly came to his senses and didn't say much. He just nodded and said, "Okay!"

On a winter afternoon, the sunlight was so weak that the warmth was almost imperceptible. Xia Xiaohe wrapped herself tightly in her cotton coat and tightened the scarf around her neck. Then she smiled shyly at Li Xu, and the two of them headed towards the only restaurant in the village.

The dirt road beneath their feet was frozen hard, making a "crunching" sound with every step. Xia Xiaohe walked in front, head down, carefully avoiding the stones and ruts on the road, swinging her hands from time to time to maintain balance, like a game... Li Xu followed behind, but did not deliberately walk shoulder to shoulder with her.

Xia Xiaohe was obviously preoccupied and remained silent all the way. The two of them walked into the restaurant one after the other.

Eating spicy hot pot here is very cheap. The vegetables are basically grown in-house. If you only eat vegetarian dishes, you can fill a bamboo basket for three yuan. The format is that customers come and get the dishes themselves, similar to a buffet. No matter how much you take, as long as the bamboo basket can hold it, the boss will pay. Xia Xiaohe said to Li Xu while he was choosing the dishes, "It's your treat."

The food was taken away and boiled.

After waiting for a while, Xia Xiaohe lowered her head and said without warning: "I don't want to get married..."

Li Xu blinked and looked at Xia Xiaohe.

"I don't want to...get married so early."

At that moment, Xia Xiaohe seemed to have made some important decision. She raised her head, met Li Xu's gaze, and then looked at him bravely... Not long after, she lowered her head again in shame.

Li Xu smiled interestingly: "Yeah."

At this time, Xia Xiaohe continued to try hard to choose his words, and finally expressed his real concerns.

"I...I really feel embarrassed."

“I’ve never experienced anything like this.”

"It's going to cost a lot of money... I can't imagine how much, but it's going to be a lot."

"Do we... really have such a good relationship?"

Xia Xiaohe sniffed hard, and when she looked up again, her expression was pitiful. The steaming hot spicy hot pot was served on the table. Li Xu stirred the red oil-soaked broth, and the aroma instantly wafted across the air. He picked up a piece of tofu, blew on it a few times, and put it into his mouth. It was so hot that he exhaled, but he couldn't bear to spit it out. He chewed and swallowed it quickly, then picked up a piece of vermicelli with his chopsticks and slurped it in with a "slurp". He drank the hot broth, and the warmth flowed down his throat into his stomach. His body gradually warmed up, and then he slowly said, "Let's talk one by one."

"About the embarrassment... well, I'd be embarrassed too, I understand, but... compared to getting married early, I'd choose to be thick-skinned."

"Uh……"

"It's normal that you haven't experienced anything like this. Who would often experience such strange things in their life? You're lucky to have met me, but not everyone can have such luck. Of course, you haven't experienced it..."

"Uh……"

"It will cost a lot of money... well, not much. Believe me, after you graduate, a few months' salary will be enough to pay it back. Oh, I mean, if you really want to pay it back."

"what?"

"One last thing. Do we have such a good relationship? It really hurts me when you say that... I really consider you a good friend."

"Ah! I, I...I'm sorry!"

Li Xu laughed again. He continued eating the spicy hot pot in his bowl and said, "What should you do? This problem... is actually easy to solve. Didn't I tell you that after you graduate, you can work for me? Let's sign a contract. Don't worry, you won't suffer any loss. We will pay you according to the market price. In the 21st century, talent is the most scarce resource. If you work for us for a while, won't that repay all your debts?"

"But..." Xia Xiaohe's tone softened, but she still had concerns in her heart, and her words were still wavering.

"Tell me if you have any concerns." Li Xu imitated his father's tone and spoke slowly.

The little girl was still worried, hesitant, unable to speak out, or perhaps she hadn't thought of other concerns yet... Li Xu leaned back in his chair and said slowly, "Your brother has such good grades. If he goes to the county town for junior high school... Can your family afford to support two children?"

The biggest difficulty in studying in the county town is the living expenses. Farmers are different from migrant workers. They really earn money as they go along. They don’t have a fixed income. Once they pay this month’s living expenses, where can they find the money for next month’s living expenses?

Li Xu knew very well that it was for this reason that Xia Xiaohe dropped out of school to work in her previous life.

Xia Xiaohe raised his head again with a confused expression.

Li Xu looked at Xia Xiaohe and suddenly said calmly, "You will marry Huang Lei."

Huang Lei was her former deskmate. In fact, Li Xu had never seen Huang Lei and didn't know what he looked like. He just casually said someone's name to scare the girl.

Xia Xiaohe's eyes suddenly widened, and he said seriously, "No!"

"Uh..." Li Xu's face showed a hint of surprise, but he quickly came to his senses and said easily, "Why not?"

Xia Xiaohe fell silent, as if she was seriously considering it. After a moment, she said unsurely, "Then... can you convince my parents?"

(End of this chapter)