Chapter 377 - 375: Resolution

Chapter 377: Chapter 375: Resolution

"Then why are your parents still planning to raise bamboo-forest chickens on that island?"

Gu Nuan Nuan raised an eyebrow in confusion. This was quite different from her past life. She distinctly remembered keeping tabs on what happened out of curiosity—back then, Lin Qiao’s entire family had left the Alliance and never came back. Her biological grandparents hadn’t returned to the Alliance to settle down, either.

’Could a change I accidentally set in motion have caused such a huge deviation from the original course of events?’

’Returning to one’s roots?’

’Or maybe Lin Qiao’s grandparents had the same idea in my past life, but they were forced to abandon it because of the dozens of lives on their hands?’

Gu Nuan Nuan narrowed her eyes, pondering the possibility.

Lin Qiao didn’t know what she was thinking and simply explained, "Of course, it’s because raising bamboo-forest chickens is a completely hands-off affair. They can be free-range and don’t need anyone to look after them. Otherwise, letting the island sit empty would be such a waste, right? Don’t you know that being wasteful is a disgrace?"

Gu Nuan Nuan let out a laugh. ’It’s really that simple?’

Seeing her laugh, Lin Qiao laughed along before her expression turned serious. "Actually, even if my parents really decide to move abroad, I’m not going with them. Have you forgotten that you’re still holding my ’deed of sale’?"

Gu Nuan Nuan was speechless for a long moment. Then, she reached into her pocket, pulled out Lin Qiao’s "deed of sale," and held it out to her. "You should take this back. Didn’t you know this was just a joke from the beginning? You can’t actually take it seriously."

Lin Qiao looked at the piece of notebook paper, folded into a neat little square, but didn’t take it. Instead, she gave Gu Nuan Nuan a look that was half-glare, half-smirk. "You still have the nerve to say it’s a joke? If it’s a joke, then why do you always carry it with you, ready to whip it out and threaten me at a moment’s notice? Seeing how much you treasure it, you should just keep it. Or are you having second thoughts? Hmph, no take-backs. I decided years ago that I’d be mooching off you for the rest of my life. Or are you the one having regrets now? Are you trying to abandon me?"

Gu Nuan Nuan hadn’t expected such a response. She raised an eyebrow, glancing from the "deed of sale" in her hand back to Lin Qiao. "Don’t try to turn this back on me. But you’re right, I do treasure it. So think carefully. This might be the only chance in your entire life that I’ll willingly offer it back. If you don’t take it, it won’t be so easy to get me to pull it out and return it to you later, no matter how much you cry and beg."

Lin Qiao responded with a dismissive snort.

Gu Nuan Nuan pulled her hand back. She patted the "deed of sale" and shook her head with a smile. "It’s really something else. Your grandparents are rich enough to buy an island and own a private jet and yacht. They must be countless times wealthier than my family’s entire Zhang Group. On top of that, your dad is their eldest son. For their generation, the eldest son is incredibly important—the undisputed heir to the family fortune. Even if we assume that because of everything he’s been through, he’s no longer equipped to take over your grandparents’ massive enterprise, I’m sure his inheritance—even if it’s only a small fraction of the estate—would be substantial. It would surely be enough for you and your three siblings to live the rest of your lives without a single worry. And despite all that, you’re still so afraid of going hungry that you insist on doing hard labor for me?"

"Saying all that is pointless. I’ve already decided to latch onto you, and I won’t regret it." Lin Qiao shook her head firmly. "Their money is theirs, it doesn’t have much to do with me. Think about it, I’m just a girl, and my dad alone has four children. My uncle has six, which makes ten of us kids in this generation, half of whom are girls. One of my cousins made a point to tell me that girls don’t have inheritance rights. The most we can expect is a dowry... Anyway, I’ll graciously accept whatever they’re willing to give me, but I’m not going to fight for anything more."

Hearing this, Gu Nuan Nuan couldn’t help but study Lin Qiao for a moment. Lin Qiao met her gaze with a smile, seeming genuinely unconcerned. "Part of the reason my dad was hesitant about moving abroad was that he didn’t want to fight my uncle for the inheritance," she continued. "He told my mom that although they’re his birth parents, he’s been separated from them for over forty years. Beyond the blood relationship, my uncle, who grew up with them, naturally has a much deeper emotional connection."

She sighed. "My dad says my grandparents’ feelings toward him right now are mostly guilt. Now that they’ve found him, that guilt will naturally fade over time. People’s hearts are always biased. When it truly comes time to decide who inherits the family fortune, my grandparents will certainly not think he’s more suitable than my uncle. After all, the only thing he’s ever known is farming. He’s skilled at manual labor, raising chickens and ducks, and things like that, but there’s no way he could manage a family corporation. He’s too old now to start learning. But he still occupies the position of the eldest son and, like you said, the value my grandparents’ generation places on the firstborn is no joke. Even in ordinary families, people will fight tooth and nail over trivial things. With a fortune as large as my grandparents’, I can’t imagine my uncle not being on guard. What if he gets paranoid and tries to do something underhanded?"

Lin Qiao stuck her tongue out and grinned mischievously. "So, my dad just went ahead and told my grandparents and my uncle that he was content enough just to be able to see his own parents again in his lifetime. He said he has no great ambitions and doesn’t want a lot of money. He’s perfectly satisfied with his life as it is and just wants to continue raising his bamboo-forest chickens. That’s why he has no desire whatsoever to move abroad. In the end, my grandfather was the one who decided they’d gradually move some of their overseas businesses back here. They plan to move back themselves, to return to their roots. They’ve already bought land in our city to build a villa."

"What about your uncle? Is he coming back?"

After hearing all this, Gu Nuan Nuan found herself genuinely admiring Lin Qiao’s father. ’He sees things with such clarity and is able to let it all go,’ she thought. ’That kind of fortitude is truly something else. If fate hadn’t been so cruel, he would have made an excellent heir to the Lin Family!’

"Of course not. If he came back, who would manage all their businesses overseas? In fact, after my dad said all that, my grandparents made their intentions pretty clear. They’re going to move some of their businesses back here and give my dad the island. Other than that, the majority of the overseas assets will go to my uncle. Honestly, he took control of them many years ago anyway. It would be useless to give them to my dad; he wouldn’t be able to manage them," Lin Qiao said lightly.