After getting Shen Xiaoya to grin from ear to ear, Li Xiaomei turned to Mrs. Shen. "Ma’am, I’m a nurse," she said solicitously. "I can see your complexion isn’t the best. When I have a moment, I can help you work on your health. You have the face of someone who will live to be a hundred."

Mrs. Shen was so delighted by her words that her eyes crinkled into a thin line.

Chen Feng had already returned to his room and was unpacking his things. This room used to be Shen Yi’s. Shen Yi’s belongings had all been moved out, but the bed and desk hadn’t been replaced. There were still knife-carved marks on them, and Chen Feng frowned slightly.

’Shen Yi’s things.’

He didn’t actually want them. But with his mother so busy currying favor with the Shen Family, he couldn’t afford to seem ill-mannered. Thankfully, while the bed and desk had belonged to Shen Yi, at least the bedding and pillowcases were his own.

Chen Feng took out his clothes, one by one, and hung them in the closet. However, he couldn’t shake the feeling that Shen Yi’s scent still lingered inside.

When Li Xiaomei came in, she saw her son frowning. She glanced around the room and said cheerfully, "This furniture may have been used by Shen Yi, but I heard from Zhengfeng that it was purchased not long before Shen Yi left for Ping’an Town. I know you’re not happy using his things, but we need to keep a low profile for now, mother and son. Zhengfeng offered to get you a new set, but I told him not to bother. Xiao Feng, do you understand your mother’s difficult position?"

"Yeah, I know."

To this day, Chen Feng still refused to call Shen Zhengfeng "Father." In his mind, his real father was that drunkard, and he was long dead.

Besides, he would be moving to school in a few days anyway. So for now, living in Shen Yi’s room and his mother’s attempts to curry favor with the Shen Family were all irrelevant to him.

"Oh, right, Xiao Feng. That courtyard home you mentioned... what was that about? You only told me half the story."

Seeing his mother’s curious expression, Chen Feng recalled his last visit to Lin Nian in prison. When Lin Nian learned they were all moving to North City, she had gripped his hand and said, "You have to find a way to get Shen Zhengfeng’s courtyard home. That place is going to be worth a fortune someday!"

It seemed to Chen Feng that every time he visited the prison, Lin Nian said things he didn’t quite understand. But she had been so insistent about the courtyard home that he had mentioned it to his mother upon his return.

He said, "It’s nothing. I’ve just never been in a courtyard home before. I heard he has one and was curious what it looked like."

"Mm, Zhengfeng used to have a few courtyard homes. But then the family all wanted to live in modern apartments, so he sold them. He should still have one left, though—the biggest one."

’Chen Feng knew his mother was an ambitious woman. Of course, the more influence she had in the Shen Family, the better it would be for him.’

He said, "That courtyard home will probably be worth a lot more in the future. Find a way to get it."

Li Xiaomei paused, startled. Then, she swept her hair back and smiled dazzlingly. "Don’t you worry. Everything the Shen Family owns will be ours someday—yours and mine!"

’She had paid such a high price to get to this point.’

’So how could she possibly allow herself to fail?’

What the mother and son didn’t know, however, was that the courtyard home they coveted already belonged entirely to Shen Yi and Du Liya. At that very moment, Qin Zhonghui and Shen Yi were working in the yard, and Beidou had joined them. Inside, Su Yun was busy in the kitchen with Qin Jiao, along with Du Liya, who had volunteered to chop the meat. Meanwhile, Xiao Shi had wiped the wicker chair clean and was helping a newly-awakened Mr. Du settle into it to enjoy the cool air.