Chapter 90: A New Plan (Part One)

Tao Ming’s thoughts began to wander, imagining a drama in which a maid had fallen in love with the young master, only to be coldly rejected. Hurt and resentful, the maid turned her anger on the young master's daughter. At the heart of it all, it was still Su Nanxing’s fault!

At this moment, Su Nanxing had no idea that Tao Ming had already pieced together most of the truth in her mind. He was at Weixiang Courtyard, complaining to Qiao Ruowei. “Mother, Daya hit Ruanruan. You didn’t see Tao Ming’s face—if I hadn’t been clever enough to have Ruanruan keep her here, Daya would probably be at the Qin family’s by now.”

Qiao Ruowei’s eyes showed her surprise. “How could that happen?”

Su Nanxing tugged at Qiao Ruowei’s sleeve, pleading, “Mother, haven’t I taught you how people speak in the other world? Be straightforward, keep it simple.”

Qiao Ruowei relented, saying, “How did this happen?”

“Mother, when you sent Daya and Xiaoya to Zhaixing Courtyard, was it because you wanted them to be my personal maids?”

Qiao Ruowei’s cheeks flushed. “Mind your manners, talking to your mother like that.”

Su Nanxing looked at her in silence.

She turned her face away, saying, “I was just worried you wouldn’t understand matters of the heart.”

Still, Su Nanxing said nothing.

Qiao Ruowei glanced at him and sighed. “I thought, if those two served you, maybe you’d finally come around to the idea of getting married.”

Su Nanxing replied irritably, “They’re about to make my wife run away!”

Qiao Ruowei frowned slightly. “That’s strange. Daya has always been obedient and sensible. What do you plan to do?”

Su Nanxing lowered his head. “In a moment of anger, I accidentally killed them.”

Qiao Ruowei replied indifferently, “Dead is dead. I can send Siqin and Sihua over instead.”

Su Nanxing hurried to dissuade her. “Mother, I already told you, Mingming doesn't like other people touching her things. Please don’t send any more maids to Zhaixing Courtyard.”

Qiao Ruowei thought for a moment and asked, “But there’s always rough work to be done. At the very least, someone has to take out the chamber pot every day, right?”

“I’ll do it,” Su Nanxing said quickly.

Qiao Ruowei glared at him. “Since when does the young master of the Su family do such menial work?”

Su Nanxing compromised. “Mother, how about this—once Mingming has married into the family, let her choose her own staff?”

Qiao Ruowei replied with some annoyance, “None of the people I send are good enough for you! Do as you please.”

Su Nanxing knew Qiao Ruowei didn’t care about such trivial matters. He said, “Mother, there’s one more thing. If Mingming ever asks about Daya and Xiaoya, just say they were sent away. She must never know I accidentally killed them.”

Qiao Ruowei was surprised. “You stood up for her; she should be happy about that.”

Su Nanxing couldn’t tell her the truth; the differences in values between Tao Ming and Qiao Ruowei were simply too great. So he just said, “Mother, just help me keep it from her.”

Qiao Ruowei pointed at the teacup. “Getting married and forgetting your mother, are you?”

Su Nanxing quickly handed her the teacup. “Mother, I just want to give you more grandchildren!”

Qiao Ruowei smiled as she took the cup. “You said it yourself—by the end of the year, I expect to be holding a grandson.”

Su Nanxing felt a pang of anxiety. Such matters cannot be forced by human will; it seemed he’d have to redouble his efforts. After coaxing Qiao Ruowei a bit more, Su Nanxing returned to Zhaixing Courtyard.

As soon as he entered, Tao Ming motioned him over, grabbed him by the collar and whispered, “Was there something between you and Daya?”

Su Nanxing’s heart skipped a beat. He hastened to explain, “No, absolutely not.”

She didn’t let go, continuing, “Then why did she try to intimidate me?”

Remembering what Daya had said, whether it was true or not, Su Nanxing decided that as long as it convinced Tao Ming, it would do. “I asked her already. Daya said she thought Ruanruan’s clothes looked cheap, so she assumed she was some servant’s daughter who had sneaked in, and that’s why she acted.”

Tao Ming released him, eyes reddening. “So it’s my fault for forgetting how snobbish people are here.”

Su Nanxing sat on the edge of the bed, gathered her into his arms, and gently patted her back. “It’s my fault for not telling the maids you’d be back today. I’ve already told my mother—no more maids for Zhaixing Courtyard. The four of us can close the gate and live as we please.”

Tao Ming shook her head. “I want to go back to the Qin family.”

Su Nanxing sighed inwardly and changed the subject. “Once they wake up, why don’t I take you all shopping?”

She shook her head again. “I don’t want to go. Just take us back to the Qin family.”

“But you promised Ruanruan you’d stay. You can’t break your word!” Su Nanxing could only use Ruanruan as leverage to keep her.

Tao Ming glanced at Ruanruan. “She’ll forget once she wakes up.”

Su Nanxing racked his brain for a moment and said, “Didn’t you buy a batch of glass cups? Let’s go see if there’s a suitable shop.”

She didn’t care. “The Qin family sells those. I’ll just supply them with my goods.”

Then Su Nanxing’s eyes lit up. “Honey, didn’t you want to start a revolution? Hear me out.”

Tao Ming grunted in acknowledgment.

He watched her face and continued, “You’ve been in Weishui for a few days now—you must’ve noticed how lacking the nightlife is here. The rich can go to brothels to pass the time, but the poor can’t even afford candles and just sit at home in a daze.”

Tao Ming nodded, her eyes brightening.

Emboldened, Su Nanxing went on, “Imagine if you opened a kind of entertainment plaza—a comprehensive venue where people could buy rare things, watch movies, eat, even sing karaoke. That would attract high-spending customers, provide jobs, and improve ordinary people’s lives.”

Her eyes grew ever brighter, but finally she deflated. “I didn’t bring enough things from Earth for all that.”

Su Nanxing pulled out a laptop. “But I brought my laptop. It’s just out of power.”

Tao Ming’s excitement returned. “I brought solar panels! There’s plenty of sunlight here—solar power shouldn’t be a problem.”

Then she hesitated. “But the language here isn’t the same as Earth’s. Even if we show movies, people won’t understand them.”

Su Nanxing saw that she’d already forgotten the earlier trouble and quietly breathed a sigh of relief. He kissed her forehead. “Don’t forget what I do for a living? I’ll add subtitles!”

Tao Ming thought for a moment. “Maybe, after watching movies, people will be so interested in the story that they’ll want to learn Mandarin. Once we have the upper hand in language, we can show them the convenience of modern life—there’s our first batch of loyal fans.”

Knowing to strike while the iron was hot, Su Nanxing said, “Honey, let’s set up the solar panels right now and charge my laptop.”

Tao Ming glanced at the two children—they wouldn’t be waking soon. She slipped off the bed, and together they went into the courtyard.

By now, the two suns hung one after the other in the sky, flooding the courtyard with light and raising the temperature to nearly forty degrees. Tao Ming looked at the rooftops, where water trickled down both sides, then at her own dress. She went back inside to change into a short-sleeved shirt, jeans, and sneakers, then had Su Nanxing carry her up onto the roof. There, she took out more than a dozen small solar panels and various accessories.

As Su Nanxing flipped through the instruction manual, he asked, “Why did you bring these? I never thought of it.”

Tao Ming arranged the panels one by one. “I didn’t know how long we’d be in Weishui. Ruanruan loves watching cartoons, so we need to keep the tablet charged.”