Chapter 2: Future Sister-in-Law

The girl in the baseball cap meant well; she feared the young lady wouldn't understand the language of flowers and might still be clinging to her ex-boyfriend. But the reality was that in Jiang Menghan’s heart, Li Shuo was merely a "simp." How could a simp take the initiative to say he was done simping?

In an instant, her fair, pure face turned icy cold!

Jiang Menghan was quite calculating, but Li Hongmei was more blunt, shouting, "Just you, a simp? You dare talk about breaking up with our Menghan?"

Immediately, a boy rushed out from the room, anxiously yelling, "Who? Who wants to break up with Jiang Menghan? She doesn't even have a boyfriend!"

Seeing this person, Li Shuo smiled with a sense of irony and said, "Kang Tao, it’s just a misunderstanding by a passerby. Why are you so worked up?"

Kang Tao—in his memories, he was his "mortal enemy." For three years of high school, the two boys had fought over Jiang Menghan like red-eyed, crazed bulls. Looking at him now, it only felt ridiculous: two simps biting at each other, yet in the end, neither had managed to win Jiang Menghan over.

In his memories, not long after Jiang Menghan started university, she had been snatched up by someone else.

"Heh, a misunderstanding? I’m just afraid you’re harboring thoughts you shouldn't have!" Kang Tao didn't give Li Shuo a pleasant look.

Li Shuo raised an eyebrow and said, "I’ve already given her peonies, so why are you still biting like a dog? If you like Jiang Menghan, say it out loud. What kind of person just bites at me?"

"You..."

Kang Tao’s face flushed red. If they weren't in front of Jiang Menghan, he would have already swung his fists. But now that his secret had been exposed, he panicked: *What do I do? This brat Li Shuo has no sense of decorum! How could he blurt out that I like Menghan? Oh no, now Jiang Menghan knows!*

In truth, including Li Shuo, the fact that both simps were groveling at Jiang Menghan’s feet was common knowledge to the whole class.

Therefore, Jiang Menghan acted as if she hadn't heard Li Shuo’s words. She stood between them with a straight face, pulling on Kang Tao and saying

"Alright, alright, why do you two argue every time you meet? Today is my birthday, can you please stop? Kang Tao, you go inside first..."

Kang Tao glared at Li Shuo resentfully before heading back inside. Jiang Menghan’s gaze then fell on Li Shuo. She forced her smile to look more natural and asked, "Li Shuo, what is the meaning of these flowers?"

By contrast, Li Shuo’s smile appeared much more sincere and natural: "Just some nice well-wishes between classmates. After the college entrance exam, everyone is going their separate ways. If I didn't give peonies, should I have given roses, which symbolize passionate love?"

"Uh..."

Jiang Menghan was momentarily speechless. After a few seconds, she said, "Thank you, I’ll accept them."

She looked at Li Shuo quite seriously and suddenly asked, "It hasn't been many days since the exam, why do you feel so different?"

"How am I different?" Li Shuo pointed at himself and said, "Maybe it’s because I’ve given up on chasing you..."

"Ah?"

Everyone was caught off guard, staring at Li Shuo in astonishment: *Shouldn't you be like Kang Tao, hiding your feelings from start to finish, acting as if you're terrified of anyone finding out?*

Jiang Menghan, with excellent acting skills, brushed her hair and showed a measured look of surprise: "Really? You wanted to chase me?"

Li Shuo corrected her: "I used to have a crush on you. I wanted to chase you but didn't dare. I felt you were a goddess like the moonlight in a silent night. As long as I could stand by your side, even if it was just in your shadow, stealing a glance at you, I was satisfied in that state of infatuation..."

"A goddess like the moonlight..."

Jiang Menghan chewed on Li Shuo’s words. It was the first time she had heard such a beautiful description. She felt that the drawer full of love letters she had received in high school didn't compare to this single sentence. And that bit about "stealing a glance at you from your shadow"—the feeling of being so adored made Jiang Menghan wonder why she hadn't realized Li Shuo was so good with words before.

Her lips, coated in pink gloss, curled into a beautiful arc involuntarily: "Li Shuo, you... you really have a way with words..."

Li Shuo chuckled, thinking to himself: *10 years ago is truly great. Girls in this era can still be moved by a couple of sweet lines.*

"Thanks for the compliment. Let's go in."

As he spoke, he glanced at the white baseball cap on the stairs and walked straight into the house...

Li Hongmei poked Jiang Menghan and whispered, "Menghan, why aren't you angry? Li Shuo said he used to have a crush on you—doesn't that mean he doesn't like you anymore?"

Jiang Menghan’s pretty face stiffened. She said coldly, "Who cares if he likes me or not? Hmph!"

She turned and walked into the house.

Li Hongmei was left completely bewildered, standing in place and muttering, "Everything was fine, why did she get angry all of a sudden?"

...

The room was full of people, mostly high school classmates, along with some from other classes. Jiang Menghan was the school beauty, had good grades, and was a member of the student council; she had a wide social circle.

After Li Shuo went inside, he didn't interact with anyone else. These high school classmates, no matter how well they did in the future, would only ever be limited to the county or city level. To him, they were people of no value.

After all, a reborn person doesn't need to rack their brains to curry favor with anyone for the sake of 10 years later. Because in 10 years, the combined achievements of everyone here might not even equal his own.

Li Shuo was here to wait for an "opportunity," so he chose a vacant corner and slipped into it.

Just then, Jiang Menghan walked in with Jiang Hai. She looked around, pulled Kang Tao over, and asked, "Where’s Li Shuo? Didn't he come in?"

Kang Tao was a bit annoyed and, for once, dared to retort in front of his goddess: "Why ask about him?"

"Nothing."

Jiang Menghan felt a bit disappointed. She really wanted to ask Li Shuo, *Why did you suddenly stop liking me?*

But the foundation of a goddess who had been simped over for so long remained. She quickly adjusted her mindset and said to the short, chubby boy beside her: "Jiang Hai, sit wherever you like. Look, those are people from our class..."

The birthday banquet was held at a hotel. At this moment, most people were standing together discussing the college entrance exam. Only Kang Tao, because of Jiang Menghan’s words, was restless, grabbing people and asking, "Have you seen Li Shuo?"

Jiang Menghan’s home was large, but it was still just a commercial apartment. Soon, Li Shuo was found by Kang Tao.

Seeing the second-biggest simp coming for him, Li Shuo cursed his bad luck. After thinking for a moment, he decided to strike first. He walked up, grabbed Kang Tao, and headed outside

"Come out with me for a bit."

It would be easier to hear what was happening next door from outside anyway. Besides, in his past life, it was Kang Tao who first discovered the "thief" next door and chose to call the police. Because of that, the police eventually seized a large sum of illicit money next door, along with evidence for a major case they were investigating.

Afterward, Kang Tao performed a great service and received a certificate of honor and a bonus from the police station!

The major case the police were investigating had far-reaching implications; Li Shuo called it the "Corrupt Official Case."

Li Shuo’s cousin, Li Haoran, had met a powerful benefactor through the "Corrupt Official Case" and, with that benefactor's support, had soared to become a big shot famous throughout the entire Su Province.

But among relatives, there are those you get along with and those you don't. The uncle’s family that Li Haoran came from happened to have the worst relationship with Li Shuo’s family.

The relationship soured when Li Shuo’s parents divorced. Back then, Li Shuo had shrunk behind his father, going to his uncle’s house to borrow money. His uncle didn't show his face, and Li Haoran stood at the door and said directly to his father, "Third Uncle, you couldn't even keep your own wife; can we really expect you to pay us back in the future?"

Li Shuo still couldn't forget those cold, cruel words.

Reborn into this life, if Li Shuo looked at it from a bystander's perspective, he felt Li Haoran wasn't actually wrong. But to prevent his cousin from developing an "arrogant and superior" attitude in the future, Li Shuo decided to take this opportunity to cut off the foundation of his cousin's rise!

Once outside, he saw the baseball cap still standing on the side of the second-floor stairs. Li Shuo’s footsteps paused

Although she was wearing a mask, he could still recognize her. She was that very benefactor, his cousin’s future wife, Shao Yiying, the daughter of the county’s former richest man. In the future, she would become the richest woman and the greatest beauty in Su Province.

His cousin’s wife had left an impression on Li Shuo as noble and cold, making the entire Li family both fearful and respectful.

But her future was not a happy one. At the peak of his power, Li Haoran had been unfaithful and reckless, planting the seeds of disaster. He eventually ended up in prison, and his wife was implicated, her influence crumbling overnight. She fled abroad, and the two didn't even leave behind any children.

Thinking of this, Li Shuo’s heart stirred. In his past life, when he returned to his hometown, his grandmother had told him that Li Haoran seemed to have overindulged in wine and women and had become impotent. She had even told him to get married quickly and have a son to adopt out to Li Haoran.

*Cousin, it’s not that I want to take revenge on you; it’s that your actions were truly too excessive. You had such a good wife and didn't cherish her, instead going out to fool around, even bringing disaster home and harming a good woman...*

*I’m different. I’m a reborn person, and I will definitely cherish her properly...*