Chapter 362: Chapter 359: Arrangements for the 3 Young Ones
"Xiao Juan, what’s with that look? How could a silly girl like Little Miao’er have any talent for this? Making her work in the system is like throwing a naive rabbit straight to a pack of wolves," Li Bao said helplessly to his wife. ’My own little sister... she’s just a bit clever, that’s all. Her, working in the system...’
After glancing at his brother and sister-in-law, Li Guo looked at his parents, who were still in a daze, then at his little sister, who was feigning innocence with her head down. He exchanged a look with Li He, cleared his throat, and said slowly, "Brother, I think you have some misconceptions about our little sister. She was helping Mom and Sister-in-law trick people when she was just five or six. How could you possibly think she’s silly? According to Sister-in-law, none of the five of us siblings from the third branch are fools, but Little Sister got all the cunning."
"So, Brother, where did you get the idea that our little sister is silly? Even Sister-in-law knows she’s a clever little imp. Brother, who’s the real fool here, you or her?" Li He said with a helpless look at Li Bao, after glancing at Li Guo and her sister-in-law, Wang Xiaojuan.
Slowly turning to look at Li Miao, who was playing possum with her head down, Li Bao took a deep breath. "Alright, Little Miao’er, come on. Tell your big brother. What have you been hiding from me all these years? And just how many times have you tricked me?"
Seeing a drama of sibling conflict about to unfold, Third Brother Li and Aunt Li finally snapped out of their stupor. With an indescribable expression, they looked at their eldest son and youngest daughter. Third Brother Li let out a long sigh and asked his little girl worriedly, "Daughter, tell Dad what’s going on."
"Hey, what’s with all these looks? I just learned a little more than you guys, that’s all. Besides, other than our eldest sister, who here hasn’t read all sorts of books? Eldest Brother and Eldest Sister-in-law only made the three of us youngest ones learn this stuff because they saw you all didn’t have the talent for it. If any of you older siblings had even a little bit of potential... would the three of us have to work this hard?" Li Miao retorted irritably, looking at the varied expressions on her parents’ and siblings’ faces.
Li He glanced at her younger sister, a glint flashing in her eyes. She smiled and said, "Little Miao’er, come on, tell your big sister. If us older siblings had ’a little bit of’ what? Say it out loud, so we can try to change!"
"Second Sister, don’t try to scare me. It’s the truth! If you guys were capable, the three of us youngsters wouldn’t have to work so hard! Second Sister, do you have any idea? I’m a high school student! Outside of my regular homework, I don’t have a single moment of free time!" Li Miao shot back without hesitation, facing her sister’s malicious smile head-on.
’Yes, she didn’t dislike this stuff—you could even say she enjoyed it—but she was just a teenage girl. She wanted to play and have fun, too. But the lessons arranged by Eldest Brother and Eldest Sister-in-law took up basically all of her time. A teenage girl like her, Li Miao, so busy she didn’t have a single free moment? Who would even believe that!’
Thinking about how strict their Eldest Brother and Sister-in-law were with their own son and daughter, and then recalling how they had tried to train them in the past, the three siblings—Li Bao, Li Guo, and Li He—all shivered. ’They really didn’t have the talent for it. It was better to leave it to their talented younger siblings!’
"Dad, you don’t have to worry. The Li family has a weak foundation, right? Now that our circumstances have improved, Eldest Brother and Eldest Sister-in-law thought that if any of the siblings had the talent to work in the system, they should be properly cultivated. You know them, Dad—they either don’t do something, or they do it perfectly. So they’ve started the training now. We older siblings were a disappointment and didn’t have the aptitude, but some of the younger ones do. Eldest Brother and Eldest Sister-in-law are planning to train Little Miao’er, Xiao Wu, and Xiao Bo!" Li Bao explained gently to his still-confused father.
Pointing at Li Miao, Third Brother Li asked in disbelief, "You’re saying, your Eldest Brother and Sister-in-law see potential in Little Miao’er?"
"I guess so!" Li Bao wiped his face and said to Li Miao, "Explain it clearly to Dad yourself!"
With a small smile, Li Miao said softly, "Dad, I don’t mind it. According to Eldest Brother, I’m a bit better than Xiao Wu and about the same as Xiao Bo. Eldest Sister-in-law also said there’s no rush for now. They’ll wait until I get to university and then tailor my training to my specific abilities. Don’t worry, it’s not like Eldest Brother and Sister-in-law would ever harm me!"
"That’s not what I mean. But you’re a girl... are you sure you can handle it?" Aunt Li asked, a little trepidatiously.
Glancing at her mother, Li Miao said calmly, "Why couldn’t I? Given how fiercely protective Eldest Brother and Eldest Sister-in-law are, if there were any real risk, do you think they’d let me and Xiao Wu study this?"
"Dad, Mom, you don’t need to worry. Eldest Brother and Sister-in-law have likely arranged everything. Aside from the sisters who are already married, the rest of the siblings are all going to the Capital City. For our third branch, my older brother is following Eldest Brother into the business world and can already stand on his own. My second sister is also confirmed to join Eldest Sister-in-law’s company after graduation. On First Uncle’s side, Sister Cui will teach after graduating, just like Eldest Sister-in-law. So that confirms Second Sister will be in cultural media and Sister Cui will be in education. As for me, Eldest Brother and Sister-in-law have decided that I’ll be taking the research path!"
Glancing at Li Miao, Li Guo continued, "So for these three little ones, Eldest Brother is having them work in the system. To put it bluntly, it’s so they can be a protective umbrella for the Li family, for us. This is to ensure our family can establish a firm foothold in the Capital City in the future. Based on what Little Miao’er said, Eldest Brother and Sister-in-law must have understood the three of them thoroughly before making this decision. In that case, Xiao Bo will be the one they focus all their efforts on training. For Little Miao’er, they probably won’t make her work so hard; she’ll likely be guided toward an academic or a less demanding government role. As for Xiao Wu, her strength is her logical thinking, so that’s her strong suit. She’ll probably end up in diplomacy or commerce!"
Seeing the surprised look on his little sister’s face, Li Guo smiled. "This is likely just the plan for now. The specifics will probably be decided after the three of you start university, based on your individual personalities, interests, and strengths. That’s when the specific training will happen!"
"How did you know all that, Brother?" Li Miao asked curiously. She glanced at Li Guo and added, "Well, I guess it’s normal for you to know. Sister-in-law says you’re one of those rare people with an exceptionally pure and perceptive mind."
Aunt Li checked the time and said gently, "It’s getting late. Everyone go to bed. As long as you all understand that your Eldest Brother and Sister-in-law have your best interests at heart, that’s what matters. Now, go on and get some rest."
After shooing the children away, Third Brother Li looked at his wife in disbelief and asked softly, "Is our eldest nephew really planning to have the little ones become government officials?"
"It’s not as simple as you think. We’re just a couple of farmers who haven’t seen much of the world; we can’t possibly figure out what our eldest nephew and his wife are thinking. But I know this: they are genuinely good to their younger cousins. It’s normal for them to plan for their futures so far in advance. Let’s just make sure we don’t get in their way. Look at our own older son, and then at Xiao Guo and Xiao He—our nephew has arranged everything for them, and it all sounds wonderful. So our little girl will surely be fine. Now, let’s get some sleep."