The Beautiful Stepmother from the Eighties: Marrying a Factory Director to Raise Kids

Chapter 467

He didn't really want to go to the company originally, but now it seemed he had no choice but to go.Zhou Yueshen felt a bit helpless, but he also knew that Si Nian was a food lover, so bringing back wild mushrooms from her hometown wasn't anything strange.

He just didn't expect that Chen Haoran would accidentally eat them.

However, as long as the toxicity wasn't high, it shouldn't be too serious.

Si Nian knew much more about ingredients than he did, and she wouldn't put herself at risk.

So they were definitely edible.

Then the only possible reason for Chen Haoran's poisoning was that they weren't cooked thoroughly.

After talking with Si Nian for a while and telling her not to worry, Zhou Yueshen hurried to the company.

Chen Haoran's condition indeed wasn't serious; he just suffered from vomiting and diarrhea, and recovered after resting in bed for a night.

The very next day, he ran over excitedly to ask if there were any left.

Si Nian asked him, "Aren't you afraid of getting poisoned?"

Chen Haoran stiffened his neck and said, "How can we blame the mushrooms? If anyone is to blame, it's me for not cooking them properly."

Si Nian sighed helplessly and let him go to the kitchen to eat by himself.

Chen Haoran walked out holding a bowl of mushroom noodles, sat naturally on the threshold, spread his legs, and slurped the noodles.

He had absolutely no care for his image anymore.

Who ​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌‌‍knew what he had gone through at her place during this time.

Si Nian then remembered Zhang Xue asking her to borrow money.

She asked Chen Haoran if Zhang Xue had tried to borrow money from him.

After all, given Zhang Xue's situation, the only relatively wealthy people she knew were Si Nian herself and Chen Haoran.

Si Nian was reminding Chen Haoran not to lend money to her.

After all, Zhang Xue was selling fake goods. If something went wrong, Chen Haoran would be dragged into it too.

After hearing this, Chen Haoran also had a complicated expression. "I was wondering why she seemed like a completely different person. She's actually selling those things? Is she that short on money?"

Although there were some students at school trying to do business and find ways to make money right now,

and quite a few were looking for opportunistic shortcuts,

he never would have expected this from Zhang Xue.

He would occasionally bump into her. The current Zhang Xue wore heavy makeup, styled her hair, and dressed herself up to look very mature every day.

She looked completely different from the innocent and green girl he first met.

It was just that Chen Haoran thought it was normal for girls to love beauty, so he didn't pay it much attention.

He didn't expect that not only was she selling goods now, but she was also borrowing money from Si Nian.

"Don't worry, Sis. I basically don't interact with her anymore."

Speaking of which, Chen Haoran felt a bit uncomfortable.

He didn't know who spread the rumor that he was pursuing Zhang Xue. It made everyone nudge him whenever they saw her.

Although he did have a good impression of Zhang Xue at first, he automatically distanced himself after discovering her interacting with other men.

They barely saw each other twice a month, so how could such news be spread?

Did Sis Si Nian think the same way, which was why she specifically reminded him?

"Sis, you don't think I'm the type with more money than sense, do you?"

Si Nian: "If you want to think that way, there's nothing I can do."

Chen Haoran: "?" He knew it!

Despite saying this, Chen Haoran was still a bit worried that Zhang Xue would actually come to borrow money from him.

After all, he was a nice guy who didn't know how to refuse people. If Zhang Xue really used their past connection to borrow money, he would be in trouble.

He didn't like to meddle in other people's business; whatever Zhang Xue did was her own affair.

He also didn't want to advise her, because he was afraid that his well-intentioned advice would make Zhang Xue mistakenly think he was interested in her, which would be troublesome.

To avoid this kind of trouble, Chen Haoran specifically took a few days off.

He claimed he got food poisoning from eating mushrooms and needed a month to recover.

He wasn't exactly lying; he really was poisoned, but he recovered in one night and ate them again the very next day.

Brave Chenchen fears no difficulties.

Zhang Xue indeed went looking for him, only to hear that Chen Haoran was sick and had taken a leave of absence.

And this leave was for a whole month.

She gritted her teeth. Left with no other choice, she could only borrow from a loan shark under the coaxing of her friend.

Loan sharks were rampant in the 1980s. With an imperfect financial system, private loan sharks became the choice of many people.

And college students were one of their major targets.

Especially someone like Zhang Xue, who knew nothing and just blindly rushed forward.

She figured that since the profit from selling face cream was so high, as long as she got a batch of goods, she could pay all the money back.

Hearing that the interest would be much lower through a friend's introduction, she gritted her teeth and followed along.

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, the weather in Jing City grew hot.

Since they were on the first floor, there were simply too many mosquitoes.

Si Nian was a mosquito magnet; even buying mosquito repellent incense was useless.

Seeing that she got several new large mosquito bites on her arms every day, Zhou Yueshen found a pile of mugwort from who knows where, lit it, and fumigated every room in the house.

He didn't even spare the bathroom and the yard.

For this reason, Zhou Yueshen also weeded the yard.

Right now, he was leading the children to pull weeds in the yard.

These weeds grew fast, sprouting wherever there was soil. Also, under the tree, because a light was installed, the mosquitoes underneath would swarm densely every night when the light turned on.

To make matters worse, the weather was hot, and wearing long sleeves was unbearable.

Not to mention Si Nian, the children were bitten terribly.

Only Zhou Yueshen, perhaps due to his thick skin, was completely unaffected.

As soon as Chen Haoran came in and saw the family weeding to repel mosquitoes, he immediately and enthusiastically came over to help.

The Zhou household had now become his second home. Using the favor of having helped Si Nian take care of the children before, he came over to mooch meals every few days.

He didn't feel embarrassed about it at all.

Seeing Si Nian spraying mosquito repellent on the children, he leaned in as well, "Sis, spray some on me too."

Si Nian rolled her eyes at him. "Do you think you're a child? Spray it yourself."

After saying that, she tossed him a bottle, telling him not to slack off and hurry up to help.

Chen Haoran didn't get angry and helped clear the weeds in the yard.

Seeing that Zhou Yueshen had no intention of leaving, he felt it wasn't appropriate to stay too long.

He didn't know why, but even though this Uncle Zhou looked so young, standing in front of him brought a pressure even greater than facing his own old man.

So he usually came over when Zhou Yueshen wasn't home.

It just so happened that Zhou Yueshen was basically busy during the day.

He didn't expect to run into him by coincidence today, which made him feel a bit too embarrassed to mooch a meal.

After thinking it over, he found a way out for himself.

"Little Han, let's go, I'll take you bike riding."

Zhou Zehan immediately said happily, "Okay!"

Only after he spoke did he realize that both his mom and dad were there. In the past, when he went bike riding with brother Chen Haoran, his parents hadn't been home.

He subconsciously looked at Si Nian's expression, gazing at her: "Mom, can I go?"

Figuring there was nothing much going on at home anyway, Si Nian nodded in agreement. "Go ahead. Come back before dark, and don't play for too long, understood?"

Second Child immediately nodded, then asked Zhou Zedong and his sister, "Brother, do you want to go? Sister, do you want to go?"

Zhou Zedong shook his head and refused, "No."

"If Big Brother isn't going, Yaoyao isn't going either. Yaoyao wants to keep Mom company."

Because Yaoyao had been separated from Si Nian for a while, she was very clingy to Si Nian these days and insisted on sleeping with her at night.

Si Nian's heart ached for the little girl, so she placed her in the middle of the bed every day.

Yaoyao was so tiny and had gotten a bit chubbier; she was soft and squishy, making her very comfortable to hug.

Si Nian gently touched the little dumpling's head and said, "Yaoyao won't go, or she'll catch a cold from the wind later."

Second Child was a little disappointed, but the thought of riding a motorcycle made him happy again.

He left with Chen Haoran immediately.

Chen Haoran hoisted the little guy onto the motorcycle and drove out to cruise the streets.

The big one and the small one lost track of time while playing. By the time they realized it, it was almost dark.

Moreover, Chen Haoran had forgotten to get gas. He also hadn't expected Zhou Yueshen to be home this time, which led to the two of them running out of gas halfway and having to push the bike home.

They were as miserable on the way back as they had been happy on the way out.

Just as they reached the alley, they were blocked by several fierce-looking men.

These people were even holding sticks.

They looked like they were looking for trouble.

Both of them stopped in their tracks in unison. They looked left and right, and after confirming there was no one else around, their expressions changed.

"Brother Chen Haoran, did you offend someone?"

Chen Haoran was also trying hard to think, did he offend someone?

But other than being a bit of a delinquent in high school, he rarely got into fights after starting college.

Besides, this group of people looked completely unfamiliar.

He was a bit unsure at the moment.

But now wasn't the time to think about this. With so many people, even though he knew how to fight, he had a little guy with him.

Having to protect Second Child while dealing with so many people, he really had no confidence.

He took two steps back, shielding Second Child behind him.

He said seriously, "Little Han, there's another way out if you turn right at the back. Run, quickly."

After speaking, he heard no response. Thinking Second Child was unwilling to leave, he added, "Don't worry, I'll be fine. I used to be a tyrant at school..."

He felt a bit touched. "Although I'm very happy that you want to stay with me, I don't want anything to happen to you..."

After saying this, he was moved by his own words and turned his head to tell the boy to hurry up and leave.

A gust of wind blew past...

There was no one behind him.

Chen Haoran: "? Where is he?"

Behind the corner of a wall not far away, Second Child poked his little head out, clenching his fists to cheer him on. "Brother Chen Haoran, I'm going to find the police uncle first. Hang in there!!"

After saying that, he ran away without a trace.

"Go after that kid," one of the men over there suddenly spoke.

Chen Haoran couldn't care less about his twitching mouth and hurriedly blocked them. "Hey, what do you want to do? You won't even let a kid off? Don't go too far. If you have a problem, come at me!"

The men exchanged glances, their faces gloomy. "We aren't here to look for trouble either, but if you call the police, we won't be polite."

"What do you mean? Who exactly are you?" Chen Haoran frowned.

"I shouldn't have offended you guys, right?"

"You didn't offend us, but your chick did. She borrowed a thousand yuan from Brother Qiang, and now with interest, she owes us ten thousand. But she's hiding in the school and won't come out. We can't find her, and we heard her boyfriend's family is rich and runs a company, so we came to find you..."

"If you don't pay this money back, don't blame us for forcing you to pay."

Chen Haoran's face sank. "What boyfriend? How come I don't know when I got a girlfriend?"

Thinking of something, his expression suddenly changed. He said coldly, "Are you talking about Zhang Xue? I'm not dating her. You've got the wrong person!"

The men exchanged glances, thinking he was lying because he didn't want to help pay back the money. Disdain flashed in their eyes as they said, "Do you think we're stupid? Zhang Xue's friends all said you have a good relationship with her. Just the bike you're pushing is worth more than ten thousand, right? If you cooperate and mortgage this bike to us, we'll let this matter go. Otherwise..."

A fierce light flashed in their eyes.

Chen Haoran's face darkened. This bike was a motorcycle his dad ordered from abroad for his eighteenth birthday. Let alone ten thousand, you might not even be able to buy it for a hundred thousand.

These people really dared to dream!

"You're ugly, but you dream beautifully. I already said I have nothing to do with Zhang Xue. Why the hell should I help her pay back the money!"

A wave of impatience appeared on Chen Haoran's face.

He had worried that Zhang Xue would ask him to borrow money, but he didn't expect that although she didn't borrow from him, she borrowed from loan sharks.

She was truly crazy!

She was someone who got into a prestigious university after all. How could she do something so stupid?

"Since you won't cooperate, don't blame us for forcing you to cooperate."

The men exchanged glances and stepped forward to rob him.

This was an alley, and it was getting a bit dark now, so there was hardly anyone walking by.

These people dared to be loan sharks, so naturally, they were extremely audacious.

They came over holding their sticks.

They weren't fools either. They could tell at a glance that Chen Haoran's motorcycle was expensive. Since it was hard to get the money back from Zhang Xue, they might as well take this bike as collateral.

Even if she didn't pay it back later, they wouldn't lose out.

Although Chen Haoran was decent at fighting, two fists ultimately couldn't match four hands. Plus, the other side had weapons, so he was soon injured.

Seeing his beloved little motorcycle about to be snatched away, Chen Haoran's eyes turned red.

He cursed, "Fuck!"

The other party was just about to get on the bike and ride away, looking quite happy. "I've never ridden such a nice bike before!"

"Look quickly, it has gold trim. Could this be real gold?"

"Fuck, who exactly is this kid to be so rich?"

"Who cares who he is? Hurry up and drive away. Don't linger."

The guy examined it for a long time before realizing it was out of gas.

He cursed, "No wonder it wouldn't start. It's out of gas."

"Bro, his clothes seem to be some kind of LV, you know, that foreign luxury brand? It's super expensive. I like it."

Someone else eyed the clothes on Chen Haoran's body, then noticed the watch on his wrist, which clearly looked valuable. They immediately became jealous.

They stepped forward to snatch it.

Chen Haoran was furious, but having taken a few heavy blows with the sticks, he was dizzy and could barely stand.

At this moment, he could only watch helplessly as they robbed him of both his bike and his clothes. Right now, he really wished he could tear Zhang Xue into pieces.

Just as he was feeling utterly aggrieved, a crisp, childish voice came from behind.

"Dad, it's right there. That's where Brother Chen Haoran was cornered."

Zhou Yueshen was just about to leave the house when he was pulled over by his son, who had sprinted all the way home.

Second Child originally intended to find a police uncle, but after running out, he realized the police station wasn't as close as his own home.

Remembering that his dad was home today, he hurried back to find him.

His dad was amazing; no one in the village ever dared to fight him.

The bad uncle who had harassed his mom before was beaten up terribly by his dad.

Now coming back and seeing Chen Haoran lying on the ground like a dead dog, his clothes half stripped and his body bloody and miserable, he was terrified.

He hurriedly ran over. "Brother Chen Haoran! You bad guys, you're not allowed to hit Brother Chen Haoran."

Chen Haoran felt so incredibly touched, his eyes brimming with hot tears, but worrying that the child might get hurt by coming over, he immediately shouted loudly, "Little Han, don't come over. It's dangerous here."

Second Child ran so fast that he reached them before he could even finish his sentence. Before he even had the chance to bend down and help him up, he was suddenly hoisted into the air.

"Oh? You little brat actually dared to bring someone back with you?"

The man looked at Second Child with a hint of amusement.

Second Child kicked his little legs in the air, staring wide-eyed right back at the man.

"Bad guy, let me go, or I will beat you up!"

"Hahaha!" The man burst into roaring laughter, completely amused.

"Did you guys hear that? He says he is going to beat me up. Come on, come on, hit me, I will let you hit me..."

The man leaned his face in provocatively.

The crowd of men around them joined in the laughter.

Before their laughter could even fade, Second Child threw a punch right into the face leaning toward him.

Thump—a heavy, muffled sound rang out.