Lin Xiaoxiao still felt uneasy. She couldn't be sure how much Cheng Mingyue actually knew about the Lin family, but Cheng Mingyue's current husband was Lin Yutang's cousin—they were from the same village. He surely knew the truth.

If Cheng Mingyue were to notice that Lin Wenbin didn't look quite right, or if she found some other kind of evidence, everything would fall apart.

Seeing how worried his sister was, Lin Wenbin sighed. "You've really got no nerve, have you? Not very much like my sister. Do they have DNA tests now? No. So what are you afraid of? Whatever we say goes. No one can prove otherwise."

What else could Lin Xiaoxiao do? Things had already gone this far. She would take it one step at a time. For now, her priority was to take good care of herself and deliver the babies safely.

When Zhou Xiaohong returned from work and heard that Lin Xiaoxiao might be carrying triplets, she was utterly stunned. She kept glancing strangely at Lin Xiaoxiao's belly, which made Lin Xiaoxiao deeply uncomfortable.

After dinner, they saw Lin Wenbin out, and Lin Xiaoxiao went back to her room to sleep. Subconsciously, she just didn't want to see Zhou Xiaohong.

Cheng Mingyue, too, was restless. Knowing that Lin Xiaoxiao was also in Beijing, living in the same compound—and living even better than before—left her deeply unsettled.

She went to the department store and bought Li Jing an expensive wool coat, along with sneakers and tracksuits for both children. Only then did Li Jing's attitude soften somewhat.

Noticing that Cheng Mingyue had been distracted since returning from the shopping trip the day before, Li Jing asked curiously, "What's going on with you? Did something happen yesterday? Or are you worried about things back home?"

Cheng Mingyue quickly shook her head. "No, no. I was just thinking about something. Isn't my brother off work yet?"

Li Jing shook her head. "Not during the New Year period. He's busier than ever at this time of year. He won't get time off until after the 15th. Your brother has it hard—at his age, without much education, it's difficult to get promoted. And your father refused to pull any strings. If he had helped just a little, your brother could have gone much further."

Cheng Mingyue said nothing. When they were young, her father had always said they would have to make their own way. Later, when she wanted a state-assigned job, he hadn't been willing to help either. Because of that, she held a grudge against both her parents.

Wasn't the point of working hard so that your children could have a better life? If she had her father's connections now, her son wouldn't be struggling to get into school.

Li Jing had plenty of complaints of her own. Her family was ordinary, but the Chengs were better off. She had hoped Cheng Mingzhong might use his connections to get her a stable job, but like his father, he refused to ask for favors.

Although his current position wasn't particularly high-ranking, he still had influence where it counted. Plenty of people came to him for help, but no one ever succeeded.

If he had really wanted to find her a job, she wouldn't be stuck at home as a housemaid.

Li Jing grumbled on, "Your family, I'll tell you—they're so principled they won't help anyone. So if you're hoping your brother can get Dalong into a school, forget it. If he could've managed that, do you think my eldest would have had to join the army?"

Cheng Mingyue stayed silent, but in her heart, she was determined. Since they were here, Lin Dalong was going to get an education—one way or another. Even if he couldn't start right away, he could study in Beijing for a year and retake the college entrance exam.

If it weren't for Lin Xiaoxiao, she might not have been so stubborn. But with Lin Xiaoxiao doing so well, she refused to accept that the child she raised could be worse off than that ungrateful girl.

Unaware of Cheng Mingyue's thoughts, Li Jing assumed she was hoping to stay in Beijing long-term. A few days was one thing, but a whole month? That was too much.

The thought put her in a bad mood again. "If your brother had the status of those families up front—you know, the ones in the villas with chauffeurs—then whether your kids go to school or not wouldn't matter. You could stay as long as you wanted. But look at this cramped place. It's probably smaller than your home in the provincial capital."

Cheng Mingyue knew exactly what Li Jing was hinting at—that they should leave right after New Year's. She changed the subject. "What kind of people live in the villas up front? Very high-ranking officials?"

Li Jing knew all about them, and she couldn't help sounding a little proud. "Some are still active, some are retired. Even the retired ones are generals—a rank your brother will never reach."

Cheng Mingyue thought for a moment. "That family on the left side in the fifth row—do you know them? They seemed pretty nice."

After a moment's recollection, Li Jing said, "Oh, the Zhou family? They're very well-connected.

Old Man Zhou may be retired, but everyone still shows him respect. Many of his former subordinates are in powerful positions now. His sons are all successful—two work at the Foreign Ministry and are often overseas, another is a lecturer at a university here, and his daughter married well and moved to the northeast with her husband."

Cheng Mingyue was shocked. So Zhou Huai'an's biological family was this influential?

Although Li Jing didn't interact much with those families, she loved gossip and was happy to share. "Not long ago, there was quite a drama with one of their sons. Turns out he was switched at birth—like something out of an old legend. The impostor even tried to have the real son killed, but he was caught. The real one has returned now, and I heard he recently came back with his wife."

"Zhou Zhennan and his wife are very well-liked—friendly and kind. His wife especially—after their second son was killed, she hasn't been the same mentally, but she's always sweet to the children in the compound. She carries candy in her pockets to hand out. All the kids adore her."

"Now that they have their real son back, they must treasure him like gold. And that daughter-in-law of theirs is so lucky to have married into such a family. I doubt she'll have any mother-in-law issues. I've never met a couple more good-natured than those two."

Having lived in the compound for many years, Li Jing knew all about everyone's business.

Nearly every family had some kind of issue— conflicts between children, tensions with in-laws, one drama or another. But not the Zhou family. All four of their children were accomplished.

Then she thought of Zhou Xiaohong's marriage. She'd only heard that Zhou Xiaohong had been forced by Hu Yaozong and didn't know about the tensions at home. Still, she felt sorry for her.

"It's just a shame about their daughter's marriage. Such a pity—and she's a university teacher, too."

Cheng Mingyue didn't know what to feel anymore. She never imagined Lin Xiaoxiao would marry so well. Just hearing about the Zhou children's careers was impressive enough.

Li Jing couldn't hide her envy. "Who knows how they managed to get connected with a family like that? If you had ties with them, do you think your Dalong would have any trouble getting into school?"