Chapter 168: Chapter 168

Gong Dajiang quickly walked away after breakfast, not having the time to scold Zhang Lan on how inefficient her work was.

Zhang Lan was also preoccupied and didn’t notice Gong Dajiang’s dissatisfaction with her at all.

Zhang Lan sorted through what she brought, realizing there was nothing suitable to give to Zhan Jing, and besides, she wasn’t really keen on gifting.

If Zhan Jing didn’t help her at all, then wouldn’t the gift be given for nothing?

Reluctantly, Zhang Lan slowly walked to the side of the new house and heard Zhao Guangran and Gong Ruini arguing again. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ novel⦿fire.net

"I’m the real brother, my brothers only listen to me."

"Yes, you’re the real brother." Here we go again, Gong Ruini really admired Zhao Guangran’s unusually thick skin, "Then you can recite the Tang Shu for the brothers in a bit."

Since he’s showing off as the real brother, he may well complete the task Aunt Zhan gave.

"Aren’t you smart? You recite it then."

"Smart my foot, I’m stupid, I can’t, hmph, Brother Xu Ran can recite it, why can’t you?" Gong Ruini declared she definitely wouldn’t recite it.

The Tang Shu isn’t hard, but it gets harder towards the end, so it’s best to give up early on.

However, this rule doesn’t apply to Zhao Guangran, as he had the genes for studying Chinese medicine and was Aunt Zhan’s son.

Moreover, since Zhao Xuran can recite it effortlessly, Gong Ruini felt it shouldn’t be hard for Zhao Guangran either.

Comparing him with his big brother? Some might not like being compared to their siblings, but not Zhao Guangran. In his eyes, his big brother was all sorts of wonderful.

"Of course, he’s my big brother." Zhao Guangran wore a proud look at having such a smart brother.

"If I’m so smart, there’s no reason for my big brother not to be smart."

"Yes, Brother Xu Ran is smart, but you, I really can’t see where you’re smart." Gong Ruini looked at Zhao Guangran, who always wanted to prove himself, and thought compared to your big brother, you’re way behind.

If the two children in Aunt Zhan’s belly turn out to be all sorts of smart, one must wonder whether Zhao Guangran would feel balanced.

The reason is Zhao Guangran suggested that if big brother Zhao Xuran is smarter than him, he should be smarter than the younger brothers.

This theory still needs verification, but Gong Ruini wanted to say that besides smartness, at least Zhao Guangran’s thick skin was probably the most impressive among the brothers.

Gong Ruini’s disdainful look made Zhao Guangran dissatisfied, so he argued fiercely back.

Zhan Jing and the others were used to Gong Ruini and Zhao Guangran needing to argue every day; otherwise, they feel like something essential is missing.

Especially since even after their fights, Gong Ruini and Zhao Guangran could still get along well afterwards and even team up against Zhang Lan, everyone just thought of it as their way of bonding.

Gong Tao was a bit tense, worrying that his daughter might fancy Zhao Guangran if she wasn’t careful, but he was relieved after realizing his daughter found Zhao Guangran juvenile.

Others saw it as normal, but it didn’t sound the same to Zhang Lan’s ears.

Zhang Lan was looking for anything to create a rift between the Gong Family and Zhao Family, and this seemed perfect.

Zhang Lan remembered that Zhao Guangran was the youngest son of the Zhao Family and noticed Zhao Gang getting along well with him, indicating he was likely treasured by the Zhao Family.

"Ni Zi, is this how you talk about your brother?"

"As a sister, can you say Guangran isn’t smart?" Zhang Lan walked in with a face showing that her child spoke out of turn.

Zhan Jing was puzzled, wondering what was going on and why Zhang Lan showed up and said these things.

Gong Ruini rolled her eyes, unable to understand what Zhang Lan was thinking. Knowing Zhan Jing was here and still speaking like that, was she hoping Zhan Jing would dislike her?

If Zhan Jing truly had issues, she would have voiced complaints long ago and wouldn’t have given Zhang Lan a chance.

To show her kindness, Zhang Lan specifically walked to Zhao Guangran’s side, "Guangran, I know you’re a smart kid. Actually, Ni Zi is the most foolish one."

To prove she wasn’t wrong, Zhang Lan even recounted some of Gong Ruini’s past blunders.

Zhao Guangran was a bit annoyed by Zhang Lan patting his head, but he found hearing about Gong Ruini’s childish mistakes valuable.

Is this true? Gong Ruini didn’t remember any of it, and even if the original owner were here, they wouldn’t remember either, "Children can’t be judged by adult standards, right?"

Children, must they really meet adult standards? But why was Zhang Lan suddenly praising Zhao Guangran , was it to belittle her?

Gong Ruini thought it was unlikely, and Zhang Lan couldn’t be that silly, surely.

Then Zhang Lan turned her criticism towards Cai Meina, "What kind of mother are you not to scold Gong Ruini for speaking about Guangran like that?"

Zhang Lan called her granddaughter by full name, but dropped the Zhao when addressing Zhao Guangran. Anyone would think she was Zhao Guangran’s grandmother, with her mind already floating to the Atlantic Ocean.

"Where am I a bad mother? I’m better than some biased mothers." Cai Meina didn’t feel there was anything wrong with how she raised her children.

No matter who criticized her, it wouldn’t be Zhang Lan’s place, "I think Ni Zi’s way is good, it can improve her thinking skills."

Thinking skills? Zhang Lan didn’t think Gong Ruini’s pea brain could be trained into a genius, "No matter how much they grow, they’ll still be a fool, better off marrying a country bumpkin."

"Look at how smart Guangran is."

"You can tell he’s a smart, promising child." Zhang Lan showered Zhao Guangran with compliments.

Everyone, including Zhao Guangran himself, found Zhang Lan’s words dizzying.

Zhan Jing’s face darkened, as praising Guangran that much surely had some ulterior motive.

Though he liked compliments, Zhao Guangran wasn’t brainless, especially when Zhang Lan was the one praising; it felt utterly disgusting.

"Didn’t you say before that my fate was to be a farmer, only ever farming for a living?"

Zhao Guangran wore a bewildered expression, looking as if he couldn’t understand why she said that, with a naiveté that was hard to fake.

Seeing Zhao Guangran’s expression, Gong Ruini couldn’t help but want to laugh. Did Zhang Lan really think Zhao Guangran was that naïve?

Did she really think only Gong Xiaoyu was the smart one?

They weren’t even in the same league, and Zhang Lan’s expression was as awkward as could be.

Zhang Lan felt an urge to give Zhao Guangran a good slap; to refute an elder’s compliment was truly poorly mannered. Such a child had no future, in her eyes.

Though feeling livid inside, Zhang Lan could only swallow her pride. She was the one who started this, but why Zhao Guangran said that, Zhang Lan truly didn’t understand.

How could a simpleton, who a fool like Gong Ruini could overpower, be so smart? Was he holding onto a grudge from her previous words and now seizing the chance to retaliate?