Su Qingzhi spoke with a self-righteous tone.

"Whoever pays for the cooking has to follow their instructions."

"Smack!"

A loud slam rang out as Zhu Xiuqin slammed her chopsticks heavily on the table, glaring angrily at Su Qingzhi and shouting, "You've gone too far! You're a sister-in-law, how can you treat your brother like this?"

Su Qingzhi smiled slightly, but did not back down. Instead, she asked a question in return.

"If you ask me, he doesn't even feel like I'm his sister-in-law anymore, so how dare he come to eat the food I cook?"

"Don't cause me any trouble here!"

Zhu Xiuqin suddenly stood up, picked up the plate of freshly stir-fried mushrooms and meat with one hand, and rudely poured it all into Shen Zhiyu's bowl.

"Eat up, eat up! Mom's here today, who can stop you from eating meat? I think this family's gone too far!"

"mom."

Shen Cunpu held her hand tightly and explained, "Qingzhi didn't mean to stop him from eating, she just felt wronged and thought he didn't treat her like family."

"How could I have given birth to such an ignorant son!"

Zhu Xiuqin was so angry that her face turned red and her lips trembled.

"I raised you brothers and sisters to adulthood, and now you're helping outsiders to turn against your own brother and your own mother!"

"I'm not taking sides with anyone."

Shen Cunpu gazed at her calmly.

"I just want to make things clear. Qingzhi wasn't deliberately making things difficult for us. She was actually thinking of all of us and just hoped that Zhiyu would learn to respect her."

"Besides, let me repeat myself, Qingzhi is not an outsider, she is my wife."

"Second brother, you shouldn't be unaware of the most basic principles of being a decent human being, right?"

Upon hearing this, Shen Mingyu and Shen Xingxing, who had been sitting silently to the side, immediately chimed in, "That's right, that's right! Second Brother really has no manners at all! Eldest Brother is absolutely right!"

The atmosphere became subtle in an instant, and everyone looked at Shen Zhiyu.

He suddenly felt embarrassed.

"Sister-in-law, you've worked hard today."

As soon as she finished speaking, Su Qingzhi smiled gently and said generously, "That's right. We're all family, and everyone's hungry, so let's eat."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Shen Zhiyu, beaming with joy, picked up his chopsticks, grabbed a fragrant piece of meat, and shoved it into his mouth.

The aroma filled the air, and he squinted his eyes, looking completely captivated.

Before he could even swallow the meat completely...

He couldn't wait any longer and scooped up a big spoonful of rice and ate several mouthfuls.

He was eating so contentedly.

Zhu Xiuqin, who had been somewhat unhappy, finally let out a snort.

However, her gaze soon swept over Su Qingzhi, who had just sat down beside her.

“Eldest daughter-in-law, now that you’ve married into our family, you should take on this responsibility and take better care of your brothers-in-law.”

“You are the eldest son’s wife, so your money is our family’s money too. Don’t just think about using it for yourself; when you have time, help your second brother sew a new dress.”

"Oh, right."

She seemed to suddenly remember something and continued speaking.

"Also, Mingyu and Xingxing will be starting school soon, right? We can't delay paying their tuition fees."

As Zhu Xiuqin spoke, she straightened her back.

Upon hearing this, Su Qingzhi felt a surge of emotion and almost burst out laughing.

Look at what she's saying! She's actually eyeing her dowry.

Zhu Xiuqin's words were a bit too much; how could she possibly say such a thing?

They say they're family and want to help keep it safe, but what's the reality?

It's obvious they're after their own money!

Who would believe her story?

Besides, you only feel secure when you have money in your own hands.

She must be out of her mind to willingly hand over that money!

"Mom is doing this for your own good, don't mistake her kindness for malice!"

"Qingzhi, can't you understand my good intentions?"

"If you're obedient, just do as I say. Would I ever harm you?"

She spoke with righteous indignation and stern words.

After dinner, Su Qingzhi slowly put down her chopsticks.

"Mom, tell me, do you think what I'm saying makes sense? My second brother has a proper job now and gets a monthly salary. Buying a new set of clothes shouldn't be a problem for him, right?"

Zhu Xiuqin's face immediately fell, and she frowned, saying, "His salary is meant to be saved for his future marriage; how can he just waste it like this?"

She became more and more agitated as she spoke.

"Eldest daughter-in-law, how can you be so stingy!"

"Sister-in-law, you're really stingy. You won't even prepare a new set of clothes for Second Uncle. Isn't this a disgrace to the Shen family?"

In response to Zhu Xiuqin's words, Su Qingzhi simply smiled faintly.

"Mom, I remember you used to say that we should be frugal in life, right? Now you're saying I'm stingy. What's going on?"

She then added, "Besides, there are so many people in the family who need to be fed. If I don't spend money sparingly, that tiny dowry probably won't last long."

The money from the dowry was used to support the household.

Where can you just take it to buy clothes for someone else?

Su Qingzhi then went on to state her position.

"And don't expect me to come up with any extra expenses. I have other plans for my family's money. I need to save some for my son, Chuanpu, to recuperate. Otherwise, if he falls ill and collapses, there will be no one to support the family."

Her words were reasonable, but they thoroughly enraged Zhu Xiuqin.

"So you're unwilling to pay this money, right? And you're still making excuses and stalling in front of me?"

Zhu Xiuqin finally couldn't help but question him, her eyes staring straight at him, her hands unabashedly on her hips.

Su Qingzhi, however, remained calm and fearless, and gave a crisp and decisive answer.

"Yes, that's right, we won't pay that money. That's exactly it."

She suddenly pushed the chair behind her away.

The chair crashed to the ground with a loud bang, the sound echoing through the room.

Immediately afterwards, she plopped down on the ground, slapped her thighs with both hands, and started wailing at the top of her lungs, tears and snot flying everywhere.

"Good heavens! Other families marry wives to be dutiful to their elders and good at managing the household; but what about mine? She's not a wife at all! She's a shrew! She's a fierce demon, and she brought no joy into the family, but rather brought disaster upon us!"

"Neighbors, come and see, come and judge! My daughter-in-law, she hasn't even warmed the kang (heated brick bed) yet, and she's already trying to drive me, her mother-in-law, to my grave!"

She cried out and wiped her tears with her sleeve, her voice growing increasingly mournful.

"What sins did I commit in my past life to bring such a jinx into my family! Is there no justice in this world? My brother-in-law is out there braving the wind and rain, and she doesn't care about him at all. She doesn't care about our family at all!"

"Heavens, open your eyes and see! Quickly strike down lightning and thunder, strike that unfilial and disrespectful little witch to death!"

The main hall fell silent for a moment.