Shen Cunpu interrupted him before he could finish speaking.

"Brother...that's not what I meant."

Shen Zhiyu offered a flustered explanation.

"Is it to get a wife?"

Shen Cunpu's gaze was cold as he spoke again.

"I did have that idea... but I didn't really intend to..."

Shen Zhiyu bit his lip, his face turning pale and then red, and his voice gradually lowered.

Shen Cunpu's questioning made him breathless, and he didn't dare to utter a single word.

Shen Zhiyu was never afraid of his older brother, and he never even took the frail and sickly Shen Cunpu seriously.

Ever since Su Qingzhi married into the Shen family, Shen Cunpu seems to have completely changed.

Not only did his complexion become rosy, but his overall spirit also changed, and his body became stronger day by day.

That invisible yet oppressive aura made the usually proud and arrogant Shen Zhiyu feel fear for the first time.

Shen Cunpu stared at him coldly, his gaze as sharp as ice.

"You can certainly want to start a family, but don't even think about getting money from your sister-in-law."

“Your mother is the head of our family, and we have no objection to you spending money to talk to her. But if you’re going to try anything funny and make a move on your sister-in-law, don’t blame me for not showing any brotherly affection!”

The entire courtyard fell into a deathly silence.

Shen Zhiyu stared intently at his elder brother's clenched hand, veins bulging, and images from his childhood involuntarily surfaced in his mind.

Shen Cunpu also taught him a lesson in the same way, making him cry and beg for mercy.

But back then, it was just a sickly older brother disciplining his ignorant younger brother.

Now, however, he felt unprecedented pressure and terror!

A chill rose from the bottom of my heart and crept up my spine.

His legs went weak, and after swaying a couple of times, Shen Zhiyu collapsed to the ground.

"Remember, from today onwards, don't even think about touching your sister-in-law's hair."

After saying this, Shen Cunpu's gaze turned icy as he took Su Qingzhi's hand.

The two walked into the house without looking back.

The door slammed shut.

Shen Zhiyu gritted his teeth and returned to his room.

He was determined to marry Liu Yuelan, and no amount of persuasion could change his mind!

My family said they don't have the money to hold a wedding.

But he knew that even if his family didn't give him money, he could find a way to earn it himself!

He walked a few steps to the old wardrobe with its peeling paint in the corner, squatted down, and carefully opened the heavy wooden door.

Then take out a round, flat tin box from the bottom.

The lid made a dull "click" when it was opened.

The box contained a neat stack of banknotes, which looked clean and without any creases.

The largest denomination is five yuan, but there are also a few two-yuan and one-yuan notes; they are almost all small denomination notes.

But no matter how old the bills were or how small the denominations were, he pressed them all flat and neat, folding the four sides into right angles, just like the neat blankets in the army.

This isn't something you just leave lying around doing.

This is all the wealth he has secretly accumulated, little by little!

He sat on the bed, bent down and counted the bills one by one, muttering to himself.

"Seventy-three, seventy-four, seventy-five cents..."

After counting the last banknote, he let out a long sigh.

His fixed monthly salary is 25 yuan.

Life wasn't easy, especially since I had to send twenty yuan home.

That twenty yuan was a must-payment, and my mother waited for it without fail, as there were many children in the family and the expenses were high.

But he could only secretly keep five yuan for himself, saving every penny, one bill at a time, earning every cent.

It took years of hard work to accumulate this little bit of savings.

But the betrothal gift is two thousand yuan!

That's no small amount; his money is far, far away from the two thousand yuan shortfall!

With a determined effort, he stuffed all the money in the box into his pocket.

He walked out of the house, dejected, toward the supply and marketing cooperative, with only one thought in his mind.

He couldn't marry Liu Yuelan if he couldn't raise two thousand yuan.

He didn't want to miss Liu Yuelan, and it wasn't just because of love.

It's the key to whether he can make a name for himself in this life!

If he doesn't become the son-in-law of the Liu family, he will forever remain an ordinary member of the production team, with no hope of advancement.

Shen Zhiyu listlessly dusted the counter of the supply and marketing cooperative with a feather duster.

He was in such a bad mood that he couldn't pay attention to the details of his work and just mechanically completed his daily routine.

If the rules weren't so strict, you wouldn't even be allowed to move things from the counter without permission.

He really wanted to secretly take the scarce goods he had on hand out and sell them to make some money!

Just then, a figure walked in through the door.

Shen Zhiyu almost subconsciously raised his head, and his eyes lit up immediately when he saw that figure.

He recognized her almost immediately and excitedly blurted out, "Yuelan?"

Liu Yuelan was wearing a long dress.

She was wearing a pair of small black leather shoes.

Her two braids were combed until they were shiny and glossy.

"Yuelan, what a special day it is today that you came all this way to see me."

He gently put down the duster in his hand, and a smile he couldn't hide appeared on his face.

Liu Yuelan's cheeks flushed slightly.

She lowered her head and said in a voice that was neither too loud nor too soft, "Stop being so glib, I don't have time for that. I'm here to buy soy sauce."

Although that's what she said, she actually had some feelings for Shen Zhiyu.

She knew in her heart that Shen Zhiyu had a proper appearance.

He wasn't exactly the most handsome young man in the village, but he certainly had clear and bright features.

What's even more remarkable is that he is considerate and meticulous towards her, always paying attention to what she needs and what she wants to say, and taking care of things in advance.

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