Sure enough, not long after, Zhang Tao's relationship with Li Qiuju and her two children was not as harmonious as before.

Zhang Tao used to come only a few times every few days, and he never stayed long each time, so things were fine and there was little chance for conflict to arise.

Now that they live together, the saying "familiarity breeds contempt" applies, so it's inevitable that their teeth will start to clash.

"Brother Zhang, come and start the fire for me, I can't manage it myself," Li Qiuju called out from the kitchen to Zhang Tao, who was sitting in the main room.

Zhang Tao looked somewhat displeased after hearing Li Qiuju's words.

Since he arrived, these trivial matters have always fallen on him, which has made him quite annoyed.

However, because he still had some feelings for Li Qiuju, he endured it.

"Coming." Zhang Tao got up and walked towards the kitchen.

Upon arriving in the kitchen, I sat down and started a fire.

Li Qiuju was stir-frying vegetables at the stove.

"Brother Zhang, when you get off work, stop by Aunt Zhang's house and exchange some tofu for two pieces," Li Qiuju instructed Zhang Tao while stir-frying vegetables.

"Tofu is nutritious, so it's a good way to replenish your energy."

"Okay, I understand." Zhang Tao's eyes flashed with annoyance after hearing Li Qiuju's words.

However, he didn't vent his dissatisfaction in front of Li Qiuju.

Lately, I've been quite busy at the post office, and I haven't had the same patience as before.

Of course, the main reason is that Li Qiuju was Han Shang's wife before, and Han Shang saved Zhang Tao's life, so he has an obligation to take care of her.

Now that Li Qiuju has become Zhang Tao's wife, his mindset has naturally changed.

After getting off work, Zhang Tao went to Aunt Zhang's house and exchanged two pieces of tofu.

After returning home, I had just entered the house, before even stepping inside.

When Li Qiuju's son saw Zhang Tao holding something wrapped in paper, he assumed it was candy and was very excited.

A smile involuntarily appeared on his face.

Since Mr. Zhang moved in, he hasn't brought any snacks, which has made him quite disappointed.

I haven't had candy in a long time, and I'm very happy to see it here now.

So Li Qiuju's son rushed out of the house and ran towards Zhang Tao to meet him.

"Dad Zhang, what are you holding in your hand? Are they candies?"

"Dad Zhang is so kind! I haven't had this in so long, I'm so happy!" Li Qiuju's son exclaimed excitedly, looking up at Zhang Tao.

"This, this isn't candy, it's tofu I traded for. I'll make you some tofu." Zhang Tao looked a little uncomfortable after hearing what Li Qiuju's son said.

He really hadn't bought any snacks for his two kids in a long time.

However, things are different now than before. He now gives one-third of his salary to Mo Qian, and the rest of his money is basically used for living expenses.

There's not much extra money left to buy things for the kids.

"Not candy?!" Li Qiuju's son's face flashed with disappointment after hearing Zhang Tao's words.

"Dad Zhang, I want to eat candy."

"Sweetie, I'll buy you candy when I get my salary next month."

"Alright then." The voice was a little muffled.

Then, Li Qiuju's son walked away from Zhang Tao.

He was initially very happy that Mr. Zhang had moved in, thinking he would be able to eat delicious food often.

Unexpectedly, after Mr. Zhang moved in, he not only stopped treating him well and buying him delicious food and fun toys, but he also stopped buying him candy in a long time.

He was naturally somewhat unhappy.

My previous goodwill towards Mr. Zhang has also decreased considerably.

After handing the tofu he received in exchange to Li Qiuju, Zhang Tao lay down on the cool chair as if nothing had happened.

However, not long after Zhang Tao lay down, a voice came over.

"Brother Zhang, we're almost out of firewood in the kitchen. Could you buy some more and fill up the water buckets while you're at it?"

"I understand." Zhang Tao frowned, but didn't refuse.

When the original owner was alive, he usually didn't ask Zhang Tao to do these chores like chopping wood and carrying water; he did them all himself.

Now that there's a man in the house, Li Qiuju naturally won't leave the strong Zhang Tao unused and will make her do the work herself.

She was a frail woman who couldn't take care of herself.

Not only that, Li Qiuju also handed over all the other strenuous tasks to Zhang Tao.

Zhang Tao was naturally angry about taking on so much work all at once, but he suppressed his anger because of his feelings for Li Qiuju.

However, there will eventually come a moment when it explodes.

On the other side, after driving Zhang Tao away, Mo Qian spent most of her time feeding Ya Ya and Hu Zi.

When the original owner was alive, he had no money and Zhang Tao was focused on Li Qiuju and her two children, so he didn't pay attention to his own children.

This resulted in Ya Ya and Hu Zi being very weak and somewhat malnourished.

After Mo Qian arrived, she gave the two children some nourishing food.

Now that the missing nutrients have been replenished, the two children are no longer as weak as they were at the beginning and have become much stronger.

Because of the times, Mo Qian did not intend to stand out like the heroines in the novels she had read before, venturing into the black market and becoming a drug dealer.

After all, she wasn't short of money or supplies.

And so, Mo Qian stayed at home, feeding the two children and entertaining herself by finding her own fun.

Sometimes I'll go out and chat with the neighbors about gossip.

Compared to Zhang Tao's growing anger, Mo Qian was extremely comfortable.

Five years later,

"Dad Zhang, the school has asked us to pay the tuition. We can't delay any longer," Li Qiuju's son said, standing helplessly in front of Zhang Tao, looking somewhat embarrassed.

"I understand, you go to class first." Zhang Tao frowned slightly.

"Okay, Dad Zhang, I'm going now." Then, Li Qiuju's son picked up his schoolbag and ran quickly out the door.

Zhang Tao, who stayed behind, looked somewhat troubled.

Over the years, he hasn't saved much money.

Most of it was spent on living expenses.

His salary was only two-thirds of what it used to be, and he had to support not only himself but also Qiuju and her two children.

Qiuju loves beauty, so we also set aside some money to buy her cosmetics.

Naturally, you won't be able to save money.

Since the two children started school, expenses have been increasing, and now Qiuju no longer uses cosmetics.

Even so, it's still a struggle to support two school-aged children.

This sometimes leads to students falling behind on tuition fees.

Zhang Tao's eyes darkened as he thought about the one-third of his salary that he handed over every month.

It's been so many years, it's about time.

Now is the time when money is needed, and that third of our salary should not be given away anymore.

Let's get out of this predicament first, since he hasn't had any meat for months since his child started school.

If that one-third of her salary hadn't been given to Mo Qian, she wouldn't be in such a predicament now.

Instead, it's more comfortable.

We no longer need to worry about the tuition fees for our two children.

With this in mind, Zhang Tao secretly decided that he would not give her one-third of her salary!