Chapter 73

The four members of the Bi family all agreed that Bi Weiguo's cooking lessons should be kept low-key, so even the brothers Liu Jiang and Liu He, who had a good relationship with Bi Weiguo and Bi Qiuguo, did not know about it.

After work on Monday, Bi Chunliu went to a state-owned restaurant and bought two meat dishes, and the four of them quietly celebrated at home.

Bi Weiguo clinked his bowl with his older sister and two younger sisters, finishing the whole bowl of dumpling soup in one gulp. His joy was palpable! He thought his school days were finally over! His master had said he'd start working with him after he graduated from junior high. A full-time job wasn't going to happen for a while, but he could find a temporary position. Then he'd be earning money, too!

"Hahahaha... Big sister! Look at the look on Second Brother's face—"

The Bi family's lively laughter came into the Nie family's house through the window.

At this time, the three sons and one daughter-in-law of the Nie family were also eating. Hearing the laughter, Nie Xiangdong felt even more annoyed. What was so funny about all this day?!

Nie Xiangbei picked at the shredded potatoes on his plate and complained, "Sister-in-law, aren't you always home? Why did you only make this one dish? One dish is not enough for the four of us." He glanced at his second brother, convinced that Nie Xiangxi must have the same idea. Nie Xiangxi had only picked up a potato with his chopsticks and stopped eating the vegetables, instead drinking the porridge. He didn't know what was so good about the bowl of rice soup. Nie Xiangbei pouted and began to miss his mother.

"Brother, I heard that you went to see our parents today. Did you see our dad? What did he say?" Nie Xiangxi finished drinking the rice soup, put down the bowl, took out a handkerchief and wiped his mouth and asked.

Nie Xiangdong shook his head. "I didn't see him today, but the police said we can meet next week. What's going on? You want to see Dad for something?"

Nie Xiangxi: "Oh, Cuicui's father said he asked someone to find out about our father's situation. It's very difficult and he can't help. Then he told me to marry Cuicui as soon as possible. The children born in the future will have Cuicui's surname, which will not affect the children's future. He also said that if I don't agree, Cuicui will break up with me. So, I'm getting married."

Nie Xiangbei:!!! I was just thinking about it, but my second brother is actually going to do it?! He was about to speak when he choked on some shredded potatoes and started coughing violently, his face flushing red. Liu Qingqing quickly poured him a glass of water so he could drink it to calm himself down. He wondered if his brother-in-law choked to death on the shredded potatoes he made himself. That old hag would be mad when he got back.

Nie Xiangbei couldn't wait any longer and asked Nie Xiangxi, "Second brother, our parents haven't even come out yet, and you're getting married and giving your child your father-in-law's last name. Are you planning to marry into the family?" But then he thought, with his second brother leading the way, it wouldn't be unreasonable for him to find a family he could marry into as well. There wouldn't be much to say when his parents got home, after all, he had Nie Xiangxi, his brother who took the lead!

Nie Xiangdong looked at Nie Xiangxi in disbelief. His mind had rarely clicked. If he understood correctly, this kid was a little interested in splitting up the family business. Liu Qingqing was a bit pleased. Since the second son was marrying into the family, could Xiangdong, as the eldest, get two houses? What a good deal!

Nie Xiangxi glanced at Liu Qingqing, whose eyes were full of calculation, and said, "Sister-in-law, the three of us brothers need to talk about something now. Please clean up the dishes and other things first. And help us watch the door."

Liu Qingqing was unwilling. She also wanted to hear whether Nie Xiangxi wanted to divide the family. Xiangdong was the eldest brother, and she would not be willing to get less!

She kicked the man quietly, but was seen by Nie Xiangbei, who asked her why she kicked his brother!

Liu Qingqing laughed dryly twice and said nothing. Nie Xiangdong asked Liu Qingqing to go out and watch, and Liu Qingqing went out reluctantly.

"Dad won't agree," Nie Xiangdong said in a deep voice. "We don't know what's going on yet, and we haven't met Dad yet. I advise you to wait until you meet Dad before deciding whether to get married."

Nie Xiangxi didn't know what his father had done, but after hearing his father-in-law's vague remarks, he kindly advised, "Brother, whether our father can get out or not, I must marry Cuicui. It wouldn't be good if I kept putting it off. I also suggest that when you have a child with your sister-in-law, it would be nice to give the child her surname."

Nie Xiangdong waved his hand, "We'll talk about it later. If you're so determined to get married, what do you mean now?"

"Let's find the money at home first. We have a fixed amount of money. You spent a lot on your wedding, and the rest will be divided among the three of us. Another thing is our father's job. While the factory hasn't said anything yet, let the third son take over. Now that we both have taken over, it's not a good idea to let the third son go to the countryside." Well, I heard from Cuicui that one of her cousins is still single, and it's a good opportunity for Xiangbei to meet a girl after graduation. It's rare to see such a blessed girl!

Nie Xiangbei was moved by his second brother. As expected, his second brother was the best! Although his second brother didn't love him much, he was a good second brother because he could keep him from going to the countryside!

Nie Xiangdong hesitated. His wife didn't have a job. "Xiangbei, didn't you get into the same school that Qi Chao's wife attends? How's that for you? The textile factory workshops are full of women. Can you handle it?"

Nie Xiangbei: "I can! If my dad can do it, why can't I?" Then he looked at Nie Xiangdong suspiciously, "Brother, you just got married, and you're already ignoring our years of brotherhood? Isn't my sister-in-law still pregnant? We don't know when my mother will be back. If my sister-in-law goes to work, who will take care of the child? You can't ask your mother-in-law to come, right? She'll empty our house! Letting me go to work is the best option!"

Nie Xiangxi nodded. "Brother, what the third brother said is true. You should keep your money safe. If your wife takes it all, it's hard to say whether your surname will be Nie or Liu. Don't spend all your time helping your father-in-law raise the children."

Nie Xiangdong, remembering his unpromising brother-in-law, agreed. He was afraid that if Qingqing got the job, the Liu family would snatch it away. "The factory already knows about Dad's arrest. Can they still agree to transfer the job?"

"I'll ask my father-in-law for help. He's familiar with the director of the textile factory. Third brother, when the time comes, you should work harder and talk less, and keep a low profile." Nie Xiangxi seemed to remember something. "Oh, by the way, didn't our father save two bottles of good wine? I'll take them and ask my father-in-law to deliver them."

Nie Xiangdong sobbed in pain, "That must be done!"

Nie Xiangxi: "I understand. Let's find the money first."

"OK!"

After agreeing to take over their father's job, the three brothers checked the door. One of them blocked the gap to prevent Liu Qingqing from seeing, while the other two rummaged through the drawers in the house.

I rummaged through the cupboards, looked under the bed, and touched all the shoes one by one before I found less than six hundred yuan.

Nie Xiangxi couldn't believe it. When he was young, his parents both worked, and his grandparents subsidized their family. When his grandparents stopped giving him so much, and he and his eldest son also started working, how could they have saved so little? He already had over 200 yuan in his own savings. The third child was blocking the door, so the eldest son had hidden it, right?

After two clicks of the tongue, Nie Xiangxi said, "Brother, look how much money you spent on your wedding!"

Nie Xiangdong didn't take the blame. "How could it be that I spent money on my wedding? Doesn't our father have some private money? Why haven't we found it?"

"Yes, second brother, think about where our father can put it." Nie Xiangbei saw the money on the table and sat over.

The four of them had known since they were little that Nie Xuesong had a lot of private money! When they were little, they'd seen their father sneaking out of the supply and marketing cooperative with all sorts of food and drinks, hiding them for himself. If they said something nice, he'd even share some with them.

Nie Xiangxi rubbed his chin, his eyes sweeping around the room. "Yeah...where else can I put it?" If he were his father, he would definitely put it under everyone's eyes. The most dangerous place is the safest place!

"Ding ding ding~" The wall clock rang, it was eight o'clock.

Nie Xiangxi walked to the wall clock and carefully opened the box underneath it.

Sure enough, there were! The three brothers counted them and found exactly two hundred and sixty.

Nie Xiangxi also found thirty yuan and fifty yuan respectively on the armchair where his father often sat and on the side of the eight-immortals table.

Nie Xiangbei: !! No wonder his dad always cheats!

Nie Xiangdong: I don’t know if I will be able to have so much private money when I reach my father’s age.

Putting all the money together, it was nine hundred and ten yuan. Nie Xiangbei took a deep breath. If this were all his...

"Three hundred each?" Nie Xiangdong put his hand on the big unity. A handful of money was too much to handle!

Nie Xiangxi and Nie Xiangbei disagreed. Did the boss think they were fools?

"Brother, I'm saying the same thing again. You spent a lot of money to marry your eldest sister-in-law. Now that my parents are in this situation, I don't know what to do in the future. It's impossible for your partners to pay for your wedding, and for me and my second brother to get married, we can pay for it ourselves, right?"

Nie Xiangxi: "Brother, let's be frank. Your wedding cost almost two hundred, so we'll make it one hundred. That way, you get two hundred, the third child and I will each get three hundred, the fourth child will get sixty, and the remaining fifty will be given to our parents."

Nie Xiangbei nodded, "I think it's okay."

"Alright then..." Nie Xiangdong had originally wanted to suggest giving the four brothers twenty each of the sixty, but his two younger brothers seemed to disagree. Fine, two hundred would be enough.

The three of them packed up the money they were supposed to take. Nie Xiangnan gave Nie Xiangbei the money and told her to take it to her tomorrow. The money for Nie Xuesong and his wife was returned to the wall clock box where Nie Xuesong kept his private money.

Nie Xiangdong said again: "What about these three rooms in our house?" What Nie Xiangdong wanted to say was that since the second son was going to marry into the family, he could not keep these houses.

Nie Xiangxi glanced at his elder brother with a half-smile, and put his hand on Nie Xiangbei's shoulder. "Brother, I just want the child to have Cuicui's surname, not to die. Aren't you going too far?"

Nie Xiangbei agreed, "That's right, big brother. We have three rooms at home. Wouldn't it be enough for the three of us to have one each? If you really have any ideas, I can get a smaller one, and you and sister-in-law can move into the big main room."

Nie Xiangdong: ...He was wondering why the second son was so kind to let the third son take over. It turned out he was trying to win over the third son. The third son was so stupid. How much is a job? How much is a house?! Besides, the job is still Dad's. The second son is just doing a favor here!

"Okay, then your sister-in-law and I will move in, but don't do this first. Second brother, ask your father-in-law to secure a job for the third brother first."

Nie Xiangbei: "Yes, yes, yes! Second brother, let me go to work first!"

"Got it. I'll go to the Lou family later."

Nie Xiangbei smiled ingratiatingly, "Second brother, there are no stars in the sky today. It might rain. Remember to bring an umbrella when you go there later."

"Um……"