"Mom, don't ask so many questions yet. We've only been talking for a short time. How about this, once our relationship has settled down, I'll have him come over to our house. What do you think?"

"Sigh, now that you're dating someone, I don't know anything and I'm really worried. You silly child..."

"Mom, that's how young people are these days when they're dating. Don't worry, Xiaowan said she'd bring her home," Zhang Xuemei said with a smile, trying to reassure her mother-in-law.

Granny Liu glanced at Zhang Xuemei and asked suspiciously, "Do you know which one it is? If she won't tell you, tell your mother. I'm so curious."

Zhang Xuemei smiled and glanced at Xu Mingwan, then waved her hand in refusal, saying, "I promised Xiaowan that I wouldn't say anything, so just wait and see, Mom!"

"Alright, alright, I won't ask anymore. Now that Xiao Wan has a boyfriend, you two older brothers need to hurry up and make your move, you know?"

Now Granny Liu had even more reason to urge her two sons to get married. It wouldn't be good if her younger sister, who was next in line, was getting married while her two older brothers were still single.

"Okay, Mom." Xu Minghe and Xu Mingjiang exchanged a glance and nodded silently in agreement.

...

Shanghe Village

Zhang Xuelian was furious when she saw her husband fast asleep in bed. She yanked off the covers and yelled, "How long are you planning to sleep? Aren't you going to think of anything? These debt collectors keep coming, don't you have any shame?"

Since returning from another province before the Lunar New Year, my husband has been eating and sleeping all the time, and hasn't stepped out of the house once.

She doesn't even think about what to do in the future. They still owe so much money, they have to find a way to pay it back. She can't keep up with the debt collectors coming to her door every day!

He Jianwei sat up silently and said helplessly, "What else can I do if I don't sleep?"

“No, He Jianwei, can’t you have any sense of responsibility? The family owes so much money, don’t you have any thoughts about it? Even if you go to work in a factory, you can save some money. I’ve thought it through. Your parents will take care of the child, and you will come with me to work in a factory.”

"Working for someone else? No way, that's too embarrassing!" He Jianwei felt that he was destined to be a big boss, so what was the point of working in a factory?

"Face? You think you still have face? We're drowning in debt, everyone in the village knows our situation. You still want face? You might as well starve to death, I'll remarry."

Zhang Xuelian said fiercely, feeling that she had been blind to have chosen such a person. Not only was he all talk and no action, but he also had no sense of responsibility whatsoever. When debt collectors came, he would just hide, leaving her, a woman, to deal with them. She was quite disheartened, and if it weren't for her two children, she would have really wanted a divorce.

"Pah, pah, what unlucky things are you saying during the New Year? Oh dear, it's not that I don't want to work, it's just that you can't earn much in a factory. We owe so much money, when will we ever be able to pay it back?"

"So you're not going to pay it back?"

"I'm not saying I won't pay you back. I'm just thinking about how to make a lot of money. You need to give me some time to think about it."

He Jianwei is still not giving up and is still thinking about turning his business around, but unfortunately, no one is willing to lend him money now.

"Hmph," Zhang Xuelian sneered, "You want to do it? You don't even have any capital right now, what are you going to use?"

“I don’t have any, but don’t Minghan and Xuemei have some? Your mother said that they’ve made quite a bit of money in the past year or so. What do you think about us asking them for some money? I’ll pay them back once I’ve made some.”

He Jianwei looked at his wife earnestly, thinking that this was a great idea. They were brothers-in-law, so Minghan should be able to help with this, right?

"Don't even think about it," Zhang Xuelian refused outright.

“Why can’t I ask? You and Xuemei are sisters. If her younger sister has money, why can’t she help her older sister? If you’re too shy to ask, then let me do it.” He Jianwei thought his wife was embarrassed to borrow money from her younger sister, so he told her to do it. He wouldn’t be shy.

Zhang Xuelian was so angry she almost laughed. "He Jianwei, don't you know your own situation? You're completely incapable of doing business, yet you're thinking of borrowing money to start one? I won't borrow money from Xuemei, and I won't let her lend it to you either. Just give up on that idea."

"Hey, no, what's wrong with you? Why am I not cut out for business? Give me another chance, I'm sure I can do it."

"Alright, I don't want to discuss this with you anymore. Xuemei just called and asked us to go to Tianshui City to help her. She said she'd pay us a salary. I'm thinking of working for them for a few years to pay off the debt before thinking about anything else."

Zhang Xuelian knew her sister wanted to help her, so she readily agreed without even asking about the salary.

“Work for them? It wouldn’t look good for us, the older sister and brother-in-law, to work for our younger sister. I’m not going.” He Jianwei was still stubbornly concerned about saving face.

Zhang Xuelian thought of her sister's idea, sneered, and said, "Let me make this clear: if you're not going, then there's no point in us staying together. We'll each take one child, and we'll get our divorce certificates as soon as the Civil Affairs Bureau opens."

"No, how did you get divorced? Why are you so upset? I'll go, okay?" He Jianwei jumped off the bed and onto the floor, grabbing his wife's hand and repeatedly promising.

"That's more like it. I've already told you, you have to listen to me from now on. Let's work hard together and try to pay off our debts as soon as possible. Be down-to-earth and stop thinking about making big money in business. It's not that easy."

Zhang Xuelian finally understood her husband's nature: he wanted to make a lot of money but didn't want to suffer. There's no such thing as a free lunch.

Xuemei is right. Now she needs to curb his arrogant and unrealistic nature, otherwise she will be the one who suffers in the end.

Zhang Xuemei was also talking about this with her husband. She pursed her lips and said softly, "I called my second sister and told her and her husband to come to Tianshui City after the New Year. She will work in our store, and her husband will be arranged to work in your store. What do you think?"

Xu Minghan nodded indifferently, "I'm fine with anything, we need to hire people anyway. But my second sister and brother-in-law must have owed a lot of money when they came back this time. Should we lend them some money to pay off their debts first?"

Zhang Xuemei glanced at him and said, "You're quite generous, but it's not necessary. My second sister refused. She's afraid that her husband might try to cause trouble again. Let's put some pressure on him!"

Of course, this was also Zhang Xuemei's idea. With her brother-in-law's personality, if she didn't put some pressure on him, he would work hard for three days and rest for two. Of course, putting pressure on him wasn't very effective either.

"Actually, you could teach them how to make braised food and sell it at a stall. That would be more profitable than working a regular job." Xu Minghan felt that if they could endure hardship, this was the better path.