Chapter 120 Discuss and Act Within Your Capabilities

“You’ve been in jail for three years, you must be scared now,” Qin Yizhou said. “Qin Li’an has been lawless since he was a child. Now that he’s really in jail, he knows fear and won’t dare to be like before. He also knows that we will not go along with him or help him. If he wants to live a good life, he’d better shut his mouth and stop thinking about what others have. What doesn’t belong to him is not his.”

"Would he be afraid?" Song Fenglan asked.

"Whether he's afraid or not, it's good that he didn't come to compete," Qin Yizhou said. "If he couldn't win and still came to compete, there would be a lot of trouble, which would be very bad. It's easier for us since he didn't come. Mom came to compete for him; if he doesn't come, my older brother and the others will make their stance clear, and Qin Li'an will behave himself."

a little. "

“It would be best if he behaved himself,” Song Fenglan said. “He’s like that, so it’s no wonder that others discriminate against him or have opinions about him. From when he was very young until now, whenever we’ve seen him—or rather, whenever Zihang and I have seen him—he’s been nice to us a few times. It’s just that he’s quieter now; he used to be quite a handful.”

Song Fenglan had no good impression of Qin Li'an, neither in the past nor now. Regardless of Qin Yizhou's attitude towards Qin Li'an, Song Fenglan made her stance clear: if any problems arose later, it would be Qin Yizhou's responsibility to handle them; Qin Li'an was a member of the Qin family.

“He’s been making a lot of moves lately. Why do you think he’s being so nice to Mom now? It’s because Dad and my older brother’s attitude towards him has changed. He’s afraid that if others treat him badly, he won’t get any benefits in the future, so he’s being nicer to Mom now,” Qin Yizhou said. “He is, after all, Tian Keshu’s son. Tian Keshu couldn’t possibly not have said those things to him.”

"Yes, you're right." Song Fenglan nodded. "Didn't Tian Keshu get divorced again?"

Song Fenglan didn't actually meet Tian Keshu; she only heard about it from others. Tian Keshu certainly wouldn't want to appear before Song Fenglan—would she want to be laughed at? If Tian Keshu saw Song Fenglan from afar, she would hide.

During those turbulent times, Tian Keshu was quite different. Her attitude towards Song Fenglan was somewhat unfriendly, and she engaged in various underhanded tactics, looking down on and bullying Song Fenglan. Now, Tian Keshu felt that if she stood before Song Fenglan, Song Fenglan would definitely retaliate. Tian Keshu thought that if she had the chance, she would definitely get revenge; she couldn't possibly not. Why should only others be allowed to criticize her?

Song Fenglan didn't have much time to specifically look for Tian Keshu, and Tian Keshu worked in a small restaurant. Nowadays, Song Fenglan ate out more often at larger restaurants, and when she did go to a smaller one, it wasn't the restaurant where Tian Keshu worked.

“They’re divorced,” Qin Yizhou said. “She made my mother suffer like that, and my mother demanded compensation from her. Once she paid, she stopped suing her. Her husband felt that she and my mother had conspired to cheat him out of his money, so he divorced Tian Keshu.”

"A joint scam?" Song Fenglan raised an eyebrow.

“Yes, the man said it to outsiders,” Qin Yizhou said.

“What he wants is a free nanny. This nanny can’t make any mistakes. If she does, he won’t pay her,” Song Fenglan said. “He and Tian Keshu don’t have any children. I heard he had his tubal ligation done a long time ago. He had planned this all along. If he were to marry again, it would be to marry a free nanny who would sleep with him and do his work. He’d get multiple benefits in one go.”

This kind of man is too cunning and scheming; he's no good. He may seem kind to his biological son, but he's extremely unfair to his second wife.

"It seems he never told Tian Keshu about his tubal ligation." Song Fenglan remembered hearing a few years ago that Tian Keshu made a fuss about it, but it was to no avail.

“No,” Qin Yizhou said. “He thinks it’s his own business.”

“See? So many men are like that. They only think about themselves,” Song Fenglan said. “All they know is how to calculate their own interests.”

“Those are the people,” Qin Yizhou quickly said, adding that he was not like that.

“Yes, it’s those people,” Song Fenglan said. “Isn’t your older brother the same? He’s thinking about the benefits. If it weren’t for the fact that the property certificate is in your name and not his, if it were in his name, or if it hadn’t been transferred to your name yet, he would have fought for it. Now, it’s your house that’s being demolished, but their family still has a big house.”

Song Fenglan didn't feel that her family had gotten a good deal. The house where Qin's parents lived together was much larger and better than the house they had bought for Qin Yizhou. If that house were to be demolished, the compensation would only be more.

“It’s all because there are other interests luring them along; otherwise, why wouldn’t they compete with you?” Song Fenglan said.

"Indeed." Qin Yizhou understood this. "How about we transfer the house to your name?"

“No need,” Song Fenglan said.

Years ago, Qin Yizhou suggested putting the house in Song Fenglan's name, but Song Fenglan declined. Song Fenglan had long considered the possibility of the house being demolished for redevelopment, but she still didn't intend to put it in her own name. She wasn't the type to insist on putting everything her husband owned in his name. Besides, Song Fenglan had her own money and house; why bother with all that?

"Okay, sure," Qin Yizhou said. "You have plenty of wealth, so you don't need it."

“Who says it’s not precious? Nobody dislikes having too much money. It’s just that it’s unnecessary and troublesome,” Song Fenglan said.

Later, Tian Keshu went to Qin Li'an again, wanting to encourage him to fight for it.

"Don't argue, then don't come looking for me." Qin Li'an frowned.

Tian Keshu kept coming to see Qin Li'an. Qin Li'an felt that Tian Keshu hadn't given him any benefits, and that his constant visits to Tian Keshu would upset his family.

“Even if you don’t fight for the demolition compensation from your uncle’s side, then you should… first get your dad to give you the other house,” Tian Keshu said. “Your dad and your stepmother have a son, and I’m afraid they won’t give you any houses in the future. Also, while your grandma can still speak, see what she has on hand and ask her to give you more of it. Your grandpa and your dad are the same kind of people; now they both value your younger brother more.”

Qin Li'an knew, of course, that he needed to rely on his grandmother now, and Tian Keshu didn't need to tell him anything.

"You keep saying this, and Grandpa and Grandma won't be happy. You'll get me into trouble." Qin Li'an said, somewhat annoyed.

“I’m your biological mother, I wouldn’t do anything to you. You’re still young, you don’t understand the importance of things like housing,” Tian Keshu said. “When you get married, if you don’t have a house, will you live under the same roof as your stepmother and her family? Do you think they’ll let you live there for the rest of your life?”

"I……"

“They won’t let you live here forever. When your brother gets married, they will definitely find a way to kick you out,” Tian Keshu said. “You need to think more about yourself. Mom has no other choice. I have no money to give you, and no house. If Mom had these things, you wouldn’t have to fight for them.”

"I'm going back now," Qin Li'an said. "Don't come looking for me anytime soon. Dad will be unhappy if he sees me."

“We are mother and son, why can’t we meet?” Tian Keshu said, dissatisfied. She was afraid that Qin Li’an would forget her.

Tian Keshu still wanted to go find her daughter, but her daughter didn't want to talk to her at all. Tian Keshu's daughter was already working, and Qin Ya earned her salary but never thought of handing it over to anyone; she kept it all herself. Tian Keshu went to Qin Ya several times, trying to get money from her, but Qin Ya refused.

That day, Tian Keshu blocked Qin Ya at the entrance of her workplace again, insisting that Qin Ya help Qin Li'an.

“Li’an is your younger brother, you have to help him,” Tian Keshu said. “Your grandmother doesn’t know how long she can hold on. While she’s still around, you have to find a way to get your father to give your brother the apartment he’s renting out. Once he has an apartment, you can look for other ones.”

"Grandma is in this state because of you." Qin Ya found it ridiculous that her mother was still thinking of making her fight for Qin Li'an at this time. "Grandma cares about Li'an, not me. You can let Li'an go. If I go... Grandma will only think that I look like you and will hate me."

When Qin Ya went home to see her mother, her mother always told her to get lost. Before, her mother had shown some compassion for Qin Ya and hadn't treated her this badly. Ever since Tian Keshu left her partially disabled, her mother's attitude towards Qin Ya had become extremely hostile. Qin Ya understood that she was being dragged down by her own mother; what could she do?

"Why make me go when you let Qin Li'an fight for it?" Qin Ya said. "I don't even live in that house anymore."

Qin Ya had no presence in the Qin family; no one cared about her.

Originally, You Yun's attitude towards Qin Ya was acceptable, but after Qin Li'an abandoned You Yun's son at the train station, You Yun's attitude towards Qin Ya turned sour. Qin Ya sometimes thought that You Yun never intended to be kind to them; she just hadn't had a suitable opportunity to make things difficult. Now that Qin Li'an had committed such a serious mistake, You Yun could conveniently treat them badly.

Qin Ya wondered why she was implicated when she hadn't done anything wrong.

Qin Ya couldn't explain it, she couldn't. After all, she and Qin Li'an were siblings from the same parents, and everyone assumed she would help Qin Li'an. Even her own mother wanted her to help Qin Li'an fight for it.

“Then you should marry into a better family, and then you’ll have a house,” Tian Keshu said.

"Where can I find a good family to support?" Qin Ya said. "I originally wanted to be a teacher, but I failed the political background check."

Qin Ya currently works in a private company, but she still aspires to work within the government system. However, due to her family's connections, she fails the political background check. Tracing her family back three generations, Qin Ya wondered what her relationship was with Tian Keshu's great-uncle—the connection was already quite distant. She even thought that maybe it would work out, but there were too many people competing for the same position, and someone had reported her, so she couldn't get the job.

This made Qin Ya very upset. Not only could she not become a teacher, but she couldn't even get a job in other state-owned enterprises. Qin Ya didn't want to be reported again. Her mother's great-uncle was long gone, but he still had children and grandchildren. People were worried that something might happen, so it was better to cut off the source early and not use Qin Ya at all.

"With so many jobs available, why did you have to become a teacher?" Tian Keshu asked.

“I’m actually doing alright; at least I haven’t been to jail,” Qin Ya said. “I even went to a vocational school, so it’s a bit easier for me to find a job than for Li’an. Li’an, on the other hand, is someone who’s been to jail, and he even raped a minor. His record is full of stains. Do you think people will believe he’s reformed? They’ll only be wary of him!”

“He was just a child back then. How could you talk about your brother like that? You're the older sister, and you don't even know how to consider your brother's feelings. You're making sarcastic remarks.” Tian Keshu said unhappily.

"I'm stating the facts," Qin Ya said. "Why did he turn out like this? Isn't it because you didn't raise him properly? He's so old now, he should fight for what he wants himself. Why should I fight for him? How long can I fight for him? Also, I heard you wanted to have Li'an fight for his uncle's things?"

"I……"

"Don't you know what kind of person my uncle is?" Qin Ya said. "Don't you know how our family treats them? They remember all the things you did in the past. The relationship between the two sides has always been bad, and you even let Li'an fight for my uncle's things. I think you just think Li'an is living too well now."

“You’re so old, how come you still don’t understand anything?” Tian Keshu said. “If you don’t fight for it, do you think people will give it to you? If you fight for it, people will treat you like beggars, but they’ll still give you something.”

"Trying to appease beggars?" Qin Ya scoffed. "We're relatives with Uncle, we're not beggars, and they don't need to treat us like beggars. For such a small thing, you're acting like this? Have you no shame? Didn't Li'an say he wouldn't fight for it? You'd better not let Li'an fight for Uncle's things, fight for Dad's..."

If it's his grandparents, people won't say much. But if he fights over things with his uncle, whose family has already separated from his own, people will only laugh at him for overestimating himself and lacking self-awareness.

"you……"

“In ancient times, if your uncle and aunt didn’t have a son, you could fight for it without any problem. The ancestral laws and traditions would be on your side,” Qin Ya said. “But this is not ancient times. Your uncle and aunt also have sons. Even if they don’t have sons, they have daughters, and their daughters can inherit their family property.”

Qin Ya didn't want to waste words with Tian Keshu. If she weren't afraid that Tian Keshu would cause trouble and prevent her from working, she definitely wouldn't have said these things to Tian Keshu. Qin Ya just wanted to live her own life in peace. Everyone thought that she was living a good life in the Qin family. Yes, there was a time when she was indeed living a good life. Later, her parents divorced, and she slowly experienced the coldness and warmth of the world.

Who cares whether a girl is happy or not? Everyone is only concerned about Qin Li'an.

As Tian Keshu watched Qin Ya's departing figure, she felt that her daughter was utterly useless.

Qin Ya and Qin Li'an dared not approach Qin Yizhou and his wife, nor did they dare approach Qin Zihang.

After Qin Li'an was released from prison, he did not continue to hang out with the thugs he used to hang out with.

After the incident, the thugs claimed they were just joking with Qin Li'an and didn't actually intend for him to rape the girl; they said Qin Li'an raped her himself. They shifted all the blame onto Qin Li'an, and while they received light punishments, Qin Li'an served three years in prison.

This made Qin Li'an realize that those thugs didn't consider him a true friend at all. They might even be laughing at him behind his back, saying he was like a dog, doing whatever they told him to do.

For a while, Aunt Yu didn't go to the Song family. She waited until Grandma Jiang's sixty-day mourning period ended before going to the Song family.

Rumors are circulating back home that the house is going to be demolished, but nothing has been finalized yet. Everyone is wondering about it, and even Jiang Yufei has visited the house several times.

Aunt Yu told Jiang Yufei directly that the houses in the family had already been allocated and that Jiang Yufei had nothing to do with it.

“Yufei has come to me several times, she just feels that I’m being unfair to her,” Aunt Yu sighed. “She just wants the demolition compensation.”

"It's not even settled yet, and she's already asking for demolition compensation?" Song's mother asked.

“Yes, she said her dowry wasn’t much when she got married. She said that when the old lady passed away, she only received a silver bracelet. She also said that she bought silver bracelets for the old lady’s grandchildren.” Aunt Yu said, “They’re different thicknesses and different qualities, but she still insisted on saying that. She’s just eyeing what’s left in the family and wants to get a share.”

"What are your thoughts?" Song's mother asked.

“Where can we give her any?” Aunt Yu said. “It’s not that we favor boys over girls, but Yufei comes to our house every few days, and she takes quite a lot of things.”

Aunt Yu didn't think she had treated Jiang Yufei badly; she was considered quite doting on her daughter. Other families wouldn't prepare as many things for their daughters' weddings as Aunt Yu did; some even kept the bride price from the groom's family.

“Talk to her properly, don’t let things escalate. If you lose your sibling relationship, you’ll lose your mother-daughter relationship too,” said Song’s mother. “The country needs to build, and most of the houses will have to be demolished anyway.”

"Yes," Aunt Yu said. "According to the original family division agreement, the house belongs to whoever owns it. My husband and I live in it, and Yufei is eyeing our share. She says she won't take a share from her brother and sister-in-law, but why can't she take a share from her parents?"

Aunt Yu rubbed her temples and said, "In this day and age, men and women are equal, and women have the same inheritance rights as men, so we should give her a share."

Aunt Yu thought that she and her husband were not old and immobile yet, and still needed to eat and drink, so Jiang Yufei said such things.

"According to her, we have to divide everything up?" Aunt Yu said. "If we really divide everything up, will they still be filial to us in the future? Some people in our neighborhood divided everything up to their children and grandchildren, and now they are living very poorly. People only bring them a meal when they remember, and they don't bring them a meal when they don't remember. No, now that they are living a little better, people are eyeing the compensation money for the demolition of their houses."

Even those who are so close to us are all driven by self-interest. They claim they're not doing it for profit, that they just want to take care of the elderly.

“Think it through,” said Song’s mother. “Your children… don’t blame me for being blunt, they do have filial piety, but I’m afraid not much. If you get old and can’t move, and are plagued by illness and misfortune, and you have no money, they won’t care about you.”

Song's mother could ask her children to help Yu's aunt more, but what about Yu's aunt's husband? The Song family couldn't possibly care about that.

Some things aren't about whether you pay money or not, but about the many troubles that follow. You think you're helping someone, but they think you're fighting for their property. Even if your family is very wealthy and you don't intend to take those things, others will assume you are.

Song's mother couldn't make the decision for Aunt Yu; Aunt Yu had to decide for herself.

When Song's mother talked to Song Fenglan about the demolition, Song Fenglan peeled a banana and ate it.

"They're all acting like they've gone mad for the demolition compensation." Song Fenglan had just returned and was sitting in the living room when her mother arrived.

Song Fenglan was a little hungry, so she ate some fruit and pastries first.

"Not to mention Auntie's family, even the Qin family is eyeing Yizhou's house," Song Fenglan said. "It's the house that Yizhou's parents gave him before. When they heard that the house was going to be demolished, his mother wanted to get a share. If his father and older brother hadn't held them back, they would have rushed over."

"They'll pounce on any small gain they can get," said Song's mother. "And now? Has anyone from the Qin family come looking for trouble?"

"Not yet, and we don't know what will happen in the future," Song Fenglan said. "Right now, it's all just rumors. The policy hasn't been finalized yet, and no announcement has been made."

"Don't pay them any attention. What's meant for you will be yours," said Song's mother. "If you give them some this time, won't they still want it when your other houses are demolished or you do something else? Human hearts are greedy; they can never be satisfied."

The Qin family is particularly shameless; perhaps they believe that because they raised Qin Yizhou, he was able to achieve his current success. Since Qin Yizhou also contributed to the purchase of the house by Song Fenglan, the Qin family wants a share of the money.

Whenever Song's mother thought of those people from the Qin family, she was speechless. How could there be such shameless people in this world?

"Fortunately, they shouldn't be that shameless," Song Fenglan said. "It's just that Yizhou's mother is thinking that even Qin Li'an said he wouldn't come to steal it, so his mother has too many ideas."

“Isn’t his mother already half-crippled?” Song’s mother said.

“Yes, she is partially paralyzed, but that doesn’t mean she can’t cause trouble,” Song Fenglan said. “She’s caused quite a bit of trouble in her own home. She only quieted down a bit after being confronted. Sister-in-law, I’m talking about Yizhou’s sister-in-law, and she couldn’t help but say some nasty things.”

Song Fenglan wasn't there; she heard it from others. It wasn't just Qin Yizhou who said it; other people outside knew as well.

It all started when Qin's mother complained to the neighbors, who then told others. Qin's mother felt that everything she did was for the sake of the eldest son's family, while You Yun felt that Qin's mother did everything for Qin Li'an's sake.

"She brought this on herself, so she can't blame others for criticizing her," Song's mother said. "Don't meddle in what's going on over there. She is, after all, your husband's mother. It's never good to talk about her too much."

Song's mother feared her daughter wouldn't understand these worldly customs and etiquette. Just because Qin Yizhou currently disliked the Qin family didn't mean he wanted others to make things difficult for them. Song Fenglan only needed to visit the Qin family and avoid causing them trouble; she should try to speak ill of them as little as possible.

"It's alright," Song Fenglan said. "If he thinks I'm no good, I'll just kick him out!"

Qin Yizhou had just returned when he heard Song Fenglan telling people to get out. He hadn't heard the conversation between Song's mother and Song Fenglan, so he asked, "Who should get out?"

“Get out of here,” Song Fenglan said. “My mom is afraid that if I talk about your parents’ side of things, it will upset you.”

"It's alright." Qin Yizhou thought it was something serious. "What can be said, can be said, what can't be said? We're husband and wife, it's good to just say it directly. Mom, don't worry, I won't hold these things against you. If anyone's going to hold a grudge, it'll be Fenglan against me."

Qin Yizhou was also self-aware; given how troublesome his own mother was, the fact that Song Fenglan didn't complain much was already quite good. Qin Yizhou himself felt a little guilty; it was his parents' side of the problem, while the Song family members were all very kind and no one was causing Song Fenglan any trouble.

“Fine, since you’ve said that, how could I possibly criticize your wife?” said Song’s mother.

"Mom, have you eaten yet? Eat over here," Qin Yizhou said.

“We’ve already eaten, we ate a long time ago. Who’s like you, working and eating late?” Song’s mother said. “The children are away studying and not at home, and Fenglan’s older brother often works overtime. Those of us who stay at home ate first.”

Time flies, Qin Zihang is about to finish his freshman year, and Song Heng will soon graduate from university.

Song Heng also lives at school and interacts with his classmates frequently. Song Heng's younger sister, Song Zi, also doesn't like living at home, saying that she feels more free and comfortable outside. She says that her father is always very serious, and seeing him is almost like seeing her boss.

"Zihang hasn't come back?" Song's mother asked.

“No, he lives in the apartment near my workplace,” Song Fenglan said. “He’s either spending time in the library or in his university’s lab these days, and sometimes he goes to our lab too. There are professors willing to mentor him, so he doesn’t need me.”

"My child has really grown up," Song's mother sighed. "I have so many gray hairs now."

"Everyone gets gray hair when they get old. Not to mention you, I have a few gray hairs on my head." Song Fenglan gave birth to Qin Zihang relatively early, and she is not yet forty years old. She doesn't feel that old. One must have a youthful mindset. "Mom, would you like to eat something else?"

"I'm not eating anymore, you guys eat," said Song's mother. "Your father went to play chess with someone, I'm going for a walk."

“That’s fine.” Song Fenglan nodded, not insisting that her mother stay with her to eat.

Song Fenglan and her husband sat there eating, and it did feel a bit lonely. Their child wasn't with them, which made it all the more awkward.

When Qin Zihang was very young, he was always very talkative, even asking questions while eating. Qin Yizhou would try to get Qin Zihang to talk less while eating and focus on his meal, but Qin Zihang's little eyes would dart around.

“Zihang isn’t here, but I am.” Qin Yizhou knew what his wife was thinking as soon as he saw Song Fenglan’s actions.

In Nancheng, Zhang Wen has a girlfriend and they're getting married. His girlfriend is also a teacher at the school, and they're discussing engagement and dowry.

Zhang Wen's girlfriend is named Lin Jiajia, and Lin Jiajia's family is relatively well-off. When Lin's parents came over, they asked Zhang's family to pay a bride price and also wanted them to buy Zhang Wen a new house.

“Their school will provide housing then,” the plump woman said.

“The school allocated the property,” Lin’s mother said. “Didn’t you buy a house for your youngest son in the capital? You can’t not buy a house for your eldest son too.”

"This..." The fat woman didn't expect Lin's mother to say that. "This apartment we live in will be given to Xiaowen in the future."

“Aren’t you still living here?” Lin’s mother said. “You’re still healthy and can live for many more years. Buy a house for the young people so they can live on their own. The school’s housing is still uncertain when it will be allocated.”

Fearing her daughter would suffer, Lin's mother knew that the Pang family had given most of their savings to Zhang Xiaohu to buy a house in the capital. Lin's mother believed that since her daughter lived in the south, she would never be able to get a house in the capital, and the capital house wouldn't be registered in the Pang couple's names anyway.

“We’ll contribute part of the money, and you can contribute the rest,” Lin’s mother said. “The property deed will be in the names of the young couple.”

“They own houses, so the school might not allocate housing to them,” the plump woman said.

“Then you should give the money for the house to the young couple first,” Lin’s mother said. “After the school allocates housing, they can buy another house. They can get married, and their school does have suitable housing for them. All this can be done in a month or two.”

"To be honest, we don't have enough money on hand, so we have to borrow some," the fat woman said truthfully.

“Then go borrow money. How many families don’t need to borrow money to get married?” Lin’s mother said. “But you and your husband have to pay back that money. The young couple can’t be the ones to pay it back.”

Lin's mother made a lot of demands of her sister-in-law, meaning she insisted that her sister-in-law agree to those conditions.

What is Fatty supposed to do?

Even the fat woman couldn't say these things to Zhang Wen, and Zhang Wen didn't know either.

That night, Zhang Wen was not home, and Fatty Sister-in-law spoke quietly with Zhang Chenghai.

"Tell me, where are we going to borrow so much money?" the fat woman said. "She just wants this much money right away, which means that once the school housing is allocated, we have to buy a house. We have to pay first before we can get the marriage certificate. No money, no marriage certificate."

"Does Lin Jiajia think so too?" Zhang Chenghai asked.

"I don't know," said the plump woman. "Her mother came, but she didn't. I guess her mother will still say a few words to her. We still need to prepare this money. What they said isn't wrong. We bought a house for Xiaohu in the capital, but not for Xiaowen, which is unfair to Xiaowen. Xiaowen's school allocated housing, and that's the school's allocation. It's the school's staff housing; you can live there when you're working, but it's not good to live there when you're not working. The school's staff housing might not be sold; it might just be for living in."

The school and dormitory buildings are close together, so retired teachers generally leave rather than buy houses, and the school is unlikely to sell the houses to them. It's better for teachers to live in houses closer to the school. When government agencies sell houses, it's usually because the agency is in another location or because the agency has other considerations.

“Your relatives back home don’t have much money, and neither do my relatives here,” the plump woman sighed. “We borrowed some money from Zihang before, so it’s not easy to borrow from Fenglan again. But if we don’t go to Fenglan, can we borrow from Yani? We don’t know how much money Yani has, or if she’ll be willing to lend it. If we borrow a little, it probably won’t be enough, so we’ll probably still have to borrow some from Fenglan.”

Fatty's sister-in-law originally thought it would be easier for Zhang Wen to get married, since the school provided housing, and they didn't need to rush to buy a house for their eldest son. Who knew that the future in-laws would bring up the matter of buying a house directly and insist on giving money.

“Xiao Wen should still have some money on him,” Zhang Chenghai said.

“A couple can’t live without money,” said the plump woman. “We can’t let Xiaowen take out all his money. I’ll find someone to borrow some money, and you can go and find someone too.”

"That's the only way," Zhang Chenghai said. "Or, should I borrow money from Commander Qin?"

“No need for you, I’ll talk to Fenglan,” said the plump woman. “We’ll borrow whatever we can. We still have to pay it back later, and we can’t let Xiaowen and his wife pay it back. They’ve already said so. We also can’t let others think that we value Xiaohu more and neglect Xiaowen.”

Early in the morning, Fatty went to find Fan Yani. When Fan Yani learned of Fatty's purpose, she frowned.

"Besides buying a house, is there anything else?" Fan Yani asked.

“The other conditions are all quite good, and it’s what we should give,” said Sister Pang. “It’s just that we bought a house for Xiaohu in the capital last year, and we’re a little short on cash now. We don’t have that much money, so we thought of borrowing some.”

“We can lend it,” Fan Yani said, “but not much. Didn’t you discuss it with them? Xiaowen is entitled to a house, isn’t she? Your current house is big enough for you. Waiting a year or two shouldn’t be a problem, right?”

"Sigh, they're afraid we'll back out. We're just trying to fool them with words, that's why they want us to hand over the money first," said the plump woman. "You can't really blame them. If it were me, I'd feel they're being unfair too. The eldest son didn't get anything; all the benefits went to the younger son. If Xiao Hu stays in the capital, he won't be able to take care of us much. It'll be good if he comes back to visit us during the New Year. He might send us a little money occasionally, but that's about it. We'll mostly have to rely on our eldest son in the future, so we can't mistreat them."

When Zhang Wen was single, Fatty's sister-in-law didn't need to worry about so many things. But now that Zhang Wen has a boyfriend, Fatty's sister-in-law has many more things to consider. Even if Fatty's sister-in-law doesn't worry, her future mother-in-law will.

“That’s true.” Fan Yani nodded. “I’m running a shop now, and I don’t have much money on hand. I’ve already bought the shop. I can probably only lend you about a thousand yuan.”

"That's not bad," said the plump woman. The man was just a neighbor, not related by blood, and lending her a thousand yuan was quite generous. These days, many people only earn two or three hundred yuan a month, which meant Fan Yani had borrowed several months' salary.

After leaving Fan Yani's place, Fatty Sister still called some of her relatives to see if she could borrow some money.

However, everyone is facing difficulties and doesn't have that much money on hand.

That evening, Fatty called Song Fenglan again, but unfortunately, Song Fenglan was working overtime and didn't come home.

Zhang Chenghai didn't borrow much money either; it wasn't easy to get a loan.

"Didn't you borrow it?" Zhang Chenghai saw his wife frowning.

“No, Fenglan isn’t home,” the plump woman said. “She often works overtime. When we stayed with her, she was often working overtime too. We can only contact her after she gets off work, and who knows when she’ll be free—tomorrow, the day after, or…”

“I’ll call Commander Qin,” Zhang Chenghai said.

"He was the one who answered the phone just now. I was too embarrassed to ask to borrow money," said the plump woman.

“You’re embarrassed, but I’m embarrassed. I’ll speak,” Zhang Chenghai said.

"No, let me do it instead of you," said the plump woman. "It's not a small amount of money being borrowed. It's better to talk to Fenglan about it."

Fatty didn't want to cause trouble for Qin Yizhou and Song Fenglan. If they hadn't gone to the capital, things would have been fine. But after going to the capital, they had to admit that Song Fenglan had more money. Song Fenglan had contributed just as much to the family, even more than Qin Yizhou.

Under these circumstances, Fatty thought it would be better for her to explain things to Song Fenglan herself, rather than letting the man explain, as he might not be able to explain things clearly.

Fat Sister waited and waited until Song Fenglan had time to call her, at which point Fat Sister finally brought up the matter of borrowing money.

"Yizhou said he received your call, but I was busy the past few days and came home very late at night, so I didn't call you. I was thinking that if you had something urgent, you would call again," Song Fenglan said. "I was busy and forgot to call you back."

"It's alright, it's alright," the plump woman sighed. "I've borrowed some money from other people these past few days."

"How much more do we need?" Song Fenglan asked.

"If possible..." the plump woman gritted her teeth, "could I borrow two thousand? We can calculate the interest for you."

"Forget about the interest," Song Fenglan said. "Is two thousand enough? Housing prices in the south of the city aren't low, are they?"

“The bride’s family also contributed money; it’s not all of our money,” said the plump woman. “We’ve prepared part of the money, and part of it.”

"Does Xiaohu know?" Song Fenglan asked.

"We haven't told him yet," said the plump woman. "Buying him a house in the capital was a well-thought-out decision. It's not because Zihang said houses in the capital are good that we're buying one. Prices are soaring, if we don't buy now while prices are still low, we won't be able to afford it later. We'll just have to endure these few years; they'll pass quickly. It's tough for a few years. That's how it is with raising children, especially boys; there are so many things to consider for them."

The plump woman envied Song Fenglan. Song Fenglan was capable; if Qin Zihang were to get married, it would be a breeze—the house was already prepared. Song Fenglan and her husband also had money; they wouldn't have to worry about not being able to pay the bride price. The plump woman then thought of herself; she didn't have that much money and would have to borrow from others.

“I also borrowed money from Yani, and Yani lent me a thousand yuan,” the plump woman said somewhat embarrassedly. “Yani said she would deduct it from my wages so I wouldn’t have to worry too much.”

“She’s right, you’re taking a daughter-in-law,” Song Fenglan said. “Do what you can.”

Song Fenglan thought that if Fatty and his wife hadn't bought a house for Zhang Xiaohu in the capital, they wouldn't be so strapped for cash. But buying a house for Zhang Xiaohu in the capital was a very good decision, just as Fatty had said; they just had to tough it out for the next few years.

"Even if it's beyond our capabilities, we still have to do it," said the plump woman. "This is for our son to get married, not for our own sake. We can only do our best to complete it."

Fatty Sister-in-law and Zhang Chenghai borrowed money everywhere, and Zhang Wen soon found out. He originally taught at a nearby elementary school, so how could he not have heard a thing? Zhang Wen felt that his parents were working too hard, so he thought about discussing it with his girlfriend to see if she could talk to her mother and postpone it for a year or two.

“Many people don’t keep their promises after getting a marriage certificate.” Lin Jiajia was reluctant when Zhang Wen suggested she talk to her mother. Lin Jiajia already knew what her mother had said a few days ago, and she agreed, so she didn’t say anything more, but waited. “In the future, we’ll be staying in Nancheng, we’ll be the ones taking care of your parents. Your brother has a house in the capital, can’t we have a house in Nancheng?”