Seeing such a large dowry and the power of the Lou family, Xiao Ya didn't dare to show Lou Xiao'e any displeasure the next day. While other mothers-in-law would usually set rules for their daughters-in-law the next day, this was simply not a concept in the Xu family.

Not only did she fail to establish any rules, but she also showed excessive care and concern for Lou Xiao'e. Many daughters-in-law are dissatisfied with their mothers-in-law, but Qin Huairu has the biggest grievances among them.

Originally, it was thought that Xu Fugui and his wife would make things difficult for Xu Damao's wife, but who knew that others valued their daughter-in-law more than their daughter.

Since marrying into the courtyard house, Xu Fugui's daughter-in-law has not only been free from any rules, but her parents-in-law have also treated her exceptionally well. As a new daughter-in-law, she doesn't even have to cook a meal.

The thought of being subjected to strict rules by her mother-in-law after marrying into the Jia family brought tears to Qin Huairu's eyes. What Qin Huairu didn't expect was the Xu family's subsequent actions.

After Lou Xiao'e settled into her new environment, Xu Fugui left the courtyard house with his wife and daughter. The Xu family had previously been long-term workers for the Lou family, and even if Xu Fugui and his wife had a lot of courage, they wouldn't dare to act like grandparents in front of Lou Xiao'e.

To avoid conflicts between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, Xu Fugui and his wife left the courtyard house, leaving the young couple plenty of space.

Lou Xiao'e's marriage to Xu Damao was definitely a step down. If it weren't for the current situation being unfavorable to capitalists, the Xu family, given their status, wouldn't even be worthy of carrying shoes for the Lou family.

Even now, Xu Damao wouldn't dare mistreat Lou Xiao'e. Keep in mind it's only 1959, not 1955. People's attitudes towards capitalists aren't as hostile yet.

After Xu Damao married Lou Xiao'e, he treated her exceptionally well. Washing clothes and cooking were all Xu Damao's responsibilities.

It wasn't that Lou Xiao'e didn't want to do these things, but rather that she simply didn't know how. As the daughter of a capitalist, Lou Xiao'e was born with a silver spoon in her mouth. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that Lou Xiao'e never lifted a finger in the world.

Lou Xiao'e, newly married, was completely inept at housework. Even if she wanted to, Xu Damao wouldn't trust her. It wasn't that Xu Damao doted on Lou Xiao'e; it was simply that on their very first day of marriage, he was already sick of her.

It wasn't just cooking that was the problem; even laundry was similar. Lou Xiao'e would use up a bag of laundry detergent or a bar of soap in one go. After the clothes dried, they would smell strongly of laundry detergent or soap.

The day after Xu Fugui and his wife left, almost all the housework fell to Xu Damao. Lou Xiao'e could only tidy up the rooms or do some cleaning at most.

Seeing Lou Xiao'e's happy appearance, Qin Huairu wished she could take Lou Xiao'e's place. Qin Huairu suddenly realized that not only was Lou Xiao'e doing well, but Yu Li was also doing well.

Although Yu Li's life wasn't as happy as Lou Xiao'e's, Sha Zhu treated her well, and she didn't need to do too much housework. It seemed that she was the only one in the entire courtyard who always had endless chores to do.

Qin Huairu used to think that having a mother-in-law was a good thing, because she could help her out to some extent. But now she has discovered that she can actually live a good life without her mother-in-law.

Without her mother-in-law, she could be in charge of her own household and do whatever she wanted without being oppressed by her. The thought of how others doted on their wives made Qin Huairu feel somewhat resentful.

She had initially thought her husband treated her fairly well. But comparisons are inevitable, and seeing Sha Zhu and Xu Damao, Qin Huairu felt somewhat dissatisfied with Jia Dongxu.

Perhaps because she was somewhat dissatisfied with Jia Dongxu, Qin Huairu didn't care as much about the deaf old lady and Yi Zhonghai.

This made the deaf old lady and Yi Zhonghai slightly dissatisfied. However, they both knew they couldn't offend Qin Huairu. Even if Qin Huairu wasn't so interested anymore, they couldn't say anything, after all, they weren't related to Qin Huairu. If they really offended Qin Huairu, their lives would be even more difficult in the future.

Given Jia Zhangshi's character, she certainly wouldn't take care of herself like Qin Huairu did. With the deaf old lady's intelligence, she naturally knew where the problem lay.

In order to get Qin Huairu to serve her better, the deaf old lady went directly to Xu Damao.

“Da Mao, you’re a man, how can you do this kind of thing every day as the head of the family? Da Mao, you’re still young, you should spend more energy on your work.”

Xu Damao had no reason to complain about any of this, given Lou Xiao'e's lavish dowry. Even though Lou Xiao'e only brought two briefcases, their value was definitely comparable to the combined wealth of everyone in the courtyard.

But others didn't know Xu Damao's situation, and many people were mocking him. They said Xu Damao wasn't a real man, but Xu Damao didn't care what others said at all.

Compared to his vast wealth and connections, doing laundry and cooking weren't particularly difficult. Perhaps due to his reconciliation with Sha Zhu, or perhaps due to changes in the situation at the courtyard house, Xu Damao also underwent several changes.

The Lou family did not look down on Xu Damao. Just over ten days after their marriage, the Lou family secretly transferred two shops to the Xu family.

The two shops were not given directly to Xu Damao and his wife, but were transferred to Xu Fugui and his family. Since the Lou family had married Lou Xiao'e to Xu Damao, they naturally wouldn't allow Lou Xiao'e to have any assets under her name.

Xu Fugui and his family naturally knew quite a bit as well. The fact that Miss Lou was able to marry into the Xu family was entirely due to the current situation. Otherwise, the Xu family wouldn't even have the right to sit at the same table with Lou Xiao'e.

With so much money, Xu Damao naturally had no complaints; in fact, he was quite happy. Since getting married, Xu Damao basically stayed at home except when he went out to show movies.

He didn't pay any attention to what the deaf old lady was saying, and didn't even look at her directly.

This made Lou Xiao'e, who was hiding in the shadows, very happy. However, she harbored resentment towards the deaf old woman. Seeing Xu Damao working, Lou Xiao'e went over as well. Even if she couldn't do a good job herself, she had to share some of the burden with her husband.

Lou Xiao'e decided to learn to do housework as soon as possible. That way, people wouldn't gossip about her. Xu Damao was also very happy to see Lou Xiao'e helping him. The two of them washed clothes in the yard, their affectionate appearance making many people envious.

Xu Damao didn't care about the wages at the steel rolling mill. If it weren't for maintaining his status as a worker, he would have even quit. He only earned thirty or forty yuan a month, but as long as Lou Xiao'e was happy, making three or four thousand a month wouldn't be a problem, let alone thirty or forty.

Although he can't resign now, it's not a big problem for him to slack off at work. Director Lou is still a director of the steel rolling mill. As long as Xu Damao doesn't make any major mistakes, generally no one will bother with him.

Although Director Lou no longer manages things, he still has a lot of connections in the steel mill, since the steel mill used to belong to the Lou family.

Xu Damao was more shrewd than most people. Going to work every day wouldn't earn him much money; it was better to take good care of Lou Xiao'e. As long as Lou Xiao'e was happy, a few kind words from her father would be more effective than working at the steel mill.

No one knew the Lou family's power better than the Xu family. After all, Xu Damao's parents had both been servants to the Lou family. They understood the saying, "Even a starved camel is bigger than a horse."

Even if all of the Lou family's businesses have become public-private partnerships, the annual dividends alone would amount to at least several hundred thousand yuan. A small portion of that could easily be passed on to the Xu family would be enough to support them for a lifetime.

However, Xu Damao was unaware that his actions were causing Director Lou to increasingly despise him. Director Lou believed Xu Damao was too opportunistic and unworthy of his daughter's trust.

Every time Lou Xiao'e went back to her parents' home, she would be scolded by her father. Xu Damao would also get a lot of scolding along with her. It wasn't that Director Lou didn't care about his daughter. In the current climate, having money wasn't necessarily a good thing.

Director Lou's actions poured cold water on Xu Damao's hopes. He had originally thought that by associating with the Lou family, the Xu family would rise to prominence. Who knew this would happen?

Disheartened, Xu Damao could only continue working at the steel mill. Although he harbored resentment, he dared not neglect Lou Xiao'e. With the Lou family's power, if they were to become angry, the Xu family would be utterly ruined.

Although Director Lou disliked him, it didn't stop him from using his status as the son-in-law of the Lou family to build his own influence in the steel rolling mill.

Leveraging his connections and his status as the son-in-law of the Lou family, Xu Damao cultivated relationships with many mid- to low-level leaders connected to the Lou family. This allowed Xu Damao to gradually rise through the ranks at the steel rolling mill.

The more Xu Damao did this, the angrier the Lou family became. They even summoned Xu Damao to their home and berated him several times.

"If you ever dare to use the Lou family's name to cause trouble again, don't blame me for making your Xu family disappear from this world. Do you think I don't understand your little tricks?"

"If things weren't going to get out of hand right now, do you think you'd be qualified to marry my daughter? Your Xu family is nothing more than long-term laborers of the Lou family. Even the Lou family has to keep a low profile these days, yet you dare to be so ostentatious. Do you think the Lou family isn't already too prominent and attracts too much attention?"

"If I ever hear you doing this again, using the Lou family's name to do something like this, you'd better think about the consequences."

"From now on, do not set foot in our Lou family home unless absolutely necessary. You, Xu Damao, may want to die, but our Lou family does not want to be implicated by you."