"Mom, don't listen to his nonsense. He never tells the truth."

Fang Qiao directly exposed Fang Lu's lie: "He told you he met me half a month ago? That's utter nonsense. I clearly bumped into him at the entrance of Quanjude on May Day. He brought a woman to eat at Quanjude and said he didn't have enough money and asked to borrow five yuan. I'm struggling to make ends meet myself, where would I get five yuan? Besides, I'm only helping in emergencies, not in chronic poverty. If he were really starving, I, as his second sister, wouldn't just stand by and watch him go hungry. I would at least give him a few cents to buy a pancake. But to pretend to be rich when you don't have money and insist on going to Quanjude, I won't tolerate that kind of lousy behavior."

"A female comrade? What female comrade?" Yang Fengxia's focus was entirely on 'Fang Lu brought a female comrade'. As for what Fang Qiao said, it went in one ear and out the other, and she didn't take it to heart at all.

Yang Fengxia's face lit up with obvious joy: "He's dating someone?"

Fang Qiao mumbled, "I think so. He also said that if things go well, we might get married by the end of the year. The girl is pretty. If she's suitable, why don't you have Fang Lu take her home to meet you?"

In her past life, because of Fang Lu's bad behavior of only wanting to date and not wanting to get married, a full-blown fight would take place at home every year during the Spring Festival. Fang Lu wouldn't be satisfied until he got hit with a few sticks. Fang Qiao is trying to arrange it for him in this life.

"Oh dear!" Yang Fengxia slapped her thigh in anger when she heard Fang Qiao say that: "That brat Fang Lu, he's dating someone and didn't even tell me! I was even trying to set him up on blind dates everywhere!"

Then, changing the subject, she fired a barrage of criticism at Fang Qiao: "You too, since he's treating his girlfriend to dinner, something to save face, why didn't you lend him the money? What if your brother's wedding falls through because of this?"

"Why put on airs? If they break up because of this, it just means they were never meant to be."

Fang Qiao ignored her complaints and rolled her eyes speechlessly: "Mom, have you thought about it? My younger brother doesn't even earn twenty yuan a month. How many meals at Quanjude can he afford with that money? Even if we're frugal, each meal will still cost three to five yuan. If we're not frugal, he can eat his entire month's salary in one go. If our family were rich, we could support him and let him continue to squander his money. But are we rich? We're not rich."

He's not the kind of person who can afford Quanjude (a famous Peking duck restaurant). If he can't afford it, he can't afford it. He should be open about his circumstances and let people know. If things work out, great; if not, no. He started by putting on a show of wealth, making people think he's incredibly well-off. Then, when it's time to get married, he brings his fiancée to our run-down house. What will people think? Won't they think he's trying to scam them into marriage?

Upon hearing this, Yang Fengxia realized that Fang Qiao's words made sense, and she immediately became conflicted.

He asked Fang Qiao, "Then what should we do?"

Fang Qiao replied, "Mom, don't overthink it. I don't think it's certain whether Fang Lu and this woman will work out. He says he wants to marry her, but his actions don't reflect that. When he saw me, he instinctively pushed her away without telling the family. He doesn't seem like he's seriously dating."

Yang Fengxia was deeply offended by Fang Qiao's few words, and her family's financial situation was indeed not good.

There are only two single-story houses that are habitable, and it's cramped for a family of six. Once Fang Lu gets married, he can't let him and his wife sleep in the living room anymore.

Fang Lu is still a temporary worker and doesn't even qualify for housing. If he wants to get married, he'll have to rent a place to live, which will cost him a lot of money every month.

Thinking of this, Yang Fengxia's enthusiasm for finding a wife for Fang Lu vanished instantly.

There was no other way; we were just too poor.

She said listlessly, "If it can't be done, it can't be done. Anyway, your brother is still young. It's not too late for a man to get married when he's 24 or 25."

"Then let's wait. Good things come to those who wait. He's just a temporary worker now, with low wages and limited resources, so he can't find a good match. Once he gets a permanent position in a couple of years and his salary increases, things will be much better. He'll be able to find any kind of wife he wants."

Following Yang Fengxia's lead, Fang Qiao thought she should quickly brush off the topic to avoid her mother suddenly asking her for help again.

She would be more willing to help her older brother, Fang Hai. In her previous life, although Fang Hai only said he would help her, he at least provided emotional support and pulled her back from the brink of collapse several times.

What is Fang Lu anyway?

There was no kinship between them as siblings; instead, they mocked her search for her child, thinking that it was just a girl, lost and gone, why bother looking for her, making a mountain out of a molehill, and that she could just remarry and have another one.

Help him out?

Not even in this life, let alone the next!

As they were talking, Fang Qiao led Yang Fengxia onto the road where her house was located and said to her, "Mom, my house is just ahead."

When Xiao Jing saw Fang Qiao leading Yang Fengxia over, she quickly stood up with An'an in her arms and greeted her, "Hello, Auntie."

"Xiaojing is here too," Yang Fengxia said with a smile, leaning closer to An'an and teasing her a few times: "Oh my, An'an has grown so much. An'an, An'an, I'm your grandma, do you still remember grandma?"

Xiao Jing pursed her lips shyly and said softly, "She doesn't recognize anyone yet."

"That's true." Yang Fengxia withdrew her hand from teasing the child and turned to ask Fang Qiao, "Is An'an five months old? Can she roll over yet?"

"I will. I will be able to do it on the 107th day." Fang Qiao said, leading Yang Fengxia into the room: "Mom, don't stand outside, it's hot outside, come inside quickly."

"Oh, so this is your home."

Yang Fengxia turned and entered Fang Qiao's house, her eyes widening instantly.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!