Chapter 27
◎ Xu Zeli returned home with a gloomy face. Xu Zhengqing and Xu Huiqiu were still awake.
Xu Zeli returned home with a gloomy face. Xu Zhengqing and Xu Huiqiu were still awake. Xu Zhengqing was sitting on a stool beside the bed, while Xu Huiqiu bent over to make the bed and sweep the dust with a feather duster.
Xu Zeli didn't waste time on the same nonsense he'd done when he'd called Bei Bitang. He went straight to the point, "Linlin called me and said her mother felt the wedding wasn't grand enough and wanted to make major changes to make it worthy of her daughter. She and her father agreed, so the wedding can't go ahead as planned. As for when it will be postponed, she doesn't know."
Xu Huiqiu angrily threw the feather duster in her hand and said, "What else can they be dissatisfied with?! When we first discussed it, everything was done according to their wishes! How can they bully me like this! The wedding banquet at Renhe Hall, the betrothal gift of 666 yuan, which one of them is not good enough? She thinks her daughter is a princess!"
Xu Huiqiu was furious. "This marriage is over! I want the Zeng family to return the money and things my family paid for!"
As soon as these words came out, Xu Zhengqing glared at her and said, "Nonsense! How can we not get married? Such a joke, relatives and friends have already been invited, won't it make them laugh? Hasn't our family been neglected enough these years?"
As he spoke, he looked at Xu Zeli, "Doesn't your father-in-law have any dissatisfaction at all? He was the one who arranged the wedding. Why don't you go find Zeng Linlin's father?"
Xu Huiqiu's eyes lit up, and she clapped her hands, saying, "Right! Go find my father-in-law. He's easier to talk to. I don't believe they'd be able to turn the tables and go against me if he wasn't willing to do anything!"
At the end of the day, it was still about money. Xu Zeli thought to himself, just for an unknown amount of silver, one person told him not to get married, as if the path to heaven he had finally grasped was less important than that little money. Another person told him to humble himself and go to Zeng Linlin's father. Did my father know that he was most afraid of Zeng Linlin's father? Zeng Linlin's father's eyes seemed to see through him.
How could his parents be so short-sighted and not care about him.
Xu Zeli said with a gloomy face, "Mom and Dad, don't worry. Linlin's family is already rich, and now that her mom has come back to find her, they'll be even richer. Any extra money will be paid by Linlin's mom."
Xu Zhengqing and Xu Huiqiu looked at each other, very embarrassed. It seemed that they had exposed their shortcomings as parents in front of Xu Zeli.
Life had been tough before, and they simply laid their problems before Xu Zeli, saying nothing, as he would take the initiative to resolve them. Later, when Xu Zeli was admitted to university, they relied on him even more, but they still held the natural authority of a parent before him.
This time, in order to get more money, they are so hysterical and begging for help helplessly. How will they face their son in the future? Where will they put their face?
Xu Huiqiu was silent for a long time, then said with an embarrassed look, "That's good. Now we don't have to worry about it. Xiaoze, just be at ease and be your groom."
Xu Zhengqing sighed and said, "We should find a way to contribute more. Linlin's family paid the lion's share of the wedding banquet. Even if we gave a high betrothal gift, they would have given us a high dowry in return."
Xu Huiqiu immediately objected, "They're the ones who aren't satisfied! Whoever's dissatisfied should pay! Otherwise, how could there be so many good things? I'm not satisfied with my own house; it's too small. Is there anyone who can buy me a bigger one?!"
Xu Zhengqing growled at Xu Huiqiu, "Do you want us to lose face in front of our in-laws? Our family's position is already low. What will outsiders think? My parents are here, but my son acts like a gigolo."
Hsu Hui-chiu said reluctantly, "Then our family will give us another hundred yuan. Ten big unity tickets will be enough for two tables of banquets."
Xu Zhengqing continued to stare at Xu Huiqiu and wanted to speak, but Xu Zeli interrupted their quarrel.
He said, "Mom and Dad, this isn't about money, or whether or not our family should contribute, or how much is appropriate. I doubt Linlin wants to marry me anymore."
Xu Huiqiu said in disbelief: "She doesn't want to get married! Xiaoze, she looks down on you?! With her temper, who can stand it? She looks down on you! I'm going to the Zeng family right now and ask them to give an explanation! No, what right does she have!"
Xu Huiqiu was furious. In her eyes, her son was perfect, even worthy of being the goddess Chang'e in heaven. Even after knowing the Zeng family's status, she sometimes thought of her son's servility to Zeng Linlin, but she never thought about it too much.
Xu Zhengqing started scolding Xu Huiqiu again, "It's all your fault. Linlin, come here. Who are you showing that expression and words to? You're being sarcastic, expecting everyone to coax you and give in to you. Especially Linlin. You wanted to control her and make her flatter you, your future mother-in-law. Now, you're making her reconsider whether she's a good match for my son."
Xu Huiqiu shrank back and forth as she was scolded.
Xu Zeli couldn't bear it any longer and said, "Dad, it's not because of Mom. It's because Linlin wants to go abroad."
Xu Zhengqing was a little slow to react and asked dully, "Go abroad? How do you go?"
Xu Zhengqing also yearned for a life abroad. He read over and over again newspapers about Chinese students studying in the United States, thinking that if he had been born twenty or so years later, he would have been able to catch up with the good times. Perhaps he, too, could go abroad, live in a big house, and own a car.
This time, Xu Huiqiu reacted faster than Xu Zhengqing. She asked, "How? Isn't Zeng Linlin's mother British? Wouldn't it be easy for her mother to take her away, just like how our children's household registration follows their mothers?"
Xu Zeli said subduedly, "Linlin thought I didn't know, but I actually knew she was secretly planning to go abroad without telling me."
Xu Zhengqing slapped his thigh and said excitedly, "Xiao Ze, you marry Linlin and let her mother take you out with her."
Xu Huiqiu said hurriedly, "Nonsense! No! We only have this one son!"
Xu Zhengqing glared at her and said, "My father-in-law only has Linlin as his child! Besides, Xiaoze should go out first and then slowly take us with him."
Xu Huiqiu's eyes were frighteningly bright.
Xu Zeli sneered and said, "If Linlin wanted to take me out with her, she wouldn't have kept it a secret from me, nor would she have tried to use excuses to hold me back from getting married. She probably wasn't completely sure she could get out. So she made two plans: if she couldn't get out, she'd marry me. If she could get out, she wouldn't even have to give me an explanation. How could I have chased her to England?"
"Linlin's mother is British, and she can't even guarantee that she can take her own daughter abroad. How can I, an ordinary college student, take her abroad?"
He had to give up his parents' desire for him to take them abroad. It would be nice for him to go abroad alone, but he had to bring the whole family along? His parents' demands on him had been getting higher and higher recently.
Xu Huiqiu said bitterly, "How could Zeng Linlin be so mean! I was so kind to her, and she wasted my whole pot of beef!"
Xu Zhengqing was silent for a moment, then said with a gloomy face, "So, let's just let this matter go? Let them plot against us?"
Xu Zeli looked out the window at the night and said, "Now I can only hope that Linlin's going abroad won't go smoothly."
There was silence in the room for a long time.
Xu Zhengqing lowered his head even lower and said, "It's all my fault that my parents are not up to the task. Their influence is not strong enough. Otherwise, they wouldn't be able to do anything about the Zeng family."
A look of guilt also appeared on Xu Huiqiu's face.
Xu Zeli took the opportunity to speak up, "Mom and Dad, if Linlin goes abroad, I want to be with Bitang again. After I graduate, I will marry her."
Xu Huiqiu and Xu Zhengqing heard this, and Xu Zhengqing was the first to disagree, saying, "No, not yet. Xiaoze, you have everything going for you. You're fair-skinned, well-mannered, and tall. You went to a reputable university. We have two teachers in our family, and we're a family of scholars. Once you graduate and get a cadre position, our family will be able to move up even further."
Hsu Hui-chiu also said, "Even if Zeng Linlin can't be married, Bei Bitang will be his choice. What's her education level? What's my son's education level? Her family is far inferior to ours."
Xu Zeli persuaded them, "Dad and Mom, what you said is true, but Bitang is willing to endure hardships with me and share my joys and sorrows. If Bitang were Linlin, she would definitely not have the idea of abandoning me to go abroad. In this respect, Linlin is probably not even one ten-thousandth as good as Bitang."
Xu Zhengqing was still unwilling and waved his hand, saying, "Xiao Ze, you're still thinking about Bei Bitang, simply because Lin Lin has a bad temper and isn't as gentle to you as Bei Bitang, nor is she as pretty as Bei Bitang. When you climb up the ladder in the future, won't Lin Lin be completely obedient to you? As long as you become more and more successful, more and more gentle and beautiful girls will appear around you. Then you won't think about Bei Bitang anymore, you'll think that Bei Bitang is nothing special, and there are plenty of girls like her."
Xu Huiqiu had some dissatisfaction with Zeng Linlin, thinking she was too arrogant, but in comparison, her impression of Bei Bitang couldn't be worse. They argued the first time they met, and she even got scolded. Bei Bitang was stubborn and stubborn, and Zeng Linlin was a thousand times better than her.
Xu Huiqiu said disdainfully, "Bah! What do you mean by sharing hardships? My son will be honest and upright in the future. He will walk the high road. There will be no hardship, only prosperity to enjoy."
Xu Zeli had a stubborn look on his face and remained silent.
Xu Zhengqing shamelessly said, "When our family was in trouble, Bei Bitang, as Xiaoze's partner, was supposed to help us. This was all she could do, otherwise how could she show her kindness to Xiaoze? Over the years, her affection for Xiaoze hasn't even matched the gift Linlin gave us once. How can she compare to Linlin? If it was Linlin who was dating Xiaoze, she would have given him far more than Bei Bitang. And that's what our family truly needs: a clean slate, reinstatement of his job, and Xiaoze attending Workers and Peasants University."
Xu Huiqiu and Xu Zhengqing stood on the same front and said to Xu Zeli, "That's right, isn't it normal for Bei Bitang to be nice to you?"
Xu Zhengqing spoke up, "Don't mention Bei Bitang anymore. That name is so alluring, I don't want to hear it again. Xiaoze's mom, can you think of any remedial measures you can take? I think Linlin's reluctance to marry Xiaoze has something to do with your attitude towards her that day. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been so cruel as to abandon Xiaoze."
Xu Huiqiu's brows were furrowed tightly. Under Xu Zhengqing's pressured gaze, she said depressedly, "At worst, I can go to Zeng's house early tomorrow morning, apologize to Zeng Linlin, and serve tea and water to her mother. That should be fine, right? Who told us not to have a daughter?! Being a mother-in-law is such a hard life. It's not as good as being a mother-in-law. You're still just a mother."
Xu Zhengqing nodded and said in a gentle tone, "Go buy some things tomorrow. From now on, treat Linlin the same way you treat Xiaoze, and treat her mother the same way you treat Zeng Linlin's father. Don't argue with her mother, don't show any signs of it."
Xu Zeli couldn't stand it any longer, so he stood up and said, "Don't do this. The more you do this, the more people will look down on us."
Xu Zhengqing looked into Xu Zeli's eyes and said gloomily, "What can we do? Can't you let your mother go?"
Xu Zeli fell silent, unable to say "don't go" which was on the tip of his tongue.
Xu Huiqiu wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and said firmly, "I must go. No one can stop me. For my son, I can do anything. It's just bowing to my in-laws."
The next day, Xu Huiqiu went to the department store early in the morning to buy a valuable gift and went to Zeng's house, only to be turned away. The Zeng family's nanny told her that Zeng Linlin and her mother were not at home; they had gone to Tonglu to escape the summer heat.
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