Chapter 6 Anyway, it's all like this.
"These clothes are so wet." Chen Li touched the water that had just dripped from his head and leaned back. "Didn't I tell you to wash them in the washing machine?"
“Just a few pieces of clothing for your son, I can wash them by hand, saving the trouble of using the washing machine.” Wang Hui shook her hands, and a white shirt with a blue collar was neatly laid out. “Money, every penny saved is a penny earned.”
The mother and son had repeated this conversation countless times.
If it works, Chen Li won't have to lean back to avoid the water dripping from his clothes anymore.
However, that's not the point.
"When Chi'an called you this afternoon and asked you to pick up Zui Zui, what was his tone like?"
“What do you mean, ‘what do you mean?’ She just told me to pick up the kids.” Wang Hui hung the remaining clothes hangers from the lemon-yellow plastic tray one by one on the lower clothesline on the balcony. “She’s always busy, I don’t know what she’s doing. She doesn’t go to work, and she still makes me pick up the kids.”
Surprisingly, he didn't tell his mother about what happened that afternoon.
It seems they have other ideas...
Chen Li pondered for a moment, then reached out and took the basin from Wang Hui's hand. "Mom, put your things down for a moment. I need to talk to you about something."
"What's up? I'll tell you when I'm done." Wang Hui was holding a clothes pole when her son tugged at it a couple of times. She lost her balance, and the clothes pole hit the soap dish on the windowsill, causing it to crash down and shatter into pieces. "Sigh, this is the clothes pole that my mom bought for me. I told her to buy a wooden one, but she insisted on buying a stainless steel telescopic one. It's so uncomfortable to use. Tomorrow, if this one breaks, I'll go to the market and buy a new one that works well."
Chen Li watched his mother grumbling as she squatted down to pick up things, without offering to help. Once she had picked up most of them, he turned around and said, "Hurry up."
"Have you eaten? If not, I made some bone broth in the pot. Go and have a couple of bowls." Wang Hui put everything back on the balcony while also checking on her son's stomach.
"I've already eaten out."
Chen Li has no appetite for soup now.
He was careless, assuming that Li Chi'an would come home late every time he met with friends, just like he always did.
Who knew she'd be back so early today?
What bad luck.
"I have to finish cleaning up before I go over there."
Wang Hui grumbled as she finished tidying the balcony and followed her eldest son into the house. Just as her eldest son was about to push open his bedroom door, she called out, "Your dad is scrolling through Douyin in his room, it's so noisy."
Chen Li turned around and asked, "Is Chen Xiang in the room?"
"That debt collector hasn't come back yet."
Chen Li took a few steps forward, pushed open the door to his younger brother's room, and after his mother went in, he closed the door behind him and said bluntly, "Mom, I'm afraid you and Dad will have to work hard during this time. I really need your help to take care of me for a while."
"You want us to take care of you?" Wang Hui looked puzzled and somewhat reluctant. "Where would I have the time? The shop isn't busy, is it?"
At the beginning of the year, she and her father rented a shop downstairs that had been closed for a long time to sell breakfast, and now they also sell sweet soup.
“Your shop has a few businesses, you can manage.” The idea of leaving his son with his parents for a while came to Chen Li’s mind when he saw his son sitting in a chair reading a picture book after he entered the shop. He had already planned everything out when he had the idea. “My dad will drop him off in the morning, and you can pick him up in the afternoon. He’s so big now, he’s easy to take care of. He has to go to school during the day, so you don’t need to take care of him much.”
"Why did you suddenly decide to leave the child with me?" Wang Hui's brows furrowed deeply. "Did you and your wife discuss this? Does she not mind that I'm not a good parent?"
If Li Chi'an himself were here, he would inevitably be speechless upon hearing his mother-in-law speak like that.
She never said a single word that her mother-in-law was taking good care of her son!
In fact, Wang Hui has never spent much time taking care of her grandson.
The year Chen Zui was born, she took care of her daughter-in-law during her postpartum period and helped take care of the baby for a few months. After that, Li Chi'an was basically the one who took care of her son. Otherwise, she wouldn't have lost her job at the magazine.
These two women, mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, have different personalities and lifestyles, so naturally their parenting styles are also different.
Li Chi'an didn't quite accept her mother-in-law's methods of raising the child, but she was able to try to understand that her mother-in-law's methods were due to limitations in her education and cognitive abilities, so she never directly criticized her.
But Wang Hui felt that her daughter-in-law didn't listen to her in many ways at home and just disliked her.
“I’ll give you an extra 2,000 yuan every month, in return for your and Dad’s help in looking after the child.” Chen Li could easily see his mother’s dissatisfaction with his wife and her unwillingness to help with childcare, but she had no choice but to agree. “I think you’re doing a great job.”
A smile finally appeared on Wang Hui's face. "I knew you were alright, you never come to see me."
"Then it's settled."
Chen Li had expected that his mother would agree to help take care of the child.
He leaned slightly closer to Wang Hui and continued, "There's something else I need to tell you, but don't tell anyone else, and don't tell my dad either."
"What's up?"
Wang Hui didn't think much of it, but the next second, her son dropped a bombshell on her: "Chi'an might want to divorce me. During this period, you need to keep a close eye on him."
Wang Hui paused briefly, "Why does she want a divorce from you?"
"Mom, just know she's going to make a scene, I'll handle the rest." Chen Li said sheepishly.
Seeing him like this, no matter how good Wang Hui thought her son was, she could still sense something was wrong with him.
She took a deep breath and pinched her son's arm hard. "Why do you have to do this? Why do you have to do this?"
"It hurts so much." Chen's mother was used to hard labor and had plenty of strength; when she pinched someone, it was incredibly painful.
At least Chen Li was pinched so hard that he dodged to the side, saying, "Mom, stop pinching me, it hurts so much!"
Wang Hui gritted her teeth and cursed in a low voice, "May you die of pain!"
In the end, they let go.
Chen Li gave a faint smile. "Mom, remember to keep my mouth shut for me."
"Guard my ass!" Wang Hui was furious. She raised her hand and lightly punched his back a few times, muttering under her breath, "You lunatic! If your wife really makes a scene, how many days can I hide it from her? You, you..."
The thought of her son and daughter-in-law getting a divorce and losing her happy family made Wang Hui really angry. Her breathing became rapid and her chest heaved noticeably.
She has high blood pressure, and Chen Li was afraid that she might get emotional and do something bad, so he held her shoulders and rubbed her back, saying, "Calm down."
Chen's mother, whose eyelids had drooped, glared at him and said, "If it weren't for what you did, would your wife be making a scene and wanting a divorce?"
"Cough." Chen Li leaned against the door behind him. "It's all the same now anyway."
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