Chen family
Grandma Chen said sullenly, "What was Chen Xiaomi thinking? She actually arranged for Xiao Cai to be drowned in the pond. She herself was born to a twin and even found a twin for her younger brother. The whole family is a money-losing bunch."
Grandpa Chen sighed and said, "If Xiao Cai thinks there's no problem, then you don't need to worry about it."
Grandma Chen said somewhat excitedly, "How can we not care? That Chen Xiaocai doesn't take me seriously at all."
Grandma Chen originally thought that even though they had severed ties, she was still Chen Xiaocai's grandmother, and she would be indispensable for such an important event. Therefore, she thought Chen Xiaocai would come to her for her wedding. So, on the day of Chen Xiaocai's wedding, Grandma Chen changed her clothes early and waited for Chen Xiaomi to come to her.
Grandma Chen had originally thought that if Chen Xiaomi came, she could give her a little pushover. However, after waiting at home until lunchtime, no one came looking for her. Grandma Chen was disheartened to realize that Chen Xiaomi and his brothers didn't take her seriously at all. These brothers hadn't even considered asking her for help.
Some villagers who had eaten at the Shen family's house came to visit the Chen family, saying that the Shen family's food was really good, with particularly large portions of meat and vegetables, which must have cost a lot of money.
They also said that Chen Chi was a lucky man; having followed Chen Xiaocai, he would never have to worry about food or clothing again.
Old Master Chen smoked his cigarette, feeling a tightness in his chest.
Although the old man didn't wear his heart on his sleeve like the old woman, he still felt that such a big event as a wedding should definitely invite him, the grandfather. He didn't expect that Chen Xiaolai didn't take him, her elder, seriously at all, and only knew how to please Granny Chen, which made the old man feel very embarrassed.
The old man glanced at the old woman and said, "So, if you want to manage it, how do you want to manage it?" The old woman immediately became somewhat sullen at the old man's question.
Although Chen Xiaocai's dowry was not as much as Lu Chengyu's back then, it was still quite a lot. In recent years, the Chen family had spent a lot of money to marry off Chen He and Chen Qu, and their lives had not improved at all.
Chen He and Chen Qu had also done short-term jobs in town, but the wages were low and meals weren't provided. Compared to Chen Xiaomi's job, it was far worse, and even worse than Zhang Rui's job.
It's fine if there's no one to compare them to, but with a few people to compare them to, Chen He and Chen Qu find their work quite uninspiring.
The old lady looked at the old man and said, "Zhang Rui has made a fortune following Xiaomi. What do you think about letting him use Ahe and Aqu?" The old man frowned. How could he not know that Huaxia Trading Company had good benefits? Everyone in the village wanted to work at Huaxia Trading Company, but they wouldn't hire him!
"Xiaomi won't use it." The old man knew Chen Xiaomi's personality well.
The old lady said unhappily, "How is our grandson any worse than Chen Rui?"
The old man sighed and said, "Go and tell Xiaomi what you're saying!"
The old lady's expression changed, and she immediately fell silent.
"If you had treated your second son's family better back then, things wouldn't be like this now," the old man said with a heavy heart.
The old lady's face flushed red, and her eyes blazed with fury.
During this time, many people came to visit the Chen family. Often, people would say to the old lady with a sigh, "If only you had treated the second wife better back then, she could be living a life of luxury in the city now."
A group of people repeatedly praised Chen Xiaomi for being promising.
The visitors praised the three Chen brothers for their success, but the old lady felt this was a blatant insult, mocking her for being blind to their worth.
It's one thing for others to say that, but when the old man said it too, the old lady was so angry she was sobbing.
Lu Family
"I never expected that old hag Shen would become so arrogant when she's about to die," Old Mrs. Lu muttered.
Lu Ming said sullenly, "These Chen brothers are really arrogant."
"Cheng Yu, that woman even calls Old Lady Shen 'Old Madam,' look how arrogant she is to that old woman." In the countryside, people toil in the fields for a living, while people in town keep one or two maids at home to serve them.
Old Mrs. Lu dreamed of building a big mansion for Lu Chengyu when he became an official, and having him live there as her old lady, with several maids to serve her.
The old lady never expected that the treatment she hadn't received would be enjoyed by Granny Chen first. The old lady couldn't help but feel a little annoyed. Lu Chengyu frowned. When the country folk saw Chen Xiaocai getting married, they only knew to look at the betrothal gifts, but Lu Chengyu saw something different.
Chen Xiaocai's wedding banquet was held in a restaurant, and many wealthy men from the town attended, making it quite a grand affair. A considerable amount of wine was consumed at the banquet, and the wine alone was worth several taels of silver.
Lu Chengyu thought to himself: Lu Lin seems to have a lot of power. The employees in the Huaxia store seem to listen to him very much.
Lu Chengyu had previously considered investigating the owner behind the Huaxia store, but something came up and he was delayed. Now, seeing Chen Xiaocai's grand wedding, he's had some ideas again.
Before Lu Chengyu could even look for the registrar, the registrar himself took the initiative to invite him.
"Your brother-in-law asked us to meet at Fuyuan Restaurant."
Li Fangyue nodded and said, "Yes, my sister said that the family hasn't seen each other for a long time, so we should have a meal together."
Before passing the imperial examination, Lu Chengyu had always respected the registrar. Now that he had passed, Lu Chengyu felt more confident and his feelings towards the registrar were just so-so. Because he had married Li Fangyue, he hadn't benefited from the registrar's influence, so Lu Chengyu's respect for the registrar was limited.
However, knowing that the Registrar had taken the initiative to invite him, Lu Chengyu was still somewhat curious.
Lu Chengyu didn't think that the registrar's invitation was to strengthen their relationship; it was more likely that there was something else going on.
Lu Chengyu thought it might be because of his passing the imperial examination to become a Xiucai (a scholar who passed the lowest level of the imperial examinations). However, upon further reflection, he realized that it had been some time since he had passed the examinations, and it was rather strange that the registrar was only now contacting him about this matter.
The next day, Lu Chengyu and Li Fangyue went to Fuyuan Restaurant together.
The registrar was short and stout, and quite old. Li Ru, who was a few years older than Li Fangyue, was very well-maintained and quite attractive. In contrast, although Li Fangyue was young, she looked older than Li Ru because of the hard work she had done in the countryside.
"Congratulations, Brother Lu, you've passed the imperial examination and become a scholar. You're so young, but you have a bright future ahead of you. If you can make even greater progress in the future, you'll rise to great heights. Don't forget your brother!"
"You flatter me, Your Excellency. Taking this further is not so easy!"
Lu Chengyu naturally wanted to take things further, but he also knew that the registrar's words were just flattery. After a few rounds of drinks, the registrar finally turned the topic to the main point, "Chengyu, I heard that Lu Lin of Huaxia Trading Company is your cousin?"
Lu Chengyu was somewhat puzzled, wondering why the registrar had suddenly shifted the topic to Lu Lin. "Yes, he's no simple man!" the registrar said meaningfully.
Lu Chengyu had a few doubts in his mind. Although Lu Lin was paid well, he was just a handyman. How could he be worthy of the title of chief clerk? "My cousin has been working for the boss of Huaxia Trading Company. I heard that the wages are good."
The registrar smiled and said, "Working? That's not right. The owner of Huaxia Trading Company is Chen Xiaomi. Although Lu Lin married into the family, he is still considered family. Lu Lin is also considered half the owner of the restaurant."
Lu Chengyu was frightened, and so was Li Fangyue.
"Brother-in-law, are you mistaken? It's said that there's a big boss behind Huaxia Trading Company, and Chen Xiaomi and Lu Lin are both working for him," Li Fangyue couldn't help but say.
In Li Fangyue's eyes, Chen Xiaomi was just a high-level handyman, and she couldn't believe that Chen Xiaomi was the boss's clerk. Seeing the shocked looks on Lu Chengyu and Li Fangyue's faces, she guessed a bit and said helplessly, "I was organizing the data in the yamen a couple of days ago. Several years ago, the shops and houses of Huaxia Trading Company had already belonged to Chen Xiaomi."
Lu Chengyu murmured, "That's impossible."
The registrar looked at the two of them with amusement. "As the saying goes, 'Don't flaunt your wealth.' This big boss behind the scenes is probably just a fabrication to cover up the truth. Cheng Yu, you're too honest. You've been completely fooled."
Lu Chengyu's face was tense, his fingers trembled slightly, and it was as if a thunderbolt had exploded in his mind, leaving him somewhat at a loss.
The registrar frowned and said, "Isn't Lu Lin your cousin? You didn't know anything about it?"
The registrar looked at Lu Chengyu and thought to himself: His investigation results were indeed correct. The relationship between Lu Chengyu and Lu Lin is really not good!
When Chen Xiaomi first bought Huaxia Trading Company, it wasn't very large, and the registrar didn't pay much attention to it. Over the years, Huaxia Trading Company's business has become increasingly prosperous, and many merchants have traveled long distances to purchase goods after hearing about its reputation. Huaxia Trading Company has even made Lin Town famous. Lu Chengyu and Li Fangyue are considered a big deal by the Lu family, but in fact, the registrar didn't take Lu Chengyu seriously at all, and didn't care much about the Lu family's affairs. However, recently, Lu Chengyu passed the imperial examination and became a Xiucai, so the registrar began to pay attention to this brother-in-law.
The investigation revealed something quite surprising. The registrar hadn't expected Lu Chengyu and Lu Lin to be so close, and that the Lu family actually had such a wealthy relative. However, it seemed that while Lu Lin was rich, the Lu family hadn't benefited at all. Lu Chengyu forced a smile and said, "Everyone in the village says that the owner of Huaxia Trading Company has gone out and handed the company over to Chen Xiaomi to manage."
The registrar shook his head and said, "The trading company belongs to Chen Xiaomi. Chen Xiaomi bought it back for more than two hundred taels of silver. You two are so close, yet your cousin has never mentioned anything to you."
Lu Chengyu: "..."
Li Fangyue clenched her fists. She had been married into the Lu family for many years and knew some of the grudges between Lu Lin and Lu Chengyu. Li Fangyue never dreamed that Lu Lin would become so successful. It was only because of the grudges of the past that they had not benefited from it at all over the years.
As Lu Chengyu emerged from the restaurant, he was completely dazed, his mind filled with disbelief.
If Huaxia Trading Company belongs to Chen Xiaomi, then how much silver does Lu Lin actually have? Lu Chengyu suddenly felt like the whole world had collapsed. The villagers always thought that Chen Xiaomi sold the house back then because she didn't have money, and Lu Chengyu thought so too.
Some people who were jealous of Chen Xiaocai's marriage to Shen Chi said that although Chen Xiaocai was rich, she didn't own a house. It was nice to live in a mansion in town, but the house wasn't her own. She was living under someone else's roof, and she would be kicked out whenever the owner came back.
Lu Chengyu clenched his fist. It wasn't hard to guess that since the house in Linzhen belonged to Chen Xiaomi and she already had a house in the town, why would she need a house in the village?
No wonder Lu Lin hasn't built a house in the village all these years.
Lu Chengyu never expected that Lu Lin would quietly become a prominent figure in the town.
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