Chapter 191: Say one more word, I will beat women too
After hearing what Lin Duogu said, He Guixiang actually felt a little soft-hearted.
Although my sister-in-law was mean and fussy, when it came to human life, all the past grudges became a thing of the past, seeming less important. It wasn't that she didn't feel resentful, but she simply couldn't stand by and watch a living person die.
Unexpectedly, Lin Duogu asked for five taels of silver. He Guixiang was shocked and most of her sympathy disappeared.
She came to her senses and thought that Lin Duogu was taking advantage of their family!
Those who were truly experiencing hardship were always cautious when asking for money, never asking for exorbitant amounts. Even when desperate, fearing rejection, they would offer a reasonable amount. Even if they couldn't pay it back in five or six years, it wouldn't affect the other party. No one would simply ask for half a person's entire fortune.
Outsiders don’t know how much money she has saved, but the amount that is visible can be roughly calculated.
If it's really the amount outsiders think, then borrowing these five hundred yuan would mean borrowing half of the family's wealth. How dare Lin Duogu ask for such a sum!
Lin Duogu didn't dare to do it alone, probably because of his sister-in-law's instructions.
If someone is truly terminally ill, would they still harbor such petty thoughts? It was unclear how much truth there was in the illness Lin Duogu described.
At this moment, He Guixiang was counting the household expenses on her fingers to her two nephews. Every penny was spent effectively and she did not make up stories.
After He Guixiang finished speaking, Lin Shu adjusted the phoenix hairpin on her head and reminded her, "Mother, how could you forget this? This silver-gilt phoenix hairpin of Aye also cost a lot of money."
Lin Shu deliberately came out wearing gold and silver jewelry. Not only did she wear the headdress given by He Guixiang, but she also wore the phoenix-head hairpin given by Zhou Ye.
When Lin Duogu saw the phoenix hairpin in her bun, he was completely stunned.
He was not surprised when he saw the silver bracelet on Lin Shu's wrist and the silver earrings on her ears. After all, the rumor had been circulating in the village since the day of the wedding, saying that Second Aunt had made a set of pure silver head ornaments for his cousin and spent several strings of cash on it. Everyone praised her for loving her daughter. Even his mother was so angry that her chest ached when she heard about it.
When my cousin got married, none of their family came, so they had no idea that Second Aunt had prepared such a generous dowry for her daughter. The usually frugal Second Aunt actually gave her so many silver jewellery! Now that the money has become a dowry, it will be difficult to borrow it.
That set of pure silver headdress was outrageous enough, but I didn’t expect there was also a silver-gilt phoenix hairpin.
A phoenix-head hairpin also costs a lot of money, definitely several hundred dollars!
What my cousin is wearing isn't a headpiece, it's all money! Is she wearing over ten strings of cash on her body?!
Add to that the wedding dress that Lin Shu wore at her wedding, the sedan chair she rode in, the feast that the villagers kept bragging about, and the new bed, new cabinets, and new mattress that Second Aunt mentioned...how much would this cost?
Are Second Uncle and Second Aunt crazy?!
Lin Duogu nearly fainted. Judging from the total his mother had calculated, once all the money was spent, especially with the phoenix-head hairpin, there really wouldn't be much left in his uncle's family. He was kneeling and crying, wasn't it all in vain?
Oh, right, the land deed!
Not only was his work in vain, but his land deeds were also given away. Now he really wanted to be beaten to death by his father!
That's not all. Lin Shu coughed lightly twice, looking embarrassed and ashamed. "To be honest, cousin, I've had a weak body since I was young. I need to use precious medicinal herbs to nourish myself. I was originally recuperating in the Marquis' Mansion and my body was almost healed. I didn't expect that my old illness would flare up in the past two days without my carefulness."
"What? Ah Shu, why did you say it just now? I was wondering why you looked so bad these past two days!" He Guixiang was shocked.
Lin Dashan, who was still struggling with how much money to borrow, had no time to care about his two nephews. His sister-in-law and nephew were not as important as his own daughter.
He Guixiang and Lin Dashan were both frightened, which shows how good Lin Shu's acting skills are.
Zhou Ye had been watching from the sidelines and understood Lin Shu's little trick. He was laughing in his heart, but his expression became serious when he heard this. He couldn't tell whether Shu was acting or telling the truth.
"Ah Shu, you..."
Lin Shu almost hung half of her body on him and winked at him secretly.
Zhou Ye was stunned for a moment, then felt someone pull his arm. He came to his senses and supported Lin Shu, looking annoyed. "I've heard you talk about this. I remember that your old illness required you to eat century-old ginseng slices and deer antlers, as well as high-quality ingredients like bird's nest, white fungus, sea cucumber, and shark's fin. But how can we afford these now? I spent eight or nine out of ten of the betrothal money I gave to mother on this wedding. If I had known you were sick, I would have saved more money for this wedding."
Lin Shu glanced at Lin Duocang's two adopted cousins with her soft and harmless eyes. "Don't we still have my uncle's family? I have an old illness, so there's no need to rush. If there's some extra money at home, let's use it with my aunt first. When she recovers, we can borrow it from my uncle's family. My uncle has a lot of land, so if it doesn't work out, I can use the two acres of land deeds that my uncle sent me today as collateral. If that doesn't work out, I can only pawn the dowry my mother gave me and the phoenix hairpin you gave me."
Oh, oh, oh, I can't just ignore my weak body. How can I give birth to a big fat baby for you, Brother Aye?
I want to have two more children.”
At this point, Lin Shu glanced at Lin Dashan and said, "We agreed that the second child, regardless of gender, will have the surname Lin. This will also leave an heir for the Lin family."
As soon as Zhou Ye said this, before he could respond, Lin Dashan glared at him and shouted excitedly, "Eat! No matter what kind of ginseng, ganoderma, bird's nest, or white fungus it is, let's eat it all! Xiao Pu has been taking medicine every day for the past few years, and didn't Dad and Mom get through it?"
Although Zhou Ye was bought by Lin Dashan to be his son-in-law, he did not ask him to be a son-in-law, for fear that a forced marriage would not be sweet and would lead to resentment in the future. Therefore, apart from letting him live with his family and taking care of him in his old age, nothing else changed. All the children born in the future would also have the surname Zhou.
Unexpectedly, the two younger generations secretly agreed to have two children, and the second one would take the Lin family surname!
Then isn’t this second one the grandson of the Lin family?
As soon as these words were spoken, all the elder brothers, elder sisters-in-law, and elder nephews had to step back.
His daughter needs to use precious medicinal herbs and food ingredients to nourish her body. The family will need money everywhere in the future, so Lin Dashan naturally will not borrow money lavishly anymore.
At this moment, the brothers Lin Duocang and Lin Duogu were both confused.
Lin Duocang was fine, he didn't think too much about it, but he felt that the development of things was unexpected, so Lin Duogu started to think more.
He suspected that the whole family had agreed to put on a show for him, but from his cousin's frail and pale face, to his uncle and aunt's worried expressions, to the words spoken by the honest man Zhou Ye, none of them looked like they were acting. Moreover, they came suddenly today, and it was impossible for these people to prepare in advance.
How did things turn out like this?
I thought my second uncle's family had become rich, but in the blink of an eye, they are going back to the old days?
I used to keep a hermit named Lin Xiaopu, but now this is incredible. Is this a real ancestor? And all that stuff: ginseng, deer antler, bird's nest, white fungus, sea cucumber, shark's fin! Who could possibly afford that?!
If I really want to repair the relationship with my second uncle's family, won't they suck my blood away in return?
Lin Duogu regretted it so much that his intestines turned green, but he didn't know how to ask for the land deeds he had given away back.
After Lin Dashan and He Guixiang discussed it, they still lent out a hundred dollars out of loyalty.
Even though the family was in such a state, he was still willing to lend out a hundred dollars, which shows how much Lin Dashan values the brotherly relationship that had just been restored. After all, in Lin Dashan's eyes, A Ye asked He Guixiang for the money to buy the phoenix-head hairpin, and the money He Guixiang spent was real money, as the family really didn't have much money left.
When he learned that He Guixiang had made that set of pure silver headpieces, he was actually a little annoyed. He felt that his wife had spent all the money lavishly this time, and all the money was used for headpieces. How would the family get more acres of land? But then his wife secretly told him that the ice jelly business they had partnered with Zhao Laosan's family was very profitable, and if they saved up for two or three years, they would have enough money to buy land. Besides, the family money was originally earned by Aye and Ashu.
After thinking it through, Lin Dashan's anger, which had not yet ignited, was extinguished by his own wife.
The wife is right. A'ye and A'shu are capable, and it wouldn't be too much to treat them well. It's just that they can buy the land a few years later. We've come this far over the years, so it doesn't matter if it's a little later.
Therefore, this hundred dollars was considered very generous by Lin Dashan. The family did have some savings, but he still had to save money to buy bird's nest and white fungus for Ah Shu to nourish her body.
Lin Duogu secretly spitted. If he had not accepted the land deed of the two acres of land, the hundred dollars would not have been in vain. But the land deed was shamelessly taken away by his second uncle!
One hundred yuan can’t buy two acres of paddy field!
Although Lin Duogu was cunning, he was Lin Datian's son after all and had to save face. He did not ask for the land deed at the moment. He took the hundred-dollar bill and left in a hurry, going back to ask his mother for advice.
As soon as everyone left, He Guixiang hurriedly pulled Lin Shu aside and asked worriedly, "Ah Shu, was what you just said true?"
Lin Shu winked at He Guixiang before explaining, "Mother, it's half true and half false. Ginseng and deer antlers are not actually necessary, but it is true that precious ingredients are needed to nourish the body. You don't have to eat them every day. Three or four times a month will be enough."
He Guixiang breathed a sigh of relief, and secretly glared at her behind Lin Dashan's back, "You scared me to death just now."
Lin Dashan's focus wasn't on this. He scratched his head and asked with a chuckle, "Ah Shu, if you and Ah Ye have a baby, does the second one really have to have our last name?"
Lin Shu blinked, her expression sincere. "Yes, Dad, but I'm not in good health. I don't even know when I can give birth to my first child."
Lin Dashan said hurriedly: "Don't worry, don't worry, let's take care of ourselves first. If you need any expensive ingredients, we can save money together as a family to buy them!"
Lin Shu smiled secretly, but shyly agreed, then changed the subject, "Father, why does my second cousin look so angry? This is a hundred coins, and from what he said, my uncle's family can't even take out a hundred coins. How can he be unhappy about lending him a hundred coins?"
Lin Dashan touched the land deed in his arms, waved his hand, and said nonchalantly, "Ashu, you're overthinking it. Your second cousin is just worried about your aunt's illness. This time, your uncle is even willing to give me the land deed, which shows that he really regrets it. Alas, he is still your uncle after all. In the future, our two families should visit each other more often."
However, before long, Lin Dashan was slapped in the face.
Almost not long after the Lin Duogu brothers returned home, Zhang Lamei, his bedridden mother, came to the door angrily, and brought along a few gossipy women from the same village.
As soon as Zhang Lamei entered the house, she threw the hundred-yuan bill her family had loaned her in front of Lin Dashan and spat fiercely on the ground. "Lin Dashan, He Guixiang, you two are shameless! You actually used only a hundred-yuan bill to swindle the deed to my two acres of land! My son is kind-hearted and really thought you were willing to mend the relationship between our two families, so he fell for your trick. But I still don't know what your plan is. I don't want this hundred-yuan bill. Return my land deed to me immediately, or I will report you to the village head!"
When had Lin Dashan ever been scolded like this before, especially by a woman? He was so angry that his hands were shaking. "It was Lin Duogu who said that his elder brother wanted to reconcile with my family and took the initiative to give me the land deed. I didn't covet it, I just helped to keep it."
After seeing Lin Shu's pale face, Zhang Lamei believed about 70% of what her son said. She put her hands on her hips and cursed, "Bah! I didn't want to say more because I wanted to save your family's face. Who knew you were so shameless? It's obviously your Lin Shu's old illness that has flared up. She will need ginseng and deer antlers every day to nourish her delicate body. How could you possibly want to covet the deed to my two acres of land!"
I wonder what sins you two committed in your past lives to give birth to two sick babies? The younger one is fine, but the older one is not. Tsk tsk, she didn't have the destiny to be a daughter, but she got the disease of a daughter. From now on, your whole family will be exhausted by her disease of a daughter!
Humph, as for my family's fields, forget about it. If the family is short of money, just sell the dowry you prepared for Lin Shu and buy medicine! You guys finally got lucky, having Zhou Ye hunt a black blind man and save up some money, but instead of using it to buy medicine for your daughter, you're just pretending to be rich, with all those sterling silver headpieces and silver-gilt phoenix hairpins. Do you really think you're still the daughter of a marquis?
Oh my! I suddenly know why your daughter is sick. Could it be that your Lin Shu is too cheap to afford such expensive things? Listen to me, once these things are sold, her illness may be cured..."
Before Zhang Lamei could finish her words, the furious He Guixiang chased her out with a broom.
Lin Dashan threw the land deed away, gasping for breath in anger, and no longer thought about repairing his relationship with his elder brother and his wife's family.
Zhou Ye was also rarely angry because of a few words from others, and he clenched his fists.
Lin Shu patted his hands, leaned in his arms, and sobbed softly. She said to Zhang Lamei, who had been chased out, "Aunt, I didn't expect your family to be like this. Last night, when my old illness didn't flare up, my second cousin knelt down in front of my father, begging our two families to repair our relationship and even asking to borrow five hundred yuan for your medical treatment. But now I see that you are full of energy. How can you look sick?"
You coveted my family's wealth and conspired to defraud us. But once you learned my family was broke, you changed your ways. Your actions are truly despicable.
It’s not your place to judge whether I, Lin Shu, have a good life or not. If my family’s life gets better and better in the future, we won’t recognize you even if you come to us to claim marriage as our relative!
Wuwu Aye, I didn’t expect that my aunt-in-law would be such a person. She even cursed me. I’m so sad, sob…”
After saying that, Lin Shu buried her head in Zhou Ye's arms, sobbing in grievance.
Unfortunately, Lin Xiaopu had already finished her breakfast and went to the Wang family to work as a tutor. If she had been there, she would have been able to lend her a hand. After all, her father and mother were not good at speaking, and Ah Ye was even more silent.
Now that the little girl has been hanging out with Wang Yingen for a long time, she's full of courage and can curse people with ease, whether elegant or not. But she's just a weak little white flower, she's out of breath after saying a few more words~
Zhou Ye held his young wife, who was crying and gasping for breath, in one hand, and patted her back soothingly with the other hand, his brows tightly furrowed.
Lin Shu's words made Zhang Lamei look guilty, but she immediately put her hands on her hips and spat on the ground, "Bah! With your body, you're destined to die soon! If you die sooner, your parents might have an easier time."
Zhou Ye's expression suddenly darkened. He could no longer bear it and shouted at her, "If you say another word, I'll beat you up too. Get out!"
Zhang Lamei was frightened by Zhou Ye's murderous look and took a few steps back, cursing, "You're just going too far, trying to be too arrogant. Zhou Ye, if you marry this girl, you'll definitely become poorer and poorer in the future. You've brought this upon yourself. What's the point of having a beautiful wife? It's all..."
After saying this, she glanced at Zhou Ye's gloomy face and slipped away.
It's so scary. In my impression, Zhou Ye, the boy raised by my second brother, is a quiet and honest man. Why does he look at her now as if he wants to kill her?
Fortunately, the land deed is coming back. I have to stay away from this unlucky family in the future!
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