Chapter 445 Fighting for Money
The servant who brought water for Bai Erlang to soak his feet saw his young master running out covered in dust and dirt. He immediately put down the wooden basin and ran over, "Second Young Master, Second Young Master, why are you so dirty? Didn't you just take a bath?"
Bai Erlang finally found the man, grabbed him and shouted, "There's a thief in my house, and my things are gone!"
The servant immediately understood, "Is it the box under the bed?"
Bai Jilang glared, "How do you know?"
"The madam took it," the servant said. "Tomorrow is the Dragon Boat Festival. This morning, the madam sent her sisters to clean the room and sprinkle realgar powder. They found a box under the bed."
The servant whispered, "Master, your box wasn't locked. The sisters opened it right away, and then the mistress came and had the box taken away."
Bai Erlang was stunned. "Mom didn't say anything when we were eating..."
The servant said uncertainly: "Maybe he forgot?"
Bai Erlang's eyes turned red and he ran towards his parents' main house.
The servant couldn't help but shout, "Master, you don't want to soak your feet anymore. The old lady said that the evil spirits are strong in May, so you have to soak your feet before going to bed..."
Bai Erlang rushed into his parents' room and asked his mother directly, "Mom, where is my money?"
Mr. Bai, who was soaking his feet, looked up and asked, "What money?"
Mrs. Bai ignored Mr. Bai and spoke softly to Bai Erlang, "Erlang, it's not safe to keep so much money with you. I'll keep it for you. You can ask me for more money later, okay?"
"Oh no! Manbao and the others kept their own money, so why can't I keep it myself?" Bai Erlang was very angry. He felt that his mother had taken the money without his consent, which was a great offense to him. So he shouted, "It was the same before. She gave me the New Year's money and then took it back!"
Mrs. Bai frowned slightly, but continued softly, "Mom, that's for your own good. You're spending money too lavishly..."
Bai Jilang shouted, "That's my money too!"
Mr. Bai listened to the argument between the mother and son. His face darkened. He wiped his feet and threw the towel into the wooden basin. He said angrily, "Erlang, who taught you to talk to your mother like that?"
The mother and son fell silent for a moment.
Mr. Bai walked over in his clogs, dragging them along with a clatter. He said, "No matter what, you shouldn't raise your voice to your mother. Didn't Mr. Zhuang and I teach you etiquette?"
If it were in the past, Mr. Bai would not have said such words, but after seeing Mr. Zhuang teach his children many times, he also knew that sometimes blindly scolding was useless.
You still have to reason with your children, even if it doesn't make sense or the children don't listen, you still have to explain it.
Mr. Bai saw that his eyes were red and full of tears, but fortunately he calmed down. He then looked at his wife, frowned and asked, "Tell me, what happened?"
Bai Shanbao, who was sitting on the other side of the wall, had fallen into a drowsy sleep. Suddenly, a loud "Ah Wu" scream startled him, and he jumped a little before opening his eyes.
He sat up in a daze, and then vaguely heard loud crying coming from next door. Although it was not very clear, there was only one person next door who could cry so loudly.
Bai Shanbao immediately got out of bed, and Daji, who lived next door, also opened the door and came out.
Bai Shanbao stood on tiptoe and looked in the direction of the Bai family and asked, "Daji, what happened to Bai Er?"
Daji pricked up his ears and listened for a moment, then shook his head and said, "I don't know. How about sending someone to ask?"
"Go quickly, go quickly."
Daji immediately went to find someone.
At this time, it was already dark, and everyone in the Bai family was preparing to go to bed. Although they were the landlords, they couldn't waste lamp oil, right?
But at this moment, lanterns were lit in the main courtyard, and several places were lit up. Bai Erlang was so naughty that he sat down on the ground, closed his eyes and cried loudly.
Mrs. Bai was furious. She felt sorry for him but couldn't bring herself to hit him. She could only keep comforting him, "Okay, okay, I'll give you an ingot, okay?"
"I don't want it. I want all of it. It's all my money."
Mrs. Bai insisted, "What do you, a child, need so much money for?"
Bai Erlang was about to roll on the ground when he suddenly remembered what Bai Shanbao and Manbao had said. He immediately gave up on his mother and turned to look at his father. Although he was crying, he still grabbed his father's trouser leg and said intermittently: "Dad, Shanbao and Manbao took their own money..."
He sobbed and said, "If the farm needs money in the future, I will also contribute a share..."
Mrs. Bai immediately said, "If you need money, tell me and I will give it to you."
"No, I want to get the money myself," Bai Erlang insisted, "It's not pleasant to ask for money, and I don't want to ask Mom or Dad for it!"
Mr. Bai narrowed his eyes as he listened, and just as he was about to speak, an old maid called out from outside the door, "Master, Madam, the old lady wants to know what's going on."
Mr. Bai said, "It's okay. Erlang is just a little upset, but he'll be fine soon. Madam, go back and take care of mother. Don't scare her."
The old nanny glanced into the room and saw that the second young master was fine, just sitting on the ground, probably because he had been wronged.
She felt relieved and agreed with a smile, as long as he didn't use violence.
Mrs. Bai hurried to see the person off and mentioned the reason in passing. Knowing that it was another issue concerning the management of money, the old nanny did not ask any further questions.
Mrs. Bai heaved a sigh of relief and returned to the house. Mr. Bai said to her, "Give the money to Erlang. Let him manage his own money."
Mrs. Bai was stunned and said in a lost voice, "How can this be possible? It's such a huge amount of money."
Mr. Bai insisted, "Give it to him. The child is already grown up, and he manages a farm on his own now. How can he be without money? Besides, this money is earned by himself."
"That's what you earned," Mrs. White insisted. "The child can't handle so much money."
Mr. Bai frowned, obviously unhappy. The matter was finally brought to the attention of Old Madam Bai. This time it was not Bai Erlang who was making a fuss, but Madam Bai.
The couple started arguing, and the noise became louder and louder, until finally the old nanny came again.
This time, she brought the family of three to the old lady's yard.
The old lady's hair was all down, obviously she was going to sleep. She simply tied her hair up and sat on the couch and asked, "What's going on with your family tonight? You're all so restless."
Mrs. Bai wiped her tears and recounted the whole story, begging the old lady to help her. She cried, "Erlang is my son. How could I possibly harm him? Mother, you know, two years ago, this child insisted on taking his New Year's money himself, and what happened when he took it?"
Mrs. Bai said, "So much money, and it was all spent in less than half a year, and it was all given away to others."
Bai Erlang shouted, "I don't have any. I spent all my money on shopping."
(End of this chapter)
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