Chapter 800 Humans are not like the mythical creature Pixiu; they can't just take in and not give out.
“You have to bring it up. If you’re too embarrassed to bring it up, then find an opportunity to bring the person back and have your older brother bring it up.”
The old lady said righteously, "Your father is gone, and your eldest brother is like a father to you. Your marriage must be decided by your eldest brother."
“Mom, my sister isn’t a young girl who got married at twenty. She’s over forty now. Can’t she make her own decisions about getting married?” Shen Yingying couldn’t help but speak up for her sister.
Mr. Jiang is such a good person, she doesn't want her family to interfere and ruin her sister's marriage.
"It's not that we don't want her to get married, it's just that we're talking about the bride price," the old lady said.
At this moment, Shen Ci slowly put down her chopsticks, looked at the old lady and asked, "Grandma, will you prepare a dowry for my mother's wedding?"
Upon hearing this, the old lady was taken aback.
Shen Ci smiled faintly at her expression: "I didn't mean anything by it, but the bride price and dowry are inseparable. If you want a bride price, then you should have a dowry."
"You and my uncle both feel that if my mother doesn't ask for a bride price, she's demeaning herself. So, our family can't afford to neglect my mother. The dowry can't be too meager, can it?"
Shen Ci knew the economic situation of the Shen family. She only needed to raise her demands a little bit to crush them.
“I think we should just give her a car, something around twenty yuan should be enough,” Shen Ci said casually. “Although you can’t buy a nice car for that price, it’s the thought that counts. My mom won’t drive this car anyway; she has a nice car to drive.”
A car that costs twenty yuan.
The eldest son in the family drives a car that costs less than ten yuan, so how could the old lady bear to give her daughter a car that costs twenty yuan as part of her dowry?
And we don't even have twenty yuan at home!
"Why buy a car if you don't need one?" Shen Mingming said unhappily, "Isn't that a waste of money? Cars don't hold their value; they're practically secondhand after just one day."
"Uncle, that's not how it works. Does the dowry depend on whether it retains its value?" Shen Ci asked in a slightly cold tone, "Or are you worried about the car not retaining its value, or do you think my mother isn't worth it?"
"You child, why do you speak so rudely?" The old lady became anxious as soon as she heard it.
"Anyone can say nice things, but the question is whether they're effective." Shen Ci curled her lip. "What I said is true. People aren't mythical creatures; they can't expect to only take in and never give out. You think that's unpleasant? Then I won't say anything even more unpleasant."
The people at the table looked at each other in bewilderment. In their memory, Shen Ci was quite well-behaved when she was a child. Why is she so domineering now?
Shen Jingjing did not stop her daughter; she always stood on her daughter's side, no matter what.
Then, continuing her daughter's words, she said, "Mom, I don't need a dowry, and I don't want a bride price either, because I don't need anything."
Not wanting to make things awkward on her first day back, she got up and walked to the sofa, taking out a stack of red envelopes from her bag.
Back at the table, she immediately distributed the red envelopes to the younger generation: "Here you go, Da Bao, Er Bao, Tao Tao, this is a red envelope from your aunt. Xiao Bao also has one."
The children, naturally carefree, were overjoyed to see the red envelopes.
Zheng Hong and Wang Chunyan smiled and quickly told their children to thank their aunt, especially Wang Chunyan, whose family had many children and therefore received many red envelopes.
However, Zheng Hong had her own plans and knew she wouldn't nitpick over such small details. She cheerfully said, "Big sister, look at you, why are you giving the child a red envelope when it's not a holiday?"
Shen Jingjing smiled and said, "I haven't been back for Chinese New Year for several years. When I came back this time, I saw that the children have all grown up. This red envelope is for me and Yingying. It's all for the children to use as pocket money."
As she spoke, she took a red gift bag and handed it to the old lady: "Mom, this is for you."
The old lady was still angry about what had just happened, and when her daughter handed her the things, she reluctantly took them: "I don't need anything, your older brother bought me everything..."
As she spoke, the old lady took out the contents of the three boxes. She opened one of them and then shut up.
Inside was a gold necklace.
"Oh my!" The old lady was startled: "A gold chain?"
They opened another one, and inside was a gold ring.
The last one contains a gold bracelet.
The old man loves gold the most; it pleases him more than buying anything else.
"My goodness, it's so heavy! How many grams does this weigh?" The old lady exclaimed excitedly, unable to contain her laughter. "Jingjing, did you buy all of this for me?"
"Of course I bought it for you. Don't you love gold the most?"
In the old woman's mind, gold was precious, and she was always extremely envious whenever she saw someone in the neighborhood wearing a lot of gold jewelry.
That's great, the young lady bought her a set right away.
"Mom, gold is so expensive now!" Shen Chengcheng couldn't help but say, "Sister, you're so thoughtful. This set must have cost several dollars."
The old lady was extremely fond of them and couldn't wait to put them on and go for a walk.
"I was thinking of getting a gold necklace during the Chinese New Year, but the price of gold rose so drastically that I refused to let your older brother buy it for me."
The eldest son, Shen Mingming, was initially a little embarrassed, but after hearing what the old lady said, he went along with it and said, "If you don't stop me, I'll buy it for you."
Then he looked at Shen Jingjing and said, "Now that you're doing well, you should be more filial to your mother."
Shen Jingjing nodded.
She always had a sense of justice. Over the years, she deliberately stayed far away because she didn't want to come back. To be fair, as children, her older brother and younger brother had taken on the responsibility of caring for their elderly parents, no matter what.
She did little in this regard, sending him living expenses each month, and otherwise basically not worrying about anything else.
Now that she has money, it's perfectly reasonable for her to spend some on the old lady. Even if her mother is biased, in her heart her mother is still her mother, and she can't let go of her.
After the meal, Wang Chunyan and Zheng Hong were clearing away the dishes. Zheng Hong noticed that the chicken leg in Shen Ci's bowl was still intact and sitting there, untouched.
"That old lady is really something. She's fussing over a chicken leg. Look, Aci hasn't touched it at all. She must be really upset about it."
Zheng Hong couldn't help but speak up.
Wang Chunyan glanced at it and said, "Their family's situation is different now. Maybe Aci just doesn't like it."
“Look at the ring your older sister is wearing. I’ve only ever seen diamonds that big on TV. They’re over 30 carats. You probably can’t find one like that in the whole of Funan.”
Zheng Hong chimed in, "It seems my eldest sister has also found a big boss. Didn't Mom always want to introduce big bosses to my eldest sister for blind dates? This time, her wish has finally come true."
"How can that be the same?" Wang Chunyan sneered. "Didn't you hear your older sister say she doesn't want a bride price? What can the old lady get out of not having a bride price? This isn't over yet."
(End of this chapter)
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