Chapter 22 Every family has its own troubles.
Aunt Wei couldn't believe the matter had been resolved so easily. "You just believe your daughter-in-law's words like that?"
Zhou's mother nodded firmly and said earnestly, "This is my family matter. It's normal that you don't understand many things. After all, you are not me, and we have experienced different things."
Once her husband becomes the group leader, Aunt Wei will understand the meaning behind what she said today.
Seeing that she had failed to sow discord, Aunt Wei left the Zhou family with a dark expression.
Seeing that there was no more drama to watch, the other neighbors also left the Zhou family one after another.
After everyone left, Zhou Ma asked again, "Did your father give you the money and tickets for Director Tang?"
“Of course, if you don’t believe me, you can ask Dad when he gets back,” Lin Yuanshu said without hesitation.
She wasn't worried that Zhou Ma would ask Zhou Dafu, because she had already discussed it with Zhou Dafu from the beginning. If Zhou Ma found out about this, they would say that the money and tickets were for Director Tang.
As for Director Tang, there's no need to worry about Zhou's mother asking about it. Unless Zhou's mother doesn't want Zhou Dafu to continue working at the chemical plant, she wouldn't do something so crazy as to proactively ask the leader about her family's bribery situation.
Her father gave her money and tickets to buy gifts to go back to her parents' home, not because he cared about her family, but simply to get her to continue to offer advice willingly. Anyway, she was penniless now and adapted well to this kind of courtship. As long as she was given money and tickets, it didn't matter who she offered advice to!
Zhou Ma took a deep breath and said shamelessly, "Give me back my money."
Lin Yuanshu resolutely refused, saying, "Why should I willingly return the money I got from you through my own abilities? Unless you also get it back from me through your own abilities."
Zhou's mother was taken aback for a moment, then retorted, "I'm your mother, how can you not listen to your mother?"
"Is this the first time you've found out I don't listen to my parents?" Lin Yuanshu retorted.
With a forced smile, Zhou Ma said, "Go away."
Lin Yuanshu shrugged indifferently, then slipped back to her room to read. It was better not to appear in front of her mother-in-law, to avoid arguing with her. She was really worried about her mother-in-law; if they argued like this every day, wouldn't she be driven crazy?
Meanwhile, Aunt Wei returned home with a stern face. Seeing Sun Yiyi cleaning the house, she felt extremely aggrieved. She tentatively asked, "Yiyi, do you want to go out and work?"
Sun Yiyi paused for a moment, then replied, "I'm fine with anything. If Mom wants me to go out and work, then I'll go out and work."
Although she appeared calm on the surface, she was panicking inside. If she didn't return the money, her parents would really marry off her younger sister. She could only bite the bullet and say, "Mom, I want to borrow a hundred yuan from you. My parents want to get a daughter-in-law, but the bride's family is asking for a rather high dowry."
She had tried countless methods over the past few days, but none of them worked. With nothing to her name, she couldn't earn any money. She had originally wanted Wei Yong to ask his mother for a hundred yuan, but Wei Yong refused to lie to his mother no matter what, so she had to do it herself.
She really didn't want to bring this matter to her mother-in-law's attention, but Wei Yong was unwilling to help her resolve it privately.
She felt a vague sense of regret. If she had gone out to work, perhaps this wouldn't have happened. She didn't dare to think too much about it, since her mother-in-law and husband didn't approve of her going out to work. What good would it do for her to go out to work?
Aunt Wei's eyes widened, and she retorted without hesitation, "This isn't just a little high! It's extremely high! Even city brides wouldn't dare ask for such a high dowry!"
Sun Yiyi smiled awkwardly. There was nothing she could do about it. There was a popular saying in the countryside: "First, a soldier; second, a cadre; third, a worker; I'd rather die than marry a peasant."
Everyone wants to marry into the city and doesn't want to suffer in the countryside, so the bride price for marrying a wife in the countryside naturally becomes higher.
"I'll find a way to pay you back later," Sun Yiyi said, her head bowed.
Aunt Wei was in a terrible mood. "What can you do? I have no job and can't earn money. We'll talk about it when Yongzi comes back. They want too much money. I can't decide on my own."
I thought I had married an obedient wife, but I didn't expect her to be so troublesome. Not only does she not have money, but she also wants to help her own family. She's really siding with outsiders. She's not as good as Lin Yuanshu next door. Although she's a bit troublesome, at least she doesn't have a younger brother!
The dinner table at the Zhou family's house was unusually quiet that evening. Sister-in-law Xue wanted to speak, but she didn't know how to start.
As soon as she got home, she heard a lot about Lin Yuanshu, such as her family members being sick, her father-in-law secretly giving Lin Yuanshu money and tickets without her mother-in-law's knowledge, and her mother-in-law giving Lin Yuanshu a large denomination banknote on the spot.
Zhou Dafu also heard the rumors. He explained seriously, "I'll only say this once: the purpose of giving the money and tickets to Xiao Er's wife was for her to use as gifts. Please don't ask any more questions."
He wasn't exactly lying; it was indeed a gift, but it wasn't for Director Tang.
After Zhou Dafu said that, everyone naturally didn't dare to continue the topic and started talking about other things.
Zhou's mother also breathed a sigh of relief. Giving gifts to Director Tang was the important matter, so she didn't ask any more questions. After all, in her eyes, giving gifts to one's in-laws was a foolish thing to do.
Lin Yuanshu pursed her lips. In this family, only her father-in-law could control her mother-in-law. In fact, sometimes, if you want harmony in the family, all you need to do is for your father-in-law to stand up and uphold justice. Unfortunately, most men in this era like to turn a blind eye and have no interest in managing the relationship between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law.
Meanwhile, the atmosphere at the Wei family dinner table wasn't so pleasant. Aunt Wei said with a troubled expression, "I don't agree with giving Yiyi's family so much money. After all, our family isn't wealthy; we already spent a large portion of our money on her wedding..."
Sun Yiyi couldn't help but explain, "Mom, it's not a gift, it's a loan. I'll find a way to pay you back."
Upon hearing this, Aunt Wei rolled her eyes. To put it nicely, it was a loan. But once money is lent out, it's not so easy to get it back. Did she expect her daughter-in-law to go out and work just for a hundred yuan? And dump all the housework on her?
Grandpa Wei glanced at Wei Yong and said seriously, "Yongzi, whether or not to lend money is up to you."
Sun Yiyi looked at Wei Yong expectantly. She felt that the matter was almost certain to succeed. After all, Zhou Xiangyang, who was not very close to her, was willing to give 100 yuan. There was no reason why Wei Yong, who loved her, would disagree.
Wei Yong frowned and said, "Since your younger sister has a boyfriend, how about we give 50 yuan and her boyfriend gives 50 yuan? Let me make this clear from the start: this 50 yuan isn't just for your family. If they want to continue their relationship with you, they have to pay it back. Otherwise, no matter what happens to your family in the future, my family won't help them anymore. This is your family's business, and in principle, it has nothing to do with you. We're only willing to lend you money because of you. You can't treat your family's affairs as your own..."
Aunt Wei and Uncle Wei also agreed with Wei Yong's decision. They absolutely could not give money for free, otherwise he would ask for money to get married today and to have a baby tomorrow, constantly finding reasons to ask them for money.
A note from the author:
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