Zhang Lei's expression changed, and he shouted at the man on the ground, "What fifteen yuan? I clearly promised eight yuan a month!"
The man on the ground stood up and sneered, "Things aren't like they were a few years ago. Even the soup dumplings outside my house have gone up in price. The eight yuan we agreed on has to go up too."
Liu Ercui tugged at her husband's sleeve and asked through gritted teeth, "Isn't he Yue'er's uncle? Didn't you say you gave him fifty yuan? What about the eight yuan? Explain yourself!"
Uncle Yue'er gave a cryptic snort, "He told you I'm Yue'er's older brother..."
"Shut up!" Zhang Lei roared, interrupting him. "Fifteen yuan is impossible. I'll give you two more yuan at most, ten yuan a month!"
Lin Peng came to Yue'er yesterday to ask him for money, but he refused him firmly, so Yue'er thought Lin Peng wouldn't dare to say anything more.
Who knew Lin Peng would be such a scoundrel, actually causing a scene at the entrance of the family compound today and revealing everything.
Glancing at the onlookers around him, Zhang Lei felt ashamed and regretful.
I should have been more patient and discussed it with Lin Peng privately.
Upon hearing that he would only be given ten yuan, Lin Peng immediately said, "Hand over Yue'er, and I'll take her home right now."
Let's see if you, Zhang Lei, are willing to let it go!
Liu Ercui suppressed her anger and refrained from asking Zhang Lei what had happened. She said to Lin Peng, "Alright, take Yue'er back with you. After all, you are her uncle, a blood relative."
Before Lin Peng could react, Zhang Lei became displeased and glared at her as if he wanted to devour Liu Ercui.
"This is none of your business, go home!"
Liu Ercui felt as if she had been slapped in the face in front of everyone.
When she said that, did she really mean to let Yue'er go with her uncle? It was just a way of dealing with a scoundrel.
Uncle Yue'er just wants money, right? If he takes Yue'er away, he won't have a penny left, and he'll have to spend even more money to raise her. How could he possibly be willing to do that?
Zhang Lei wasn't unaware of this; he simply cared too much and dared not take the gamble.
Liu Ercui stared blankly at her husband, her eyes filled with an unprecedented despair.
Zhang Lei suddenly felt a pang of panic, as if something was slowly being lost.
Lin Peng couldn't wait any longer and asked, "How exactly did you two decide? I don't have that much time to waste with you."
Before Zhang Lei could speak, a stern rebuke rang out from outside the crowd.
"Who's causing trouble here?"
Zhou Weiguang approached, glanced at Lin Peng, then turned to the sentry and reprimanded him:
“The family quarters are also part of the military camp and are military facilities. Rascals and hooligans are not allowed to cause trouble here! As a sentry, you have a responsibility to maintain the peace and safety of the family quarters.”
The words were addressed to the sentry, but were meant for Lin Peng to hear.
The officer in front of him was clearly different from the others, and Lin Peng was a little intimidated, but he still mustered his courage and said, "I didn't cause any trouble, it's just..."
Zhou Weiguang gave the sentry a wink.
The sentry immediately stepped forward and said sternly, "You have caused a crowd to gather, creating a negative impact. Please leave immediately. If you do not leave, I have the right to arrest you!"
Upon hearing the word "arrest," Lin Peng finally calmed down, told Zhang Lei, "I'll come find you later," and ran off quickly.
The onlookers turned their attention to Zhang Lei and Liu Ercui.
Zhou Weiguang waved his hand dismissively. "Disperse, all of you." Then he glanced at the sentry. "You can't even do your own job properly, and you expect me to teach you?"
The sentry's face paled, and he admitted his mistake, saying, "It was my dereliction of duty."
Zhou Weiguang looked away and found Qin Hanshu in the crowd, hoping to get some praise.
It was because Qin Hanshu was afraid that Zhang Lei would have a mental breakdown and promised to give Yue'er's uncle fifteen yuan a month that she asked Zhou Weiguang to clean up the mess.
Unexpectedly, Qin Hanshu didn't even bother to look at Zhou Weiguang, and instead led Liu Ercui home.
Liu Ercui was in a daze, not saying a word, and it was impossible to tell what she was thinking.
Only after entering the building did Liu Ercui suddenly ask, "Zhang Tugou, who exactly is Yue'er?"
Upon hearing Liu Ercui's question, Zhang Lei forgot to scold her for calling him by his nickname in public and said somewhat flusteredly, "I don't understand what you're saying."
Liu Ercui stared at him for a long time, then said "Oh" and fell silent again.
The couple went upstairs one after the other.
Qin Hanshu glanced at him worriedly before turning around and going home, closing the door behind her.
While eating dumplings, Wang Xiaogang suddenly said, "I always thought that Battalion Commander Zhang's wife was very capable, but today I realized that she is quite pitiful."
Qin Hanshu glanced at him and nodded, saying, "Yes, he's quite pitiful..."
Not to mention Liu Ercui, even she sensed that there was something wrong with Yue'er's identity.
For some reason, Qin Hanshu remembered something from a long time ago.
Xiaoming's mother mentioned at the cooperative entrance that the Dr. Qiao, whom Zhang Lei had talked about, had passed away.
Yue'er was an orphan, and she was adopted around the same time.
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