Chapter 83 Is the claim of supporting a comrade's wife and children a lie?!
Lin Jiefang found that he still couldn't suppress his anger.
He could only take a couple of deep breaths and say to He Taohua, "Mom, my mind is a mess right now. Please stop making a fuss and let me calm down, okay?"
"son……"
He Taohua's eyes were filled with tears, and she looked aggrieved.
Lin Jiefang continued to persuade, "No matter what, Aunt Li never intended to expose your affair with Uncle Youfu. Don't provoke her, okay?"
He Taohua's eyes welled up with tears, and she felt a chill run through her body.
The way her son looked at her was just like the way her deceased husband looked at her—cold and chilling.
He Taohua was a little scared, so she let go of Lin Jiefang's clothes and nodded.
Lin Jie breathed a sigh of relief and rode his bicycle with Li Banxia to the bank.
The person at the counter saw that he had taken so much money at once and asked him about it. Lin Jiefang smiled and said that he was taking it as a bride price for his wedding. The person at the counter said enviously, "Your fiancée is so lucky."
After withdrawing the money and leaving the bank, Lin Jiefang handed the money he had taken from the counter to Li Banxia intact.
"Aunt Li, the item has been returned to its rightful owner."
Li Banxia took the money and put it in her bag.
Lin Jiefang glanced at the bus not far away and said, "I still have to go to work and can't take Aunt Li home. We are sorry to Aunt Li about my mother and Uncle Youfu."
Li Banxia nodded.
"I accept this apology. From now on, our two families will go our separate ways. I'll go get a divorce from Su Youfu later. I'll look for a place today and move out of the auto parts factory's residential area in the next day or two. Your wedding banquet..."
Li Banxia looked up at Lin Jiefang, sighed, and said, "I won't be able to drink anymore. You should live a good life with that girl from now on."
Lin Jiefang's expression was complicated as he looked back at Li Banxia.
"Aunt Li, do you... really not hate me? You've been so good to me, and I've kept this from you for so long..."
"Do you feel sorry for me?"
Li Banxia looked at him and smiled without any real smile. "If you think that my hatred for you will make you feel better, then I'll say I hate you. I hate that I was blind to have treated you like a child I've loved and cherished for so many years, only to find out you're such an ingrate!"
After saying that, he didn't give Lin Jiefang a chance to speak again, turned around, hailed a taxi, got in, and drove away.
Lin Jiefang watched the car drive away before riding his bicycle back to the auto parts factory.
When he arrived at the factory gate, he saw He Taohua standing under the shade of a tree, eagerly waiting for him.
Lin Jiefang frowned, pushed his bike over, and He Taohua's eyes lit up when she saw him. She hurriedly came out from under the shade of the tree to greet him, "Jiefang, where's the savings book?"
Lin Jiefang handed over the passbook, and He Taohua hurriedly opened it. She saw that 20,000 yuan had been withdrawn, leaving only a few coins. She felt as if the sky had fallen.
Her eyes instantly filled with tears. She said, "What are we going to do? How can you marry the director's daughter if you don't have money? She already looked down on you because you don't have a father or any support. Now she can't even afford a decent wedding. Do you think she'll still marry her daughter to you? Liberation..."
Lin Jiefang gripped the handlebars tightly, his eyes filled with a sinister light.
"Mom, you go back first. I'll figure out how to handle these things."
When he thought of Li Banxia saying she was going to divorce Su Youfu, his eyes flickered. He asked He Taohua to tell Su Youfu, "...tell him not to come to our house for a while, to avoid suspicion."
As he spoke, he hailed a taxi for He Taohua by the roadside, saying, "Go ahead."
He Taohua got into the car with a sense of unease.
When she got home, Old Man Su was still waiting for her in the yard. "Peach Blossom's back. Liberation was nothing..."
Before he could finish speaking, He Taohua's tears suddenly fell, and she began to sob.
Old Su was startled and quickly stood up. "What happened? Why are you crying? Did something happen at Jiefang?"
"Brother Youfu, Li Banxia took all the money you gave me!"
He Taohua wept, her face streaked with tears, looking utterly pitiful. "That was all the money I'd saved up over the years, scrimping and saving, for Jiefang's wedding. Now it's all gone. What will Jiefang do? He's stuck with such a useless mother, being called someone else's mistress. Now he has no money, and he has no face left..."
"What? What right does she have to leave?"
Upon hearing this, Old Man Su flew into a rage and comforted He Taohua, "Don't worry, I'll go find her and get it back. That's my money, and I gave it to you voluntarily. What right does she have to ask you for money?!"
He rolled up his sleeves and was about to rush out when He Taohua grabbed him, crying.
“Brother Youfu, no, you’ll get into trouble if you make a scene like this. Li Banxia is using our affair to threaten Jiefang. She said she’ll expose us if we don’t pay her. I’m afraid something might happen…”
"I knew it!"
Old Man Su was filled with righteous indignation, clenching his fists. "That vicious woman just can't stand to see you two living a good life. She's unhappy with her own life, so she can't stand to see others living a good life!"
He Taohua cried even more miserably.
Old Man Su was heartbroken. He gently patted her with his hand, "Don't cry, don't cry. I'll go find her. I have a way to make her afraid to expose our affair and get the money back smoothly."
He Taohua stopped crying and looked up at him with tears streaming down her face.
"What method?"
Old Man Su glanced towards his own yard and said, "She cares most about her children, cherishing and protecting each one like a treasure..."
He Taohua understood instantly.
Yes, if Li Banxia dared to steal her money from her son, why couldn't she do it from Li Banxia's children?!
The two looked at each other, exchanged a glance, and reached an agreement.
Old Su clenched his fist. "Peach Blossom, wait for me. I promise this money will be back in your hands tonight."
"Thank you, Brother Youfu." He Taohua smiled, her eyes filled with tears of gratitude.
Old Su lifted his foot and walked out, heading straight for his own courtyard without stopping.
Su Lao Er walked out from the side, staring blankly at Su Lao Tou's retreating figure. He had received a call from Li Banxia, asking him to urge Su Lao Tou to go to the Civil Affairs Bureau. He had just arrived at the door when he overheard their conversation...
Old Man Su walked very fast and arrived home in no time. He walked around the yard but didn't see anyone. Only the room where Su Laosan and Su Laoer lived had the fan whirring.
When the curtain was lifted, Su Laosan was lying on the bed, his short sleeves half-open, revealing his round belly, which he was gently patting, making a 'bang bang bang' sound.
"Ugh, I really want to eat watermelon..."
Old Man Su frowned, picked up the palm-leaf fan from the bedside, and slapped it onto Su Laosan's head.
"Ouch."
Startled, Su Laosan sat up abruptly, turned his head to see Su Laotou, and clicked his tongue in disgust, saying, "Dad, what are you doing? You almost hit my eye!"
Where's your mom?
Su Laosan wiped the sweat from his forehead. "I went to the auto parts factory to return Lin Jiefang's truck."
"Bullshit! She wasn't going to return the car at all, she was going to ask for money!" Old Su spat, his eyes blazing with rage.
Su Laosan exclaimed "Hey!" and tilted his head curiously to look at Su Laotou. "What money?"
"Of course..."
Old Su opened his mouth to speak, but then swallowed the words back.
If we tell Su Laosan that Li Banxia went to ask for the money he gave to Tao Hua and her daughter, wouldn't that be the same as telling his children that his previous insistence that he used all his wages to support his comrades' wives and children was a lie?
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