Hua Wanhai comforted Zheng Shuzhen, saying, "Mother, don't worry. What's happened will be faced. Once Father recovers, he'll be able to get out of bed and take care of himself. If you recover, you'll be able to get out of bed too. That's good enough."
Zhao Xiuzhi said to Zheng Shuzhen, "Mother, we owe a lot to my eldest brother and sister-in-law this time. They've been taking care of Father and cooking for the children these past few days."
The more Zheng Shuzhen knew, the more unwilling she felt, because she had always thought that her son was filial. In fact, she really wanted Hua Wanhe to treat Hua Zhongzhi as his own father, so that her previous words would not be contradicted and she could stand up to Hua Zhongzhi.
But this time she saw clearly how unfilial her second son was; he was not only unfilial to Hua Zhongzhi, but also to her.
The third son was so-so, but at least he did what he was supposed to do.
At this point, she could only remain silent, since she couldn't explain it clearly anyway.
Seeing that it was getting late, Gu Lanyan said from the side, "I've almost finished preparing the food. The fourth brother and his wife just got back. Take a rest. I'll cook the food and then go back."
Zhao Xiuzhi quickly went over and said, "Sister-in-law, this won't do. You've been working so hard these past few days. It would be so disrespectful to have you cooking for us."
Gu Lanyan said, "Look, the rice is already in the pot, and the vegetables are washed. There's not much work left to do."
Hua Zhongzhi said to Zhao Xiuzhi, "Fourth brother's wife, you and your sister-in-law cook together, and let your eldest brother and the others eat here today as well."
Hua Wanhai said, "Then I'll heat up some wine. I haven't drunk with my elder brother much over the years, so let's have a couple of cups today."
Hua Wanjiang said, "Then let's eat here today."
Although Hua Kai didn't really want to get too close to Hua Wanhai's family, she knew that Zheng Shuzhen disliked her family getting close to her sons. So, if Hua Wanjiang was close to the Hua Wanhai brothers, Zheng Shuzhen would be angry. Therefore, Hua Kai was happy to stay.
She went out to help Gu Lanyan and Zhao Xiuzhi cook, but it wasn't much of a use for her, since both of them were hard workers, so Hua Kai just assisted them from the side.
Looking at the steamed buns, bean buns, sticky rice cakes, and lots of meat and vegetables in the kitchen, Zhao Xiuzhi knew that Gu Lanyan and the others had brought them.
She felt truly ashamed. They had treated Hua Wanjiang's family so badly before, but now they were helping her without holding back at all.
Gu Lanyan looked at Zhao Xiuzhi in a daze and said, "Xiuzhi, you definitely haven't had time to prepare any noodles during this period, so I made some extra. I'll steam the buns on the 28th, and I'll also bring you a pot of jujubes. Don't bother making the fried cakes either; I'll bring you a portion of each."
Looking at Gu Lanyan, Zhao Xiuzhi suddenly couldn't help but cry. She squatted on the ground, hugged her head with her arms, and sobbed uncontrollably.
Gu Lanyan wiped her hands and squatted down in front of Zhao Xiuzhi: "Xiuzhi, why are you crying?"
Zhao Xiuzhi hugged Gu Lanyan with a heart full of remorse: "Sister-in-law, I'm sorry. Over the years, I've bullied you a lot, but when this happened, you still helped me so wholeheartedly. When Father and Mother had their accidents, you were the ones who took the lead. Whether it was Father in the city or Mother's situation, you didn't hold a grudge against me at all. I really have no face."
Gu Lanyan felt quite relieved listening to Zhao Xiuzhi's words, because she also wanted to hear an apology from the other party, which was what they should say.
Gu Lanyan said to Zhao Xiuzhi, "Xiuzhi, I feel better after hearing what you said. Let's not talk about the past anymore, and let's get to know each other better in the future."
Zhao Xiuzhi said, "Sister-in-law, let's pretend we just met. You can get to know me again, and I'll start over."
At this moment, Hua Wanhai came out and heard their conversation. He bowed to Gu Lanyan and said, "Sister-in-law, I'm sorry. I apologize for what happened before. When my father was sick, I was still reserved and wary of you. But this time, my mother suddenly fell ill. During my days in the hospital, I've seen and understood a lot. I was really wrong."
Gu Lanyan gently helped Hua Wanhai up, saying, "Get up quickly." She didn't know what else to say.
Hua Wanhai said to Gu Lanyan, "Sister-in-law, I don't ask for your forgiveness for what happened before. Just like Xiuzhi said, let's start over, and you can get to know us again."
Gu Lanyan nodded: "Okay, then let's get to know each other again."
Before long, it was time for dinner. We stewed pork ribs and cabbage, stewed sauerkraut, and stir-fried a few other dishes. It was quite a feast.
Dinner was served quickly. Since the two elders couldn't get off the kang (heated brick bed) to eat and needed help, they were served first before Hua Kai and the others started eating.
The large group of people, without so much scheming, spoke much more warmly and intimately.
Zheng Shuzhen felt extremely distressed as she listened to Hua Wanhai repeatedly calling Hua Wanjiang "Big Brother" and, after drinking for a while, admitting his mistakes and repenting for many things he had done in the past.
Because she didn't want to see her son bowing his head to Hua Wanjiang, but now it was exactly what he didn't want to see.
Hua Chongzhi lay on the kang (a heated brick bed) with great relief, because he had been worried that his sons would not get along. Now it seemed that at least Hua Wanjiang and Hua Wanhai were doing well.
After finishing their meal, they sat for a while longer before Hua Kai and the others went home.
Although Hua Wanjiang had drunk some wine, he wasn't drunk. He was in a good mood when he got home, after all, he finally heard his brothers' confession and could tell that they were sincere.
However, things weren't so harmonious at Hua Wanhe's house at this moment. When Hua Wanhe went to the toilet earlier, he heard Hua Kai and his family laughing and talking as they walked past. The fact that they only returned now meant that they had eaten at Lao Si's house.
Could it be that the fourth brother has now climbed up to Hua Wanjiang's family?
After hearing Hua Wanhe's story, Huo Yanping said with particular resentment, "We used to bully my eldest brother's family together. What things did Mother take back from my eldest brother's family that she didn't give to the fourth brother? Now that the two elders have become a burden, how come my eldest brother still gets along so well with them? What does that mean?"
Hua Wanhe said in confusion, "You're asking me? How am I supposed to know? We've tried several times, but my older brother and the others haven't said a word. What method did the fourth brother use? I heard at the township hospital that Hua Kai's factory can earn tens of thousands a month. Although they might be exaggerating, I think it's definitely not a small amount. The fourth brother is really anxious. I just don't know what tricks he used."
Huo Yanping sighed and said, "I really don't want to see Gu Lanyan's smug look, but for the sake of money, we have to put up with it. If we can't win the business, we should at least get some benefits, right? Second brother, you secretly go and ask your mother later what tricks the fourth brother used."
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