He hadn't been home for two days and hadn't come back, so Xu Fang became scared.

Xu Fang went to ask several of Ji Yong's friends, and they all said that Ji Yong had not been there. Xu Fang felt uneasy, fearing that something had happened to her husband.

Her husband was away and she had trouble managing the family business. She saw customers coming every day but couldn't keep them. Her mouth was covered with blisters in just one morning.

At noon, my eldest brother and sister-in-law came over unexpectedly.

After Xu Wangting entered the store, he saw that Xu Fang was the only one there, so he casually asked, "Where's Ji Yong? Is he out doing installations again?"

Xu Fang was just wondering what excuse to come up with, but after hearing this, she hummed and asked the two to sit down.

"Why are brother and sister-in-law here?"

"Qiuping is getting married, and our family doesn't have any acquaintances in the capital, so it's good that Xiaoling is getting married there. Your sister-in-law and I came here today to ask you for a favor. The Zhu family is a prestigious family, and if the Zhu family can show up during the ceremony, it would be even better."

Xu Wangting directly stated his purpose, "Xiaofang, I was wrong to borrow money before, and I couldn't do anything about it. You see, my parents are blaming me now and haven't forgiven me yet. Qiuping's marriage is a big event for our family, otherwise I wouldn't have come to you for help."

Xu Hongmei also showed her goodwill, "Xiaofang, your elder brother and I have done a lot of things wrong over the years. The unpleasantness last time was also due to our poor performance."

"You can blame us all you want, but you have to help Qiu Ping with his problems, be kind to him, and give him some face."

After Xu Fang heard the purpose of her elder brother and his wife's visit, her face turned bad. When Xu Wangting and his wife were talking, she pursed her lips and said nothing.

She didn't speak until the two of them finished talking, "Brother and sister-in-law, you know that Xiaoling and I have never been close regarding living expenses. It's wrong for you to ask me for help. You might as well talk to her directly, or ask my parents to talk to her. She has a good relationship with my parents."

Xu Wangting smiled bitterly, "Dad hates doing these things the most. As soon as I open my mouth, he will stop me from doing so before I even finish. As a parent, we naturally want to give our children the best. Just like when you were busy and Xiaoke was not in good health, you brought him to live with your parents to be raised."

Xu Fang knew that her elder brother was asking for a favor from her.

She remained silent.

Xu Hongmei wanted to say something, but when she saw her husband shaking his head, she just waited.

As time passed, Xu Fang struggled internally. She knew that if she didn't agree to this matter today, her elder brother would hate her for the rest of her life.

"Brother, I'll give it a try, but I can't guarantee whether it will work or not."

"Xiaoling is your daughter, and this is a great joyous event. She won't refuse."

Now that I'm being put on the shelf, it seems like I can't do anything.

Xu Fang didn't fall for it, and immediately frowned, "Brother, I don't have the final say on this. What if Xiaoling agrees to the Zhu family and then disagrees? We don't want Xiaoling and her in-laws to be unhappy because of this, right?"

"No, no, if the Zhu family doesn't agree, Xiaoling can't be put in." Xu Wangting also knew that he couldn't push too much.

The couple had to catch the last bus back in the afternoon, so they left after saying this.

After Xu Fang sent the person away, he felt even more listless.

She's already in a stalemate with her daughter, her husband is also annoyed with her, and now her eldest brother and his men are forcing her to do this. She's got so much trouble on her plate, she doesn't know how to deal with it.

On their way back, Xu Wangting and his wife were also full of worries.

"What should we do about this? If the Zhu family doesn't come forward, won't Qiu Ping's apology be doubted?"

Xu Wangting was also worried about this. "Let's wait and see. If it doesn't work, we can go there ourselves while Xiaoling is not at home. The Zhu family cares about Xiaoling and it's impossible for them not to give her this face."

"After Xiaoling finds out, you won't be able to hide it from your parents either."

Xu Hongmei stopped talking.

Xu Wangting said, "We can only act first and report later. Otherwise, if Leader Qiuping knows that our family is not close to the Zhu family, Qiuping's work will not be concealed."

In the beginning, my son was able to get a job there because his girlfriend paid to find someone, and the other party did it for the sake of the Zhu family's face.

"Qiuping was talking about this on the phone last time. Director Wu asked several times, mostly asking whether Qiuping went to the Zhu family. Qiuping could still perfunctorily answer at first, but after a while, the other party began to question Qiuping's relationship with the Zhu family." Xu Hongmei said, "Although Qiuping didn't say anything, I could tell from the fatigue in his voice that he was not doing well at work."

Naturally, he was given a hard time.

Xu Wangting was annoyed by what he heard and didn't want to listen any more, so he said, "Okay, let's try to arrange this."

That night, Ji Jianhua returned home. He did not stay at the factory but went straight back to his home in Bei County.

It was already past ten o'clock in the evening when he got home, and it was Xu Fang who opened the door for him.

Ji Jianhua entered the room and asked, "Where's my dad?"

"have no idea."

Ji Jianhua was puzzled.

Xu Fang said, "After knowing that I called the Zhu family, your father has not returned home. Who knows where he went?"

Ji Jianhua hurriedly asked, "Have you found everyone? People you know."

"I asked, but no one saw him. There are a lot of people coming to the store these days, and I don't understand a lot of things. If I can't explain, the customers will leave." Xu Fang sat down, "If this continues, there's no need to open the store."

Ji Jianhua looked over and found that his mother looked tired and thinner, but he did not show any mercy.

"By the way, how did you come back so soon? Sanmei had a miscarriage, you should stay with her for a few more days."

"Sanmei, no need." Ji Jianhua sat down, "Mom, call the Zhu family to apologize."

"What?"

"Call and apologize. Don't make Xiaoling's life in the Zhu family miserable. The Zhu family won't be angry with her, but what you did has made Xiaoling's situation in the Zhu family very awkward."

If her husband had not failed to come home, and if her eldest brother had not come to visit today, Xu Fang would have definitely scolded her son.

But at this moment, Xu Fang was silent.

"Mom, Xiaoling also had a miscarriage. It was our family's fault. We treated Xiaoling as an outsider. This is also our family's fault. We can't just let it go."

"What's the matter? The call from the Zhu family was to your father. Otherwise, how would your father know that I called the Zhu family?"

Hearing the resentment in her words, Ji Jianhua said, "Mom, do you think the Zhu family shouldn't have called?"

"I didn't say that." Xu Fang replied loudly. When she met her son's gaze, she lowered her voice. "What I meant is that the Zhu family is so angry now. Even if I call to apologize, the Zhu family will not accept it. You have a good relationship with Xiaoling, why don't you talk to her? I misunderstood her about this matter. Tell her not to take it to heart."

Ji Jianhua looked at his mother.

Even at this moment, the mother still couldn't let go of her pride and couldn't even say the words of apology.

(End of this chapter)