“I’m putting aside my dignity as an elder. No matter what, your second family must help with this matter today.”
Her eldest grandson was her lifeblood. If anything were to happen to him, she wouldn’t want to live on.
...
After dinner, and after informing Gu Xingdong, Chen Lishu took the gifts she had brought for the younger ones at home and returned to her maiden home.
“It’s almost New Year, so I bought a pair of leather shoes for Lizhi and the others. I guessed their sizes, and for those I wasn’t sure about, I bought them a size larger.”
The younger ones’ faces lit up when they heard about the leather shoes and immediately gathered around.
“Sister, these shoes are so pretty. I’ve never worn leather shoes since I can remember,” Chen Lizhi said, taking off her current shoes and picking up the smallest pair to try on.
Her older sisters couldn’t help but chuckle upon hearing her words, especially Chen Liffei, who playfully tapped Chen Lizhi’s forehead with her finger. “How old are you supposed to be to remember things?”
Chen Lizhi cupped her forehead and nudged her third sister with her nose. “Sister San, don’t bully me for being young. I still remember when Sister Da used to carry me when I was little.”
Seeing her serious expression, the sisters couldn’t hold back any longer and burst into laughter.
“These shoes aren’t cheap, are they? They’re all growing, and the shoes will be too small in less than a year. It’s such a waste.”
Children grow quickly, and when buying shoes, parents would usually get them a size or two larger and add insoles. Now, Chen Lishu had bought perfectly fitting, and very expensive, leather shoes, making Wu Chunmei’s heart ache.
Chen Lishu, however, was unconcerned. “Mom, it was unavoidable in the past due to poor conditions, which is why the younger ones wore the older ones’ hand-me-downs. Now that we have the means, we can’t do that anymore. As they grow older, their self-esteem will increase, and they should be dressed appropriately.”
Chen Mantun agreed, “Lishu is right. You won’t be poor if you don’t spend more than you earn, and you’ll only be poor if you can’t manage your finances. The children are quite frugal usually. As long as they’re happy, that’s all that matters.” He didn’t mind working harder or enduring more hardship himself.
Hearing Chen Mantun’s words, Chen Lizhi immediately leaned over and wrapped her arms around his neck, saying, “Dad, you’re so good. Lizhi likes you the most.”
Chen Mantun couldn’t resist his youngest daughter’s affectionate gestures and chuckled good-naturedly.
When Grandma Chen, Chen Mancang and his wife, and Chen Baozhu entered, they saw the family enjoying a warm and happy scene, which immediately made them feel uneasy.
“Mom, Brother, you’re here.” Chen Mantun greeted them. “It’s cold outside, come sit by the kang.”
Chen Lifei’s smile faded slightly as she saw them. She expressionlessly put the shoes spread out on the kang back into their bags and then into the cabinet.
Zhang Chunhua’s eyes flickered when she saw the leather shoes. The cheapest pair of leather shoes cost at least ten yuan, and judging by the quality, they wouldn’t be less than twenty or thirty yuan. With four or five pairs laid out, it was likely over a hundred yuan. It seemed that her second brother’s family was truly doing well.
Because she needed a favor, Grandma Chen was not as aggressive as usual. Seeing Chen Lishu there, she gave her a rare pleasant look and proactively asked, “When did our eldest daughter return?”
Chen Lishu’s eyebrow subtly twitched. She thought to herself that the sun must have risen in the west. Her grandmother, who usually looked at her with disdain, was being unusually nice. Something fishy was going on, and it was likely nothing good.
With that thought, she replied in a calm voice, “I returned at noon.”
Grandma Chen felt a surge of anger at her indifferent demeanor. A white-eyed wolf was indeed a white-eyed wolf, having such an attitude towards her own grandmother. Heaven was blind to let her become successful, while her own eldest grandson had such poor luck.
“Second brother, your eldest brother’s family is in real trouble this time. Baozhu is the only male heir in our Chen family. As his uncle, you can’t just stand by and watch him die, can you?”
Chen Lishu let out a sneer, realizing her grandmother hadn’t disappointed her.
Chen Mantun frowned, “Mom, what happened?”
Chen Mancang sighed, “It’s all this good-for-nothing. He was incited by someone and fell into a trap. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have lost six hundred yuan at once. And now they’ve come to claim the house as collateral. I don’t know what sin I committed in my past life to have given birth to such a prodigal son.”
Chen Mantun was astonished. “This, losing six hundred yuan at once?”
Their family worked tirelessly all year round and only earned about that much.
“Second brother, second sister-in-law, the family doesn’t even have land anymore. If we lose the house, and with Xiao Ying having returned to her maiden home due to previous matters and still not back, you can’t just watch this family fall apart, can you?” Zhang Chunhua had initially intended to put on a show, but as she spoke, she became genuinely sad and even managed to squeeze out a couple of tears.
Wu Chunmeu asked, “Eldest sister-in-law, with such a big problem, didn’t you go to see Limin?”
Chen Limin was married into the county town and was said to be doing well. Surely she could help a little.
Zhang Chunhua’s crying paused. “Limin marrying into the city sounds good, but her life is actually quite tight. The maiden family can’t help, and we can’t drag the children down.”
“Auntie, you’re quite something. You don’t want to drag my Sister Limin down, but you want our family to be the foolish ones and pay for you? Your family is in this state because of Chen Baozhu himself. Initially, when he lost the land, you wanted my parents to help with money. If they didn’t, you’d threaten to die and even wanted to use our family’s land as collateral. And what was the result? Weren’t everyone living well?”
Chen Lifei was furious and said without mincing words, “Now it’s another six hundred yuan. If you parents are willing to clean up his mess because he’s not doing proper work, we can’t control that, but our family also has our own lives. No one’s money grows on trees. You say it lightly by calling it a loan, but with his character, can he even repay it?”
“You little girl, what do you know? We’re all from the Chen family. Your father and your uncle are brothers. They are connected by bone and flesh. Can he watch his family die?” Grandma Chen was so angry she wished she could slap the sharp-tongued girl twice. The second son and his wife were both slow to react, but these girls were one tougher than the other.
Chen Lifei retorted, “Who told you to die? It’s all Chen Baozhu’s own doing. He gambles all day and doesn’t do proper work. He’s in his thirties and still can’t control himself. I say, why not just chop off his hands and feed them to the dogs.”
Chen Baozhu’s nostrils flared, and he gasped for breath, his gaze towards Chen Lifei filled with malice. “When adults are discussing matters, what business is it of yours? Believe it or not, I’ll make you pay!”
Chen Lifei met his gaze, tilting her chin slightly. “Chen Baozhu, you’re truly arrogant. Is this how you ask for a loan? Get out of my house now!”
Chen Baozhu snorted coldly, “Your house? You’re just a money-losing girl who will get married sooner or later. This is the Chen family, and I am the only eldest grandson of the Chen family.”
Chen Lifei’s sore spot was hit, and her eyes immediately welled up with tears of grievance.
Since childhood, due to Grandma Chen’s preference for males over females, her sisters and she were not favored, and her parents could not hold their heads up. Now Chen Baozhu was bringing this up again, how could she not be angry.
“You’re talking nonsense!”
However, as soon as she spoke, Chen Mantun stopped her.