“Why should I help them?”
Wen Dongrong nearly jumped on the spot. “Do not casually slander me!”
Though his mouth denied it, Wen Dongrong kept glancing up at the front door from time to time, fearing Chen Ru might finish work early and overhear.
Wen Hongyan’s daughter dropping out was the fault of Wen Hongyan and Shu Guobing for being utterly inhuman. What did it have to do with him, Wen Dongrong?
If he took responsibility for Shu Lu’s affairs and Chen Ru found out, this family would surely fall apart!
As the saying goes, better the friend die than oneself. Wen Dongrong was no self-sacrificing saint. When his own interests were at stake, his calculations were crystal clear.
He was still the head of the household now, but his authority had waned considerably. He needed to stay vigilant, avoid missteps, and maintain his image as family head in all matters.
Wen Dongrong looked comical, and Wen Ying inexplicably wanted to laugh. Then she truly could not hold it in and burst out laughing.
“I get it. You are afraid of Mum scolding you! If you do not want to help, then do not. I do not want to help them either. They are ungrateful white-eyed wolves that cannot be tamed. I do not want to stage ‘The Farmer and the Viper’ at home. Mum certainly will not help either. She would only assist relatives like Uncle and Auntie who are self-reliant.”
Wen Dongrong, of course, refused to admit he feared his wife.
His reluctance to help Shu Lu stemmed not only from how her family’s past actions had chilled his heart but also from a key reason: the satisfaction he once got from aiding her had been fully replaced by others.
Shu Lu was ungrateful, Wen Hongyan and Shu Guobing were ungrateful, but the impoverished students Wen Dongrong had helped were profoundly grateful. Every thank-you letter he received, every transcript of progress, brought him genuine joy.
When Grandmother Wen relayed that Shu Lu was dropping out, Wen Dongrong felt a pang upon hearing it. He even made a point to inquire about the reason for her dropout.
Could Wen Hongyan truly not afford to raise her daughter on her own?
Wen Dongrong did not think so.
School fees in the countryside were far cheaper than in the city, and students’ expenses at school were low. Wen Hongyan was hale and hearty, in her prime years. If she seriously sought work in the county town, she could absolutely support Shu Lu’s studies. It might mean a drop in living standards, with Shu Lu unable to wear nice clothes or attend various classes and summer camps as before, but normal schooling was no issue.
Unfortunately, Wen Hongyan had tasted a few days of luxury in the provincial city. Back in the countryside, she grew even lazier. With no diploma or skills, dreaming of an easy high-paying job was pure fantasy.
Unable to find proper work and unwilling to lower herself like Zhu Meiqun to start the most grueling small business for income, she scraped by on occasional odd jobs and borrowing from everywhere. Naturally, such a life would only worsen.
Worst of all, Wen Hongyan was not just lazy; she chased unrealistic “get-rich-quick” dreams every day.
This time, Shu Lu’s inability to pay registration fees stemmed directly from Wen Hongyan.
With Wen Dongrong no longer playing the “sister-rescuing demon”, Wen Hongyan had the gall to target Uncle Wen Ying and Grandmother Wen, putting on a pitiful show before these two relatives.
Out of sibling sentiment, Uncle Wen Ying had secretly helped Wen Hongyan twice. Wen Hongyan, like a cat scenting fish, latched onto him thereafter.
Wen Ying listened in a daze. “Uncle lent them money. Does Auntie know?”
Wen Dongrong cleared his throat. “She did not know at first. Later, she did.”
Uncle Wen Ying had no habit of keeping secret funds. The household accounts had always been managed by Zhu Meiqun.
Zhu Meiqun, striving to buy a house for her son Wen Kai, now focused solely on earning money.
Feeling her sister-in-law Chen Ru, with her bank job, was a professional, she often consulted Chen Ru.
Chen Ru said that to save money, it boiled down to four big words: “generate income, cut expenditure”. For generating income, Zhu Meiqun was already on it. Her modest fruit stall thrived under her management, bustling and vibrant.
As for cutting expenditure, it was not about slashing one’s living standards to the bone, skimping on food and clothes, or even skipping hospital visits when ill in miserly fashion. Rather, it meant knowing clearly what expenses were necessary and which could be skipped.
Zhu Meiqun felt her mind was not sharp enough to keep all expenditures in mind. Chen Ru taught her to keep accounts.
Note down every expense. At month’s end, review the ledger, and gradually one gains clarity.
Once good habits form, the next step is learning to make accumulated wealth grow.
Lately, Chen Ru had been explaining bank investment knowledge to Zhu Meiqun.
Investing was not exclusive to the wealthy. Ordinary folk could invest too. The rich built wealth gradually, and while ordinary people might not evolve into the rich through investing, they could outpace the average person’s wealth growth.
Wen Ying got it here. “So Uncle’s aid to them was discovered!”
Wen Dongrong’s expression grew uneasy as he “mm”-ed.
Big Brother was truly too honest!
The household money was under sister-in-law Zhu Meiqun’s control. She was no longer a mere worker or street vendor hawking roasted sweet potatoes. Though the fruit stall was small, it involved daily dealings with customers. With Chen Ru’s guidance, Zhu Meiqun had evolved!
Big Brother Wen, treading water in place, against the evolved Zhu Meiqun, naturally suffered utter defeat. Before he could aid Wen Hongyan a third time, Zhu Meiqun uncovered it.
Zhu Meiqun was, of course, livid.
She toiled selling fruit to buy a house for their son, logging even sanitary pads under “cut expenditure”, yet her man dared siphon money to aid his lazy, wicked sister Wen Hongyan. Zhu Meiqun would agree only if she were a ghost!
Wen Hongyan’s poverty was from laziness, from malice, not illness.
Zhu Meiqun not only berated her husband thoroughly but also dashed back to the rural hometown to curse out Wen Hongyan.
Zhu Meiqun differed from Chen Ru. Chen Ru cared for face; Zhu Meiqun had been a rural farmwife before entering the city. She knew the ways of countryside brawls. She blocked Wen Hongyan’s door and railed for half a day, drawing half the village to gawk.
Wen Hongyan first feigned ignorance, then resorted to moral blackmail, saying what was wrong with her own brother helping out.
Zhu Meiqun spat heavily. “Your brother shares a bed with me, bore him a son. Can you? If you are so capable, make him divorce me. Once we no longer share a bed, let him support you if he wishes. I would not fart a single extra one!”
Even thick-skinned as Wen Hongyan was, she could not withstand the accusation of “sharing a bed with her brother”. In the countryside, the hat of sibling incest was too heavy; Wen Hongyan could be reviled to death.
No wonder they say economic foundation determines the superstructure.
Zhu Meiqun was now the family’s main earner. In the home, she held sway!
Wen Dongrong sighed, lamenting that Big Brother had followed in his footsteps. Of the three brothers, two already could not rein in their wives.
Wen Ying, however, wanted to applaud Auntie.
Well done!
With Auntie willing to stoop to cursing, Wen Hongyan could no longer suck Big Uncle’s blood.
Manager Chen’s loss lay in being a city folk with simple maternal relatives, knowing little of handling a horde of in-law kin for many years. Though displeased with Wen Dongrong aiding Wen Hongyan’s family, she bottled it up until unbearable, nearly blowing up their marriage when the bomb finally burst!
