“Chenghe, your younger brother is right. We can’t leave others with anything to hold against us in matters like this. Let the eldest focus on his work. And you… stop thinking about these crooked shortcuts.”
As he spoke, Jiang Zhiyuan’s gaze lingered on Xiao Chenghe’s outfit, his brows knitting together in clear disapproval.
“And Chenghe, you should pay more attention to how you present yourself. You’re a cadre, after all. You can’t dress so flamboyantly every day. If outsiders see this, they’ll think your family doesn’t live simply or frugally at all.”
Xiao Chenghe felt both angry and flustered, yet he had no way to respond.
Normally, his father-in-law never cared about such things. He hadn’t expected that today, just because of his brother-in-law’s words, the blame would suddenly shift onto him.
He forced a smile and said, “Dad, I’ll head back first. Please think about this carefully. After all, this concerns Xiuyun’s entire life.”
Deep down, he was already planning to go home and whisper into his wife’s ear, nudging her to speak on his behalf.
After all, even a tiger wouldn’t eat its own cubs. What parent wouldn’t feel for their child? He refused to believe his father-in-law could truly be so heartless.
Jiang Zhiyuan turned his gaze toward his son, looking him up and down with scrutiny. “Why are you back so early today? Not going to fawn over Tang Yue?”
His tone was thick with sarcasm. He had only this one son.
Between both families, there was only this single precious child… spoiled to the point that if he asked for the sun, they would never give him the moon instead.
Yet this son, whom they cherished like the apple of their eye, had completely lost his head over a woman.
That Tang family was no good. They had taken advantage of his son to gain quite a few benefits from him.
If not for worrying that his son would be hurt, Jiang Zhiyuan would have already taken action against the Tang family.
“Dad, I swear to you today—I don’t care about Tang Yue anymore. From now on, I’ll cut ties with her completely!”
Jiang Lin knew very well how hollow his words sounded.
In his previous life, he had said things like this countless times. His father had never believed him then, and he wouldn’t believe him now either.
Sure enough, Jiang Zhiyuan didn’t believe a single word. Instead, his expression turned even more disdainful.
“Alright, alright. You must have argued with Tang Yue again, huh? What’s so good about that girl?
Her family is the poorest in their entire village. Just because she’s close to you, her mother insisted on getting hardship subsidies from our village. But look at them… every one of them is lazier than pigs.
And that Tang Yue, dressing herself up all day long… with that kind of time, she could help her family farm or raise pigs. No matter what, they shouldn’t be this poor. Read this novel at novelping . com for the best experience.
It’s only because you’re blind that you fell for someone like her.”
Jiang Lin lowered his gaze slightly, then said firmly, “Dad, I promise you, from today onward, there will be nothing between me and Tang Yue. I’m going to study properly and get into university, so I can make you proud.”
Jiang Zhiyuan snorted, “You think I’d believe that?”
Although he felt a flicker of happiness hearing those words, he knew full well they wouldn’t come true. At best, his son was just trying to please him.
Still, compared to before, this was already an improvement. In the past, whenever he criticized the Tang family, his son would immediately flare up at him.
“Hungry, aren’t you? Fine. I had your mother cook scrambled eggs today, and there’s also some pork head meat. Go buy a bottle of liquor. We’ll have a drink together.”
Even if his son was lying, those pleasant words still warmed Jiang Zhiyuan’s heart.
“Alright, Dad, I’ll go buy the wine.”
Jiang Lin turned around, jumped onto his bicycle, and sped off. From the kitchen, his mother saw him leaving and hurriedly shouted, “You brat! Your father has high blood pressure. He’s not supposed to drink, and you’re still buying him liquor!”
Jiang Lin called back as he rode, “Mom, just a little. Don’t worry, I’ll keep an eye on him and won’t let him drink too much.”
With that, he disappeared in a flash.
He pedaled all the way to the small shop at the entrance of their village… the only shop the village had.
Just as he was about to stop, he nearly crashed into another bicycle coming from the opposite direction.
Jiang Lin quickly reached out and helped the woman steady herself. When he saw who it was, his heart jumped in fright.
“Big Sister, are you alright? Should I take you to the hospital?”
Jiang Xiuyun was already eight months pregnant, her belly large and heavy… she was close to giving birth.
He hadn’t expected her to return today.
Seeing it was her younger brother, Jiang Xiuyun smiled and brushed the dust off her clothes. “Do you think I’m made of mud? Your big sister is tough. I’m fine.”
Only then did she let out a breath of relief as well.
“Dalinzi, where are you rushing off to? Are you hurt anywhere?” You are reading on g.com, the official source.
In the Jiang family’s eyes, Jiang Lin was their precious treasure.
Hearing his sister’s concern, his eyes suddenly reddened.
His three sisters had always treated him with complete sincerity… even to the point of sacrificing everything for him. In truth, he had always been the one enjoying the benefits.
Yet in his previous life, for the sake of a single woman, he had done nothing but exploit his sisters. He had never truly considered them, nor had he fulfilled his responsibility as the man of the family.
If only he had stood firm back then… if only he had supported his sisters, how could his eldest sister have suffered such a fate?
In the end, he had been nothing but an ungrateful wretch.
“Big Sister, look at me, I’m full of energy. I’m not hurt anywhere. But you… why weren’t you watching the road? You almost crashed straight into me.”
Jiang Xiuyun awkwardly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, her expression slightly embarrassed. How could she admit that she had been thinking about the position at the Supply and Marketing Cooperative?
“It’s nothing. I was thinking about something and forgot to watch the road. Come on, since neither of us is hurt, let’s head home quickly. Mom and Dad must be worried.”
Jiang Lin helped her steady the bicycle. Instead of getting back on, he chose to push it along as they walked.
“Big Sister, are you thinking about that Supply and Marketing Cooperative director position?”
Jiang Xiuyun paused, surprised. “How did you know?”
“How could I not know? You don’t know this, but today Brother-in-law Xiao went to our house and directly asked Dad for 800 yuan.
You know our family’s situation. There’s no way Mom and Dad can come up with 800 yuan. So he’s pressuring Second Sister and Third Sister to pool money together as well.”
Jiang Lin knew exactly what kind of person his eldest sister was. If Xiao Chenghe kept whispering in her ear, she might really go and ask their father for the money.
His father was a decent man. In this era that favored sons over daughters, even though Jiang Lin was the only son, his father had already treated his three daughters far better than most families would.
And he especially valued his eldest daughter. If she kept persuading him long enough, there was a real chance he might soften and agree.
“I didn’t know about this,” Jiang Xiuyun said softly. “Your brother-in-law only mentioned discussing it with me. I haven’t let him bring it up to Mom and Dad yet.”
She was a deeply filial daughter.
In this era, eldest daughters often carried a strong sense of responsibility… and she couldn’t bear to burden her family.