"Grabbing is never as fast as extorting?"
Ruan Zheng smiled carelessly under the devouring gazes of Liu Xiangqin and Song Yao, infuriating them both.
However, their anger differed slightly.
Liu Xiangqin simply thought Ruan Zheng was greedy, treating her like a fool.
Song Yao not only thought Ruan Zheng was greedy but also deeply regretted her earlier assumptions.
She had believed Ruan Zheng was an unsophisticated country girl who could be easily bought off with a little money.
Once Ruan Zheng published a clarification in the newspaper, she could completely extricate herself from this scandal and marry into a better family.
But Ruan Zheng’s outrageous demands would almost drain the Song Family’s savings accumulated over many years.
What would she have left to take with her when she married?
Compared to the tangible benefits in hand, whether Song Changjiang could get a promotion became less important.
She somewhat regretted persuading Liu Xiangqin to come in and negotiate with Ruan Zheng.
Moreover, she didn’t want to work in the same unit as Ruan Zheng.
Work was already annoying enough; having to put on an act of sisterly affection in front of Ruan Zheng every day would be exhausting.
Given Ruan Zheng’s temperament, if she deliberately exposed her identity, how could she face staying in the unit?
So Ruan Zheng absolutely must not go to the Railway Bureau, and the house couldn’t be given to her either.
Why should Ruan Zheng have things she herself didn’t even have!
She tugged at Liu Xiangqin’s sleeve.
Liu Xiangqin turned and met Song Yao’s face.
The usually beautiful and obedient face was now filled with malice, startling her.
Song Yao realized something was off and quickly composed herself, reverting to her timid demeanor: "Sister still resents me after all. Mom, I don’t want you two to become estranged because of me. How about this?"
She quickly devised a plan. "The Song Family raised me for eighteen years, so I’ll repay the family’s kindness for eighteen years. For the next eighteen years, I’ll contribute part of my salary to the household. That way, Mom and Dad won’t need to scrape together money for Sister, and Sister won’t have to be upset about this either."
As a trainee, she currently earned twenty yuan a month.
If she gave five yuan to the family each month, that would be sixty yuan a year. Over eighteen years, it would only amount to a little over a thousand yuan—a drop in the bucket compared to the effort and money the Song Family had spent raising her.
Besides, Liu Xiangqin doted on her and would surely compensate her in other ways.
It was just moving money from one hand to the other; ultimately, it would still end up in her pocket, with no real loss.
At the same time, it would prevent Ruan Zheng from asking the family for more money—killing two birds with one stone.
Liu Xiangqin, unaware of Song Yao’s scheming, simply thought Song Yao was a good child who knew how to repay kindness.
What family would raise a child and then demand repayment for the upbringing?
By comparison, she found Ruan Zheng even more disagreeable and completely forgot about the malice she had seen on Song Yao’s face moments earlier.
With a cold expression, she said to Ruan Zheng, "You heard it. Xiao Yao will repay that portion of the money to us. We won’t give you your share, and you don’t need to repay us either—consider it settled. As for the dowry, you’re both my daughters, so of course I won’t favor one over the other."
"Each of you will get one thousand yuan, two cotton quilts, two sets of bedsheets and quilt covers, two enamel basins, and one thermos. Since the cotton quilts can’t be prepared right away, I’ll replace them and the enamel items with a hundred yuan. That makes a total of eleven hundred yuan."
"You can ask around. Which family gives such a dowry when marrying off a daughter these days? In poorer families, the bridegroom’s betrothal gifts are often entirely withheld."
"I can arrange a job for you, but don’t even think about Xiao Yao’s unit. The railway bureau won’t hire uneducated employees."
"As for the house, you don't need it for now. After your father and I pass away, the family assets will be divided into four shares, one for each of you four siblings."
"Now can you come with me to drop the case?"
Ruan Zheng disagreed.
"The dowry can be calculated as eleven hundred, but the eighteen years of upbringing expenses cannot be offset like that."
Ruan Zheng laid out her reasoning clearly.
"First, Song Yao is already eighteen and will soon marry. Is it appropriate for her to continue sending money to her parents every month after marriage? Will Song Yao's in-laws agree? Even if they do, how can you be so sure she will work for eighteen years? What if she stops working midway? Would you accept money from her husband?"
Liu Xiangqin was left speechless. Ruan Zheng raised two fingers.
"There are two options. First, calculate the total amount that needs to be repaid and have Song Yao pay it in full at once. Second, pay it to me in a lump sum."
"Additionally, I want the railway job. If I lack education, I can work as a train attendant instead of an office position. There are always positions that don't require academic qualifications. Don't try to fool me with a textile factory job. With you suppressing me and without a diploma, I'd have no chance of advancement."
She refused to spend her life as a textile worker in the workshop.
Nor would she let the original owner suffer through those eighteen years in vain.
"There's no room for negotiation on the house either. I was abandoned by you for eighteen years. Four demands are already very few—you should be content. If they aren't met, I'll make sure Wang Jinhua rots in prison and confirm the rumors outside, letting everyone know how you harmed me for the sake of your adopted daughter."
Liu Xiangqin was so angry her head ached.
Song Yao wasn't faring any better.
After all these years, even if others didn't know, how could she not know how much money she had spent?
She'd rather throw that much money into the streets than give it to Ruan Zheng!
They parted on bad terms once again.
Liu Xiangqin decided to discuss the matter with Song Changjiang.
The situation had now exceeded her expectations, and she couldn't make the decision alone.
People at Song Changjiang's level usually had their phones monitored, so Liu Xiangqin left the hospital and took a car directly to his workplace.
When she found him, her pent-up grievances erupted instantly, and tears began to fall.
After so many years as deputy factory director, and influenced by Song Changjiang, Liu Xiangqin had always maintained a calm and serious demeanor in public, rarely showing such vulnerability.
Realizing where she had been that day, Song Changjiang grew furious and immediately complained, "What has that unfilial daughter done now?"
Liu Xiangqin rambled on, pouring out all the grievances she had suffered that day.
"Changjiang, my heart feels like it's been torn open, with cold wind blowing right through. It hurts terribly. She's our own flesh and blood—how could she turn against us like this?"
Song Changjiang comforted her briefly before analyzing the situation.
"That rebellious girl wants a divorce so she can live independently. That's why she needs a stable job and a house that you can't control."
"What?" Liu Xiangqin was shocked.
"We've been running around and even promised her so much, all in the hope of reconciling her with Xiujie. If she extorts us and then divorces Xiujie anyway, what's the point of all our efforts?"
Song Changjiang pondered and said, "Then let her divorce."
Liu Xiangqin instinctively shook her head. "But how will we explain it to the Zheng Family?"
"At a time like this, why worry about explaining anything to the Zheng Family?"
"At a time like this, we must cut ties immediately. If that rebellious daughter doesn't get what she wants, she might very well take her resentment out on us. Both our eldest and second son are in their career advancement phases—we can't let one person's madness affect the entire family's future."
Liu Xiangqin stood outside for a while, letting the cold wind clear her head, and gradually calmed down.
She gritted her teeth and said slowly, "You're right. After what Wang Jinhua has done, no one would blame us even if we divorced. It's just that Ruan Zheng might find it hard to marry into a good family in the future…"
"That's her own choice. She can't blame anyone else."