Lost in thought, Lin Zhaoyang suddenly realized that everyone was staring at her, apparently waiting to hear what she thought.
She quickly stated her position.
“I’ll listen to Mom.”
Lin Zhaoyang was determined to play the role of the obedient mama’s girl to the very end.
If she hadn’t once caught Wang Fenglan secretly crying alone in the living room late at night because she was so worried about her daughter’s marriage, Lin Zhaoyang would never have agreed to meet Yang Wen back then.
She herself didn’t know why she had such an unconventional desire never to get married.
She just… did.
She had already felt that way even before she started dating Zou Zhengting.
Later, however, she couldn’t resist Zou Qiongying’s enthusiastic matchmaking and agreed to meet him.
The thought of staying single temporarily disappeared.
Because Zou Zhengting was simply too perfectly her type.
If Heaven had quietly delivered a completely naked Zou Zhengting into her bed…
She would have slept with him without the slightest hesitation.
Thinking back on it now, what a shame that opportunity earlier in the day had gone to waste.
Too bad Lin Ni had come back so quickly.
And too bad she hadn’t yet known that Yang Wen and Lin Ni were already secretly involved.
Yao Dasong’s suggestion had been gently but firmly shut down by Grandma.
He laughed awkwardly and wisely kept quiet.
Instead, he subtly shot a meaningful glance at his wife, Wang Fengping.
“Sis,” Wang Fengping began cautiously, “I heard from your neighbors that the Yang family gave this house to Zhaoyang and didn’t ask your family to return either the bride price or any of the engagement gifts.”
She probed further.
“The bride price the Yang family gave… are you keeping it, or is Zhaoyang holding onto it herself?”
Earlier, Wang Fenglan had said that she and Lin Daheng intended to let Lin Zhaoyang keep the entire bride price when she got married.
Now that the engagement had fallen apart, Wang Fengping didn’t know whether the money had already been handed over.
“I gave it to Zhaoyang a couple of days ago.”
“It’s already in her own bank account.”
The moment Wang Fenglan heard her elder sister asking about the bride price, she immediately thought of her sister and brother-in-law’s usual behavior.
She looked at them directly.
“Big Sis, why are you asking?”
“You didn’t come here today just to check on Zhaoyang, did you?”
“Don’t tell me you’re actually here to borrow money.”
Wang Fengping and Yao Dasong instinctively exchanged glances.
Wang Fengping hurriedly denied it.
“Little Sister, what kind of people do you think your brother-in-law and I are?”
“We’re Zhaoyang’s elders.”
“Of course we’re concerned about her,” Yao Dasong quickly echoed.
Only then did Wang Fenglan’s expression soften slightly.
But in the very next second, Wang Fengping continued,
“We’re only borrowing money while we’re here.”
“Our main purpose was still to visit Zhaoyang.”
She hurried to explain.
“Shicheng has been working as a temporary employee at the factory for years without ever becoming permanent.”
“He’s found another opportunity and wants to quit his job to start a business.”
“But he’s still short on startup capital.”
“So we were hoping Zhaoyang could lend her cousin the two hundred yuan for a while.”
“As soon as Shicheng starts making money, he’ll pay her back.”
The Shicheng she referred to was her eldest son, Yao Shicheng.
He was actually two years older than Lin Zhaoyang.
Among all the cousins on the Wang family’s side, he was the only one Lin Zhaoyang couldn’t stand.
Yao Dasong smiled.
“When Zhaoyang gets married again, she’s such a good catch that the groom’s family will definitely give another bride price.”
“So your family won’t be needing this money for the time being.”
Inside, both Lin Daheng and Wang Fenglan cursed their rotten luck.
Lin Zhaoyang curled her lips in disdain and shot back immediately.
“If he can’t even afford to start a business, then he shouldn’t start one.”
“It’s not like he’ll starve to death working as a temporary employee.”
“Other people can do it. Why can’t he?”
“He doesn’t even have enough capital and is already eyeing the two hundred yuan from my bride price.”
“What business does he think he’s qualified to run?”
“If he’d asked to borrow two thousand yuan instead, I wouldn’t even be saying this.”
Without needing to ask, Lin Zhaoyang already knew the Yao family hadn’t just started coveting her bride price today.
They had probably been thinking about it for quite some time.
Today was simply the first day they had the nerve to ask.
Wang Fenglan lightly slapped her daughter’s arm.
“Big Sis, Brother-in-law…”
“Your Shicheng isn’t that desperate.”
“He’d better stop making trouble for himself.”
It wasn’t that Wang Fenglan looked down on Yao Shicheng.
He always aimed higher than his abilities.
He looked down on everyone else.
He wasn’t particularly smart.
He was lazy and loved taking the easy way out.
Starting a business?
She would be shocked if he actually made any money.
Besides…
Yao Shicheng wasn’t exactly known for honesty.
Whenever he borrowed money, he never paid it back.
When Lin Zhaoyang and her younger cousins were children, Yao Shicheng had borrowed plenty of their New Year’s lucky money under all kinds of excuses.
Not once had he ever returned a single cent.
Since her mother was being so tactful, Lin Zhaoyang chose to be much more direct.
“Auntie. Uncle.”
“I don’t care what Cousin Shicheng wants the money for.”
“I’m not lending him a single cent.”
Then she began bringing up old scores.
“When we were little, Cousin Shicheng borrowed all our lucky money.”
“When I came asking the two of you to return it…”
“Do you remember what you told me?”
Judging from their expressions, Wang Fengping and Yao Dasong clearly remembered.
They simply thought Lin Zhaoyang was being petty.
“You’re already grown up.”
“Why are you still holding a grudge over something like that?”
“Our lucky money was tricked away by Cousin Shicheng.”
“Of course we hold a grudge.”
“If we’d cheated your family out of money instead, wouldn’t you resent us too?”
Lin Zhaoyang let out a cold laugh.
“Only the people who benefited from something are the ones who complain that others are holding grudges.”
Lin Zhaoyang had always been bold and straightforward.
When she discovered that Yao Shicheng had tricked both her and Lin Xinhua out of their lucky money, she had marched straight to the Yao family during New Year’s and openly demanded her money back from Wang Fengping and Yao Dasong.
“Back then, Auntie, you said I was speaking too harshly.”
“You told me that cousins spending a little money on each other couldn’t possibly be called cheating.”
“You also said Cousin Shicheng never wrote me an IOU.”
“So the money should simply be considered a gift from us to him.”
“And you, Uncle, said that my brother and I had so much lucky money we couldn’t possibly spend it all.”
“You even said Cousin Shicheng was kindly helping us spend it.”
The moment she finished speaking, Wang Kuishi slammed his teacup heavily onto the table.
“Yao Dasong!”
“Did you really say that to the children?”
“Dad, I was just joking around with kids.”
Yao Dasong didn’t dare admit he had shamelessly bullied children that way.
“If it was only a joke…”
Grandma immediately hit the heart of the matter.
“Did you ever repay the money on your son’s behalf?”
Both Wang Fengping and Yao Dasong lowered their heads without saying a word.
“Repay it? My foot!”
Lin Zhaoyang rolled her eyes.
“The two of them even talked behind my back.”
“They bragged that Cousin Shicheng was clever enough to get money from all his younger cousins.”
“They praised him for being so smart at such a young age, saying he’d played all of us like fools.”
Those smug remarks had been made when they thought Lin Zhaoyang couldn’t hear them.
But she had still been angry after leaving and had turned back.
By pure coincidence, she overheard every single word.
From that day on, she completely cut off contact with Yao Shicheng.
If she could avoid visiting the Yao family, she absolutely would.
Lin Zhaoyang had always had a domineering personality.
Not only did she refuse to go herself, she forbade Lin Xinhua from going as well.
Whenever everyone arranged to visit the Yao family during the New Year holidays, she would instead invite the cousins from Uncle Wang’s family out to watch movies.
She would rather spend every penny of her lucky money within two or three days than let that swindler Yao Shicheng get his hands on it.
“Zhaoyang, aren’t you just making things up now?”
Yao Dasong hurriedly denied everything when he met Wang Kuishi’s murderous glare.
“I’m an adult.”
“How could I possibly say something like that?”
“So what if you’re holding a grudge?”
“Now you’re even inventing lies.”
“And you’re supposed to be a teacher? What an example you’re setting.”