Chapter 185: Choice
Zhou Wangshu came back carrying the book box and saw Su Yaoguang standing at the doorway without going in, keep craning her neck toward the opposite side. He followed her line of sight.
“What are you looking at?”
“Shh!” Su Yaoguang made a silencing gesture. “Watching the show.”
At this moment, Xiao Yanci happened to ask whose name was on the deed and land deed of Fenghua Pavilion. Jiang Yihuan heard his question, and her face grew even paler.
Xiao Yanci could guess without hearing her answer. The Jiang family revered Jiang Yihui, Zhong Lanhua doted on him excessively, Jiang Yihuan was somewhat clever but had soft ears, and she was a great filial daughter. She feared that, under Zhong Lanhua’s instigation, the house was written in Jiang Yihui’s name.
The busiest and most hardworking inside and outside the shop was Jiang Yihuan. Without Jiang Yihuan, this shop wouldn’t have opened at all, let alone earned money. Yet now she got nothing.
Xiao Yanci was unwilling, but there was no way around it now.
He supported the devastated Jiang Yihuan and said to Zhong Lanhua: “No matter what, Huan’er has given you all the money she earned these years. You can’t let us husband and wife leave empty-handed. Even in family division, you have to give us a portion. Once I pass the exam and get an official position, I naturally won’t forget you, my mother-in-law. I won’t skimp on what I should show filial piety with, not even one copper coin.”
“Before she was married, every copper coin she earned belonged to the family. After she married, the shop is mine, so the money earned is naturally mine too.” Jiang Yihui looked smugly at Xiao Yanci. “Don’t think I don’t know what abacus you’re playing. You married my sister just to take over this shop and rob me of my things, right?”
“Elder brother, what about me and Xiao Gege?” Jiang Yihuan said sadly. “You can’t just let us starve to death, can you?”
Zhong Lanhua couldn’t bear it in her heart.
Although she doted on her son, Jiang Yihuan was also her daughter, and these years it was Jiang Yihuan who made decisions for her. She was used to following her arrangements.
“Hui’er, no matter what, your sister has given so much to this family. We can’t be too heartless. How about this: we give them fifty taels of silver to rent a house?”
“Do you still want me to support you in your old age?” Jiang Yihui glared at Zhong Lanhua.
Zhong Lanhua turned her head away and no longer looked at Jiang Yihuan.
Jiang Yihuan was furious.
As soon as she was stimulated, her body went soft, and she fell toward Xiao Yanci.
Xiao Yanci hurriedly supported her. He looked coldly at Zhong Lanhua and Jiang Yihui, his eyes full of hatred.
“Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river. Today you look down on us husband and wife, but one day you will beg us to come back.” Xiao Yanci sneered, picked up Jiang Yihuan, and left.
As Xiao Yanci turned around, he happened to see Su Yaoguang and Zhou Wangshu.
Su Yaoguang was growing more charming and lovely nowadays. Zhou Wangshu stood at her side, and she relied on him very trustingly, looking quite like a bird depending on a person.
Zhou Wangshu had a handsome appearance, Su Yaoguang was a clear and beautiful woman, and the two really had some husband-and-wife resemblance.
Xiao Yanci always lost face in front of Su Yaoguang, which made him, who had memories of his previous life, feel utterly humiliated. But thinking that Su Yaoguang didn’t have those memories, and in her eyes he was just the son-in-law from her rival’s family, whether he lost face or not didn’t matter to her, so he thickened his face and pretended not to care as he walked over.
Only he knew how stiff his legs were, how cold his body was.
He thought he could live well without Su Yaoguang, but everything these days told him that without Su Yaoguang, his life was a mess. Even though he married the Jiang Yihuan he had longed for, he still felt it was meaningless.
When he held the wedding ceremony with Jiang Yihuan, that happiness didn’t last long. Even on their wedding night, he thought of Su Yaoguang and wanted to abandon Jiang Yihuan to find her.
“What are you looking at?” Zhang Zhaodi came out from inside. “I’ve seen you standing here for a long time. Do you want to be door gods here?”
“Mom, there’s good drama opposite again. Did you miss it?” Su Yaoguang said. “Just now…”
Blah blah blah…
Su Yaoguang told Zhang Zhaodi about the good show she had just seen.
Zhang Zhaodi looked at Su Yaoguang with shocked eyes: “I used to think Zhong Lanhua was quite smart, always trying every means to fight her but winning less and losing more. Now I realize her brain isn’t quite normal. Losing to someone like that, does it mean I’m even stupider than her?”
“It’s precisely because she’s not normal that we normal people can’t use normal thinking to figure her out. Mom, you didn’t lose unjustly. Normal people can’t win against a madman.”
“That makes sense.” Zhang Zhaodi said, “Wangshu, rest assured. Mom has only Yaoguang as a daughter. Everything Mom has is yours.”
Zhou Wangshu: “…Mom isn’t Zhong Lanhua. Even if you had a son, you wouldn’t treat us like she does.”
“Worthy of being my good son-in-law who lives with the wife’s family. I didn’t dote on you for nothing.” Zhang Zhaodi was increasingly satisfied with Zhou Wangshu. “Fortunately, Yaoguang chose you back then.”
“Mom, let’s go in!”
Zhang Zhaodi followed beside the two, asking curiously: “Where do you think they’ll stay tonight? Zhong Lanhua is really ruthless, not even arranging a place to live.”
“There are ruined temples in the city. Worst case, they can stay one night in a ruined temple. As for tomorrow, who knows?” Su Yaoguang said. “Anyway, they have hands and feet. As long as they’re willing to work, they won’t starve or freeze to death.”
“Zhong Lanhua will soon regret it. That shop of his mainly relies on Jiang Yihuan to manage it. Without Jiang Yihuan, the shop won’t last a few days.”
“Most importantly, Jiang Yihui isn’t a good person. Of course, no one in their family is good. By comparison, this Jiang Yihui isn’t just not good; he’s rotten.” Su Yaoguang said. “I’ve seen him come out of a brothel before, and I’ve seen him come out of a gambling house.”
Zhou Wangshu touched his nose.
The reason Jiang Yihui went to the gambling house was related to him.
It was just that he only had someone tempt him a bit. Who knew he would really take the bait and become a regular there now. If Zhong Lanhua had any brains, she would notice Jiang Yihui often stealing silver to gamble. Unfortunately, Zhong Lanhua has no brains, and the brainy Jiang Yihuan was driven out by her.
What happened to Fenghua Pavilion had nothing to do with them. The more destitute the Jiang family became, the happier Zhang Zhaodi was.
Zhang Zhaodi frankly admitted she was a petty person. Seeing her enemy live poorly made her able to eat three more bowls of rice.
“Mom, stop eating.” Su Yaoguang stopped Zhang Zhaodi’s actions. “No matter how good the mood today, you can’t eat this much. Be careful not to get indigestion and feel uncomfortable later.”
“It’s fine. Godmother has a good appetite, so let her eat more. I have digestion pills there.” Jiang Jing said. “Godmother, eat as you like. I won’t let you feel uncomfortable.”
“No wonder my good fortune is so great. Daughter and son-in-law who lives with the wife’s family are filial, goddaughter is filial, even the godson I took in outside respects me greatly. Much happier than Zhong Lanhua.” Although Zhang Zhaodi said this, she stopped eating. “Later we’ll go listen to opera. There’s new opera tonight. Anyway, nothing to do, the whole family can go relax.”
