Chapter 86: Zhang Qianqian Stays

Lying on the bed, Mother Li pointed at Li Mei, cursing incessantly.

“Beat her to death! Beat this heartless wretch to death! If I had known she would be such a disaster, I would have strangled her at birth! My poor sons and grandsons are still in prison—who knows if I’ll ever see them again before I die? And who will take care of me in my old age?”

Memories of the past years flashed through Li Mei’s mind. Her fists clenched tightly. Suddenly, she sprang up, shoving away the women pinning her down. She grabbed a nearby sickle and started slashing wildly.

“Ahhh!”

The women in the room screamed in terror, scrambling to crawl away.

Hearing the commotion, the neighbors rushed over and were stunned by the scene before them—blood pooled on the floor, and the women had deep gashes on their bodies. Clutching their wounds, they fled outside in panic.

The police were called, and Li Mei was arrested. She was sentenced to ten years in prison for intentional assault.

After Jiang Chenggong’s wedding, Li Zhaodi moved in with him.

At first, the two children were wary of her and refused to get close. Determined to win their trust, Li Zhaodi did everything she could to please them.

Just when the children were beginning to let down their guard, a girl suddenly showed up at their doorstep—fifteen-year-old Zhang Qianqian.

Father Jiang and Mother Jiang left the house to attend to their own affairs, giving the mother and daughter a private moment to talk.

Sitting on the Jiang family’s sofa, Zhang Qianqian clung to Li Zhaodi, sobbing.

“Mom, Dad wants to sell me off for money! He’s trying to marry me to a thirty-year-old man. Please save me! I’m only fifteen—I still want to go to school!”

“What?!” Li Zhaodi exploded in fury. “That bastard! You’re still so young, and he already wants to marry you off?!”

Gripping Li Zhaodi’s arm, Zhang Qianqian pleaded desperately—

“Mom, let me stay with you, please? I promise I’ll be good. I can help with housework and won’t disturb anyone. Mom, I’m begging you.”

Li Zhaodi felt torn. She wanted to take her daughter in, but she worried that the Jiang family wouldn’t agree. Still, she decided to give it a try.

“You can stay for now. When your stepfather gets back, I’ll talk to him.”

“Okay.” Zhang Qianqian wiped her tears. “Thank you, Mom.”

At noon, Li Zhaodi worked extra hard to prepare a table full of delicious dishes. When the Jiang family returned, they welcomed Zhang Qianqian warmly. However, Jiang Qingfeng and Jiang Qingyue exchanged a glance, feeling uneasy.

Was this girl joining their family too?

During the meal, Li Zhaodi served food to Jiang Chenggong and made sure the children ate well. Jiang’s mother spoke up.

“Zhaodi, just eat. You don’t have to take care of them.”

“Alright.” Li Zhaodi hesitated. She opened her mouth to speak several times but ended up saying nothing. The meal finished in silence, and Zhang Qianqian lowered her head in disappointment.

After dinner, she took the initiative to clear the dishes, but Jiang’s mother quickly stopped her.

“You don’t need to do that, child. Go play with Qingyue, I’ll take care of it.”

“I can do it,” Zhang Qianqian said.

Li Zhaodi swiftly tidied up the table, while Zhang Qianqian sat stiffly on the sofa. Jiang Qingfeng lay there playing video games, and Jiang Qingyue was watching TV. No one paid her any attention.

That night, Jiang Chenggong took his wife and children back to their own home, and Zhang Qianqian followed along.

Li Zhaodi laid a floor mattress in Jiang Qingyue’s room and carefully asked,

“Qingyue, would it be okay if your sister sleeps here for tonight?”

“Whatever.”

Jiang Qingyue climbed into bed, pulled the covers over her head, and went straight to sleep.

Lying on the floor, Zhang Qianqian’s thoughts were all over the place. She didn’t know if she would be allowed to stay.

As long as she could go to school, she was willing to take on all the household chores.

In the master bedroom, Li Zhaodi kept talking to Jiang Chenggong nonstop. At first, Jiang Chenggong didn’t take it seriously, but after a few exchanges, he realized she had something on her mind.

“Is something wrong?”

“Chenggong, I… I want Qianqian to stay with us. You don’t know—her father wants to marry her off for a bride price. She’s only fifteen. If she stays there, something bad will happen sooner or later.”

“Oh, that’s all? Sure.”

Jiang Chenggong didn’t mind. Raising one more daughter would just mean having a companion for his own. Li Zhaodi nodded gratefully.

“Thank you, Chenggong.”

“It’s nothing.”

The next day, when Zhang Qianqian heard she could stay, she burst into tears of joy and bowed deeply to Jiang Chenggong.

“Thank you!” She wanted to call him “Dad,” but she didn’t dare say it out loud. Jiang Qingyue pouted and turned away in displeasure.

Soon after, Zhang Qianqian’s father and grandmother came knocking on their door, yelling to take her back.

Her father, a butcher, was tall and burly, with a fierce look.

“No! I won’t go back! I won’t get married!”

Zhang Qianqian screamed in terror. Jiang Qingyue and Jiang Qingfeng, startled, hid inside their rooms, too scared to come out.

Jiang Chenggong stepped forward to shield her, while Li Zhaodi clung tightly to her daughter, refusing to let go.

“No one is taking my daughter away!”

Zhang Qianqian’s grandmother spat on the ground, put her hands on her hips, and slapped her thigh, cursing loudly.

“You heartless wretches! We spent so much money raising her, and now that we can finally get some bride price, you want to take her away without paying a dime? No way!”

Summoning her courage, Zhang Qianqian shouted back,

“I don’t owe you anything! I did housework every day, ate the least food—I’ve already repaid everything!”

“Bah!” Her grandmother took quick steps forward and grabbed Zhang Qianqian. “Your life belongs to our family! What nonsense are you talking about? Come with me!”

“I won’t go!” Zhang Qianqian struggled with all her might, while Jiang Chenggong stood firmly in front of Li Zhaodi and her daughter.

“I’ll take this to court. We will fight for Zhang Qianqian’s custody. She’s still a minor, and you want to marry her off? That’s illegal.”

“Don’t try to scare me!” The grandmother plopped onto the ground in a dramatic display.

“Zhang Qianqian is part of our family. We can do whatever we want. Outsiders have no right to interfere!”

“Fine. If that’s the case, I’ll use the law to protect my family.”

Jiang Chenggong picked up his phone and dialed the police. Zhang Qianqian’s father, afraid of getting into trouble, quickly stepped forward and pressed down on the phone.

“You dare call the police?”

He glared at Zhang Qianqian and then declared, “Fine! Zhang Qianqian can stay with you, but you have to give me 2,000 yuan as compensation!”

“Alright!” Jiang Chenggong agreed immediately. If money could solve the problem, then it wasn’t really a problem.

The grandmother screamed, “No way! Two thousand is too little! Make it four thousand!”

“Then I’ll just call the police.” Jiang Chenggong dialed again.

Zhang Qianqian’s father immediately grabbed his hand, “Fine, fine! Two thousand it is! I don’t want trouble. Mother, shut up! Do you really want to get dragged into the police station?”

The grandmother reluctantly shut her mouth, looking like she was watching two thousand yuan fly away right before her eyes. Her heart ached with regret.

After receiving the money, Jiang Chenggong made them sign a document transferring custody of Zhang Qianqian.

Zhang Qianqian’s father yelled, “From now on, I have nothing to do with Zhang Qianqian! Don’t expect me to pay a single cent of support!”

Jiang Chenggong never expected him to, anyway.

With the money in hand, Zhang Qianqian’s father and grandmother finally left.