Chapter 18: He Didn’t Even Care About Such a Small Amount of Money

When Wang Qiang saw how handsome Lu Qinglin was, he immediately understood what kind of plan the mother and daughter duo had in mind.

But that was fine too—if it helped his daughter forget that guy with the surname Lu, that would be for the best.

Wang Qiang quickly changed his expression and smiled warmly at the two of them. “Comrades, have you eaten yet? Would you like to stay for a meal at Uncle’s place?”

“No need, Uncle, we’re just here to find Wang Xifeng.”

Su Tangxue quickly declined, worried it might cause a misunderstanding.

Wang Qiang nodded and called toward the kitchen, urging his daughter to hurry up.

“Please, take a seat first. She’ll be out in a moment.”

Su Tangxue gave a forced smile and tugged on Lu Qinglin’s arm, unwilling to sit down, worried things might get out of hand later.

Inside, Wang Xifeng was afraid the man her mother had mentioned might leave, but also didn’t want to leave a bad impression. She pulled a lipstick from her pocket, applied a bit, and only when satisfied did she step out.

This lipstick had been brought back by her brother through a connection. Normally, she wouldn’t dare use it.

The moment Wang Xifeng stepped out, her eyes landed on Lu Qinglin. The cold and aloof aura he radiated was incredibly attractive—she couldn’t help but blush and feel a flutter in her heart, completely ignoring Su Tangxue beside him.

Su Tangxue raised an eyebrow—Wang Xifeng’s gaze toward Lu Qinglin was practically dripping. How could she not know what was going on?

She immediately took two steps forward to block Lu Qinglin from Wang Xifeng’s view.

Only then did Wang Xifeng finally notice Su Tangxue. Her expression immediately turned hostile, no longer the soft and cautious look she had when eyeing Lu Qinglin moments earlier.

“Su Tangxue? What are you doing at my house?”

Her outburst made Sun Hong and Wang Qiang immediately sense something was wrong. The smiles on their faces disappeared as they began to scrutinize the two visitors.

Faced with Wang Xifeng’s hysterics, Su Tangxue was speechless. “Why I’m here—you know that better than anyone, don’t you?”

“You’re here to apologize to me?”

Wang Xifeng thought for a moment. That seemed like the only possibility—why else would Su Tangxue come find her?

“How shameless of you to think I’d apologize to you! You think you deserve it?” Su Tangxue sneered.

“Su Tangxue, what the hell is your problem? Believe it or not, I’ll rip your mouth open! This is my house—I’m not afraid of you!”

Wang Xifeng raged, her eyes full of hatred.

Sun Hong felt her daughter was losing composure and quickly pulled her aside, whispering something in her ear.

Wang Xifeng’s gaze returned to Lu Qinglin, and she put on a pitiful face.

“Comrade, don’t let Su Tangxue fool you. She’s a venomous woman. I went to visit her today, and she beat me with a broom just because she got angry! She’s already married and still stringing you along—clearly she’s up to no good!”

Wang Xifeng hadn’t seen Lu Qinglin since the day before yesterday. She assumed the handsome man in front of her was just another helper Su Tangxue had roped in.

She glanced at Su Tangxue again, eyes filled with even more hatred. It wasn’t enough she had Brother Qinglin, now she was luring in other men too. How was Su Tangxue getting all the benefits?

Feeling utterly disgusted, Su Tangxue was just about to retort when Lu Qinglin pulled her behind him and stepped forward.

“I’m Su Tangxue’s fiancé.”

That one sentence stunned all three of them into silence.

Wang Xifeng looked at Lu Qinglin, then glared at Su Tangxue. How could there be any more confusion?

This handsome man right in front of her was the Qinglin she had been dreaming of.

Her face turned a mix of anger and grievance.

“Brother Qinglin, Su Tangxue hit me with a broom today! You have to stand up for me!”

Wang Qiang also picked up on the tension—his daughter had clearly had some conflict with them. He was furious and cut off Wang Xifeng’s sobs.

“Crying, crying, all you do is cry! Hurry up and tell me exactly what happened today! They’ve come all the way here, and you’re just crying like a fool?”

“Why are you yelling at the child?” Sun Hong stepped in. “We haven’t even clarified who’s in the wrong yet. What if it turns out they’re the ones lying?”

That last comment was whispered, but Su Tangxue still heard it.

She immediately stepped forward and explained everything that had happened at noon, including the part where she hit Wang Xifeng with a broom—leaving nothing out and favoring no one.

“See, Mom? I told you she hit me! And you didn’t believe me!”

“Shut your mouth,” Wang Qiang barked.

He knew exactly what kind of personality his daughter had. Over the years, he’d cleaned up too many of her messes.

Couldn’t get through someone’s door, so she vented her anger on it instead? That was exactly something his daughter would do.

“Comrade Su, just tell me—how much do you want in compensation?”

Su Tangxue looked at Lu Qinglin, who gestured for her to decide. She held up two fingers.

“Two yuan. Let’s settle it and be done with it.”

“Wife, go inside and get the money.”

Sun Hong immediately winced—two yuan was a lot. That kind of money could buy several meals of meat these days.

Grumbling, she said, “Why are we so sure they’re telling the truth? What if it was just a few wood splinters that came loose, and they’re exaggerating it as damage to extort money?”

Su Tangxue gave a cold laugh. Figures they’re two of a kind.

“Auntie, if you don’t believe me, feel free to come with us. Your daughter’s giant shoe print is still on our front door, plain as day!”

“Stop making a fuss and go get the money,” Wang Qiang scolded his wife, annoyed by her lack of tact.

“But what about the fact that Su Tangxue hurt Xifeng? What about that?”

Su Tangxue laughed. “Auntie, by your logic, if someone barged into your house uninvited, instead of throwing them out, you’d offer them food and drink—is that it?”

Sun Hong’s face turned red and purple with embarrassment.

“Well… still, two yuan is a bit much, don’t you think? It’s just fixing a door—why should that cost so much? That’s practically robbery.”

Su Tangxue wasn’t about to indulge her stinginess. She pressed the point.

“Auntie, your daughter kicked our door so hard it won’t even close properly anymore. We’ll have to get a whole new one! If you really don’t want to pay the two yuan, then fine—send someone to replace the entire door for us!”

Sun Hong did the math in her head. A new door from the village carpenter would cost five yuan—way more than the two Su Tangxue asked for. In the end, she could only grit her teeth and go get the money.

After taking the compensation, Su Tangxue didn’t stay a moment longer. She grabbed Lu Qinglin’s hand and headed back.

To her, the two yuan wasn’t even a big deal. What mattered was not letting Wang Xifeng get away with bullying her. If she didn’t make her pay a price today, she’d definitely dare to cause trouble again in the future.

Even if it was just a small amount—it was still money. She split off a piece and handed it to Lu Qinglin as payment for accompanying her on this errand.

“What, not enough for you?” she asked, when Lu Qinglin didn’t take the money for a long time.

“You keep it. I don’t need it.”

Su Tangxue furrowed her brows and slipped the money back into her own pocket.

With the thousand yuan her dad gave him, he really doesn’t care about such small change anymore.