Chapter 89: “This is What We Owe Her”

Li Fenlan cautiously glanced at her expression: “Yunshu?”

Just now, after Xie Yunshu woke up and asked where Mingcheng went, Li Fenlan said he went to the department store. She almost immediately guessed what he was up to. Looking around the house, she indeed found that the bag containing the down jackets had been taken away.

“Mom, it’s nothing,” Xie Yunshu smiled at her, but the chopping knife on the cutting board was moving faster and faster, the loud thudding sounds making Li Fenlan’s heart race with anxiety.

Oh no, the son was definitely about to get beaten up by his sister.

Li Fenlan wanted to say something to calm the situation but saw Yunshu’s face darken and she shut up. Forget it, she was old enough now and couldn’t control the siblings’ affairs. Besides, Mingcheng was grown up; a beating wouldn’t hurt him much. She just pretended not to know…

Upstairs, Aunt Zhao had finished her chores and was watching her eldest daughter tutoring the youngest daughter with homework.

She had three daughters in total. In this generation, having no sons was often ridiculed. The in-laws cursed her daily for bearing “money-losing daughters,” and had directly expelled her family, forbidding them from returning. But Old Zhao acknowledged her as a daughter-in-law; although she felt heartache, she treated the three girls well.

When it came to schooling, she bit the bullet and supported them.

The eldest, Zhao Xiaoyun, was now a senior in high school, attending the same school as Xie Mingcheng, but she excelled in science subjects and always did well academically. The second daughter was a freshman, also a good student, so the adults didn’t have to worry.

The youngest daughter was especially sensible and studious. They all knew that only by getting into college could they have a future; otherwise, they’d end up just marrying a man and raising children.

With 40 yuan a month supporting three students, life was very hard. Even a single yuan had to be counted twice before spending. Before Xie Yunshu helped out, Aunt Zhao had shamelessly wanted to borrow money. Tuition fees for three kids were due soon—several dozen yuan at once—and add to that books and daily expenses, the burden was suffocating. This was why Xiaoyun kept saying she wouldn’t take the college entrance exam.

But with such good grades, how could she bear it? Borrowing from her in-laws was impossible, and the apartment block neighbors were all poor folks. Who could easily lend her a few dozen yuan?

Even ten yuan would make them hesitate, worried she couldn’t repay.

So when Xie Yunshu came asking for help, saying she could pay a 40 yuan monthly salary, Aunt Zhao almost cried from joy. Life is like that—gifts in good times may be forgotten quickly, but help in times of need is deeply remembered.

Although Yunshu always said she was only giving what she owed, Aunt Zhao couldn’t bear to think of it as just something owed. Even 30 yuan—look at the women in this apartment block; who wouldn’t scramble to do the work? Besides, Yunshu only helped cook during the day; sometimes if there was leftover food, she’d bring it home to eat.

Aunt Zhao felt very fortunate that when Old Xie had his accident, she hadn’t taken advantage of the situation but pitied Yunshu and her brother, sending her ten yuan. Although Yunshu paid it back the first month she got a job, she never forgot that kindness.

When Xie Mingcheng came in saying they needed to steam buns, Aunt Zhao didn’t hesitate, put on her coat, and went downstairs with him: “What salary? I’ve already been on salary! These past few days Yunshu didn’t let me work, and I felt so bad.”

The salary was only 40 yuan a month; how could she ask for more just because she worked at night? She had no face to ask.

Xie Mingcheng was not very talkative; he pressed his lips: “Aunt Zhao, anyway, my sister decides.”

If she said she’d pay, it meant she definitely would—not just empty words.

Zhao Xiaoyun quickly stood up: “Mom, I’m free anyway, I’ll go help too.”

Poor kids grow up fast. Whether it’s the eldest or the younger two, they were good at cooking, no need for adults to watch over them. Aunt Zhao thought if more people worked, they could finish earlier, letting Yunshu rest more, so she agreed: “Alright, you come with me.”

With Aunt Zhao and Xiaoyun helping, the work speed picked up. By nearly 7 pm, they had steamed nearly a few hundred small buns, neatly arranged on the table in the rented courtyard, looking quite good.

Xie Yunshu stretched lazily: “Then tomorrow we don’t need to get up so early, start the fire around 4 am, steam buns, and be ready to leave by 6.”

Small buns steamed fast—about 20 minutes per pot. With two big pots, it would only take three or four batches.

Aunt Zhao waved her hand: “You don’t need to worry about the fire. Just get up at 6 to bring the buns to sell. I’ll come at 4 to start the fire.”

Though she came to help, she kept refusing money. But Yunshu stuffed two yuan into her hand, saying if she refused money, it’d be harder to get her to work later. She could help with neighbors’ other things, but not this money-earning business.

In the end, Aunt Zhao took the money, knowing Yunshu had made quite a bit lately; otherwise, she wouldn’t have dared to buy such expensive clothes. Taking the money made her feel more at ease. She decided to stick with Yunshu and work hard—life would surely get better.

The apartment block was busy until late. Meanwhile, Lu Zhixing’s family in Hai City still hadn’t rested.

Zhou Yingyue watched Lu Zhixing put a vest on Xiaowei, biting her lip as she asked angrily: “Didn’t you say there was no money?”

Lu Zhixing looked increasingly disappointed: “Xiaowei is your son. It’s so cold, and he only has a thin sweater. You have coats and down jackets in your closet—how come you never thought of buying clothes for the child?”

And she wanted a down jacket costing 200 yuan when her own monthly salary was only about 40 yuan!

Zhou Yingyue bit her lip, feeling very resentful: “Why can Xie Yunshu buy it but I can’t? Zhixing, you’re divorced from her but still give her money. What am I to you?”

“How did we get married? Have you forgotten?”

Lu Zhixing couldn’t understand her mindset. He clearly said he gave her money, but she had forced herself to marry him under threats of self-harm: “Besides, if it wasn’t for you, Yunshu wouldn’t have lost her job at the packaging factory. We owe her this!”

Zhou Yingyue hadn’t bought the clothes she wanted for a long time and had been humiliated by Xie Yunshu. Now at home, she was also being blamed by Lu Zhixing. How could she swallow this anger?

“Lu Zhixing, you’re the one who locked Xie Yunshu in the psychiatric ward! What does that have to do with me? If you don’t give me money, neither of us will live well!” Zhou Yingyue had learned to throw tantrums early on in her hometown. She had just been pretending all along for her own goals.

Now married into the Lu family but unable to get Lu Zhixing’s salary, how could she keep pretending? “Ask any other man, doesn’t he give his salary to his wife? You don’t give me the money in your hands, but you want to keep it for Xie Yunshu? Looks like Xie Yunshu served you well before, huh? You still can’t forget her!”

Lu Zhixing didn’t expect such shameless words; his face flushed red with anger: “You’re utterly unreasonable!”

The house was not only cold but in a mess. He couldn’t stay another minute and cycled to the hospital, leaving Zhou Yingyue to rage at home.

Zhou Yingyue went mad again. Her eyes landed on Xiaowei and she wildly tore off his thick vest and slapped him: “You little brat, how dare you wear warm clothes? Take it off!”

Xiaowei was almost unable to stand after being hit. He desperately hid inside the house: “Mom, I won’t wear it anymore. Please don’t hit me.”

Zhou Yingyue was full of anger and used Xiaowei as a punching bag. She had carefully acted gentle and sweet to Lu Zhixing but ended up with nothing after marrying in!

Xiaowei didn’t dare to cry but it hurt too much. He instinctively knelt down begging: “Mom, I was wrong.”

He shouldn’t eat, shouldn’t wear warm clothes…

But with Lu Zhixing gone, Zhou Yingyue had completely lost her mind. She threw the thinly clothed child outside the door: “Get out! You dare compete with me along with Xie Yunshu? Get out!”

But in the freezing cold winter, such a small child wearing only a thin sweater left outside would freeze to death overnight…