Chapter 23

Huang Guihua had a heavy cloth bag in her hand.

As soon as she entered the courtyard, she put down what she was holding and pretended to help Wang Mengmei with her clothes: “Oh my, why are there so many clothes to wash all of a sudden?”

Wang Mengmei said nothing, just shook the bed sheets she had just taken out of the washing machine. Huang Guihua didn’t really want to help; she just stood there and casually touched a few clothes, pretending to be helpful.

Jian Feng didn’t say anything either, but asked his mother to sit down inside.

Huang Guihua looked around the house she had once lived in for many years and licked her lips. “I’d rather not go in, I’ll wait outside to pick up the fourth one from their place…”

As soon as she entered the house, she would remember her late husband, so Huang Guihua chose not to go in.

Jian Feng brought out a small chair, and Huang Guihua sat on it.

Huang Guihua looked around: “You guys got a washing machine.”

Jian Feng: “Yes.”

When he first took over this house, it was empty. At first, there wasn’t even a bed. Only after he started working did he gradually fill the house, like a swallow collecting mud. When he had his own small family, the house had more things, but there was never enough money for big items.

Now, all they had in the house were a TV and a washing machine.

Huang Guihua: “It looks quite new, you bought it not long ago, right?”

Jian Feng: “Yes, it hasn’t been long.”

Huang Guihua: “You guys are doing a bit of business now, much better than your two younger brothers. The third one is now a doctor, always busy, and still makes less money. The fourth one is even worse, says he’s making money, but it’s all debt, and by the second half of the year, he has to go collect the debts…”

This was nothing new. For decades, Jian Feng had never heard a single compliment from his mother.

Huang Guihua always said that he wasn’t smart or good at studying, so he should be good to his younger siblings and help them out in the future.

Now, he was the one asking for help.

Huang Guihua rambled on about the difficulties of each family, and in her words, the third son, Ge Changyuan, a doctor in a city hospital, earned less than Jian Feng, a worker. The fourth son, Ge Changjun, was worse—he was a “negative businessman”! The two sons who looked so brilliant were now nearly begging on the streets.

“You say you want to learn to drive a big truck, I think maybe it’s not such a good idea.”

This was the real purpose of her visit.

Huang Guihua continued, “That one over there, Ge Changfeng, the eldest son of Old Ge, isn’t he just a bus driver? He’s out running all day, and his wife left him later on. I’m not saying Xiaomei will definitely do the same, but think about it, is that really unreasonable?”

Jian Feng’s face turned red, and Wang Mengmei was also quite upset.

Huang Guihua slowly, methodically pushed the conversation, and anyone could see she was finding excuses for her other two sons.

Sometimes, Wang Mengmei admired this old lady for her ability to speak harshly and shamelessly. In the past, when she drove Jian Feng away, she was stern, but now she could show up at their door with a smile.

Wang Mengmei smiled coldly, “I’m not the kind of person who would leave my husband and children to live with another family.”

The sarcasm was obvious, but Huang Guihua seemed not to understand and remained calm. “I was shocked when I heard you went to see your two younger brothers. I thought something big happened, so I rushed over to see. But when I saw you were doing well, I was relieved.”

Something big—only the destruction of the family would qualify as big.

To come over and take a look—just a formality.

“Seeing that you’re doing well, I’m relieved—let’s forget about the money borrowing.”

Everyone could see through her motives, but she continued pretending.

Jian Feng’s face turned pale with anger: “Tell the third and fourth ones, the money is not needed.”

Huang Guihua smiled: “Look at you, why are you so worried? Your two brothers didn’t say that. I just thought I’d come and check on you.”

Before she left, she had to give Jian Feng one last poke.

“I didn’t say no money, you said you didn’t need it.”

Huang Guihua had her son figured out perfectly, making sure her goal was accomplished. She quickly left, leaving Jian Feng and Wang Mengmei stewing in frustration.

Jian Feng, wordlessly, went into the room. If he felt helpless after being schemed by Liu Xiangdong, this time, it was even worse with his two brothers.

There was a voice in his head—should he still go ask his little sister for help?

His little sister, Ge Yaqin, was a teacher and had married into a family with good conditions. A few thousand yuan shouldn’t be a problem.

But Jian Feng gave a self-deprecating smile.

If his little sister turned him down too, he might not be able to take it.

He didn’t dare to consider that outcome.

Maybe he should just forget it?

Being a worker didn’t seem so bad. After all, wasn’t everyone doing the same thing? Who didn’t just muddle through? There were plenty of people in the factory who cut corners, taking long breaks even when they said they were going to the restroom. Everyone was fooling around, but it seemed like that was enough to get by. At least he had Wang Mengmei’s little stall. If things got tough, he could help his wife with that…

Wang Mengmei entered the room and poked Jian Feng, who was lying on the bed.

“Your mother’s words just now were really disgusting.”

Jian Feng didn’t respond. Wang Mengmei slapped his arm. “Don’t tell me you don’t want to learn anymore!”

Jian Feng, exhausted, replied, “I didn’t say I don’t want to learn. Let’s wait a bit longer.”

What else could he do if he couldn’t borrow money?

Wang Mengmei was also holding back frustration. At middle age, apart from making a living, there were plenty of these frustrating moments.

Jian Feng’s mother was always good at annoying people, and his mother was always comparing, almost wanting Jian Feng to compete with his eldest sister until they were at each other’s throats.

She, like Jian Feng, had her own troublesome mother.

Wang Mengmei suppressed her breath: “Learn! Give me two months, I’ll make sure to earn money and let you get your driver’s license!”

Without the help of their parents, the two of them had struggled to get to where they were now. With just this small uphill road ahead, Wang Mengmei was determined to push through!

Jian Feng sat up: “I plan to talk to the factory and give up my team leader position.”

Being a team leader added only a few dozen yuan, but his time was far from flexible. He was constantly busy handling the higher-ups and subordinates, thankless and exhausting, and, most importantly, he couldn’t leave his post often.

Jian Feng: “I’ll go with you!”

His wife trusted and supported him so much, he couldn’t let his family down.

Wang Mengmei exhaled: “This is really hard.”

Really hard.

“…By the way, where’s Xiao Li?”

Jian Feng: “I just saw her here… Where did that girl run off to?”

At this moment, Jian Li was hiding by the roadside.

She had secretly followed Huang Guihua out of the house, quietly watched her walk for about ten minutes, and then arrive at the Children’s Palace.

Huang Guihua went into the Children’s Palace and peeked through the window of a room. Seeing that it wasn’t time for school to finish yet, she waited outside for her grandson, Ge Ming.

Jian Li walked right past her, but Huang Guihua didn’t even notice.

Although she had seen her granddaughter earlier, Huang Guihua was so focused on blocking Jian Feng’s request for money that she didn’t pay much attention to Jian Li.

Jian Li entered the Children’s Palace and leaned against the window of the math class.

Inside, her fourth uncle Ge Changjun’s son, Ge Ming, was attending an extra class with the teacher.

Ge Ming was strong and fat, Huang Guihua’s favorite eldest grandson, born to her youngest son.

Ge Ming, Ge Ming, when this name was chosen, it was with the hope that he would be as smart as Zhuge Kongming.

But Ge Ming, now almost ten years old, the only thing he had in common with Zhuge Kongming was that they were both male.

Over the years, Ge Changjun had worried a lot about this son, but he was too busy making money to manage the situation at home. So, under the constant indulgence of his mother and grandmother, Ge Ming grew more and more arrogant.

From a young age, he demanded everything he wanted, bullied his classmates at school, and caused chaos at home. In the previous life, he had used his family’s money to do whatever he wanted.

Ge Ming grew up without restraint, and in his thirties, he ended up in prison due to gang involvement. Unfortunately, Huang Guihua never saw this scene; she lived happily to eighty and passed away peacefully in her sleep without seeing her child, whom she raised, fall into prison due to wrong education…

Such a pity.

Jian Li touched the scar on the side of her ear, a scar caused by Ge Ming’s fireworks when she was a child during the New Year.

The doctor said that if it had been a little bit worse, Jian Li would have lost hearing in her left ear.

But what did Huang Guihua say back then?

She protected Ge Ming: “Big Bao didn’t do it on purpose! Jian Li, nothing happened to you, right? If you want compensation, I’ll give you my ear.”

Her fourth uncle, feeling guilty, bought Jian Li a set of Barbie dolls.

Jian Feng and Wang Mengmei, for the sake of Ge Changjun, swallowed their anger.

Jian Li clenched her fist.

Though Jian Feng and Wang Mengmei had great objections to Huang Guihua, if Jian Li scolded her, Jian Feng and Wang Mengmei would only punish her by making her stand in the corner.

So Jian Li didn’t speak, but in her heart, she thought, she couldn’t do anything to Huang Guihua, but what about Ge Ming?

In the class, Ge Ming, who was only twelve or thirteen years old, was tall and fat, with eyes that were barely slits on his face. He wasn’t studying, and instead, he kept distracting his desk mate, making it impossible for the other boy to learn.

The teacher on the podium furrowed her brows, calling Ge Ming’s name every few minutes.

But Ge Ming didn’t seem scared at all; he was laughing and constantly bothering his desk mate.

His desk mate, wearing glasses, had his glasses taken away by Ge Ming, who, taking advantage of his height, was flipping them around, calling him “Four Eyes.”

Jian Li: …

This kind of scum, truly unchangeable in two lifetimes.

The child being bullied by Ge Ming curled his arms and dared not do anything, tears welling up in his eyes as he lowered his head.

Ge Ming, feeling bored, tossed the glasses into the trash can and started pulling the book of the girl sitting on the right.

Jian Li waited outside for twenty minutes, watching Ge Ming harass everyone, bullying one person after another.

When class ended, the teacher standing at the podium spoke to Huang Guihua, who had come to pick up Ge Ming.

“Ge Ming’s parent, could you please talk to him? We’re here to learn, and he should pay attention to the discipline in class. If he really doesn’t want to study math, we can explore other interests for him. Not every child is suited for math… Of course, you’ve only come three times, and if you choose to withdraw, I can refund you the fees.”

Ge Ming’s non-cooperation made even the math teacher not want to teach him anymore.

Huang Guihua didn’t understand math, but she knew that this class was arranged for Ge Ming because of Ge Changjun’s connections. She didn’t care whether Ge Ming was smart or capable of learning; as long as it was a valuable and hard-to-enter place, she thought everyone should make way for Ge Ming.

As for the teacher, Huang Guihua was not worried at all. Which family’s youngest son has money? She paid for the service, and if the teacher couldn’t teach well, it meant they were incompetent. How could she blame the child for not listening in class?

“Teacher, what are you talking about? We’re clearly good children! At home, he even helps me with the housework. We’re such obedient kids, how could you say he doesn’t study? That’s impossible!”

“But he disturbs the other children in class, causing problems for everyone else.” The teacher felt helpless. In his class, there were people with connections, but none of the other children acted like Ge Ming, jumping around all the time. Anyone who sat near him couldn’t stay calm in class.

The teacher had never seen such a mischievous student. He wouldn’t listen to what was said, and he couldn’t be punished. With him around, the whole atmosphere of the advanced math class was ruined.

One bad apple spoils the whole barrel.

This made Huang Guihua unhappy.

She countered, “Who’s mixing things up for them? My eldest son is just playing with them! And why don’t you mention that it’s them who are wasting my eldest son’s time? I’m telling you, if my son’s math grades don’t improve in the midterm, I’ll come find you!”

Huang Guihua didn’t actually care much about the grades, but Ge Changjun did.

Her third son, Ge Changyuan, had always been good at studying, and having a son who was even better made Ge Changjun constantly ask about grades when he came home.

But Ge Ming had barely attended kindergarten. When it was time for kindergarten, he would always cry, so Huang Guihua stopped sending him. He spent three years of kindergarten and a year in the preparatory class at home, eating snacks and drinking Wahaha.

Even after entering elementary school, he would often skip classes, and even now, as a middle schooler, he couldn’t do basic addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

When Ge Changjun asked about his son’s grades, he would get angry and want to punish him.

Especially after the fourth grade, every midterm and final exam, Ge Ming would definitely get a beating.

Under Ge Changjun’s pressure, Huang Guihua had no choice but to pay more attention to her grandson’s education.

She didn’t expect Ge Ming to have great grades, but just hoped for a slight improvement, so that Ge Changjun wouldn’t beat him again.

In Huang Guihua’s simple mindset, there was nothing money couldn’t solve.

If the grades were bad, just send them to the best tutoring class. Spending some money would surely improve the grades.

So she thought the teacher was being troublesome. Why couldn’t they just teach the child properly? As for how she raised and taught her grandson, it was none of the tutor’s business!

With such an attitude, the advanced math teacher didn’t indulge her.

He directly said, “If you think like this, I can’t help you. Ge Ming’s foundation is very poor. If you want your child to do well, I suggest you withdraw him from the class.”

Without saying more, he turned and prepared to call Ge Changjun.

This student, he was done with him!

Huang Guihua tried to say more, but the teacher ignored her.

She spat and cursed, “Old fool!”

While cursing, she forgot that her younger daughter was also a teacher.

Ge Ming tugged at her sleeve. “Grandma, give me fifty yuan.”

Huang Guihua felt some pain. “What do you need fifty for?”

Ge Ming impatiently said, “Just give it to me, don’t ask!”

His attitude was so bad that Huang Guihua softened her voice. “Okay, okay, here you go. Grandma’s just worried you’ll learn bad habits… Be good, don’t eat too much junk food, what if you get a stomachache? Come back early, I’ll make shrimp for you.”

Ge Ming took the money and threw his backpack at her. “You don’t need to worry about me!”

Huang Guihua lovingly picked up the backpack he had thrown on the ground and scolded, “Really, you troublemaker.”

Jian Li avoided Huang Guihua’s gaze and followed Ge Ming closely.

After leaving the Youth Palace, Ge Ming turned this way and that, quickly heading into a narrow alley.

“Hey, big brother!”

“Big brother’s here!”

A few middle school-aged delinquents gathered around Ge Ming.

Someone pulled out a pack of cigarettes, and they all grabbed one and started smoking.

Ge Ming squinted his eyes. “Damn, what kind of crap training class, they treat me like a grandson.”

The advanced math teacher was someone who had left a public institution to start his own tutoring business. He was well-known in the city for his teaching skills. Ge Changjun had sent him a few bottles of good wine and two thousand yuan just to get Ge Ming into the class.

But Ge Ming felt extremely uncomfortable being controlled.

In school, no teacher dared to manage him. Now, he was being strictly controlled by a tutor.

Not only that, but this teacher would often call his father.

Recently, Ge Changjun had to take time off to come back and beat him.

“I really want to kill him!”

One of the lackeys chimed in, “Ming Bro, why don’t we just beat him up?”

“While he’s walking over here, we can just grab him, beat him up, and he won’t even know who did it.”

Ge Ming rolled his eyes. “That’s so boring.”

“Does the teacher have a son or daughter? If he scolds you, we’ll just beat up his kid.”

Ge Ming finally showed some interest. “I think he has a son.”

“I know! Ming Bro, that teacher’s son is in the class next door to mine!”

Ge Ming chuckled, “What’s the point of just beating him? Let’s trick him out, give him a good beating, and then toss him somewhere no one knows about. Let him figure out how to get back.”

Lackey number two offered another suggestion, “I know a place!”

“It’s abandoned well behind our school!”

Ge Ming hesitated, “Is there water in the well? We don’t want to actually kill him.”

“Don’t worry, the well’s been there for years. There have been kids who fell in before, and they managed to climb out. It’s just scary, no other problems.”

Ge Ming stubbed out his cigarette, “Alright, let’s do that.”

A group of hooligans continued plotting how to trick the person out, walking away, arms around each other’s shoulders.

Jian Li never expected to come across such a situation. She had only followed them to see if Ge Ming would be alone and if she could get her hands on his plan.

Who knew she would overhear Ge Ming talking about bullying someone!

And that teacher’s child…

Jian Li suddenly remembered a news story from her past life. That year, there was a report about a middle school student who accidentally fell into an abandoned well. The well’s opening was too narrow, and by the time they found out, a lot of time had passed. It took three excavators to get the person out, but by then, the person was already dead. After that incident, Taocheng launched a special operation to seal all abandoned well openings.

Even the cotton mill sealed up over ten wells, and parents kept warning their children not to go near wells.

Jian Li never expected that the child was actually bullied and thrown into the well on purpose!

Her heart sank. No wonder Ge Ming had become more and more reckless and evil. He probably never faced any consequences when he was young!

He could even commit such a life-threatening act!

Jian Li thought for a moment and went straight to a store across from the Youth Palace. She bought a pen and a notebook.

She wrote down Ge Ming and his gang’s plan.

Whether the teacher believed it or not, she felt she should warn them.

After writing it, she handed the paper to the gatekeeper, telling him it was homework for the Math Olympiad class that she had forgotten, asking him to give it to the teacher of the class when it was time for dismissal.

Walking home, Jian Li couldn’t stop thinking about the evil act Ge Ming had planned.

In her past life, after Ge Ming got in trouble, her fourth uncle, Ge Changjun, immediately brought back a young boy from outside.

It seemed that Ge Changjun had long seen Ge Ming as a failure, so he had prepared a backup in advance.

When Ge Ming heard about it in prison, he even threatened to get out and kill his illegitimate child.

Of course, he never had the chance. Ge Changjun didn’t even hire a lawyer for him, and in the end, Ge Ming was sentenced to life imprisonment.

Jian Li didn’t care much about the love-hate relationship within her fourth uncle’s family, but she deeply sympathized with the people Ge Ming had harmed.

In the end, Ge Ming went to prison, while her fourth uncle continued living well as a wealthy man.

Ge Changjun didn’t feel any guilt or regret for raising such a child.

He shamelessly blamed his mother and wife, acting as if he had played a positive role in Ge Ming’s upbringing.

Jian Li spat in disgust.

What a scumbag family!