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Back to the 80s: A Beloved Marriage
Zhao Jin initially thought she could have a good conversation with Cheng Fangfang. However, at this moment, she was grateful that Qi Feng had already been sent to the County Hospital and did not have to stay here to hear Cheng Fangfang's humiliating words.
She was too lazy to deal with Cheng Fangfang's absurd remarks and was completely taken aback by what Cheng Fangfang said. Suddenly, Zhao Jin didn't want to continue arguing with Cheng Fangfang.
Sometimes, winning an argument with mere words does not make a person seem impressive or cultured. Seeing Cheng Fangfang's disdainful expression, Zhao Jin shrugged and decided not to respond.
Cheng Fangfang threw a punch and unleashed a long string of words, but no one was willing to engage, leaving her feeling embarrassed and her face darkened.
In the end, it was Grandma Qi who spoke up, waving her hand firmly and stating, "My family has no money." "Who are you trying to fool? Qi Zheng has been moving truckloads of furniture out. How can you have the nerve to say your family has no money? Why don't you just say Qi Zheng is working for free? Oh right, Qi Zheng is working for free and kindly took along two of his brothers-in-law?" This made Cheng Fangfang very angry.
Instead of thinking about her own family, she insisted on going after the Zhao Family. Did Qi Zheng really get confused by Zhao Jin? Could he not even distinguish between close and distant relatives?
Thinking of this, Cheng Fangfang couldn't help but glance at the expressions of Zhao Zhenqi and his brother.
Although she sounded confident, she was genuinely worried about provoking the two brothers.
Just now, the expressions on the faces of the Zhao brothers were not pleasant; they looked ready to fight her. Would they really resort to violence over helping Qi Zheng's family?
This was about money; she didn't believe the Zhao brothers could just stand there silently without saying a word!
They must be brewing some schemes to confront her! No matter how capable she was, she was still just a woman—how could she compete against two big men? The Qi Zheng family members were not easy either; they were all scheming and self-serving...
The more Cheng Fangfang thought about it, the more uneasy she felt, and she couldn't help but start to feel anxious.
However, despite her inner turmoil, Cheng Fangfang managed to suppress her feelings and did not show any weakness in front of the Qi Zheng family.
Otherwise, how would she maintain her authority in front of this entire family in the future?
Even for the sake of her future reputation, Cheng Fangfang gritted her teeth and held on.
However, no matter how well a sick cat can disguise itself, it will never become a tiger. Anyone present could see what kind of character Cheng Fangfang truly had.
Hearing Cheng Fangfang's words filled with jealousy, Grandma Qi inexplicably felt relieved.
Yes, their family had made money and even brought in the maternal family to earn together. But so what?
There was no rule stating that just because their family made money, they had to share half with Cheng Fangfang, right?
Moreover, how arrogant had Cheng Fangfang been before! She had always looked down on their family. Now, wasn't she also coming to them with her eyes wide open for money?
Reflecting on how indifferent and dismissive Cheng Fangfang and her husband had been towards Qi Feng in the past, Grandma Qi's long-held resentment found an outlet at that moment.
From then on, all the discomfort and unwillingness from before suddenly seemed insignificant.
People should look forward; their lives were built step by step through their own hard work. As long as they were willing to endure hardship, good days would eventually come.
So, let the past be blown away by the wind! Those unhappy and unpleasant memories weren't worth holding onto or dwelling on. However, facing Cheng Fangfang's exaggerated self-praise, Grandma Qi paused for a moment but still corrected her seriously: "Cheng Fangfang, is there something wrong with your eyes? Do you think Qi Zheng is a machine that can transport truckloads of furniture? Our family does everything by hand,
it's exhausting work, and we earn every penny through hard labor."
Yet, Cheng Fangfang didn't care about any of that. Whether it was hard work or not didn't concern her. After all, she wasn't the one helping out; at most, it would be Qi Erzhu coming over to lend a hand. She only needed to sit back and wait for the money to come in.
Thus, Cheng Fangfang was not intimidated by Grandma Qi's words at all; instead, it only fueled her determination to get a share of the profits. In Cheng Fangfang's mind, she had to fight for what was rightfully hers: "I don't care. You all are not allowed to find outsiders for this! If you need help, you should ask our Erzhu! We're all surnamed Qi; why push away your own brother? I really don't understand what you and my brother-in-law are thinking; I can't be bothered with you."
"Are you saying that your Erzhu plans to work with Qi Zheng on woodworking?" When Grandma Qi asked this question, her expression was unusually calm, devoid of any expectation or joy. "Isn't your Erzhu incapable of woodworking? Why does he suddenly want to get involved?"
Back when the old man was still around, he treated all three sons equally and intended to pass down his unique skills to them.
However, apart from the eldest brother, both Second Brother and Third Brother were unable to learn. Third Brother was too young and had joined the army early, leaving him with no opportunity or time. Second Brother simply did not want to learn at all.
At that time, Second Brother often said, "Anyway, Dad can do it. Why do I need to learn anything?" He was brushing off others and himself as well.
Initially, Grandma Qi would advise him a bit, encouraging Qi Erzhu to learn more skills, as having more skills wouldn't hurt and might help him in the future.
Unfortunately, Qi Erzhu completely disregarded her advice. In his mind, he stubbornly believed that it was enough for one person in the family to know woodworking. If others tried to learn, it would just be a waste of time. It was hard work, and he didn't want to do it.
In the end, due to Qi Erzhu's refusal to learn and Grandma Qi's ineffective persuasion, she gave up on the idea and went along with Qi Erzhu.
Everyone has their own aspirations; such matters cannot be forced.
Now, upon hearing Cheng Fangfang say that Qi Erzhu was coming to help, Grandma Qi was genuinely surprised.
This was not typical of Qi Erzhu's usual behavior; could it be that Cheng Fangfang was just making an excuse?
"Mom, just learn! No one is born knowing how to do this! I don't believe those two brothers from the Zhao Family knew woodworking before," Cheng Fangfang was indeed just looking for an excuse. She knew better than anyone how lazy her husband was.
However, money was right in front of them; if they didn't take it, it would go to the Zhao Family. Cheng Fangfang absolutely could not tolerate that.
Cheng Fangfang had done her homework and knew that Zhao Zhenqi and his brother were helping Qi Zheng for a fee; they would be paid wages.
With money to be made, who wouldn't want to earn it? Cheng Fangfang was determined that the money from Qi Zheng's family had to go to her; she wouldn't allow it to go to anyone else.
Faced with Cheng Fangfang's unreasonable insistence, Grandma Qi reluctantly agreed. However, in the current situation, she couldn't find a more suitable reason to refuse.
Grandma Qi wanted to say, "We already have enough people; we don't need more." But she knew very well what kind of storm would follow if she said that.
With someone as shameless as Cheng Fangfang, if they didn't agree today, she would likely come back tomorrow causing trouble. This would only delay Qi Zheng's project.
Moreover, Cheng Fangfang had a temperament of "If I'm not doing well, neither should you." It would be one thing for her to come over and cause a scene at their home; they could endure that. But what if Cheng Fangfang decided to make trouble at the Zhao Family?
Grandma Qi really liked Zhao Jin and was also very grateful to the Zhao Family for this connection.
Thinking about whether this matter would hurt the harmony between the two families and unnecessarily trouble the Zhao Family, Grandma Qi couldn't help but start to hesitate.
She didn't want to agree to Cheng Fangfang, but she felt compelled to. The two brothers from the Zhao Family were right here, and Cheng Fangfang was being so blunt with her words. If Cheng Fangfang really went to the Zhao Family to cause a scene, wouldn't that make things even worse?
Zhou Ju also found it difficult to speak up.
Without a doubt, Zhou Ju shared the same thoughts as Grandma Qi.
Considering Cheng Fangfang's temperament and character, if she insisted on making a fuss, it would indeed be a big problem. Their family was used to it by now, but the Zhao Family...
Zhou Ju, who also valued the connection with the Zhao Family, didn't want to add any trouble or distress for them.
Could they just leave it alone? That seemed unlikely. Cheng Fangfang clearly didn't understand when to stop. If things escalated, everyone would feel embarrassed.
Moreover, in Zhou Ju's view, this matter should be decided by Qi Zheng. However, Qi Zheng was younger and found it difficult to confront Cheng Fangfang and Qi Erzhu directly.
Ultimately, it was because both Grandma Qi and Zhou Ju were too kind-hearted. They were too soft and always thought of being considerate. Yet they knew in their hearts that this situation couldn't be resolved perfectly. Thus, they felt particularly hesitant and troubled, easily intimidated by Cheng Fangfang.
If only Grandma Qi and Zhou Ju were a bit tougher, there wouldn't be any issue with Cheng Fangfang at all. She wouldn't dare stand here flaunting her power and shouting; she wouldn't even think about stepping through the door of the Qi Zheng Family!
What should have been an easily resolvable issue became an insurmountable dilemma in front of Grandma Qi and Zhou Ju.
If it had been Qian Minmin, Cheng Fangfang would have tried her luck going over. Qian Minmin wouldn't let Cheng Fangfang leave without being drenched in spit.
Of course, not wanting to confront her? That was just Grandma Qi's and Zhou Ju's concern.
With Qi Zheng involved, things were straightforward and easy to resolve. Everything depended on how Qi Erzhu and Cheng Fangfang chose to act.
Seeing Cheng Fangfang becoming increasingly arrogant, Qi Zheng coldly spoke up: "I have indeed made some money from making furniture."
First of all, Qi Zheng did not hide this established fact, which immediately made Cheng Fangfang's eyes light up, unable to contain her excitement.
She thought, Qi Zheng must have made money! The moment she realized that her family would soon share in the profits, Cheng Fangfang couldn't help but feel proud.
Indeed, their family still relied on her to have a good life.
"However, the money I earn is all for my uncle's leg treatment. My uncle is currently at County Hospital, and it costs money every day." Then, Qi Zheng solemnly stated his position and attitude, successfully halting the joy and pride on Cheng Fangfang's face. Finally, Qi Zheng did not give Cheng Fangfang a chance to speak and earnestly presented his request to her: "If Second Uncle wants to come and help, I naturally welcome it. However, I cannot provide Second Uncle with wages. We are all relatives, a family. For my uncle to get his leg treated,
the priority is for everyone to work together to help. So from now on, it will be hard work for Second Uncle alongside us."
Before Qi Zheng finished speaking, Cheng Fangfang couldn't help but scream, "Then how did you give Zhao Brothers wages?"
"Second Aunt did too; they are Zhao Brothers, not Qi." Using Cheng Fangfang's words against her, Qi Zheng's tone was not hurried but was quite impactful.
Qi Zheng usually did not talk this much. But once he seriously explained things to someone, it was undeniable.
Faced with Qi Zheng's authoritative manner, Cheng Fangfang found herself speechless.
In fact, she knew very well that their family had not been kind regarding Qi Feng. After all, Qi Feng was the biological brother of Qi Erzhu. Back when Qi Feng's legs were still fine, he had helped their family quite a bit and treated them fairly well.
However, after Qi Feng became disabled and she worried about adding unnecessary burdens to her family, Cheng Fangfang immediately distanced herself from him and has not inquired about his treatment since then.
Qi Erzhu had always been on her side. Since she made that decision back then, Qi Erzhu had not said a word against it.
Over these years, Cheng Fangfang believed their family had been doing quite well and was very harmonious.
Of course, if it weren't for the increasing commotion from Qi Zheng's side, Cheng Fangfang would have been even happier.
Living in the same village and seeing that Qi Zheng was about to prosper without ever considering sharing a piece of the pie with their family made Cheng Fangfang restless enough to come over.
Who would have thought that while Qi Zheng was willing to let Qi Erzhu come over to help, he had no intention of offering any wages? The reason was supposedly for treating Qi Feng's leg! Gritting her teeth, Cheng Fangfang's expression clearly changed: "You gave Zhao Brothers wages; why can't you give your own Second Uncle wages? Zhao Brothers are two people and should receive two wages. Your Second Uncle is just one person working hard for two people's worth of work but only getting one wage; that's already quite generous."
Cheng Fangfang was unwilling to spend money on Qi Feng's leg treatment, only thinking about stuffing the money into her own pocket!
Cheng Fangfang's attitude had always been this way, and Qi Zheng and the others did not feel disappointed. The answer was expected, completely lacking any novelty.
However, at the same time, Qi Zheng's family truly could not expect any change from Cheng Fangfang and Qi Erzhu. "If Second Uncle really wants to help, don't think about wages. If you're thinking about wages, then don't come to help." Qi Zheng was neither Grandma Qi nor Zhou Ju. He wasn't one to speak kindly, nor was he easily manipulated by Cheng Fangfang. With a cold expression, he firmly ended the topic.
Cheng Fangfang was somewhat stunned; she never expected Qi Zheng to be so unyielding. She thought that as long as she spoke up, Qi Zheng would find it hard to refuse out of respect.
Unexpectedly, not only did Qi Zheng refuse, but he didn't even give her a hint of goodwill. This development was clearly different from her plan and was vastly different.
Her expression changed unconsciously, and Cheng Fangfang looked displeased at Grandma Qi and Zhou Ju: "Mother, Sister-in-law, Qi Zheng is younger and doesn't understand; I won't hold it against him as his Second Aunt. What about you? How can you just stand by?"
Not being able to sway Qi Zheng didn't mean Cheng Fangfang had no other options. With Grandma Qi and Zhou Ju around, she wasn't afraid of not getting her way.
After years of competing with Grandma Qi and Zhou Ju, she had always managed to outsmart them and keep them under her thumb.
Since Qi Zheng was so difficult to deal with, she simply decided not to engage with him anymore. She would turn to Grandma Qi and Zhou Ju instead; it would be the same.
"This is Qi Zheng's matter; let him decide. His mother and I won't interfere." No matter how gentle Grandma Qi's temperament was, she could distinguish right from wrong. Grandma Qi knew exactly what kind of person Cheng Fangfang was and undoubtedly stood on Qi Zheng's side.
With Grandma Qi's stance made clear, Zhou Ju needed no further words. A firm nod was the perfect response.
As Qi Zheng gradually grew up, matters in their family were mostly decided by him. Moreover, now that he had married, he should take charge of his own household.
Both she and Grandma Qi, as well as Qi Zheng's father, shared this same thought process.
With both Grandma Qi and Zhou Ju unwilling to cooperate obediently, Cheng Fangfang was so furious that she jumped up and shouted: "We are all family! Blood is thicker than water!" "If we were truly family, you two wouldn't ignore Feng like this. Feng is also a brother connected by blood to Da Zhu; why don't we see you supporting him?" Grandma Qi's expression turned cold in a way Zhao Jin had never seen before; she was pushed to the brink of anger. "You two have never come over proactively before; now that you see benefits, you immediately come knocking like hungry wolves. Don't you feel ashamed? Don't you feel any shame?"
Cheng Fangfang's expression clearly stiffened, yet she refused to concede. Facing Grandma Qi's anger, Cheng Fangfang reluctantly pouted, "I have two daughters at home to take care of; I can't just let my Tingting and Juanjuan starve!"
"No one is asking you to let those two girls starve! Cheng Fangfang, this isn't how a person should behave. You run away as soon as there's no benefit, but when there's something to gain, you rush over to grab it. If you truly considered us family, you wouldn't act like this." Grandma Qi had been enduring silently until now, finally exploding today, all for the sake of wanting peace and happiness among the children.
However, no matter how much she remained silent, it couldn't change the actions of Qi Erzhu and Cheng Fangfang over the years. The heartless couple would never feel ashamed because of their silence.
On the contrary, Qi Erzhu and Cheng Fangfang took pride in their behavior. Even worse, they wanted to come over and take advantage, which was infuriating. Grandma Qi had never quarreled with anyone in her life and had never engaged in disputes or arguments. For Cheng Fangfang, as a daughter-in-law, to push Grandma Qi to this extent was quite impressive in a certain sense.
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