Chapter 63: Chapter 63: Mind Your Own Business_1
Chapter 63: Chapter 63: Mind Your Own Business_1
Zhao Jingen clearly did not believe Zhao Erhu’s words. He had come over after being spurred on by the Wei Family mother and son. “Don’t try to fool me with your talk of having no money! Just a few days ago, didn’t your aunt compensate you with three taels of silver? And then a gust of wind took it away. You undutiful thing, when you were a child, your aunt even breastfed you. All that happened was that your wife was disciplined a little, and you’ve turned your back on your family. You don’t deserve that money; it should be given to your younger brother to help him find a position.”
The more Lin Yue listened, the more speechless she became. This stepfather of hers had such thick skin; he could say such shameless things with a straight face, especially in front of her. He intended to take the money she needed for medicine to help Zhao Quan get a job. Was she so easily disregarded? And just a moment ago, he had berated Erhu for taking the silver as being unfilial, but now he was eyeing that very money for himself. Was this really okay? No matter how much Lin Yue internally criticized, she couldn’t show it outwardly. It was unwise for a daughter-in-law to confront her father-in-law directly, so she could only stand there like a wooden pole.
Every time the topic of that day’s events was brought up, Zhao Erhu became very agitated. “Father, was what my aunt did really just a lesson? My wife was beaten so badly her head was bleeding; only today could she get out of bed. If Second Mother were treated the same way, would you still speak like that?!”
“Nonsense! How can you compare Second Mother to your wife? It’s quite normal for a new bride to face some hardships. Doesn’t every new bride go through the same? Elders have the right to punish and scold, and the youngsters must endure. Besides, our Zhao Family spent so much silver to marry her into our family; she is not here to stir up trouble between our relatives. You’d better discipline her properly in the future.”
Even with Lin Yue’s best manners and convincing herself not to stoop to the level of such an ignorant man, Zhao Jingen’s words almost drove her to curses. The shameless old man; she had even prepared delicious foods to send to him, thinking he was Erhu’s father and, regardless of the past, it was proper to respect him. Now it seemed that her offerings had been cast before swine.
“Even if we paid a large sum of silver for her, it was still my own silver. I didn’t use a penny of someone else’s money. Whether my wife is good or bad, I will take care of it myself. I won’t allow others to bully her. Besides, a relative who humiliates our own family in such a way isn’t worth maintaining ties with. From now on, I don’t plan to deal with them. Father, it’s better if you don’t interfere. Otherwise, if people find out that you’re reaching into your son’s marital affairs, they’ll laugh at you.”
“You unfilial son! You unfilial son! I truly raised you for nothing. If I had known you would become so undutiful, I would have drowned you in the washing basin when you were born and spared myself the anger. I can’t be bothered to waste words with you. Are you going to give up the silver or not!”
“Everyone should manage their own household. I’ve already separated and started living independently. Back then, I didn’t take a single thing from the family, and in all these years, when anything happened in my house, my good brothers didn’t lift a finger to help. Since Third Brother insists on securing that position, let him figure it out himself. After all, doesn’t he claim to have many influential friends? Twenty taels of silver is nothing to those kinds of people; let him borrow from them.”
“You, you…” Zhao Jingen was so angry he turned red and thick-necked, unable to get his words out. Moreover, everything Erhu said was reasonable, leaving him with no grounds for rebuttal.
Lin Yue found the scene immensely satisfying to watch. Her husband truly had a backbone; he wasn’t foolishly filial without a sense of resistance. However, if this confrontation caused her stepfather to fall ill from rage, that would be a loss not worth the satisfaction. Otherwise, she would have really liked to continue watching the drama unfold.