Chapter 324: Chapter 324 Sold Extremely Well
Compared to the eldest branch’s unspoken understanding, the third branch was not like that at all. Jiang Changtao felt certain that Sun Lixia had taken the pocket watch.
With a dark expression on his face, he angrily pointed at Sun Lixia’s nose and exclaimed, “Sun Lixia, can’t you have some shame, can’t you control your own hands? You even took a child’s belonging, truly embarrassing our third branch. How are you going to let us, father and son, show our faces outside in the future?”
Seeing that not even her husband believed her, Sun Lixia felt extremely aggrieved—as if she was being wrongfully accused to death.
“Changtao, I really am being framed. I found the pocket watch last night when I went outside to the toilet. It was on the woodpile; I didn’t steal it,” she urgently explained.
“Do you think I don’t know what kind of person you are? Do you really think I would believe anything you’re saying?” Jiang Changtao retorted loudly.
It struck Sun Lixia that this was how Jiang Changtao perceived her. Just as she was about to say more, she heard Sister Guihua calling everyone to go to work from outside.
Fearing a rebuke from her mother-in-law if she was late, she didn’t dare to delay and quickly straightened up.
Thankfully, her mother-in-law hadn’t slapped her face just now. At this moment, after combing her hair and washing her face, nothing seemed amiss.
The family members who needed to go to school did so, and those who needed to work in the fields went to the fields.
The villagers, seeing the Jiang family members’ greasy lips early in the morning, felt very envious.
They had smelled the scent of meat coming from their home just yesterday; the aroma was indeed delightful. It made them eat an extra bowl of rice that evening, just savoring the smell.
Sister Guihua had deliberately fried vegetables in the oil from the braised pork that morning and didn’t wipe it off on purpose, just to show off. In those times, having meat to eat at home meant you were exceptionally well-off.
“Hey, Sister Guihua, did your family cook meat yesterday? The aroma almost wafted out of our village,” a woman commented with a mix of envy and jealousy.
“Yes, you see, my eldest has a job at the transport company and makes some money. Every now and then, he brings home meat. I tell him not to buy it, but he insists—it doesn’t feel right for him not to. He says his dad and I have suffered all our lives, and now that he’s doing well, he must buy things to show his filial respect. Ah, this child is too sensible,” Zhang Guihua said with a modest appearance, but her words were full of boasting.
Seeing the neighbors’ envious looks, the Jiang family members walked with their chests puffed out and heads high, very proud.
Sun Lixia, trailing behind, had been anxious for half the day. Seeing that no one mentioned the pocket watch, she finally let go of the heart she’d been holding up.
Once the tension eased, she couldn’t help feeling frustrated; it was clear that the eldest branch’s family of three had not seen the pocket watch on the woodpile and yet they blamed her for finding it but not returning it!
Jiang Changhai decided he would make another trip to Haicheng the following week.
After lunch that day, he didn’t bother with a nap and eagerly went to the Supply and Marketing Cooperative.
The clerk there greeted him with great enthusiasm.
“Comrade Jiang, you’ve come.”
“Mm, young lady, I came to ask: how well did those earrings I brought you last time sell?” Jiang Changhai inquired.
The clerk’s smile brightened even more at the mention of the earrings, and she quietly said in a low voice, “Those pearl earrings sold incredibly well; they were gone within a few days. Comrade Jiang, next time you go to Haicheng, you must bring more back.”
Jiang Changhai put on an act of difficulty: “I’ll try my best, but you know, it’s not easy to buy pearl earrings of this quality over in Haicheng.”