Mother Qi and her daughter Qi Fengping hit a snag at Cheng Su’s place, looking incredibly displeased with their multicolored expressions.
"What’s the meaning of this, as if she’s scared others won’t know she can make money?" Qi Fengping wanted to argue, but Cheng Su cut in before she could speak.
"Does my dear sister-in-law like the coat you’re wearing? I asked your older sister about your usual preferences before I bought this outfit for you. I hope you don’t look down on it."
Qi Fengping was taken aback and glanced at the trench coat she was wearing. It had a cinched waist and was a trendy style, which had earned her the envy and admiration of many classmates at school.
Cheng Su had bought it for her after Mother Qi and the others had returned from Qing City last time. Not just for her, everyone in the family received something.
As the saying goes, "He who takes the money is short-handed, he who eats is soft-mouthed." Qi Fengping’s bluster extinguished immediately, and she muttered reluctantly, "It’s alright, just so-so."
Cheng Su smiled faintly.
Don’t blame her for her sharp words; she was simply too lazy to make small talk with this sister-in-law of hers. It was more straightforward to shut her up directly. "You’re wearing what my money bought, and I don’t even blame you for not saying ’thank you.’ Let’s not have any more complaints."
Mother Qi looked uncomfortable. She wasn’t foolish; she could hear the implication in Cheng Su’s words. However, she was in no position to refute, so she turned her gaze to her son instead.
Better get a hold of your wife quick before she gets too high and mighty!
Under the expectant gaze of Mother Qi, Qi Taiguo didn’t disappoint and spoke up lightly.
However...
"Little Ping, how can you talk like that? It’s not easy for your sister-in-law to earn money. She bought you clothes, shouldn’t you thank her?"
Mother Qi’s face darkened almost to the point of flipping the table.
What was Taiguo thinking? Why was he siding with his wife? Weren’t she and her daughter his closest kin?
Qi Jianguo glanced at his older brother and kept his head down, silently continuing his meal.
Cheng Su’s eyes crinkled with a smile, and she rewarded him with a large piece of chicken breast in his bowl.
Qi Taiguo raised an eyebrow and turned to Qi Fengping, his stern face full of authority: "Little Ping!"
Snapping out of her shock, Qi Fengping, who had always revered her older brother, trembled as his gaze bore down on her. She hoped Cheng Su would show some discretion and politely say it was unnecessary.
Cheng Su, without glancing at her, kept her head down and devoured a large chicken drumstick as if she hadn’t eaten meat in centuries.
Grinding her teeth in anger, Qi Fengping, under her brother’s glaring scrutiny, reluctantly said, "Thank you, sister-in-law."
Only then did Cheng Su put down her chopsticks and, with a handkerchief, elegantly dabbed the corners of her mouth, saying, "It’s good that my dear sister-in-law likes it."
Qi Fengping pursed her lips, filled with a sense of grievance.
Mother Qi, visibly burning with fury, was about to erupt but held herself back when Father Qi coughed and glanced her way.
"How long is Taiguo’s leave this time?" Father Qi deftly changed the subject.
"I have to return and check in by the fifth; I’m assigned to a night shift," answered Qi Taiguo.
Father Qi nodded and said, "That’s good. You’ve been enlisted for a few years now and you got a longer leave this time. Take a good rest for a few days. Your second uncle’s son Mingtou is also back, he was asking about you. You two should have a drink together."
Qi Taiguo agreed with a smile.
The conversation shifted, and aside from Qi Jianguo, who ate quietly without a word, Cheng Su was the one who enjoyed the meal the most at the table.
As for Mother Qi and Qi Fengping, their faces were marked with discomfort and annoyance, finding no taste in the food.
After chatting for a while following the meal, everyone went back to their rooms. Cheng Su hugged Qi Taiguo tightly, rubbing up to him with a beaming smile: "Honey, why were you so great tonight?"
In the room of Father Qi, however, the atmosphere was charged with tension: "What got into Taiguo today? Why is he bending over backwards for his wife?"