"Mother, that’s not what I meant. Second Uncle won’t hit Dongdong."
Chiang Lidong was the favored grandson in the Old Chiang Family, cherished by both Chiang Songtao and Ho Laidi. Chiang Baohe also knew this, so he had never beaten or scolded Chiang Lidong.
"How do you know he won’t? Besides, Dongdong is still so young, how can you make him work?"
If Chiang Lidong, at six, was considered young, then was she, at nine, already grown up?
Moreover, when she was six, she could already do some chores! She used to go dig wild vegetables, collect firewood—these were tasks she had been doing since she was five or six! But now Chiang Lidong didn’t do anything! What was wrong with sending him to deliver a meal?
"Mother, aren’t you afraid Second Uncle will hit me again?" Chiang Caijiao’s eyes reddened, her nose felt sour, and she truly wanted to cry. Was this really her own mother?
"Caijiao," Song Xiyun glanced around, walked over, and whispered, "Mother, of course, feels sorry for you too. How about this? When your father comes back, go talk to him about discussing the division of the family with Grandpa, okay?"
"Yes, once we divide the family, Second Uncle will no longer be our responsibility. Then you won’t have to deliver meals to him and nobody will hit you anymore. How about that?"
If she brought it up herself, Chiang Baoguo would surely scold her, and Song Xiyun was also worried that Ho Laidi might overhear.
"Can we really divide?" Chiang Caijiao’s eyes lit up.
If only they could truly divide the family!
"Ask your father first!"
"Okay! When Dad comes back, I’ll ask him!" With hope in her heart, Chiang Caijiao reluctantly braced herself to deliver the meal to Chiang Baohe.
When she entered, Ho Laidi was also there.
Chiang Baohe, with a gloomy face, said, "Mother, I don’t care anymore. If I can’t find a wife, nobody in this family will have a good life. Remember what you said, Xiaoling is a teacher, she has a salary. If I marry her, the family won’t have to support me anymore. So, whether this marriage happens or not, you and father can decide."
"Baohe, that Zou Xiaoling is not any good either," Ho Laidi sat at the edge of the bed, looking entirely devoid of Essence, Qi, and Spirit. She had a nightmare the whole night, dreaming that Chiang Xiao kept beating her. When she woke up, her arm hurt even more, but when she called Doctor Huang from the health clinic, he insisted there was nothing wrong with her. "Think about it, I was bullied by that bitch Chiang Xiao, and Xiaoling just stood by and watched, not even trying to help. Why would we want such a unfilial woman?"
She was now trying hard to persuade Chiang Baohe because she felt that marrying Zou Xiaoling would be extremely difficult.
"Mother, do you have the face to say you were bullied by that bitch? I think you’ve just gotten old and useless. With Chiang Xiao, that little chick, if she came in front of me now, I could squash her with one hand."
Chiang Caijiao, trembling, placed the meal on the small table by the bed and hurriedly backed away, relieved but unable to help thinking, if you’re so capable, go find her yourself, huh? You can’t even leave the house, what are you saying?
"That damned girl is really getting tough! How am I old?" Ho Laidi erupted in fury, adamantly denying that she had aged. She said Chiang Xiao had become formidable, yet no one believed her!
"How formidable could a girl in her teens be?" Chiang Baohe snorted, picked up the bowl of food, glanced at it, and said, "Such few pieces of meat, who are you trying to fool? Mother, do you find me a burden to the family now?"
"What are you talking about, Baohe!" Ho Laidi immediately stood up, shot Chiang Caijiao a glare, strode over, grabbed her ear with her left hand, and burst into a torrent of abuse, "Tell me! Did you steal your Second Uncle’s meat?"