Eldest Uncle was taken aback.
So were Second Uncle and Third Uncle as well as everyone else apart from Ms. Niu and Ms. Ma.
This Ms. Qiao was being so unfriendly to them!!
Eldest Uncle could not utter a single sound.
Third Uncle had a hot temper. He struck his head and snapped furiously. “I am your Third Uncle, and I can teach you a lesson! What attitude are you holding towards us? We are the senior members of the family! Brother, your daughter-in-law is indeed capable, isn’t she? She doesn’t think we are important at all!”
“True! You are a daughter-in-law who doesn’t respect senior members of the family. We will file a complaint against you, even when the County Magistrate asks about it!”
“Fifth Son, what are you staring at? Teach your wife a lesson! Have you read your books in vain?!”
Qiao Xuan was about to say something when Shao Yunduan shook his head at her slightly. “I will get my mother here!”
Ms. Niu and Ms. Ma both panicked. They were about to stop him when a cry was heard.
Qiao Xuan had just taken out her handkerchief and sobbed. “This is so unreasonable of you all! You are senior members, and you are bullying me unfairly! Why can’t Elder Sister-in-law and Second Sister-in-law do what they want, but not me? Are you all looking down at me? What have I done to irritate you all?”
Qiao Xuan turned around and ran into the kitchen.
She was not in a position to argue with them, so she went to fetch her mother-in-law instead.
Soon Ms. Fang rushed out angrily and snapped at Ms. Niu and Ms. Ma.
“Shame on you! Have you decided to continue dwelling on this minor thing? My daughter-in-law has just been married to our family and you, the so-called senior members are causing her trouble! You better have no daughter-in-law in the future, otherwise I will cause them trouble too!”
“Ms. Niu and Ms. Ma, just tell me, what has Ms. Qiao done so that she disrespects you all, only because she is not under your charge? You got your daughters to bully my Taotao and my daughter-in-law, damn you all! Bah!”
Eldest Uncle’s face flushed. He felt that he was humiliated facing the newly-wedded daughter-in-law and his siblings’ family. So he snapped. “Just stop it, Ms. Fang, we are all a family.”
Ms. Fang, who was feeling so angry and annoyed inwardly, mumbled with a sneer. “You think we are all a family, but they don’t think we are! Otherwise they would not have caused trouble to our daughter-in-law!”
“You!” Eldest Uncle got both embarrassed and annoyed.
He had not expected this to happen. He had thought that when Ms. Qiao made an apology, the whole thing would just pass.
Then nothing would have happened.
But Ms. Qiao just did not want to give in.
She could adjust her behavior as a junior member. She should not have countered the senior members. The whole family should be in harmony!
Ms. Ma argued. “You should give gifts to everyone, or you give them to no one. Ms. Qiao is just unfair, and we are not to be blamed.”
“True!” Ms. Niu added, thinking that Ms. Ma was being clever for the first time as she hit the key point. “Ms. Qiao only gives presents to Taotao and Qing, because she looks differently at us two families and doesn’t regard us as her own!”
Qiao Xuan blinked. “Aren’t we already two families? We are not one, isn’t that what Second Sister-in-law said? Of course I prioritize my own family when I have presents. Since there is none left, no one outside the immediate family would get anything!”