After the discussion had ended and everyone had dispersed, she pulled Wu Le into her room with feigned affection. Du Qing had always had a good relationship with the eldest branch of the Ruan Family and she herself worked at the supply and marketing co-op, so she didn’t lack money. It wasn’t certain that she would take her side.
But Wu Le was different, although she had never made a fuss before. As the youngest daughter-in-law in the Ruan Family and mother to the youngest child, she was far less cherished by the family than the eldest branch. She didn’t believe that Wu Le bore no resentment in her heart.
She brought her into her room, first pretended to chat casually, then smoothly, as if unintentionally, steered the conversation towards the matter of building a house.
"Wu Le, I noticed that your house isn’t very sturdy anymore. Haven’t you thought about rebuilding it? Even if not a multi-story building, with your and Jianmin’s salaries, you should be able to afford a bungalow, right?"
Wu Le was well aware of her sister-in-law’s intentions to use her as a pawn.
She was much more intelligent than this woman. Just from the issues that Ruan Jiaojiao had faced recently, it was clear that the Ruanlin Family couldn’t do without her. To oppose the eldest branch was like lifting a rock only to drop it on her own foot—stupid!
Besides, given her understanding of the eldest branch, building a multi-story house would be an easy task for them. It wasn’t even certain that they had used the Ruanlin Family’s money, but even if they had, it wasn’t her place as a daughter-in-law to criticize.
It was better to act obediently; however biased Ruanlin was, she couldn’t possibly ignore her other sons altogether.
As opposed to Liao Zhaoji, who was always jumping around and making a fuss, ending up annoying others.
She glanced indifferently at Liao Zhaoji and said carelessly, "My two little boys are still young, there’s no rush to build a house. It’s not like Big Brother, Ruan Hao will go to university and will certainly need to have friends over. It’s not fitting to bring them back to such a house."
"How can it not be urgent!" Liao Zhaoji was frantic, absolutely frantic, scolding Wu Le with exasperation, "Fengzi is almost in middle school, and university isn’t that far off! I really think it’s better to plan ahead."
Was she showing her true colors so soon?
Wu Le laughed inwardly but feigned ignorance as she looked at her.
Liao Zhaoji sat down next to her, took her hand, and spoke as if considering her interests, "You see, Big Brother is building a house. I heard it’ll cost at least a thousand yuan. Big Brother’s job was good, but with the whole family needing to eat and drink, it’s not easy to save up. Mom must have chipped in."
"Oh? How do you know? Did you see it with your own eyes?"
"..." Liao Zhaoji choked. If she had seen it, she wouldn’t be hopping around here; she’d have gone directly to make a fuss.
She pursed her lips, "I haven’t seen it, but isn’t it obvious? How could Big Brother have so much money? It must be that mom subsidized him."
Having said that, she didn’t wait for Wu Le to respond and continued, "Last time we got a wild pig for no reason, Mom favored the eldest brother with more than a hundred pounds, and we only got half of that. Why should it be like that!?
"I’m telling you, if there’s a first time, there will be a second. It’s no big deal if Mom spoils Ruan Jiaojiao a bit, after all, she’s just a little kid and won’t cost much. But this time, we must fight for our own interests."
" I can’t decide this alone, you have to join me!"
"Join you in what?" Wu Le asked knowingly.
"Of course, to demand money! Even if we can’t get the money, we have to make Mom promise outright that when we build our houses, she also has to contribute the same amount!" As Liao Zhaoji spoke, her voice grew louder, and her tone took on a matter-of-fact edge.