Days flew by, and the college entrance exam was finally upon us.
Since County No. 1 High School was a test center, even the boarding students had to leave the school during the exam period.
Huang Man simply packed her few belongings and went to a hotel not far from the school.
She had already inquired about the day she would need to leave the school dormitory and had booked a room in the hotel across from it in advance.
This way, she wouldn’t have to commute from the countryside to school every day during the exams, which was not only exhausting but also raised concerns about whether she would be able to rest properly.
She was also worried that Zhao Mei and the others might play dirty tricks on her, whether it be with food or something else. She didn’t want to have to engage in a battle of wits with them after enduring the intense pressures of being a test-taker every day.
These days, Zhao Mei really felt overwhelmed by Huang Zhiqiang’s insistence; she had initially hoped to employ a delaying tactic, hoping he would forget about his idea of opening a restaurant.
But what she didn’t expect was that, once he had the idea, he truly never gave up, constantly talking about opening a restaurant.
"You told me to at least get a junior high school diploma, and I did," he said, regardless of his grades, he was at least a junior high school graduate.
If it weren’t for Zhao Mei’s initial suggestion, he wouldn’t have waited until now.
The result was that Zhao Mei still disagreed, and Huang Zhiqiang was really furious, his eyes nearly popping out of his head.
"You asked me to look for a suitable location for the restaurant, and I found one. I even took you to see the place," he said.
"I’ve explained to you why I chose that shop, including the chef you said a restaurant should have—I’ve found a few," he continued.
"Where did I not meet the requirements you set out? Where did I go wrong?" he asked.
"You don’t point out what’s wrong or what needs to be improved. You say nothing, so how can I know where you think it’s not right?" he added.
The more Huang Zhiqiang thought about it, the angrier he became, "Are you just fundamentally opposed to me opening a store, that from the start you never intended to let me do it?"
Zhao Mei would never admit to that; once she did, he would surely explode, "How could that be? Am I that kind of person?" she replied.
"If I were against it, I would have opposed it directly from the beginning," Zhao Mei retorted, now angry as well.
"You also need to think about how we only have so much money at hand right now, and you insist on investing heavily in opening a restaurant, which will use up all the family’s savings. What can I do then?" she questioned.
"You’re impulsive, claiming that it will definitely make money. You only see the profits in doing business, but why don’t you see those who lose money?" she argued.
"You also mentioned that the shop you’re interested in was a restaurant before. Did you not bother to ask why, if it was doing so well, they stopped running it?" she questioned further.
"That’s because he said he had other developments," Huang Zhiqiang replied, not particularly confidently.
He had visited the shop himself; how could he not know why they closed down?
The previous owner had no business and couldn’t keep going, so he had to reluctantly sell the shop.
Seeing Huang Zhiqiang avoid her gaze and not daring to look her in the eye, Zhao Mei knew this guy was aware of the real situation.
"When you worked in a restaurant in town, I didn’t expect you to become a chef, but I did expect you to learn a bit about how a restaurant operates," she said.
"If by then you still want to open a restaurant, I can put in a hundred thousand," Zhao Mei conceded, knowing that not giving the money was out of the question.
Even if she still had to pay, she wouldn’t put all her money into it, as that would make her feel insecure.
Huang Zhiqiang hadn’t expected Zhao Mei, after all her long-winded lecturing, would end up making such a proposal.
This really infuriated Huang Zhiqiang beyond measure, and he pointed at Zhao Mei rudely, "Is that any way to be a mother?"
"It’s the money my dad left for me, and yet you won’t let me use it."
"I’m not wasting money; I’m using the money to do business," Huang Xin felt more and more wronged as he thought about it.
If Huang Zhiqiang were still alive, he would certainly support him in every way possible.
"To dissuade me, you first used delaying tactics to make me abandon the idea."
"Now, seeing that I haven’t given up, you actually come up with such a vicious plan."
"Having me work in a restaurant, even if I end up opening a store in the end, you’re only giving me a hundred thousand."
"You, aren’t you just bullying and tormenting me?" Huang Xin felt aggrieved just thinking about it.
He thought about the days he’d lived before, and then the days he was living now, the gap was something he simply couldn’t accept.
"I’m going to tell Dad."
"If Dad knew how you’re bullying me, he would definitely be unhappy, and he certainly wouldn’t let you off."
"Dad, take a look at your most beloved son, I’m really being driven to death by Mom," he said.
Huang Xin decided to make a big fuss and, sobbing loudly, headed out. He wanted to see how Zhao Mei, who always cared about appearances, would handle this.
In any case, unless she relents and promises to give him all the money, this matter is far from over.
Zhao Mei initially panicked when she saw Huang Xin’s actions, but she quickly steadied herself.
She stopped making any motions to chase after Huang Xin and made no move to follow him.
Huang Lina originally thought her mother would chase after him and make concessions, but to her surprise, she didn’t pursue him at all.
"Mom, why aren’t you chasing after Huang Xin?" Huang Lina’s relationship with Huang Xin had deteriorated sharply over the course of nearly a year.
Now, Huang Lina hardly ever calls him ’brother’ but simply by his name, and Huang Xin has started calling her things like ’dead girl’ or ’stupid girl’ instead of her name.
This made Huang Lina furious. She too wanted to call him names like ’idiot’ and ’profligate’, but the one time she did, Huang Xin beat her severely.
Unable to fend him off, she could only call him by name; calling him ’brother’ was out of the question.
"Do you think your brother could make money by opening a store?" Zhao Mei looked towards Huang Lina.
"Of course not." Regardless of how you look at it, Huang Lina obviously didn’t want Huang Xin to take all the money away.
Why should she open a store to do business while Huang Xin would oppose it, saying this wasn’t good or that was bad? "My brother isn’t a practical person," she said.
Zhao Mei hummed in agreement, "I think so too. If your brother were a practical person, I would have let him take the money."
"At least he could make some money." Zhao Mei also hoped that the money in hand could keep growing, but she hadn’t found a reliable way to make money from money.
Listening to Zhao Mei’s response, Huang Lina was really angry. "Why haven’t you ever thought about giving the money to me?" she demanded.
"I also want to do business, I also want to open a clothing store."
"One hundred thousand is really enough." Although the amount was significantly less than her budget, it was at least enough to get the store up and running.
"A clothing store..." Zhao Mei gave Huang Lina several disparaging looks, "Impossible, this money is reserved for your brother."
"As a daughter, you’re meant to be married off. Eventually, when you take this money to your husband’s house, it will end up benefiting outsiders."
Zhao Mei never considered giving the money to Huang Lina, no matter how good her plans were. She was determined not to budge.