Zhulan would’ve preferred having nothing to do with Wang Laosi and directly refused to attend, "We have no ties, so we’ll not be attending your celebration tomorrow."
Zhulan didn’t even bother to make up an excuse, fearing that if she gave Wang Laosi any leeway to overthink, it would be better to simply reject any association outright.
Wang Laosi, who finally had his moment to crow, wanted to invite everyone who had looked down on him, including the Zhou family, with whom he had issues. Yet he dared not offend them. He wasn’t content with the Zhou family missing out on his glory. His gaze settled on Zhou Chang Yi, "Chang Yi, even though we’ve drifted apart, we’ve had some past dealings. I’ve finally had a son, and you should at least come over to celebrate!"
The only satisfaction he could find was in feeling superior to Zhou Chang Yi. He held a secret admiration for Zhou Chang Yi since childhood. Although they were both honest second sons, Zhou Chang Yi was never scolded or beaten and always had nice clothes and good food. Now that he was wealthy and had a son, while Zhou Chang Yi was still living with his parents, Wang Laosi wanted Zhou Chang Yi to be envious of him.
Zhou Chang Yi felt like cursing. Before his son was born, Wang Laosi would come around for no reason, flaunting his newfound wealth and better life, while implicitly ridiculing him for being useless and living with his parents, his wife not even daring to breathe too loudly. He even ’advised’ him not to worry if he kept having daughters, urging him to see the bigger picture.
He had cursed and ridiculed, but Wang Laosi, with his sick mind, only heard what he wanted to hear, so Zhou Chang Yi eventually stayed indoors.
After his son was born, Wang Laosi avoided him. Zhou Chang Yi felt relieved but couldn’t believe Wang Laosi now had the audacity to show up after having a son!
Zhou Chang Yi took a deep breath to calm himself, thinking it wasn’t worth getting angry with someone who was mentally ill, and said coldly, "The exit is behind you, don’t bother leaving the eggs."
Wang Laosi wasn’t upset at all about being sent away; instead, he felt pleased with himself, thinking Zhou Chang Yi was jealous, "Chang Yi, you must be envious of me! If you want to split the family and live independently, just do it!"
Zhou Chang Yi wanted to spit blood. Who the hell wanted to split the family? If his old man gained a title, he’d be pleased to stay together for life, "Wang Laosi, you’re insane. The county doctor is not bad; since your family isn’t lacking money, you should visit more often!"
Zhulan was disgusted by Wang Laosi, "Chang Yi, tomorrow go get a dog from your Uncle Shuzhen to keep. From now on, if you come across someone who can’t understand human speech, just set the dog on them. Don’t get too worked up over it; it’s not worth it."
Zhou Chang Yi, "....."
Impressive, my mother, openly calling Wang Laosi a beast who can’t understand human speech without using a single dirty word. He still had much to learn.
Wang Laosi’s face turned red with anger. He did indeed enjoy listening to what he wanted to hear, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t understand anything else. Now that he had money, his temper had flared up, and with a son to boost his confidence, he got mad, "Alright, alright, this is too much to bear. From now on, our families shall cease contact."
Zhulan, looking up to the sky with a speechless expression, asked Zhou Shuren doubtfully, "When have our families ever interacted? Wasn’t the Wang family always unwelcome here?"
Zhou Shuren replied, "Don’t fret over someone who can’t understand what’s said. It’s quite cold outside; go back inside."
Wang Laosi left with a pale, face-saving anger. He didn’t dare to make a fuss because he knew that to get by in the village, he couldn’t offend the Zhou clan, looking at the empty courtyard, he left with a white face.
Lady Li was curious and couldn’t resist going out for a look before coming back to report, "Wang Laosi having a son is a big deal. He’s been giving red boiled eggs to every household in the Zhou village. My goodness, eggs cost one and a half coins each in winter, and he’s giving out six per household, that’s almost ten coins right there. He’s really going big; although Zhou village isn’t a town, it still has over a hundred households!"
Madame Zhao gasped in awe, "Wang Laosi is really generous."
Lady Li continued, "I heard that on the day Sun had her son, Wang Laosi was tossing out coins for good fortune, and between that and the gifts for the midwife, they’ve spent more than two taels these past few days."
Zhulan commented, "Not to mention the expenses for the child’s washing ceremony tomorrow!"
Lady Li clutched at her chest, "He’s spending so much just after having a son; what will happen when the child grows up?"
Zhulan thought to herself, Wang Ru is probably wondering the same thing—what will happen when he grows up?