The next day, Xuemei came with her two children with happy faces. They shared the joy as soon as they entered the door, “Mom, my parents-in-law have gone back and just left this morning.”

Zhulan looked down upon the behavior of the old couple from the Jiang family, “They thought that your father was in trouble and Jiang Sheng lost his job. They were afraid that Jiang Sheng would offend someone, so they left!”

Xuemei nodded, “Mother, you guessed right. Yesterday, when we went back, we said it was nothing. But the in-laws didn’t believe it. They pondered all night and hurried back early in the morning without even eating breakfast. Jiang Sheng’s face was as black as ink. He said, ‘Don’t bother coming again.’”

After Zhulan stepped back, the elder couple of the Jiang family extended their influence even further, especially accustomed to meddling in every aspect. They wanted to regain control over Jiang Sheng. Jiang Sheng’s already pent-up impatience was further exacerbated by this. This time, the elderly couple feared that if they abandoned Jiang Sheng because of the conflict, no amount of parental affection could withstand such depletion.

Zhulan coughed, “Just be happy in your heart, don’t show it in front of your son-in-law.”

Xuemei blinked, “Mom, I am your daughter and I know what to do.”

She came not only to share the good news with her mother but also to hide from her husband. Her husband must be feeling very embarrassed now, it would be bad for her to get close to him. So it was better to let him calm down. When he calmed down, he definitely would feel that she understood him!

Li Shi received twenty taels of silver yesterday, and she said, “Dàmèi is here.”

Xuemei looked at her dàsǎo who was dressing up carefully, “Saozi is going out?”

Li Shi smiled contentedly, “Ah, isn’t the Mid-Autumn Festival coming soon? Your eldest brother and I are going to the county town. Oh, Jiang Miao is getting more beautiful as she grows older. When your aunt comes back, we’ll buy you some delicious snacks.”

Zhulan silently watched Li Shi’s smug expression. These days, she didn’t even know what her own surname was, feeling uncomfortable without any provocation. “Miao Miao, since your dà jiùmǔ is being generous for once, how about asking her to buy you a cake? Ask for the biggest cake from Ruyi Bakery.”

Jiang Miao had tasted cake before, bought by her father, but they were always too small and never enough. “Grandma, how big is the biggest cake? Miao Miao can’t eat it all by herself. There’s also gēgē, biǎogē and biǎojiě.”

Zhulan lifted her wàisūnnǚ in her arms. “Miao Miao, you’re such a good girl. The biggest cake from Ruyi Bakery is made to order. The largest one is as big as a washbasin. When your aunt buys it, you can all share it.”

Xuemei watched her saozi change from a rooster flapping its wings to becoming an eggplant beaten by frost. Her saozi never had a long memory and was beaten by her mother again and again.

Jiang Miao clapped her hands and said, “Oh, oh, I want a big cake, thank you, dà jiùmǔ.”

She was a sensible child, and she wanted to thank her auntie for buying the cake.

Li Shi had an earthy look on her face and looked at her mother-in-law with resentment. A few days ago, she was her mother-in-law’s most beloved daughter-in-law, but now her mother-in-law cheated her out of money. The biggest cakes at Ruyi Shop cost half a tael!

She clearly felt that her mother-in-law liked her, and thought she had felt her mother-in-law’s pulse, but the reality told her that she didn’t. She was completely unsure of her mother-in-law’s feelings. Wuwu, the head of the house told her not to go too far. It was easy to be extremely happy and sad. She was indeed sad. The head of the house told her not to go too far. He had a crow’s mouth!

Boss Zhou pulled his silly wife into the oxcart. He had already reminded her. He didn’t blame his wife for not listening. The look in his mother’s eyes when she looked at his wife was wrong since last night. My wife was only guarding Chang Lian and didn’t pay attention at all. Silly wife! He still needs to take care of her. His wife can’t live without him!

Half an hour later, Xuemei went home and came back soon. She entered the house and said, “Mom, the house next door is for sale?”

“Who did you hear that from?”

Xuemei said, “I saw several houses. I went next door to ask about the price, Mom, is Wang Ru really going to move out?”

Zhulan thought that Shi Qing was going to completely cut off Wang Ru’s future and even sell the house. “Well, Wang Ru will move out if she can move.”

Xuemei really liked the house next door, but unfortunately, she didn’t have the money. “I don’t know how much money it will cost. The rooms are all newly renovated.”

Zhulan didn’t pay attention to her daughter’s expression, lowered her head and folded clothes and said smoothly: “The Zheng family cheated Wang Ru at first, and Wang Ru worked hard again. The one next door will not be less than fifty taels if it is renovated.”

Xuemei’s idea was completely gone. It was too expensive. She also wanted to borrow less money from her parents’ family. Even if she was going to live in her parents’ house next year, she still wanted to have her own house. “Isn’t she in a hurry to leave? The price is too high.”

Zhulan finally noticed that the eldest daughter had been chatting around the house, “Do you want to buy it?”

“I am interested, but I can’t afford it. Even if Mother lends it to me, I can’t afford to pay back the money.”

There was too much money, which was a burden to their family. The head of the family needed to study, and the son also needed to study. It was all money. If the money was small, it could be paid back gradually, but the amount was too much for the family. The pressure was so great that she never thought about not paying back her parents’ money.

Zhulan was very satisfied with Xuemei’s attitude. Her eldest daughter always knew how to measure things properly. “Next door, you only see the price, but you don’t see the value. Wang Ru’s renovations were all done with good materials, and the furniture can’t be taken away. It must be left behind. Wang Ru is willing to spend money. The real value is not in the house itself; there will be people willing to buy it.”

Xuemei thought to herself that Wang Ru was indeed the rumored money tree in the village, with real wealth. However, Xuemei frowned, “Mother, did Wang Ru follow Shi Gongzi without any status? No engagement, no matchmaker, not even a legitimate concubine?”

Zhulan thought about Wang Ru’s unusual situation, but unfortunately, she couldn’t see Wang Ru anymore. Wang Ru was completely under surveillance. She sighed softly, “It’s not necessarily just a concubine!”

Shi Qing didn’t even want to admit Wang Ru into the backyard!

Xuemei was a married woman. Due to her childhood upbringing, she looked down on Wang Ru from the bottom of her heart. “She asked for it.”

Time passed quickly. In the blink of an eye, seven days later, the house next door was sold to someone from the Zhou clan. It was sold for fifty-five taels of silver, and Wang Ru agreed to move out in eight days.

Shi Qing was really worried about Wang Ru. He never left. He never left the yard next door unless necessary to go to town.

In one day, Wang Ru would move away.

Zhulan thought she wouldn’t have another chance to observe Wang Ru’s unusual behavior. However, unexpectedly, Wang Ru personally came to her door, presenting an opportunity. Although the pretext was to come and express gratitude, even though Shi Qing handled the matter, Wang Ru insisted on coming in person.

In the evening, Zhulan asked Zhou Shuren, “Why do you think Wang Ru insisted on visiting? She didn’t even think of saying goodbye to Fourth Wang when she left, so why did she insist on thanking us?”

Zhou Shuren said: “There is only one possibility, Wang Ru may really not be the original Wang Ru. Have you noticed? According to the Wang Ru we know, she would definitely not be willing to be completely controlled. No matter how much he spares her life, she will make a fuss. But it has been almost ten days since she was awake. Wang Ru has not made a fuss and is still quiet. After selling the house, I found that not only Shi Qing was eager to leave, but Wang Ru was also eager to leave.”

Zhulan thought about it carefully, and it was exactly as Zhou Shuren said. Wang Ru woke up a few times, but she didn’t want to make a fuss.

Zhulan thought carefully, and it turned out to be just as Zhou Shuren had said. Wang Ru woke up several times without causing trouble or looking for the male protagonist. Instead, she settled Wang Xin and focused on recuperating without causing any mischief, all in preparation to leave as soon as possible.

With a hoarse voice, Zhulan asked, “Which possibility do you think is more likely?”

(End of Chapter)

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