Chapter 51: Fainted from Fear Directly

If I hadn't calculated it, I wouldn't have known; but once I did, it gave me quite a shock. How much had my parents actually spent on them over all these years?

"Don't give me that bullshit. Otherwise, why would I be working my ass off to coax you into playing along? What, you don't want to acknowledge this debt?"

"I acknowledge it. Mom and Dad have indeed sacrificed a lot for our little family all these years... but I really don't have the money. Even if you sucked the marrow from my bones, I couldn't pay it back."

"It doesn't matter if you can't pay it all at once. Pay two thousand first, and for the rest, you pay thirty yuan every month. It won't affect your household living standards." If he wanted to play mind games with her, he'd have to get her permission first.

In the past, she had turned a blind eye because she was a mother who loved her son; she had done everything willingly.

Now, she only wanted to wash her hands of this mess as soon as possible.

Looking at his mother's serious expression, Zhang Jianguo's face turned pale, and his heart sank.

"Mom, you're trying to drive me to death. I'm your own son!"

"Stop acting in a melodrama with me. All of this is within your means."

Li Xiangqin looked at him indifferently. Back then, when she tried to appeal to her sons' emotions, these ungrateful wolves spoke to her about "reality." Now that she was discussing reality with her son, he was trying to talk to her about "maternal affection." Was this a joke?

Some things have happened, and they are facts. If I don't pressure you now, I'll be the one driven to death later.

"Cut the nonsense. Sign it quickly, press your thumbprint, and go back to discuss how you two will pay it back. There's nothing else to talk about."

Seeing his mother's iron-willed and merciless stance, Zhang Jianguo pursed his lips, picked up the pen, and scribbled his name.

As soon as he put the pen down, Li Xiangqin produced some red ink from somewhere and held it out to him.

Gritting his teeth, Zhang Jianguo raised his hand and pressed down.

Without sparing a thought for his charcoal-black face, Li Xiangqin tore the IOU from the notebook, read it through from beginning to end, and tucked it into her pocket with satisfaction.

Just then, Zhang Yanli let out a shriek and lunged forward, trying to snatch it back, but Li Xiangqin nimbly dodged her.

"Give that IOU back! We don't owe you anything... Zhang Jianguo, you shameless man! You and your mother are conspiring to scam us! I'll kill you both!"

Having lost out to her mother-in-law, Zhang Yanli didn't dare go head-to-head with her. Instead, she turned and lunged at Zhang Jianguo, scratching and clawing at him indiscriminately.

In a short while, the hair Zhang Jianguo had specially combed was a mess, and several bloody scratches appeared on his face.

His shirt was torn, buttons were popped off, and his glasses hung crookedly from his ear.

Feeling the stinging pain on his face, Zhang Jianguo grew anxious and pushed her away.

"Enough! Stop this nonsense! Is this ever going to end?"

If she hadn't been babysitting for two days, screaming her head off every single day, he wouldn't have turned to his mother, and they wouldn't be facing this mountain of debt today.

He hadn't accomplished a single thing, and instead, he had brought trouble upon himself. It was truly cursed.

"Zhang Jianguo, you actually dared to push me? This marriage is over! I want a divorce!"

"Fine, then divorce me! What are you going to do to me? If it weren't for you, would we be in this mess?"

Zhang Jianguo snapped, roaring in anger. He pushed his glasses back up and gave Zhang Yanli a cold glare, his head throbbing.

Ultimately, it was because she didn't want the exhaustion of looking after the children that all these conflicts had arisen.

Startled by his roar, Zhang Yanli glared at him with bloodshot eyes, and tears began to roll down her cheeks in an instant.

"I must have been blind to ever fall for you..."

Before she could finish her lament, Zhang Jianguo interrupted her.

"If you feel wronged by marrying me and want a divorce, then go ahead. I won't stop you."

"You... you're unbelievable."

Zhang Yanli's lips trembled. Having shared a bed with him for eight or nine years, she knew exactly what kind of man he was.

If things got serious, he actually would dare to divorce her. He was a key staff member at the newspaper office and would be promoted soon; even as a divorcee, plenty of women would still flock to him.

On the other hand, as a woman who had borne two children, most men would have reservations when choosing a partner. In the end, she would be the one to suffer.

In the end, it was all because that old woman had washed her hands of her responsibilities. If she had just looked after the children properly, how could all this trouble have happened?

"Are you satisfied now? Are you just waiting for us to divorce so you can be happy?"

Zhang Yanli stared at Li Xiangqin with hatred, as if she wanted to tear her flesh and drink her blood to satisfy her rage.

"Get lost! Stop making things up about me. What kind of person do you think you are? You don't even want to look after the children you gave birth to. Do you really think being a parent is easy?"

"I've never seen a grandmother as heartless as you. Don't expect us to take care of you in your old age!"

As Zhang Yanli spoke, she grabbed both of them and turned to leave.

"Zhang Jianguo, solve your own family's mess. If you can't fix it, don't come looking for us. I'm taking the kids back to my mother's house!"

Watching his wife and children walk away, Zhang Jianguo turned to look at Li Xiangqin, his eyes cold.

Unfortunately, before he could say anything, Li Xiangqin waved him off.

"You dung beetle pushing a dung ball, you get lost too! And remember to pay the money back quickly. Whether or not you provide elder care depends on your own conscience; I won't force it. Go be filial to your mother-in-law instead. I'm sick of looking at you.

I just feel it's not worth it for your father. He worked so hard and worried so much, only to raise a bunch of ungrateful wolves. If he knew from the afterlife, I wonder if he could even keep his coffin lid down?"

Since arriving, Zhang Jianguo had become numb to his mother's scolding. He took a deep breath and pushed the door open to leave.

As soon as he opened the door, he ran straight into the second son.

"Oh? Big brother, are you leaving?"

Seeing the sudden appearance of the second son, especially the gossip in his eyes, Zhang Jianguo took a deep breath, stepped aside, and let him in.

"Ask Mom if you have questions. I can't stay here a moment longer."

With that, without pausing for a second, he walked away quickly.

Watching his brother's retreating back, the second son rubbed his chin, looking puzzled.

Weren't they supposed to ask about the third brother's situation together? Why was he leaving, and why did he look so unwell?

"Mom, what's wrong with Big Brother?"

Li Xiangqin looked at him with an unreadable expression. "Why are you here all of a sudden?"

"Ahem... a few days ago, Third Brother came to borrow twenty yuan from me. He said he had moved out of the house. I was worried, so I came to check."

The second son didn't hide it. He glanced at the room where the third brother used to live and pushed the door open. Looking at the arrangement inside, he asked, "Did Xiao Liu move in?"

"Yes. He'll be in his third year of junior high when school starts this year, and the academic pressure is high. Since Third Brother moved out, it gives Xiao Liu a quiet environment to study."

Li Xiangqin sat in a chair and took several large gulps from her mug. Between the arguing and the scolding, it had been hard work, and she had broken quite a sweat.

The second son nodded, but when he looked up, he saw the scratches and bite marks on his mother's arms. He stood up in shock.

"Mom, what happened? Did you get into a fight with someone in the village? Tell me, and I'll go get revenge for you!"

The second son narrowed his eyes. If someone was bullying his mother, wasn't that like slapping his own face?