Chapter 38: So Stupid

When Zhang Jianshe mentioned his biological mother, his eyes turned red. "Was it my choice to break ties? It's Mom who is being unreasonable. I only mentioned letting Juanzi take over the business, and she just started cursing me out, completely disregarding any sense of dignity.

If Second Brother were here, he would definitely agree with my decision. I don't want to stay in that house for another second."

Hearing Zhang Jianshe's account, the second brother gave him an unreadable look.

"I don't object to you moving out, but have you considered how you're going to afford food and drink for two people on an apprentice's salary?"

He knew the third brother wasn't the brightest, but he hadn't expected him to be this stupid.

After their father passed away, their mother's personality had changed. At a time like this, instead of keeping a low profile, he was actually daring to pull hair from a tiger's mouth—did he not want to live long enough?

And then there was that Zhao Meijuan, with her scheming, petty face. Relying on the third brother's protection, she carried herself with such arrogance, never looking at her own character to see if she was even worthy of being respected.

Only the third brother was so blinded by her that he followed her every whim. Unfortunately, she wasn't very bright either, and she had led him straight into a pit.

"What, even Second Brother looks down on me and thinks I can't support my own wife?"

As soon as his low salary was mentioned, Zhang Jianshe flared up. As a grown man, if he couldn't even support his wife, wouldn't people laugh him out of town?

"You can't tell a kind word from a harsh one; I'm being concerned about you."

The second brother rolled his eyes at him, losing the will to persuade him. He reached into his pocket, pulled out two ten-yuan notes, and handed them to him.

"For the sake of you calling me 'Second Brother,' I'll give you one last warning: before you leave, go back and apologize to Mom properly, then thicken your skin and stay at home. Otherwise, there will be no turning back."

If you don't have the tools for a job, how dare you take it on? Does he want to die sooner?

"If anyone is apologizing, it's Mom to us. Otherwise, I'm never going back in my life." Zhang Jianshe took the money, threw out a harsh word, and sped off on his bicycle.

Watching his third brother's retreating figure, the second brother rubbed his chin and turned back toward the repair shop. Passing the guardhouse, he pulled two cigarettes from his pocket and handed them to the guard.

"Brother Qiu, have one."

"Oh, Mudan cigarettes? Good stuff."

Zheng Qiushou tucked the cigarettes behind his ear and looked at him with a smile.

"These are fifty cents a pack. I usually can't bring myself to buy them; you're a lucky guy."

Hearing Zheng Qiushou's envious tone, Zhang Jianmin smiled. Ever since he married Wang Yulan, he had seen plenty of envious, mocking, and contemptuous looks; he had long since become immune.

In any case, he was the one reaping the actual benefits, while these people were just being bitter because they couldn't have what he had.

"Brother Qiu, I need to make a call."

"Go ahead." Zheng Qiushou pointed toward the guard office and tactfully wandered away from the main gate.

Zhang Jianmin picked up the phone and dialed the eldest brother's office, quickly explaining the situation regarding the third brother borrowing money.

"Do you want to go home? Looking at the situation, Mom's temper isn't going to settle down anytime soon."

On the other end of the line, Zhang Jianguo pondered for a moment. "I'm busy these next two days. Let's wait until the weekend and go back together?"

The second brother cursed him inwardly as a "fox"—so cunning. But he didn't really care; he wasn't living at home anyway, so if things went south, he could just run.

"Alright, we'll go home together then."

Hanging up the phone, the second brother went to work.

***

Pedaling his bicycle, the third brother returned to the residential area next to the fertilizer plant to pay the old lady three months' rent, totaling ten yuan and fifty cents.

The old lady took a ten-yuan note, held it up to the sunlight to inspect it, and then glanced at the other ten-yuan note in his hand, her smile brightening.

"The rent is enough. From now on, this room belongs to you two. But this is the towel factory residential area, so you get employee benefits. Utilities are a flat rate, so I won't overcharge you.

Let's just say fifty cents per person. For three months of water and electricity, just give me six yuan more."

Zhang Jianshe was stunned. He looked at the single lightbulb hanging in the room, thinking about how the two of them would need to cook in the future, and handed over the other ten-yuan note.

The old lady took it with a chuckle, pulled a handful of change from her pocket, spat on her hand, counted out four yuan, and handed it over.

"Exactly four yuan. You want to count it?"

Zhang Jianshe took the money. The twenty yuan he had just received hadn't even warmed up in his hands, and now only this much was left.

As the old lady was leaving, she called out to them with a smile, "My surname is Deng. If you need anything, just shout for me next door."

Once only the couple was left at the door, Zhang Jianshe gathered all the money together. Between the twenty yuan borrowed from his second brother and his own two yuan and seventy cents, after paying the rent and utilities, he had only six yuan and twenty cents left.

Was money really this hard to come by?

"Who did you borrow money from?" Zhao Meijuan asked softly, seeing him frowning constantly.

"From Second Brother." Zhang Jianshe snapped out of it and handed all the money to her. "Payday is in a few days; we'll have to tighten our belts for now."

Hearing it was borrowed from the second brother, Zhao Meijuan breathed a sigh of relief. She reached out, took the money, folded the bills, and stuffed them into her pocket.

The two of them stared at the empty room for a moment, feeling that something was amiss, though they couldn't quite put their finger on it.

"Since it's still early, should we go home and move the bed and furniture over first?"

Zhao Meijuan had an epiphany. "Right, right! I'll go to my mom's to borrow a cart. Let's see if my brother is back from work and ask them to help us."

The two of them returned to the cement factory residential area. From a distance, they saw Liu Hehua pacing anxiously. Seeing them return, she hurried over.

"Where have you two been? You were gone so long!"

"We rented a place." Zhao Meijuan looked at her mother and wrapped her arm around hers. "From now on, we'll live our own lives and won't listen to anyone's nagging anymore."

"What? You already found a place?" Liu Hehua was stunned. Was it that easy to rent a house?

"Yeah. We went to the Housing Bureau for nothing, but on the way back, we passed the towel factory residential area and happened to run into Auntie Deng renting out a room..."

Lost in the excitement of their new independent life, Zhao Meijuan rattled off the entire process of renting the room.

Liu Hehua stared blankly at the two of them, her expression complicated. In the blink of an eye, nearly twenty yuan had been spent by these two fools.

"Mom, is my brother off work? Can he help us move? The big bed and the cabinet at home—Jianshe can't move them alone."

"How could your brother be off work at this hour?"

Liu Hehua brushed her daughter's arm off.

"Move what? Hurry up and return the room. Your father told me to buy two pounds of apples to take with you to apologize to your in-laws. As the juniors, if you give the elders a way to save face, this whole thing will be over."

"Mom, we've already decided. Moving out is better for everyone." Zhang Jianshe shook his head. It was clearly the mother who was being inconsiderate of her children, yet she wanted him to apologize. Impossible.

"I'm not apologizing either."

Zhao Meijuan lifted her chin with an arrogant expression. This time, she was determined to make that old woman experience the pain of losing a son, forcing her to hand the job over to them on a silver platter.