RGL – Chapter 101

Su Min shook her head. “I haven’t thought that far ahead yet. I’ll consider it when I get to senior year. By the way, I heard from Brother Zhao that you’re already in your second year of high school?”

Xue Mian gave a shy smile. “Yeah, I want to finish my studies early so I can graduate sooner.”

Su Min replied, “That’s a good idea too. You’ve got great grades—it shouldn’t be a problem. Even if you don’t get into your dream school, graduating early gives you more chances.”

Of course, the reason Xue Mian wanted to graduate early wasn’t to give himself more chances. He was already quite confident in his ability to do well in the exams. He might not be the top scorer, but getting into his ideal university shouldn’t be a problem at all.

In any case, he was determined to graduate early—but he couldn’t tell Su Min the real reason just yet. She needed to be a little older first. Otherwise, she’d definitely think he was having indecent thoughts.

Last time, he couldn’t hold back and said a bit too much, which had already made her a little wary of him. He wasn’t going to risk that again.

This time meeting up, Xue Mian was a bit more cautious, and Su Min was also somewhat reserved. The two of them didn’t get along as naturally as they had back when they were in B City.

After a while, both of them began to feel cold. Xue Mian hadn’t brought gloves, so he simply slipped his hands into Su Min’s gloves.

Su Min instinctively tried to pull away, but then heard Xue Mian complain, “I’m cold.”

“Then take the gloves,” Su Min said, taking off one glove and handing it to him.

They were at an age where, whether or not Xue Mian had feelings for her, it wasn’t appropriate for them to be so physically close. What if someone saw them—how would that look?

Although a bit disappointed, Xue Mian saw Su Min frown and didn’t dare ask for more. He put the glove back on her hand, then shoved his own hands into his sleeves, hunching his shoulders like a little old man.

Seeing him like that, Su Min couldn’t help but laugh.

Xue Mian thought to himself, Just wait a couple more years. We’ll see if you’re still laughing then.

As the weather grew colder, Su Min tugged on Xue Mian’s arm and hurried him home.

When they arrived at the residential complex, they spotted County Magistrate Zhao’s car parked downstairs, with the driver still sitting inside.

Just seeing the car made it clear that Magistrate Zhao was here to pick up the old lady.

They were just about to head upstairs when they heard voices at the stairwell—it was the old lady and Sun Qiufang.

“I was planning to keep you for dinner. I was even going to make dumplings. Why are you in such a hurry to leave?”

“The younger ones are worried I’ll get cold on the way back. It’s fine, I’ll come over again tomorrow.”

Sun Qiufang said, “Please don’t wear yourself out. Let me come visit you instead. It’s too cold these days, and I’d hate for you to get sick.”

As the group came downstairs, they saw Xue Mian and Su Min standing there. The old lady’s smile widened. “What a coincidence that you’re just getting back. Otherwise, we would’ve had to look for you. Mianmian, let’s head back for today. We’ll come again tomorrow.”

Hearing that they were leaving, Xue Mian felt a twinge of reluctance. But seeing that it was getting late, it didn’t make sense to stay any longer, so he simply nodded.

At the gate of the residential complex, Su Changgui and Shao Yun were carrying some things, coming over to visit Su Changrong’s house. When they saw the people standing by the entrance, they paused.

The elderly lady, they didn’t recognize. But the car was clearly a government vehicle, and anyone who could ride in that car was no ordinary person. Shao Yun was sharp—she took a closer look and spotted Magistrate Zhao helping the old lady into the car.

She had seen Magistrate Zhao once before when he came to inspect an event organized by the school, so she recognized him at a glance. Her heart jumped in shock. How could the Sun Qiufang family know someone like that?

“Sister-in-law, who was that just now? Why did they come over to your house?”

After the car had driven off, Shao Yun pulled Su Changgui aside with a warm smile on her face. She was always good at making people feel comfortable, so even Sun Qiufang, who usually disliked her, couldn’t bring herself to be cold.

Sun Qiufang hadn’t expected the two of them to come over at this hour and frowned. “Why are you here now?”

Shao Yun smiled. “We were shopping at your supermarket today and heard you were back, so we thought we’d stop by. Figured you’d be too busy during the day with the store.”

Even though Sun Qiufang didn’t like them, they were still relatives, so she couldn’t just kick them out. Reluctantly, she led them upstairs.

Shao Yun tugged the unwilling Su Changgui along behind her.

The real reason for their visit this time was to repay a debt. Su Changgui didn’t want to come—he felt ashamed—but couldn’t resist Shao Yun’s nagging, so he had no choice but to tag along.

Once inside, Su Min poured water for the two guests.

Shao Yun smiled. “Minzi is such a well-behaved girl.”

Su Min gave a polite smile, then turned to Sun Qiufang. “Mom, I’m going to my room to study.”

Sun Qiufang said, “Go ahead. I’ll call you when dinner’s ready.”

Seeing the table full of food, Shao Yun figured it hadn’t been prepared for them. Thinking of the people she saw earlier, she probed carefully: “Sister-in-law, who were you seeing off just now? They even came in a car.”

“Just a classmate’s parent. We’ve met before. They were in the county today and dropped by for a visit.”

“Oh, I thought the man looked familiar—he seemed a lot like our county magistrate, Zhao.”

“It was Magistrate Zhao. He’s a relative of Minzi’s classmate.”

Upon hearing that it was only a classmate’s relative, Shao Yun looked a bit disappointed. She had been hoping to use the connection to get herself and Su Changgui formal teaching positions with official ranks and better benefits. But now that she knew it was just a distant connection, she realized it wouldn’t be easy.

After chatting with them for a while, Sun Qiufang glanced at the clock on the wall and, seeing how late it was getting, politely said, “It’s almost dinner time. Why don’t you stay and eat with us?”

“Oh, we couldn’t possibly impose,” Shao Yun replied with a smile—but she didn’t actually refuse the offer.

Sun Qiufang pursed her lips. “It’s still the New Year, let’s just make do with what we have.”

As she spoke, she got up and went to the kitchen to prepare the meal.

When Shao Yun saw this, she quickly followed. Although things had been awkward with Su Changrong and his wife due to the loan, they were still wealthy. As long as things didn’t completely fall apart, there would always be opportunities to benefit from them.

And then there was Minzi’s classmate, who had a relative like County Head Zhao. He’d even come by personally. Even if they were just classmates now, who knew—maybe a good opportunity would come along in the future to help with the issue of securing a permanent job position. One should always leave room for future encounters. She wasn’t like that fool Gao Hong who looked down on everyone and, in the end, had no one to support her.

Though she’d heard that woman married a rich man—his first marriage at that—it was anyone’s guess what kind of absurd luck that was.

In the kitchen, Shao Yun took the initiative to chat with Sun Qiufang again, subtly hinting at how difficult things were for her and Su Changgui. To save money and pay off debts, they rarely had meat on the table—even during the New Year, they hadn’t prepared anything fancy.

“We didn’t even go to my parents’ place—just couldn’t afford the travel costs. Sister-in-law, you know how it is. Changgui and I are both teachers, but being a teacher is just a respectable title. When it comes to actual income, we’re no match for you and big brother. Just thinking about the debt, Changgui and I lose sleep.”

She painted such a pitiful picture that anyone listening would likely respond with, “Don’t worry about paying the money back yet.”

Sun Qiufang was torn. They’d agreed the debt would be paid by the end of the year, but now it was already several days into the new year, and there was no sign of repayment. From the sound of it, they weren’t planning to pay at all.

Although she didn’t urgently need the money, she didn’t want Shao Yun and Su Changgui to think it didn’t matter whether they repaid it or not. More importantly, she didn’t want her generosity to mark her as an easy target. If something came up again, they’d surely come knocking.

Relatives should help each other, but only when the intentions are genuine. If someone starts off eyeing your resources, it’s a different story. When someone genuinely struggles, of course you help if you can. But from the start, if they intend to rely on you, that’s another matter entirely.

As she made a few dumplings and listened to Shao Yun’s continued lamenting, she said, “That money—Changrong and I agreed—it’d be repaid at the end of each year, and it wasn’t even a large amount. How could things be that bad for you? You and Changgui are both salaried—how bad can it really be?”

Shao Yun pulled a long face. “You don’t understand, sister-in-law. We only make a little over a hundred yuan a month. After covering utilities, food, and transportation, there’s hardly anything left. I only buy a new piece of clothing during the New Year, and that’s it for the whole year.”

Sun Qiufang was about to mention seeing her trying on jewelry at the mall once, but suddenly saw Su Changgui standing at the kitchen door, face dark with anger. She stopped mid-sentence. “Changgui, you’re here. Why aren’t you sitting in the living room?”

Hearing Sun Qiufang call him, Shao Yun’s face changed. She turned to see Su Changgui’s thunderous expression. Guiltily, she said, “Changgui, I’m just cooking with sister-in-law. What are you doing here? Don’t get your clothes dirty.”

“I’m not eating.” Su Changgui’s face was cold as he entered the kitchen and pulled Shao Yun outside.

“What are you doing?” Shao Yun protested and tried to break free, but she was too weak. Though Su Changgui was a scholar, he was still a man—taller and stronger than her. With force, she had no way to resist and had no choice but to follow.

Hearing the commotion, Su Min came out of her room and was shocked by the scene. “Third Uncle, what are you doing?”

Sun Qiufang, worried they might start fighting, followed as well. “Changgui, what are you doing? Let her go before someone gets hurt!”

Su Changgui ignored them, grabbed Shao Yun’s bag, and walked out.

Sun Qiufang and Su Min hurried after them. Liao Zhaodi also came out of her room and followed everyone downstairs.

Once outside, Su Changgui let go of Shao Yun and slapped her across the face.

The force of the blow made Shao Yun stagger and nearly fall. She looked at him in shock. “Why are you hitting me? Are you crazy?”

She shouted and her eyes reddened with grievance.

“You’ve got the nerve to ask me that? What were you saying to sister-in-law just now? Saying we can’t even afford to eat? Am I that useless? And about the new clothes—you buy two new outfits every month, don’t you? How is that not enough? Yet you’re there crying poverty in front of my sister-in-law!”

He knew what Shao Yun was up to—trying to get some benefits from his brother and sister-in-law. He didn’t mind that small scheme, but saying things that hurt his pride—he couldn’t tolerate that.

Even at his lowest, he was still a well-known university graduate in the village, the first to settle in the city. Now Shao Yun had made it sound like he was no better than a beggar, needing money from his older brother who didn’t even finish elementary school. She completely destroyed his dignity.

Shao Yun had never seen Su Changgui act so frighteningly. She didn’t know how to respond.

Sun Qiufang and Su Min, seeing the two hadn’t actually fought, breathed a sigh of relief—but neither knew what to say, so they simply stood by in case things escalated again.

It was New Year’s, and nighttime, so families were full. Hearing the noise, many came out to look. Those upstairs even opened their windows to watch.

Sun Qiufang said, “Changgui, if you have something to say, say it calmly. Fighting like this—people are going to laugh at you.”

Shao Yun began to cry. She was becoming increasingly disillusioned with this life. She’d divorced her previous husband because she couldn’t stand rural life. She’d hoped to find a better man in town, but he already had a wife and child, and could never truly be with her. After the divorce, she had to bring her son to the city to survive. Meeting Su Changgui again, seeing how much more mature and attractive he’d become, she had fallen for him. Especially since he had treated her so well, she thought life with him would only get better. No matter what, he was a capable man who could provide for her.

But after marriage, he lost his house, his job—everything had to start from scratch. She endured it, planning to tough it out with him. But he’d changed. He constantly criticized and scolded her. Now he even hit her.

“Su Changgui, you heartless man. If it weren’t for you, I would’ve finished college! I wouldn’t be living like this now. You and Gao Hong ruined me!”

Both Sun Qiufang and Su Min were stunned—so there was history between them?

Hearing her bring up the past, Su Changgui was furious. “You shameless woman. You already had a fiancé back then, and you still seduced me. If not for you, I wouldn’t have been punished by the school. I had to rely on Gao Hong to graduate smoothly. If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be living this pitiful life now. I must’ve been blind to ever fall for someone like you!”

The more he thought about it, the more regret he felt.

Gao Hong had a bad temper, sure, but in the end, she’d been obedient and considerate. If he had just held firm and not divorced her—kept her in line—maybe life wouldn’t have turned out so badly.

Even if Wenwen wasn’t perfect, she was at least his own child. Now, he was raising someone else’s kid.

“Shao Yun, I want a divorce!”

He shouted in rage.

Shao Yun, hearing those words, couldn’t even cry anymore.

She didn’t want this marriage anymore, but it still had to be lived. Otherwise, it would just be her and Haohao again. She’d already been divorced once—if she divorced again, no one would want her. Su Changgui, even though he’d changed, was still a college graduate, still a teacher. And his family had wealthy relatives like Su Changrong.

Finding another man like him would be nearly impossible.

After thinking it through, she wiped her tears and said, red-eyed, “I won’t divorce you, not even if it kills me. If you want a divorce, go file for it yourself. I’m not divorcing you.” She picked up her bag. “Sister-in-law, sorry you had to see this. I’ll visit again another day.”

Sun Qiufang was genuinely impressed by Shao Yun’s toughness. Even in such a moment, she could calmly bid her farewell.

She nodded blankly, watching Shao Yun walk away in shock.

Seeing her leave like that, Su Changgui was livid. But seeing the crowd of onlookers, he didn’t want to shout anymore and instead chased after her.

“Mom, what now? You think they’ll fight again?” Su Min looked in their direction uncertainly.

Sun Qiufang said, “I don’t know if they’ll fight again, but I do know your third uncle won’t be able to outplay Shao Yun.”

Su Changgui, at the end of the day, was all fake pride—caring too much about appearances and suffering in silence. Shao Yun was a clever and ruthless woman. If she really went head-to-head with him, he’d definitely lose.

Not long after they left, Su Changrong returned, looking tired.

Seeing the mother and daughter standing downstairs, he smiled. “Wow, you came all the way down just to greet me?”

“You wish. Hurry inside. I haven’t even finished cooking.” Sun Qiufang rolled her eyes and pulled her daughter upstairs.