RGL – Chapter 38

Su Min helped out at her uncle’s shop for a while. Once Sun Hai had a moment to spare and cooked two dishes, she carried the food back to the shop and, in passing, mentioned to her mother  that he seemed to have a young woman helping him out.

Sun Qiufang said, “That’s pretty fast.”

“Isn’t it? And she’s actually a colleague of Uncle’s. She even came over to the house once to find him,” Su Min said deliberately while eating.

Hearing this, Sun Qiufang’s heart stirred. “You mean she knows your uncle, works with him, and has even visited the house?”

Su Min nodded. “Yeah, last time my dad was there too.”

Su Changrong added, “You’re talking about that girl from last time, right? I saw her; she came looking for Xiao Hai.”

Sun Qiufang couldn’t help but smile, her face lighting up with joy. Being a woman herself, she understood women very well. A young woman would usually be reserved — if it weren’t someone important, who would bother going straight to a man’s house? Plus, Sun Hai’s shop had just opened; it was busy, and who knew if it would even make money. Yet she quit her stable restaurant job just to help Sun Hai. If not for the person, could it really be for the wages?

Now that she had this news, Sun Qiufang couldn’t sit still. After eating, she left Su Changrong to mind the shop while she went to take a look.

Su Min was about to head back to school, so she had no chance to join the excitement.

Anyway, with her mother handling it, things would definitely be better. Her uncle was good in every way — except he was too honest. Without someone giving him a push, nothing would happen. But her mom still had to check out what kind of person that girl was — they didn’t want another one like Liu Li, who couldn’t keep her heart in one place.

By the time Sun Qiufang arrived at Sun Hai’s shop, things had mostly quieted down. The tables were already cleaned spotless, and the two were having their meal.

Sun Hai looked up and was surprised to see Sun Qiufang entering. “Sis, what are you doing here? Weren’t you supposed to watch the shop?”

“Business isn’t busy right now, so your brother-in-law’s watching it. I came to see how you were doing today,” Sun Qiufang said, though her eyes kept sneaking glances at Li Meng, who had her back to her.

Seeing this, Sun Hai smiled and said, “This is my colleague, Li Meng. She’s helping out at the shop now.”

Li Meng stood up a little awkwardly and greeted, “Hello, big sister.”

“Hi there,” Sun Qiufang said with a smile, pulling over a chair to sit beside them.

Sun Hai finished eating and went to prepare more food, telling Li Meng he’d be back soon and carrying his bowl outside. Li Meng also picked up her bowl, but Sun Qiufang stopped her. “You’re not working for some landlord — you should rest when it’s time to rest. You must be exhausted today. Xiao Hai’s shop just opened; he can’t afford to hire more help yet.”

Li Meng put her bowl and chopsticks back on the table and rubbed her hands together with a smile. “It’s fine, I’m used to this.”

Sun Qiufang laughed. “Used to it or not, it’s still tiring. Take a break and chat with me a bit. I’m busy all day too — barely have anyone to talk to.”

Li Meng pursed her lips and nodded a little nervously.

Looking at Li Meng’s round, pleasant face, Sun Qiufang found herself liking her more and more. Acting casual, she started asking about Li Meng’s situation and her family background.

Li Meng answered honestly. Her parents had passed away when she was young, and she grew up with relatives. Now that she couldn’t rely on them anymore, she had come out to work with a village auntie.

“Sigh, you’ve had it hard,” Sun Qiufang said with sympathy. In the village, kids without parents had it toughest.

“Big sister, I’m used to it. My relatives treated me well — I never went hungry. They raised me this far, and now I can support myself.”

“You’re twenty, right?” Sun Qiufang asked.

Li Meng nodded. “Twenty-one.”

Sun Qiufang smiled. “A great age. I was twenty-one when I got married too.” She sighed. “Our Xiao Hai’s already twenty-seven. Such a good young man — if it weren’t for his bad leg, he’d have been married long ago. The whole family is trying to find someone for him.”

Hearing this, how could Li Meng not catch Sun Qiufang’s meaning? She blushed with joy and smiled shyly. “Sun Hai’s great — better than many people without leg problems.”

“If more girls thought like you, I wouldn’t worry anymore,” Sun Qiufang said with a smile but didn’t push further. She only wanted to sound out the girl’s feelings. Whether it would work out or not, she wouldn’t meddle too much. Sun Hai’s marriage should be based on his own wishes. As an older sister, she could help vet people, but she absolutely wouldn’t force the matter.

Outside, washing vegetables, Sun Hai glanced inside and saw the two chatting happily. He smiled too. Although he’d initially felt a bit awkward around Li Meng, he had to admit — thanks to her today, he hadn’t been overwhelmed. Whatever else, Li Meng was definitely a hard worker.

After working a full day at Sun Hai’s shop, Li Meng went to her restaurant job the next morning and quit.

The boss, upon hearing her sudden resignation, shook his head and sighed, “What’s going on? One after another quitting. My wages aren’t bad.”

Li Meng blinked. “Someone else quit too?”

“Liu Li! She came yesterday to resign. What’s going on with you all? All of you quitting together! Including Sun Hai, that’s three people gone at once. Liu Li said she’s getting married. What about you?”

Li Meng laughed. “I’m going to be with my fiancé.”

“Found a fiancé already? Getting married soon?” The boss quite liked Li Meng — she was lively and easy to talk to.

Li Meng smiled. “Soon. If I really get married, I’ll definitely bring you some wedding candy.”

“Good! I’ll share in the happiness then.”

After finishing the paperwork and collecting her pay, Li Meng went to the kitchen to say goodbye to Aunt Li, telling her she wouldn’t be working here anymore.

When Aunt Li learned that she was going to find Sun Hai, she sighed. “You’re really serious about him? This might not work out, you know.”

“Auntie, how will I know if I don’t try? Anyway, I’m the only girl around him now. I don’t believe it won’t work out. Don’t worry — I’ll make it happen, and I’ll invite you to eat wedding candy too.”

Aunt Li shook her head. “Liu Li just handed out wedding candies yesterday too. Said she’s getting married this month. Just think — a month ago, she was dating Sun Hai, and now a month later, she’s marrying someone else. Young people these days are just too wild.”

When she heard that Liu Li was getting married, Li Meng finally breathed a sigh of relief. She had been worried that Liu Li might not go through with the marriage and go back to find Sun Hai. If Sun Hai forgave her, wouldn’t all her efforts be for nothing?

It was a good thing she was getting married—better sooner than later.

But the thought still left her feeling a bit lost.

She also wanted to get married—after marriage, she’d finally have a home of her own. But who knew when that would happen?

“I met Xiao Hai’s female colleague yesterday. She’s pretty capable, had the shop cleaned spotless,” Sun Qiufang said over lunch as she talked with Su Changrong about Li Meng.

Su Min quickly finished her meal and said, “Mom, are you trying to match her with my uncle?”

“I do have that in mind, but there’s no rush,” Sun Qiufang replied.

Su Changrong laughed, “Hey, you were the one constantly nagging about finding a wife for Xiao Hai. Now that there’s someone, you’re suddenly not in a hurry?”

Sun Qiufang shot him a glance and said while picking up some food, “Of course I want to find someone, but we still have to observe. What if she ends up being like Zhang Guihua, bossing Xiao Hai around? Or worse, like that black-hearted Li Yulan—I’d have nowhere to cry if that happened.”

After dealing with a few difficult sisters-in-law over the years, Sun Qiufang had grown cautious. She’d learned that whether a daughter-in-law was a good match could seriously affect the whole family’s fortune. Say what you will, if Su Changrong hadn’t married a capable wife like her, they wouldn’t be living this comfortable life now. Of course, she kept that thought to herself and didn’t boast in front of him.

Su Min suggested, “Why not bring my grandma over sometime? She always seems to have a good eye for people.”

“Your grandma? She thinks everyone’s a good person,” Sun Qiufang said with no hope. Her eldest brother had the same personality as their mother—always letting others walk all over him.

Su Min thought about it and agreed.

Old folks could be overly sentimental. Some, like her paternal grandmother, thought everyone was up to no good. Others, like her maternal grandmother, believed everyone was kind-hearted.

Because of the matter with Li Meng, whenever Sun Qiufang had some free time, she would head over to Sun Hai’s shop, chat with Li Meng a bit, and also check on how business was doing.

After more than half a month, Sun Hai’s business had stabilized.

Though not as booming as in the beginning, sales were still decent every day. After deducting costs, he was earning about thirty yuan a day.

Sun Hai was quite satisfied with this income. He planned to explore some new business opportunities soon. Su Min had previously suggested he try visiting some small factories to see if they needed catering services. He was planning to check it out—if he could secure a contract, that’d be an extra source of income every month.

As the weather got colder, Su Changrong began reminiscing about the bustling business they had just before the New Year last year, and started thinking about expanding the store again.

But the adjacent space was already rented out, so there was no way to extend in that direction.

After discussing with Sun Qiufang, they decided to rent the empty shop across the street. They’d keep the current store and open the new one as well. The couple would each manage one store. Both would still carry the same name: Rongfang Supermarket.

But this also meant they’d need to hire someone for the current store. Su Changrong couldn’t manage both by himself.

That evening, when Sun Hai came home, the whole family gathered to discuss the shop rental.

Sun Hai said, “If you’re really thinking of opening a second store, why not just find a place further away? Having two shops next to each other doesn’t make much sense.”

Sun Qiufang and Su Changrong hadn’t been thinking about opening a second location, just trying to expand since there wasn’t enough space nearby. After hearing what Sun Hai said, they thought it over and agreed it made more sense.

Su Changrong muttered awkwardly, “Your sister and I never planned to run separate stores—we’re used to working together every day.”

Sun Qiufang looked a little embarrassed and gave him a side-eye, “Used to it or not, I think this is a good idea. No matter how big we make this store, we’re still only serving people from this neighborhood. If we open farther away, we can reach more customers.”

Su Min added, “Then we can name the stores Rongfang Supermarket No. 1 and Rongfang Supermarket No. 2. Who knows, one day we might have shops all over town.”

She couldn’t help but feel excited at the thought of her parents owning the first chain of supermarkets in the county.

Su Changrong felt like their business was constantly developing in unexpected ways. They started with a street stall, then opened a store, and now they were talking about opening more.

No wonder people say three cobblers are better than one Zhuge Liang. With four of them, they were even more formidable than Zhuge Liang.

The next day, Sun Qiufang stayed home to manage the store while Su Changrong went out looking for shop spaces.

Around the same time, Grandpa Su also boarded a bus headed for the county.

He had a deep frown, and the creases on his forehead were becoming more and more pronounced.

Times had been tough at home lately. Changfu lost his job, and they were in debt. He’d asked Changfu to go into town and ask Changrong for help, but for some reason, the two brothers hadn’t sorted things out—instead, Changfu came back fuming. Although Changfu and Yulan had said plenty of bad things about Changrong, deep down, Grandpa Su wasn’t sure what to believe.

They were both his sons, and to say he didn’t understand their personalities would be a lie. Changfu had always been slick and quick with words, while Changrong was more down-to-earth and honest. It wasn’t that he hadn’t liked his eldest son—he just only had one male grandson, Cancan, and felt obligated to favor the second son for the sake of the family line. But now, unexpectedly, it was the eldest who was doing well—and the Su family might end up depending on him.

Grandpa Su thought to himself, If only the eldest had a son. Then I wouldn’t have to play favorites anymore.

But he also knew clearly—it was impossible now. So he had to focus on helping the younger son’s household turn things around. Otherwise, if things kept getting worse, the Su family would become a laughingstock.

After searching all morning, Su Changrong finally found two potential shop locations.

They were in an even busier area than their current location—near a factory district, with lots more people around.

Of course, the rent was also higher.

The couple calculated the potential daily earnings, subtracted costs and rent, and figured there’d still be some profit. As long as the shop could make money, they were willing to go for it.

“To be honest, I still really want to own a house of our own. No matter how nice this rental is, it’ll always belong to someone else,” Sun Qiufang said with a sigh after they’d done the math.

Su Changrong was also thinking about a house. But unlike Sun Qiufang, he was thinking about even more — opening another store and buying a house.

“We actually have enough money at home. We could afford both buying a house and opening a new store. But there’s no suitable place. Didn’t you ask around before? No one around here wants to sell. Every household barely has enough space for themselves, where would they find a house to sell to us? If you’re talking about buying on the outskirts, how would we run our business? Oh, and I’m also thinking about getting a tricycle. It’ll be easier to get to the store and move some goods around.”

Once you added it all up, it was clear — all of it needed money.

Sun Qiufang said, “Buying a tricycle won’t cost much.” They had several tens of thousands saved up now, though she didn’t dare brag about it. Still, she was secretly thrilled. Having that much money in this town was quite something.

What she really wanted was a home of their own. But like Changrong said, they couldn’t just move to the outskirts — they still had their business to run, and Minzi had to go to school. It wouldn’t be easy.

At noon, Su Min came home and asked about the store.

Su Changrong explained and then smiled, “You’re thinking about home affairs, but what about your studies? Isn’t midterms coming up soon?”

Su Min replied casually, “You don’t need to worry about my grades. I’m at least in the top three.”

Sun Qiufang laughed, “Still the eternal second place?”

Su Min knew what she meant — every time report cards came out, she was second in the class. She pouted, “A lot of people would love to be this ‘eternal second.’ I’ve been working really hard, too. When others play, I study; when they study, I study even harder. But somehow, my math grades are always a little worse than Xue Mian’s. What can I do? Math isn’t like other subjects where you can just memorize things. If they change the way a problem looks even a little, I can’t recognize it.”

Sun Qiufang wasn’t actually criticizing her. Seeing Su Min sulking, she pinched her nose affectionately, “Alright, I was just teasing. Second place is already excellent. Your dad brags to everyone that his daughter is second in the whole class. Now all the neighbors know about it.”

Su Changrong lifted his chin proudly and said, “I’m just telling the truth. Why shouldn’t we spread good news?”

“Changrong—”

A voice called from outside.

When Su Changrong heard the voice, he thought he was hallucinating. He looked over and, sure enough, saw his father standing at the door, along with his third brother, Su Changgui.

Grandpa Su was a bit smarter than Su Changfu. He knew it would be hard to talk things through alone, so as soon as he entered the city, he found the third son, Su Changgui, and asked him to accompany him after classes to find Su Changrong.

Since the fallout during the last New Year, Su Changgui hadn’t contacted Su Changrong at all. Now seeing him again, he felt a little awkward.

The lively, warm atmosphere from earlier immediately vanished when they arrived. Sun Qiufang asked Su Min to get two small stools, while she fetched the kettle to pour them hot water.

Grandpa Su and Su Changgui entered, took the stools from Su Min, and sat down inside the shop.

Both of them looked around the store carefully, feeling unsettled.

The last time Su Changgui came, the shop wasn’t nearly this big. It hadn’t even been that long, yet now the store had expanded. Having stayed in the city longer, he understood just how much capital it took to run a store like this.

Grandpa Su was even more shaken. Having spent his life in the village, his greatest pride had been raising his youngest son into a college student who could live in the city.

But he had never imagined any of his sons could own such a big shop in the city.

Even opening a shop this size in a town would cost a fortune — how much harder must it be in the city? He couldn’t understand how the eldest managed to earn so much.

“Dad, what brings you here?”

Although Su Changrong asked, he already guessed the reason. After what happened with Changfu last time, he knew things weren’t over. Still, seeing his father come here left him feeling uncomfortable.

They were all sons, after all. But if the situation were reversed — if he had needed Changfu — his father wouldn’t have been the one rushing over to help.

Grandpa Su said, “I just came to see you and Qiufang. You didn’t come home for New Year’s, and everyone at home was worried.”

Hearing this, Sun Qiufang almost laughed out loud. Was this old man seriously expecting them to believe that? Even if she hadn’t gone home for New Year’s, not a soul in the Su family would have cared. She pretended not to hear and calmly poured them water, then sat down again to watch the shop. When a customer came in asking about roasted sweet potatoes, she went out, helped them pick some, took the money, and returned.

Seeing this, Grandpa Su asked curiously, “You can make money selling roasted sweet potatoes too?”

Su Changrong said, “It’s getting cold, and city folks love them as snacks.”

Grandpa Su thought to himself that the eldest and his wife were truly capable — even something like that could make money. No wonder their business thrived. Thinking of the second son, who just lazed around at home all day shouting and doing nothing, he sighed inwardly. The second boy wasn’t any less clever than the eldest, so why didn’t he ever think about making money?

After a brief silence, Grandpa Su sighed and said, “Changrong, life’s hard at home now. Changfu lost his job, and the family’s in debt.”

“I know,” Su Changrong interrupted him before he could finish. “Dad, if you’re here about Changfu, save it. Last time, Changfu stood right here in my shop, pointing at my nose and cursing me. If I help him now, wouldn’t that be the same as handing him my face to slap? Just because he has a son, does that mean I should let him walk all over me?”

Hearing his words, Grandpa Su was angered but found himself unable to argue.

He thought for a moment, face sullen, and said, “Let’s not talk about anything else. Just think of it as your mother and me begging you to help Changfu this once. Changrong, think back to when you guys were little—how good your relationship was. You used to go bird-nesting together, catching fish in the fields and roasting them to eat. Have you forgotten?”

Sun Qiufang sneered when she heard this. “Hmph, Dad, why don’t you first go ask Changfu if he still remembers?” She thought, Bringing up these useless memories now—where were you back then?

“Eldest sister-in-law, how can you talk to Dad like that?” Su Changgui couldn’t help but speak up from the side. He had already noticed that ever since the eldest brother’s family got rich, they had started ignoring their relatives. Now, even the eldest sister-in-law dared to mock their father.

Originally, Sun Qiufang was ignoring Su Changgui, but seeing him actually step up to criticize her, she couldn’t hold back anymore. “Su Changgui, I haven’t even brought it up yet—at New Year’s, why did your daughter Wenwen frame our Minzi for stealing money? If Minzi hadn’t been quick-witted, the whole town would be calling her a thief right now!”

Hearing Sun Qiufang dig up the past again, Su Changgui’s face immediately darkened with anger. Over that incident, he had scolded Wenwen harshly, but then his father-in-law’s family had nagged him about it for months. Gao Hong had also argued with him several times over it. Wenwen’s grades had dropped a lot too, and he hadn’t even found an outlet for his anger.

The more he thought about it, the worse his expression became. “Eldest sister-in-law, that was just a childish matter. Why are you taking it so seriously? Right now, we’re here to talk about second brother’s situation. Dad’s already come to plead with you—wouldn’t refusing be too heartless?”

Sun Qiufang laughed coldly. “If you’re so righteous, why don’t you take out some money yourself?”

Hearing this, Su Min chimed in, “That’s right, Third Uncle. You’ve been in the city for years now—you must’ve saved much more than my parents. How about this: Mom and Dad will help source the goods, and you lend Second Uncle the money for his startup. Once he makes a profit, he can pay you back. That way, everyone’s being ‘kind-hearted.’”

Easy for you to say while standing on the sidelines.

Sure enough, the moment Su Changgui heard “lend money,” his face changed again, and he couldn’t say a word. He hadn’t expected that while he was just here to help talk, he’d get dragged into it himself.

Sun Qiufang smiled. “Minzi’s got a point. If Changgui agrees, Changrong and I have no objections.”

Grandpa Su said, “Changrong, don’t pressure Changgui. He doesn’t have any money.”

Hearing that, Su Changrong felt a sourness in his heart. So the second and third sons were born from you, and I wasn’t?

He pulled a long face and said, “Changgui’s been in the city for over a decade; I’ve barely been here two years. You tell me—who should have more money? Minzi’s young, but she made a good point. If Changfu’s in trouble, both Changgui and I should help. Everyone in town knows Changgui lives well in the city. If I’m the only one who helps and Changgui doesn’t lift a finger, people will say he’s ungrateful.”

Anyone can pit their own brothers against each other—let’s see who plays it better!

Grandpa Su had already made up his mind: if persuasion didn’t work, he’d kneel down to his eldest son. He didn’t believe that, as a father, if he knelt down, his son could still refuse.

But he hadn’t expected his third son to get dragged into this too. Worse yet, with the way the eldest couple spoke, he couldn’t even refute them. If he sided with Changgui, he wouldn’t be able to help Changfu. If he sided with Changfu, he’d have to make Changgui cough up money too.

After thinking for a while, he turned to Su Changgui. “Changgui, if you can spare it, help Changfu out. Back when you were studying, your second brother took care of you, even sending food over from far away.”

Su Changgui widened his eyes and stared at his father. “Dad, I came here to help you persuade them. Now you want me to fork out money too?”

Grandpa Su knew what he was doing wasn’t entirely right, but he had no choice. His eldest son’s family wasn’t the same as before—his words didn’t carry weight anymore. And to be honest, he didn’t have the right to reason with them either. Feeling weary, he said, “Changgui, right now your mother and I are living with Changfu. The old house relies on him to hold things together. You all are doing well—can’t you lend a hand too? After all these years in the city, don’t you have any money saved?”

For a moment, Su Changgui didn’t know how to answer.

If he said he had no money, it would make him look useless. If he said he had money, they’d expect him to give it.

The real issue was, all the money was controlled by Gao Hong. Even if he wanted to take some out, he couldn’t.

While Su Changgui hesitated, Sun Qiufang picked up the abacus, and with Su Changrong, they began whispering together, calculating the costs. After a while, they roughly estimated how much money Su Changfu would need to start the business.

At the very least, they’d need 800 yuan to stock the first batch of goods.

Hearing that number, Su Changgui gulped. Even though his salary and benefits had improved a lot, 800 yuan was still no small amount.

Su Changrong said, “That’s only because Changfu wouldn’t need to pay for renting a storefront, saving a big chunk of money.” Seeing Su Changgui’s face get uglier, he added, “If Changfu doesn’t aim too high, he could start with a smaller batch—three to four hundred yuan would be enough. Once he sells through the first batch, he can use the profit to buy more stock. If things go well, he could pay back the money by the end of the year.”

Su Changgui’s face turned green. His lips moved, but no words came out.

Seeing the situation, Grandpa Su sighed. “I can scrape together 200 yuan myself. If Changgui can pitch in 200 too, that would work.”

Su Changrong said, “If that’s settled, I’m about to go restock goods in a few days. I can take Changfu with me so he can learn the ropes. Next time, he can manage on his own.”

Hearing this, Grandpa Su turned to Su Changgui. “Changgui, it’s just two hundred yuan—can’t you even manage that?”

Su Changgui stayed silent for a while before finally gritting his teeth and nodding. “Fine, I’ll lend two hundred.”

Because of this whole situation, Su Min almost forgot about school. By the time she realized, more than five minutes had already passed, and she immediately rushed toward the school.

By the time she arrived, class had already started.

Although Su Min was an excellent student, Teacher Wu was notorious for not going easy on anyone. In fact, when top students made mistakes, he punished them even more strictly. So, Su Min obediently stood in the hallway with her book, listening to the lesson from outside.

She held the book up to cover her face, avoiding the glances of any teachers passing by.

Who told me to act like a grown-up earlier, facing Third Uncle and Grandpa and getting involved in all that mess? She had completely forgotten she needed to go to school. If I’d known, I would’ve stayed out of it. I’m still just a middle schooler; my main job is to study. Su Min kept repeating middle schooler to herself over and over in her mind.

Just then, a student walked out of the classroom, holding a book too. His manner was casual, as if he were out for a stroll rather than being punished.

Su Min stared at him in surprise. “Why are you out here?”

“No whispering outside!” Teacher Wu shouted from inside the classroom.

Su Min quickly raised her book to cover her mouth.

Xue Mian walked over to her, using his book to shield his mouth as he whispered, “Sitting there alone is boring.”

“…Is standing outside any better?”

Normally, Xue Mian never paid attention in class. Now that he was outside, it just meant he had decided not to listen at all. He leaned in and asked in a low voice, “Why are you late today? Usually you get here even earlier than me.”

“Something came up at home and I forgot the time.”

“You’re such an idiot, forgetting even something like going to school.” Xue Mian shot her a disdainful look.

Su Min continued hiding behind her book, not wanting to respond.

But Xue Mian moved closer again and said, “By the way, tell your family not to buy a house yet. Buy later.”

Hearing that, Su Min immediately lowered her book and looked at him. “Why?”

Xue Mian blinked, giving her a you know what I mean kind of look.

Su Min thought for a moment, then her eyes lit up and she grinned.

“Xue Mian, you’re awesome!”

Xue Mian pouted at her. “I came out to stand here with you and you didn’t even thank me. Now I give you this tip and you finally say I’m awesome.”

Su Min looked at him in surprise. “So you came out just to keep me company?”

“No talking outside!” came another furious roar from Teacher Wu. The two of them immediately straightened up, sneaking glances at each other from behind their books, not daring to speak again.

After receiving this tip from Xue Mian, Su Min felt much more at ease. Her family was about to open a second shop. By the time the new houses in the county were built, they should have enough money saved up to buy one.

It wouldn’t be a problem to buy a house then.

Right now, her younger uncle didn’t have city residency, so buying property was difficult for him. But since she and her parents had city residency, they could first buy a house under her parents’ name, and later transfer it to her uncle when the chance came. That way, both families would have their own houses in the city.

Of course, Su Min didn’t plan on telling her parents about this information just yet.

Xue Mian had hinted at it because he trusted her, and since the county’s new construction hadn’t even started yet, leaking the news early could cause big problems.

In any case, it wasn’t too late to talk about it after construction began. For now, the most important thing was to make sure her family didn’t rush to buy a house, and that her parents kept saving—enough to afford two houses if possible.

While Su Min was full of hope for the future, Su Changgui was overwhelmed with anxiety.

Two hundred yuan—while not a huge amount on paper—was a massive burden for someone like him, who usually only had ten yuan of pocket money at a time.

He didn’t dare ask Gao Hong for it, knowing that even if he did, he’d only get scolded.

Just thinking about how, if Gao Hong found out, he would have to face his father-in-law’s rebukes and end up arguing with Gao Hong again, made him even more agitated. In his heart, he started blaming the entire Su family.

The eldest clearly had money but refused to help out. His father, just for the sake of the second son, was now putting him in a tough spot. And the second son’s whole family wasn’t lifting a finger, yet he had to do all the worrying and hard work for them.

What kind of logic was that?