The Sea Queen of 1985

Chapter 41: Chapter 41: A Merciless Roast from Dad

When Yang Zhigang heard this, his face darkened, and a cold light glinted in his eyes. ”I’ve already told the villagers that even if Xiao Rui is divorced, she is still Pingping and An’an’s mother.”

”She may not be my daughter-in-law anymore, but I’ll still treat her like family. To brazenly bully Han Xiaorui now is to show no respect for me, Yang Zhigang.”

”As for the compensation, tell Xiao Rui not to worry. She’ll get every last cent. I’ll find a way to make the Song family deliver it to Xiao Rui in person.”

Han Xiaorui, who had just reached the door, felt a wave of warmth wash over her as she heard her former father-in-law, Yang Zhigang’s, words.

’Uncle Yang is such a good man!’

’It’s just a shame that no good deed goes unpunished—he married a woman like that and ended up with a son like that!’

She’d heard that Uncle Yang had tried to educate Yang Jianming since he was a child, scolding and even hitting him, but Yang Jianming still took after Zhang Xiufang more.

’It just goes to show, they say people are born good, but sometimes, they’re just born bad.’

Han Xiaorui knocked on the door. When Wu Cuicui opened it and saw her, she quickly pulled Han Xiaorui inside. ”Second Uncle just sent over the living and medical expenses for you, Pingping, and An’an. Come in, I’ll get it for you right now.”

”Uncle Yang, you’re here too!” Han Xiaorui greeted with a smile.

When Yang Zhigang saw Han Xiaorui, he quickly rose from his chair. ”Xiao Rui, I was just telling Brother Jianguo and Sister Cuicui that I’ll deal with getting the money for the boat repairs and the peach trees. You just focus on taking care of the two kids. Don’t you worry about it.”

”Thank you, Uncle Yang,” Han Xiaorui said gratefully. It was true that Yang Zhigang had more pull than she did. She took the money Wu Cuicui handed her and put it in her pocket. ”Sister Cuicui, I came over this time because I want to hire Lingling to watch my shop in the city. It’s for selling ornamental fish by a school. The pay is one hundred yuan a month, with lodging included, but not food.”

Wu Cuicui, Yang Zhigang, and Yang Jianguo were all stunned to hear this.

”That kind of thing isn’t easy to manage. Besides, opening a shop isn’t that simple. You’re offering such high wages—can you even make a profit?” Wu Cuicui was taken aback, thinking that Han Xiaorui was always getting into something new.

Han Xiaorui smiled. ”I’ve found a way. Besides selling ornamental fish, I can also sell fish tanks. I bought the shop myself, so there’s no rent. I just need to hire someone to watch it, so it won’t cost much. If Lingling is willing to come, I promise I won’t treat her poorly.”

Wu Cuicui looked astonished. ”Xiao Rui, you... you actually bought property in the city? Don’t tell me you got scammed!”

”I had Lawyer Chen with me when I signed the contract, and I’ve already transferred the deed at the property bureau. Those two storefronts are mine now,” Han Xiaorui explained. ”I feel like money is becoming less and less valuable, while property values keep rising. Buying a shop is definitely not a losing investment.”

After hearing Han Xiaorui’s explanation, Yang Zhigang thought she had a point.

’With her own shop, she won’t have to pay rent.’

’Come to think of it, she’s right. The price of seafood has already doubled or tripled, so it’s only natural that property prices would go up too.’

’When I save up enough money, I’ll go buy a shop too.’

”Buying property is indeed a good idea. Here in Shencheng, more and more people will be flooding in, whether it’s for university or to work in the factories,” Yang Zhigang instructed. ”Xiao Rui, if you run into trouble and feel awkward about coming to me, just find Sister Cuicui and have her tell me.”

”Thank you, Uncle Yang,” Han Xiaorui said with a smile. ”That’s all I came to say. I’ll be heading back now. Goodbye, Uncle Yang. Goodbye, Brother Jianguo, Sister Cuicui.”

Wu Cuicui saw Han Xiaorui to the door. ”Take care, Xiao Rui.”

Yang Jianguo had a complicated look in his eyes. ”Second Uncle, look how capable Xiao Rui is. The moment she has money, she buys a shop and starts a business. And when she goes out fishing, Cuicui tells me she catches a lot!”

Hearing this, Yang Zhigang’s heart clenched. Did he not want a daughter-in-law like Han Xiaorui?

’But what could he do? His son, Yang Jianming, was a real piece of work!’

’And the damn kid was his own flesh and blood. He couldn’t cut ties with him or throw him away in this lifetime.’

”Let’s not talk about it. The more I say, the more I want to cry. Jianguo, that’s just the kind of person Jianming is. I doubt he’ll have a good end. When I’m old, I probably won’t be able to count on him. When I die, I’ll probably have to trouble you to bury me!”

Yang Jianguo’s heart ached for his uncle. He patted Yang Zhigang on the back. ”Second Uncle, you’re still young. Don’t say such depressing things. In the future, as long as I have food to eat, I won’t let you go hungry.”

”As for Jianming, if he won’t listen to you, he certainly won’t listen to me. I’m just a rough, uneducated man, while he’s well-read and learned. He’ll come to his senses eventually.”

Yang Zhigang gritted his teeth and cursed, ”All his education went to the dogs! He has no sense of honor or shame. A beast in human clothing, that’s what he is.”

”Our ancestors were right: it’s easier to change rivers and mountains than a person’s nature. It’s not that I, his own father, am cursing him, but I’ve seen right through him. Expecting Jianming to behave? Heh. That’ll only happen when his picture is hanging on the wall.”

Yang Jianguo was at a loss for words. He escorted his second uncle home.

Wu Cuicui went to find her sister and told her about Han Xiaorui’s plan to open an ornamental fish shop in the city. Her sister agreed to the job immediately.

The next morning, Liang Xiaoyu also brought over her fifteen-year-old, skinny maternal cousin, Xu Wenwen.

Liang Xiaoyu took her by bus to the ornamental fish shop, where Xu Wenwen immediately agreed to take the job.

Xu Wenwen was Liang Xiaoyu’s maternal cousin. She had brought her bedding with her and placed it directly in a bedroom in the small, two-story building.

Wu Lingling felt that working in the city would be great—it was an easy job, and she’d get a salary of one hundred yuan. She went home that very day to get her bedding and moved into the second floor that night.

With Wu Lingling there to keep her company, Xu Wenwen wasn’t scared anymore.

Han Xiaorui asked in a low voice, ”Sister Xiao Yu, tell me, how did you all manage to bring Wenwen here? Won’t her father and stepmother come looking for her?”

Liang Xiaoyu’s eyes widened as she cursed, ”That son of a bitch Xu Dafu wouldn’t dare come looking. Yesterday, my maternal grandparents, my uncle and aunt, my parents, and my cousins—nearly twenty of us in total—went to the Xu family’s house.”

”If they didn’t agree to let us take Wenwen, we were going to tear down their house. My maternal grandfather and the whole family built that house for Xu Dafu, and we still have the IOU to prove it.”

”They offered us money, but we didn’t want it. We just started tearing the house apart. The bricks, tiles, and furniture were all from us, so we took it all back. Xu Dafu knelt before my maternal grandmother and grandfather, agreed to let us take Wenwen, and promised he wouldn’t ask for her wages in the future.”

Hearing this, Han Xiaorui gave Liang Xiaoyu a thumbs-up. ”Sister-in-law Xiao Yu, your family is so united. When something happens, it really helps to have a big family.”

”It’s true. If it weren’t for the family planning policy, I’d want to have more kids,” Liang Xiaoyu said with a laugh. ”Otherwise, if you have too few children, you won’t even have anyone to talk things over with when trouble comes!”

”Our Wenjun is doing well in his lessons now, and he can call out all our family members’ names. Even my father-in-law is thrilled. He gave me two hundred yuan yesterday and told me to take good care of the boy.”

”Xiao Rui, with something as huge as your divorce, only your younger sister came. What about your parents? If they knew, they would definitely stand up for you, right?”

When Han Xiaorui heard this, the thought of her parents, who favored her brother and exploited their daughter, made her laugh with anger.