The elderly woman was stunned, her heart trembling. Is her son asking for too much?
Unexpectedly, her son-in-law was not about to be outdone and quickly followed up: "The cost for demolishing and filling the square ters, plus renovations, cos out to 100,000. Mom, you’ve worked so hard. In the future, Guozhi and I will repay you like oxen and horses! Just wait for your good life to start!"
The elderly woman frowned: "Altogether, this makes 300,000. How can I even add this up if I still want so retirent money?"
"Oh my goodness, Mom, why would you worry about retirent? We’re about to live the high life. No matter which of our two families you’re with, you’ll have soone to take good care of you, right? Dachuan, isn’t that correct?"
Zhang ihua’s eyes flickered as an idea ca to her. She had to hear sothing from her younger sister-in-law’s family now. She knew her sister-in-law wasn’t the decision-maker at ho, so the words had to co from Wu Dachuan. If an issue arose soday, they could use these words as leverage.
"Yes, yes, second sister-in-law is right. Mom, you don’t need to worry about retirent. When the ti cos, either of our families will be able to care for you!"
Wu Dachuan said this superficially, but internally he was rather dismissive. Their own mom still needed care; there was no room for the elderly woman here. Moreover, once daughters are married off, they’re considered part of soone else’s family. Although the eldest son was gone, wasn’t the second son still here? How could the daughter end up caring for the elderly woman? That would just be a ridiculous joke!
"Since you’re all saying this, when my birthday cos in a few days, and if the kid visits, I’ll bring it up. But Li Si—ever since her father passed away, her personality has completely changed. If I can’t get her to agree, don’t bla !"
The elderly woman planted a preemptive excuse. She felt no confidence in her heart. Three hundred thousand? That’s no small amount—she hadn’t seen that much money in her entire life.
But then, she quickly thought that if the kid insisted on not giving, she’d have to find a way to make things difficult for her. She couldn’t let her off easily.
"Oh my dear Mom, how could we? Don’t worry!" Zhang ihua tenderly draped her arm over the elderly woman’s shoulder, speaking sweetly. Her face involuntarily scrunched her nose slightly, as if the elderly woman carried an unpleasant odor. But Zhang ihua was in a great mood at the mont, so she tolerated it.
Room 302 had been filled with strange vibes lately. Ever since Kong Dan had clashed with Li Si last ti, the four dormmates had naturally split into two factions. Li Si and Jiang Fan stuck together, while Kong Dan and Yu Lili beca inseparable.
Kong Dan had quietly badmouthed Li Si plenty of tis, and the girls in their class were already well aware of the situation. However, opinions on the matter varied widely.
Where there were those siding with Kong Dan, there were of course people supporting Li Si. With sumr vacation around the corner, Li Si wasn’t paying much attention to it. She figured if things went badly, she could just stop living in the dorms after the sester started again.
That day, only Li Si and Jiang Fan were in the dormitory. The two were sitting at the computer, researching which shop had the best snacks on Taobao.
Suddenly, Li Si’s phone rang urgently. She picked it up casually from the desk, and surprisingly, it was a call from Zhou Rou!
Could sothing have happened? Puzzled, she answered, and Zhou Rou’s faint, crying voice ca from the other end: "Li Si, Li Si, you have to co and save !"
"What’s wrong? I can’t hear you clearly!" The signal seed poor, and all she could make out were Zhou Rou’s sobs and fragnted words. She pressed the receiver closer to her ear, straining to listen.
"Li Si, you must co and save ! I’m on the first floor of Left Bank Cafe right now. Please co and save !"
"What exactly happened, Zhou Rou? Stop crying for a mont!" Li Si was still trying to figure out the situation. If it was sothing she couldn’t handle, she’d consider asking Brother Leng for help.
"It’s... it’s my mom. She had a friend introduce to soone for a blind date! Who would’ve thought it’d be a wealthy, middle-aged fat man? Earlier, he kept grabbing my hand and said he wanted to take away! I made an excuse to use the restroom to run out. Li Si, I’m begging you! Just for the sake of being classmates for years, please help this one ti, okay? Please, I’m begging you!" Zhou Rou sobbed as she roughly explained the situation.
"Alright, I’ll be there soon!"
"Li Si, thank you so much! You’re my only friend left! I’ve already called a few other people, but no one was willing to help! Li Si, I’ve been out for a little while now. Please hurry! I’ll hang up now!"
Li Si hung up the phone, her mind churning with unease. Sothing seed off, but she couldn’t imdiately pinpoint what it was.
Jiang Fan happened to glance at her with a questioning look. While quickly changing into outdoor clothes, Li Si explained the call to her.
Jiang Fan pondered for a mont: "Li Si, I think this friend of yours sounds a bit odd! Look, if she could secretly escape to the restroom to ask for help, why couldn’t she quietly leave right away?"
Li Si knocked her own forehead—wasn’t that exactly the issue? That had been bugging her, too. "Could soone be watching her?"
Jiang Fan scoffed coldly, "I doubt it. Who goes to a blind date and ends up being guarded like that? How about I go with you to see what’s really going on?"
"Alright, as friends, if I don’t go, I won’t feel comfortable. At least by checking it out, I can put my mind at ease!" Li Si’s face hardened. If the truth turned out to be sothing else entirely, Zhou Rou wouldn’t be considered her friend anymore.
The two quickly took a cab to Left Bank Cafe, which was lavishly decorated on the outside. They entered through the revolving doors at the main entrance into the hall.
They didn’t have to search long before spotting Zhou Rou near the staircase, seated on a booth sofa with a stiff smile. Two untouched cups of coffee sat on the table in front of her, across from a slightly balding, bespectacled, portly middle-aged man.
"Zhou Rou!" Li Si stepped forward and imdiately called out her na. Zhou Rou whipped her head around sharply, her face showing an expression of relief and gratitude after surviving an ordeal. Her dainty face, now tear-streaked like a flower dampened by rain, trembled as she cried, "Li Si, you’re finally here!"
Li Si coldly glanced at the greasy-faced man sitting opposite Zhou Rou, then sat next to her, locking eyes with her. She asked somberly, "What’s really going on, Zhou Rou? Is soone actually trying to bully you?" Before she finished, she cast another glance at the man.
Zhou Rou’s lips quivered for a mont, but she didn’t manage to say anything. The man, however, scrutinized Li Si from head to toe several tis before speaking: "Miss? You must be Miss Zhou’s friend. You’re beautiful! I think there’s been so misunderstanding. Allow to introduce myself. I’m Chen Dahai, 39 years old, divorced with no children, and sowhat well-off!" He finished speaking with a smug look aid at her.
Li Si scanned him with disdain—where did such a face muster the confidence? She replied coldly, "What could have been misunderstood?"
The man’s eyes sparkled, fixing on her as he continued: "I’m just here for a blind date with Miss Zhou. Why would there be any bullying?"
"That’s not what you said earlier! You said you wanted to take away! You even forcibly grabbed my hand!" Zhou Rou stood up abruptly, her voice brimming with agitation. "Now that you see I have a friend here to help, you’re pretending, aren’t you?"
Chen Dahai’s face flashed a brief mont of bewildernt but quickly turned to arrogance mixed with disdain. "Miss Zhou! I think it’s necessary to talk about this. Before coming here, the matchmaker already told about your history. Now that we’re eting, what’s so shocking about a simple handshake? Or are you thinking I’m so penniless bumpkin who hasn’t seen the world and is here to make fun of you?"
"You..." Zhou Rou’s face flushed with embarrassnt, unable to utter another word at the mont. (To be continued. If you enjoy this story, we warmly invite you to visit Qidian to cast your recomndation votes and monthly votes. Your support is our greatest motivation. Mobile users, please go to m.qidian to read.)
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