How I Tamed My Wolfish Husband Back in 80s-Chapter 187 - 189: Lackey_1

Li Qiao remained silent as Xue Sufen continued knocking on the door panel, "I know you’re at home, the sixth window from the left in the front row is right across from my room. I saw you just now when I was drawing the curtains."

Li Qiao had no choice but to open the door, "What do you want?"

Xue Sufen smiled, "I was hoping you’d go ice skating with me."

Li Qiao raised an eyebrow. They had ice skating in the seventies? The tickets must be really expensive, right? If someone is offered a gratuitous favor, they must be up to no good. "I’m not interested."

Xue Sufen attempted to tempt Li Qiao with delicious food, "How about coming to my place for some crab?"

Li Qiao was indeed tempted, but there’s no such thing as a free lunch. Accepting gifts could lead to obligations. She resolutely resisted the temptation, "Thank you, but there’s no need."

Li Qiao was impervious to persuasion, and Xue Sufen, out of tricks, muttered something under her breath and left.

Li Qiao locked the door again.

Xue Sufen had nearly reached the entrance of the alleyway when Cheng Shuqin approached her, "Sufen, what about Li Qiao?"

"She absolutely refuses to come out."

Cheng Shuqin was deeply disappointed. She had planned to drag Li Qiao to the ice rink for an appearance. Given Li Qiao’s looks, she would surely attract the attention of the hedonistic youths there. Once they started fighting over Li Qiao, Shuqin could report it to the school, and it would spell trouble for Li Qiao. Not willing to give up, she said, "Sufen, could you please ask her again?"

Xue Sufen, having been snubbed, was feeling indignant, "Do it yourself!" And with that, she walked away.

Cheng Shuqin, left with no choice, had to temporarily suppress her vengeful thoughts against Li Qiao.

Li Qiao focused on cleaning out the cabinets; it wasn’t until evening that she finished removing the paint from the top of two cabinets and gave them a thorough scrub with a brush.

Busy as she was, she grew hungry.

She went out to buy a couple of steamed buns and made do with them alongside some dried radishes her grandmother had made.

Afterward, she began mixing paints, preparing to work on the wall murals on either side of the courtyard. By the time she had outlined one wall, it was completely dark. She switched on the light and lit a hanging kerosene lamp before continuing her painting.

Before going to bed, Xue Sufen drew her curtains and spotted the light in Li Qiao’s courtyard as well as her silhouette. An idea for mischief struck her, and she deliberately said loudly, "Li Qiao, why is there an old lady floating behind you?"

Li Qiao turned around and looked in the direction of the voice. Seen through the light, Xue Sufen’s smug smile was visible. "You saw her too? The old lady mentioned that it’s quite lonely down there by herself, and since you can see her, she’ll come over to chat and keep you company soon," Li Qiao replied.

In the next room, Xue Lingqing couldn’t help but laugh. She really was amusing. If not for Sufen’s call, he wouldn’t have known that her place was so close to his.

Xue Sufen turned pale. "Don’t talk nonsense!"

"You were the one talking nonsense first."

Xue Sufen, at a loss for words and frustrated, pulled the curtains shut and stopped talking to Li Qiao.

Li Qiao waited for the mosquito-repellent incense to burn out, blew out the oil lamp, carried the basin inside, and took a cold bath before going to bed.

There was only a bamboo mat on the bed, and after spending the night on it, her neck was so sore that she couldn’t lift it.

She had wanted to return to the school to rest, but looking at the wall, where only a third of the painting was done, she decided to persevere.

Midday, someone knocked on the front door.

"Is anyone home?" The uncle peered through the crack in the door and shouted into the open main room.

"Yes." Li Qiao recognized the uncle’s voice and hurried forward to undo the latch.

The uncle carried two large, joined pieces of wood into the courtyard.

Li Qiao, not one for small talk, asked, "How much?"

"This is quality wood, one yuan each," the uncle said.

Li Qiao went over to check. After the bed at home had broken, her grandmother had a carpenter make a new one, claiming it was made of pear wood, which was exceptionally strong and didn’t show marks when pressed with a fingernail. She tested it herself; there was indeed only a slight mark, proving it to be good wood.

She paid without hesitation.

The uncle, beaming with the cash in hand, said, "If your family needs anything, just call on me. I guarantee quality and efficiency." She had paid more readily than those living in the apartments up front.

Li Qiao responded with a small acknowledgment and saw him out, then returned to the unfinished mural.

It was only in the evening that she finished her work and went back to stay at the school.

Ma Hongxiang asked, "Did you stay in the rental house last night?"

"Yeah, would you like to come by for a visit sometime?"

"It would be an honor."

"Brown-noser!" Cheng Shuqin sneered.

Ma Hongxiang hung her head in response.

Li Qiao retorted, "Not as much as you, the lackey of Xue Sufen!"

"You, you!" Cheng Shuqin used stammering to express her anger.

Li Qiao mimicked her speech, "I, I... I’m so angry, but what can I do? I can’t beat them, and I can’t outshout them." Seriously though, fighting really feels good; no wonder Qin Jin loves to talk with his fists because some people you just can’t reason with.

Cheng Shuqin was too angry to speak and thought, just you wait! Sooner or later I’ll catch you in the act.

.....

After taking two days off, the discomfort from Li Qiao’s stiff neck finally disappeared. She took her receipt to the quilt processing factory to pick up her quilts, and spent another fifty cents on delivery fees.

Touching her increasingly thin wallet.

The expenses lately really are huge.

The following week, she used her free time after classes to put covers on five quilts and neatly made the beds.

She also painted the wardrobe, sawed new boards for the doors, crafted shapes, and added color.

Then she finished painting the walls on both sides and turned over the soil in the walkways of the courtyard to plant vegetables and scatter some frost-resistant flowers.

After tidying everything up, it finally looked like a home.

That day, when Li Qiao returned to clean, she ran into the landlord who came by. He was astonished by the changes in his house and exclaimed, "Wow! You even renovated my place? It makes me want to raise the rent." Look at these floors, the wall paintings; they’re just as good as the apartments provided by work units.

"Better not even think about it, or I’ll restore everything to how it was," Li Qiao half-joked, but she wasn’t just talking.

The landlord laughed. If he went back on the written agreement, and word got out, who would dare rent his house? Moreover, finding a tenant who cared for the house wasn’t easy. "Don’t worry, I was just joking."

The doors to the rooms were closed, so it wasn’t right for him to enter. He glanced at the kitchen; the old, blackened walls were now like new.

The sink had been remade, with two new stoves added, two iron pots, and a pile of coal briquettes. The table and chairs were all present. "Your family must be wealthy back home, right?" A simple renovation of a few rooms, not to mention labor costs, must have taken at least ten bucks.

That’s not even including buying new furniture and painting.

A lot of money spent.

Li Qiao replied, "Just average." It could have been said that they were very poor before.

The landlord made his rounds and left, and Li Qiao also locked up the house and returned to school.

As she passed the reception, she intended to look for a letter from Qin Jin. She had been home for more than ten days; when would he bring his grandmother over?

She didn’t find a letter from Qin Jin but instead discovered one from Du Xinxin.

She was surprised.

Seated on a bench by the roadside, she opened the letter and read it.

The letter said she had successfully enrolled in school but had a deep conflict with her family.

Her sister had attempted wrist-cutting several times, and her parents threatened to cut ties with her unless she agreed to take the college entrance exam in place of her sister next year.

They also disapproved of her relationship with Han Ting.

The reason being that they feared she’d be distracted by the romance and neglect her studies.

The letter ended with, "Li Qiao, what do you think I should do?"

Li Qiao was furious; she had thought Li Shengcai and Dong Lamei were the worst, but here was an even more extreme pair.

What to do?

Of course, refuse.

The risk involved with taking an exam for someone else? How could she even consider it if she got caught?

As for the romance, maybe the sister was just jealous that her younger sister had a better suitor and was deliberately stirring trouble in front of their parents.

She planned to reply to Du Xinxin, advising her to take a rational view of her relationship with her parents.

As parents, if they cannot be life mentors for their children or help plan their futures, then they should at least fill their children’s growth with love and care.

Give them a sense of security as they grow.

How could they just exploit them without thought?

Isn’t that just a stumbling block on the path of life?

Better to kick it away.