I became the Counterpart of the Winner in a Period Novel-Chapter 220 - 217: Xiao Ran’s Obsession with Braised Pork
In Xu Ya’s eyes, Zhu Hongwen was on Jiang Kangsheng’s side, so nothing he said could be trusted.
Moreover, she had just been stung by Jiang Mingyue’s attitude, and her emotions were slightly out of control.
As soon as Zhu Hongwen finished speaking, Xu Ya sharply refuted.
"Embarrassing? It was Jiang Kangsheng who disregarded marital affection. I followed him for over twenty years, and this is what I get in return?"
Zhu Hongwen was also quite helpless, wondering why this woman couldn’t grasp the main point?
"Xu Ya, since you dared to do such a thing back then, you should have expected the consequences of being exposed one day."
Indeed, Xu Ya’s emotions were out of control.
Crying and laughing like a madwoman.
"Yes, I made a mistake, but I originally..." As she reached the crucial part of her sentence, Xu Ya suddenly stopped, barely closing her mouth.
"Zhenzhu, let’s go." She directly grabbed Jiang Zhenzhu and left.
This left Zhu Hongwen, who hadn’t even finished playing his part, with everyone gone.
Quite unfinished!
However, he remembered Xu Ya’s half-spoken words and, after Jiang Kangsheng returned, recounted the situation and repeated what Xu Ya had said.
"Old Jiang, what do you think Xu Ya meant by that?"
Jiang Kangsheng pondered but couldn’t figure it out.
"Forget it, as long as we can get divorced, I can’t be bothered to worry about it. By the way, how is Teacher Xu doing?"
Teacher Xu, naturally referring to Jiang Kangsheng’s father-in-law.
Since that day he fainted, his health hadn’t been good.
And he hadn’t gone to see him for now; he just sent gifts over, fearing that his appearance might upset the teacher again.
"Alas! When people get old, their bodies aren’t what they used to be. The doctor said a lot, but the most severe issue is still osteoporosis. That little treasure of the Xu family also came back and is said to be looking into calcium tablets for Teacher Xu."
Jiang Kangsheng responded, "Actually, this problem has existed for years. Back then, Shuangyi got two kinds of calcium tablets from his teacher, but there was no improvement at all. Later, the son-in-law from Hai City brought some back for him, but the old man took it a few times and threw it aside, saying it was useless and tasted bad."
Zhu Hongwen: "What a pity. Maybe it was effective. But now that his favorite grandson found something, even if it tastes bad, the old man will surely take it, right?"
"The key is effectiveness; we’ll see if it works first."
The two seasoned men chatted back and forth, and the topic could carry into the night.
Meanwhile, Xu Ya and her daughter had left, and their faces showed clear signs of discontent. However, Jiang Zhenzhu was skilled at soothing others and knew how to control her temper.
Like now.
"Mom, calm down. Don’t blame Ming Yue. Maybe the countryside life was too tough for her. The more she thought about it, the more upset she became, and that’s why she treated you that way. She won’t deny you. After all, you raised her for eighteen years, mom. At that time, it was just words spoken in anger."
See, how gentle and thoughtfulness her biological daughter was, even though she was the one being scolded most harshly all along. Jiang Mingyue seemed to target her specifically. Changing her surname? Wasn’t that insinuating that Zhenzhu was an illegitimate daughter?
Also, stealing money, spreading rumors that her adoptive mother treated her poorly—all these accusations pointed at Jiang Zhenzhu, calling her ungrateful and morally bankrupt. Yet, despite her grief, she never expressed it, always caring for others.
Xu Ya regretted it; she shouldn’t have swapped Zhenzhu back then. Such a considerate daughter should’ve been kept by her side!
The regret made Xu Ya increasingly dislike the foster daughter she had raised, even breeding malicious thoughts at that moment.
"Zhenzhu, my daughter, you are just too kind-hearted. I still don’t know what kind of person Jiang Mingyue is? Selfish and willful, if she doesn’t go back to the countryside, where else should she go? I only regret raising her; if only I knew back then..."
"Mom, saying that now is no use, especially since you’re angry. After you calm down tomorrow, everything will be fine. It’s just that Ming Yue has changed."
"I’m married already, and I really want to see Ming Yue find a suitable husband and live well."
This sentence somehow agitated Xu Ya.
Her face twisted with some malevolence.
"Whether she recognizes me or not, I raised her for eighteen years. I am her mother, and I will decide her marriage. Zhenzhu, the Wan Chao you mentioned before, is he still without a wife?"
******
Today is the last day of July. The originally planned school construction was temporarily halted due to waiting for red bricks. They had taken too many orders before, but fortunately, the later orders were postponed, allowing them in August to have time to make bricks for the school construction.
And other building materials are just pre-ordered, with payments made upon receipt. As a result, the brick factory’s total income for this month, combined with the 200-yuan profit from the lime kiln after deducting costs, led the village committee to agree on using part of the money to distribute dividends to everyone. But it wouldn’t be called "dividends"; instead, it would be "living allowances" to keep villagers happy and hopeful, believing in the village committee, thereby supporting a series of future constructions.
However, this time the distribution isn’t household-based. It was Jiang Mingyue’s previous suggestion to her elder brother to divide it among individuals, with appointed representatives picking up the money.
In cases like the discordant second branch of the Jiang family, Jiang Beishan was the first to step up and claim her share, which the village committee approved.
Thus the distribution caused another round of conflict among the four members of the second branch, with Old Mrs. Jiang wanting to claim it herself, and Jiang Beishan also wanting her share. Wu Cuilan and her husband immediately started an uproar, not daring to confront the old lady, while Wu Cuilan twisted her daughter’s ear, barely stopped by villagers and the patrol team that separated them forcefully.
"Beishan ah! Your two brothers just left, and you want to estrange yourself from us? Your dad and I currently have only you as our child; whatever we save is for you, right? Tell me, who’s been egging you on?" Saying this, she glanced meaningfully at Shen Fanghua, the implication unmistakable.
The third household hadn’t even moved when Aunt Jiao spoke up explosively.
"Wu Cuilan, what do you mean by that? Explain yourself! Don’t fiddle with these ambiguous gestures. What? Think you can squeeze the third house like a soft persimmon? Still hoping to worm your family into the village committee? Holding a grudge? But look at the kind of people your family is; are you even worthy?"
Wu Cuilan never expected her usual successful trickery to face public confrontation, causing her eyes to flash as she immediately started to cry.
"Oh! My poor Beihua, my poor Beiyang. Pity your ill fate, gone so young, leaving your useless mother to be bullied and looked down upon. Oh heavens! Pity me..."
Wu Cuilan’s sudden crying truly stumped Aunt Jiao and rendered the other villagers speechless.
After all, Wu Cuilan had just lost two sons, a despair more intense than sacrificing herself. Their families were intact, and they considered themselves fortunate, not wanting to sound unsympathetic. Suddenly, they felt Wu Cuilan’s insanity was somewhat understandable; she was just a pitiable soul.
Successfully gaining the villagers’ sympathy shows their kind-heartedness, a good thing. However, principles are inviolable, and Wu Cuilan’s tears were futile. Jiang Beishan is an adult, and if Wu Cuilan intends to take all four yuan, she must negotiate with her daughter.
An hour later, several piles of cash were on the third household’s table: one for the eldest brother, one for the second brother, Mrs. Jiang’s twenty-yuan allowance, and Xiao Ran’s fifteen. Altogether, it totaled over a hundred yuan, and Jiang Mingyue had it in front of her.
Jiang Mingyue touched her chin, promptly stuffing it into her pocket.
The whole family was satisfied, and Xiao Ran eagerly spoke to Jiang Mingyue.
"Sister, now that we have money, can we have braised pork at home?"
