Rebirth in the 50s: The Couple with the Hidden Space-Chapter 786 - 660: Guiding My Wife Behind the Scenes
Huang Cuilan hurriedly defended, "That was in the past, I no longer have..."
Zhang Guofu gently patted her, "Don’t worry. You should pay more attention to the kids when you have time. Have you seen the three girls today? How many clothes does Mai Miao have after all these years?"
"I know what you mean. This time Jiao Jiao gave fabric to the three girls, I didn’t plan on giving it to anyone else, I’m saving it for the daughter to wear to school."
Zhang Guofu smiled and praised her, "Good job!"
He looked at his wife smiling in his embrace, "In the future, you should be filial to your father-in-law, I have no objection, but it must be within our means. Face? Who doesn’t want face, but we can’t ignore the kids.
Xi Zi is growing up, followed by the two brothers Zuo and You. How much money will it take to marry and have kids? We must start preparing now. Also, don’t think just because your parents and Xiao Wu are around, there’s nothing to worry about with the kids.
After the separation, they didn’t leave much money. The money they had was used to support Xi Zi and the others. As for Xiao Wu, I don’t dare ask him to chip in. Apart from his salary and the money from the separation, given his extravagant spending, how much money could he have? The rest is all Jiao Jiao’s family money, are you comfortable asking Jiao Jiao?"
Huang Cuilan fell into deep thought.
Zhang Guofu could see an opportunity. He continued, "Last time you mentioned someone is interested in Xi Zi, even if I don’t say it, you should know in your heart. What do they see in us? It’s nothing more than the kids having Xiao Wu as an uncle and the kids being promising.
But such in-laws, I don’t like. Four kids, I never planned for them to take advantage of others. Who knows if those families will turn their backs once they gain power? You handled this matter very well!"
Huang Cuilan looked at him with a thoughtful expression.
Zhang Guofu smiled and patted her, "Relying on outsiders is ultimately futile. Xiao Wu is indeed my own brother, but I wouldn’t want him to feel inferior."
Huang Cuilan frowned, "How could that be?"
Since it needed to be said, Zhang Guofu didn’t plan to hide it from his wife. He sat up, "Do you remember the time Zhou Xue caused a fuss at our door?"
Huang Cuilan nodded. But what did that have to do with Xiao Wu feeling inferior?
Zhang Guofu knew his wife couldn’t grasp the meaning. If it weren’t for him in the middle, the eldest of the Huang Family wouldn’t know how he would die.
He squinted slightly, "Do you remember the incident where your brother made a scene under Xiao Wu’s name?" He said, seeing his wife nod with embarrassment.
Zhang Guofu chuckled, "Do you know why I’m displeased with your brother and why I don’t like you associating with your sister-in-law? Because your brother keeps using Xiao Wu and me as an excuse. I’ve reminded him about this, but he seems dismissive.
Last time, with Xiao Wu’s intervention, your brother wasn’t dismissed. But if he keeps playing with fire, don’t mention Xiao Wu, I won’t tolerate him either. Even distant relatives are dragging down Xiao Wu, what do you think Jiao Jiao will do?
The Old Zhou Family used to be her blood relatives, and even she has let them go. What do you think your brother means to her? Wouldn’t it be difficult for Xiao Wu to get by? Wouldn’t he feel inferior before his wife?"
"Does my brother also use you as a cover?" Huang Cuilan truly didn’t know about this, she looked at him with a displeased expression, and saw him nod affirmatively, lowering her head in despair.
"And your sister-in-law. It’s not about me looking down on her. She’s too concerned about her gains and losses, always putting on a show in front of you. You’re simple, easily influenced by her, it’s best not to get mixed up with her for no reason. She’s not trustworthy, and betraying you for profit isn’t impossible. You know this deep down, you just won’t admit it."
Zhang Guofu finished speaking, looking at her lost expression, he held her and patted her with compassion. He hoped his wife would have a clear awakening. There were some things he didn’t want to say outright before, hoping she would understand on her own, but he underestimated her stubbornness. The dialogues from the evening clearly showed his wife still valued her family of origin more.
Huang Cuilan thought over and over again, recalling some of the words her sister-in-law had complained about. With a mindset of ’if the pot is already broken, then just let it be broken’, she asked, "My brother truly has no other way, so he tries everything to find reasons to transfer back. The father of our children, can’t you actually help my brother transfer back?"
Facing the hopeful eyes in front of him, along with tightly clenched hands, Zhang Guofu got angry.
"Father of the children?"
Zhang Guofu really wanted to return to school overnight. He realized that after saying so much, it was like playing music to a cow. His wife still couldn’t grasp the most crucial point.
"Father of the children?"
Zhang Guofu looked at the face in front of him which was no longer young, remembering how hard it was for her to bear children for him, recalling the words of his father, he slowly exhaled a breath.
"There is a way! I can step in and find someone. Do you want to try this way?" Before he finished speaking, he saw her eyes light up, and smiled, "Huang Cuilan, what do I mean to you? What do my family mean?"
Huang Cuilan was taken aback, looking at him in confusion.
Zhang Guofu laughed mockingly. After a while, "Have you thought about it? How many people envy my opportunity for further studies? If someone catches a handle on me, what would be the result? Do you think just returning to the village is enough? Have you seen how those who live in cow sheds are doing? My parents, my children would fall from Heaven to Hell, have you considered the consequences for only concerning about your brother?"
Huang Cuilan asked in a panic, "Isn’t there Xiao Wu? He can help."
As expected, it’s about using the advantage of her own brother again!
Zhang Guofu felt a fire burning in his chest. He told himself not to get angry, there’s no arguing with a muddled person. If life were to continue like this, some things have to be clearly discussed.
"How do you think Xiao Wu should help? Even if he’s the chairman, he can’t cover the sky with one hand. Moreover, why should my brother help your family of origin? Even if he has the capability, should he exhaust himself, disregarding his own prospects, just to help your brother?"
"No, I didn’t mean that..." Huang Cuilan shook her head vehemently.
Zhang Guofu let go of her, looking straight at her, "Don’t deny it, you were influenced by your sister-in-law and your mother often complaining about my Xiao Wu not helping, and you have ideas in your heart, right?"
Huang Cuilan anxiously shook her head and hands, "No... I didn’t think like that..."
"My Xiao Wu has done enough for this family. Ask yourself honestly, wasn’t most of the money from the separation earned by him, has he ever complained? At every opportunity, he would bring us two brothers into a job, allowing us to live and work comfortably in the county, isn’t that his credit? Isn’t he always sending packages or money back from Beijing? What more should he do for you to stop targeting him? Do you think that since he could support his two brothers, he should also support your brothers?"
Even if she did, she couldn’t admit it at this point. Even though Zhang Guofu wasn’t angry at the moment, Huang Cuilan could sense his anger from his words, she quickly shook her head to deny, "No. I didn’t think that way."
Zhang Guofu exhaled, "Regardless of whether you thought like this or not, if you did, you must extinguish that thought. My Xiao Wu is loyal, but he’s not a fool. Also, my mother, if she knew about your thoughts, our marriage wouldn’t last."
Upon hearing this, Huang Cuilan gripped his arm tightly, shaking her head, "I don’t think like that. Please don’t tell mom."
Zhang Guofu sighed and patted her, "Marriages are predestined. Let’s cherish this relationship and live well. Don’t let me lose hope in you."
"Don’t be angry. I genuinely didn’t think like that."
Zhang Guofu looked at her. Although he was reluctant to pay attention, he realized that if he didn’t address it right away, given her nature of responding positively verbally but acting otherwise, they wouldn’t know when she’d be caught in trouble.
That night, Zhang Guofu patiently talked to her about many things around them. He began providing examples from the families of their superiors and coworkers, detailing which wives had accepted inappropriate gifts or said things they shouldn’t have, leading to consequences they couldn’t bear.
He hoped the children’s mother would listen. The longer they stayed in the city, the more he realized that caution was never wrong. If she didn’t get frightened and blindly fell into a trap, she wouldn’t even know how she met her demise.
