lcionline Chapter 382 - 139: Hedonism is Not Good (Part 2)
Chapter 382 - 139: Hedonism is Not Good (Part 2)
Jie Jianjun remained silent. He thought about how his mother had treated his former sister-in-law, and he couldn’t find a single word to defend her.
’Can Zhang Hongyan even compare to Qiao Yanqiu? Zhang Hongyan’s family couldn’t measure up to the Jie Family, but Qiao Yanqiu’s family is the Qiao Family—the Qiao Family! Mother dared to bully Zhang Hongyan as she pleased, but would she dare to lay a hand on Qiao Yanqiu?’
’If Mother and Qiao Yanqiu lived together, there would be absolutely no mother-in-law-daughter-in-law conflict. Jing Si is just bringing up Zhang Hongyan as an excuse. He simply doesn’t want to live with the elders and wants to shirk his filial duty.’
"Our eldest aunt married our eldest uncle, so being filial to Granny is her obligation," Jie Anlin said.
"Has my mother not been filial? She pays for all of Granny and Grandpa’s expenses, including their medicine when they’re sick." A sharp glint flashed in Jie Jingchen’s eyes. His low, cold voice was enough to send a chill down one’s spine.
"What good is giving money? My mom arranges Granny and Grandpa’s three meals a day, she washes their clothes, and she’s the one who tends to them when they’re sick and need medicine. Besides giving money, has your mother ever once been filial at their bedside?" Jie Anlin retorted, refusing to back down.
Jie Jingchen’s amber eyes narrowed dangerously. His gaze turned dark and cold as he said, "You think giving money is useless, but I find it quite useful. How about this? Our two families can trade places."
"Trade? How?" Jie Anlin asked in confusion. ’Would Eldest Uncle’s family move back to the factory complex, and our family move here? The house at the factory only has a few rooms. Eldest Uncle’s family is so big—would there even be enough space?’
"Your family will cover the expenses, and you’ll move out of my father’s house. Our family will arrange for people to take care of Grandpa and Granny," Jie Jingchen said.
Jie Anlin was stunned. ’How is the trade Jie Jingchen is talking about so different from the one I had in mind?’
’Our family has to pay and move out, but Eldest Uncle’s family doesn’t have to move back to live with Grandpa and Granny. Instead, they’ll just hire people to take care of them? We’d be getting a raw deal!’
"No way. Our family takes care of them in person, so your family has to as well," Jie Anlin refused.
"Your family has no money, so you’re forced to do it yourselves. Our family has money, so we don’t have to," Jie Jingchen stated with brazen arrogance.
Hearing Jie Jingchen’s words, Qin Mei couldn’t help but give him a thumbs-up. She wanted to cheer for him out loud. ’That mindset, that level of awareness... Why endure hardship when you don’t have to? It’s completely unnecessary.’
Jie Anlin was dealt a heavy blow. Lack of money was a fatal flaw. In truth, his family’s financial situation wasn’t bad, but compared to his eldest uncle’s family, it was nothing. When it came down to it, it was all because Eldest Uncle had married Qiao Yanqiu, and the Qiao Family was rich. Jie Anlin shot a resentful look at his own father.
His gaze seemed to accuse his father: ’Why didn’t you marry a wife as rich as Qiao Yanqiu?’
He thought about how Qiao Yanqiu treated his eldest uncle and the children from his first wife, and he was consumed with envy. He almost wished his parents would divorce so his father could marry a rich and, preferably, powerful stepmother. Then, his father could carry the whole family to new heights along with him.
Jie Anlin only saw how well Qiao Yanqiu treated Jie Jingwei and the others; he failed to see that this treatment had been bought with Zhang Hongyan’s life.
"Jing Si, you’re a veteran. How can you have such a hedonistic mindset?" Jie Jianjun finally spoke up. ’If I don’t say something now, this foolish son of mine is going to drag me into a deep hole.’
’Not only would we have to move out of my older brother’s house, but we’d also have to foot the bill. I’m not sure exactly how much money my sister-in-law has given Mom and Dad over the past twenty-odd years, but I’m keenly aware of how much they’ve subsidized us. Especially An Lin. Mom and Dad are so good to him; the allowance they give him each month is more than my entire monthly salary. My sister-in-law must have given them a fortune.’
’My older brother is so lucky, marrying an heiress for his second wife. I don’t have a wife who’s rolling in dough. Even if I gave my entire monthly salary to Mom and Dad, they’d probably still think it’s not enough.’
Jie Jingchen stared at Jie Jianjun, his voice cold, low, and powerful. "Second Uncle, my maternal grandparents felt bad that my mom was working so hard and didn’t have time to care for her in-laws. So, they arranged for a few maids to come from Xiangjiang to help her. Is there a problem with that?"
Jie Jianjun was left speechless. He knew exactly what kind of place Xiangjiang was. ’Back then, the head of the Qiao Family—Qiao Yanqiu’s grandfather—had the foresight to move the entire family to Xiangjiang, allowing them to escape disaster. Otherwise, the Qiao Family would have been wiped out long ago.’
"I kicked Zhang Hongying out, and your Grandpa and I have been living here for a few days. So how come I haven’t seen your mother hire anyone to take care of us?" Granny demanded, seizing the opportunity.
"Mom, that reminds me, why did you and Dad kick Zhang Hongying out?" Jie Jianjun asked curiously.