Chapter 452: Chapter 452 Knowing
Yang Peijun may have left, but Xiao Tong was still around, and Yang PeiMin continued the arrangement, with Xiao Tong still coming to report on the affairs of the large courtyard next door.
The Lu family didn’t have the energy to stop by either.
Chen Guizhi breathed a big sigh of relief.
Yang PeiMin didn’t need to expend much energy watching over things here, as Shen Yiguang had become busy these days, claiming there were special trainings.
Lu Haijun finally got leave to come over.
However, he couldn’t break away from his mother and sister just yet, as they were holding onto him, pouring out their grievances.
In recent days, Qu Fang had done a lot, and Lu Hailing had clamped her teeth shut and wouldn’t budge, but her mother had easily accepted the favors from others after initially resisting, which only made Qu Fang, who had invested money, even more reluctant to let go, pestering her more and more intensely.
Several times, he had even brazenly entered the room and tidied up the Lu family’s place.
Lu Hailing woke up in bed only to see him come in, and she screamed in fright, alerting the neighbors, who all rushed into her house to watch. The situation became even more difficult for her to clear up. Gradually, people began calling her pretentious, ungrateful, and some stubborn neighbors would roll their eyes and ignore her when they saw her, making life in the courtyard difficult for the mother and daughter. Though each household kept to themselves, there were still communal resources like the water tap and the latrine; if a few neighbors banded against you, it could really make life difficult.
Now seeing the pillar of the family return, Lu Hailing felt as desperate as if she had grabbed a lifeline, crying and recounting her grievances from these past days.
When Lu Haijun heard about it, he was also outraged, ready to go and give Qu Fang a lesson, but Mrs. Lu held him back. Their own family was now caught in a dilemma within the courtyard, and they didn’t have the confidence to confront the issue head-on, especially having received favors from others.
Learning that his mother had accepted things from someone else gave Lu Haijun a headache.
But Lu Hailing didn’t care. She wasn’t about to push Lu Haijun out to confront the issue; she just cried, the kind of deep, miserable crying, "I know I was wrong, I won’t dare to pick things up randomly again. Who would have thought I’d run into such trouble? It was originally Yingzi’s, that Qu family is shameless. No girl likes them. They just clung to me and wouldn’t let go. Yingzi didn’t like him either. If I were to marry into that family, wouldn’t I be jumping into a fire pit?"
Lu Haijun got her up and asked her to explain properly, "Didn’t you explain at the time?"
"I did explain, and even asked Yingzi to help me clarify, but I was afraid it would drag her into it, she didn’t agree... Now I don’t even know what to do. That family just saw that I have a job and latched onto me. Can you believe how desperate they are for money? These past days, my mother and I have been harassed by him, unable to sleep or eat well amidst the scornful glances from the neighbors. Look how much thinner mother has become. Don’t blame her for taking something from him.
You don’t know how shameless he was, thrusting stuff into our home and then running off before mother could catch him. I also think it’s wrong to take his things. Brother, I’ve kept track of everything he’s given us; we can return it all, just don’t make me have anything to do with him."
Lu Haijun nodded, "Alright, list out what we’ve received, and we’ll return it. Holding onto these things only muddies the waters even more."
"The people in the courtyard look at our family like we’re something else. You don’t know because you’re not here, but as outsiders, my mother and I just can’t compare to people who have lived here since the beginning. We’re strangers in a strange land, hardly knowing anyone, not knowing whom to ask for help. Maybe Qu Fang took advantage of our lack of support to plot against us." Lu Hailing sat on the bed, covering her face with a handkerchief, still sobbing.
Her dormitory room was small, a single, containing both her bed and her dining area, with a cooking spot by the door—it wasn’t even ten square meters. A small table was accompanied by two chairs. Lu Haijun sat on one of the chairs near the table, facing his mother and sister.
Seeing his sister in such a state was heart-wrenching. He couldn’t help saying, "Then why didn’t you ask Sister Yixiang for help? There are so many of them at home, and her brother often comes over."
Lu Hailing only cried harder, not saying a word.
Mrs. Lu sighed, "We did ask for help. Ah... I don’t even know how to put it. Sister-in-law Yixiang’s sister was the one Qu Fang was interested in before, and the movie ticket was intended for Yingzi. You know the Yang family seems to be doing well; they probably don’t care for Qu Fang’s family’s issues, so they threw away the movie ticket. Your sister didn’t know, she just happened to pick it up. The Yang family is just avoiding getting entangled with Qu Fang again... We didn’t want her to help us admit to a relationship with Qu Fang, just to explain things a bit, but they still refused. Your sister even offered to kneel to beg, but they wouldn’t budge... There was no choice, and later we also went to ask Yixiang for help, to persuade her, or maybe get her brother or the Yang family boy to talk to Qu Fang. Maybe then he wouldn’t be so brazen, it’s just because they think our family has no men to stand up for us..."
Lu Hailing’s cries grew hoarse, her voice choked with sobs, "Brother, don’t blame Sister Yixiang. After all, you two aren’t married yet. How could she intervene in our family’s affairs?"
Lu Haijun frowned upon hearing this.
He listened as his mother went on, "My child, it’s our family that’s powerless, not comparable to the Shen family, so it’s no wonder others look down on us. Yixiang is a good person, it’s just that... Ah, whatever she does seems justified. I was thinking, the year’s end is approaching, you’ll have your leave to visit family, so why not marry Yixiang while you’re at it, to give me and your father some peace of mind. With the new year coming, and you being gone half the month, I’ve asked Yixiang to come over and discuss it. She seems quite agreeable, just the matter of a dowry is tough; you know our family’s situation. Your father and I toiled our lives away in the fields with no success, we can’t help you with anything..."
Lu Haijun was now furrowing his brows tightly, interrupting his mother, "Mother, you don’t need to worry about the dowry. You and father are getting on in years; there’s no need for you to strain yourselves. I’ll talk to Yixiang about it. Our family situation is what it is; there’s no need to get worked up over superficial things."
"That’s true," his mother said, "but, but I’m afraid the Shen family won’t agree. Yixiang is accomplished, she has her own job, and I’ve heard that her salary is even higher than yours. In such cases, her pride might be a bit stronger; I’m really afraid she’ll fight over this." Mrs. Lu’s voice trailed off with a long sigh, her brow deeply furrowed with worry.
Unable to sit still any longer, Lu Haijun declared, "I’ll go find her and talk."
Lu Hailing called after him from behind, "What about my situation?"
"I’ll deal with it when I come back."