Sun Zhuzi also went over and sat on the edge of the *kang* bed, holding his mother’s hand and asking her one question after another.
Speaking of Sun Zhuzi, he certainly had affection for his mother, but it couldn’t compare to what he felt for his wife. Still, seeing his mother made him genuinely happy, and his questions were sincere.
Although Grandma Sun was dissatisfied with this son, he was still her son.
She had given birth to two sons and a daughter, but the other two children didn’t survive to adulthood. One son died at three, and her daughter passed away at six, leaving only this one son. She had hoped he would be the man of the house, but he turned out to be utterly spineless. He had even abandoned her to go to the city.
But no matter how angry she was, he was still her son. Seeing him made Grandma Sun happy deep down.
Gu’er stood silently, watching the three of them talk.
She could see that both Sun Zhuzi and Grandma Sun were being genuine, but a cold glint flashed in Cao Qiu’s eyes from ti to ti.
It seed Cao Qiu and Grandma Sun were truly at odds with each other.
"Oh, Gu’er, you’re still here? We’re having a family conversation. Isn’t it a bit inappropriate for you to be standing here?"
Annoyed by their endless chatter, Cao Qiu went after Gu’er again.
"What are you talking about? Gu’er has been here the whole ti. What gives you the right to tell her to leave! Gu’er, co here. Get on the *kang* bed. Co to Grandma. Let’s see who dares make you leave."
Grandma Sun was not pleased. She had already guessed why this daughter-in-law of hers had returned. Being nasty to Gu’er the mont she walked in was the sa as being nasty to her, wasn’t it? After spending this ti together, she had grown genuinely fond of Gu’er. Even if things didn’t work out between Gu’er and her grandson in the end, she would still consider Gu’er her own granddaughter, because she could see that Gu’er genuinely cared for her. When it ca to taking care of her, she was more thoughtful than any real granddaughter or even a daughter could be.
Gu’er looked at Cao Qiu, who was glaring at her, her eyes holding a veiled warning.
Gu’er thought for a mont. ’Compared to Cao Qiu, I’d rather listen to Grandma Sun. There’s no need to hurt Grandma’s feelings just to get on Cao Qiu’s good side.’ So, without another word, Gu’er walked forward, slipped off her shoes, and climbed onto the *kang* bed. She picked up her needle and thread, put on her thimble, and resud her sewing.
Grandma Sun nodded in satisfaction.
Cao Qiu, on the other hand, was so angry she was panting. ’This damn old hag is doing this just to spite .’
"Mom, this isn’t right, is it? No matter how you look at it, Gu’er is a respectable, unmarried young woman. What does it look like for her to be living in our house under such improper circumstances? If word gets out, it won’t affect our Jiaming much, but how is Gu’er supposed to face the world? We can’t be the ones to ruin her."
Cao Qiu’s words sounded like they were for Gu’er’s own good, but in reality, she was insulting her.
"What’s improper about it? What have you seen that’s so improper? Gu’er is staying in the old house, and Jiaming isn’t ho. She’s taking care of on Jiaming’s behalf. Word gets out? Let it! It’s all open and aboveboard. So, what you really want is for to have no one around, for to die all alone in this house. That’s what would make you happy, isn’t it?"
Grandma Sun glared. If her daughter-in-law was going to be like this, why should she bother with pleasantries?
"Mom, that’s not what I ant. We’re back now, aren’t we? So she doesn’t need to be here anymore."
Cao Qiu was completely dissatisfied, but the woman was her mother-in-law, after all. She still had to keep up appearances.
"Just because you’re back, Gu’er has to leave? What kind of logic is that! Gu’er is here to take care of , so I’m having her stay. With her looking after , I can rest easy."
Grandma Sun had no intention of listening to Cao Qiu.
Sun Zhuzi didn’t say a word. He was powerless to speak in front of his mother and his wife.
"Mom, Gu’er isn’t family. We can’t treat her like this. If her parents saw us ordering her around, they would be heartbroken. Just let her go back."
When Cao Qiu said to let Gu’er "go back," she didn’t specify where. In her heart, she ant back to the Zhou family. First, she would drive Gu’er out of this room. Next, she would drive her out of the Sun family’s old house. She absolutely could not let her son marry Gu’er; she had already found a prospective daughter-in-law for him. The reason she hadn’t co back recently was that she was busy scouting prospects for Sun Jiaming. Since Jiaming wasn’t happy with Zhou i, she would just find soone better.
She had her eye on one girl who worked at a counter in the departnt store. She was fresh-faced and pretty, no worse than Gu’er. Her features might not have been as stunning as Gu’er’s, but the girl was fair-skinned and quite attractive.
She was from the city, and her parents were decent, honest people. She had an older brother and a younger sister. Her family was of average ans, but the girl was sensible and had a good temper. She was always smiling and spoke pleasantly.
Cao Qiu was extrely satisfied. Her son definitely wouldn’t find any fault with her looks, and her background was fine. The girl had a good temper, so once she married into the family, Cao Qiu would be the one in charge; the girl wouldn’t dare disobey her mother-in-law. Best of all, it was a way to get her son a life in the city. Cao Qiu was a million percent on board.
She had secretly spoken to the girl’s family about it, and they were also interested. She had arranged for Sun Jiaming to et the girl’s parents once, and they had seed quite taken with him.
They went back and told their daughter, and the girl had only one condition: the wedding had to be in the city, and Sun Jiaming had to find a job there.
Once the other family sent word back, Cao Qiu felt confident, which was why she had returned with Sun Zhuzi.
She had made up her mind. She would get Sun Jiaming into the city, no matter what it took.
’As for my mother-in-law, I’ll just ask Aunt Zhao to look in on her. If Aunt Zhao can handle it, she can take care of the old woman. If she can’t... well, the sooner the old hag dies, the better. It would save everyone a lot of trouble.’
So she had co back this ti to lay her cards on the table. She was resolute.
"Gu’er is not going back. She’s not going anywhere. She’s staying right here. If you can’t stand it, then *you* can leave."
But Grandma Sun didn’t pull any punches.
"Mom, this is *my* ho. Who’s going to make leave?"
Cao Qiu could no longer maintain her smile. Her words beca blunt.
"I’m not dead yet! You don’t call the shots in this family. Besides, this house isn’t yours, it’s Jiaming’s. Jiaming and I live here. I’ll let whoever I want stay here, and you have no right to interfere. If you don’t like it, you can go back to your city. Neither Jiaming nor I need you to manage our lives!"
Grandma Sun didn’t show any weakness either.
Gu’er listened silently. Honestly, she didn’t want to get involved; this was a private matter for the Sun Family, after all. The thought of turning and leaving crossed her mind, but she had promised Sun Jiaming she would take care of Grandma Sun. She worried that if she left now, the old woman would be at a disadvantage. Grandma Sun was elderly, and all this anger could make her sick. It was better if soone was around. ’I’ll just wait for Sun Jiaming to return before I leave,’ she decided.
"This house is Jiaming’s, and Jiaming is my son, so what I say goes! And that old house over there is Zhuzi’s. On what grounds should she get to live there? Who the hell does she think she is? We’re back now, so get her out! My family’s property being lived in by an outsider... she should think about who she is. Don’t you dare dirty my place."
At this point, Cao Qiu dropped all pretenses, deciding to tear off the mask entirely. She had no desire to ever see this old hag again. ’The next ti we et, it’ll be at her funeral.’
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