Chapter 110: Not So Great, The Jiang Family
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A sealed envelope, quite plump, was inside. When she opened it, she found a thick wad of cash.
Jiang Fuyue remembered that last night, it seemed like her mother, Han Yunru, had entered the room and had even tucked in the bedcovers for her and her little brother.
She counted the money; it was a full 5,000 yuan.
“Yueyue, are you awake?” Just as her mother, Han Yunru, entered the room.
“Mom, did you leave this?” Jiang Fuyue asked, holding the money.
“Yeah,” Han Yunru nodded, “I know you have prize money, but you’ve spent quite a bit buying things for us, right? In a few days, you’ll be heading back to the capital, and you’ll be there for almost half a month. There’s a saying that goes, ‘poor at home, rich on the road.’ It’s always a good idea to have some cash on hand!”
“Don’t refuse, keep it for yourself.” Han Yunru cut off any further words that Jiang Fuyue might have wanted to say, “Hurry up and change. We’re going to celebrate Grandma’s birthday today.”
Jiang Fuyue only then noticed that Han Yunru had dressed up, wearing a yellow and white floral dress that complemented her fair skin and radiant complexion. Her long hair hung down, making her look gentle and elegant.
Even Jiang Da had put in some effort, wearing a dress shirt paired with casual pants, his shoes polished to a gleaming shine. When he stood there, he appeared tall, upright, and very well-put-together, despite his slightly tanned complexion and hearty smile.
“Chenxing, go check if your sister is ready.”
Little Brother Jiang obediently ran to the bedroom door and politely knocked. “Sis, are you ready?”
“I’m ready.”
The next moment, the door opened from the inside, and Jiang Fuyue emerged. She was wearing a simple T-shirt and jeans, tucking the hem into the waistband to accentuate her perfect leg shape and waistline.
Han Yunru smiled, “Our Yue Yue has grown up.”
Jiang Da also looked pleased.
The family of four set out at 10 AM, taking the subway for an hour and a half to the restaurant.
During the journey, Jiang Fuyue sifted through the memories of the original owner. She discovered that the original owner had very few memories of the so-called “grandpa” and “grandma.” The few fragments of recollection were mostly of two elderly people with unkind and biased expressions.
“Big sister,” Little Brother Jiang tugged at her arm and whispered, “Have you ever met grandma?”
“Yeah.”
“What is grandma like?”
Jiang Fuyue’s tone was very plain, “Not so great.”
Little Brother Jiang seemed to be deep in thought.
However, Han Yunru heard and couldn’t resist giving a little lesson to the siblings, “That’s your grandma. You should be polite.”
Jiang Fuyue glanced at her but didn’t say anything.
…
This year, Madam Jiang, at the age of seventy, was having a grand celebration for her birthday. It was organized by her second son, Jiang Hua, and they had booked the largest banquet hall in the Four Happiness Restaurant. Many relatives and friends were invited.
Her third son, Jiang Teng, was busy attending to the guests, while her youngest daughter, Jiang Qin, sat at the entrance with a notebook and a pen, recording the gift money.
“You see how smug Old Three is. We all know he’s the most clever one in our family, but he keeps getting close to your mom, and he hasn’t done a single formal thing. Yet, it seems like he’s earned all the respect,” Yang Jinqiu, a relative of the Jiang family, complained to her husband.
Jiang Hua flicked his cigarette butt and looked a bit dissatisfied with his wife. “You know what kind of person Old Three is. Say a little less, and remember that we’re representing the Jiang family here. Don’t let the guests hear such talk!”
Yang Jinqiu curled her lips but didn’t dare to argue with her husband. She responded, “…Fine.”
Suddenly, her gaze froze, fixed on someone not far ahead. “Honey, look! Isn’t that big brother?”
Jiang Hua followed her gaze and then greeted them, “Big Brother,” and added a touch of depth when he saw Han Yunru, “Sister-in-law.”
“Old Second, it’s been over ten years since we’ve seen each other, right?” Jiang Da’s eyes were reddening.
“Yeah, time really flies. In the blink of an eye, your kids have grown so big. Is this Yue Yue? The last time I saw her, she was only four years old, and she’s grown a bit since then.”
Han Yunru: “Yue Yue, do you remember? This is your second uncle.”
Jiang Fuyue looked at him, then quickly looked away and nonchalantly greeted, “Second Uncle.”
Han Yunru continued the introductions, “And this is Chenxing. He just graduated from elementary school, and he’ll be starting middle school in September.”
Jiang Hua looked at the two children, nodding approvingly, “Both of you have grown so well. It seems that Sister-in-law knows how to raise kids.”
At this point, Yang Jinqiu walked over and just happened to hear these words. She didn’t feel too pleased inside but maintained a smiling face without revealing her true feelings.
“Big Brother and Sister-in-law are such rare guests. After more than ten years, we’re finally reuniting as a family.”
Jiang Da grinned, his visible embarrassment.
Back in the day, when his mother disagreed with him marrying Ah Ru, she drove him out in a fit of anger. Later, after having Yueyue, they would occasionally visit each other during holidays and special occasions.
But ever since Yueyue turned four, his relationship with his mother had been completely severed. Every time Jiang Da suggested visiting, she firmly refused, sometimes even hurling insults and telling him to go as far away as possible.
Now, when it came out of Yang Jinqiu’s mouth, it had turned into his lack of filial piety.
However, Jiang Da had never been one to argue, and he could only smile and endure his siblings’ gentle reprimands.
On the other hand, Han Yunru chimed in with a smile, “If Mom had agreed to let us come back earlier, we wouldn’t have been apart for over a decade.”
Her tone was somewhat nostalgic, revealing a hint of regret.
Yang Jinqiu’s brow slightly furrowed, but in the next moment, she relaxed and said, “Don’t just stand outside, big brother and sister-in-law, come in—”
As they arrived at the door and stopped in front of a long table, Jiang Da took out the red envelope he had prepared earlier and said, “Sorry for the trouble, Little Sister.”
Jiang Qin raised her head as she heard the words.
The next moment, a smile bloomed on her face. “So, it’s Big Brother! If I remember correctly, it’s been more than ten years since we’ve seen each other, right?”
Saying this, she accepted Jiang Da’s red envelope, opened it, and started counting the money briskly.
Twenty bills, exactly two thousand yuan.
Jiang Qin held the money in her hand, gave it a little shake, and half-jokingly said, “Big Brother, it’s been so long since you came back. You’ve coincided with Mom’s seventieth birthday, and the red envelope is so light, it won’t hold down anything!”
Jiang Da was at a loss.
Light?
Normally, people give three to five hundred yuan for birthday celebrations, and six hundred is already quite generous.
This time, considering it was his biological mother’s seventieth birthday, he had prepared two thousand yuan. Before leaving, he had also asked his wife several times if it would be too little.
Han Yunru said it wouldn’t be.
So when Jiang Da handed it over, he wasn’t worried, but now he was embarrassed by Jiang Qin’s words, and he couldn’t hold his head up.
Unfortunately, Jiang Qin seemed not to care about her big brother’s face, “Second Brother gave twenty thousand, and Mom is all smiles!”
Jiang Da blushed and felt lost. He didn’t know how to handle the situation. “Well, then I…”
He wanted to say that he should add more, but he had no idea how much to add.
In the end, he looked to his wife for help.
Han Yunru smiled and said, “Second Brother’s family is wealthy, and we’re just a small family. We can’t compare to him. By the way, Little Sister, how much did you give?”
Jiang Qin’s face turned black, and her smile vanished.
Her family’s financial situation was ordinary, and her husband had a fixed salary. They had enough to get by, but they were far from wealthy. So this time, she had prepared a thousand yuan as her contribution.
Anyway, she was a married daughter, and she didn’t need to compare herself to her second brother.
Also, since she had taken on the job of recording the gift money herself, she wasn’t worried about losing face in front of others even if she gave less.
Jiang Qin had calculated things in her mind, thinking she was being clever. Little did she know that Han Yunru’s simple comment would shatter her plans.
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