Chapter 243: Defense

Chapter 243: Chapter 243: Defense

Guo Xiuying snapped her mouth shut, shooting Zhang Minzhen a venomous glare.

Zhang Minzhen’s expression turned cold, and her voice became icy. "Third Sister-in-law, I’m truly sorry. I never imagined adding eggs for you would make you so angry. It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have gone to the trouble of making you noodles with eggs. A simple bowl of noodles in plain broth would have been so much easier. And most importantly, no one would have had anything to complain about."

Even a worm will turn. After two years of living comfortably under the protection of her parents and eldest brother, Zhang Minzhen was no longer the timid little woman who only knew how to endure everything with little confidence. It was just that, for her parents’ sake, she never liked to speak ill of her second brother, second sister-in-law, third brother, or third sister-in-law in front of them. She usually kept any dissatisfaction bottled up inside.

But today, seeing her third sister-in-law berate her while her second brother, second sister-in-law, and third brother all looked on with unconcealed glee, she felt utterly disheartened. It was especially disgusting that her second sister-in-law, who knew she had also prepared a steamed egg custard for Tianci in the kitchen, could still put on such a show, enjoying the drama without a care in the world.

"...Our little sister is rich now, after all. Heh, even the way she talks is different from before. But we don’t blame her. Who told us, her brother and sisters-in-law, to be so useless? When you’re useless, of course people will look down on you." Fang Juxian’s eyes darted around as she spoke, her voice laced with feigned sadness.

"Finish your noodles and then all of you can leave. We’re busy. This humble temple of ours can’t accommodate such grand gods as you." Fang Juxian’s words, however, had the opposite effect on Wen Xiu, who was no longer angry. She grabbed Zhang Minzhen, whose face was flushed and about to speak, and shook her head. "Why are you getting angry with such ignorant people? Your second sister-in-law is right. Some people just don’t deserve to be looked in the eye or treated with any respect."

"Mom, you’re right. It’s really not worth getting angry at them." Seeing her mother stand up for her was deeply comforting to Zhang Minzhen, and her anger instantly vanished. Mother and daughter shared a knowing smile. The sight of the people before them was off-putting, and neither wanted to stay in the main hall any longer, so they stood up to leave.

"Mom, Little Sister, don’t go..." ’If they leave, who are our two families going to get money from?’

Zhang Weihong panicked and shot up from his seat to follow them.

"If you step out of this room, I’m clearing the bowls and kicking people out," Wen Xiu snorted coldly over her shoulder. Her words successfully stopped Zhang Weihong in his tracks.

As if remembering something, Wen Xiu turned back, locked the door from the main hall to the central rooms, and pocketed the key. She then turned to the four of them, whose expressions had grown stiff as they watched her. "Don’t even think about dawdling," she said, her face devoid of emotion. "Out of consideration for the child being a slow eater, I’ll give you half an hour. When the time is up, I don’t care if you’re finished or not. All of you, get out."

"Mom, we’re your own sons! Do you have to be so heartless to us?" Zhang Weihong and Zhang Weimin whined, their faces long.

"So what if you’re my sons? With sons like you, I wish I didn’t have any."

Wen Xiu curled her lip in disdain. "Your sister hasn’t treated you poorly, has she? She’s been nothing but polite since you arrived. But how have you treated her, one by one? She makes you a nice meal, and she has to put up with your attitude? What does she owe any of you?"

The more she spoke, the angrier she got. She took a breath and waved her hand dismissively. "Forget it, forget it. There’s no talking to people like you. You’ve all lived half your lives and still haven’t figured anything out. Don’t bother begging me. Didn’t we already split the family property? And didn’t you choose the terms of the split yourselves? But you can rest easy now. Your father and I can get by just fine. In the future, if we get sick, big or small, we can afford it ourselves. And even if we couldn’t, I’m sure your big brother wouldn’t ask your two families for a single cent."

With that, Wen Xiu left without a backward glance.

"This is all your fault. I’m telling you, Third Sister-in-law, Tianci is just a little kid. How big do you think his stomach is? Can he really eat two eggs like a grown-up? Aren’t you afraid he’ll get a stomachache? Why couldn’t you remember we’re here to ask for a favor? You should’ve known when to hold your tongue!" As soon as Wen Xiu and Zhang Minzhen left, Fang Juxian turned on Guo Xiuying. She hadn’t expected her sister-in-law and mother-in-law to be so formidable now, using this as an excuse to just walk out. ’Sigh, if I’d known, I wouldn’t have just sat back and watched the show, hoping for some free entertainment.’

The more she thought about it, the more frustrated she became. The injustice gnawed at her, and needing an outlet, she directed all her anger at Guo Xiuying. "You didn’t even bother to get the facts straight before you flew off the handle. How did you know our little sister didn’t make two eggs for your Tianci? There was another one, a steamed custard, still in a pot in the kitchen. Look what you’ve done now! Not only have you ruined things for today, but you’ve also made it so Tianci can’t even have his steamed egg, haven’t you?"

"You came from the kitchen. If you knew, why didn’t you say so earlier?" Having a son had long since given Guo Xiuying plenty of confidence. On top of that, she had been running her own household for the past few years, with even Zhang Weimin listening to her. She was a far cry from the meek little wife she used to be. Being blamed by Fang Juxian now, she was naturally indignant. She immediately understood what had happened and, her eyes turning red, shot back at her.

"I didn’t get a chance to say anything," Fang Juxian said, looking slightly uncomfortable.

"I don’t think you ’didn’t get a chance.’ You just wanted to see me fight with Little Sister, didn’t you?" Guo Xiuying was no fool. Thinking back, it was all perfectly clear.

The two of them immediately started bickering, trading barbs back and forth.

"Both of you, stop arguing."

Seeing the argument escalating, Zhang Weihong snapped, "Didn’t Mom say she’s only giving us half an hour to eat our noodles? Hurry up and eat so we can leave. Third Sister-in-law, aren’t you going to feed Tianci? If you keep arguing, you’ll run out of time and won’t get to eat yourself."

"Second Brother, are we really leaving after we finish the noodles?" Zhang Weimin asked Zhang Weihong while chewing on a mouthful of fried egg.

"If we don’t, Mom will only get angrier." Zhang Weihong shot a sidelong glance at Fang Juxian and Guo Xiuying. "Those two just can’t keep quiet. They already made Mom and Little Sister angry, and now they’re still bickering. How do you expect Mom to calm down like this?"

’More trouble than they’re worth.’ Zhang Weimin glared viciously at his wife and second sister-in-law, then lowered his head and took a huge, angry bite of his fried egg.

"It’s fine. Today’s a bust anyway. If this doesn’t work, we’ll just come back tomorrow. We’ll keep coming back until Mom agrees to lend us the money." Unlike Zhang Weimin, who was devouring his food as if he were a starving ghost reincarnated, Zhang Weihong was in no rush. He was always well-fed. Since there was time, he narrowed his eyes and began to eat slowly, savoring each bite.