“How can this be? How can my third sister be so lucky? She’s beautiful on her own, and then she marries a man who’s impossibly handsome and so good at making money. Heaven is too unfair.”
Jiang Xiaoqing walked out of the new street in a daze. By the time she reached the police station, Zhang Liunian and the others were long gone.
“How was it? Did you see your second brother and Qingqing?” Father Jiang immediately asked when he saw his youngest daughter return.
Li Xiaoxiu and Jiang Qingshan also followed. Their second son had been out for most of the day and hadn’t returned, so the Jiang family naturally placed their hopes on Jiang Xiaoqing, who had gone out later.
Jiang Xiaoqing walked through the family door with a complex expression. She poured herself a glass of water and said, “I didn’t see my second brother, but I saw my third sister and third brother-in-law, and I also learned about their real situation.”
“What real situation?” Father Jiang had been about to curse his son for not coming back, but his attention was captured by his daughter’s last sentence.
“Xiaoqing, hurry up and tell us, what’s their real situation? Are they country bumpkins, are they poor? Just like Su Jie said?” Li Xiaoxiu was desperate to verify Su Jie’s words at this moment.
It was as if only by confirming that Zhang Liunian and his wife were indeed incapable people could she feel at ease and not worry about offending them.
But the reality was completely contrary to her thoughts.
“Wrong, all wrong. Su Jie lied to all of us. None of what she said is true.” Thinking of what she had just seen and heard, Jiang Xiaoqing understood clearly. Su Jie and Zhang Liunian were sworn enemies, so how could anything she said be true?
“You mean that scoundrel Su Jie played us? Your third sister and her husband are not ordinary villagers, and your third brother-in-law isn’t as incompetent as she said?” Li Xiaoxiu, though she had some inkling, felt her heart sink uncontrollably upon hearing her youngest daughter say the same.
“Not only are they capable, but they are extremely capable. Dad, Mom, didn’t you mention before that Jiangcheng suddenly had a Zhang Family Pickles, and that their pickles were delicious but a bit expensive? That business was started by my third brother-in-law.
I specifically went to inquire just now. I heard from his neighbors that their pickles sell several trucks a day, amounting to hundreds of thousands of bottles. They are selling goods from morning till night, earning over a hundred thousand yuan a day. Do you think my third sister and her husband are ordinary villagers?”
Boom!
As soon as Jiang Xiaoqing said this, the entire Jiang family was stunned. Their mouths gaped, their eyes wide open, unable to believe that Zhang Liunian could earn over a hundred thousand yuan in a single day.
This was over a hundred thousand, not ten thousand yuan. My goodness, this was a number they dared not imagine.
It was also the amount that the entire Jiang family couldn’t earn in a lifetime working in a factory, yet Zhang Liunian could do it in a day.
This country fellow was too amazing, practically not human.
“Hoo, little sister, are you telling the truth?” The first to speak was Su Hong, Jiang Qingshan’s wife. She gasped for breath, her face flushed with excitement, looking as if she was about to get rich.
“What’s there to doubt? If you don’t believe me, you can go to New Street No. 1. Zhang Liunian has already bought that land and is rebuilding it.” Jiang Xiaoqing rolled her eyes, her tone casual.
Su Hong didn’t care about her attitude. At this moment, her mind was filled with thoughts of getting rich. With such a profitable son-in-law, their family wouldn’t have to worry about not making money, not buying a house, or not being able to divide the family. It was impossible.
But Su Hong immediately thought of their behavior towards her sister-in-law today, and how much Zhang Liunian cared for Jiang Qingqing. She couldn’t help but regret it, wishing they hadn’t offended them.
“It’s all that Su Jie’s fault for harming us. If she had told the truth, our old Jiang family wouldn’t be in such a passive position now.” Su Hong was so angry that she blurted out her blame towards Su Jie.
After speaking, she covered her mouth, belatedly realizing that Su Jie was her sister.
“Eldest daughter-in-law, how do you sisters get along? It’s one thing for her not to tell the truth when she came to our house, but why did she hide it from you, her sister?” Li Xiaoxiu, after hearing her eldest daughter-in-law’s words, seemed to have found a target for her resentment and blamed Su Hong.
“Exactly, Xiao Hong, how could you not clarify things, causing us to offend our third sister and third brother-in-law? Now we’re stuck between a rock and a hard place, and we can’t even mend our relationship with them.” Following Li Xiaoxiu, Jiang Qingshan also resented his wife for not handling things properly, for not knowing such an important matter.
Su Hong looked up at her husband in disbelief, and seeing the obvious blame on his face, her heart ached again. “Is this my fault? Qingqing and Su Jie are good sisters, yet she didn’t tell you the truth. What am I, her distant cousin, worth?”
“……”
The entire Jiang family was stunned. Although what she said was true, who told her she had a relationship with Su Jie?
“Alright, since we’ve confirmed they’re doing well, and they’ve even bought land and built houses in the Jiang family, they’ll definitely come back in the future. We should treat them as family and hope to mend our relationship with them.” Father Jiang thought more deeply. He knew that their entire family had messed things up this time, but they were Jiang Qingqing’s only relatives. Even if the bone was broken, it was still connected to the flesh, and they couldn’t truly cut off contact.
“What if they don’t come? Or what if they come but don’t visit us? I think we should take the initiative.” Jiang Xiaoqing didn’t want to wait passively. She wanted to try and see if she could snatch this perfect man from Jiang Qingqing.
“Xiaoqing, you mean?”
“……”
At the same time, Zhang Liunian and Jiang Qingqing were already on their way back to Nancheng.
In the car, Jiang Qingqing leaned into Zhang Liunian’s embrace, worriedly saying, “Liunian, Su Jie might not be locked up for long.”
There were only the two of them involved in that incident, with no witnesses or evidence. Su Jie would definitely be released due to insufficient evidence.
Zhang Liunian gently patted her shoulder and said softly, “I know.”
He naturally knew that Su Jie wouldn’t be locked up for long. He hadn’t intended for her to stay in there for an extended period. Her release was the beginning of the true revenge.
“I’ve already made arrangements. When she comes out, her suffering will truly begin. By then, she’ll know that she has no place in Jiangcheng or Nancheng.” Before leaving, Zhang Liunian had instructed Huang Da on several matters, one of which concerned Su Jie. He had asked Huang Da to spread the news about Su Jie throughout Jiangcheng so that everyone would know. When she walked out of the police station, not only would she not be able to marry, but even her daily life would be subject to gossip.
At that time, without him having to lift a finger, he could force Su Jie to her death.
“What did you do?” Jiang Qingqing truly didn’t know what he had done and couldn’t help but look up curiously.
Zhang Liunian lowered his head and met her gaze. “I just had someone let everyone in Jiangcheng know about what she did to you. We don’t need to do anything else; she will receive her punishment from this world.”
Regardless of the era, women who seduced their friends’ husbands were objects of scorn. Especially in the eighties, a time with strict moral standards.
Jiang Qingqing chuckled, thinking of something. “Then I can rest assured.”
She, Jiang Qingqing, was not someone to be bullied. Su Jie had treated her this way, nearly causing her death, making her a public enemy. It couldn’t be better.