Qiao Mei placed the melon seeds on the table and patted the dust off her hands. She looked at Old Madam Zhang and said, “Why don’t you go out and ask around about the kind of relationship I have with the section head of the armed forces department? How dare you come here and cause a ruckus? When I got married, he was the one who sent my ‘three turns and one sound’ to the village. You didn’t even bother to check on this.”
These betrothal gifts were indeed sent over by Uncle Chen Hu, but she spared them the complicated details of what happened. It would not be good if they went looking for trouble at Qiao Zhuang’s house.
Old Madam Zhang, Zhang Qian and Zhang Cong looked at one another. They did not know that Qiao Mei was so capable that she even knew the section head of the armed forces department. This time, they got completely flustered as they now knew it would be useless even if they went to report her.
Old Madam Zhang had previously heard that Qiao Mei’s grandfather, Qiao Qiang, was an old war hero and had even formerly held an official position that paid a lot of money every month. Could it be that Qiao Qiang really had some form of relationship with the section head of the armed forces department?
The Zhang family was just a family of show-offs without any substance. They were only people from the working class who had no one to rely on in the city. They were just ordinary people who neither knew anyone from the military or the police force, nor had any relatives who became high-ranking officials. At this point, they were so completely panicky that they would not have dared to go to the police station to report the villagers.
Qiao Mei heaved a sigh of relief when she saw how alarmed they were. She had thought that they were unreasonable people who had some form of powerful backing, but she did not expect that it was all just for show. They were a bunch of nobodies who retreated as soon as they got scared.
“Then… then you have to at least give me some money! This matter happened at your house! You have to bear responsibility!” Old Madam Zhang started acting shamelessly when she realized that the earlier negotiations were fruitless.
“If you die on your own and then get someone to carry you into our house, you’ll even say that I caused your death! You’re making no sense!” Qiao Mei rolled her eyes and did not want to argue with Old Madam Zhang anymore.
“You! You little shrew! How dare you curse me to die! I…” Old Madam Zhang was about to say something when she remembered her reason for coming around today. She gritted her teeth and held back what she wanted to say. She had to swallow her words no matter what, otherwise she would not be able to get the money she wanted.
There was no way she could win against this young girl, so she decided to attack the easy-going Li Gui.
“Li Gui, look at Cong Cong. He’s so seriously injured. What if he really becomes disabled? You’re his mother after all. Shouldn’t you give him some money so that he can get some supplements, or can you bear to see him like this?” Old Madam Zhang pretended to cover her face and cry.
Qiao Mei could not say anything. What Old Madam Zhang said was in a way the truth, so they would have to give her some money. Li Gui looked at Qiao Mei and went into the house to take out a small metal box from her belongings. There was only five dollars in the box and she took the money out and gave it to Old Madam Zhang.
“This is all I’ve earned in the past few days…” Li Gui said as she looked at Old Madam Zhang.
When Old Madam Zhang and Zhang Qian saw the five dollars, their faces darkened. How could it be only five dollars when they heard she was making more than 30 dollars a day. It was as if she was trying to get rid of a beggar.
“That’s impossible! You bought so many things that day!” Zhang Cong said.
“Those are all my things. It has only been a few days so how would my mother have the time to grow vegetables. Do you think that vegetables can be harvested right after the seeds are planted?” Qiao Mei then continued, “Look at this courtyard. As if there’s any vegetable sprout.”
What Qiao Mei said was also true. Even so, Old Madam Zhang did not want to go back with just five dollars. After putting in so much effort for the entire day, she could not go back just like that. Old Madam Zhang grabbed the money. Since Qiao Mei said that all the vegetables belonged to her, then the money must be with her.
“By right, Cong Cong is also your elder brother. Shouldn’t you help?” Old Madam Zhang looked at Qiao Mei.
Qiao Mei looked at this shameless family and was speechless for a moment. She smiled and did not say anything. Old Madam Zhang thought that Qiao Mei had agreed with her and walked forward to continue speaking, but Auntie Dong stepped in and said, “Aiyo, then why didn’t I see you guys here when Mei Mei got married. Have you brought anything for Mei Mei all these years?”
It was a question that stumped Old Madam Zhang. In a moment of desperation, she said, “We gave everything to Old Madam Li! She was the one who said that Qiao Mei wanted money and whatever and we had given her money.”
“Oh yes, then you should go and ask her for it. There’s no use asking me, I didn’t get a single cent.” Qiao Mei smiled and nodded.