Li Guangyuan smiled, “That serious?” But in his heart, he felt differently.
Lin Jiayi didn’t explain further. Even if Qin Yang didn’t find another woman outside and bring a son back for her to raise, what was the difference?
Right now, she was just hoping that Lin Chuxia would come back to her mother’s house today too. As much as she envied Lin Chuxia in her past life, she wanted Lin Chuxia to envy her that much in this life.
As they were talking, the pleasant sound of a bicycle bell came from ahead, and they saw Li Ergou riding a brand-new bicycle, turning onto the path from the side road.
He greeted them enthusiastically, “Guang Yuan bro, sister-in-law, are you heading out?”
Li Guangyuan laughed in response, while Lin Jiayi’s eyes fell on the brand-new bicycle.
“You bought this new bike?”
“Yeah,” Li Ergou said with a smile, “My mom found me a wife, and the other party insisted on having a new bicycle as a bridal gift. Thanks to Guang Yuan buying our family’s bike, otherwise we really wouldn’t have had enough money to buy a new one.”
“Why mention all this, we are brothers after all,” Li Guangyuan smiled honestly.
Lin Jiayi’s eyes nearly popped out. So this was Li Guangyuan spending her dowry money to play the good guy?
Once the person had left, Lin Jiayi pinched Li Guangyuan hard, “Is that your reason for buying Li Ergou’s family’s bike?”
Li Guangyuan sucked in a breath from the pain, “Wife, what are you saying? I bought the bike mainly for doing business. Li Ergou’s family happened to be selling a bike, so I bought it. Don’t worry, I will definitely put your affairs first. Helping Li Ergou was just a favor along the way.”
“You better understand,” Lin Jiayi snorted coldly.
Li Guangyuan gave a few embarrassed laughs, a glint in his eyes.
Xiaoqingshan Village is right next to Daqing Mountain Village. The two of them went to the supply and sales cooperative to buy gifts, and in no time, they arrived at the Lin Family.
Upon seeing her eldest daughter return, Mother Lin’s face lit up with a smile. She called her son to make tea and pour water, ushering the two into the house.
Lin Jiayi glanced around the room and asked, “Has the second sister not come back yet?”
Mother Lin replied indifferently, “Who knows if she’ll come back? Your brother-in-law is not at home, why would she come back alone?”
“Regardless of whether her husband is home or not, she should come to see mom and dad. Mom and dad raised her and found her such a good family. The second sister is sensible, she will surely come to see you.”
Mother Lin pushed a washed pear into her daughter’s hand, “If she were half as sensible as you, I would be satisfied. You don’t know, Lanlan has found a job in the city, earning a salary now. I should never have let the second daughter marry off so early, if only she could find a job too, it would have helped the household.”
Sun Lanlan and Lin Chuxia were about the same age; really, nothing is more frustrating than comparing people.
Lin Jiayi lived in the neighboring village and had also heard that Sun Lanlan and her third brother found jobs in the city.
Although her thoughts were similar to her mother’s, nothing could be done about it now.
However, compared to working a job and contributing income to the family, she would rather Lin Chuxia marry Qin Yang and live a widow’s life.
“Second daughter doesn’t have that kind of ability, even if she stayed at home, she wouldn’t be able to find a job like Sun Lanlan. Mom, just don’t count on her. Speaking of Guang Yuan, his business is picking up now, with earnings every day. Once I have money, I’ll make sure mom lives a comfortable life.”
Upon hearing this, Mother Lin’s face beamed with pride, “I knew my love for you wasn’t in vain.”
Around noon, a figure entered the courtyard; it was Lin Chuxia.
“When did the second sister learn to ride a bike?”
Her gaze fell on the bicycle, noting that it was even older than theirs, and she instantly felt a sense of equilibrium.
Seeing the net bag on Lin Chuxia’s handlebars, she lifted the corners of her lips in a sneer, “We’re all family here, no need to put on airs. With your household’s means, it must not have been easy to scrape together even this much, right? Especially with Qin Yang not at home, even if you don’t come back for Mid-Autumn Festival, mom won’t quarrel with you for anything.”
In her past life, the family income was all controlled by the old lady; even if she was in charge of her own expenses, she still had to ask the old lady for money.
Lin Chuxia looked at her dispassionately: “From the sound of it, big sister is living quite comfortably?”
Lin Jiayi had been waiting for her to ask this question, holding her head high with pride, “It’s decent. When it comes to marriage, the most important thing is how much the man cares for you. Take our Guang Yuan, he listens to everything I say, and we have full control over our money. Getting what we want is just a matter of saying the word.”
Then, she laughed at Lin Chuxia, “If you ever run into trouble, just tell me, and your brother-in-law and I will definitely help you.”
She deliberately emphasized the words “brother-in-law” heavily; with Li Guangyuan’s current success, she had already tasted the flavor of victory.
Lin Chuxia handed the net bag over to Lin Jiadong, as if she hadn’t caught the insinuation in her words, simply saying, “I wouldn’t need big sister and brother-in-law to worry about me. Little brother is grown up, big sister should really help out at home more, to not let mom’s efforts in arranging your good marriage go to waste.”
She didn’t say “found” but intentionally said “arranged,” which immediately soured Lin Jiayi’s mood, “Arranged? I was always going to marry Guang Yuan.”
Seeing the two bring up this topic again, Mother Lin spoke with a cold face, “Enough, let’s all go inside. Guang Yuan, you should head back early, don’t keep your folks waiting.”
Lin Chuxia arrived precisely at mealtime; she couldn’t cut ties with her family, nor did she want to waste too much time at home.
At the dinner table, Mother Lin mentioned Sun Lanlan getting a job, and Lin Chuxia tuned it out, just focusing on her meal.
But when Lin Jiayi spoke of Li Guangyuan’s business selling vegetables, Lin Chuxia was mildly surprised.
“We might be just a small-scale vegetable business, but don’t underestimate it. We earn a good few bucks each day, which is much better than just farming,” said Lin Jiayi with pride, glancing at Lin Chuxia, “I know you don’t have much say in the Qin Family, and Qin Yang’s salary doesn’t end up in your hands. But don’t worry, once your brother-in-law and I expand our business, we’ll find something for you to do. We’ll give you a leg up and won’t let you suffer too much. Just don’t complain about the work when the time comes.”
Lin Chuxia saw the malice in her eyes and could guess what she was thinking.
She merely wanted to drag her down into the dirt.
Chuxia chuckled lightly, “I appreciate the thought, big sister, but I’m doing quite well in the Qin Family. There’s no need for you to be concerned.”
She hadn’t expected Li Guangyuan to end up on this path in this life as well; it seems that earning power was indeed more tangible than any other.
Of course, she knew Lin Jiayi’s financial support was inseparable from leading Guang Yuan down this path.
Li Guangyuan was not someone easily persuaded.
Outwardly honest and simple, but inwardly meticulous, stubborn, and calculated.
From childhood to adulthood, he was constantly engaged in a battle of wits with his mother and sisters, hardly ever speaking a sincere word.
After the meal, Mother Lin busied herself with packing things up for Lin Jiayi.
“These pears might look small, but they’re sweet. I got them from Uncle Sun’s family. Xiaoqingshan Village doesn’t have any fruit trees, take these back for a taste.”
Lin Jiayi looked at the small pears with some disdain, “Aren’t there any bigger ones?”
“Bigger ones would cost money! If I hadn’t asked, they wouldn’t have been willing to give any of these away.”
Lin Jiayi then turned to Lin Chuxia, her mouth curling into a smile, “Aren’t you going to pack some for your second sister?”
The large bag was obviously all packed for herself.