Chapter 139: Discharged

Chapter 139: Chapter 139: Discharged

"Got it."

Second Su knew his mother. If there wasn’t money to be made in the Capital, she definitely wouldn’t have told him to go.

So, when he got home, Second Su went into Second Sister-in-law Su’s room and quickly told her the news.

"Really?" Second Sister-in-law Su asked, pleasantly surprised.

Only after having a child did she realize how much she wanted to give her baby a better life.

It didn’t matter if they earned a lot of money on this trip to the Capital. Just the thought of being able to go was an experience worth having.

When Eldest Sister-in-law Su returned, Second Su told her the news as well and tried to give her some money.

"No, you keep it. You’ll need it for the road."

Second Su smiled shyly. "Eldest Sister-in-law, it’s not from me, it’s from Mom. She said she’ll give me my share after I get to the Capital."

Hearing this, Second Sister-in-law Su added, "Eldest Sister-in-law, just take it for now. You’ve worked so hard taking care of me during my confinement. If I had the money, I’d buy more gifts for my nephew and nieces to thank you."

"Now that we’re going to the Capital, at least we’ll have Mom and Dad to look after us. You’re here in the village with two kids, so I think you should go stay with Eldest Brother in the city."

Eldest Sister-in-law Su laughed. "I’m not going to the city. Your eldest brother only has a bunk bed he shares with someone else. He doesn’t have his own place. Wouldn’t the few yuan it would cost to rent a place be better spent on meat for the children?"

"Besides, your eldest brother has to drive his route and isn’t usually in the city anyway. He comes back every time he passes by the village, so it’s very convenient for us to see each other."

Eldest Sister-in-law Su was not a wasteful person. On the contrary, she was very frugal and kept the house neat and tidy.

"Alright then, Eldest Sister-in-law. We’ll contact you when we get to the Capital."

"Okay. Take care of yourselves, especially on the train. Don’t let Nuannuan catch a cold."

Eldest Sister-in-law Su reminded them thoughtfully.

After the three of them left, Eldest Sister-in-law Su couldn’t even leave her house without villagers asking, "Hong Yuan, how did your mother-in-law hurt her leg? Is it serious?"

"She’ll need a long time to recover. I don’t know the specifics myself. You know how my mother-in-law is—she only ever shares good news, never the bad."

Eldest Sister-in-law Su’s answer was airtight.

"Your mother-in-law is so unlucky. She went to the Capital to enjoy life, but who would’ve thought she’d end up hurting her leg."

"That’s right. My mother-in-law was supposed to be helping Wanwan with her delivery, right? But she got injured just as Wanwan’s due date was approaching, leaving no one to take care of her. That’s why she called for my second brother-in-law and his wife to go help."

"Originally, she only wanted to ask my second brother-in-law for help, since the apartment in the city isn’t that big. It’s not as spacious as our homes in the countryside."

"But since my second sister-in-law just gave birth, it wouldn’t be right to separate the couple. So even if they have to sleep on the floor, it’s better this way," Eldest Sister-in-law Su said with a helpless sigh.

Although she was deliberately being modest, she couldn’t stop the villagers from envying anyone who lived in the city.

"You can’t look at it that way. Sure, your mother-in-law had a bad fall, but your sister-in-law Wanwan is so successful! Zheng Chuan is already a battalion commander at such a young age, and she’s in university. How else could they have asked you all to come over?"

"Once you get into the city, it’s better than the countryside no matter how you slice it."

"Exactly! There’s nothing in the countryside. How can it compare to city life? It’s great to have an ’iron rice bowl.’ You get paid every month and can buy whatever you want. Here in the countryside, we have grain, but not a single cent to our names."

"Your mother-in-law is truly blessed. Even after getting hurt, she wasn’t sent back here. Instead, she gets to recover in the city."

"Wanwan is so filial."

"Isn’t that the truth? If my bratty son had the brains to study and get into university, get assigned a job with an iron rice bowl, and then be filial to me, I’d be set."

The topic immediately veered off course, turning into a lecture about how children must study hard.

Eldest Sister-in-law Su touched the tip of her nose. ’Good thing I didn’t tell them the truth,’ she thought. ’If the villagers knew how well Wanwan and my in-laws are actually living, wouldn’t their eyes turn red with envy?’

Although she now had a sum of money, Eldest Sister-in-law Su lived the same way as before. She just bought a little more meat and candy, secretly keeping it at home to give her two children some extra nutrition, making sure the neighbors couldn’t smell the cooking meat.

"Hong Yuan, have you heard? Zheng Zhizhi is back in the village."

Three days after Second Su and his family left, Eldest Sister-in-law Su was heading to the fields to work, carrying her hoe as usual.

She let her two children go off and play by themselves.

Just as she reached the sloping fields, Aunt Zhang called out to her, dropping a bombshell of a message.

Eldest Sister-in-law Su remained relatively calm and asked casually, "What’s she back for?"

"I heard she came back in a car this time and even bought a bicycle."

"She looked very glamorous and well-dressed. They say she’s here to take the two elders of the Zheng Family to live with her in the city."

Eldest Sister-in-law Su couldn’t hide her surprise at this. "What’s her situation now? Where did she get so much money? The police made her pay back all the money she stole from our Wanwan."

"Besides, Aunt Zhang, how do you know all this?"

Aunt Zhang looked a little awkward. "Well, when Zheng Zhizhi came back, she insisted on seeing my Xiao Yun. After what happened before, Xiao Yun knows she’s not a good person. So even though she went, she was careful not to say much. But she did hear quite a bit from Zheng Zhizhi."

"That’s how I found out. I rushed over to tell you right away. You should let Wanwan know, too."

Aunt Zhang’s deliberate attempt to curry favor struck Eldest Sister-in-law Su as odd.

"Aunt Zhang, if Xiao Yun believes Zheng Zhizhi, she’ll be the one to lose out. It’s good news that she can remain vigilant now."

"We all just want what’s best for her. After all, you know what kind of person Zheng Zhizhi is. There are so many other people in the village Xiao Yun can be friends with; there’s no need for her to single out Zheng Zhizhi."

Aunt Zhang nodded. "Yes, I know. The Su Family are all good people, and Wanwan is a good kid. Xiao Yun caused her so much trouble, yet Wanwan is still so good to her."

"So, what exactly is Zheng Zhizhi doing to make money?" Eldest Sister-in-law Su asked, now genuinely curious, seeing that the other woman had dropped her sycophantic act.

"Xiao Yun said she’s running a business. Didn’t she have a match set up with the Liu Family from the county town before? The guy, Liu Lang, was also a soldier, a company commander, I think."

"I know about that."

"I hear they’re married now."

Eldest Sister-in-law Su was shocked. "Didn’t Xiao Yun say when she came back that Liu Lang and Zheng Zhizhi’s marriage application was rejected? Because Zheng Hai is in prison, Zheng Zhizhi’s political review didn’t pass at all."

When Zhang Yun came back, she had shared all the gossip about Zheng Zhizhi from the military compound, so almost everyone in the village knew.

"Yes, that’s what happened. But I heard that Liu Lang injured his leg later. It didn’t heal properly, so he had to leave the army."

"After he was discharged, he married Zheng Zhizhi. They started a business together—you know, as private entrepreneurs. They’ve earned a lot of money." At this point, Aunt Zhang hesitated, looking like she wanted to say more but was holding back.

"Hong Yuan, being a private entrepreneur these days must be quite profitable, right?"

Hearing Aunt Zhang’s question, Eldest Sister-in-law Su shook her head. "I wouldn’t know."

"Xiao Yun mentioned that Wanwan ran a small side business in the compound and made a good bit of money. She even gave Xiao Yun a share."