Liu Tieniu choked on his words and hurriedly pounded his chest with his fist.
Still no luck, so he picked up the teapot and started drinking furiously from the spout.
Burp~
Liu Tieniu let out a satisfied burp, "Third brother, I ate too fast and can't get it out. Tell me in advance if you want more next time!"
He stood up. "Now that you've eaten and drunk your fill, it's time to go back to your room and sleep!"
"You!" Mrs. Liu was furious. "Why don't you choke to death, you beast!"
Old Liu was also furious. He felt a chill on his hand and immediately slapped his third son on the head. "You good-for-nothing, take your saliva back!"
"Dad, I'm hungry..."
"Hold it in, you won't be hungry if you fall asleep!"
Old Liu cursed and blew out the oil lamp, plunging the room into darkness. He couldn't sleep at all; his mind was filled with the delicious smell of egg pancakes.
Meanwhile, on the other side, at the Zhao family's old house.
Zhao Wei lay on the bamboo chair, unable to move any part of his body except his eyes and mouth.
They need to be waited on hand and foot for everything, from eating and drinking to using the toilet.
Mao Xiaofang sat to the side, looking much more haggard and as if she had aged ten years.
After Zhao Wei became paralyzed, she took care of him alone, while Zhao Dabao and Zhao Erbao did not care at all.
I thought I'd have a good life after marrying into this family, but after only two months, I've started to suffer.
Why is she so unlucky?
Zhao Yi said, "The third brother is now the team leader, doing business with Yao Youjiao, and has even hired two farmhands. He's trying to make a fortune. We're all brothers, and he's willing to help outsiders like Niu Dalei get rich, so why can't he help us?"
Zhao Dabao also said, "Fourth Uncle is right. Third Uncle doesn't have a son now, so what does he need so much money for? Without our help, he'll be swindled out of it by outsiders sooner or later."
"I asked my third uncle for money the other day, and he said he didn't have any. But then he started paying for the roof beams and tiles. And he even lent money to Wu Yueying to redeem her child. Does that mean he doesn't have any money?" Zhao Sanbao said angrily. "It's obvious he doesn't want to give it to me."
Hearing these words, Zhao Feng was also shocked. She did not expect that her third brother would become so successful after she had not returned to her parents' home for several months.
After swindling the pension money, they still had so much silver left.
If he, an old bachelor, doesn't give this money to his family, is he going to give it to those two jinxes who bring bad luck to their husbands?
"Mother, please say something!" Zhao Feng looked at her mother with a resentful expression.
Old Mrs. Zhao said, "Didn't I go to ask for the money? I could have asked for it, I would have asked for it a long time ago. That unfilial son has become successful now, he has recognized Sister-in-law Zhou as his godmother. If I go there, Sister-in-law Zhou will come and scold me again."
The old woman said with great grievance, "Now everyone in the village is laughing at me, saying that I don't love my son as much as other mothers do, and that I'm biased!"
Upon hearing that the old lady was unwilling, the siblings became unhappy.
They began taking turns trying to persuade him.
"Mom, I'm in this state now, and Da Bao and Er Bao aren't even married yet. If you don't ask for money, I won't be able to support you in the future."
"It's not that my son is unfilial, it's just that we have no money."
"Mother, my family's situation isn't any better than my eldest son's. My arm isn't healed yet, Sanbao is still young and doesn't understand, and Xiulan has always been in poor health and still needs to take medicine." Zhao Yi said with a bitter face, "Now we only eat one meal a day, and it's just rice bran porridge. We're almost starving to death."
Zhao Feng also said, "My dear mother, my father-in-law is almost starving to death, and my mother-in-law is still waiting for money to buy medicine to treat her illness. You know that my husband was injured while working for the landlord a few days ago."
"The entire burden of this family rests on my shoulders, please help me..."
Faced with pressure from her three children, the old lady Zhao felt helpless. "I can go to my third son's house to ask for money, but he won't give it to me. What can I do?"
At this moment, Qian Xiulan's eyes lit up. "Mother, why don't you go to the third son's house?"
Zhao Wei's eyes lit up. "That's right, didn't the third brother want you to visit his house before?"
Mao Xiaofang interjected, "The third brother's family is doing well now, Mom, you should go and enjoy your life there."
The old lady of the Zhao family was tempted. Ever since the Zhao brothers had their accident, things had been getting worse and worse for the family.
I used to be able to drink at least two bowls of porridge a day.
Now I only have porridge once a day, it's so thin it's like water, there are barely any grains of rice in the bowl.
She was so hungry she was terribly uncomfortable.
But there were also some concerns.
Zhao Feng's eyes darted around and she said, "Mother, if you take the child over, it will not only relieve the pressure on the eldest brother, but also keep the third brother in check."
"When the third brother becomes successful and makes money, you should try to take it all. Otherwise, those two jinxes will definitely cheat you out of it."
"They're both so young, they'll definitely get married someday, Mother, you absolutely can't let our third son be deceived!"
Zhao Feng's words completely moved Old Madam Zhao.
"Feng'er is right. The third son has always been a big spender since he was a child. He can't hold onto money. I have to go and keep an eye on him!" said Old Mrs. Zhao.
The siblings were all secretly pleased.
Especially for Mao Xiaofang, life became much easier without that old geezer and that bastard.
When that old codger gets the silver from the third brother, won't he obediently hand it over to the eldest brother?
In the end, the money still has to end up in your own hands!
"It's getting late, everyone go back and rest. I'll be there first thing tomorrow morning."
...
In Zhao Zheng's home, three more people squeezed into the heated kang bed. Although it didn't feel crowded, it wasn't as comfortable as before.
Originally, when Zhao Zheng and Zhao Di Xiao'e slept, they were separated by a low table.
But now the flowers and grass are sleeping in the middle.
Wu Yueying originally disagreed, but it was too cold and there were no extra mattresses at home for them to use.
At the strong invitation of Yang Zhaodi and Zhang Xiao'e, the mother and her two daughters slept upstairs.
Fearing that the two little girls' sleeping habits would disturb Zhao Zheng's rest, Wu Yueying slept on Zhao Zheng's side.
The room was fairly bright, with candles lit.
After the two children had eaten their fill, they fell asleep immediately on the heated kang (a traditional Chinese bed-stove).
No matter how the cold wind howls outside, the house remains warm and cozy.
"The child is sweating, wipe him off so he doesn't catch a cold." Zhao Zheng handed over a cloth.
Wu Yueying responded and took the cloth to wipe the child.
Zhang Xiao'e rested her chin on her hand, looked at the two children, and said enviously, "I wish I had such a beautiful daughter!"
Yang Zhaodi remained silent, her eyes filled with envy.
Wu Yueying said, "You two are so beautiful, your children will definitely be..."
The words were on the tip of her tongue when she realized she had said the wrong thing. "I... I didn't mean that..."
The two women's eyes dimmed.
They are widows, how can widows have children?
Zhao Zheng could also see the two women's desires.
In truth, their family's structure is not conducive to long-term stability.
His adopted son died in battle, and his daughter-in-law is still young. Although he believes in their filial piety, his hidden illness has been cured, and he will definitely get married and have children in the future, which will be within the next year or two.
What will Zhao Di and Xiao E do then?
Bringing a child from outside to raise?
Why let someone else's child inherit the family business that you've worked so hard to build?
Zhao Zheng wasn't that great.
But it's impossible to leave them both helpless and without any attachments.
He turned his gaze to the two sleeping little girls and said with a smile, "Since you like them so much, you two can adopt Huahua and Xiaocao as your goddaughters!"