That awkward question left me speechless. What was my sister-in-law trying to say? Was she planning to divorce my cousin?
I just gave a dry laugh and didn't answer. She seemed displeased and told me to go back to my room to rest, saying she wanted to be alone. I instantly regretted it. I might be a country boy, but my emotional intelligence wasn't low. I knew what she wanted to hear.
It was just that some things were hard for me to say. After all, my cousin was my blood relative. Some things are fine to think about, but once you say them out loud, they take on a different meaning.
I suddenly remembered the package from the afternoon. "Here, sister-in-law. This is yours." I brought it over and handed it to her. I instinctively turned my head away. Even an experienced person would be a little shy about this.
She looked confused and opened the box right in front of me. Her face instantly turned ashen. "Ethan, are you sick in the head? Why would you buy this crap?!"
"Huh?" I was baffled. I had paid for it myself, and now I was getting yelled at. What was going on?
"Sister-in-law, didn't you order this? Look, here's the receipt," I said, annoyed.
"How is that possible? I'm not that bored!" she snapped, giving me a look that was full of a mature woman's charm.
She didn't seem to be lying. Even though I hadn't known her for long, I had a good sense of her character. This was strange. Had the delivery guy scammed me?
My sister-in-law was sharp. She used the information on the receipt to look up the sex toy shop and called them to ask what was going on. The owner said that someone else had called to place the order and requested cash on delivery. They were just following procedure.
She was even more confused. She asked the owner for the caller's number. At first, he refused, citing customer privacy. But when she threatened to call the police, he panicked and quickly gave her the number.
"I'd like to see who's so damn bored!" she fumed, dialing the number.
"Hello, who is this?" a female voice answered, her Mandarin perfectly standard.
My sister-in-law instantly exploded. "Are you the one seducing Derek?"
"What?" the woman on the other end sounded baffled.
"You slut! You seduce my man, and then you order a dildo and have it sent to my house! Are you that fucking bored? If you have the guts, let's have it out face-to-face!" It was clear she couldn't swallow this insult. I could relate. If someone stole my girlfriend and then made me pay for my own fleshlight, I'd be pissed too.
"Oh, hello. This is Feida Debt Collection Agency. Your husband, Derek, has an outstanding loan of over five hundred thousand yuan from an online lending platform. He's not answering our calls, so we were forced to notify his family this way. Please repay the loan as soon as possible. Otherwise, we will take legal action. If necessary, we may also come to your home to collect." A moment ago, my sister-in-law had been ferocious. Now, it was the customer service agent's turn to be aggressive.
My sister-in-law's brow furrowed. "Are you kidding me? How could he borrow money?!"
"It's fine. If you don't believe me, you can add me on WeChat. My number is 134-XXXX-XXXX. I'll send you the proof of the loan." Soon, my sister-in-law had added her, and a pile of photos came through: my cousin's signature, a photo of him holding his ID, the loan contract, and everything.
Her face turned dark, and her body began to tremble. "That bastard! Does he even want to live a normal life!?"
She tried calling my cousin again, but the call went straight to a "not in service area" message. It seemed he had blocked her. Honestly, my cousin was not very mature, especially when it came to arguments. He acted like a child. He had been spoiled by my uncle since he was young and had never really suffered. Now that they were fighting, he was using this method to punish her. How could a weak woman bear it?
"Sister-in-law, don't be sad. Maybe he just had a moment of confusion..." I was terrible at comforting people. Anything I said now would just be adding fuel to the fire.
"Hmph. What's there to be sad about? It would be best if he died out there," she said, turning her head away. Her words were harsh, but tears were streaming down her face. She probably blamed herself for not "training" her husband better.
For the next few days, she was gloomy and quiet. I tried to cheer her up, but nothing worked. And strange packages kept arriving at our door: chrysanthemums, joss paper, more sex toys, all cash on delivery. Following her instructions, I refused all of them, which led to more than a few arguments with the delivery guys. They were just doing their jobs. The one to blame was my cousin for borrowing money. There was no excuse for it.
She couldn't stand the harassment anymore and chose to call the police. I have to say, the police were efficient. They notified the debt collection agency, and soon, their company called to apologize. They promised to use proper methods to collect the debt and not to harass my sister-in-law anymore.
After the apology call, our lives returned to normal. My cousin gradually faded from the picture, as if the house belonged only to me and my sister-in-law. I loved this feeling. I even had the delusion that she was my wife.
This peaceful life didn't last long. That evening, I bought her favorite mini wontons and hand-pulled pancakes and rushed home, only to find my cousin there. To be precise, he had been dragged back by several burly men.
They were trying to force my sister-in-law to pay back the money. In the years they had been married, she had scrimped and saved, and now that their relationship was in shambles, she was naturally unwilling to pay.
Two of the big guys cornered her, their faces breaking into a grin that every man understands. "If you don't pay, that's fine too. Let us brothers have some fun first, and we'll give you a few more days."
"Damn, this chick is a real piece of work. I've been thirsty for a while."
"Don't waste time talking to her. She even called the cops on us, got our company reprimanded. Today, we'll shut her mouth with our dicks."
Faced with their vile words, my sister-in-law was terrified. Her face was as pale as paper as she told them not to mess around. My cousin stood by, indifferent, even blaming her for calling the police without consulting him. He had no sense of responsibility as a man.
Luckily, I got back just in time, or something terrible would have happened. "Stop," I shouted, throwing the food I was holding.
The two guys were caught off guard, and their heads were instantly covered in wontons and spicy gluten strips. The sight was comical. But the soup was still scalding hot. Not even a pig's hide could take that.
"Motherfucker! You little bastard, you ruined my fun!"
"Fuck your mother!" The two of them were furious, their eyes wide with rage as if they wanted to tear me to pieces.
"No!" my sister-in-law screamed, her voice filled with genuine concern. Even when my cousin had been beaten to a pulp, she hadn't been this nervous. A warm feeling spread through my chest.
As they lunged at me, I felt no fear. A fight? Who's afraid of whom? These city guys were soft, one weaker than the next. They were no match for me.
I reached out, grabbed one guy's arm, and yanked hard. CRACK. The crisp sound was enough to make your scalp tingle.
"Aiyoh!" he howled in pain, his body convulsing. With just that one move, I had at least dislocated his shoulder.
The other guy was more cunning and tried to attack me from the side. I quickly shot out my elbow, hitting him in the stomach. Pfft. He spat out a mouthful of blood, looking pathetic.
"Gah." Not just the goons, but my cousin and sister-in-law were also stunned. It was as if the air in the room had frozen.
In their eyes, I was just a young kid, yet I had easily taken down two grown men. It was unbelievable.