Seeing Old Su freeze up, the sharper villagers instantly understood. They all shot her disdainful looks. 'She's really got some nerve,' they thought, 'trying to pull a fast one right in front of the brigade leader and the village party secretary.'
Aunt Cuihua, with her quick eyes and even quicker hands, snatched the money from Old Su and passed it to Zhao Youcai. It was too late for Old Su to grab it back.
Zhao Youcai glanced at Old Su, unwrapped the handkerchief holding the money, and counted it. He raised an eyebrow. "Aunt Su, there's only fifty yuan here."
As he spoke, he showed the money wrapped in the handkerchief to everyone. The crowd took one look and gasped. Good heavens, the wad had looked so thick just a moment ago. They'd assumed it was full of large bills, but it turned out there wasn't a single ten-yuan note. It was all just one-yuan and five-jiao notes. If the brigade leader hadn't insisted on checking, that girl Su Qing would have been ripped off. And she would have had no way to prove it later.
It was unbelievable that Old Su would pull such a stunt.
Old Su secretly gritted his teeth. He was furious with Zhao Youcai for being a busybody, but also annoyed with his wife for her failed attempt at being clever. He let out a loud cough and snapped at her, "Are your old eyes failing you? Did you just grab this without looking? Isn't this the handkerchief you keep the household money in?"
The crowd silently scoffed. What kind of family were they, to have fifty yuan just for household expenses?
Old Su's face was burning with embarrassment. She said hurriedly, "Yes, yes, yes, I grabbed the wrong one."
With that, she hastily took the money back from Zhao Youcai and went inside. This time, she didn't dare pull any more stunts. She obediently came out with five hundred yuan. After Zhao Youcai counted it and confirmed the amount was correct, he handed it to Su Qing. "Su Qing, my girl, you keep this money safe now. Stay sharp, and don't let anyone with bad intentions trick you out of it."
With so many villagers watching today, there was no guarantee that some of them wouldn't get ideas. Even if the villagers didn't find out today, he knew Old Su's big mouth would spread the news far and wide. That's why he emphatically warned Su Qing, afraid that the girl was too easily swayed and would be tricked out of her money.
"Thank you, Brigade Leader. Thank you, Village Party Secretary. I'll keep it safe." Su Qing took the money and spoke with a grateful expression. Inwardly, however, she was blooming with joy. 'With this money as a foundation, I can live a much better life in this era.'
The job issue was resolved, so the rest was easy. The Old Su Family had to vacate the two rooms, and all of Su Qing's family's belongings had to be moved over. In the afternoon, someone would be arranged to build an earthen wall between the two households, and that would be that. As for the work points, Zhao Youcai would transfer them over later.
Old Su glared at Su Qing angrily. She really hadn't expected this damned girl to suddenly become so clever. Today, not only had she completely separated from the Old Su Family, but she had also swindled five hundred yuan out of them.
Five hundred yuan!
Just thinking about it made Old Su feel like her heart was bleeding. If Zhao Youcai and Wang Xuehong weren't still there, she would have given that damned girl a good beating.
Besides Old Su, the rest of the Old Su Family were also grinding their teeth in hatred. In the current Old Su Family, apart from the second son Su Shengjun's family who had already separated, none of them had split off yet. That five hundred yuan was their money too! For it to be given to Su Qing just like that, their hearts ached with a raw pain.
But no amount of hatred would help. With Zhao Youcai and Wang Xuehong presiding over the matter today, they had no choice but to agree to let Su Qing take back all the things that belonged to her.
Then, Su Qing took out another ten yuan and gave it to Old Su. This was the support payment for the elderly couple, covering the rest of the year. The separation agreement stipulated that she give the main household two yuan a month as a support fee. She was doing exactly what was written in the agreement, leaving no room for gossip.
Sure enough, the crowd was full of praise for Su Qing, which only made the people from the main household seethe with anger.
And so, the matter of Su Qing splitting from the Old Su Family was basically settled. Since it was still early, Zhao Youcai decided to call on the spectating villagers to help Su Qing move her things, and to hurry the Old Su Family along to vacate the rooms.
At that moment, someone shouted, "Oh, right, Uncle Su, I heard your Su Tao was rolling in the same bed with a man. Does that mean your Su Tao is getting married soon? Are we going to be invited to a wedding feast?"
The speaker was an auntie with the surname Cui, who really didn't get along with Tian Aixiang. The two had argued over some trivial matter before and even had a huge fight. They'd been enemies ever since. Normally, even over the smallest thing, they'd jump at the chance to mock each other viciously. Today, with an opportunity to publicly humiliate Tian Aixiang, this Aunt Cui naturally wouldn't miss it.
Hearing Aunt Cui's words, before anyone else could react, Shitou started giggling foolishly at Su Tao, drool trickling down from the corner of his mouth. He pointed at Su Tao and kept shouting, "Hehe, wifey, wifey."
The crowd froze, stunned. So, he really *was* a simpleton!
Goodness me, this Su Tao from the Old Su Family really wasn't picky, was she? Inviting even a simpleton into her room.
Her shameful affair exposed in front of everyone, Su Tao completely broke down. She screamed at Shitou like a madwoman, "Get out! Who's your wife? You idiot! Get out of my house right now! I wouldn't marry you if I died! Your wife is Su Qing! Go find Su Qing if you're looking for a wife!"
Hearing this, the crowd couldn't help but sneer. 'Su Qing has already completely separated from the Old Su Family,' they thought. 'Still trying to drag her into this? How could she?'
When Shi's mother heard Su Tao, she instantly flew into a rage. "You damned girl, try insulting my Shitou one more time!"
Tian Aixiang didn't want her daughter to marry a simpleton either. Not only would he be no help to the family, but she also wouldn't get a single cent of the betrothal money. It was a deal with no benefits, so of course she wouldn't agree. Seeing Shi's mother cursing Su Tao, she immediately put her hands on her hips and cursed back, "How dare you talk about my daughter? Take a look at your own idiot son! Is he worthy of my daughter? A toad lusting after a swan's flesh! You might as well wish to fly to the heavens, why don't you?"
"Pah! Why don't you look at the fine things your own daughter has done? She took advantage of my Shitou not being right in the head and tricked him into her room in the middle of the night! I haven't even called your daughter a slut, and you have the nerve to talk about my son? Pah! A hussy like that, you think my Shitou would even want her?" Shi's mother was no pushover and immediately started a shouting match with Tian Aixiang.
The two women traded insults back and forth for a few rounds, making the crowd's eyes go wide. Su Qing, maintaining a timid expression, leaned against Aunt Tao, while a little voice inside her was cheering nonstop: 'Fight, fight!'
"Enough! Both of you, shut your mouths!" Old Su was so angry he felt dizzy. Neither of his granddaughters would give him any peace. At his age, they were making him lose all his face in front of the entire village.
"Uncle Su, this is your own family's business. We won't get involved." Regarding Su Tao's situation, neither Zhao Youcai nor Wang Xuehong planned to interfere. She had grandparents and parents; it wasn't their place as outsiders to meddle. "However, put this matter aside for now. Hurry up and clear out Su Qing's room. Everyone, lend a hand and let's get this done quickly so it doesn't delay the start of work."
Old Su knew that if they delayed the work, Zhao Youcai would definitely blow a fuse. So he swallowed his anger and said to Shi's mother, "Let's talk about your Shitou and my Su Tao later. First, let's get this business with my Erya settled. As you can see, our brigade leader and village party secretary are both still here."
Shi's mother also knew not to provoke Zhao Youcai and Wang Xuehong, so she tacitly agreed.