Chapter 497: Chapter 497: Playing a Good Hand Poorly

Su Qing couldn’t help but marvel at what a piece of work Er La Niang was, screwing over her own son for the sake of her nephew.

"What happened next? How was it resolved?" Su Qing asked.

"What happened next," Aunt Tao said, "is that Zhang Erlai went straight to Er La Niang with an ultimatum. He told her if she agreed to sever their relationship, he’d give her a lump-sum payment for forty years of support, based on five yuan a month. If she refused, he’d just walk away. Then she’d never be able to find him, let alone get any money for her retirement. He told her to choose one of the two options."

Aunt Tao clicked her tongue. "You have no idea. When Zhang Erlai said that, everyone in Lihua Village was stunned. If you do the math, that’s a one-time payment of 2,400 yuan! Good heavens, most families probably couldn’t save that much in a lifetime. Everyone started guessing that Zhang Erlai must have struck it rich somewhere."

Su Qing smiled to herself. ’Zhang Erlai is in the black market business, so he’s definitely not short on cash. Coming up with 2,400 yuan must have been easy for him.’

"So Er La Niang agreed in the end?" Su Qing asked with a small smile.

"Of course, she had to agree," Aunt Tao said. "Initially, when Er La Niang heard Zhang Erlai could produce that much money at once, she was dumbfounded. Then she started crying and wailing, refusing to agree. She tried to get him to change his mind, even demanding he give her fifty yuan a month for support instead. But in the end, Zhang Erlai said if she didn’t agree, he’d leave right then and never come back. With no other choice, Er La Niang finally agreed. Just like that, Zhang Erlai gave her 2,400 yuan, signed an agreement severing their relationship at the village committee office, and left. He hasn’t been back since."

Su Qing sighed. "Er La Niang was dealt a good hand and played it terribly."

"Isn’t that the truth." Aunt Tao’s face was full of schadenfreude. "Everyone in the village is laughing at Er La Niang. She had a son who could earn a lot of money, but she didn’t care for him. Instead, she doted on her nephew and even forced her own son to sever ties with her for that nephew’s sake. You couldn’t find a more foolish person in this world."

"But the most ridiculous part is yet to come," Aunt Tao added. "When Er La Niang’s brother found out about this, he went to her and forcibly took 1,200 yuan from her, claiming it was some sort of compensation. Anyway, Er La Niang’s life is tough now. She has so little money left, and her brother and nephew still come by to sponge off her from time to time. At this rate, she’ll squander what little money she has left sooner or later. When that happens, she’ll truly have nothing to live on."

"How foolish," Su Qing said, shaking her head. "Thankfully, Zhang Erlai isn’t a fool. I bet he’ll do much better for himself out in the world."

"Exactly. With a blood-sucking mother like that, if he had stayed in the village, Zhang Erlai’s life would have been miserable," Aunt Tao lamented. "Now that the boy has left Lihua Village, who knows, he might make a fortune someday. Er La Niang will regret this to her dying day. It’s just a pity we don’t know where that kid Er Lai went, or if he’ll ever come back."

’The black market in Xiyuan County used to be An Zhihan’s business,’ Su Qing mused. ’Zhang Erlai was probably working for him. He’ll likely follow An Zhihan in the future, so his prospects should be good.’

However, Su Qing didn’t share any of this with Aunt Tao. As for what Zhang Erlai would do in the future, she was, on the surface, an outsider who had little contact with him, so naturally, she wouldn’t get involved. And so, the two of them moved on to other gossip.

It had to be said, Aunt Tao truly lived up to her reputation as Lihua Village’s top gossip. There wasn’t a single piece of village gossip that she didn’t know. Su Qing sat with her for a while, indulging her own guilty pleasure for gossip.

After leaving the homes of a few of the village aunties, the sky had already darkened. Su Qing thought for a moment, then headed back to the courtyard next to the Old Su Family’s house.

The courtyard was clean both inside and out. Before Su Qing left, she had given the key to Zhao Youcai and paid his family some money. As a result, the Zhao family would come and clean the courtyard periodically.

Hearing the sounds from next door, Old Su curled her lip in disgust. She glanced toward Su Mei’s room and huffed. ’I thought my granddaughter would at least gain some advantage from running out there, but instead she came back after a beating. And when my eldest son’s family found out Su Mei was beaten, they didn’t dare make a peep! They even told Su Mei not to provoke Su Qing anymore.’

’How did I give birth to such useless things? If my children and grandchildren had any backbone, would we be afraid of that damn girl Su Qing?!’

’Despicable! Now I don’t even dare to ask that damn girl for my support money.’

The Old Su Family was now thoroughly terrified of Su Qing. Knowing she was back, they didn’t dare to go near her. But while the Old Su Family had quieted down, someone else had not.

At Zhang Erlai’s house, Er La Niang was clutching her money box and counting the cash inside, her anxiety growing with every bill. Zhang Erlai had left her 2,400 yuan, but her brother had taken 1,200 of it. Logically, with the remaining 1,200 yuan and her annual work points, she should have been able to get by.

But her brother, sister-in-law, and nephew knew she still had over 1,000 yuan. They would show up from time to time for meals or demand she buy things for her nephew and niece. Their excuse was always that her nephew’s marriage prospects had been ruined because of Er Lai, so she had to compensate them.

Now that Zhang Erlai had severed ties with her, Er La Niang was even more afraid of souring the relationship with her brother’s family. She could only grit her teeth and comply each time they made demands. But as a result, her money was dwindling, and her nephew was still complaining that he couldn’t find a wife, demanding she help him figure something out.

’Figure something out, figure something out... What could she possibly figure out?!’

Her nephew’s reputation was ruined. Several potential matches had been arranged, but none of them worked out. The girls’ families rejected him because of his bad reputation and refused to let their daughters marry him.

Er La Niang took a deep breath. ’What am I supposed to do? Where am I going to find a wife for my nephew?’

Wait!

Just as Er La Niang was fretting, she suddenly remembered hearing when she went out today that the Su Qing girl was back.

Su Qing!

Er La Niang’s eyes suddenly lit up. ’Isn’t she a ready-made solution?’

’Previously, I was greedy for the money Su Qing had. Although I looked down on the scar on her face, I still wanted her to be Zhang Erlai’s wife. It was just a pity it didn’t work out. I blame the villagers for getting in the way, and I didn’t have any help. But if it’s for my nephew... maybe that could work.’

’This time, it’s not like I don’t have help. My brother and my nephews... several grown men. I refuse to believe a little slip of a girl like Su Qing can get away.’

’Oh, right! That Su Qing girl is leaving tomorrow morning!’

Er La Niang’s eyes darted as a plan formed. She immediately stopped counting her money, slipped on her shoes, and hurried out the door. ’As long as Su Qing marries my nephew, I can hold on to this money. I might even be able to get some more out of it!’

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