Chapter 409 - Chapter 409: Chapter 396: Playing Unconventionally (1/2)

Chapter 409: Chapter 396: Playing Unconventionally

Can we talk? Can I see mother again?

During Mid-Autumn Festival, coming empty-handed, even a fool would know why Zhang Xiangrui has come.

Not angry?

How could that be possible!

Zhang Xiangrong’s face was already veiled with anger at this point.

When they had divided their family assets, their father had insisted that because Zhang Xiangrong had no sons, he should not inherit property. Even though Mrs. Liu had appealed on his behalf, he had received not a single plot of land or house.

Fine, he was childless and had not fulfilled his duty to continue the family line, so he didn’t mind not inheriting property. He had his two hands and his two feet. He could make his own way.

However, not long after their father’s death, Zhang Xiangrui claimed that he was overwhelmed with work and could not take care of their aging mother. He asked Zhang Xiangrong and Mrs. Cao to care for her for a while – until the Chinese New Year, he said, then he would take her back.

At the time, Mrs. Liu was ill, and Zhang Xiangrong, noticing that Zhang Xiangrui was not caring for her properly and worrying that Zhang Xiangrui may bear a grudge against her for the things she had said at the time of their property division, took Mrs. Liu into his care and cared for her meticulously.

This meticulous care lasted over a year. When Chinese New Year came and went, Zhang Xiangrui showed no intention of taking Mrs. Liu back. Meanwhile, Zhang Xiangrong and Mrs. Cao had been working steadily, buying new acres of farmland and building a few houses out of blue bricks and adobe. Their circumstances had significantly improved, and they could easily cover the costs of Mrs. Liu’s retirement.

Despite this, as he saw his brother’s life improving, Zhang Xiangrui grew disgruntled. He accused Zhang Xiangrong of amassing wealth too quickly, going from no property to owning acres of land and houses in just a few years, and suggested that he had hidden away some assets during their property division.

He also accused Mrs. Liu of favouritism, claiming that while living with him, she had done nothing but eat, drink and idle around. Yet now that she was living with Zhang Xiangrong, she was working and even making fried chop rice cakes to sell in the town, all to supplement his family’s income.

Furthermore, he accused Zhang Xiangrong of being short-sighted and not planning for the future. As someone without an heir, he should be treating his nephew as his own son, giving him all the best foods and drinks and leaving the best things for the future. That way, when his own time came, there would be someone to mourn for him.

But instead, he was selfish and only cared for his own family, leaving his brother’s family to eat coarse grains. If in the future, nobody was there to mourn for him, it would be his just desserts!

Even when Zhang Xiangrong hurt his foot while working and had to sell his land to cover his medical costs, Zhang Xiangrui still took pleasure in his misfortune. He scorned Zhang Xiangrong, claiming that whatever wasn’t truly his would eventually be lost anyway.

Zhang Xiangrong was forced to hear such harsh words every few days.

However, since he could not control what others said, and arguing with Zhang Xiangrui would only upset Mrs. Liu, he decided to let Zhang Xiangrui’s words slide. After all, he reasoned, it did not matter what others say as long as his own family lived a good life.

Not long ago, Zhuang Qingning had proposed they sell hot and sour powder in the town and help with the shop. The entire family moved to the town, and Zhang Xiangrong was relieved.

While he didn’t care too much about Zhang Xiangrui’s words and wouldn’t let them interfere with his life, his spiteful remarks made him uncomfortable. He was glad to move to the town, where the sight of Zhang Xiangrui would be less frequent, and he wouldn’t have to hear his constant complaints anymore. This made Zhang Xiangrong feel liberated.

Seeing Zhang Xiangrui again, Zhang Xiangrong was decidedly displeased.

The displeasure grew even more when he saw Zhang Xiangrui speaking to Mrs. Cao in strange tones.