Chapter 24 No Borrowing

Liu Xihua looked down at Jiang Xiaoxiao in the basket and couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

This child is still too young after all! Things like this can only be thought about in the mind, how can it be really done?
Generally speaking, only families where the parents-in-law have given birth to several sons will end up dividing the family property.

But their family is different, Jiang Daguo is the only son!

And in the future, my sisters-in-law will get married and leave this family one after another.

If she instigated her parents-in-law's only son to ask for a separation, wouldn't people in the village point fingers at her and Daguo behind their backs?
Liu Xihua carried a basket and walked to the narrow ditch between the village and the fields. When she was about to walk onto the stone bridge, she saw her married sister-in-law Jiang Meizhi riding a ladies' bicycle towards them.

Jiang Meizhi also saw Liu Xihua. She waved her hands and shouted, "Sister-in-law!"

In fact, Liu Xihua didn't have much affection for her sister-in-law.

Because Jiang Meizhi is simply a replica of Aunt Jiang. Not only does she have a hot temper, but she also speaks in a sarcastic and harsh manner.

Every time she chats with people, no matter what they say, Jiang Meizhi always sings the opposite tune.

For example, it was sunny today, which was perfect for washing clothes and drying quilts, but Jiang Meizhi insisted, "What's good about it? The sun is so strong, it's going to kill me!"

When asked if the fish was delicious, Jiang Meizhi said with disgust, "I'm tired of it. How can it be delicious? It smells fishy. I can't help but want to vomit when I see fish."

When others put on a new piece of clothing, Jiang Meizhi would never say a word of praise. She would either complain that the clothing was too expensive and not worth the price, or criticize that the style of clothing on others looked uglier than before.

There were countless situations like this. After a long time, Liu Xihua no longer liked to talk to Jiang Meizhi.

But Jiang Meizhi was her man's sister after all. Even though she had to be polite on the surface, she still had to do her part. So Liu Xihua stopped.

"Meizhi? Where are you going?" Liu Xihua walked to the shade of the trees beside the road, put down the basket, and took Jiang Xiaoxiao out to get some fresh air. She pointed at Jiang Meizhi and said with a smile, "Xiaoxiao, your aunt is here."

Jiang Xiaoxiao curled her lips. She didn't want to see Jiang Meizhi, the troublemaker.

Jiang Meizhi rode her bike up to Liu Xihua and skillfully braked the bike by tapping the ground with her toes, but she didn't even look at Jiang Xiaoxiao.

She smoothed her curly bangs and said with a smile, "Oh, I recently found a job in the city, and I have something to do at my good friend's house in the next village."

Jiang Meizhi's face was very tanned, but she was wearing a pink dacron dress, which made her face look even darker as if it was covered with soy sauce.

Liu Xihua knew that her sister-in-law was capable, but she didn't expect that she could find a job in the city.

No wonder Jiang Meizhi didn't wear the long-sleeved shirt and long pants that the women in the village usually wear today, but went out in a skirt.

Liu Xihua was surprised and said, "Oh, Meizhi, you are amazing. By the way, what kind of job are you looking for?"

Jiang Meizhi evaded the question and said, "I work as a salesperson in a drugstore."

Liu Xihua didn't like Jiang Meizhi's personality, but she still admired her for being able to find a job in the city.

"That's great. I actually found a job as a salesperson." Liu Xihua nodded. "Isn't the salary high?" Jiang Meizhi smoothed her curly hair again. "Of course, forty yuan a month."

Liu Xihua was surprised. "So much? It's more than your elder brother's income in the collective. He only makes 15 yuan a month in the collective after working full time."

"Of course! The city is nothing like the countryside." Jiang Meizhi raised her eyebrows with a proud look on her face, her eyes full of the sense of superiority of being a city dweller. She glanced at Liu Xihua with contempt, and the smile on her face deepened a little, "By the way, sister-in-law, I want to discuss something with you."

Liu Xihua rested enough and carefully put Jiang Xiaoxiao into the basket. When she was about to leave, she heard Jiang Meizhi say that she had something to discuss with her. She had to ask again, "Oh? What is it, Meizhi?"

"It's like this. I'm going to work in the city soon, so I want to buy a bigger suitcase and some new clothes for work. But my family is a little short of money recently. Can you lend me a hundred dollars first? I'll pay you back as soon as I get my salary."

When Jiang Xiaoxiao listened to Jiang Meizhi chattering on and on about her own abilities, she felt so amused that she couldn't help but roll her eyes.

When she heard that the other party actually asked to borrow more money, she became extremely anxious and her legs kept kicking.

[Humph, my aunt didn’t find a job in the city at all. She’s lying.]

[She met an old man in the city, who lied to her that he could go to work, so she cheated her mother’s money]

[She borrowed 100 yuan this time, and next time she will ask her dad to borrow 800 yuan to transfer the account. She can’t pay it back at all.]

[After she borrowed the money, Xiaoxiao became seriously ill, and grandma refused to help. Mom had no money to pay for Xiaoxiao's medical treatment, and Xiaoxiao almost died of the illness. Dear mom, please don't believe what the aunt said]

Liu Xihua, who was standing by, heard some noises coming from the basket and became puzzled, so she lifted her bamboo hat to check what was going on.

Jiang Xiaoxiao was seen clenching her gums, staring at herself, and kicking her calves.

Thinking of what Jiang Xiaoxiao had just said, Liu Xihua turned to Jiang Meizhi and shook her head, saying, "Meizhi, I had a miscarriage some time ago. It cost a lot of money to go to the hospital for treatment, and it also cost a lot to buy milk powder to raise Xiaoxiao. Now I am really short of money and can't lend you that much money."

Liu Xihua picked up the bamboo hat and shook it gently to fan Jiang Xiaoxiao to cool her down.

"Not that much? Then there must be some! There must be eighty yuan, right? Even eighty is fine for me." Jiang Meizhi continued to ask.

"It's really not even eighty." Liu Xihua shook her head helplessly.

In fact, she had guessed it in her heart a long time ago. Her sister-in-law was always aloof and seldom took the initiative to communicate with her on weekdays. Today she suddenly took the initiative to chat with her. There must be a reason for it.

As expected, it turned out that he wanted to borrow money.

"How do you two live? You can't even come up with 80 yuan? Can your parents still rely on you for their retirement?" Jiang Meizhi's face darkened. "Okay, okay, since you don't have 80, then 40. I'll pay you back next month when I get paid from work. My salary is 40 yuan a month."

After hearing this, Liu Xihua felt very uncomfortable and she sighed silently.

"I really don't have any money, Meizhi."

"I've never seen such a stingy sister-in-law like you. You're afraid that I can't pay it back and you refuse to lend me even 40 yuan!" Jiang Meizhi glared at Liu Xihua and rode away angrily on her bicycle.

　Do you have tickets? We accept all monthly tickets and recommendation tickets. (∩_∩)
　　
　
(End of this chapter)