A Good Country Wife
Chapter 186 A Word in Advance_1

Chapter 186: Chapter 186 A Word in Advance_1

Zhao Erhu had run out of options and blurted out his ill-considered plan in a moment of desperation.

Lin Yue was truly infuriated now. After going to great lengths to sabotage the plan, Zhao Erhu had actually come up with such a foolish idea. "Zhao Erhu, you’re really something, even coming up with this. Should I praise your cleverness? Or should I teach your eldest sister all our cooking methods?"

With a smile that didn’t reach her eyes, Lin Yue spoke, leaving Zhao Erhu unsure of her true meaning, prompting him to carefully suggest, "There’s no need to teach her everything, just one or two things will do. We still rely on these methods to make money. We can’t neglect our own family for the sake of my eldest sister."

"So, you do think about our family. I thought you only had your dear eldest sister in mind. You might as well give her this house too, since she’s the one closest to you. What am I and the children to you then? We might as well not be living this life, what’s the point?"

Seeing Lin Yue so angry, Zhao Erhu hugged her and said, "Niuniu, what are you talking about? You and the children are my top priority. You’re jabbing a knife right into my heart with those words."

"You have the nerve to say that. If you truly cared about me and the children, how could you come up with such a foolish idea? You know what kind of person Zhao Yunxiang is. She stayed at our place for one night and caused nothing but trouble, making everyone unhappy. Did you not see how she bullied me yesterday? You mustn’t care, right? If we go into business with her, I’ll be so angry that I’ll die just to your liking."

After being scolded by Lin Yue, Zhao Erhu’s mind cleared up quite a bit. "Alright, Niuniu, it’s my fault for not protecting you and letting you feel wronged. If you disagree with it, then forget about it. I didn’t really want to get involved, but she’s my eldest sister. She used to take care of me when we were young, and now she’s having such a hard time, I feel obligated to help. I’ll assist her this one last time, but I won’t interfere any more than that. After all, we must live on our own. But I wasn’t thinking thoroughly and didn’t consider your feelings enough. Please consider this a one-time foolish act and don’t hold it against me. Is that okay?"

"Are you really speaking from your heart?" Lin Yue wasn’t truly wanting to end their life together. Despite feeling uncomfortable, she could, putting herself in Zhao Erhu’s shoes, understand his actions. After all, Zhao Erhu did respect her opinions, despite some flaws, and by ancient standards, Zhao Erhu was quite a good man. Nobody’s perfect, and she couldn’t ask for too much.

"Of course, I’m sincere. In my heart, my wife is the most important. I wanted to help my eldest sister only to repay her kindness towards me. However, even so, I cannot allow my wife to be unhappy."

Zhao Erhu finally said something pleasing, and Lin Yue rolled her eyes at him. "Smooth talker! I’m not unreasonable. Since you’ve said so much, you weigh the matter yourself. Just do what you can handle—I won’t interfere. But let me remind you: a married daughter is like spilled water. My sister might have married into the Lin Family, and we don’t treat her as an outsider, but her first responsibility is to her husband and children, not her brother. You should also think of your wife and children first. We seem to be earning a fair amount now, but our expenses are high. I’m planning to have Dalang and the others learn more at home to lay a stronger foundation, and when spring starts tomorrow, send them to school. Besides, Dalang is eleven this year, and in a few years, we’ll need to find him a wife. Our house won’t accommodate another family; we’ll have to build more,"

After Dalang’s matters were settled, and the younger ones grew up, one after another, they all got married and started having children. If the children turned out to be successful and passed the examinations, we would have to support them. And if they managed to secure a government position, it would be as if our old Zhao Family’s ancestral graves were billowing with green smoke. We would still need to save money to help them build connections and facilitate relations with higher-ups, for the political arena is not as clear and simple as we see it. Declarations of integrity and selfless service to the people are all empty words; one must first secure their position. And so, we must work even harder to earn silver,

Lin Yue said she would not interfere in Zhao Yunxiang’s matters but still analyzed the family situation for Zhao Erhu, letting him know what he should do. This man was still too kind-hearted. Perhaps it was because of a lack of familial affection since childhood that he valued those he recognized as family too much. Even his usual shrewdness had vanished. However, valuing loyalty and righteousness is not a bad thing. Fortunately, Erhu was not someone who refused to listen to reason. With the proper guidance, there was room for improvement, and Lin Yue was confident that she could train Zhao Erhu to become a paragon of devotion and obedience.

Zhao Erhu listened to Lin Yue’s lengthy explanation, and how could he not understand his wife’s intentions? Niuniu now knew how to play mind games with him. Wasn’t it just reluctance? Yet, she had to beat around the bush to express it. But even though it was all part of her calculations, why was he so willing to go along with it? There wasn’t the slightest discomfort in his heart. Probably because the future his wife painted was too beautiful. Most importantly, his little wife had her heart set on this family, which was why she sketched such a future for him.

Zhao Yunxiang had been waiting at home for news. As soon as Zhao Erhu and his wife returned, she didn’t wait for them to sit down and have a sip of tea but directly pulled Zhao Erhu aside and asked about the outcome, "How did it go? Did Brother Xinglin agree? What sort of job did he secure for your brother-in-law?"

"Sister, Brother Xinglin said there’s nothing he can do to help."

"What! How is that possible? Zhao Xinglin works at the government office with so many connections; how could he possibly have no way to help? He must not want to help, must he? It really is true that you can’t judge a book by its cover. It seemed like he got along so well with you, and when his son had his first-month celebration, you even gave such a generous gift. Can’t believe he won’t help with even this small favor. His conscience must have been eaten by a dog." Zhao Yunxiang, expecting a different outcome, naturally couldn’t accept this one.

"Sister, what are you talking about? These days Brother Xinglin also has to keep a low profile at the government office. He has to be discreet about everything. If he could have helped, wouldn’t he have done so? Don’t make unwarranted guesses about others."

"Then what should we do? Are you going to just forsake your sister? While you’re at home eating meat and drinking wine, can you bear to see your sister’s family living on chaff and thin gruel?"

Zhao Erhu knew Zhao Yunxiang wouldn’t accept this outcome and was sure to make a fuss. He had pondered his wife’s words and, on the way back, had already come up with a solution, which he and Lin Yue agreed upon. He then took a bag of silver from within the house.

"Sister, finding a job in the city is definitely not an option. Your brother doesn’t have such ability. This is fifteen taels of silver. Take it home and buy a few mu of land with it. As long as you are diligent and take good care of the land, you won’t starve. Your husband won’t need to toil so hard as a laborer anymore. However, I must be upfront: this is the last time I will help you without any compensation. This is out of consideration for our past relationship. Although we remain siblings, we must still be clear about our financial dealings, considering both of us now have our own families."