Chen Mantun opened his mouth when he heard this, and said with some difficulty, "Mom, I do want to help with Big Brother's house construction, but you know the family's situation. We really don't have any extra money."
Old Mrs. Chen originally only asked for filial piety in terms of grain, but since the beginning of this year, in addition to grain, she also demanded money. Five yuan a month. This matter dared not be mentioned to Chen Lishu, so the couple could only tighten their belts and endure.
When Old Mrs. Chen heard him make excuses, her face immediately fell. "Those little girls all have money for school, but when it comes to your Big Brother building a house, such a big matter, and there's no money? Do you two know what's more important? Our Old Chen family only has Baozhu as the only grandson. What's the point of the girls going to so much school? That wasted money will eventually be given to outsiders!" Da Feng Novel
Wu Chunmei's eyes immediately welled up with grievance, and she said softly from the side, "Mom, the children's school fees have always been paid by Lishu."
Old Mrs. Chen thought to herself that it was indeed that little beast who helped. She opened her eyelids and looked at the couple, "Since the eldest girl has it, then borrow some from her. She can't possibly ignore her own uncle's house being built, right? When the brick house is built, she will stand tall in her maiden home."
Chen Mantun looked up, "Mom, how much money does Big Brother's family need?"
Thinking of what Zhang Chunhua said when she came, Old Mrs. Chen said, "Help as much as you can. After all, Baozhu is her brother. Why don't you give five hundred, and Baozhu can also remember her kindness in the future."
Five hundred?
Chen Mantun and Wu Chunmei were stunned. Even if the couple didn't eat or drink, they couldn't save so much money in a year.
"Mom, borrowing so much at once, Lishu probably doesn't have it either."
As soon as Chen Mantun spoke, Old Mrs. Chen immediately pointed at his nose and cursed, "I raised you with my own hands, and I just want to live in a more spacious brick house. You yourself are incapable of having a son, and you are pushing back when asked to borrow from that dead girl. If I had known, I should have drowned you in the urinal when I gave birth to you!"
Seeing her get angry, Chen Mantun and his wife dared not speak again.
...
This day, Lin Qi came to deliver fabric and pick up clothes, and also brought a letter to Chen Lishu.
Chen Lishu took it and glanced at the signature, which was Wang Aixiang. She guessed it might be about that batch of clothes.
After sending Lin Qi away, Chen Lishu returned to her room and opened the letter. She scanned it briefly. It was indeed about the batch of clothes that Zhou Bin had taken over not long ago.
A total of more than two hundred pieces were sold out in less than a day.
In addition to this good news, Wang Aixiang was also a little anxious, hoping that Chen Lishu could transport more over.
The current situation was that Chen Lishu dared not openly recruit workers. Everything had to wait until the end of the year. As soon as the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee was convened, she could give full play to her talents.
After putting away the letter, Chen Lishu did not rush to reply. Gu Xingdong's vacation would end next week, and they would return to the provincial capital together.
Just as she was about to get up and go out, she heard Chen Mantun talking with Gu Shoufu outside. Chen Lishu quickly opened the door and walked out.
"Dad?"
Chen Mantun greeted Gu Shoufu, then turned towards Chen Lishu.
Chen Lishu knew that there might be something, so she turned and brought him back to her room.
"...Your uncle's family is building a house, and the money on hand is a bit tight, so I was thinking if you had any extra money here, could you lend it to them?"
Chen Mantun omitted the matter of Old Mrs. Chen's visit and spoke to negotiate.
Chen Lishu frowned, "How much do they want to borrow?"
Chen Mantun glanced at her expression, avoided her gaze, and said hesitantly, "Five, five hundred."
"Five hundred?!"
Chen Lishu shook her head, "No."
Three cents per brick, and no labor costs for building a house in the countryside. A brick house would cost at most a little over a thousand yuan. Yet Chen Mancang asked to borrow half of it. Was she kidding?
Chen Mantun said with difficulty, "Lishu, after all, it's your uncle's family. If you have it, please help them."
"Dad, haven't you seen through it yet? They asked you to come and borrow money from me and hide behind. Who will I ask for this money in the future?"
"No, this is five hundred yuan, not a small amount. They can't not repay it."
"Whether they repay it or not, I don't have it," Chen Lishu said, looking at Chen Mantun, "They say you can only take on as much as you can handle. Since they don't have money, then wait until they have money."
Chen Mantun was stunned when he heard her say she didn't have it, "How can you not have it? You've earned a lot during this time, and your son-in-law also has a monthly allowance..."
Before he finished speaking, Chen Lishu's eyes instantly became sharp, "Did you tell my uncle's family about my business?"
Chen Mantun waved his hands repeatedly, "No, how could I tell such a big thing."
"Dad, setting aside whether I have this five hundred yuan or not, I just don't trust the character of my uncle's family."
Chen Lishu paused and continued, "Also, you just mentioned Xingdong's allowance. What kind of money is that? That's what your son-in-law exchanged at the risk of his life. Every cent is dyed with his sweat. I'm reluctant to touch it myself, and no one should even think about that money."
Chen Mantun was somewhat ashamed by her words, and mumbled a nod. After a while, he said, "Then how should I tell my uncle and the others?"
"I am a student who is studying. I can't even earn work points now. I rely entirely on Xingdong's allowance to live. How much are the expenses in the provincial capital? Where can I have spare money to lend out?"
Chen Mantun nodded, got up, and left.
...
"What? She has no money?" Old Mrs. Chen's voice rose several degrees when she heard Chen Mantun's reply.
"That little brat is an ungrateful wretch. Isn't she surnamed Chen? If something happens to her husband's family in the future, won't she expect her maiden family to support her? This bastard..."
After scolding for a while, Old Mrs. Chen saw Chen Mantun hanging his head and not saying anything, and knew that he was a blockhead who couldn't be reasoned with. She couldn't count on him, so she had to go back and discuss it with her eldest son and his wife first.
When Chen Mancang and his wife heard that Chen Lishu was unwilling to pay, they were also filled with anger, and even resented Chen Mantun and his wife.
But since Chen Lishu was unwilling to lend, they couldn't snatch it from her pocket.
"Husband, then what should we do now?" Zhang Chunhua anxiously looked at Chen Mancang.
Since the couple mentioned building a brick house, Chen Baozhu and his wife had become ambitious. They had even gone out to contact materials in the past two days.
"Is everyone home?" The couple were worrying about money when Widow Liu suddenly walked in from outside.
Zhang Chunhua was at a loss, so she couldn't help but tell her about it.
Widow Liu listened carefully for a while, then suddenly smacked her lips and said, "You know, this is a coincidence. Maybe I can really help you."
"Quickly tell me if you have any good ideas!" Zhang Chunhua's eyes lit up when she heard her words, and she couldn't help but urge her.