Read Novel Full Chapter 77
Chapter 77 : Expulsion
Due to the loss of business, Jiang Li’s stall remained open until all the braised meat was sold out, but half of it remained unsold.
As it was getting late, Jiang Li was about to close the stall when she saw the two girls who had come earlier returning, followed by several other girls.
Among them was Qian Zhenzhen, whom Jiang Li had met before. Seeing that Jiang Li was about to close, she hurried over and said, “Boss, wait a moment!”
“I just finished work and rushed here. I didn’t even have time to eat lunch.”
Qian Zhenzhen walked over breathlessly, and the girls behind her were chattering. After some bargaining, they bought all the new products on Jiang Li’s stall.
Jiang Li was particularly enthusiastic as she braided their hair. One girl, with an apple-shaped face, admired her beautiful hairstyle in the mirror and was very satisfied.
She begged, “Boss, how do you braid this style? I practiced it several times at home but couldn’t get it right. Can you show me again?”
“Let me do it, boss. Braid it on my head!” another girl volunteered.
Jiang Li demonstrated the braid again, but the apple-faced girl still blinked her big eyes, confused and puzzled.
The girl with the model look touched her neat hairstyle and was a little confused. “Why does the same style not look as good on me?”
“You two have different face shapes, hair textures, and heights,” Jiang Li said thoughtfully, and then braided a style that suited the model girl.
“Isn’t this much better?”
“It is!” the girl exclaimed.
“Boss, I’m getting married the day after tomorrow. I’m going to take wedding photos then. Can you do my hair? Don’t worry, I’ll pay. Five dollars, okay?”
The apple-faced girl, named Wang Jing, explained that both her parents worked, her father was a small leader in a textile factory, and her mother worked in an office at a slaughterhouse, handling logistics.
She was the only daughter in the family, and her conditions were very good, so paying for the hairstyle was no problem.
Jiang Li hesitated only briefly before agreeing. They made an appointment for the next morning at 9:00 am at the gate of the textile factory’s staff quarters. Then they packed up the stall and headed home.
On the way back, Jiang Li suddenly had an idea. Since she could make money from braiding hair, why not try makeup?
The makeup skills at the time weren’t as advanced as they would be in the future, but that meant there was plenty of room for improvement!
Qin Xiaoting had an active mind. “Lizi, you should go into the bridal beauty business, offering a one-stop service for hair and makeup.”
Jiang Li thought even further. Beauty, makeup, photography, she could offer all of that. But it was too soon to think about it, so for now, she decided to focus on the tasks at hand.
After returning home, Jiang Li practiced on herself twice more, trying to perfect the technique.
She planned to go to town the next day to check out cosmetics at the department store and then practice her makeup skills.
Jiang Li was doing well in her business, but things were tough for the Jiang family in Dashuping.
Since Jiang Li and Jiang Hongmei’s marriage, Old Mrs. Zhou had been bedridden, and Wang Juhua was responsible for all her care feeding, drinking, and even assisting with bodily functions.
Jiang Changyi refused to lift a finger around the house. After eating, he would push the bowl away and watch Wang Juhua work.
Though Old Mrs. Zhou was paralyzed, her spirit and energy were still sharp. She could shout loudly enough to scare the birds away from the roof.
When Wang Juhua fed her porridge, Old Mrs. Zhou would spill it. When she fed her dry rice, Old Mrs. Zhou would defecate on the bed.
Sometimes, the bedding had to be changed twice a day. If Wang Juhua was slow to respond, Old Mrs. Zhou would complain to Jiang Changyi, crying and accusing her of being unfilial.
After two months, Wang Juhua was so exhausted her eyes were sunken, but Old Mrs. Zhou seemed in better spirits than ever.
That day, after Wang Juhua finished helping Old Mrs. Zhou use the restroom, she went to empty the urine bucket. “Why hasn’t this old woman died yet? If she keeps making me angry, I’ll poison her with rat poison one day! Ugh!”
“Mom! Mom!” Jiang Tianci walked in with his luggage, looking for Wang Juhua.
Wang Juhua saw her son, whom she hadn’t seen for a long time, and was very happy. “Son, why are you back? It’s not a holiday.”
Jiang Tianci avoided her gaze and replied, “Well, the teacher said we’ll have an early winter break. Anyway, we have half a day of classes and half a day of labor at school.”
“What a useless teacher! His a lazy man, why don’t he do the work in the fields?” Wang Juhua felt distressed.
Her son, Tianci, had been weak since childhood, and she never let him do hard work like washing clothes. She couldn’t understand why his teacher would order him to do such things.
Jiang Tianci dealt with his mother and, seeing that Wang Juhua didn’t suspect anything, complained, “The food and money you sent last time weren’t enough. This time, you need to give me more at home.”
Wang Juhua agreed without hesitation. All the family’s money was in Jiang Changyi’s hands, and she only had a few dollars on hand. But her son was her flesh and blood, and she couldn’t bear to let anyone else suffer.
She quickly beat an egg and steamed it for Jiang Tianci.
“Son, eat some food first. Mom will go get you some chicken.”
Widow Liu raised several chickens, and the villagers sometimes bought them. Wang Juhua took the money and prepared to trade it for meat.
The excuse of the holiday fooled Wang Juhua, but not Jiang Changyi. He walked around the town, asked some people, and found out that the commune middle school hadn’t had a holiday yet.
“What’s going on? Tell me!” he demanded.
Jiang Tianci looked both aggrieved and angry. “I just borrowed two dollars from someone in the dormitory. When he found out, I gave it back, but he still insisted on reporting me.”
He gritted his teeth and raised his fist. “This kid thinks he’s better than everyone else just because his family has a house in the commune. Next time, I’ll wait for him at the school gate and beat him up so he learns his lesson.”
Wang Juhua felt like her world was falling apart. “Just over something so small, he reported you? How could he be so vicious? Isn’t he just trying to ruin my son’s future?”
“We should go make a scene too. Why can’t my son go to school? We didn’t steal anything, so why are they calling it theft?” she argued.
Jiang Changyi squatted down, holding his head in his hands. “Oh my God, he’s been expelled for theft. This will go on his record.”
Not only would this affect school, but even good factories would no longer hire Tianci in the future. It was all over now.
He had been hoping that his son would work in the city, so he could bring him there to enjoy a better life. Eventually, their whole family could become city dwellers.
“How could you do something so stupid?” Jiang Changyi shouted, pointing at Jiang Tianci. “Your family sends you gifts every month, but when they gave you two dollars less last month, you couldn’t resist stealing!”
“Who told you to cut my money and food? You only give me a few dollars a month. How am I supposed to eat enough with that? Other people can go to the movies, drink soda, and go to the park with their partners. What about me? The girls in my class don’t even want to talk to me! That kid is always showing off in front of me just because his family has money. I just wanted to teach him a lesson!”