Read Novel Full Chapter 96
Chapter 96 : Cheating
Zhang Qiaohui had originally come here seeking some peace and quiet, but she hadn’t expected this family to harbor a wolf cub.
“Qiaohui, I’ll come see you another day.” Thinking of the happiness from last night, Zhuang Guoliang hesitated for a moment, then took out two dollars from his pocket and placed them in Zhang Qiaohui’s hand.
“Take this and buy two new sets of clothes for the New Year. I’m leaving now.”
Before Zhang Qiaohui could respond, Zhuang Guoliang opened the door and walked out. She held the money in her hand and cried as she picked up the broken porcelain shards on the floor. Seeing her mother cry, Sun Junjun also began to sob.
“Dad, where have you been?”
As soon as Zhuang Guoliang appeared, Zhuang Xiaoyu ran over crying, her legs covered with snot and tears.
“Where are Grandma and Jiang Hongmei? Why aren’t they cooking? What are they doing at home?”
Today was New Year’s Eve, and no matter what, there had to be something prepared for the New Year.
Zhuang Daya, hearing voices outside, looked out and saw Zhuang Guoliang. His brow furrowed. Why was this girl still here? Didn’t they say they were going to pick her up before the New Year?
“Erya, come here,” Jiang Li called to her from the door. Erya came out of the house with a sweet smile. “Sister Lizi, you’re here!”
Jiang Li patted her head and quietly handed her a paper bag. “Don’t tell anyone else. Share it with your sisters.”
Erya rubbed Jiang Li’s arm with some affection. “I know. Sister Li, I’ll repay you when I grow up. I’ll chop wood for you, fetch water, and pick the best mushrooms.”
“You’re still too young. You can’t chop wood or fetch water, but you can pick mushrooms. Just remember, before you cook them, show them to Liu Lixin. Poisonous mushrooms can kill people. Do you understand?”
“Got it. Come here, Sister Lizi! I have something for you.”
Erya dragged Jiang Li into the house. When Zhuang Guoliang saw Jiang Li, his dislocated shoulder began to ache again. Qi Shaoqiang stood at the door of the Qi family’s house, watching them. He only dared to lower his voice and said, “You’re so sad for other people’s children. Have you ever cared about Xiaoyu and the others?”
Jiang Li almost laughed at this man’s shamelessness. “You’re a father who goes out and fools around every day. You don’t even take care of your own children, and you still expect others to show love!”
She had a sharp nose and could immediately smell the alcohol on Zhuang Guoliang, mixed with the scent of a woman’s powder. “You’re not out there having an affair, are you?”
Zhuang Guoliang felt a chill run down his spine, as if he’d been caught cheating. His body stiffened, and his expression became uncomfortable. Jiang Li sneered. As expected, a dog will always eat shit.
In the original novel, after Zhuang Guoliang became rich, he had many mistresses, including a female manager from a partner company and a receptionist at the office, all of whom needed his care and attention.
When the original body washed his clothes, she would often find clues such as lipstick marks, perfume smells, and occasionally women’s stockings.
Whenever the original body confronted him about it, Zhuang Guoliang would complain first, saying that he was drinking and socializing outside, working hard for the family, but Jiang Li didn’t trust him.
Then, they’d have a big fight, and Zhuang Guoliang would sleep in the guest room. Over time, the original body became completely disillusioned and stopped wanting to see the evidence of his cheating, focusing only on the two children.
Unexpectedly, Zhuang Guoliang was even worse than she had imagined. Whether he had money or not wasn’t the reason for his cheating. He was fundamentally a man who couldn’t control his lower body, but he blamed it on alcohol, too many temptations, and other reasons.
Faced with Jiang Li’s disdainful look, Zhuang Guoliang wanted to explain that he was under pressure too. Jiang Hongmei had made the house miserable, with constant quarrels. Who would want to go home?
Besides, what happened between him and Zhang Qiaohui was just a mistake and would never happen again.
But Jiang Li didn’t give him a chance to explain and went straight into the house with Erya in her arms.
Jiang Hongmei looked exhausted, her body red from the cold. She leaned against the door with a grim expression, obviously having overheard everything.
These days, she had been busy with everything housework, taking care of the children while Zhuang Guoliang was fooling around outside?
“Who is that woman? Tell me, who is the woman you’re having an affair with?”
Jiang Hongmei tore into Zhuang Guoliang, who pushed her away. “Are you crazy? Where did this woman come from?”
“Would you rather believe what others say than me?”
Jiang Hongmei looked at Jiang Li in confusion. Zhuang Guoliang’s firm attitude made her start to doubt. Could it be that Jiang Li was deliberately trying to instigate Zhuang Guoliang to divorce her?
Seeing that her attitude had softened, Zhuang Guoliang pulled her aside and changed the subject, “Now that you’re out, where’s my mom?”
Jiang Hongmei shook her head, “She wants to go to the farm.”
Because Zhao Xiangyu was the one who contacted the middleman and the An family, and she was the one who collected the money, Jiang Hongmei pushed all the responsibility onto Zhao Xiangyu, claiming that she wasn’t aware of anything.
Zhao Xiangyu wanted to expose that Jiang Hongmei had instigated the child bride incident, but unfortunately, she had no evidence. Jiang Hongmei was detained for one night and then released.
“What did you say? She just found a marriage for her granddaughter, so why she want to go to the farm?”
Jiang Hongmei sneered, “Do you really not know, or are you pretending not to know? Zhao Xiangyu sent Daya to the two brothers as a child bride, and it was to the poorest village in the mountains, so they only gave 30 yuan as a betrothal gift.”
Zhuang Guoliang couldn’t believe it. “Why did Mom do this? I thought…”
“What did you think? Who would marry a 14-year-old girl and give such a high dowry?”
Jiang Hongmei now looked down on Zhuang Guoliang. She was shameless, but at least she was open-minded. Zhuang Guoliang enjoyed the benefits while pretending to be someone else. What was that called? He wanted to be both a leader and a hero.
She pushed him away and went into the house. It was very cold. She had walked all the way back from the commune through the snow and was almost frozen.
Zhuang Guoliang approached Erya, speaking with some guilt. “Erya, Fourth Uncle is sorry for your sister. Don’t worry, this kind of thing will never happen again. I promised your father I would take good care of you.”
He would find a good family for Daya and marry her off properly.
Although the first few years were difficult, the eldest and second daughters were old enough to help out, care for their younger siblings, and do the housework. He focused on making money to support the family.
Erya glared at Zhuang Guoliang angrily. “You don’t need to worry about my sister and me. You’re all in the same group, trying to sell my sister.”
“I’ll take care of Daya and the others from now on!”
“Third brother, what are you doing here? Didn’t you draw a clear line between yourself and our family?” Zhuang Guoliang was furious.
Standing at the door was Zhuang San, pulling a cart, carrying a bundle, and bringing Gao Xiuqin and two children with him.
Hearing Zhuang Guoliang’s words, Zhuang San put down the cart, took two steps forward, and punched Zhuang Guoliang hard in the eye.
“Zhuang San, are you crazy? Why did you hit me?”