Chapter 228: Wang Mother and Wang Chunmei
Look at how beautifully her eldest daughter-in-law and her third daughter-in-law were getting along; they were practically close friends already.
After spending a few days with Sheng Wanyan, Liang Zhenna found herself growing increasingly fond of her new sister-in-law.
She quickly discovered that Wanyan was incredibly knowledgeable, possessing the capacity to hold an intelligent, nuanced conversation on virtually any topic Liang Zhenna raised. Working as an executive in the Education Bureau, Liang Zhenna spent her days surrounded by cultured intellectuals and scholars, meaning her everyday speech naturally leaned toward a highly literary, academic register.
Yet, to her profound surprise, she realized Wanyan’s intellectual reserves were in no way inferior to her own—a woman who had spent over a decade steeped in the national education system.
Because the two women clicked so effortlessly, Liang Zhenna was thrilled to finally have a confidante within the household to whom she could bare her innermost thoughts.
Friends forged in external social circles were inherently unreliable, and there were countless sensitive matters one simply couldn’t discuss with acquaintances in their elite tier. But Wanyan was entirely different. She possessed a fierce loyalty and would never allow her own family members to suffer an injustice.
When Wang Chunmei first married into the family, Liang Zhenna had initially hoped to build a similar bond with her. However, as time progressed, Wang Chunmei’s petty, manipulative, and relentlessly calculating nature had gradually been exposed, and Liang Zhenna had swiftly drawn a strict boundary between them. Now, having engaged with Wanyan, it was blindingly clear that the third sister-in-law operated on an entirely different, vastly superior level to Wang Chunmei.
Time flew past, and New Year’s Eve arrived.
Back at the Wang estate, Wang Chunmei began to feel a deep, gnawing panic when she realized no one from the Gu family had come to collect her.
Mother Wang was also growing increasingly uncomfortable with the situation. Having a married daughter lingering at her maiden home through the absolute peak of the Lunar New Year holidays was an incredibly poor omen. What on earth was going on?
But whenever Mother Wang considered the staggering sixteen thousand yuan her daughter had recently handed over, the words of eviction died in her throat. She couldn’t very well throw her out after securing such a massive fortune.
Instead, she tried to broach the subject from a more roundabout angle. “My girl, has your husband truly not come by yet?”
“It’s New Year’s Eve,” Mother Wang pressed gently. “For a son-in-law to abandon his wife at her maiden home during the turning of the year is simply outrageous.”
“You are heavily pregnant, and little Jingjing is still so young. How can you bear to be separated from your daughter and husband for so long?”
Wang Chunmei felt a sharp sting of discomfort at her mother’s words.
Gu Tinghao hadn’t set foot in the Wang courtyard for an entire half-month, nor had he sent a single message to inquire about her well-being. This was the absolute first time in their marriage that Gu Tinghao had displayed such frigid cruelty. Deep down, Wang Chunmei knew the terrifying truth: her husband might genuinely be entirely serious this time.
And she blamed the entire catastrophe on Sheng Wanyan. Why did that vixen have to bring up the wedding gifts out of nowhere? Sheng Wanyan was just some provincial girl playing at being a city wife; did she honestly think she was worthy of an expensive pair of leather shoes?
“My girl, why don’t you swallow your pride and head back to the compound to check the situation?” Mother Wang suggested softly. “You are pregnant with a direct descendant of the Gu line. The Gu family will never remain truly angry with you.”
“Mom, giving birth to a daughter is entirely useless,” Wang Chunmei muttered bitterly. “Daughters are nothing but money-losing liabilities. The Gu family occupies such an astronomically high position; if I give them a daughter, they won’t allocate a single extra asset to our branch.”
She wasn’t stupid. She knew perfectly well that the capital distributed during the recent family division was merely the liquid wealth the old general had chosen to display on the surface. There was absolutely no telling how many hidden fortunes, political favors, and ancestral assets the Gu family held in secret reserves.
So what if she had delivered a daughter? Daughters inevitably married out and ultimately belonged to an entirely different family line. The senior elders of the Gu family weren’t foolish enough to distribute their core inheritance to a granddaughter like Gu Jingjing.
Therefore, securing a son was the absolute most practical, vital objective. If the baby currently resting in her womb was a boy, the fourth branch would secure a permanent, irrefutable claim to a massive share of the remaining estate. It would be perfect if Sheng Wanyan ended up delivering a worthless daughter; that way, the fourth branch could easily dominate the future inheritance.
Mother Wang was desperately searching for a polite way to force her daughter out the door. Wang Chunmei was pregnant, meaning she demanded a massive caloric intake every single day she remained at her maiden home, and she stubbornly insisted on consuming only premium, fine grains at every meal.
Where on earth was the Wang family supposed to source an endless supply of fine grains?!
If Mother Wang continued diverting their premium stores to her daughter, her own grandsons living in the house would have to tighten their belts. Furthermore, several of Mother Wang’s own daughters-in-law had already voiced fierce, bitter objections regarding Wang Chunmei’s extended stay, and her sons were growing increasingly irritated by the drain on their household resources.
But Mother Wang had accepted that massive sixteen-thousand-yuan windfall from her daughter; she couldn’t just blatantly kick her out!
“Mom, stop trying to persuade me. I’m not going back yet,” Wang Chunmei snapped.
Trying a different tack, Mother Wang recalled a scheme her daughter had mentioned a while ago. “By the way, didn’t you mention you were orchestrating a plan to have Jingjing formally adopted into your third brother’s household? How is that progressing?”
Wang Chunmei’s face darkened with profound annoyance at the reminder. She genuinely hadn’t anticipated that Sheng Wanyan would arrive for the holidays already carrying a child of her own.
“My third sister-in-law is nearing her fourth month of pregnancy,” Wang Chunmei scowled. “I have no idea if they’ll still agree to the arrangement now.”
“Why on earth would they refuse?” Mother Wang scoffed. “Jingjing is their own biological niece. Even if your sister-in-law is expecting, it’s not as if the third branch lacks the financial resources to raise a second child. And once they raise Jingjing, won’t she be obligated to show them the exact same filial piety when they grow old?”
Both Wang Chunmei and her mother fully understood that a daughter’s filial piety had an incredibly short expiration date; she would only serve her parents for a few years before she was married off to serve her in-laws. Offloading that financial burden was a brilliant strategy.
“Think about it,” Mother Wang pressed eagerly. “If you deliver a precious son for your branch, your husband will undoubtedly agree to the adoption. It’s not as if you’re surrendering the girl to strangers. You’re simply transferring her to his own brother’s household, which keeps her entirely within the family! You’ll still be able to see her whenever you wish.”
How could Wang Chunmei not recognize the brilliance of the plan?
She had never dared to propose the adoption to the eldest brother’s family. Gu Tingye was the undisputed primary heir of the Gu clan; Old Master Gu would be the very first to brutally veto any attempt to dump Jingjing into his household.
But Gu Tingxiao was entirely different. He was merely the third son, yet he pulled an officer’s salary of over a hundred yuan a month—more than double what Gu Tinghao earned. Gu Tinghao had only been drawing a salary for a few years, bringing home a paltry few dozen yuan.
By the time her new son arrived, keeping a useless daughter at home would be an unforgivable drain on their finances. How could they possibly afford to raise her?!
Although Wang Chunmei currently held the prestigious title of finance director at her factory, she absolutely refused to squander her hard-earned wages on a money-losing liability. Every single cent she possessed was destined for her future son; wasting it on Jingjing was unthinkable!
Furthermore, her current pregnancy meant she was on an extended leave of absence. Although she had successfully installed a proxy to hold her director title while she was away, she wasn’t drawing her executive salary during the break. After the birth, she would need to remain home for an extended confinement period to care for the boy, delaying her return to the workforce even further. If they kept Jingjing during that financially tight window, the fourth branch would operate at a severe loss.
Gu Tingxiao, however, possessed a massive monthly income. Taking on the financial burden of two children wouldn’t strain his household in the slightest. Besides, what was the harm in an older brother providing a little financial relief for his younger brother?
Wang Chunmei had already carefully rehearsed the narrative with her daughter, instructing Jingjing to throw a massive, tearful tantrum demanding to be adopted by her third uncle. Once the child initiated the emotional blackmail, there was no way the Gu family could gracefully refuse the request. Ultimately, absorbing Jingjing would be highly beneficial for Gu Tingxiao’s public reputation as a devoted brother.
What Wang Chunmei hadn’t calculated, however, was that she would be completely exiled from the Gu estate for the past half-month. She was terrified that by the time she finally returned to the compound, all her meticulous psychological conditioning on her daughter would have faded, rendering her master plan entirely useless.
“Why don’t you head back to the compound today and officially broach the subject with the Gu elders?” Mother Wang urged. “When your third brother and his wife inevitably return to their northern base, it will present the perfect, seamless opportunity for them to take Jingjing with them.”
Wang Chunmei studied the desperate, anxious gleam in her mother’s eyes, her own eyes narrowing in suspicion.
“Mom, you aren’t trying to chase me out of the house, are you?”
“How could you even suggest such a thing?!” Mother Wang gasped, immediately feigning deep offense. Yet, internally, she was praying to every deity that her daughter would pack her bags and leave this instant. The Wang household simply couldn’t afford to subsidize her luxurious dietary demands any longer.
“I transferred every single cent of my savings to you,” Wang Chunmei stated coldly. “If you intend to drive me away, you are required to return those funds to me first.”
“My precious, darling daughter, what nonsense are you spewing?” Mother Wang cooed, quickly changing her tone. “You are my own flesh and blood. I wish you could stay right here in your childhood bedroom forever! It’s simply that… well, allowing this bitter standoff with your husband to fester for so long isn’t a wise strategy. I am deeply worried that your marriage might suffer permanent, irreparable damage.”
Hearing the honeyed excuse, Wang Chunmei subjected her mother’s expression to a long, intense scrutiny. Still, she had to admit the underlying logic of the warning was sound. She absolutely could not afford to sustain this cold war with Gu Tinghao indefinitely.
“Fine. Then hand over two thousand yuan,” Wang Chunmei demanded, extending her hand. “I’ll take the cash back to the compound to pacify Gu Tinghao.”
Mother Wang’s blood boiled instantly at the demand. The massive sum hadn’t even begun to gather warmth in her secret lockbox, and her daughter was already demanding a massive cut of it back?!
“My dear girl, if you carry that cash back to the compound, it will undoubtedly fall straight into the hands of the senior Gu elders.”
