Chapter 330

Yagangchang gate

Qin Huairu, who had been specially summoned from the toilet‑sweeping site to here

When she first saw Jia Zhangshi

Her mind was muddled

She had considered anyone, but never imagined that the person coming to see her would be Qin Huairu's most dreaded former mother‑in‑law, Jia Zhangshi

Her face visibly drooped, as if Jia Zhangshi owed her a few hundred dollars, and she let out an indifferent cold snort

What are you doing here?

Her tone was as frigid as midwinter, devoid of any feeling, as if the person before her were Qin Huairu's longtime enemy

Jia Zhangshi did not grow angry over Qin Huairu's indifferent tone and icy, aloof expression

In her mind, the initiative of the matter had always been in her hands

They came to find Qin Huairu

They just wanted to tell Qin Huairu something

Don't think that just because you, Qin Huairu, have remarried to An Jiahe, you will always be a puppet in my, Jia Zhangshi's, hands; you'll never escape her palm in this lifetime

It stems from this idea

Faced with Qin Huairu's extremely rude attitude, Jia Zhangshi felt no displeasure; instead, a faint, indescribable excitement stirred in her heart

This feeling, from inside out, gave Jia Zhangshi a pleasure she had never known, elevating her body and mind

Jia Zhangshi laughed

Her ferocious cheeks

An openhearted smile

No matter how you look at it

No matter how, it cannot be filled with a sense of incongruity

Qin Huairu seemed frightened, instinctively stepping back to put as much distance as possible between herself and Jia Zhangshi; in the instant her eyes took in Jia Zhangshi's contradictory expressions, a thought arose in her mind that even she found frightening

Jia Zhangshi couldn't have gone mad, could she!

If it were the past

She didn't think so

The problem is that during this period, Qin Huairu and An Jiahe have teamed up, attacking Jia Zhangshi in every way; last night they even beat her up in front of the neighbors

Their role in the Jia family

Qin Huairu knew

Equivalent to the main pillar of the Jia family

After Qin Huairu remarried, she washed her hands of the Jia family, forcing the formerly lazy and gluttonous Jia Zhangshi to go to the Jiēdào to find work, exhausting herself each day like a third‑grandson—rising earlier than a chicken and sleeping later than a dog; the food was hardly decent, and the half‑grown child ate the poor old man's Bangeng, consuming half of Jia Zhangshi's income

Even a cornered rabbit will bite

What more can be said of a person?

If Jia Zhangshi were truly driven to desperation, she would likely harm herself

The more she pondered

Qin Huairu grew ever more afraid

Jia Zhangshi's ferocious, smiling face only increased the pressure on her

I tell you, this is Yagangchang; I am a Yagangchang worker. If you dare to act against me, you will surely be taken in. If you are taken in, what will become of Bangeng? Who will support Xiao Dang? They are the roots of the Jia Family; if anything happens to them, how will you face Dong Xu, how will you face Dong Xu's father?

Qin Huairu took Jia Zhangshi's beloved Bangeng

and threw it as a weapon

His words, between the lines, conveyed a meaning

You can't just ignore your own grandson, can you?

Since Jia Zhangshi is the Siheyuan's foremost protector of youngsters, in this situation the only recourse is to use Bangeng to threaten her in return

If you want Bangeng to be all right, you, Jia Zhangshi, must behave honestly

Are you afraid?

Jia Zhangshi, who had not taken Qin Huairu's threat to heart, retorted, believing that the one who should be afraid was Qin Huairu, not herself

Was counter‑threatened

What was thrown was her, Jia Zhangshi's, person

Do you dare say you're not afraid?

Qin Huairu's heart

Being shouted at by Jia Zhangshi, it was somewhat of a consolation

Judging by the sound

Jia Zhangshi doesn't seem to have gone mad

She swallowed a mouthful of saliva and stubbornly denied it

Why should I be afraid? This is Yagangchang; I am a Yagangchang worker. Next to it is the Yegang chang baowei ke. The one who should be afraid is you. What business do you have looking for me?

Qin Huairu herself hadn't even noticed that her voice was faintly trembling

This was a terror rising from the depths of her heart

You will be afraid

I am not afraid

Really?

Of course

Just now Liu Jianguo came looking for me.

Qin Huairu was stunned.

Liu Jianguo went to find Jia Zhangshi.

The police from the Red Star Police Station went looking for the notorious troublemaker famous in the siheyuan.

What do you want to say?

He asked me, regarding Dong Xu's death, whether I was involved or not.

Qin Huairu's body went limp.

If it weren't for the brick-built porch column behind her giving her support, Qin Huairu might already have been frightened into sitting collapsed on the ground.

Her already pallid cheeks.

At this moment it became even more eerie, looking like a living corpse.

This made Jia Zhangshi, who had not really suspected Qin Huairu before, instantly confirm her suspicion; seeing Qin Huairu's reaction, she realized her son's death was likely connected to this shameless daughter-in-law before her.

When a person dies, it's like a lamp going out.

Dead is dead.

But the living are still here.

Take a look at the Jia family now.

That saying really came true.

The house is bare, with only four walls.

In such an environment, how will Bangeng, who will grow up in a few years, afford to marry a wife, and how will Xiao Dang ever get married?

Coming to find Qin Huairu isn't just about using this matter to threaten her, in order to achieve the goal of controlling her, is it?

The strategy has already taken effect.

Jia Zhangshi shouldn't feel sad; she should be laughing, laughing at herself for having gotten a hold on Qin Huairu.

Qin Huairu, considering our over-ten-year mother-in-law and daughter-in-law relationship, I haven't said anything; I've pushed all the blame onto Yi Zhonghai's head—do you understand what I mean?

Her tone carried a hint of questioning.

Her gaze also shot toward Qin Huairu like a knife.

The already clever Qin Huairu.

How could she fail to grasp the meaning implied in Jia Zhangshi's tone?

To manipulate.

Or else continue to be a workhorse for the Jia family.

Having endured that hardship.

After great difficulty, she managed to jump out.

To jump back in again.

Is she willing?

The answer is obvious; she really is a bit unwilling.

She forced herself to stay upright and, with a slightly trembling tone, threw a sentence at Jia Zhangshi.

I haven't wronged the Jia family, nor Dong Xu; I don't know what you're talking about, and you'd better not try to pin this filth on me.

Qin Huairu, are you joking? Or are you bullying my old woman who knows nothing? I tell you, my old woman has lived over twenty years longer than you, she's seen everything, do you really think my old woman doesn't know about Pan Jinlian and Ximen Qing? Not saying it doesn't mean I dare not say it. You and Yi Zhonghai, you two want to live together, you…

To put pressure on Qin Huairu.

Jia Zhangshi suddenly raised her voice.

An posture of being ready to fight to the death with Qin Huairu.

She is gambling.

Gambling that Qin Huairu values her life more than Jia Zhangshi does.

Quite obvious.

She won this gamble.

At the moment Jia Zhangshi, in her provocation, shouted out the truth.

Qin Huairu spoke up to stop Jia Zhangshi; her originally icy tone also became much softer.