Chapter 318: Why Do You All Treat Me Like a Bad Person?

On the morning of the second day of the New Year, Li Ye didn't sleep in but woke up early out of reflex, put on his sneakers, and went out for a slow jog.

Because when he was at school, Li Ye would take Watching Wen Leyu out for morning exercises every other day.

Jogging, fencing, stretching leg muscles—a complete set of training processes that could increase the little girl's strength while ensuring she remained soft and resilient.

As for why he practiced every other day, this was formulated according to research by German sports experts. The human body's recovery period is greater than thirty-six hours; practicing every day is not beneficial to health and would gradually make one forget the joy of sleeping in.

Li Ye ran out of the house, exercising while breathing in the cold, clear air of the twelfth lunar month, hoping he could warm up as quickly as possible.

However, he had only run a few dozen meters when he heard movement from a small forest not far away.

At this time, the sky wasn't bright yet, and Li Ye couldn't see clearly what it was, so he walked cautiously for two steps without getting too close, then listened carefully.

Otherwise, what if it were two puppies falling in love? It wouldn't be good to disturb them, right?

But after listening carefully, Li Ye laughed.

"Hey~ you're asking for a beating!"

"If I can't beat Mom, can't I beat you?"

"You cunning ghost, you actually dared to plot against me..."

Li Ye walked over and, by the light that had just brightened in the sky, saw his younger sister, Li Ying.

Li Ying was wearing a fluffy fur hat, wrapped in a cotton-padded jacket and cotton boots like a little dog bear, and was hugging an elm tree as thick as a bowl and shaking it hard.

No, it seemed she was... wrestling with this elm tree.

"Hey hey~, whose child is this! You're going to shake this good elm tree to death."

Li Ye's sudden shout startled Li Ying, who jumped sideways far away before realizing it was her brother.

"Hehe, Brother, it's okay. This elm tree is very vigorous. I have little strength; I can't shake it to death."

Li Ying laughed and argued with Li Ye, adjusted her mink hat, and then giggled, "Brother, this hat is really good, really warm."

The hat was sent to the capital personally by Sun Xianjin's father; it was genuine mink fur, without a single stray hair. With different styles, it could be paired with Watching Wen Leyu and Li Ying respectively to bring out all sorts of cute looks.

"If you have little strength, don't always think about solving things with force,"

Li Ye helped Li Ying adjust her hat and said again, "If you can't beat them, join them. You can use your brain and think about what your sister needs most."

"Think about what you both have in your hands, and you can exchange them with each other. Sisters should love and help each other; don't act like enemies all day."

"But... but..."

Li Ying hesitated for a long time and said aggrievedly, "But everything I have, Sister wants. Everything Sister has, she doesn't want to give me. She always bullies me; I always suffer..."

"This... this isn't right!"

Li Ye reacted quickly and said, "Look, doesn't your sister have to help Mom with chores usually? Doesn't she have to wash your clothes and brush your shoes for you?"

"Doesn't she go fight with classmates who bully you? She doesn't just bully you, does she?"

Li Ying blinked her big eyes, wanting to say something but not daring to speak.

Isn't it only right for Sister to help Mom with chores? She already has the strength to do chores! How old am I?

Washing my clothes... Can't I just call her sister for nothing?

As for avenging me... well, having a sister is still very useful.

Li Ying nodded her little furry head: "I know, Brother. I won't hold a grudge against Sister for what happened yesterday."

"That's right! The more sisters fight, the more they hate each other. Be sweet-mouthed, and she won't even be embarrassed to move a finger against you."

Li Ye praised Li Ying a few times and then asked, "There's one more thing. Xiao Ying, tell me, where did you get the malt sugar and clothes you were selling at school?"

"I..."

Li Ying was a bit awkward and didn't answer Li Ye's question immediately.

Li Ye asked again, "Was it given to you by Han Chunlan? Or An Xiaoxu?"

Han Chunlan was Han Chunmei's younger sister, the younger aunt of Li Juan and Li Ying. Li Ye had even been given an electronic watch by her when he was in school.

And An Xiaoxu was Hao Jian's brother-in-law. These two were the easiest to approach the Li family, so Li Ye concluded it was one of them.

Sure enough, Li Ying couldn't withstand Li Ye's "pressure" and honestly confessed: "It was my younger aunt. She often comes to school to see me and always stuffs money into my hands."

"Mom said I have the surname Li now! I can't take my younger aunt's money, so I asked her for some goods, but I paid the cost price. I didn't take anything for free..."

"I didn't say what you were doing was wrong!" Li Ye rubbed Li Ying's mink hat and said gently, "But your task now is to study. You can't always be at the bottom of the class. You can wait until you're in college to earn money..."

Li Ye was still quite gratified. It's comfortable to take money without working, but Li Ying didn't want it. A girl having her own persistence—not bad!

Li Ying's train of thought was different from Li Ye's. After listening to Li Ye's words, she immediately asked, "Brother, then after I get into college, the money I earn will be my own, right?"

"Yes,"

Li Ye nodded and said, "Even the money you earn now, as long as you hide it well and don't let anyone find it, it's your own."

"Mm-hmm-hmm, hide it well, hide it well!"

Li Ying was overjoyed, suddenly feeling she had a big backer.

In the future, whoever forced her to hand over her money, she would just pull Li Ye out to block the gun.

"My brother said, as long as I hide it well, it's mine."

Pulling the tiger's skin to make a banner—the little girl still understood that.

Huang Suwen and the Huang siblings stayed in Dongshan for a few days. Li Yue acted as a tour guide for the three days, driving them to see the Mother River that nurtured the civilization of the Middle Kingdom, and to see the filming location of the TV series "Wu Song," Lingyan Temple, before returning to the capital in the late twelfth lunar month.

"Qiangzi, drive slowly on the road! If you're tired, stay in Jinghai for a night. Don't drive at night, pay attention to safety..."

Li Yue handed the Volga's car keys to Wang Jianqiang and gave him instructions on long-distance experience.

You tell me, how could a new driver of less than a year be giving instructions on long-distance experience to another new driver, and why didn't they both find it funny?

Li Ye took advantage of the time they were talking to pull Huang Gang aside.

"Brother Huang, have you adapted to the water and soil in Dongshan these past few days?"

Huang Gang said very politely, "Very good, very good. The Yellow River carp here is cooked well; it's delicious."

Li Ye nodded and said, "It's a bit cold in winter, and there are too few places to play. Come back next summer during the summer break, and we'll go to Island City together. The seafood there is good."

Huang Gang laughed, "Brother Li Ye, you're too polite. The capital has seafood too. When you return to the capital after the winter break, I'll treat you to a good taste."

Li Ye heard the politeness in Huang Gang's words and, after thinking for a moment, said frankly, "We didn't intend to hide Qiangzi's family situation from you."

"I understand the views you, as an older brother, have, but I can guarantee you that if Sister Suwen marries over, she will never suffer any grievances."

Although Huang Suwen had been playing happily with Li Yue and Wang Jianqiang for the past few days, the words of Huang Gang, this Beijing chatterbox, were clearly few.

Although Huang Gang didn't say anything, Li Ye could guess that he was very dissatisfied with the neglect from Wang Jianqiang's family.

Which older brother doesn't love his own younger sister? If his younger sister suffered grievances at her mother-in-law's house, the brothers-in-law were always the main force who would come over to flip tables and fight.

So, the brother-in-law looking at the brother-in-law has always been extremely strict in all aspects.

For example, Li Yue and Yang Yumin were absolutely "perfectly matched" in theory, but in Li Ye's eyes, this wasn't right and that wasn't right, always looking for bones in an egg.

"Brother Li Ye, you don't need to tell me this. Don't I understand Brother Qiang? Honest, kind-hearted, loyal, steady, dedicated. To tell you the truth, even if he saw a beautiful girl on the road, he wouldn't look at her twice."

"But... can you guarantee things like suffering grievances?"

"My father was very good to my mother, but when I was young, my mother often quarreled with my grandmother, and after coming back, she had to serve my father, only being able to wipe her tears secretly..."

"It's hard for an honest official to judge housework. Even if brothers and friends are close, they can't help with anything."

Huang Gang wasn't hypocritical and directly expressed his dissatisfaction with Fan Chunhua.

Whether a sister suffers grievances at her mother-in-law's house depends more than ninety percent on the mother-in-law. After all, she raised her son for twenty years, and now he is suddenly commanded by another woman. Even the most open-minded woman has a knot in her heart.

"You're wrong about that. We brothers can really help with Qiangzi's affairs."

Li Ye refuted Huang Gang's words very firmly and continued, "I won't hide it from you either. Qiangzi's success today is all thanks to the help of us brothers; it has nothing to do with his family."

"Besides, the house and wages Qiangzi has now are only a part of his wealth. His other share of dividends has always been kept with me."

Li Ye smiled and handed Huang Gang a cigarette, saying, "You can treat me as his older brother, his family. As long as I, this family member, am still here, Qiangzi and your sister will live without worry for the rest of their lives."

Huang Gang was stunned for a long time, not even noticing when Li Ye lit his cigarette.

Wang Jianqiang had a courtyard house in the capital, bought in full—the Huang family knew that.

And Wang Jianqiang had said two years ago that his monthly salary was several hundred yuan.

In 1983, the salary of a department-level official was only a few hundred yuan!

But listen to what Li Ye just said?

This is only a part of Wang Jianqiang's wealth?

What is wealth? I haven't read much; can you explain the detailed meaning of these two words to me?

Huang Gang finally said, "Brother Li Ye, our family... is not greedy for money."

"Of course I know your family are all people with backbone. You, Huang Gang, have been struggling outside, eating bitterness and suffering, but you just don't want to take advantage of the Pengcheng Seventh Factory..."

Li Ye laughed, "I just want to tell you that Qiangzi is a golden bachelor, and his personality is very compatible with your family. It's a rare blessing that he can be with Sister Suwen."

"When you return to the capital, I hope Brother Huang will be more accommodating, follow Sister Suwen's wishes, and say a few nice words in front of your parents."

Huang Gang: "..."

【I didn't even intend to say bad things in the first place, why do you all treat me like a bad person...】

The Volga walked north along National Highway 104, and Huang Suwen in the car also found an opportunity to ask her brother.

"Brother, what did you just say to him?"

Huang Gang said gloomily, "It's him who said to me... to not talk too much when I get home, and that everything is up to you."

Huang Suwen was stunned for a moment, then stared and said, "No, Brother, do you mean you still want to talk too much to Mom? Are you trying to break Qiangzi and me up?"

"I didn't, I originally just wanted to say a few nice words. Why do you all treat me like a bad person..." ===== CHAPTER 319 =====