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Chapter 333: Chapter 333: Unable to help despite deep love
Tong Yao, walking out from the back room, overheard the couple’s conversation, and interjected crisply, "The milk tea shop is fully staffed, not lacking help.
"You have four people in your shop, you could just fire two!" Si Xiaohui said, "Don’t fire Gu Hongwei, he’s from our village. Fire anyone else you want. I’d say Song Yu and I are better than strangers, we’re family after all. It’s only right we earn money for our own. This is called ’keeping wealth within the family,’ isn’t it?"
She didn’t know those people anyway, it didn’t matter who got fired.
Song Yu’s face changed. He seemed a little upset, but held his tongue in front of the brother and sister-in-law.
Tong Yao rolled her eyes, "I can’t afford you two." Having them work in her shop was nothing but a nuisance.
Upon hearing this, Si Xiaohui was instantly anxious, "How can you say "can’t afford"?" she said. "Just pay us whatever you’re paying the others. If that’s not feasible, you can pay us a little less in exchange for room and board!"
Working in a milk tea shop was so easy! She could even brag about being a store owner. What future was there in hard labor at the factory? Being dirty all day, laboring for ten years and still being no more than a worker.
Tong Yao insisted: "No room and board, no job. I suggest you give up on this idea as early as possible!"
Seeing that Tong Yao was unmoved, Si Xiaohui turned to Si Chen, pleadingly said, "Brother, are you really going to stand by and let Song Yu and I end up on the streets? I haven’t even finished my confinement period after giving birth yet. Song Yu and I don’t need your help with anything else. Can’t we even work in your shop? Am I really your blood sister?"
"Whether you are my sister, you can call mom to find out." Si Chen’s face was expressionless, "If you want to stay in Kyoto, you have to fend for yourself and find a job. If you want to leave Kyoto, I can help you book a ticket for tomorrow."
His meaning was clear: whether it was Lin Fengying or Si Xiaohui, all he could do was help book a ticket home.
As for anything else, he was powerless.
Upon hearing this, Tong Yao’s eyes narrowed. Truly, a husband and wife, united in heart, may be stronger than any metal. As long as Si Chen was with her, she wasn’t afraid of anything or anyone.
"Brother..." Si Xiaohui stamped her feet in anger.
Song Yu stood by, not daring to utter a word. It was clear that the in-laws were determined not to help. This plan was no longer viable and further pleading wouldn’t help.
It would be better to ask Si Chen’s younger uncle for more help. If Si Xiaohui cried a little in front of him, they might get some money from him.
Actually, Song Yu very much wanted to return to Li City. If he and Si Xiaohui took the TV set back, it would afford them a good deal of respectability. Then, after some time, his uncle could help them open a shop and their life would surely prosper. Unfortunately, Si Xiaohui was bewitched by the prosperity of Kyoto and stubbornly refused to return.
"This is a family housing court, stop making noise at night and disturbing the neighbors. If you don’t have anything else, you should go home early." Si Chen threw out this sentence and then went back into the house to grab a change of clothes for his bath.
Seeing this, Song Yu could only pull Si Xiaohui out of the family housing court. Before leaving, Si Xiaohui didn’t forget to take the fruits they’d brought with them.
They came here feeling confident, thinking that as long as they could swallow their pride and beg Si Chen and Tong Yao, they would secure a new job. They hadn’t expected their brother and sister-in-law’s hearts to be as hard as stones.
Back at their rented room, Song Yu thought long and hard and concluded that returning to Li City was the best option. He brought a basin of water for Si Xiaohui to wash her feet while earnestly trying to persuade her.
"Xiaohui, what about we just go back to Li City? We now have more than 200 yuan and a TV set. If we go back now, relax for a bit, wait until your little uncle settles this issue, we can open a shop. Then you’ll be the boss’s wife, and I’ll be the boss. We’ll still live comfortably. I guarantee that people in the village will be green with envy."
As soon as she heard him mention going back, Si Xiaohui’s face fell, "If you want to return, you can go back. But I’m certainly not going back. It’s rare to make it to a big city. Only a fool would want to return. Do you have any ambition at all?"
Song Yu lamented, "Our brother and sister-in-law are not willing to help us. I won’t go far working at the steel factory anyway. I’m a college graduate, working in a steel factory would make me the laughing stock back home." Even if they didn’t open a shop in Li City, he could still find work as a teacher.
Si Xiaohui of course knew that working at the steel factory would have bleak prospects, otherwise she would not have gone begging from her brother and sister-in-law. As she mulled it over, her face suddenly lit up and she exclaimed excitedly,
"How could we forget about Lin Man? She’s from Kyoto, she has many relatives and friends there, she’s sure to help you find a good job."
Song Yu was wavering, "Can she really help us?"
Ever since Lin Man had taken Si Xiaohui shopping, Song Yu didn’t really like Lin Man. He felt she was a bad influence, making Si Xiaohui increasingly materialistic and often criticizing him for being useless and unambitious, which added to his stress.
Before they met Lin Man, Si Xiaohui had always admired him for being an educated man.
"Well, we’ll never know unless we try, right? Last time she mentioned that she started working in my eldest brother’s hospital. She was able to find work so easily probably because she got a leg up from her relatives." Having a connection made Si Xiaohui’s mood much better. She looked at Song Yu, who seemed more positive to her, excitedly proposed, "You’re a college graduate, you’ll definitely find work easily. Let her find a decent job for you. When I’ve regained my health, she can help me find a job as well." 𝔫𝖔𝔳𝖕𝖚𝔟.𝔠𝔬𝖒
If they didn’t open a shop, they would decide when they have rooted themselves in Kyoto.
Seizing the opportunity, Song Yu said, "It’s okay to try, but if she can’t help us, then we return to Li City, okay?"
"Oh my gosh! Stop being like Pig, always wanting to go back to Gao Laozhuang. It’s annoying, okay?" Si Xiaohui was irritated, she took her feet out of the basin, rubbed them on Song Yu’s pant leg a few times, then fell asleep at the edge of the bed.
She had previously thought Song Yu was capable. She regretted that she had believed his sweet words and rushed into getting married. Now she had a thousand and one regrets. Still, she shouldn’t have been so impulsive back then.
Si Xiaohui held traditional thoughts, believing that once married, she shouldn’t divorce lightly, otherwise she would be looked down upon. So although she regretted it, she didn’t mention anything about divorce.
Song Yu was also feeling a little depressed. He didn’t comfort Si Xiaohui like before and instead just fell asleep. He was full of thoughts about going back to Li City, where he had cash and a TV – enough to show off in the village. However, Si Xiaohui didn’t see eye-to-eye with him and the money wasn’t in his hands, so he had little say.
It hurt him thinking that as a college graduate, back in the countryside people would invite him to compose verses for the village and everyone was friendly to him. Here, though, he was reduced to living off others’ charity. Even though he was living comfortably, it wasn’t a long-term plan.
The tree rises high, but it doesn’t forget its roots. It was best to develop back home.
After a night of pondering to the point he felt his head was smoking, Song Yu was still unable to find a way to convince Si Xiaohui to return to Li City.
