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Chapter 480: Chapter 470 Mom, My Future Depends on You
"Mom, has there been any letter from my second brother?" Li Hongqi pushed his bicycle into the yard and asked his mother in the kitchen.
All day, he had been preoccupied with whether they had received the remittance. He even made up an excuse to decline his father-in-law’s invitation to dinner after work, just so he could come home and check if the money had arrived. The wedding was only a couple of days away, but so far, they hadn’t even bought the bride’s dress, let alone secured the sewing machine they had promised her for the marriage. Even the deposit for the banquet had not been paid, despite having made a reservation. They had set a date for the wedding, but preparations had barely begun.
The reason was simple: no money.
"Not yet, I waited at the brigade all day and only came back after the postman had been." Qiu Shuping emerged from the kitchen, shaking water off her hands, dutifully reporting to her younger son.
Li Hongqi’s expression shifted from hope to disappointment, finally settling into a deep frown.
"Hongqi, don’t worry, there are still two days left. I reckon the money should arrive tomorrow," Qiu Shuping said, trying to comfort her son who clearly couldn’t bear this predicament.
"Mom, the wedding is the day after tomorrow. Even if we don’t buy Xiaolan a sewing machine for now, we at least need to get her a new dress to wear into our family. We promised her a proper wedding, but look at the time, nothing has been honored yet. Xiaolan must be anxious too. Today, our director specifically spoke to me, asking what my intentions were—whether I wanted to get married or not," Li Hongqi said with a face full of sorrow.
"Of course we’re getting married, how could we not? Xiaolan is carrying..." Qiu Shuping fiercely objected, her daughter-in-law already pregnant with their grandchild—how could the wedding not take place.
"Shh, shh, shh..." Li Hongqi quickly interrupted Qiu Shuping, his eyes darting outside, anxious in case someone had overheard. "Mom, keep your voice down. You wouldn’t want people to find out," Li Hongqi chided, "Didn’t I tell you? This can’t be spoken of. We’re already struggling to keep it under wraps, and there you go, shouting it out loud. Do you want your son to be taken away?" Li Hongqi’s anxiety was palpable, and he regretted deeply ever telling his mother about it, knowing well her disposition.
Seeing Li Hongqi glaring with eyes wide, Qiu Shuping shrank back, placing her hand lightly over her mouth, "It’s all my fault, all my fault, I forgot for a moment. Hongqi, don’t be angry, I promise you, this will be the last time, I will surely remember in future."
Li Hongqi wanted to scold her some more, but considering their current situation, he exasperatedly ran his fingers through his hair, took a deep breath to calm himself down before speaking gently to his mother, "Mom, it wasn’t you I was angry with, it was myself I was mad at." He slowly crouched down, looking helplessly like a child, "Xiaolan and I are getting married the day after tomorrow, yet our family hasn’t prepared anything because we have no money. If my second brother doesn’t send the money tomorrow, what am I going to do?"
"That’s impossible; the money will definitely come from your second brother tomorrow. Your dad and I can contribute a hundred from our retirement money, and for your wedding, your second brother ought to give at least a hundred as well. That would be two hundred, which should be enough to buy whatever we need." Qiu Shuping spouted confidently, despite feeling uncertain inside.
"I doubt it, Mom. Didn’t you say my second brother was away on a task? If my second sister-in-law knows about what happened back then, it wouldn’t be impossible for her to spite me and not send us any money," Li Hongqi felt it was a real possibility. His relationship with his second sister-in-law wasn’t the best, and if she knew that he had reported on her in the past, she would certainly hold a grudge. If he were in her shoes, he wouldn’t send money either. If Shen Yunfang deliberately didn’t send money to the family back home, there was nothing he could do but watch helplessly.
"She wouldn’t dare, she wouldn’t dare not send it. If she dares not to send the money, I’ll go and fight her myself. It’s completely out of order. When we divided the family property, it was clearly written down in black and white. She wouldn’t dare deny it," Qiu Shuping’s eyes bulged with indignation, suddenly reminded of the property division agreement. Usually, she conveniently forgot about it whenever she was asking for money from her second son.
Seeing his mother’s outburst, Li Hongqi felt increasingly annoyed inside, but he knew that only his mother could help him now. He couldn’t afford to lose his temper or show any impatience; he had to placate his mother first.
"But what if your second sister-in-law says she didn’t receive your letter, huh? People can say whatever they want." Li Hongqi was projecting, if it were him, that’s how he’d handle it, "Mom, I’m only getting married once in my life. If there’s nothing at my wedding, how will people not laugh at me later? All my colleagues said they’d come to the house for the wedding. Plus, Xiaolan’s dad is my immediate boss. If our family can’t meet the Xiaolan family’s expectations, how am I supposed to work in the future?" Li Hongqi pleaded pitifully.
"Then, then what do you think we should do?" Qiu Shuping panicked about affecting her son’s future and didn’t know what the best course of action would be.
"I think we can’t just rely on my second sister-in-law. We need to think of a different solution." Li Hongqi shared the idea he’d been considering for several days.
"Alright, just tell me whatever plan you have, I’ll definitely listen to you," Qiu Shuping assured him, patting her chest.
Li Hongqi smiled and said, "Mom, like you said, my second sister-in-law wouldn’t dare not to send the money. It’s just a matter of sooner or later."
Qiu Shuping nodded in agreement, it was a given for her son and daughter-in-law to provide for their old age.
"But I’m about to get married and can’t wait for the money from my second sister-in-law. I was thinking, since it’s just a temporary issue, why don’t you go borrow some money from the neighbors first? We can get the wedding done smoothly, and once my second sister-in-law sends the money, we can pay it back. Don’t you think?" As Li Hongqi spoke, those shifty eyes of his were observing Qiu Shuping’s expression. Seeing her look troubled, he quickly added, "Besides, Xiaolan and I are getting married. We’ll definitely receive a good amount of gift money. Then, I’ll have Xiaolan give it all to you, Mom. That would fill half the hole, wouldn’t it?"
"But your dad said that from now on, we’re not allowed to borrow money from anyone anymore." Qiu Shuping was tempted by her son’s words but also remembered her husband’s commands.
Originally, when Shen Yunfang called Li Hongqi’s school to collect debts, it really embarrassed Old Li. He had lived his entire life in an honest and upright manner, and it was the first time someone had come to collect a debt from him. To make matters worse, the debt collector was his daughter-in-law, which made him feel even more humiliated. That’s why he pressured his wife to repay the money quickly and strictly ordered Qiu Shuping not to borrow money ever again.
Old Li’s philosophy was to live within your means. If the money was short, spend less, but never borrow money to spend.
"So, Mom, that’s why I came to discuss this with you. You know how stubborn Dad can be. If he finds out about this, he’ll never agree. C’mon, borrowing money isn’t forever; it’s just until we can pay it back. The neighbors, who hasn’t been a bit tight and borrowed from someone else only to repay it later? It’s not a big deal. Besides, when you borrow the money, you can write an IOU. After all, as soon as my brother sends the money back, we will be able to repay it," Li Hongqi continued to brainwash his mother.
"Is that really okay?" Qiu Shuping hesitated.
"Yes, it’s totally okay. Even if my second sister-in-law doesn’t send the money, don’t I still have a salary? Once we get over this hurdle, how can’t we gradually repay the money? Mom, my entire future is depending on you," Li Hongqi said, hugging his mother’s thighs with a look of grievance.
Qiu Shuping looked down at her son, steeled her heart, and said, "Fine, I’ll go make a round to the Wang Family’s place in a bit." 𝖓𝔬𝖛𝔭𝔲𝖇.𝔠𝔬𝖒
