Chapter 54: Mother-in-Law and Daughter-in-Law Clash
Once the car was in hand, Mu Zhenzhen couldn’t wait to get into the driver’s seat.
Mu Lantu said, “Next, let’s check out some watches. Sis, you should know Qingning City better than I do. Can you lead the way?”
“No problem!”
It was obvious that having the car boosted Mu Zhenzhen’s confidence—she was beaming, and her voice unconsciously rose in pitch.
Mu Zhenzhen thought the watch was for Mu Lantu himself, but when they arrived, she realized it was meant for Luo Wangjun.
Luo Wangjun was startled. “No, no, it’s really not necessary!”
Mu Lantu pushed him inside. “Huazhang felt a connection with you and insisted on buying it for you. Don’t let his kind gesture go to waste.”
Luo Wangjun genuinely felt unworthy of such a gift, but his brother-in-law was surprisingly strong, and Xu Huazhang joined in the pushing. He had no choice but to turn to Mu Zhenzhen for help.
“Wife?”
Mu Zhenzhen was in a dilemma. If she refused, she might offend Xu Huazhang, and it would make things awkward for her brother. But accepting the gift felt too extravagant. Plus, she still had suspicions about the true nature of the relationship between her brother and Xu Huazhang.
Xu Huazhang pressured him, “Brother-in-law, if you refuse again, I’ll feel too embarrassed to hang out next time.”
“Huazhang, really, it’s too much,” Luo Wangjun said with a wry smile.
Mu Zhenzhen’s parents, Mu Zhenguo and He Cuifang, were old and sharp. They could tell that Xu Huazhang was clearly trying to help the younger son show up the older one. But so what? Xu Huazhang was just an outsider—they couldn’t control him even if they wanted to.
Mu Zhenzhen looked like she wanted to speak several times but held back. Finally, she turned to Mu Lantu. Her beautiful almond-shaped eyes were full of concern and worry, with a trace of resolve.
“Little brother, you decide.”
Mu Lantu patted his brother-in-law’s back and smiled subtly. “Isn’t my stance obvious?”
Mu Zhenzhen noticed Xu Huazhang only had eyes for Mu Lantu and sighed inwardly. She smiled at Luo Wangjun and said, “Since it’s Huazhang’s goodwill, just accept it. If you feel bad, next time he visits, we’ll make sure he has a great time.”
Any further refusal would seem ungrateful, so Luo Wangjun accepted the gift with poise.
Mu Lantu and Xu Huazhang chose a watch priced over 50,000 yuan for Luo Wangjun—more expensive than the ones Mu Hongtu and Mu Zhenguo wore.
Mu Lantu poked Xu Huazhang with a puzzled look. He got the feeling that Xu Huazhang might also harbor resentment toward Mu Zhenguo.
Xu Huazhang didn’t seem to notice and asked, “Lantu, how about this one? I think it really suits your brother-in-law.”
He did resent Mu Zhenguo’s inaction. If Mu Zhenguo and He Cuifang had treated their three children fairly, how could Mu Lantu have been mistreated in Mu Hongtu’s home? And this was only the part he knew—what about what he didn’t know?
Mu Lantu got distracted. So what if there was resentment? It was Xu Huazhang’s money; he could spend it however he wanted.
“Let’s see if my brother-in-law likes it.”
Luo Wangjun just grinned foolishly. The watch Xu Huazhang picked was worth over 50,000 yuan—what’s not to like?
“Sure, it’s great!”
So they bought that one.
At lunch, Mu Zhenzhen and her husband insisted on hosting.
The group ate in Qingning City. Afterward, Mu Lantu and his crew headed back to the capital, while Mu Zhenzhen and Luo Wangjun each drove a car and took Mu Zhenguo and He Cuifang back to Anfeng County.
Mu Zhenguo and He Cuifang went to register for driving school.
That evening, Mu Zhenzhen and Luo Wangjun took their new car for a spin around the county. They didn’t bother cooking at home. Instead, the couple took their kids and in-laws out to a well-known restaurant on the other side of town.
Luo Wangjun’s parents, upon learning that their daughter-in-law’s brother had gifted her a car worth nearly 200,000 yuan and bought their son a watch worth over 50,000 yuan, were quite pleased. They already liked Mu Zhenzhen, and their attitude became even more affable.
As luck would have it, they ran into acquaintances while parking.
It was one of Luo Wangjun’s colleagues, who had also brought his wife and daughter for dinner.
The colleague politely greeted Mu Zhenguo and He Cuifang and offered them cigarettes.
“You bought a car? Where’d you strike it rich? Take me along next time!”
Luo Wangjun accepted the cigarette. “You know my situation—where would I get money for a car? My brother-in-law bought it for my wife.”
The colleague raised an eyebrow, about to say something, when he noticed the watch and grabbed Luo Wangjun’s wrist. “Damn! Still claiming you’re not rich? That watch is at least fifty grand!”
Luo Wangjun laughed it off. It was too complicated to explain that the watch was from his brother-in-law’s friend, so he just said it was from his brother-in-law.
“Damn!” The colleague was visibly envious. “Why don’t I have such a generous brother-in-law?”
His wife, chatting with Mu Zhenzhen, rolled her eyes when she overheard and grumbled, “Look at him! And here I was wishing I had a sister-in-law like her!”
Mu Zhenzhen covered her mouth, chuckling but not saying much—didn’t want to seem like she was bragging. She stuck to harmless small talk. “Didn’t expect to see you here today. This place is far from our neighborhood—it’s actually my first time here.”
They hadn’t eaten yet, and the kids were getting hungry. After some small talk, the two families parted ways.
As the Luo family entered the restaurant, the colleague and his wife kept gossiping.
The wife asked, “What does your colleague’s brother-in-law do? So loaded?”
“No idea what he does, but he’s definitely rich. Remember those rumors going around about a guy who bought his parents a house and two cars? That was his brother-in-law!”
“Ah! It was their family? Then he really is loaded. Not just giving gifts to his parents, but his sister too!”
“My colleague has another brother-in-law—bet he got something too. Ugh, I can’t talk about this anymore. It’s making me crazy jealous.”
His wife was still hungry for gossip and shared it in a group chat, which quickly spread to others…
Yang Xiurong saw Fang Qiuyu walking toward her with a smile, head held high and chest puffed out.
“What, you want to fight again?”
Fang Qiuyu stepped back and covered her mouth with a chuckle. “I’m just here to tell you some good news. If you don’t want to hear it, that’s fine.”
Yang Xiurong suddenly felt something was off, like many eyes were on her, but when she looked around, she saw nothing. She nervously wondered—was it because she’d been caught stealing beef from the store? Or because that woman she insulted the other day found out about it?
“What good news? Say it or don’t!”
Fang Qiuyu drawled, “I just heard from a friend that your brother-in-law bought your sister-in-law a car worth 200,000 yuan, and a watch worth over 50,000 yuan for her husband. He must’ve gotten you and your husband something too, right? Want to call your husband and check?”
Yang Xiurong’s face instantly changed.
Fang Qiuyu had already verified that her brother-in-law gave her nothing. She was deliberately stirring the pot.
“Eh? Why do you look so pale?”
“None of your damn business!” Yang Xiurong snapped, grabbing her phone and rushing off.
A few coworkers gathered around Fang Qiuyu, all with amused expressions.
“Qiuyu, is it true that her brother-in-law didn’t give them anything?”
“It’s true,” Fang Qiuyu said, sipping tea, totally relaxed.
“Such obvious favoritism—Yang Xiurong must be losing her mind!”
“Bet she and her husband pissed off her brother-in-law!”
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Yang Xiurong was furious, but she still had a shred of rationality. She entered a private dining room and called He Cuifang, speaking calmly with a slight smile.
“Mom, I just heard that Little Brother bought Sister-in-Law a car worth 200,000 yuan, and a watch for her husband worth over 50,000. What’s going on?”
“Don’t listen to gossip. The car wasn’t 200,000.”
“But Mom, you didn’t deny it, so it really happened?” she said even more calmly, enunciating each word.
“Yes.”
“So, what did he get for me and my husband?” she asked, still smiling.
There was a brief silence.
“Nothing.”
Yang Xiurong kicked a chair across the room, making a loud crash.
“Nothing at all? So what, he’s cutting us off?!”
He Cuifang snapped, “Why are you yelling at me? You know exactly why he didn’t get you anything. Serves you right!”
Two hundred thousand!
Yang Xiurong’s fury tore through her reason.
“You think your precious son is so great? Just some kept boy! Only you would treat him like gold!”
“Yang Xiurong! What did you just say?! I’ll rip your filthy mouth off!”
Outside the private room, eavesdroppers frowned.
Fang Qiuyu gagged. “Ugh, she’s disgusting. First she spread rumors about girls being kept, now she’s saying that about her brother-in-law?”
“Seriously! That’s her own brother-in-law!”
One coworker whispered, “I’ve seen his friend and his car. That guy’s rich rich! No way he hangs out with some sugar baby.”
“Exactly!”
Another coworker whispered, “Think her mother-in-law’s gonna show up and slap her?”
Fang Qiuyu perked up. “She better! If not, I’d feel sorry for her brother-in-law having such a useless mom!”
“So we’re getting a show?”
As noise erupted from the room, everyone scattered.
After saying that, Yang Xiurong regretted it. But it was too late—the call was cut. She tried calling back, but He Cuifang didn’t answer.
Nervously biting her lip, she considered asking for leave—but she didn’t want to lose her perfect attendance bonus.
She didn’t get much time to decide. A figure stormed in from outside, face twisted in rage, eyes scanning the restaurant until she spotted Yang Xiurong and charged over like a gust of wind.
Yang Xiurong tried to dodge, but He Cuifang’s slap landed hard, knocking her into a chair. She cried out in pain.
“M-Mom! You—”
“Yang Xiurong! I’ve had enough of you!”
Slap! Slap! Slap…
He Cuifang slapped her multiple times before anyone could react.
“That’s for your filthy mouth! Filthy mouth!”
Restaurant staff and diners were stunned, phones raised to film.
Yang Xiurong, finally snapping out of it, screamed and tried to fight back.
But He Cuifang wasn’t easy to deal with. Fueled by rage, she pinned Yang Xiurong to the chair with one hand and slapped her twice more before her strength gave out. She straightened up, panting, eyes burning with fury.
“You filthy woman! Say one more bad word about my son and I will tear your mouth off! Don’t believe me? Try me!”
The manager arrived late, face black with anger, and roared:
“Yang Xiurong! Stirring up trouble again! Get out—and don’t ever come back!”
