Back to the 70s: My Childhood Sweetheart Spoils Me Rotten
Chapter 156: Gong Brothers

Chapter 156: Chapter 156: Gong Brothers

Since Gong Dajiang and his wife left, Gong Qiang has been eagerly waiting for them to return triumphantly.

Unexpectedly, instead of waiting for their triumphant return, he received a telegram from them saying that the money they took wasn’t enough and asking him to wire two hundred.

Gong Qiang was dumbfounded. How could the fifty yuan they took not be enough? And now they needed another two hundred, which made Gong Qiang anxious.

"My monthly salary is just a little, and now they want two hundred from me."

"I don’t have money." Gong Qiang was unwilling to pay this money.

"If it wasn’t for Gong Tao stabbing me in the back, would I have to pay this money now?"

"If it weren’t for such a petty person, my position would have been quite stable now."

Why did he have to send ginseng? It was because of Gong Tao’s harm, so naturally, Gong Tao should pay for it. Why should the victim?

But if he were to write directly saying he had no money, Gong Qiang didn’t have the courage. He could be honest with his mother, but not with his father. Gong Qiang really didn’t have the courage for that.

After thinking for a long time, Gong Qiang came up with a non-solution — just ignore the telegram.

Gong Qiang felt that he was indeed smart. No matter what tricks Gong Tao might have, he always knew how to respond.

Happily, Gong Qiang set the telegram aside and continued thinking about how to curry favor with the relevant leaders.

The focus was on considering how to use Gong Dajiang and the others to have Gong Tao dig more ginseng, then having all the ginseng sold for a good price, maintaining his connections with the higher-ups.

Gong Qiang was hoping this ginseng would help him open up relations with the upper echelons. As he thought more about it, he laughed happily in the hall.

Wu Rui was lying on the bed sewing for her children, listening to Gong Qiang’s off-key singing with a face full of disdain.

But she somehow admired him for being able to convince his parents-in-law to take the train to the Northeast in such cold weather.

Of course, none of this moved Wu Rui. She was moved by the fact that both were brothers of Gong Tao, yet the good things at home always went to the so-called eldest son.

For this eldest son, the family put in quite an effort, pulling down Gong Tao in the process, yet what was the result? His position wasn’t secure.

Thinking about this filled Wu Rui with resentment towards Gong Qiang. Obviously, Gong Zheng was much more capable than the useless eldest uncle, but the biased parents-in-law only had eyes for Gong Qiang, so everything good was reserved for him.

Wu Rui was full of reluctance, wondering how could Gong Zheng ever be content? He thought that his parents should bring good news back this time.

Gong Zheng had seen with his own eyes the postman bringing a telegram to his elder brother. They had no relatives far away, so the telegram could only have come from his parents in the Northeast.

Before Gong Qiang could even hum a tune with his rusty voice, Gong Zheng knew it had to be good news.

Gong Zheng couldn’t sit still anymore, he was worried sick.

He pushed aside his work materials. No matter how hard he worked, it couldn’t compete with parents’ favoritism and the rapid promotion Gong Qiang enjoyed as if riding a rocket.

Gong Zheng was quite annoyed; clearly, his second brother knew who betrayed him, yet he hadn’t thought about revenge.

Even if not for revenge, he shouldn’t be helping at this time. Didn’t he know that no matter how well Gong Qiang did, it had nothing to do with them? Even if Gong Qiang became the factory manager, he would only become more demanding.

His wife’s restless appearance, Wu Rui saw it all, and as she closed her eyes, she hid all her calculations.

When Wu Rui opened her eyes again, she was back to the uncalculating Wu Rui.

Lightly touching her belly, Wu Rui became more determined. Some things adults can ignore, but for the sake of her child, some things cannot be compromised.

Currently, with Gong Qiang struggling to keep his position and having a terrible temper, acting superior as if everyone must listen to him, she couldn’t imagine how arrogant he would become with continuous promotions.

Wu Rui wasn’t going to let Gong Family be all about Gong Qiang constantly climbing up; at least her husband couldn’t lag behind.

"Baby, mom has no skills and no way to let you live in a nice house right after birth."

"Mom may not even have a lot of breast milk," Wu Rui thought, feeling sad that she wouldn’t have many supplements after childbirth.

Listening to his wife whispering to their unborn child, Gong Zheng knew it was a reminder to him, but what could he do?

Should he tell his parents not to give too much good stuff to Gong Qiang and remember to leave some for him?

Gong Zheng had this thought but didn’t dare to say it because the leaders never showed intention to consider this idea.

Gong Zheng worried that sending gifts might lead nowhere, which would be bad news.

"I’ll write a letter to my parents, hinting that I’ve also caught the leader’s attention," Gong Zheng resolved. No matter if his parents got angry, it didn’t matter.

Seeing her husband taking out paper to write a letter, Wu Rui smiled, a truly happy smile.

This was the right course. One must stir things up at home; otherwise, no one will notice you.

Having endured such a dismal New Year’s Eve dinner, Wu Rui had no fondness for Zhang Lan, her mother-in-law.

Since her mother-in-law was biased, she would have Gong Zheng step forward. She refused to believe that before Gong Xiaoyu was even born, Zhang Lan’s once cherished Gong Zheng wouldn’t have any standing.

"Gong Zheng, it’s not that I want you to argue with your mom. I know it’s not good, but since we’re not qualified enough to get a good house, and there are queues, I’m thinking that if you can move up, we won’t have to worry about housing."

"When the children are older, we won’t have to fight with your elder brother’s family over a piece of meat."

Wu Rui expressed her helplessness, "I don’t care about a piece of meat, but what about our kids?"

Gong Zheng was somewhat unhappy with Wu Rui’s implication, even though he had some thoughts along those lines; it felt like his wife was pushing him.

Now hearing his wife’s words, Gong Zheng’s unhappiness slowly dissipated.

Yes, if his own mother wasn’t so biased, would his wife make a fuss?

Gong Zheng recalled how pure his wife used to be. If it weren’t for his mother’s excessive actions, would his wife have become like this?

"It’s not your fault; it’s my own thinking."

"If my mom says something to you when she returns, just pretend you didn’t hear it." Gong Zheng knew that once this letter was sent, his own mother would surely freak out.

Wu Rui would certainly follow Gong Zheng’s advice. Who would want to scream at Zhang Lan, that crazy old lady? Not only is it bad for one’s health, but being seen by others also leaves a bad impression.

"No matter what mom says about me, I won’t argue with her." Wu Rui declared that quarrels with the mother-in-law were a man’s duty.

As long as your man stands by your side, there’s no need to worry about the in-laws — they’re just paper tigers.

Gong Zheng had no idea about his wife’s little plots; he was just touched by her thoughtfulness, truly considerate.

What Gong Zheng wanted to say was, "No matter how much my mom likes my sister-in-law, in my eyes, you are the best daughter-in-law."

"You’re much better than my sister-in-law." Just thinking about his sister-in-law’s eating habits made Gong Zheng feel no goodwill. He couldn’t understand why his own mother liked her so much.

Even without comparing her to his wife Wu Rui, comparing her to second sister-in-law Cai Meina made her greatly inferior.