My Beloved Super Fierce Wife
Chapter 436: Use him as a tool.

Chapter 436: Use him as a tool.

-

The time spent in Sea City for exchange and study flew by, and even the most joyful gatherings had to disperse eventually.

On the day before leaving Sea City, Lin Tang and Gu Yingzhou went to the Ruan family to say farewell to the two elders.

Upon hearing that they were leaving, the elderly couple of the Ruan family was filled with reluctance.

"You’re leaving so soon?" The old lady of the Ruan family sighed, feeling melancholy.

The old man patted his wife’s hand, looking at the two young people sitting across from them.

"Are your tickets booked? When? It’s a long journey, so you’d better get a sleeping berth. If you can’t get one, Yingzhou, ask your uncle for help."

Gu Yingzhou showed a helpless expression when he heard his grandfather treat his uncle like a tool.

"They’re booked, sleeping berth tickets."

The old man was reassured, then added, "The train is a mix of all sorts. Take good care of your partner on the way."

Gu Yingzhou replied with utmost patience, "I know."

Meanwhile, the old lady was speaking intimately with Lin Tang.

"We don’t know when we’ll see each other again after you leave this time," the old woman said, filled with sentiment.

Lin Tang quickly reassured, "We’ve got a long life ahead of us; I’ll come to Sea City to see you and Grandpa Ruan whenever Comrade Gu and I have the time."

The lady of the Ruan family shook her head, knowing that it would be a trouble for them to return.

A half month would pass just in travel, hardly worth the trouble of coming back.

She shook her head, "You just need to take good care of yourselves."

Not wanting to continue with such dispiriting talk, the old lady then said, "I guessed you’d be leaving soon. Your Aunt Xiuying has prepared some food for you and Yingzhou. Take it with you when you leave."

Lin Tang was somewhat surprised.

She had been planning to buy something to eat on the train, never expecting Grandmother Ruan to prepare something in advance.

Her heart warmed, she said, "Thank you, Grandmother Ruan. You and Aunt Xiuying have been too kind. If you have the chance, come visit our place too. I’d love to host you properly."

The young girl’s eyes were clear and earnest, which melted the old lady’s heart.

Immediately beaming, the old lady replied, "Alright, it’s a promise."

No sooner had she agreed than she remembered the disheveled experience of sitting on a train for days and nights, giving her an internal headache.

Upon second thought, as the future was uncertain, she simply set it aside for now.

After talking for a while, Lin Tang and Gu Yingzhou left the Ruan family’s house with a bag of food.

With this departure, it was uncertain when they would see each other again.

In the slow-paced era of horse-drawn carriages, sometimes a goodbye meant a lifetime.

Ruan family.

The old lady watched as the silhouettes of Gu Yingzhou and Lin Tang receded into the distance.

When those two figures had completely disappeared, she couldn’t hold back the tears in her eyes.

Realizing her own weakness, the old lady quickly dried her tears.

"Ah, indeed, as you get older, partings become harder to bear."

The old man wrapped an arm around his wife’s shoulders and led her back inside.

"That’s why there’s an old saying: ’A couple in youth, companions in age; the only one who will be with you for a lifetime is me.’" He was clearly quite pleased with himself at this.

The old lady noticed her husband’s complacency in his words, and it made her laugh.

The sentiment that had just begun to form in her heart was blown away like a wisp of smoke.

She cast a teasing glance at her husband, "Look at how smug you are!"

If he had a tail, he’d surely be wagging it high in the sky by now.

Entering the house, they saw Xiuying rushing in, holding two stacks of money bills.

She excitedly exclaimed, "Sister Huijun, Yingzhou and Tangtang left some money for the family!"

The Ruan family elders sported a matching bittersweet smile, the old lady shook her head, "They left money?"

As she exchanged a glance with the old man, they were both a bit slow to respond.

Xiuying showed them the money, quickly explaining, "One stack was under the couch in the living room, the other in the bathroom. I just found them while cleaning the house."

The Ruan family elders shared a look of similar ruefulness, the old lady shaking her head, "Turns out they were waiting for us here."

No wonder the two left so abruptly...

Although the old man didn’t care much for the money, he was touched and resigned to the youngsters’ intentions, saying, "Since it’s Yingzhou and Tangtang’s heartfelt gesture, let’s save it. When the young couple gets married, we’ll give them a washing machine."

This gadget, he had heard, could replace human labor in washing clothes and was very convenient.

The old lady was also aware of the washing machine and smiled in agreement, "That’s a good idea."

Tangtang seemed delicate; it would be exhausting to have her do laundry, so a washing machine would be beneficial.

After some consideration regarding the household’s foreign currency coupons, she said, "We’ll need to save up our foreign currency coupons well in advance so we can get it for them before their wedding."

Washing machines were not yet widely available domestically and were considered a luxury item.

As an imported, valuable commodity, they required a lot of coupons.

The old man looked carefree, as if he had everything under control.

"... The youngsters have some coupons, and I’ll go exchange some more with others. It should be enough."

The Ruan family sons and daughters: "..." Are we really theirs?

The old lady nodded in agreement, "That’s true."

After all, what’s the point of having so many children if not to help each other out when needed?

-

The following day.

As the group from Anping County boarded the train, Wan Manzhu finally emerged from the ’endless darkness’.

The moment she saw the sunlight outside, she cried out of sheer dishevelment.

Wan Manzhen, sent by the family to pick up her troublesome cousin, was originally irritated, but seeing Wan Manzhu crying with snot and tears streaming down her face, she felt a surge of complexity.

"Let’s go home," she said.

Wan Manzhu, comparing her cousin’s bright and beautiful appearance with her own disheveled state, felt both ashamed and angry.

"Why have you only come now? Where’s my uncle?"

Fuming at the thought that her family hadn’t pulled strings to get her out, and that she had been left inside for a week, hatred flashed in Wan Manzhu’s eyes.

Wan Manzhen had no patience for Wan Manzhu’s antics. Seeing that nobody was around, she rolled her eyes disdainfully.

With a snort of derision, she retorted, "You’re lucky I even came to pick you up. Don’t be ungrateful."

After saying that, she turned and walked away.

Wan Manzhu was startled and hurried after her. "Wait for me, I have something to ask you..."

Wan Manzhen stopped, her face expressionless. "If you’re thinking of asking about Grandmother Ruan’s grandson, I suggest you give up.

Comrade Gu already took his partner home to meet the parents, and the neighbors all know Comrade Gu is taken. You don’t stand a chance. I’d advise you to find a job, turn over a new leaf, and stop causing trouble. It won’t do you any good."

Otherwise, it won’t just be a few days that you’re locked away.

Wan Manzhu went pale, still holding onto hope as she questioned, "What about my uncle? Didn’t the family approach him? Otherwise, how could I have been detained for so long?"

Her uncle held a high-ranking position. If he knew about her situation, he wouldn’t neglect her.

Wan Manzhen’s eyes showed sympathy.

Thinking about how Manzhu’s uncle referred to her as worthless, full of disdain for Manzhu’s ineptitude, she shook her head.

While sympathetic, Wan Manzhen had no intention of sugarcoating the truth.

She said, "Your uncle called you worthless. He thinks you couldn’t even handle this situation. The money and tickets he gave you before might as well have been spent on pig feed, and he said that from now on you should..."

Before she could finish, she noticed Wan Manzhu’s mocking and distrustful gaze.

Wan Manzhen stopped speaking.