Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 215 Passing the Buck_1

Chapter 215: Chapter 215 Passing the Buck_1

Zhou Shuren set down his teacup, "To face mockery with calm composure, to quickly analyze the pros and cons, and to leverage the cause and effect behind it all in order to stir the waters without getting a single speck of mud on yourself—that is what it means to be truly accomplished."

Chang Lian, "....."

He felt he might never become accomplished in his lifetime!

Seeing that Chang Lian’s anger had dissipated, Zhou Shuren smiled and asked, "Are you still angry?"

Chang Lian shook his head. There was nothing to be angry about if he followed his father’s advice. If there was anything to be angry about, it was only that he couldn’t keep himself calm, "But father, my engagement to Dong Chuchu is settled, yet the relatives from the Dong family don’t even consider ours with respect—they forcibly bought prescription formulas."

Today had completely shattered his illusions, making him realize that his prideful capital was all imagined—a harsh reality.

Zhou Shuren said, "Indeed, our family has nothing that the Dongs would value; this is a fact. The Dong family controls half the county, they have wealth, and they have government positions to lean on. Our household, merely a small Zhou family village with only a few scholars to its name, has neither wealth nor influence. Why would the Dong family think highly of us?"

Chang Lian’s pupils constricted, his lips tasting bitterness because what his father said was the truth, "Then why would they want to be related with our family?"

Zhou Shuren had not explained before, knowing that Chang Lian hadn’t experienced the world outside and wouldn’t understand the depth of it. But now was the right time to explain, "Simply because it’s easy to control. Of course, if your father—me—had potential, it would be a win for the Dong family as well. Today, the Dong relatives bought those formulas although forced, it wasn’t a complete coercion. They’ve already shown consideration for the marriage between our two families. If you want others to respect you, you need to stand tall. Remember, even marriage ties are not unbreakable."

Chang Lian had not anticipated such cruelty in reality. His father’s analysis was incisive, and he realized his own indignation was laughable and his insignificance profound. Clenching his fists, he affirmed his stance, determined to be like his father—to be self-aware, to lie low, to better himself. He bowed deeply, "Father, please teach me."

He wanted to stand taller, to take control of his destiny. He didn’t want to be powerless to resist being manipulated by others.

Zhou Shuren’s gaze was deep; among his four sons, the futures of the eldest and the second were set, and the oldest would not go far. It was Chang Lian who could go further, not in vain had he returned home early to stay put. Mr. Dong didn’t insist on him returning home in haste, but Zhou Shuren remembered the timing of Chang Lian’s gift delivery. To make the effects more significant, he had returned home early to stay put, wanting the Dong relatives to think there might be an issue with the marriage.

He had not even told Zhulan about this; when it came to educating his son, Zhulan would never inquire more than necessary. However, from today’s attitude, Zhulan must have guessed that he had set a trap for Chang Lian, otherwise she would not have shown such indifference earlier.

Chang Lian had been bowing for so long without moving that he could hear only the sound of his father pouring tea, nothing else, but he dared not straighten up or gauge how long he had been bowing. When his legs began trembling and he could barely stand any longer, his father finally spoke up, "Stand up now!"

Zhou Shuren looked at Chang Lian, who was covered in sweat, "How does it feel to keep bowing?"

Chang Lian’s back ached and his legs were numb, feeling as if insects were biting him, extremely uncomfortable, "It’s unbearable."

"Remember, you’ll have to bow many more times in the future. Today was just practice. Oh, Chang Lian," Zhou Shuren continued, "our family doesn’t have the means to keep you standing tall all the time. The first lesson I’m teaching you is to learn how to bow, to practice bowing daily, hoping that one day, no matter how long you bow, you can stand up again with a composed face."

Chang Lian’s heart was thumping wildly, knowing that his father was teaching him what he didn’t teach his elder brothers. He was certain of his father’s approval, his voice filled with emotion, "Yes, I will practice diligently."

Zhou Shuren tasted the moment, realizing he was still a child, getting excited the moment he felt important, "There’s food left in the kitchen, go eat."

The gloominess in Chang Lian’s heart dissipated, and his stomach rumbled. His father was right, it was pointless to get angry over unnecessary people, and he shouldn’t harm his own health for irrelevant individuals, "Yes."

With his legs no longer numb, Chang Lian strode towards the door, but he heard his father say, "Give the silver from selling the formulas to your elder sister-in-law. The entire twenty taels are her achievement. Give it all to her. In the future, you need to broaden your perspective; at least don’t try to profit from your own kin. I don’t care how much silver you manage to get from outsiders, but none of it should come from our family members, not even nephews and nieces. Our Zhou family is one unit; remember this well as it is my bottom line. If there is a next time, I will break your legs."

Chang Lian, "....."

The twenty taels of silver he couldn’t share were all gone now, and instead, his own money had been swallowed up. Huh, this was more distressing to him than any insult—it was his money.

Turning to look at his father’s icy gaze, he shivered, not doubting his father’s words, "There will absolutely be no next time."

"Good, as long as you remember. Should you forget, your father will be more than willing to help you remember."

Chang Lian, "....."

No, no need, I understand father even better now, and I’m even more afraid of him. I don’t want Dad to help me ’learn a lesson.’ Instinct tells me that it’s definitely beyond what I can bear, I’m already an excess in the eyes of Dad and Mom; Dad really would be ruthless.

Zhulan actually hadn’t fallen asleep, she had been eavesdropping from the bedroom all along. Zhou Shuren’s warning was indeed necessary. Chang Lian’s scheming must not be indulged. Human nature enjoys testing limits, and once someone finds out they’re not that restrictive, they will become bolder. So, a warning must be issued now; this is a line that must not be crossed.

Zhou Shuren was satisfied, stood up, and said, "Alright, go have your meal."

Chang Lian, "....Yes."

Zhou Shuren returned to the bedroom and said with a smile, "I knew you weren’t asleep."

Zhulan responded, "You really go to great lengths to temper Chang Lian."

"There’s no way around it. Out of four sons, he’s the only one with potential. I’m also hoping that once Chang Lian finishes his apprenticeship, he can take good care of Chang Zhi!"

As for the oldest son, he had truly given up hope. He had given up on Chang Zhi earlier than on the eldest; to avoid endlessly cleaning up after the oldest son in the future, it would be better to hand things over to Chang Lian!

Zhulan, "....."

She felt quite helpless about the oldest son herself and expressed support for Zhou Shuren’s action of passing the buck!

In the kitchen, Chang Lian was squatting at the door eating his meal when he noticed the sunlight above him blocked. It turned out to be his second brother, "Second brother."

Zhou’s second son didn’t expect to come across an unexpected gain when going to the backyard latrine; he patted his younger brother’s shoulder, "Keep it up."

Chang Lian swallowed the rice in his mouth, feeling the support from his second brother, "Yes."

After finishing his meal, Chang Lian felt the silver in his purse and the only sensation in his heart was pain; he didn’t have even a single coin left.

Lady Li couldn’t believe it as she took the purse, "All of this is for me?"

Chang Lian forced his gaze away from the purse, twenty taels of silver, two taels in gold, he had also found out today how much he liked gold, he really liked it, "Yes."

Lady Li had been so saddened before, but she hadn’t expected such a turn of events. Clutching the silver tightly, she raised her head and asked cautiously, "Third brother, you’ve kept your share, right?"

Please don’t say you didn’t keep any!

Chang Lian felt as if his heart were bleeding, "The prescription belongs to my sister-in-law; the silver should rightly go to my eldest sister-in-law. I kept nothing for myself; I’m already very grateful that sister-in-law was willing to help."

Lady Li, ".....Are you really Chang Lian?"

These days, she had seen just how much Chang Lian loved silver; he treasured every coin. And now, he was actually willing to give up silver, unless he was planning on scheming something else!

Lady Li clutched the purse tightly, "No money for you, your eldest brother and I do not have any money."

When Zhulan came out, all she heard was this conversation. Lady Li was clutching the purse warily, acting as if talking about money with her was fighting for her life, and Chang Lian’s pained face was trembling. These two actually managed to cooperate—it really was a miracle!