Su Yun sneered, "Are we the ones making them eat coarse buns and pickled vegetables? We brought so much money home every time, but your parents just turned around and gave it all to your third brother and his wife. His family of three is stuffing themselves silly while your parents are eating nothing but scraps, and somehow it’s still our fault? Qin Zhonghui, I know you feel bad for your parents, and it’s not like we’re unfilial. We give them money every year, and when you said we should go back for the New Year, I agreed. I even agreed to buy gifts for them—showing respect for our elders is the right thing to do. But you want me to go back early, clean up the old house, and wait on that entire family like before? I’m not doing it!"

’She’d done that for years. And what did she get out of it?’

Her two children had been bullied so badly, and all her hard-earned money from over the years was just handed over to his third brother and his wife. Su Yun was completely done putting up with it!

Su Yun could tolerate taking care of the elders and even putting up with some unfairness from them.

But why should they have to go back and be servants for his third brother’s family? Why? Just because his parents played favorites?

That was something Su Yun couldn’t tolerate!

Qin Zhonghui knew he was in the wrong. He sighed, but he still felt terrible. Unable to win the argument against his wife, he just squatted there, puffing away on a cigarette.

Xiao Shi watched her parents argue, looking timid. She wanted to say something but didn’t dare. Qin Jiao put an arm around her younger sister and said calmly, "Dad, didn’t you just promise Shen Yi you’d help take care of Grandpa Du?"

Qin Zhonghui paused, then remembered.

Su Yun paused and asked him what was going on.

Qin Zhonghui nodded. "Right, about that. Shen Yi said he and his mother are going back to North City to handle the divorce from Shen Zhengfeng. Apparently, there’s some paperwork involved, and it’s going to take a while. But they said they’ll be back before the Little New Year and asked us to help look after Mr. Du in the meantime."

Su Yun had been looking for an excuse to get her husband to drop his plan of going home early.

She immediately said, "Mr. Du has been a great benefactor to our family, and it’s only for a few days. We have to say yes."

Qin Zhonghui nodded. He understood that, of course.

So he dropped the subject of going home early.

But Su Yun was still annoyed. Later, while preparing vegetables with her daughter in the kitchen, she complained, "Your father... he actually knows right from wrong, but he’s just too soft-hearted. In his eyes, everyone’s a good person. If he were a complete, heartless bastard, I wouldn’t be in such a bind. I’d just leave him and be done with it. But this is how he is—on one hand, he’s always thinking about that pack of ingrates and bloodsuckers back home, and on the other, he’s incredibly good to me. Sigh."

Qin Jiao could understand her mother’s dilemma. As her mom said, if her father were truly a bad man—someone who treated his wife and children poorly and had no ambition—then even as his daughter, Qin Jiao would support her mother in divorcing him.

But that wasn’t the case.

Aside from being far too soft-hearted when it came to his family back home, Qin Zhonghui was an excellent husband and father.

Qin Jiao said, "That’s why I’m saying we should all move to the provincial capital next year. Once we’re far away and busy with the business, Dad definitely won’t have time to worry about everyone back home. But Mom, once the business starts making money, you’ll have to keep a firm grip on our finances. Dad is a soft touch, so you can’t let our uncles swindle him."

"Mm, of course. When we’re making money, I’ll have to pay for you and your sister’s schooling and save up for your dowries when you get married. Those bloodsuckers from the Qin family can forget about ever touching our hard-earned money again!"

Her mother’s unyielding nature was a relief to Qin Jiao. ’Plus,’ she thought, ’once we’re living far away, Dad’s attachment to them will gradually fade.’