Chapter 126: The Fight Begins
Chapter 126: The Fight Begins
Jiang Xia carried a bouquet of flower buds, feeling delighted as she returned to the main road. She planned to take these home for Zhou Zhou and Zhou Jie to try.
The group continued their journey home on their bicycles.
As before, Zhou Chengxin led the way with Wen Wan.
Wen Wan had regained some energy, but she was afraid that she might still struggle to ride after a while, so she told them she hadn't fully recovered and couldn't ride the bicycle.
She was worried that once Zhou Chenglei and the others left, she would lose her strength again and have to push her bike home.
Jiang Xia continued to ride her bicycle, and Zhou Chenglei, concerned about her effort, would reach out and hold her hand whenever they approached an uphill section, pulling her along with him.
This way, Jiang Xia barely had to exert any energy; she only needed to use one hand to stabilize the handlebars and control the direction.
On flat and downhill roads, Jiang Xia could ride on her own, and throughout the journey, she hardly had to exert herself as Zhou Chenglei was always there to assist her.
Eventually, Zhou Chenglei decided to keep holding her hand, pulling and guiding her along the way.
Every now and then, he would ask, "Are you tired?"
Jiang Xia replied, "Not at all."
She didn't even need to pedal the bicycle; how could she be tired? Jiang Xia was truly impressed by Zhou Chenglei's cycling skills, as he managed to ride with her so steadily.
She suspected that he was the type who could ride a bicycle hands-free, something Jiang Xia wouldn't dare to attempt.
Wen Wan, seeing the two of them holding hands and pedaling together, rolled her eyes. The sight made her feel nauseous; she wouldn't need dinner tonight!
What era was this? It was shameless!
Upon returning to the town, Jiang Xia glanced at her watch; it was 5 o'clock. She asked Zhou Chenglei, "Are we still going to the town?"
Wen Wan noticed Jiang Xia checking the time and saw that the watch she wore was a Rolex, with a light purple orchid on the dial. It looked exquisite and expensive. She had heard that Zhou Chenglei had bought her a watch as a wedding gift, and her heart couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy.
Zhou Chenglei also checked his watch; there was still half an hour before the Rural Credit Cooperative closed. "Let's go," he said.
Zhou Fu said, "I'll come with you."
Making a deposit was such a private matter; he couldn't bring Wen Wan along. Zhou Chengxin asked Wen Wan, "Wen Wan, can you ride your bicycle back to the village by yourself?"
Wen Wan realized they wanted to leave her behind and go to town, but she didn't know why. She replied, "I still can't ride."
Zhou Fu frowned, thought for a moment, and said, "Chengxin, why don't you and Wen Wan head home first? Wen Wan, I'll bring your bicycle back later."
Wen Wan said, "This is my uncle's bicycle."
"Then I'll take it to your uncle's house."
"Okay, thank you, Uncle Yongfu."
Wen Wan had borrowed the bicycle from her uncle.
Her aunt was not pleased about her borrowing the bicycle, making a fuss about it.
But her uncle was kind to her and lent her the bike. She didn't want to deal with her aunt's attitude, so it was fine for Zhou Fu to return the bicycle.
So, Zhou Fu and Jiang Xia, along with Zhou Chenglei, rushed to the Rural Credit Cooperative, while Zhou Chengxin rode with Wen Wan back to the village. As they left the village path, a dog suddenly ran out, causing Zhou Chengxin to brake abruptly.
Wen Wan was startled and almost fell off, instinctively hugging Zhou Chengxin's waist.
The Zhou family had a vegetable garden at the village entrance, and Tea Caihua was watering the plants while waiting for Zhou Chengxin to return.
For the past two days, Zhou Chengxin hadn't spoken a word to her, and he had been sleeping with his son at night.
Tea Caihua could ignore him on the first day, but today, she felt a bit anxious. Zhou Chengxin hadn't even gone out to fish today!
This meant a loss of several dozen yuan, maybe even more.
She wondered if she had gone too far.
Zhou Chengxin had never lost his temper like this in over a decade of marriage, nor had he ever ignored her or neglected his duties, let alone going out to sea to fish. He had gotten up early that morning and only returned home after dark.
That morning, when she went to ask Zhou Mu about Zhou Chengxin's whereabouts at the old residence, she was met with an unusually cold attitude. Zhou Mu merely informed her that he had gone to the city and then ignored her.
The Zhou family was generally known for their good temper, and the in-laws were no exception. They rarely treated their daughter-in-law coldly, and even when Jiang Xia caused a scene, her mother-in-law never showed any signs of displeasure.
Tea Caihua felt a bit wronged, but more than that, she was afraid. She feared that Zhou Chengxin would want a divorce.
Tea Caihua had just finished watering Zhou Mu's vegetable garden when she spotted Zhou Chengxin's bicycle with a woman sitting on the back—a young woman at that!
Where had Zhou Chengxin taken this woman all day? What had they been doing?
Tea Caihua's head spun, and in her anger, she dropped the urine bucket and rushed forward.
Zhou Chengxin, thinking they were almost at the village, suggested that Wen Wan walk back.
Wen Wan jumped off the bicycle, but as soon as her feet touched the ground, she felt a piercing pain. Instinctively, she reached out to steady herself against Zhou Chengxin.
Tea Caihua rushed forward, grabbed her, and slapped her across the face, shouting, "You shameless hussy! Daring to seduce my man! I'll beat you to death, you slut!"
Wen Wan couldn't help but scream and instinctively hid behind Zhou Chengxin, pleading, "Ah! Sister, it's a misunderstanding!"
Tea Caihua became even angrier. She extended her claws and scratched Wen Wan's face, saying, "Who's your sister? You hussy, who's your sister!"
Wen Wan felt her face stinging from Tea Caihua's scratches. She was both angry and scared, fearing disfigurement. In retaliation, she grabbed Tea Caihua's hair and scratched her face.
Wen Wan was furious. She couldn't believe someone would dare to bully her like this!
And so, Wen Wan and Tea Caihua got into a fight right there on the village path.
...
Jiang Xia, Zhou Chenglei, and Zhou Fu arrived at the town's Rural Credit Cooperative.
It was close to closing time, or perhaps for some other reason, but the cooperative was nearly empty, with only two or three staff members left, sipping tea and chatting as they waited for the day to end.
Jiang Xia noticed that the counter was quite high, and there was nowhere to sit, so she had to stand to conduct her business.
She approached the counter and signaled to the staff member inside that she wanted to open an account and deposit money.
A teller glanced at Jiang Xia and asked if she had her household registration, informing her that a minimum of one yuan was required to open an account.
"Yes," Jiang Xia replied. She had planned to deposit her money in the bank, so she had brought her household registration with her. She took it out and handed it to the staff member.
Given the low literacy rate of the era, the staff member didn't ask Jiang Xia to fill out the information herself. Instead, they asked her questions and filled out the forms.
When asked how much she wanted to deposit, Jiang Xia replied, "Thirteen thousand and seven hundred."
Her words momentarily silenced the room, and the staff members all looked at Jiang Xia in surprise. A ten thousand yuan household?
The teller, fearing she had misheard, asked again, "How much did you say?"
Her voice trembled with excitement, and her eyes shone with anticipation. The other staff members shared her excitement.
Jiang Xia suddenly realized that ten thousand yuan households were still rare and prestigious in this era, and some counties even reported them in the newspaper. In some areas, they were awarded ten thousand yuan household certificates.
(End of Chapter)
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