Zhang Guohua was unhappy all day today, the thought of the almost certain house slipping away made his mood very sour.
He was still considering using his status as the eldest brother to have another talk with Zhang Yu.
What he hadn't expected was that Zhang Yu would be leaving for a branch office out of town so soon.
Zhang Guohua grabbed his cellphone: Little sister is leaving for out of town so soon?
Zhang Dagu hummed a confirmation on the other end of the line: Yes, she'll be leaving on the bus tomorrow morning.
Besides informing Zhang Guohua of this news, another reason Zhang Dagu called was to see the attitude of Zhang Guohua and his wife.
Zhang Dagu: Big brother, as you know, ever since your little sister started cooking, mom hasn't made a meal again.
Zhang Dagu: It was all fine since your sister wasn't getting married, and we didn't have to worry about having no one to cook for us.
Zhang Dagu sighed softly: But now the key issue is, your sister is going to be out of town. Your mom can't cook, and it's going to be a problem for me and your mom to eat in the future.
As Zhang Guohua heard this, his heart suddenly hitched. That's right, how could he have forgotten this? Initially, Pan Juan's cooking was nothing special, but they had Zhang Yu.
But now that Zhang Yu was leaving for out of town, could Pan Juan's culinary skills satisfy the picky Zhang Dagu?
Actually, it wasn't just about satisfying Zhang Dagu. Even Pan Juan herself would probably not be satisfied.
Zhang Guohua was now thinking that Zhang Dagu's call must have an ulterior motive.
Was he hoping that they would offer to cook?
Zhang Guohua looked up at Chiang Yun, who was cleaning up the dining table. How could he put this? His wife's cooking was only tastier than Pan Juan's, but when compared to Zhang Yu's skills, there was a big difference.
Chiang Yun, noticing Zhang Guohua staring at her, hesitated, "What is it?"
Zhang Dagu thought he had made himself clear enough. Shouldn't the sensible Zhang Guohua take the initiative to offer?
To his surprise, after saying so much, Zhang Guohua still hadn't volunteered a word, which infuriated the old man.
Zhang Dagu thought for a moment: Forget it, I'll call your brother.
At that, Zhang Guohua shivered, knowing no matter what, he absolutely couldn't let Zhang Shouhua get the call, as he would surely agree.
Even if he didn't, there was still Zhang Hong. Zhang Guohua knew that for her, as long as there was a benefit, it was good enough.
Without consulting Chiang Yun, Zhang Guohua said: Dad, I'm here. I was just thinking about whether to let Chiang Yun go to your place to cook and come back home to cook, or for the three of us to come over and eat at your place.
Zhang Dagu didn't care for the details, as long as he got the result he wanted.
Zhang Dagu: No need for all that trouble, going back and forth to cook, that's too exhausting. Just eat at home.
Zhang Dagu: Tomorrow, have your mom go grocery shopping, and then have Chiang Yun come over to cook after work.
Zhang Dagu: Right, Zhang Yu is about to leave for out of town, and she can't pack up her things at home, so I think we should have Chiang Yun take care of it.
Zhang Dagu: With Little Yu leaving for out of town, there'll be an empty room at home. You all might as well live there and help pack things up.
Zhang Dagu felt he was really smart, having come up with the best solution.
Ah, them cooking was one thing, but to also have them pack up things? Zhang Guohua really didn't know how to bring this up with Chiang Yun.
Zhang Guohua didn't even know how he hung up the phone. He was thinking about how to word this when he looked up and found Chiang Yun staring at him.
Zhang Guohua jumped in fright, "Yikes, wife, don't scare me like that. You really gave me a shock."
Although Chiang Yun didn't know what Zhang Dagu had said on the phone, she could guess that it definitely wasn't good news. Otherwise, Zhang Guohua wouldn't show such an attitude.
Chiang Yun sat across from Zhang Guohua, "Tell me, what did your dad say on the other end of the phone?"
"You don't need to hide it from me, you know I can easily find out."
Hide it from her? Zhang Guohua chuckled, "I never thought about keeping it from you, that thing tomorrow...
He relayed the content of Zhang Dagu's phone call, unsurprisingly seeing Chiang Yun's face change dramatically.
Chiang Yun knew that call wasn't going to bring any good news, but she hadn't expected it to be such a trap.
If she could, Chiang Yun really wanted to give him a good beating, "Such a big matter, and you didn't even discuss it with me at all?"
"Do you realize how unreasonable you are?"
"And it's not like you don't know your sister's cooking skills, do you think I can compare with her?"
Chiang Yun knew just how picky Zhang Dagu and his wife could be, "Your sister's cooking skills are really good enough, but still, in your parents' eyes, they are not good enough."
Chiang Yun didn't even dare to imagine how harshly that couple would judge her cooking; she couldn't expect them to give a good review at all.
"Also, they had the gall to ask me to clean up the mess, why don't they consider all the junk at home, and your parents can't bear to throw anything away."
"And after I clean up, what size of apartment are they preparing to rent?"
"Originally, with your sister there, renting a two or even three-bedroom apartment would have been fine."
"But now, just for the two of them, they can't possibly rent a three-bedroom, can they?"
"But with all their stuff, I worry that even a two-bedroom won't be enough for their antics."
Chiang Yun grew angrier by the thought, "Plus, I have to go to work, I'm pretty busy too."
"Really, you think my workplace is like yours? Clocking in without much to do, just picking up a book to read until it's time to clock out, no fuss, no muss."
"We're super busy during working hours, bustling all over the place."
"And here I am, busy at work and then busy after work."
Chiang Yun grumbled non-stop; in short, she was utterly unwilling to do these things.
Zhang Guohua listened to Chiang Yun's incessant muttering, "Look, I'm doing this for the house under the old man's name."
"If I could, I wouldn't want to do it either."
"But there's no choice, I could refuse, but if I do, who do you think will be burdened with it?"
"You know my dad, don't you?"
"Seeing that I haven't responded, he'll go find the second brother."
"What would happen then, I can't guarantee."
Chiang Yun originally had more grievances to air, but hearing Zhang Guohua say this, she went silent.
She knew this was the harsh reality, and if they didn't give a definite answer, the advantages would eventually go to the second and third siblings.
Chiang Yun grew more furious as she thought about it, "And Little Yu, really, just up and leaving like that, not giving anyone a chance to adjust."
"And your mom, how can she have so much junk?"
"I don't even know when I'll finish cleaning up, and hey, cleaning the house can't just be my job."
Chiang Yun felt that Zhang Shouhua and the others had gotten their share of the properties, so cleaning up should also be their responsibility.