Lu Jiaguang was feeling extremely stifled. He wouldn't blink an eye when buying things worth over a hundred yuan for Xinxin when Third Aunt was around, but now haggling over the settlement fee.
Lu Jiaxin was unwilling to haggle with Lu Hongjun and raised her voice, "Two thousand yuan is enough for what? The settlement fee should be at least ten thousand."
The amount not only broke through Lu Hongjun's defenses, but also left Lu Jiaguang and Liao Xiangmei shocked. Ten thousand, what a bold request from this girl.
Ding Jing almost screamed, but luckily she controlled herself at the last moment, "Jiaxin, the family only has two thousand in savings."
Lu Jiaxin scoffed and said to Lu Hongjun, "All the things at home, the bed, wardrobe, sofa, color TV, fridge, washing machine, they were all bought when my mom was alive. If you don't give the money, I'll move all these items over, and then write down how Zhao Siyi hooked up with Fan Yinuo and how Ding Jing drugged my food to cause my college entrance exam failure, and send it to newspapers and magazines. If you're quick, you could see your name in the papers or magazines in half a month."
Lu Hongjun's face turned green, "Lu Jiaxin, have you gone mad?"
If she truly did that, he would lose face all the way to grandma's house, and his workplace might even force him into early retirement.
Lu Jiaxin, pointing at Ding Jing, said, "That's right, I've gone mad, driven mad by you people. I used to be so foolish, suffering injustices and only knowing to cry under the covers. From now on, if anyone makes my life difficult, I'll make sure they can't have it easy either. If it comes to it, we'll go down together."
Initially, Lu Jiaguang also thought ten thousand yuan was too much for the settlement fee, but after hearing Lu Jiaxin's words, he felt it wouldn't hurt to ask for more, to not let the Dings have an easy way out, "Third Uncle, she's your only child, and all your possessions will be hers eventually. Ten thousand yuan might be a lot, but you can afford it. Just agree to it!"
If not for the remaining shreds of sanity, Ding Jing would have lunged at Lu Jiaguang and scratched his face.
Lu Jiajie also chimed in, "Yeah, Third Uncle, all your assets will be left to Jiaxin a hundred years from now. Giving it to her now or later is all the same."
Ding Jing couldn't hold back any longer and shouted, "Easy for you to say, ten thousand yuan, where does our family have that much money?"
The Lu's Brothers didn't pay any attention to her and just looked towards Lu Hongjun.
Lu Hongjun sighed and said, "I'll give you five thousand first, and the rest next year."
Lu Jiaxin couldn't let him delay that long, "I may not be in charge, but I still have a general idea of how much savings are in the house. Give six thousand first, another two thousand before New Year's, and the rest before the Dragon Boat Festival next year."
She actually had something on Ding Jing but now she wasn't powerful enough to take that step. Lu Hongjun had built many connections over the years in the Forty-nine City, and she might need them in the future, so it was better not to fall out if possible. Of course, if he didn't give anything, she wouldn't mind burning bridges. She had no feelings for Lu Hongjun, and ruining their relationship might even gain her some sympathy. Lu Hongjun and Ding Jing, however, would be utterly disgraced, and even Zhao Siyi might not be able to stay at school.
Lu Hongjun finally agreed after a moment of silence, "Xiao Jing, go get two thousand out. Jiaxin, use these two thousand to set yourself up, and save the remaining eight thousand for your dowry."
He did this to prevent Lu Jiaxin from squandering the money once she had it, or from someone else taking it once they knew.
Lu Jiaxin agreed.
Seeing Ding Jing hesitated, Lu Hongjun said, "Xiao Jing, go get the money."
Ding Jing, with tears in her eyes, said, "Hongjun, these past four years I've scrimped and saved to accumulate a little over two thousand. You're readily giving away ten thousand now; how are we going to live in the future?"
Lu Hongjun pulled her into the room, and after a while they came out. He handed Lu Jiaxin a stack of Great Unity RMB, "Spend it cautiously, you can't keep spending money like water anymore."
The ability to keep two thousand yuan in cash at home, yet the savings being only five thousand? Lu Jiaxin felt she had been shorted by ten thousand yuan, and it seemed she would still need to devise a way to extract money from Lu Hongjun in the future.
After taking the money, Lu Jiaxin looked at Ding Jing and said, "Closets full of clothes and over twenty pairs of shoes, plus two sets of skincare products, those items I don't want count as three thousand. Give it to me within three days, otherwise, I'll go to the Public Security Bureau and accuse Ding Wen of theft."
Ding Jing lost her composure, cursing directly, "Lu Jiaxin, you must be crazy for money, right?"
Lu Jiaxin scoffed and said, "The moment I left the Forty-nine City, you couldn't wait to take my passbook and valuable items from the house, and even gave Ding Wen my clothes and socks trying to erase any trace of my existence. Besides, you had your lackeys spread rumors in the residential compound, claiming I was sold by human traffickers to some lowlife place. Ding Jing, I am only asking for compensation, but you are plotting my death so that Zhao Siyi could inherit my father's assets and connections."
Ding Jing realized that Lu Jiaxin's tongue was now sharper than a knife.
A hint of darkness flashed in Lu Jiaguang's eyes as he said coldly, "Jiaxin doesn't need to worry, if the Ding Family doesn't pay, I'll go to the water bureau and demand it for you."
The water bureau's second-in-command was the younger brother of his comrade-in-arms. With this relationship in place, the Ding Family wouldn't dare refuse to pay.
Ding Jing, who was aware of this relationship, suppressed her anger and said, "Three thousand is too much, those clothes and socks can't be worth that much, one thousand at most."
Lu Jiaxin said impatiently, "Don't waste words, three thousand, not one penny less."
Lu Jiajie's eyes shifted as he said, "The Ding Family doesn't have to pay, they can just get Jiaxin a new set of clothes and socks, exactly the same as before."
Ding Jing didn't speak again. All of Lu Jiaxin's clothes and socks were brand-name goods, and several items of winter clothing and shoes had been brought back from Hong Kong; just a few of these things alone would exceed a thousand yuan. To fully replace them for her would cost far more than three thousand yuan.
Seeing her compromise, Lu Jiaguang said to Lu Jiaxin, "Just take the valuables with you, and let Jiajie send the rest over when it's time."
He would call for a small truck tomorrow, as these things wouldn't all fit.
"Okay."
With the settlement fees and compensation agreed upon, Lu Jiaxin also needed to resolve another issue. She turned to Liao Xiangmei, who had been treating herself as if invisible, and said, "Aunt Liao, since Fan Yinuo has been in a relationship with Zhao Siyi for over half a year, I don't want to be the villain. Since my father and both my eldest brother and Fifth Brother are here, let's call off this engagement."
She had invited Liao Xiangmei over to act as a witness and also to take the opportunity to call off the engagement.
When Liao Xiangmei received the call from Lu Jiaxin, she already knew that they couldn't keep the matter secret anymore and the engagement could not go on. She said sadly, "Jiaxin, it's my fault for not teaching Yinuo properly, and making you suffer."
Lu Jiaxin took out a Peace Silver Lock from her pocket and handed it to Liao Xiangmei, "This was the token of engagement given by your family back then; now I am returning it to you."
Liao Xiangmei held onto Lu Jiaxin's hand and said, "Jiaxin, tomorrow I will go to your mother's grave and apologize for my shortcomings. Keep the silver lock as a gift from me. The jade pendant your mother gave, I did not bring today, I will deliver it to you tomorrow."
Lu Jiaxin placed the silver lock into Liao Xiangmei's hand and said, "Aunt Liao, this is the Peace Lock Fan Yinuo wore as a child, I can't possibly keep it. If you don't accept it, I'll just throw it away."
Liao Xiangmei sighed and after taking the silver lock, she held Lu Jiaxin's hand and said, "Jiaxin, it's Yinuo's fault for not knowing how to cherish what he had, don't let it affect the relationship between the two of us."
Lu Jiaxin firmly refused, "Aunt Liao, I was engaged to Brother Yinuo, and if we continue to frequent each other's company, he and Zhao Siyi will think I haven't moved on."