Siheyuan: Starting from the driver

Chapter 691 My First Paycheck: Dividing the House
A few days passed in the blink of an eye.

This day was destined to be a special day for Qin Huairu.

Today is payday.

This was also Qin Huairu's first paycheck after starting work.

Before leaving get off work, Qin Huairu finally received her first paycheck—a full 18 yuan as an apprentice.

"18 yuan, I didn't know there was so much money."

Feeling the weight of the banknotes, Qin Huairu was overjoyed, her eyes shining as she looked at the money in her hand.

1张大黑十，1张5块，3张1块。

Although the amount of money was small, it was of great significance.

Qin Huairu had never received so much money so readily before; it was a reward for her hard work.

She had handled a lot of money in the past, but it all ended up in Jia Zhangshi's hands and never belonged to her.

The salary she's receiving now belongs entirely to her.

Besides money, there was also a pile of food coupons.

"I'll buy some meat for Xiaodang tomorrow, and also some hand cream; their hands are so rough and ugly."

With the money in hand, Qin Huairu began to make arrangements for tomorrow.

As she walked toward the workshop, she noticed Yi Zhonghai.

"Oh right, an old man promised to give me an extra 9.5 yuan. I almost forgot to ask for it back. That's fine."

Thinking of this, Qin Huairu went directly to find Yi Zhonghai.

"An old man."

"Little Qin, what's up?"

"Uncle." Qin Huairu approached Yi Zhonghai and extended her hand directly.

"What's the matter?" Yi Zhonghai asked, puzzled.

"9.5 yuan, sir. Have you forgotten what you promised me? Or are you trying to renege on your promise?"

Upon hearing this, Yi Zhonghai frowned. Didn't Qin Huairu know when to ask for money?
There are so many people here, and so many people who need this.

Qin Huairu didn't think that much about it. She was grateful, but she still had to distinguish between money and family ties. She couldn't let gratitude blur the lines between the two.

No one can afford to offend her money.

Yi Zhonghai was too lazy to argue with Qin Huairu, so he simply pulled out a big black ten and said, "Keep the change."

"Thank you, sir!" Qin Huairu smiled, her eyes narrowed, and happily took the money and left.

After getting off work, Qin Huairu went home happily.

Suddenly, Jia Zhangshi appeared in front of her.

"Qin Huairu, did you get paid today?"

Qin Huairu instinctively covered her pocket and asked, "It's been sent, so what?"

"Pay up!" Jia Zhangshi demanded directly.

"What money?"

"Your retirement money is 3 yuan a month from Dongxu's job, and you have to pay that too!"

"Impossible! I don't have any money!" Qin Huairu refused without even thinking.

"Bullshit! Pay me right now!" Jia Zhangshi made a move to snatch it.

Qin Huairu immediately dodged: "I won't pay! Why should I pay? Every expense in the household is paid for with my money, why should I pay!"

"Besides, you took 800 yuan from home and didn't give me a single penny of that money. Why should I pay you back!"

Qin Huairu felt wronged. Jia Zhangshi was holding 600 yuan of Jia Dongxu's pension money, yet she still wanted her to pay into the pension fund.

They've set their sights on her for the money.

Madam Jia Zhang was furious: "Hey! Qin Huairu, do you really think you're all grown up now that you've received a salary, daring to talk to me like that?"

"If you don't give me the money, I'll beat you to death!"

After saying that, Jia Zhangshi picked up a broom and threw it at Qin Huairu, but accidentally injured Xiao Dang, who rushed over to protect his mother.

"what!"

"Little Dang!"

Qin Huairu rushed over with heartache to check on Xiao Dang's injuries, noticing a bloody scratch on his forehead.

This bloodstain became the last straw that broke the camel's back.

Madam Jia Zhang couldn't resist adding insult to injury: "Pah! Serves you right! Get out of my house if you don't pay!"

Qin Huairu glared at Jia Zhangshi and said angrily, "Fine, I'll leave! I'm not going to serve you anymore!"

After saying that, Qin Huairu carried Xiao Dang to the bedroom to pack her clothes.

After packing their luggage, they prepared to leave with Banggeng, Xiaodang, and Huaihua.

However, Madam Jia stopped her, saying, "You can take your two worthless daughters with you, but Banggeng is the root of the Jia family, and no one can take him away!"

If Bang Geng is taken away, who will take care of her in her old age?
Qin Huairu argued forcefully: "Why should I? They were all born to me, why can't I take care of them!"

"I don't care, Banggeng is not allowed to be taken away. Banggeng belongs to the Jia family, you can forget about it!"

After saying that, Jia Zhangshi grabbed Banggeng like a mother wolf protecting her cubs, her nails digging deep into his arm, making Banggeng cry out in pain.

"Ouch~"

"Let go, wet nurse!"

Bang Geng repeatedly slapped Jia Zhangshi's hand, gripping it so tightly he couldn't bear it anymore, but Jia Zhangshi just wouldn't let go.

Seeing that Bang Geng couldn't bear it, Qin Huairu finally let go with a heavy heart.

Taking the opportunity, Jia Zhangshi hugged the stick tightly to her chest.

The stick, which had been gripped so tightly it hurt, didn't want to get close to Jia Zhangshi. With red eyes and gritted teeth, it tried to push Jia Zhangshi away, but it just wouldn't budge.

Madam Jia Zhang thought it was just a comforting remark: "Bang Geng, my good boy, follow your grandma and you'll live a life of luxury, don't follow your useless mother!"

"Ah!" The stalk suddenly opened its mouth wide and bit down hard on Jia Zhangshi's arm.

"Ah!" Jia Zhangshi screamed, releasing the stick, and he took the opportunity to run behind Qin Huairu.

Seeing this, Jia Zhangshi, ignoring her pain, cried out with red eyes, "Qin Huairu, give me the stick!"

"No!"

"Give me!"

"No!"

"Aaaah!" Jia Zhangshi screamed and lunged at Qin Huairu with her claws outstretched.

Qin Huairu was also enraged and, without any fear of Jia Zhangshi, went against her.

Jia Zhangshi only had a few tricks up her sleeve: grabbing ears, pulling hair, waving her nails, and other shrewish tactics.

"I'm still afraid of you!"

Qin Huairu, relying on her physical strength, used the same methods Jia Zhangshi employed to deal with her.

Before long, Jia Zhangshi was defeated; her clothes were torn open, and several red marks appeared on her exposed skin.

"Ah!" Jia Zhangshi collapsed to the ground.

"Old Jia, Dongxu, I can't live anymore! Come up and see, your daughter-in-law is beating me!"

"I'm not alive anymore!"

The wailing of Jia Zhangshi immediately attracted everyone's attention; they had only just come downstairs when they saw the spectacle.

Soon, a large crowd gathered in front of the Jia family's house.

Jia Zhangshi immediately began wailing and screaming, "Everyone, come quick! Qin Huairu hit someone! You all be the judge!"

Qin Huairu wiped away her tears and said, "Everyone, please be the judge! Jia Zhangshi won't let me take my own child away, and she even said that all the money I earn has to go to her!"

"Everyone knows that Jia Zhangshi hasn't given me a single penny of the Dongxu pension, and now she wants my salary too? Isn't that like trying to kill me?"

Madam Jia retorted sharply, "Bah! This jinx wants to take my grandson away? No way!"

“You can earn money because that’s my son Dongxu’s job. Without my son’s job, how could you earn money? The money you earn should be used to support me in my old age!”

Both sides stuck to their own versions of events and refused to back down, which sparked a lively discussion among the onlookers. "This Jia Zhangshi has gone too far! How could she treat Qin Huairu like that?"

"That's right, it's already tough enough for Qin Huairu to raise three children on her own, and she's still putting so much pressure on her."

"Alas, Qin Huairu is quite pitiful, having such a vicious mother-in-law as Jia Zhangshi."

When Jia Zhangshi heard that public opinion was not on her side, she became anxious.

On the contrary, Qin Huairu's eyes grew more and more determined, "Banggeng is my child, and I will never leave him here to suffer alone."

Upon hearing this, Madam Jia became even more furious.

"You shameless woman, how dare you talk to me like that! Let me tell you, if you don't leave this house today, don't even think about leaving a stick behind!"

As she spoke, Jia Zhangshi tried to snatch the stick, attempting to forcibly keep him there.

Banggeng was afraid of Jia Zhangshi and immediately ran away from the Jia family.

"Banggeng, come to Grandma! Come here!"

"Mom! Mom!" Banggeng cried and ran around everyone, trying to avoid being caught by Jia Zhangshi.

For a time, chaos erupted in the Intermediate People's Court.

The crowd avoided the two people as if playing a game of tag, which was quite amusing.

Qin Huairu, on the other hand, saw the tears welling up in her eyes and quickly stepped forward to stop her.

"Alright! What are you doing! This is so noisy and disorderly!"

Yi Zhonghai roared, startling everyone, and Jia Zhangshi stopped.

Everyone stared at Yi Zhonghai.

"Jia Zhangshi, what are you doing!"

"Old Yi, you've come at the right time! You have to stand up for me! She... she, Qin Huairu, is going to take Banggeng away!"

"Bang Geng is the root of my Jia family! What will happen to my Jia family if Bang Geng leaves? Old Yi, you must stand up for me!"

"Uncle, don't listen to her nonsense! She's the one who wants to kick us out! Banggeng is my own son! How could I not take him away!"

"She wants all the money I worked so hard to earn, and she even wants to force me to hand over 3 yuan of my retirement savings. Who is being unreasonable here?"

The two of them took turns explaining what had happened.

Yi Zhonghai's face was gloomy, but he was thinking about how to resolve the matter.

Before Jin Huainu gave birth to a boy, Bang Geng was his godson, and he could not tolerate Bang Geng leaving.

But he wouldn't let Qin Huairu leave, and there were many reasons for that.

Qin Huairu dared to go against Jia Zhangshi like this because she got paid today. Having money gave her the confidence to rebel against Jia Zhangshi.

"Alright! Stop arguing! Here's what we'll do, Xiao Qin, why don't you take Bang Geng and Xiao Dang to my room for a couple of days to calm down?"

"Lao Yi!"

"Shut up! I'll talk to you later!" Yi Zhonghai turned around and shouted, startling Jia Zhangshi so much that she shrank back and dared not speak.

"Alright, everyone, you can all go home now."

Seeing this, everyone went home, but they kept their eyes on the courtyard, ready to rush over if anything exciting happened.

"Come in with me!"

Yi Zhonghai entered the Jia family home with his hands behind his back, followed closely by Jia Zhangshi, who closed the door behind him.

Yi Zhonghai sat on the stool, looking at Jia Zhangshi, who was rubbing her hands with her head down.

"Slap!" Suddenly, a loud slap resounded.

"Ah!" Jia Zhangshi covered her face in disbelief, looked at Yi Zhonghai, and immediately collapsed to the ground, about to cry out.

"Shut up!" Yi Zhonghai roared furiously.

This immediately made Jia Zhangshi feel like a chicken with its neck being choked, her face turning red and unable to utter a sound.

"Jia Zhangshi, I really want to cut your head open and see how your brain works! How can someone as stupid as you exist!"

"The hamster is only 6 or 7 years old, so young. What use is it to you? You'll have to raise it for over ten years. Can you manage that?!"

Yi Zhonghai could guess what Jia Zhangshi was trying to say, which was nothing more than hoping that Yi Zhonghai would take good care of her.

"I really don't know what you're thinking? What good will it do you to drive Qin Huairu away?"

"You have several hundred yuan in your hand, why are you still eyeing Xiao Qin's twenty or thirty yuan? Are you crazy for money?!"

"Huh!? Speak!"

"I just want to save more money."

Yi Zhonghai was furious and utterly speechless: "Save more money? Isn't 700 yuan enough for you to save? Who in the neighborhood has more money than you? Huh?"

"You haven't contributed a single penny to my food, drink, toilet, or sleep, yet you still want money. You don't even help take care of Kuihua at home. I think you're just idle all day long!"

"We should find you something to do. Aren't you short of money? Little Qin just got a job making matchboxes a few days ago. You can go make matchboxes starting tomorrow!"

"I won't do it!" Jia Zhangshi refused without even thinking. The pay was low and the work was tiring, so why should she do it?

"Not doing it? What do you want if you don't do it? You don't help Xiao Qin with the account at home, and you're just causing trouble for her. I've never seen such a lazy person!"

"I've finally become a mother-in-law after all this time, so I can't be a lazy one and not have served my duty for nothing," Jia Zhangshi muttered to herself.

"Huh? What did you say?"

"He didn't say anything."

Yi Zhonghai took a deep breath and patted his chest, truly exasperated by that stupid donkey, Jia Zhangshi.

Now that things have come to this, the most important thing is to solve the problem.

"How do you plan to resolve Xiao Qin's matter?"

Madam Jia had no opinions of her own: "I'll listen to whatever you say."

"Okay, I'll do whatever you say. Go apologize to Xiao Qin later."

"Apologize? Impossible!" Jia Zhangshi's voice was high-pitched and shrill: "At my age, I'm not going to apologize to a jinx. I can't bring myself to say it."

"Qin Huairu, born a member of the Jia family, will die a member of the Jia family. You expect me, her mother-in-law, to apologize like a dog? No way!"

Yi Zhonghai said coldly, "Fine, then figure out how to raise a pheasant yourself. I'd like to see how you plan to do it."

"The job is in Qin Huairu's hands. She has a job, can earn money, and is young and beautiful. Even if the family separates, she can still find someone to marry."

"I want to see how you, a lazy old woman who only knows how to eat and do nothing, can raise your children with just 700 yuan that you keep losing money and don't earn any."

"Old Yi, you can't leave me behind! Banggeng is your grandson!" Jia Zhangshi pleaded, grabbing Yi Zhonghai's sleeve.

But he waved his hand and parted them, then looked at Jia Zhangshi coldly.

“You brought this on yourself. You don’t have to apologize. Anyway, Xiao Qin is able-bodied and can support three children. Even if the neighborhood committee reports on this, they will still side with Xiao Qin.”

"I'd like to see how you'll live without Qin Huairu! You're lazy, good-for-nothing, and don't do any real work. You're the only one like that in the entire city of Beijing!"

"Everything was fine until you caused this mess. I didn't give Xiao Qin 300 yuan last time, so I'll definitely have to pay it back this time."

"Who knows, maybe Qin will harden his heart and decide to separate from you! And this isn't the end of it."

Yi Zhonghai listed, one by one, the tragic lives of Jia Zhangshi after Qin Huairu's passing.

She was terrified, never expecting such serious consequences, and immediately begged:
"Old Yi, you have to help me! I can't think that far ahead, I just want 3 yuan for my retirement."

"Since Qin Huairu has a job at Dongxu, she should give me 3 yuan a month for retirement, just like Dongxu. What did I do wrong?"

Jia Zhangshi looked completely innocent.

Yi Zhonghai was also impressed by Jia Zhangshi's thoughtless approach to things.

"You only realize your mistake now? Why didn't you do this sooner!"

After saying all that, Madam Jia Zhang was finally scared and had no choice but to lower her head: "I...I apologize to Qin Huairu!"

"Apologize? You want to apologize? You'll have to see if Xiao Qin is willing to accept it?"

"She dares!" Madam Jia thought to herself that she had already apologized, so how could Qin Huairu dare not accept it?

"With your attitude, you're as good as dead!"

After saying that, Yi Zhonghai got up to leave.

"Old Yi! Old Yi, don't go! I'll listen to you! I'll listen to you!"

"Let's go!"

(End of this chapter)