The evil mother-in-law does not whitewash, she only abuses her children

"Sister-in-law, have some tea."

On the night of New Year's Eve, there was a sumptuous family dinner, and the Crown Prince personally came to the Gu family to spend New Year's Eve together. All this shocked Gu Honglian too much.

In addition, they traveled all the way north from Pingchuan County, sleeping in the open air, and had poor food and sleep. Last night was the most sound and warm night that Gu Honglian had ever slept.

Gu Honglian moaned comfortably in her drowsiness, and she vowed never to live a life of displacement and suffering from cold again.

Her husband cannot give her a comfortable life for the time being, and she can only rely on her sister-in-law in Shengjing where she has no relatives.

The maids around my sister-in-law are dressed better and eat better than the girls from the rich families in Yanguan Town.

She didn't even ask for the life of a rich lady like Gu Taohua. She would be satisfied even if she could live as a maid.

She didn't want to be kicked out.

Therefore, Gu Honglian, who always loved to sleep in, got up early on the first day of the Lunar New Year and positioned herself as a maid to serve her sister-in-law.

Not only that, she also pulled Fan Tong out of his sleep and asked him to sweep the snow.

Before Tong Huaqiong got up, Gu Honglian had already wiped the table with a rag, and the maids and servants couldn't stop her.

Chen Sufen and Lu Zhaozhao looked at Gu Honglian working with a confused look on their faces.

Neither of them knew how to treat this cheap aunt who had come all the way north.

When Tong Huaqiong came to the main hall, she saw Gu Honglian serving her tea with a flattering look on her face.

Tong Huaqiong's mouth twitched. What kind of tea is this so early in the morning?

Gu Honglian is being attentive for no reason.

Tong Huaqiong put the teacup on the table.

Gu Honglian felt nervous and picked up the pastry and asked Tong Huaqiong if she wanted to eat it.

Gu Dashu finally couldn't help but say, "Aunt, stop working so hard. It hurts your eyes. My mother just got up and can't drink tea or eat snacks. You're busying yourself for no reason. It's freezing outside, and you and your uncle have nowhere to stay. We won't kick you out for a while."

Gu Honglian's thoughts were exposed by Gu Dashu, but she didn't look embarrassed. Instead, she said, "It's my sister-in-law's duty not to take us in, and it's a favor for her to take us in. Your uncle-in-law and I are shamelessly eating and drinking for free. Are we still human beings?"

Tong Huaqiong couldn't help but wonder when Gu Honglian became so good at speaking and when she became so good at handling things.

Sure enough, her marriage with Fan Tong taught her how to be a human being.

However, being able to handle things is not a bad thing. It means that Gu Honglian is no longer as reckless as before, and she also knows that one should bow their heads under the eaves.

Fan Tong, who had just been forced to sweep the snow and was as tired as a grandson, almost vomited blood after hearing this.

He came to Shengjing to seek a good future, not to be a servant in the Gu family.

Even though he has no money and power now, he is a scholar after all, and his status is higher than that of the Gu family merchants whose whole family is obsessed with money.

In order to curry favor with her sister-in-law, Gu Honglian now no longer regards him as the son-in-law of the Gu family, but as a servant.

Gu Honglian is really short-sighted. She tries her best to curry favor in order to have a place to stay. She doesn't think that they are just temporarily taking refuge in the Gu family. Once there is an opportunity, he will be Gu Jingzhe's biggest help in officialdom.

It was a pity that he didn’t talk to the Crown Prince last night.

He had several opportunities to get close to the crown prince, but was interrupted by Gu Taohua's fiancé every time.

The dissatisfaction that flashed in Fan Tong's eyes caught Gu Jingzhe's eyes.

Gu Jingzhe asked, "Uncle-in-law, did you sleep well last night?"

Since Gu Jingzhe always called Fan Tong "senior brother", when Fan Tong suddenly heard Gu Jingzhe calling him uncle, he was confused for a moment and did not realize that he was being called.

"Jingzhe is asking you a question?" Gu Honglian poked Fan Tong.

Gu Honglian felt dissatisfied.

What's wrong with my husband? He said he would come to Shengjing to seek refuge with Gu Jingzhe, but why is he just staring blankly when Gu Jingzhe talks to him?

After Fan Tong realized what was happening, he forced a smile and said, "The room was very warm, and I slept well."

Gu Jingzhe held a smile on his face and said, "I'm glad you slept well. Shengjing is not like home. Everything costs money and is expensive. Just like the charcoal brazier in your and your aunt's room, a pound of charcoal costs three hundred coins. Calculate how much charcoal you need to burn in your room to keep warm at night. How can ordinary people burn charcoal all night? Even those who have just entered the officialdom after passing the imperial examination dare not do so. We are relatives and saying silver is too vulgar. I am not saying this to ask my uncle-in-law to accept our family's favor. I mainly want to tell him that survival in Shengjing is not easy."

Gu Jingzhe's words meant to warn Fan Tong not to think too much, because as a scholar like him, it was already difficult for him to live in a warm house in Shengjing.

He would be on the street in minutes after leaving Gu's house.

Fan Tong's face froze.

Tong Huaqiong said, "You're settling scores with your uncle right after he arrived. Isn't it a sin to extinguish his passion for Shengjing?"

It is said that mentioning money hurts feelings.

But if it weren't for the money, Fan Tong would never have the awareness of living under someone else's roof.

Therefore, Gu Jingzhe's words were well said.

Although it made Fan Tong feel embarrassed, it also made Fan Tong aware of the Gu family's attitude towards his arrival.

Tong Huaqiong turned to Fan Tong and said, "Although your nephew seems stingy when he mentions money, he's doing it for your own good. You just arrived in Shengjing and don't know anything. He said this so that you can be mentally prepared for life in Shengjing. When the spring comes, you and Gu Honglian will look for a house outside. You can go out and find something to do to make a living during the first month of the year. I believe that with your ability, brother-in-law, you can definitely support yourself and Honglian."

Gu Honglian and Fan Tong were shocked.

Tong Huaqiong had no intention of keeping them for long.

I thought yesterday's statement about temporarily housing them until the beginning of spring was just a casual remark, but now it seems like they are serious.

Tong Huaqiong had no intention of keeping Fan Tong and Gu Honglian as her permanent residents.

She knew very well the purpose of Gu Honglian serving tea and pouring water early in the morning. Tong Huaqiong was about to burst the fantasy of Gu Honglian and Fan Tong. It was impossible for them to stay with her and live in the Gu family for a long time.

Once the weather gets warmer, she and Fan Tong have to go out to make a living.

This must be mentioned from time to time to prevent Gu Honglian and Fan Tong from pretending to be ignorant and continuing to live there after the weather gets warmer.

The atmosphere was awkward for a moment.

"Zhao Zhao, why don't you get some more sleep?"

Tong Huaqiong let Gu Honglian and Fan Tong go, and began to look at Lu Zhaozhao with concern.

Tong Huaqiong could never bear to let pregnant women get up early to pay New Year's greetings.

Lu Zhaozhao smiled and said, "I went to bed early last night, so I got up early. Mother, I wish you a happy new year."

Lu Zhaozhao stood up to wish Tong Huaqiong a happy new year. Tong Huaqiong waved her hand. Gu Jingzhe quickly helped Lu Zhaozhao sit down, which made Zhao and others laugh.

"Happy New Year, mother-in-law."

Zhao and Liu Tiechui greeted Tong Huaqiong with a smile on their faces.

"Happy New Year." Tong Huaqiong also sent her blessings.

Then Chen Sufen, Gu Taohua, Liu Yue'e and others came to Tong Huaqiong to wish her a happy new year. Tong Huaqiong gave each of her three daughters-in-law a big New Year gift - a share in the Tong's business.

"This is for the three of you. From now on, you will have a share of all the profits of Tong's business."

Then he said to Gu Dahan, Gu Dashu, and Gu Jingzhe, "Listen carefully, the three of you. Consider this portion of the proceeds as your wife's dowry. You are not allowed to interfere with this portion of the proceeds, nor are you allowed to use this portion of the proceeds."

The three of them said yes respectfully in unison.