Chapter 90

Chapter 90

Xu Qi's sister-in-law was shrewd, getting Xu Qi to do the dirty work.

If someone were willing to date or even marry Xu Lei, and if things didn't work out later, the first person they’d resent would undoubtedly be Xu Qi.

Xu Qi’s sister-in-law seemed to treat her like a fool, yet Xu Qi herself saw no issue with it.

If she actually went to propose this to a working young woman, given Xu Lei’s condition, they'd think Xu Qi had it out for their family—who in their right mind would propose such a match?

"Demanding the other person to have a job—Xu Lei should at least have a proper, stable job himself, not just scraping by with odd jobs."

You expect a young woman to have a job, yet you yourself are just doing temporary labor, even less stable than temp work.

"I know Xu Lei’s situation isn’t ideal, and he doesn’t have a job now. But if he marries a girl with a job, once she gets pregnant, she could just hand her job over to Xu Lei so he can earn money while she stays home to take care of the kids and manage the household."

Xu Qi’s words left everyone in the room stunned—especially Jiang Ningning.

"Seriously?" Jiang Ningning, as someone from the 21st century, found Xu Qi’s suggestion completely disgusting.

"Mom, is this your idea, or Auntie’s?"

"Come on!" Even Jiang Xuehua was floored by the plan.

No wonder they insisted on the girl having a job—they were angling to steal her job! Jiang Xuehua was speechless.

And his mother—was she really blind to how messed up this was?

Lin Meixiang thought of her mother-in-law’s past behavior and sighed.

Whenever it came to matters related to Xu Qi’s family, Xu Qi would turn into a different person altogether. Thankfully, Jiang Erjie was there to keep her in check, or Lin Meixiang was sure her mother-in-law would have already stripped the house bare for her family.

"At first, when your aunt brought it up, I didn’t agree either. But Xu Lei really doesn’t have a job, right? And if he marries a girl with a job, she can pass it to him so he can earn money—isn’t that a good thing?"

Xu Qi’s voice trailed off as she spoke—proof that even she knew this was downright shady.

But it's not like they had other options.

Xu Lei didn’t have a job.

And to her mind, there was nothing wrong with it—the girl could just surrender her job to Xu Lei, let him earn money while she stayed home with the kids and cooked. What could be wrong with that?

"Mom, just tell Auntie no straight up. Don’t stick your neck out just to make enemies."

Jiang Xuehua urged Xu Qi to stay out of it.

He didn’t want his mother burning bridges over Xu Lei’s mess.

"No, I can’t just walk away from this. If I don’t help, Xu Lei will die a bachelor."

Xu Qi couldn’t abandon Xu Lei—if she didn’t help him find a wife, he’d be single forever.

Xu Lei was her flesh and blood. Turning her back on him wasn’t an option.

"Mom, with Xu Lei's situation, if you go around asking, I bet no one would let their daughter even meet him."

Lin Meixiang put it quite tactfully.

When setting up a match, you have to be upfront about things. Just mentioning that Xu Lei does odd jobs would probably scare off any girl.

Even with Lin Meixiang and Jiang Xuehua—her parents wouldn’t have considered him if he didn’t have a steady job back then.

And on top of that, Xu Lei was one of the educated youth. He tried the college entrance exams for years without passing. Thanks to recent policies letting educated youth return to the cities, he managed to stay in town. But he still couldn’t find a real job, so he’s stuck doing odd jobs.

Odd jobs aren’t steady work either. Marrying Xu Lei means instability.

"Well, let’s set him up. Xu Lei isn’t bad-looking—he’s just quiet. Other than not having a job, what’s wrong with him?"

Xu Qi knew his situation wasn’t great.

But they could still try setting him up—maybe someone would like him.

Someone who doesn’t mind that he doesn’t have a job.

"Mom, if you say that, you might as well let him find someone himself," Jiang Ningning said. She thought it'd be better that way.

"Xu Lei actually did find someone, but your aunt shot it down."

He really had gotten himself a girlfriend, but Xu Qi’s sister-in-law refused, because the girl’s family was poor and she didn’t have a job.

"Then forget it. If my aunt thinks you can find some girl from your hospital for Xu Lei, she’s out of luck."

Jiang Ningning thought with a scoff.

If Xu Lei could actually find a girlfriend, but her aunt still said no, it must be because the girl wouldn't hand over her job to him. That’s why she came to Xu Qi asking for help.

"Xu Qi, stay out of this. If your sister-in-law asks, just tell her I told you not to get involved."

If he really couldn’t find anyone, that’s that.

But the truth is, he *could* find someone—it was just that Xu Qi’s sister-in-law wouldn’t allow it.

In that case, maybe Xu Lei should just stay single instead of dragging some girl down with him.

Jiang Erjie really felt Xu Qi shouldn’t get mixed up in this.

Finding a wife shouldn’t be this calculating. He didn’t want to end up being hated later.

"Actually, Erjie, I’ve got a thought."

There was no way Xu Qi could ignore Xu Lei—she cared too much about her own family.

Jiang Erjie gave Xu Qi a look, clearly impatient. "What thought?"

He knew how she was—this had to be some half-baked idea from her side of the family.

"What if we pair Yi Wei with Xu Lei?"

"What did you say?" Jiang Erjie almost spilled his drink, thinking he’d misheard.

"Dad, Mom wants to match Yi Wei with Xu Lei."

Jiang Ningning could hardly hide her grin.

"Hahaha, so the idea was to introduce a wife with a job—turns out her aunt had Jiang Yiwei in mind all along. All this fuss just for that?"

"Not a chance." Jiang Erjie refused flatly.

Jiang Yiwei paired with Xu Lei? Who came up with that nonsense?

They’ve got some nerve.

Jiang Erjie was even mentally cursing Xu Lei and his folks.

"So what if Xu Lei doesn’t have a steady job? He’s fine otherwise."

Xu Qi couldn’t figure out why Jiang Erjie was so against it.

"Xu Lei’s between jobs now, but he’ll land something soon."

After thinking about it, wasn’t the issue just that Xu Lei didn't have a stable job yet? But he was still young. Maybe hooking up with Jiang Yiwei would straighten him out.

"Pfft." Jiang Erjie sneered.

"Go ask them—since when is Xu Lei good enough for Yi Wei?"

"The difference was night and day, but Xu Qi played dumb."

The gap was obvious, yet Xu Qi kept pretending not to see it.

"Mom, you’re selling Yi Wei short here."

Even Jiang Xueqi could see the problem—how could his mother not?

Sticking Yi Wei with Xu Lei? That’s an insult.

Xu Lei's a nobody, but he’s got the gall to chase Yi Wei? Jiang Xueqi cringed at the thought.

"How can you talk about Xu Lei like that? He’s your own cousin!"

This kid—talking trash about his own cousin?

"Mom, why do you lose all sense when it comes to Uncle’s family?" Jiang Xuehua groaned, rubbing his temples.

She was usually sharp as a tack—except with Uncle’s family. Even with their own kids’ matters, she stayed rational.

But with her brother’s family, she turned into someone else.

Back when Yi Wei was selling off her textile gig, their mom wanted to buy it—but only to give it to her brother’s family.

She totally blanked on her own daughters-in-law needing work, only thinking of her relatives back home.

Thankfully, Yi Wei priced them out. Too scared to get caught, she only used her secret stash, so Huang Cuizhu snatched it up instead.

"Mom, Dad and Big Brother are right—Xu Lei wasn’t even in the same league as Yi Wei."

"Yi Wei is a college grad. She’s got a steady side hustle sewing—probably out-earns us all."

Jiang Xueqi was low-key jealous of Yi Wei’s hustle.

She had customers lining up every day for her work.

Even if there are tailor shops outside that can do it cheaper than Jiang Yiwei, people still come to her.

Moreover, she’s a college student who’ll get a job assignment after graduating next year.

“Xu Lei brings nothing to the table, and my aunt isn’t easy to get along with either. Any smart girl wouldn’t want anything to do with them.”

His aunt clearly thinks Jiang Yiwei is a pushover, believing she can be easily manipulated.

But if Jiang Yiwei were truly a fool—except she’s not.

And with Third Uncle in the picture—who never approved of Jiang Yuexin and Fang Guohua being together—he’d never sign off on Jiang Yiwei and Xu Lei dating.

“Xu Qi, did you hear that? Yiwei is a college student who earns her own money. Do you really think she’d give Xu Lei the time of day?”

If Xu Lei were after his daughter, he wouldn’t approve either.

“And have you forgotten about Sanjie? He’d shut that down fast.”

Jiang Sanjie would shut down any idea of Jiang Yiwei and Xu Lei being together—fast.

Jiang Ningning had said nothing the whole time, watching Xu Qi like a hawk, especially when it was said that Xu Lei wasn’t good enough for Jiang Yiwei—Xu Qi’s expression clearly showed a stubborn glare.

Jiang Ningning smirked coldly.

Going after Yiwei?

She’d take Yiwei as her cousin’s wife—but good luck making that happen.

Given Yiwei’s personality and smarts, it’s not happening.

Xu Qi’s efforts are a total waste of breath.

As for trying to pull one over on Yiwei—that won’t be easy.

“Just drop this idea. Go tell your sister-in-law tomorrow—you can’t help Xu Lei find a wife. Shut it down.”

Jiang Erjie flat-out told Xu Qi to abandon the idea and even ordered her to make it clear to her sister-in-law that they couldn’t help with this.

Let them find some working girl themselves.

Eyeing Yiwei? They’re clearly after her earning power.

Jiang Erjie didn’t want to risk offending anyone over this—especially his own brother.

He certainly wouldn’t stand by while his niece walked into that mess.

“Fine, I’ll talk to my sister-in-law tomorrow and make it clear.”

Xu Qi grumbled unhappily.

Seeing that Xu Qi had agreed—and assuming she was done meddling—Jiang Erjie didn’t press further.

But what happened a few days later had Erjie fuming at Xu Qi.

Even Jiang Ningning thought Erjie's words had worked—until she came back from theater practice and saw Jiang Yiwei lurking in the shadows, eyeing the bicycle parked beside her, schoolbag slung over her shoulder, fresh from school.

What was she up to?

What was she looking at?

Jiang Yiwei seemed to sense Jiang Ningning’s scrutinizing gaze and met her eyes.

Just as Jiang Ningning was about to speak, she heard her aunt Wang Shufen's voice coming from Jiang Sanjie’s place.

"When Yiwei was little, I always said she’d go far. Look at her—taking third in the fashion contest. I called it, didn’t I?"

Jiang Ningning slightly widened her eyes. What was Wang Shufen doing at Jiang Sanjie’s?

From this corner, she could also see her mother, Xu Lei, and her grandmother.

She froze.

She’d thought her mother had backed off, but instead, she had brought Wang Shufen and the others straight to their door.

She walked directly to Jiang Yiwei and whispered, just between them, “Do you know why my aunt and grandmother are here?”

Jiang Yiwei frowned. “No clue. But you know something, don’t you, Ningning?”

Judging by Jiang Ningning’s expression, she clearly knew the reason.

The real question was: would she spill?

Jiang Ningning curled her lips. “Fine, I’ll tell you. My aunt asked my mom to find a wife for Xu Lei.”

“A wife for Xu Lei?”

It hit Jiang Yiwei. “Wait—are they after me?”

Could Wang Shufen actually want her to marry Xu Lei?

“I overheard my mom mention it before. Your cousin Xu Lei flunked the college exams a bunch of times and now works odd jobs. You really think your aunt’s targeting me?”

Jiang Yiwei’s voice carried uncertainty.

She’d once overheard Zhang Cuifen and Huang Manjun talking about Xu Lei—how he had failed the exams multiple times and still didn’t have a steady job, doing temporary work.

And in the novel, after Qu Zhenxin and Jiang Ningning took charge of the food factory, Wang Shufen approached Jiang Ningning, wanting Xu Lei to work there.

At first, Jiang Ningning refused, until Xu Qi stepped in, and then she reluctantly agreed.

That job got Xu Lei married in the end.

But later, he caused trouble at the factory, and Jiang Ningning, furious, fired him. Even when Xu Qi pleaded on his behalf, she refused to rehire him.

This led to Wang Shufen showing up at Jiang Ningning’s place, first buttering her up, but when Jiang Ningning wouldn’t budge, she ended up yelling at her.

“What, do you think you’re not good enough? That no one would want you?”

Did Jiang Yiwei actually think she wasn’t good enough?

Honestly, Jiang Ningning found it strange. Jiang Yiwei was beautiful, full of life, a college student, and financially independent—how was she still single?

It seemed unbelievable to Jiang Ningning.

Even she got asked out. There was no way Jiang Yiwei didn’t.

“Not at all. I’m pretty and well-off.”

With Jiang Yiwei’s looks alone, how could no one be interested? Otherwise, why would Fang Wenyu be so jealous?

Isn’t it just because the one she likes likes her back?

"My aunt-in-law isn’t easy to handle—she’s relentless."

"If she’s picked you as her future daughter-in-law, you’re in for trouble."

"With Grandma here too, good luck getting out of this today."

Wang Shufen is stubborn. That’s why Jiang Erjie told Xu Qi to straighten things out with her—telling her not to involve them in finding a wife for Xu Lei. But look, today Wang Shufen came knocking anyway.

What they're after is how much Jiang Yiwei earns.

If Xu Lei actually married Jiang Yiwei, Wang Shufen would show off and claw her way into controlling Jiang Yiwei’s earnings.

Unfortunately, Jiang Yiwei isn’t someone Wang Shufen can easily manipulate.

Jiang Ningning knows Jiang Yiwei won’t go along with this today—or ever.

But Wang Shufen and her grandma won’t give up on Jiang Yiwei as a potential future daughter-in-law so easily.

"They can push all they want—if I say no, tough luck."

Big deal if they’re pushy? If Jiang Yiwei refuses, there’s nothing they can do.

Besides, do they even have the gall to pull this crap?

Jiang Yiwei dusted herself off with a smirk. "I’m heading inside. You coming in, Ningning?"

Normally, Jiang Yiwei wouldn’t speak so casually with Jiang Ningning, but she could tell Jiang Ningning despised Wang Shufen even more and clearly had no intention of helping her.

"No."

Jiang Ningning had no plans to go in.

She had to track down Jiang Erjie first.

Jiang Yiwei nodded, parked her bicycle, and headed inside.

Meanwhile, Jiang Ningning turned around and left to find Jiang Erjie.

"Mom."

As soon as Jiang Yiwei entered, Wang Shufen and Xu Qi stared at her like she was a cash cow.

Xu Lei’s face lit up when he saw her.

Zhang Cuifen, however, looked anxious and helpless the moment she saw her.

Zhang Cuifen desperately wished Jiang Yiwei had stayed out longer today—to avoid this mess.

Spotting Wang Shufen lunging for Jiang Yiwei, Zhang Cuifen yanked Jiang Yiwei away just in time...

No way was she letting Wang Shufen near her.

Wang Shufen forced a smile while seething at Zhang Cuifen inside.

That good-for-nothing gets coddled like royalty.

So what if Jiang Yiwei earns a ton? So what if she’s a college grad? She’ll still end up some man’s wife—that’s just how it is.

It’s all the same no matter whose daughter-in-law you become.

Once Jiang Yiwei marries into her family, she’ll see how they’ll treat her.

“Yiwei has grown into such a graceful young woman—I just adore her,” Wang Shufen gushed, showering Yiwei with endless praise.

“She’s not only beautiful, but she also has an amazing talent. Yiwei’s really something special.”

Wang Shufen grew more and more pleased the longer she looked at Yiwei.

Especially when thinking ahead—how much money could Yiwei earn sewing for people?

Xu Qi had told her that Yiwei charged seven yuan per outfit. Ten outfits would be seventy yuan, twenty would be one hundred and forty.

Wang Shufen’s eyes gleamed hungrily as she stared at Yiwei.

Yiwei was a treasure—marrying her into the family would make them rich.

Xu Lei wouldn’t have to keep scraping by on odd jobs anymore. Those jobs were exhausting and barely paid anything. Whenever Xu Lei came home too tired to talk, Wang Shufen’s heart ached for his suffering.

If he wed Yiwei, he wouldn’t need those jobs. He’d live easy off Yiwei’s earnings.

“Auntie, why are you staring at me?”

Wang Shufen’s gaze was too intense, her greed practically dripping—it was impossible for Yiwei to ignore.

“I was just thinking—any family would be lucky to have you as a daughter-in-law.”

The thought that this luck would soon be hers made her smile stretch wide.

Grandma Xu and Xu Qi smiled too, while Xu Lei ogled Yiwei like she was already his.

Zhang Cuifen’s expression turned stormy.

From the moment Wang Shufen arrived, everything she said revolved around Yiwei—and dragging Xu Lei along spelled out her plans clearly enough. Zhang Cuifen wasn’t stupid; she knew exactly what Wang Shufen and Xu Qi were after.

She’d never let Yiwei marry into that family.

Xu Lei was a dead-end, and she wouldn’t stand by and watch Yiwei fall into him.

Yiwei deserved someone far better.

As for Xu Lei—they could keep him!

“Yiwei is still studying. Marriage isn’t even on the horizon.”

Zhang Cuifen’s words made it clear that for now, Yiwei’s focus was on school, and they weren’t considering anything else.

Sure enough, Wang Shufen’s grin faltered—but she brushed it off shamelessly.

“I remember Yiwei is already twenty-one this year. Next year, she’ll turn twenty-two after graduating.”

“My niece Lingzi is the same age as Yiwei, and she’s already a mother.”

“For girls, the sooner they marry, the better. Past twenty, they’re practically spinsters.”

Yiwei was twenty-one—if she didn’t hurry up, she’d be an old maid.

“Auntie, how can you say that? Ning Ning’s a year older than me. By your logic, every Jiang girl’s a spinster?”

The Jiang family still has quite a few unmarried daughters.

Jiang Ningning is even a year older than she is.

Sure enough, Xu Qi and Zhang Cuifen’s expressions darkened.

Adding Wu Xueying would make it perfect—three sisters-in-law together.

Wang Shufen brushed it off. “So, Yi Wei, you can be the first.”

“Once you’re married, Ning Ning and the others will follow suit.”

Wang Shufen pulled Xu Lei over and pushed him to stand in front of Jiang Yiwei.

“Xu Lei here is twenty-two this year. Right now, he’s working odd jobs, but I promise you, once you marry in, I’ll make sure your uncle hands his job over to Xu Lei.”

Xu Lei stole a shy glance at Jiang Yiwei before quickly looking down, clearly pleased with her as his future wife.

But while Xu Lei was pleased, Jiang Yiwei wasn’t having it.

“Sis, is that for real? Are you really going to give Xu Lei the job once he and Yi Wei marry?”

Xu Qi thought that if Xu Lei had a job, finding a partner would be much easier.

As it is, Xu Lei’s a tough sell, but with a job, things would be more promising.

“Of course it’s true.”

Wang Shufen replied smoothly.

But she was feeding Xu Qi a straight-up lie.

Xu Fu is only in his forties—there’s no way he’d give up his job for Xu Lei. And with Xu Fu’s years of seniority, if he really passed the job to Xu Lei, his pay would get cut by at least two-thirds.