Mi Lan picked up the bonds one by one and held them tightly in her hands. Using all her strength, she managed to say, "Impossible, Third Yan. Don't slander people."
Yan Zhao, being practical, finished speaking and went to the kitchen to focus on kneading dough.
Little Wang and Yuanyuan stopped arguing. Little Lang even stopped doing his horse stance. The children gathered around, watching Mi Lan.
Mi Lan clutched her chest, her whole body trembling. Clearly, she was also shocked by this news.
Her second uncle, a chubby, jolly old man who looked just like a laughing Buddha, how could he be a crime boss?
And what about Mi Fang? Had she been arrested too? If Mi Fang had really been arrested, what would happen to the 300,000 yuan?
She had been trading stocks and bonds for several years, and due to the favorable market conditions, she had never lost money. This made her blindly confident, not only believing that the bonds wouldn't lose value, but firmly convinced they would rise.
At this moment, she wasn't worried about losing money, but rather how to deposit the 300,000 yuan into that bankbook after making a profit. She still believed she could come out of this unscathed.
"Mom, what's wrong with Second Aunt?" Yuanyuan asked quietly.
"She's not well. Don't look. Take Little Lang and Little Wang outside, okay?" Chen Meilan said to her daughter.
She suspected there was still a good argument to come, and after all, Mi Lan's own son had died. She had strong opinions about her son not receiving his grandmother's inheritance. Seeing Little Wang and Little Lang would inevitably make her feel resentful. It was better to keep them separated from her at this time.
Adults' ugliness shouldn't be witnessed by children.
"Okay, Mom." Yuanyuan reached out to take Little Wang's hand. "Come on, brother, let's go outside."
Little Wang was still angry with Yuanyuan. He shook off her hand and took Little Lang's instead. After leaving, the three children headed to Teacher Huang's house.
Mi Lan indeed had heart disease; this couldn't be faked. At this moment, the area around her mouth was completely blue, clearly indicating insufficient blood supply to the heart. However, it probably wasn't too severe, because serious heart disease makes it impossible to conceive, and she had given birth before, proving her condition wasn't that serious.
Yan Wei had pressured Mi Lan enough, and he probably got tired of Mi Lan always talking about promotion and repaying kindness. When he heard that Director Mi was actually a gang leader, he couldn't help but mock her: "Mi Lan, you always complained that your father didn't promote your second uncle. If he had been promoted, wouldn't your second uncle be the gang leader of the entire Hua Country now, not just Xiping City?"
Mi Lan turned around, glaring at her husband, and suddenly slapped him hard.
The sound was crisp and loud.
Chen Meilan gave a cold laugh but said nothing.
A man like Yan Wei, so weak-willed that he wouldn't even let his own mother see his son, deserved to be slapped. He should be beaten to death.
"You're not thinking straight," Mi Lan said, raising her hand to slap him again. Yan Wei grabbed her hand. "Stop it. We need to cash in the bonds now."
"If you want to cash in the bonds, you'll have to kill me first," Mi Lan said as she gathered up the bonds and put them in her bag, holding it tightly with both hands. "Come on, Yan Wei, isn't this your hometown? Go ahead and hit me. Why don't you just kill me?"
Just then, the house phone rang. Chen Meilan went inside to answer it. It was Yan Peiheng calling. Hearing Meilan's voice, the old man was clearly pleased. "Meilan, has your sister-in-law paid back the money? Old Wang next door just told me you all were chatting so nicely. That's how it should be. Family should be harmonious and lively."
Chen Meilan held the receiver, paused for a moment, then asked the old man, "Father, now that the money is in my hands, what do you want me to do with it?"
Mi Lan was clutching the bonds, unwilling to let go, and Yan Wei was too weak-willed to do anything but be manipulated by her.
To repay that money, they'd have to use Mi Lan's bonds and the house as collateral. Chen Meilan wanted to hear Yan Peiheng's attitude.
Yan Peiheng sighed first, then said, "Meilan, the reason I took charge of that money was out of necessity. I've been blocking Gu Xiao from returning to the country precisely because neither I nor Yan Wei and his wife have touched a single cent of that money. You married that rascal son of mine, and he's a policeman, poor like me. It means that if you want a comfortable life, you'll have to strive for it yourself. You should learn from Mi Lan - manage the money, but don't touch it, okay?"
Chen Meilan had always known that Yan Peiheng was being run in circles by Mi Lan and her husband.
But she never thought the old man was this muddleheaded. Mi Lan's debts were about to become a huge mess, and he had no idea?
But never mind. Even if someone had to reveal the truth to the old man, Chen Meilan didn't want it to be her.
She continued to smile and said, "The stock and bond market looks good right now. Why don't I try investing some of it? It's a sure win. The 300,000 will always be there, and I can earn a bit more for Little Wang. In the future, when he grows up, he won't need to struggle himself. He'll have security for life, isn't that right?"
Yan Peiheng's breathing became heavy. Chen Meilan guessed that if anyone else had dared to say this, the old man would have reached through the phone line to slap them.
But he managed not to lose his temper, and instead said, "Meilan, everyone in the military compound knows you're my proudest daughter-in-law. I heard Old Wang next door say that many colleagues curse me behind my back as an old man who won't die, but I've always believed you're a good daughter-in-law, worthy of praise."
...
The old man was quite skilled in the art of conversation. His tone deepened as he said, "Don't make me lose face when I go to work tomorrow, okay?"
"Alright, Dad. I was just joking," Chen Meilan said as she hung up the phone.
Outside, pressured by Yan Wei, Mi Lan seemed to have no choice but to make a statement. She went into the bedroom, raised one hand, and solemnly said to Chen Meilan, "Meilan, I'm not someone who hasn't seen money before. When I was trading bonds, at my peak, I once had 600,000 yuan. My husband and I still live in Yanguan Village, and even when my heart disease acts up, I stay here. Give me half a month. I swear on my dead son's life, my mother's health, and my own life, if I can't pay back that money, may heaven strike me down with lightning. Is that good enough?"
Being far away earlier, Chen Meilan hadn't seen clearly, but now she noticed that Mi Lan was wearing a Patek Philippe watch on her wrist. This watch must cost not just thousands, but tens of thousands of yuan.
And her bag was Louis Vuitton. According to Yan Wei, they had so many of these bags at home that they couldn't use them all.
Where did all that money come from if not from Little Wang's money?
With those 300,000 yuan, during these five or six years of reform and opening up, when bonds had just entered the market and policies were not yet perfect, Mi Lan had once made five or six hundred thousand at her peak.
This was the premise for her maintaining a luxurious lifestyle and being able to afford a Patek Philippe.
Not only had she not realized that using that money without permission was wrong, but having handled so much money, she no longer viewed 300,000 yuan as significant.
Chen Meilan had been reborn and had seen through life and death. She didn't like to push things to extremes.
But towards Mi Lan, even though she was a heart patient, even though she had lost her only child, Chen Meilan felt not a shred of pity.
If a clap of thunder were to sound from the sky right now, it might wake Mi Lan up.
But a person who has made a fortune riding the winds of the times is very hard to awaken.
She didn't know she was just a pig on the wind, that when the wind stopped, she would fall and be gutted. She still thought she could make money purely based on her own ability.
If it weren't for the fact that the money belonged to Little Wang, Chen Meilan would have really wanted to stay silent and watch Mi Lan lose everything and go bankrupt in this half month.
Mi Lan's oath was so severe that it scared Yan Wei. He turned Mi Lan's shoulders, assuming Chen Meilan more or less knew the situation, and whispered, "Meilan, today is Friday, and the bond market is closed. Give me two days. I promise I'll convince your sister-in-law to return the money on Monday, okay?"
Then he asked Mi Lan, "Do you want to go to the hospital?"
"No, I'll stay here. Even if I die, I want to die here," Mi Lan said angrily.
Yan Wei then turned and said with a smile, "Meilan, Mi Lan is different from you who come from the countryside. The quilts and mattresses..."
Today was Friday, and the bond market would be closed tomorrow and the day after.
Even if they wanted to sell the bonds, they'd have to wait until Monday.
Yan Wei was truly henpecked, and even after Mi Lan's resounding slaps, his main concern was still whether Mi Lan would sleep comfortably at night, wanting new quilts and mattresses for her.
Chen Meilan frowned slightly, then asked in return, "Second brother, do you not know that you have a home in the First Squad? And do you not know what day it is tomorrow? Shouldn't you be staying at the First Squad?"
Yan Wei was stunned for a moment: "What day?"
At this time, Yan Bin's voice was heard from outside the door: "I heard that Yan Wei has come. What a filial son, knowing that tomorrow is our aunt's birthday and coming for that, right? Is Third Brother steaming flower buns for Aunt? I'll come help too, to show my filial piety."
Yan Zhao responded from the kitchen: "He doesn't even know what he ate growing up, how would he remember my mother's birthday?"
Tomorrow, the sixth day of the sixth lunar month, is Su Wen's birthday. This is why Yan Zhao started making flour-based food as soon as he entered. He was making flower buns as an offering for his mother, worried that store-bought buns might contain animal fat, so he wanted to make purely vegetarian ones.
Yan Peiheng urged the couple to come early, actually hoping for Yan Wei to offer incense to his mother.
But Yan Wei was clueless and froze: "Tomorrow is Mother's birthday? I really forgot."
"As long as you don't forget what kept you alive, that's fine," Yan Bin said with a laugh. "You and Yan Jun should be more filial to Aunt than others."
"What we ate? Wasn't it during the great famine when everyone ate grass roots, grass ash, and tree bark?" Yan Wei said. "It wasn't easy in the city either. My mother-in-law and Mi Lan almost starved to death those years."
Mi Lan finally got a chance to chime in: "It's not like things got better after '58 and '59. We in the city didn't even have grass ash to eat, we just endured hunger, hmph!"
She suddenly gave a cold laugh, the meaning of which only Yan Wei understood, and it was enough to anger even him, who deeply loved her.
He suddenly raised his hand, ready to slap Mi Lan, who immediately straightened her face and said, "Yan Wei, don't forget, your birth mother only raised you for four years. How long has my mother taken care of you?"
"Go to hell, if you dare to laugh like that again, I'll slap you to death," Yan Wei, usually a gentle person, couldn't help but swear.
But strangely, even when Yan Wei cursed at her like this, Mi Lan didn't have a heart attack.
The brothers, having met unexpectedly, still wanted to chat a bit at the kitchen door.
Chen Meilan poured a cup of tea each for Yan Bin and Yan Wei. Just as she finished brewing the tea, Yuanyuan came in and called out to Chen Meilan: "Mom, can you come here for a moment?"
Chen Meilan then came out of the room and saw Yuanyuan carrying Teacher Huang's Manchang on her back, waving at the courtyard gate.
Putting down the tea, Chen Meilan walked to the gate and saw Little Wang and Little Lang holding hands across from the garbage area, with Mi Lan bending over, smiling, asking Little Wang something.
Yuanyuan said to Chen Meilan: "Mom, Second Aunt is acting a bit strange. Do you know what she just asked Little Wang?"
...
Earlier, Little Wang, Little Lang, Yuanyuan, and the others had gone to Teacher Huang's house. Third Sister-in-law Huang, who ate dinner early, wanted to take Manchang out to play. The three of them followed along. Of course, Little Wang and Yuanyuan were still at odds, so Little Wang played with Little Lang while Yuanyuan entertained little Manchang.
Seeing how good Yuanyuan was at taking care of the baby, someone teased her: "Little girl, do you like Manchang? If you really like him, why don't you take him home to raise?"
Yuanyuan, being a girl who loved all children, nodded vigorously: "Mm-hmm."
Little Wang then pulled Little Lang into his arms and kissed his little brother's stinky head several times.
At this moment, Mi Lan leisurely strolled out and stood among the crowd, reaching out to pat Little Lang's little head, and asked Little Wang what he liked to do most.
Little Wang was known in the village for being good at making money and having money.
Immediately, people started laughing and telling Mi Lan about Little Wang's exploits - how he once charged for trampoline rides, sold cassette tapes, and even now, whenever he had time, he would sell popsicles every few days. So everyone agreed that this child would definitely be successful when he grew up, probably even better at making money than Yan Xishan, the village's best money-maker.
Mi Lan became interested upon hearing this: "Yan Wangqi, let Auntie ask you, if Auntie gave you 300,000 yuan, what would you want to do with it?"
Little Wang was almost nine years old now, and he had overheard his parents talking before, so he certainly knew about that sum of money.
Moreover, he was no ordinary child. He had a great desire for money and had always been hoping for money, hoping to be independent. Although he was young, he knew that even if he got such a huge sum of 300,000 yuan, he wouldn't be able to decide how to use it himself. But children can't help but think about it - what if Yuanyuan and Chen Meilan really didn't want him anymore, what would he do with that 300,000 yuan?
Although he didn't like this second aunt from the capital because Zhou Xueqin had always been cursing her, saying that she and her daughter were both smiling tigers, killing people with soft knives, and that she herself had almost been bullied to death by them, Little Wang couldn't help but be tempted.
Even a three-year-old child knows the value of money, so how could Little Wang not be moved?
He raised his eyebrows at Yuanyuan, deliberately saying: "Of course I would use that money to buy a house. I would also take Little Lang to live separately. We wouldn't live with Yan Shengnan anymore."
His words were deliberately meant to provoke Yuanyuan, to make her angry.
But it just so happened that at this crucial moment, the three closest siblings were having a conflict. When Mi Lan saw this, she thought that in Chen Meilan's remarried family, Little Lang and Little Wang's relationship with Yuanyuan was very tense.
That huge sum of money wasn't for Yan Zhao, but for Little Wang.
Whoever was Little Wang's guardian would own the money.
There had been many opportunities in the past when Mi Lan could have intervened and raised Little Wang and Little Lang.
Yan Peiheng would have agreed immediately, sending a guard with a car to take the two children directly from Zhou's mother's house, and Zhou Xueqin's family wouldn't have dared to say a word.
But even though Yan Wei had begged many times, Mi Lan had always refused to raise them. Now, looking at the caring and polite Little Wang, and the chubby, both naughty and obedient Little Lang, how could Mi Lan not be tempted?
After laughing for a while, she said: "Your current mother definitely won't agree, but our family is more democratic. Yan Ha gets three to four hundred yuan in New Year's money every year, and I help him invest in stocks. We can make six to seven hundred in a year."
Little Wang thought he was rich enough, but he didn't expect Yan Ha to be even richer than him.
The child immediately became interested: "Auntie, are you really that good?"
"Would you like to go to the capital with me? With 300,000 yuan, I can help you make money," Mi Lan tried asking.
But this time, Mi Lan's intentions fell through. Children are very sensitive and perceptive. Children of the 90s had heard too many news stories and rumors about kidnapping or poisoning.
The 300,000 yuan was like a piece of candy or a sausage.
Even for Little Wang, he didn't dare to truly entertain the idea of playing with 300,000 yuan. Instead, he saw it as a rat poison-laced sausage, used by his second aunt to tempt and harm him.
Chen Meilan was at the courtyard gate, with Yuanyuan carrying little Manchang standing beside her, and several village women watching.
Little Wang suddenly grabbed Little Lang's hand and ran, rushing to Chen Meilan's side in one breath.
Then, he stood behind Chen Meilan.
"This child is quite obedient. Meilan, he really listens to you," Mi Lan walked over and sighed sincerely, "I was just joking, but he got so nervous."
Chen Meilan then smiled and asked Little Wang: "If you had 300,000 yuan, have you thought about what you'd do with it?"
Little Wang, being a clever child, could sense the thick tension between his mom and aunt, so he didn't say a word.
Mi Lan laughed and said: "Silly boy, with 300,000 yuan, you wouldn't have to do anything for the rest of your life. You could just lie down and eat."
Yan Peiheng knew nothing about Mi Lan's stock trading, and Chen Meilan didn't intend to deliberately cause trouble by reporting this huge matter to the old man. They were all part of the same family, all daughters-in-law, so there was no need to sabotage each other.
But today she had to play the bad guy.
Money is certainly a good thing, and all good things in life come from money.
But as the saying goes, it takes three years to learn good habits, but only three days to learn bad ones. If Little Wang, whom she had painstakingly educated to finally be willing to study, from now on embraced the idea of living off 300,000 yuan for a lifetime, then this child's entire life would be ruined.
With such severe inflation, 300,000 yuan in the future wouldn't even buy a toilet in the capital.
But if you use it to coax a child into giving up studying from now on, it could ruin a child's entire life.
The person who ruins him and he himself will never know how he was ruined.
Chen Meilan took a deep breath and called Yan Zhao, signaling him to come to the bedroom.
Yan Zhao, still with both hands covered in flour, first rinsed his hands clean under the faucet before coming to ask: "What's the matter?"
"Let's call Dad," Chen Meilan said.
Yan Zhao looked puzzled: "You can call him yourself, why do you need me to do it?"
Chen Meilan smiled and gave him a push: "You call."
Yan Zhao didn't fully understand the situation, but he knew it wasn't good to argue in front of children. So he made a phone call, which was again answered by Wang Gebi, though this time her tone was normal as she said, "Is this Yan Zhao? You're looking for Chief of Staff Yan, right? I'll call him for you right away."
Soon, Yan Peiheng picked up the phone and asked, "What's the matter?"
Yuanyuan was there, as were Little Lang and Little Wang. Yan Wei and Yan Bin had pulled up chairs on the kitchen steps and were chatting and laughing. Mi Lan was also sitting in the courtyard. The family was having a pleasant conversation, with Mi Lan occasionally reaching out to pull Little Wang closer, probably wanting to continue chatting with him.
Chen Meilan spoke into the speakerphone: "Dad, it's like this. You must know that Second Sister-in-law used that 300,000 to trade stocks and at most made 600,000. She has 280,000 worth of bonds that are locked up, and she gave us an empty bankbook. She probably wants to wait for the bonds to rise before paying us back. Her thinking isn't wrong, after all, the bond market has been hot enough, rising for five or six years without falling. Everyone can understand her desire to earn more... But what if the bonds don't rise? I see that Second Brother can't persuade her, so why don't you try?"
Her tone was calm and composed.
She was stating facts.
But Yan Peiheng knew nothing about Mi Lan's stock trading.
He didn't even know what professional terms like "locked up" or "cut losses" meant.
He had never known that Mi Lan was using that 300,000 to trade stocks.
He had just told Chen Meilan that if she used the money to trade stocks, he wouldn't be able to face going to work from tomorrow, because the reason he dared to be tough with Gu Xiaoheng was that he could keep the 300,000 untouched. He believed his son and daughter-in-law were as steadfast as he was.
On the other end of the phone, a terrible silence.
Yan Zhao had just learned about this too and was trying to process the meaning of Chen Meilan's words.
Yan Wei and Yan Bin had heard and were walking towards the bedroom.
Mi Lan looked shocked and said in a trembling voice, "Meilan, I've been so good to you. I'm your Second Sister-in-law. What are you doing? How can you do this?" Selling her out so unexpectedly - was this how sisters-in-law behaved?
Unlike in apartment buildings with their winding corridors and walls and doors everywhere, where people could scheme and plot,
This bright, spacious courtyard house had all its room doors hung with curtains. Chen Meilan neither concealed nor pretended.
She spoke matter-of-factly: "Second Sister-in-law, didn't you say you wanted to take Little Wang to the capital? I don't care whether Little Wang wants to go or not, I won't agree, and neither will Yan Zhao. Even if Little Wang wants to go with you to the capital to make big money trading stocks, we absolutely won't let him go with you, because he's my son, and I want to raise and educate him myself."
As she spoke, she reached behind her back, and Little Wang was right there.
Smoothly, the little one put his hand in Chen Meilan's, and gradually, he suddenly threw himself onto Chen Meilan's back, hugging her tightly.
"I was joking, I was just joking," Mi Lan felt she couldn't explain herself.
She really had just been joking. She didn't know why Chen Meilan was acting like this, why she was being so aggressive.
Turning back, she said to Yan Wei in a coquettish tone, "Honey, I really was just joking. Look at Meilan, why did she get so worked up? How can she do this?" How could she expose everything to the old man?
Yan Wei had been begging for many days, asking Mi Lan to sell the bonds and pay back the money.
Every day she promised that they would definitely rise, that they would rise tomorrow, but every morning they would be worth a little less.
As her husband and childhood sweetheart, how could Yan Wei not know Mi Lan's thoughts?
That was exactly what she was thinking.
The Capital Construction bonds had fallen from 280,000 to 180,000, but she still wouldn't give up. Not only did she not want to pay back Little Wang's money, but she also wanted to lure Little Wang into trading bonds.
The reason Yan Wei wanted to go abroad and make big money was all due to Mi Lan's influence, but recently he had become scared by the losses. The 100,000 that had evaporated was money he could never earn in his entire life.
The nature of trading bonds itself was gambling, just like drugs and prostitution. It was bad enough that Mi Lan herself wouldn't give up until she saw the Yellow River, but how could she try to lure Little Wang, such a young child, into doing things like drugs, prostitution, and gambling?
Slap! A palm struck Mi Lan's face, frightening Yan Bin into shouting, "Second Brother, how can you hit Second Sister-in-law? That's too much!"
Yan Wei was about to slap again when Yan Zhao grabbed his clothes and shoved him against the wall.
In the narrow bedroom, the three brothers were fighting and grappling with each other.
Just then, a cry came from the phone: "Chief of Staff, Chief of Staff Yan, what's wrong with you?"
It was Wang Gebi's voice.
With a clang, the phone on the other end hung up.
Yan Zhao grabbed the phone and kept redialing.
After a while, someone finally answered on the other end. It was a woman's voice, but not Wang Gebi's.
"Where's my father?" Yan Zhao asked.
"Are you Yan Wei? Your dad is having heart trouble. Your Uncle Cui called for the guards and is rushing him to the hospital," the woman on the other end paused for a moment before saying, "Don't worry, your Uncle Cui will take care of everything. He'll be fine. Ah!"
That sigh was full of helpless resignation.
Once the adults started fighting, the little ones seemed to become exceptionally united.
Yuanyuan had been regretting for a long time, and she took this opportunity to formally say to Little Wang, "Brother, I'm sorry. I never meant to drive you away. I just said the wrong thing that day, okay?"
Little Wang shyly leaned against Chen Meilan's back, hugging her waist and smiling crookedly.
