Chapter 36: Li Junsheng's Interrogation! Sun Gui, a Gambler?

As soon as these words were spoken, the expressions on Li Guojun and Wang Xiuhua’s faces became as unpleasant as if they had swallowed a fly. Li Guojun cast a pleading glance at Ma Yulian, but Ma Yulian simply snorted coldly, giving him not the slightest attention.

Hadn’t Li Guojun and Wang Xiuhua been so capable earlier, forcing her to return to her maiden home? Ma Yulian thought to herself that since these two ingrates refused to listen, they should get less money, while her two daughters would receive more; in the end, at least she would recover six hundred yuan. Why bother standing up for them?

Li Junsheng slid the money toward Li Guojun and his wife, paying no mind to whether they would accept it or not. Then he turned to Li Guohua and Ji Xiaocui.

“Guohua, we must handle things impartially. I lent you two hundred before, and you’ve spent twenty. There’s no need to repay that twenty; just deduct it from this sum.”

“Two hundred seventy-five, minus twenty, leaves two hundred fifty-five. Take it and keep it safely.”

Li Junsheng handed the money to Li Guohua, who hesitated but ultimately accepted it from his father’s hand.

If he were unmarried, he would have refused this money, leaving it for his father’s old age. But now, with a wife and child, he could not bear to see them struggle endlessly. After a moment’s thought, he decided he must keep it.

Ji Xiaocui was deeply grateful to Li Junsheng. If not for his insistence, how could she and her husband have received this sum?

“Thank you, Father!”

When it came to Li Chunhua, Li Junsheng handed her the full two hundred seventy-five yuan.

“Chunhua, this is yours. The money your mother has saved over the years is still out on loan and hasn’t matured yet. Once it’s returned, you’ll receive your bride price along with it.”

At these words, Ma Yulian reacted like a startled wildcat, instantly bristling and baring her teeth at Li Junsheng.

“Return it? After raising her all these years, isn’t it right for me to ask for a bride price? If you want to give it, go ahead, but don’t expect any money from me!”

But Li Chunhua paid no heed to Ma Yulian’s words; she simply stared blankly at the money Li Junsheng offered her for a long while.

After some thought, Li Chunhua shook her head and gently declined her share.

“Father, it’s enough that you care for me as your daughter. I don’t want this money. Keep it for your own old age. Now that I’m married and no longer at home, giving you more is simply fulfilling my duty as your child.”

Otherwise, even if she took the money back, Sun Gui would snatch it away for drinking, eating, or gambling.

Two hundred seventy-five yuan was a sizable sum, and not a single coin would be spent on her or her two daughters.

She remembered that before marriage, even with her mother’s blatant preference for sons, at least she could live cleanly and beautifully. But after marrying, even tying her hair would provoke Sun Gui’s scolding, accusing her of dressing like a gaudy seductress. Her mother-in-law’s words were even more unbearable. Recalling this, Li Chunhua’s expression dimmed.

Seeing Li Chunhua refuse the two hundred seventy-five yuan that had fallen into her lap, Sun Gui’s eyes blazed with anxiety.

“Are you—”

He nearly lost control and began to scold her, but at the last moment, he restrained himself, forcing an insincere smile and attempting a disingenuous persuasion.

“Chunhua, you should at least take some. Think of your two daughters—they’re still growing, and with you expecting, you need nourishment!”

Sun Gui’s words were riddled with contradictions. Moments ago, he boasted that their meals at home were better than tonight’s at Li Junsheng’s, and now he was urging Li Chunhua to think of the children’s nutrition and accept the money.

Weariness and despair clouded Li Chunhua’s eyes as she replied coldly, “It’s all right. If I eat less, our two daughters can eat more. Let Father keep the money.”

“You—”

Sun Gui ground his teeth in frustration. How could this blockheaded woman be so useless? Had he hit her so hard that her wits were addled? To refuse money!

Watching his daughter’s exhausted and hopeless face, Li Junsheng reconsidered and withdrew the money.

He could not give this to Chunhua now. Since returning to this life with memories of the last, he knew that the child she was carrying would also be a girl. In their previous life, when his daughter bore the third granddaughter, Sun Gui and his mother had shown nothing but disdain. During her confinement, neither cared for Li Chunhua nor the newborn. This money, Li Junsheng resolved, must be set aside for his daughter, to be used for her own recovery and for raising her three daughters.

Taking advantage of Sun Gui’s earlier bragging, Li Junsheng said, “Sun Gui, I know your family isn’t lacking for money. Your meals are even better than ours tonight, so Chunhua and the children surely have plenty of nourishment.”

“So, let’s wait until the child is born to hand over the money. After all, adding another mouth to feed is no small matter.”

Sun Gui was stunned. If he’d known Li Junsheng would seize on his claims of their household’s abundance to withhold the money, he would never have boasted. Annoyed, he scowled at Li Junsheng and grumbled, “If you don’t want to give the money, just say so. Why make up so many excuses? Who knows if you’ll hand it over when the time comes, or just keep it for yourself? I never got back the bride price I gave Li Chunhua, so I doubt I’ll ever see this two hundred seventy-five yuan.”

Li Junsheng frowned and retorted immediately, “Why are you in such a hurry? Didn’t you just say your family isn’t lacking? Or was that a lie? Chunhua’s due in less than half a month. Can’t you wait even that long? Besides, I’ve heard rumors that you gamble—could it be true? Are you hoping to use Chunhua’s money for gambling?”

With these words, all eyes at the table turned to Sun Gui. Even Ma Yulian, for all her faults, knew gamblers were no good—they’d sell house and land, even their own children. All the more so for those who truly cared about Li Chunhua, like Li Guohua and Li Xiaoyu.

“Sun Gui, do you really gamble? If you’re so wayward, I can’t let my sister stay with you!” Li Guohua, the second brother, pressed Sun Gui, while Li Guojun remained preoccupied with thoughts of how to secure more money for himself.

Li Xiaoyu, having no fondness for her brother-in-law, took her sister’s arm and asked with concern, “Sister, does he really gamble? Don’t be afraid—tell me the truth. If he’s gambling and keeps hitting you, I won’t let him off!”

Knowing their parents and eldest brother wouldn’t intervene, Li Xiaoyu revealed her fierce side—she was clearly ready to take on Sun Gui herself. In fact, Xiaoyu was even taller than Sun Gui; she might not lose in a fight.

Afraid Li Chunhua would expose him, Sun Gui pinched her thigh under the table—a silent warning to hold her tongue.

He forced a hollow laugh, denying the accusation. “Where did you hear such rumors? How could I possibly gamble? You’re the one deciding about the money, Father-in-law, and now you’re refusing to give it. I just feel you don’t care about Chunhua, that’s all!”