Chapter 41: Night Conversations by the River! Li Junsheng's Sincere Dialogue!

Faced with Sun Gui’s probing, Li Chunyan certainly couldn’t admit it! No matter what, she had to keep this money safe, so that when her children went hungry, she could use it to help them.

With this thought, Li Chunyan shook her head at Sun Gui. “I didn’t secretly give any money. I was just moved by the little clothes Xiaoyu sewed for the child in my belly. Not even my own mother prepared these for me…”

Sun Gui, deeply suspicious, scrutinized Li Chunyan’s face, trying to find a clue. Yet Li Chunyan’s expression remained calm and unrevealing.

After staring at her for a while and finding nothing to suggest a lie, Sun Gui felt disappointed and sneered disdainfully, “Two shabby pieces of clothing, what’s so special about that?”

“You’ve got time to be moved? You’d better pray the child in your belly is a boy. If not, I’ll go find someone else to have a son with!”

“You’re like a block of wood all day long, never smiling, can’t even give birth to a son. How did I end up marrying such a useless woman?”

Sun Gui continued his barrage, yawned, and then lay down to sleep.

Li Chunyan watched him coldly, noticing he hadn’t even covered himself with a quilt. Her gaze softened only when it fell on her two daughters.

The girls were too thin. Li Chunyan decided to cook the chicken and boil some country eggs tomorrow to give her daughters some nourishment.

On the other side, Li Junsheng went out with a flashlight to search for Li Xiaoyu.

He could more or less guess where his youngest daughter had run off to. At the riverside where, in her previous life, she and her boyfriend had thrown themselves into the water for love, Li Junsheng heard the sound of aggrieved crying as soon as he arrived.

He shone his flashlight and saw that the one squatting by the river was none other than his youngest daughter, Li Xiaoyu.

Fortunately, she was still squatting there, not floating in the river!

Seeing her safe, Li Junsheng finally relaxed.

He walked over, opened his mouth, but didn’t know what to say to his daughter.

So he simply squatted beside her, lit a cigarette, and smoked in silence.

Li Junsheng felt troubled. Sons and daughters truly were different! Especially when it came to marriage—the concepts were worlds apart!

He was genuinely afraid. If his fourth child ended up like the third, what would he do?

He wouldn’t even consider the match arranged by Ma Yulian’s relatives. But he hadn’t met the boyfriend Xiaoyu had found herself; in their previous life, he only knew they had died together.

“You don’t love me at all. You don’t care about my feelings. You just want to exchange me for bride money!” Li Xiaoyu’s tear-stained face was full of resentment, her shoulders trembling with sorrow.

Li Junsheng’s heart ached at the sight, and he immediately declared, “No! I’ve never thought that way! I won’t take your bride money!”

“Stop lying! Mom says you’ve already agreed to marry me off to whoever offers six hundred yuan as bride price.”

At this, Li Xiaoyu almost broke down again, but forced herself to hold back.

“That’s nonsense, absolute nonsense! I never agreed! What else did she say?”

Li Xiaoyu continued, “She also said you only split the family money today because you were drunk for a moment.”

Ma Yulian was truly hateful! Using his name to force their daughter, ruining the relationship between father and daughter!

Luckily, this time he followed her out and had a chance to explain. Otherwise, with Xiaoyu’s temperament, if she believed Ma Yulian’s words and acted on impulse, it would be disastrous.

“Xiaoyu, I really didn’t know she arranged this!”

“Now that I do, I certainly won’t agree!”

“The splitting of the family wasn’t because I was drunk. You saw it at the dinner table—I didn’t suddenly decide to do it halfway through drinking. I called all of you back first, prepared the money, and then announced it.”

“Your mother said that because she’s after your money.”

Li Junsheng spoke the truth.

Li Xiaoyu understood this too, and her gaze towards him gradually changed.

Seeing her emotions gradually calm and her demeanor steady, Li Junsheng said earnestly, “As for what your mother said about the marriage candidate, let me explain again: I absolutely won’t agree!”

“If the other party were decent, why would he offer six hundred yuan as bride price right away? Although my daughter is beautiful, independent, and outstanding, I’ve never met him and he’s offering so much money. There must be something wrong!”

Li Xiaoyu’s lips quivered, nearly breaking into a smile through her tears.

It was the first time Li Junsheng had spoken to her so sincerely.

She could clearly sense how much he had changed in the short time since they last met.

After hearing him out, she wasn’t as upset anymore.

But she didn’t fully trust him. Who knew if the two of them were playing a double act?

Li Junsheng continued, “Xiaoyu, what does your boyfriend do? What’s his character like?”

Li Xiaoyu shook her head, her attitude somewhat cold, perhaps still wary of Li Junsheng’s duplicity.

“Does any of that matter to you? To you and Mom, it seems as long as the groom has money, can pay a big bride price, and gives you face, that’s all that matters. Character means nothing to you!”

Li Junsheng was at a loss.

In their previous life, Xiaoyu’s death with her boyfriend had been so sudden, coupled with his own troubles at work, fighting to get his job back had kept him so busy he hadn’t had time to look into these things.

He didn’t know what to say.

After a long silence, he didn’t try to justify himself, but said seriously, “Tomorrow, bring your boyfriend home and let me meet him. As long as he treats you well, the rest can be discussed.”

Li Xiaoyu looked at him in surprise, not expecting him to want to meet her boyfriend.

Next, Li Junsheng placed the flashlight and two hundred seventy-five yuan into Li Xiaoyu’s palm.

“This money is yours. Take it, hurry back to the textile mill. No matter what your mother asks, don’t give it to her. If she asks for money, tell her it’s with me and let her come find me.”

Li Junsheng was sure Ma Yulian wouldn’t dare to ask him for money.

Li Xiaoyu looked at the money and the flashlight in her hand, feeling a mix of emotions.

Her father was worried the road back to the factory was too dark, so he gave her the only flashlight, choosing to walk home in the dark himself.

Had she misunderstood her father?

Suddenly, Li Xiaoyu felt she shouldn’t have been so cold to Li Junsheng.

“I’m sorry, Dad. I thought you didn’t care about me… I didn’t mean to give you a hard time!”

Li Junsheng smiled at her, not blaming her in the slightest.

If it weren’t for Ma Yulian stirring things up, his relationship with his daughter wouldn’t have been so strained.

“All right, go home and use cold water to reduce the swelling on your face. If you need anything, come to me. Try to avoid your mother for now.”

Li Xiaoyu nodded. She could see today that something was wrong between her parents.

Her father was no longer timid and obedient to her mother!

He also showed care for her and her siblings, protecting them from being wronged.

Compared to her mother, who was partial and indifferent to the fate of her children, her father’s change was for the better.

After agreeing to bring her boyfriend home tomorrow, Li Xiaoyu and Li Junsheng parted ways.

Although the road back to the textile factory wasn’t far, Li Junsheng still worried.

He followed her from a distance for two miles and only turned back for home when he saw her enter the factory gates.

On the way, Li Junsheng couldn’t help but reflect: children are all little debt collectors—four of them and endless worries!

The eldest had been ruined by Ma Yulian’s upbringing, and even his two children weren’t good people.

Guohua’s son Xiaowei was obedient, but his pneumonia hadn’t fully healed, and Guohua himself was living in a rented room outside, barely getting by.

Chunyan worried him even more. As long as Xiaoyu didn’t die for love, the rest could be handled; if her man’s character was sound, Li Junsheng was willing to let his daughter marry him.

Bride price meant nothing now—so long as his daughter felt happy.

Once he met his daughter’s boyfriend tomorrow, he had to hurry and earn money.

Only by saving up could he help his second son’s family live better lives!

If the third gave birth to a girl, Sun Gui would certainly be unhappy.

Li Junsheng couldn’t just watch as his third daughter struggled with two granddaughters; the best solution was to bring them back from Sun Gui’s house.