An Accidental Military Marriage

Chapter 110: Chapter 110: Demanding Money

The letter was gone, but the fact that it had been sent was traceable.

Her homeroom teacher, Zhu Yanli, had picked up the letter for Zhang Sanmei.

Zhu Yanli had gone to the post office to mail something herself. When she saw a letter addressed to one of her students, she brought it back to the school with her.

Once it was confirmed that Zhang Sanmei had indeed received a letter from Menghai, the fact that she was acting under Jiang Qing’s instruction was all but settled.

Originally, the villagers had been envious of the Zhang Family. They had managed to get an educated, city-bred daughter-in-law without spending a dime.

Granted, Jin Yulan had put down a bit of money during the proposal, but the betrothal gift was a mere 8.8 yuan, and there wasn’t even a wedding banquet. It was practically the same as getting a daughter-in-law for free.

As it turned out, you really do get what you pay for.

First, there were the scandalous rumors about Jiang Qing and the male educated youth next door, making them a laughingstock. Now, she had caused her father-in-law to be beaten and blinded in one eye.

She wasn’t a daughter-in-law; she was a damn jinx!

The good reputation Jiang Qing had painstakingly built and maintained completely crumbled.

When Yang Chunxiang learned that Jiang Qing was the one pulling the strings, she grew even more furious.

She rushed into the city to confront Jiang Dahai. "It’s one thing for outsiders to sling mud at the Jiang family, but Jiang Qing grew up eating our food! Instead of repaying our kindness, she turns around and dumps a bucket of filth on our heads. Have you raised nothing but an ungrateful wretch?"

"Sister-in-law, please calm down. Let me ask Xiao Qing about this first."

"What’s there to ask? The letter was sent from Menghai. If it wasn’t her, who was it? Zhang Jia Ming?"

Yang Chunxiang glanced around. Not seeing Li Hongying, she redirected her anger toward Jin Yulan, the mother-in-law.

"I don’t know what kind of mother-in-law you are, unable to control your own daughter-in-law. It serves your Tiesheng right that he got one of his eyes blinded! This is karma!"

Those words struck a raw nerve. Jin Yulan’s eyes reddened as she shot back at Yang Chunxiang,

"You can’t even control the man sleeping next to you every night, yet you have the nerve to lecture me! There’s no smoke without fire. That Boss Jiang of yours is no saint either!"

"Bullshit! What do you eat three times a day, shit? Every time you open your mouth, you’re spewing filth! No wonder that Zhang Sanmei of yours dared to spread such lies. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Your whole family is a bunch of animals!"

The two women argued heatedly, and Jiang Dahai scrambled to mediate.

He turned and shouted to Jiang Moli, "Stop just watching the drama and help me break this up!"

Jiang Moli walked up to them and said loudly in their ears, "Let me give you some advice. Stop arguing and just fight it out. Why use your mouths when you can use your fists?"

Jiang Dahai: "..."

Both Yang Chunxiang and Jin Yulan stared at her in disbelief, as if looking at the strangest creature on earth.

’You call this breaking up a fight?’

’You’re just fanning the flames!’

The surrounding medical staff and patients’ families all shot Jiang Moli looks of contempt and disgust.

Everyone loved a good drama and wouldn’t mind seeing it escalate, but you were supposed to keep such shameful thoughts to yourself, not say them out loud.

*Disdain Value +8. Credited: 80,000 Yuan.*

Hearing the notification that the Disdain Value had been credited, Jiang Moli’s mood improved. She asked Yang Chunxiang and Jin Yulan, "So, are you going to fight or not? If not, then let’s just call it a day."

"Forget it. Your husband is already blind in one eye. I’m not going to lower myself to your level."

Seizing the opportunity to back down, Yang Chunxiang threw out her final words and left.

Jin Yulan was still fuming, but Jiang Moli diverted her attention. "About Uncle Zhang’s injury, you haven’t told Zhang Jia Ming yet, have you? Let me be a good person and finish the job. I’ll help you call his unit."

Jin Yulan was instantly grateful to hear this.

"Moli, thank you."

In this era, communication was primarily through letters. For urgent matters, people sent telegrams. Phone calls were a luxury that most people couldn’t afford.

"It’s nothing. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure he gets the message."

Watching Jiang Moli’s departing figure, Jiang Dahai felt quite pleased.

’His daughter had handled things pretty well today,’ he thought. ’Not only did she readily lend money to help the Zhang family through this crisis, but she was also being thoughtful and thorough.’

When Lu Cheng answered Jiang Moli’s call, he was a little taken aback. "Moli? Is something wrong?"

He had been in frequent contact with his family lately, but he was always the one to call home.

This was the first time his wife had ever called him.

He couldn’t help but worry that something had happened at home.

"There is, actually. Can you pass a message to Zhang Jia Ming? His old man got beaten up by Guo Dawei..."

Jiang Moli recounted the events succinctly. "Long story short, it’s a bloodbath caused by a letter from Jiang Qing. Tell Zhang Jia Ming his old man is lying in the hospital waiting for money for surgery, and he needs to scrape it together, fast."

"Okay, I’ll tell him to send the money home as soon as possible."

"Don’t bother with all that. Just have him give the money to you, and you hold on to it for me. I’ll front the money for the hospital with my own savings. But don’t tell him that part yet. If he doesn’t have the cash, tell him to ask his wife for it!"

’Whoever makes a mess should be the one to clean it up.’

’Before Jiang Qing skipped town, she’d also swindled 66 yuan out of Li Hongying. Jiang Moli had been keeping a running tally.’

’She took the money without a word of thanks and then turned around and dumped this whole mess on her stepfather.’

’What a piece of work.’

...

「In the family courtyard of the Menghai military base.」

Feng Meihua examined the newly made hat in her hands with satisfaction, smiling at Jiang Qing. "This hat’s style looks simple, but it’s really quite fetching."

"This is the factory’s best-selling style," Jiang Qing replied with a smile. "They sell tens of thousands of them every year."

Feng Meihua looked at her, pleased. "Xiao Jiang, you have no idea. Ever since Doctor Qiao started wearing that green hat every day, so many people in the family courtyard have been green with envy, wanting one for themselves."

Jiang Qing said, "Sister Feng, if you like the green hat, you should have said so! I would’ve just made one and brought it over for you."

"Xiao Jiang, I’ll be honest with you," Feng Meihua said. "I brought some fabric with me when I came here. In my spare time, I make things like undershirts and shorts to trade for cash at the town’s supply and marketing cooperative. The other day, Xiao Xu at the co-op told me that people have been asking about this hat. How about we make them together? I’ll provide the material, you do the sewing, and I’ll give you a twenty percent cut on each one?"

"Okay."

Jiang Qing was in high spirits on her way back to the dormitory.

She had befriended Feng Meihua with the intention of building her connections.

Feng Meihua was a teacher at the new school on the base, and her husband was a senior company commander who might be promoted to the battalion level in the next year or two.

She hadn’t expected Feng Meihua to have connections at the supply and marketing cooperative as well.

The chance to partner with her and earn some extra money was a delightful and unexpected bonus.

As she neared the dormitory, she saw Zhang Jia Ming standing by the door from a distance. Jiang Qing eagerly ran toward him, wanting to share her good news.

"Jia Ming!"

When she got closer, she saw that his eyes were red. "What’s wrong?" she asked with concern. "Did you get chewed out by a superior?"

"Xiao Qing, my dad... someone beat him up and injured his eye!"

Jiang Qing’s heart sank. "What happened?"

Zhang Jia Ming glared at her. "Did you send a letter home? Did you write that Uncle Jiang and Ge Yue’e were having an affair? And did you tell Sanmei to report it to Aunt Luo?"

At that moment, Jiang Qing didn’t connect her father-in-law’s assault with the letter she had written.

She simply assumed that her secret—that she had written the letter—was out.

Her mind raced, trying to come up with a plan as she fished for more information. "Did Sanmei tell you that? What else did she say?"

Zhang Jia Ming explained, wiping tears from his eyes as he spoke.

He was a devoted son, and the news that his father had been beaten half to death left him overwhelmed with grief.

When she learned the full story behind Zhang Tiesheng’s injury, Jiang Qing was utterly stunned.

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