Chapter 775 - 267: Isn’t an IOU Money? (Part 2)

Mr. Xie even felt that his position as factory director was becoming precarious.

Jie Jingchen raised an eyebrow, a sneer tugging at the corner of his mouth. His gaze was ice-cold, devoid of any warmth. "Dad, you’re warning the wrong person. You should go warn Second Brother and tell him to keep a better eye on his wife. If she dares to get near me, I won’t care that she’s pregnant."

This gave Mr. Xie an even worse headache. If something really happened to the mother and child, Li Axiu would absolutely come after Jing Si with everything she had.

"If she pisses me off, I’ll deal with her, pregnant or not," Mrs. Xie threatened, leading her son and daughter-in-law toward the Jie family’s courtyard.

Faced with the threats from his wife and son, Mr. Xie looked up at the sky. "What did I do in a past life to deserve this?"

The moment Qin Mei stepped into the courtyard, she could sense the tense, hostile atmosphere.

When Granny saw the eldest son’s family arrive, she remained seated and didn’t move, putting on airs as she waited for them to come and pay their respects.

"Eldest Brother, Eldest Sister-in-law," Jie Jianye called out.

"Eldest Uncle, Eldest Aunt," Jie Huating and Jie Anlin said in unison.

"Eldest Uncle, Eldest Aunt," Zhao Hong called out as well.

Mrs. Xie’s gaze, full of complex emotions, fell upon Zhao Hong’s bulging belly. Zhao Hong’s heart skipped a beat. Mrs. Xie smiled elegantly. "Pregnancy is difficult. It must be hard on you, An Lin’s wife."

"N-No... it’s not hard," Zhao Hong stammered, her conscience pricking her. ’Eldest Aunt’s expression is so strange. Could she... No, impossible. Absolutely no one else could know about this. I must be overthinking it.’

Li Axiu took issue with this. ’There are two pregnant women in the room,’ she thought, ’but Qiao Yanqiu only shows concern for An Lin’s wife while completely ignoring my daughter. Just as you’d expect from a stepmother. Useless.’

"Dad, Mom," Mr. Xie called out.

"Dad, Mom," Mrs. Xie called out.

Grandpa, engrossed in his chess game, merely grunted in acknowledgment.

"Grandpa, Granny, Fourth Uncle," Jie Jingchen greeted.

"Grandpa, Granny, Fourth Uncle," Qin Mei echoed.

Jie Jingchen pulled Qin Mei to sit to one side. Granny, still putting on airs, waited for them to present their gift.

At a look from Mrs. Xie, Mr. Xie stepped forward and respectfully presented the prepared "red envelope." "Mom, this is... Happy birthday."

"How thoughtful of you." Granny beamed, taking the red envelope. She gave it a squeeze. It was quite thick, and she could hardly contain her delight.

Right there in front of everyone, she eagerly tore it open. It wasn’t money, but paper. The smile froze on her face. Granny pulled out the slip of paper, unfolded it, and saw that it was an IOU her husband had written to Qin Mei.

’It’s my birthday, and they’re giving me an IOU instead of cash?’ Granny’s anger flared instantly. She slammed the IOU down on the table, her rage uncontrollable. "Eldest! What is the meaning of this?"

The old woman’s fury startled everyone. But when they saw what she had slapped onto the table, they immediately understood. This was especially true for Li Axiu, who couldn’t suppress a gloating smile.

"Mom, I..." Mr. Xie looked mortified. He was too ashamed to explain.

Li Axiu, being the closest to Granny, picked up the paper, eager to stir up trouble. She saw it was an IOU—not one from Director Jie to Granny, but one from Grandpa to Qin Mei. There were five slips in total, each for one hundred.

"What’s all this, then?" Li Axiu asked, gloating.

Granny felt that her eldest son’s family had publicly shamed her. She glared furiously at Qin Mei. ’It had to be Qin Mei, she’s the devious one. This was definitely her idea.’

’Ever since Jing Si married Qin Mei, my eldest daughter-in-law’s attitude toward me has changed. She used to be so filial and generous, but now she’s become stingy. She only gives me a fixed allowance and not a penny more.’

’Today was even worse. Giving me an IOU for my birthday! It’s outrageous. This is the last straw!’

Jie Jingchen didn’t give Granny the chance to lash out at Qin Mei. He stepped forward and said, "Granny, five hundred isn’t a small amount."

Granny gritted her teeth. "Five hundred isn’t a small amount, but is this money? This is clearly an IOU!"

"And an IOU isn’t money?" Jie Jingchen retorted.

Granny was at a loss for words. She turned to her husband for help, but the IOU had been written by him, and they had both left their thumbprints on it. There was no denying it. Grandpa, knowing he was in the wrong, refused to get involved. He just urged Mr. Lin, "Zhuzi, it’s your move."

"Ah." Mr. Lin froze for a moment. ’Can we even keep playing chess amidst all this?’

’The Jie Family’s drama is really something else.’

"Let’s just play chess," Grandpa said, determined to stay out of it.

Mr. Lin thought for a moment, then intentionally made a poor move, letting him off the hook. Grandpa was delighted and, not one to miss an opportunity, immediately pressed his advantage.

Mr. Lin continued to play chess, all the while enjoying the show.

With her husband proving useless at the critical moment, Granny had to fight this battle alone.

Jie Jingchen took another red envelope from his pocket, rose to his feet, and walked over to Granny, presenting it with both hands. "Granny, happy birthday. This is from my wife and me."

Granny took it and opened it. More IOUs. Two of them, totaling two hundred.