Chapter 776: Isn't an IOU Money? Part 3

Granny shot up in anger, slamming the IOUs onto the table. “Are you two trying to kill me with rage?”

“Granny, from the sound of it, are you planning to default on your debt?” Jie Jingchen asked mockingly.

‘To be honest, she really didn’t want to pay it back. Besides, they never borrowed any money from her. Grandpa was forced to write the IOU. At the time, Qin Mei’s attitude was harsh—if they didn’t agree to pay, she wouldn’t treat An Lin’s hidden ailment. They had no other choice but to write it.’

‘They would have written it for ten thousand yuan, let alone one thousand. In any case, they never intended to pay it back.’

What Granny hadn’t expected was that this couple could be so ruthless. Since she wouldn’t pay them back, they just gave her the IOUs as a birthday gift.

“Jing Si, I am your grandmother,” Granny reminded him through gritted teeth.

“Debts must be paid. That’s just how it is. Forget being my granny—even if my own father owed me money, he’d have to pay it back,” Jie Jingchen said, refusing to back down now that he had the upper hand.

Furious and frustrated, Granny snatched the two IOUs from the table, grabbed the five from Li Axiu’s hand, and tore them all up in front of everyone.

“Go ahead, tear them up. We already gave you the IOUs. They’re your property now, so you can do whatever you want with them,” Qin Mei said, happy to stir the pot.

Now that the IOUs were destroyed by her own hand, Granny was the one who had to suffer in silence. They had presented them as a gift, and Granny had made a scene about it in front of everyone. By tearing them up, she was the one taking the loss, not Qin Mei.

Granny furiously threw the shredded IOUs on the floor. ‘This couple is so vicious,’ she fumed, ‘showing no respect for me as their elder!’ She glared at her eldest son. “Jianjun, are you just going to indulge them and let them make a fool of your own mother?”

Mr. Xie rubbed his forehead. ‘What could I do? Dad wrote the IOUs and even put his thumbprint on them. If I stubbornly sided with my parents, my wife would leave me and take the children.’

“Mom, it’s actually great that we could clear seven hundred yuan of debt on your birthday,” Mr. Xie said, forcing himself to speak.

“You…” Granny pointed a trembling finger at Mr. Xie. ‘Her eldest son had changed.’

‘When her eldest son married Qiao Yanqiu, there were gains and losses. Qiao Yanqiu brought wealth to their family, but they lost a filial, dutiful son.’

‘Before, her eldest son had been completely obedient to her. Now, he hung on Qiao Yanqiu’s every word.’

“Wife, a harmonious family brings prosperity,” Grandpa interjected, reminding her. “Making a scene this ugly will only make the Jie Family a laughingstock.”

Granny was still fuming but didn’t dare to burn the bridges completely. Without her eldest daughter-in-law’s support, money would be tight. Whenever An Lin asked her for money, she’d have to think twice.

“Fine. I’ll accept the IOUs,” Granny said through gritted teeth.

Qin Mei smirked. ‘Good, you know when to back down. At least you didn’t make it too ugly.’

The farce ended just like that, and Li Axiu was a little disappointed. Zhao Hong shot Jie Anlin a look. ‘The IOUs are just useless paper; only cash is real. She had originally hoped that for Granny’s birthday, the eldest uncle’s family would give Granny a lot of cash, and they could then ask Granny for it. Seven hundred was a lot, but what was the use if it was all just IOUs?’

Jie Anlin understood her look but was powerless to help. In private, he might have fanned the flames, but in this situation, if he tried to stir things up, his intentions would be as obvious as Sima Zhao’s.

He had no desire to become a public target.

Seeing Jie Anlin’s spineless display, Zhao Hong viciously ground her back teeth. ‘What a worthless coward,’ she cursed him inwardly.

‘He can’t even have children, and he’s useless at making money. He can barely put food on the table. To live a comfortable life, they had to rely entirely on Granny’s handouts.’

‘Qin Mei had no real ability to cure Jie Anlin’s hidden ailment; she had just tricked Granny and Grandpa into writing the IOUs. They had assumed the notes were just worthless paper, never imagining they’d be used like this today. Her pregnancy was thanks to someone else’s help—it had nothing to do with Qin Mei curing Jie Anlin. But she didn’t dare expose Qin Mei.’

Zhao Hong glared viciously at Qin Mei. ‘She couldn’t just swallow this insult. If Qin Mei was unwilling to spend money on Granny, then she would make Qin Mei bleed money for her instead.’

“Where’s Jing Qi?” Granny finally noticed that Jing Qi wasn’t there.

“Jing Qi is staying in Xiangjiang,” Mrs. Xie said.

“Doing what in Xiangjiang?” Granny raised an eyebrow. She didn’t like Jing Qi and couldn’t care less if she came back or not; she just wanted to meddle in her eldest son’s family affairs.

“My parents have chosen Jing Qi to be the heir to the Qiao Family,” Mrs. Xie said frankly, not bothering to hide it.

“What?” Granny was stunned. ‘The granddaughter she never valued was being treated as a treasure by the Qiao Family. Wasn’t this a slap in her face?’

It wasn’t just Granny; everyone present, aside from the eldest son’s family, was shocked. Since ancient times, family fortunes were passed down to sons, not daughters, unless there were no sons. The Qiao Family was one such example, with Qiao Yanqiu as the sole heir.

But Qiao Yanqiu had sons—two of them. What were the two elders of the Qiao Family thinking? To choose Jing Qi over Jing Si and Jing Wu was simply unbelievable.

Mrs. Xie remained silent.

“Why Jing Qi?” Granny asked, unwilling to accept it. ‘Once Jing Qi grew up and got married, what would the Qiao Family’s fortune have to do with their Jie Family?’

‘What were those two old fossils from the Qiao Family thinking? They’d rather give their fortune away to an outsider than let her eldest son inherit it. Her eldest son was so outstanding—the director of a machinery factory! He had the ability, and he had the status.’

“My parents like Jing Qi,” Mrs. Xie said.

“Jing Qi won’t do! No matter how much they like her, they can’t…”

“Granny, if Jing Qi won’t do, then who will? My dad?” Jie Jingchen cut her off, his voice dripping with sarcasm and his eyes filled with contempt.

Granny’s eyes glinted with triumph. “Your father is more than capable. And he’s the Qiao Family’s son-in-law. It would only be natural for him to inherit the Qiao Family’s fortune.”

‘Natural, my foot,’ Qin Mei thought, glancing at Mr. Xie. ‘He might be capable of managing a factory, but he’s not cut out to be at the helm of the Qiao Family.’

‘Her maternal grandparents never even approved of him as a son-in-law, let alone supported him.’

“My maternal grandparents never acknowledged my dad as their son-in-law,” Jie Jingchen stated bluntly, leaving his father with no face to save.

Mr. Xie’s expression darkened. His son was speaking the truth, and he couldn’t refute it.

“Your father *is* their son-in-law. It’s not up to them whether they acknowledge him or not,” Granny snorted. Anyway, she was determined to take advantage of the Qiao Family’s lack of a male heir.

“My maternal grandparents made a solemn vow: if my dad ever sets foot in Xiangjiang, they’ll make sure you have to bury your own son,” Jie Jingchen said, the corners of his thin lips curling into a cold, mocking smile. ‘He wasn’t exaggerating; those were his grandfather’s exact words.’

“He’d dare!” Granny slammed the table in fury.

“They disowned their own daughter, so why would they want a son-in-law?” Qin Mei couldn’t help but say. After a moment’s thought, she looked at Granny, a sly, cunning smile on her face. “Granny, do you want to know why my maternal grandparents would rather have Jing Qi inherit the Qiao Family fortune than their own and only daughter, my mother?”

Granny mulled it over for a moment, then frowned and asked, “Why?”

“Because their daughter married your eldest son.” The corners of Qin Mei’s eyes curved slightly, like the brightest sliver of a crescent moon.

Jie Jingchen, sitting beside her, watched her with an amused smile.

Qin Mei’s words completely shut Granny down.

“Where’s Jing Wu? Why isn’t he here yet?” Jie Jianye asked with a smile, sensing the tense atmosphere and trying to change the subject.

Ever since Jing Wu had nearly killed his grandmother over Jing Qi, he had left a dark shadow in Granny’s mind. When Jing Wu got worked up, he truly recognized no family. Granny was quite afraid of him. For her birthday, if Jing Wu came, she would ignore him; if he didn’t come, she was completely indifferent.

“He went back to Xiangjiang,” Mrs. Xie said, pointedly using the word “back,” not “to.”

Jie Jianjun fell silent. ‘Can’t they just get off the topic of Xiangjiang?’

Granny couldn’t care less about Jing Wu’s whereabouts. Never mind him going to Xiangjiang; she wouldn’t even feel sad if he died an early death.

Because she disliked Zhang Hongyan, she also disliked the three children her eldest son had with her. As for the three children he had with Qiao Yanqiu, Granny tried to curry favor with them because of Qiao Yanqiu’s wealth. Unfortunately, they all kept their distance. Over time, she stopped wasting her affection on them, and their relationship grew increasingly strained.

Mr. Xie’s eyes filled with shock and bewilderment. He had no idea that Jing Wu had gone to Xiangjiang.

“What’s Jing Wu doing in Xiangjiang?” Mr. Xie asked his wife in a low voice.