Chapter 715 - 369: The Two Brothers

Chapter 715: Chapter 369: The Two Brothers

When Huai Zi returned to the house, Juhua came out of their room and asked, "Are they gone?"

Huai Zi nodded. "They’re gone. Honestly, talking to them is more exhausting than harvesting two acres of rice. It’s a good thing they’ve always ignored us. Otherwise, they’d definitely be lording it over us like ancestors now."

Juhua smiled faintly. "They already act like they’re the ancestors of the Zhang family. Did you see them posturing? The tone they used... I doubt even our own grandfather put on such airs when he was alive."

Just as they were speaking, He came in from outside and chimed in, "Your real grandfather would never have put on airs like that. You know just by looking at your father’s personality—he’s the spitting image of his own father. Let’s eat! If they hadn’t left, I was about ready to take lunch out to the fields."

Zhang Huai said quickly, "I’ll go get Dad and the others!"

"No need," He said. "I already sent Pu Pao to get them. They should be back any minute."

Only then did Huai Zi relent. He turned back to Juhua to discuss what had happened, wondering aloud if the matter was truly settled. He wasn’t afraid of them, but if they went back and started spreading rumors, who had the time to constantly argue with them about it?

Juhua praised him, "You handled that very well today. It was much better than losing your temper and throwing them out. I honestly didn’t expect you to be able to talk them into leaving. I thought they were going to stick around all afternoon."

Huai Zi’s brow furrowed. "Losing my temper would just give them another reason to come knocking, wouldn’t it? This is just my luck. What a mess. A whole morning wasted."

He looked at Juhua, remembering how this whole affair had started with Fifth Granny telling him to take a concubine. It was all because his mother had let it slip that Juhua’s health might have been compromised, leading people to think she couldn’t have children. That’s when they started with their petty schemes. He couldn’t help but feel a fresh surge of anger. ’Hmph! Even if Juhua really couldn’t conceive, they could forget about foisting anyone on me. I’d never marry one of them!’

When Zhang Dashuan got back, he asked Huai Zi for all the details over dinner. With a stern expression, he said, "If they come back saying the same things, don’t lose your temper, but don’t back down either. Otherwise, you give them an inch and they’ll take a mile."

Huai Zi nodded, his face grim.

He said resentfully, "I just can’t swallow my anger. I have half a mind to take a big broom and sweep them right out the door. I’ve never met such unreasonable relatives. No wonder your parents cut ties with them back in the day."

Zhang Dashuan said, "It wasn’t that my parents cut ties with them. It was because our family was poor and they looked down on us, so they couldn’t be bothered to visit. They never invited us to anything, and we could never get them to come to our things. That’s how contact was broken!"

Huai Zi said, "It’s a good thing contact was broken. Otherwise, with the way they act, would our family ever have a moment’s peace? Now, even if they try to cozy up to us, we’ve never been indebted to them in the past, so we don’t have to bow to their whims."

Zhang Dashuan finished a large bowl of rice, let out a breath, and said, "That’s exactly right."

But they had all miscalculated. A few days later, Great-grandfather’s wife, the Great-grandmother, paid them a visit. She didn’t cause a scene. Instead, she spoke apologetically to He, explaining that Great-grandfather, as the oldest elder in the clan, had a difficult position. She insisted he hadn’t come to cause trouble the other day, but had only wanted to mediate. Her tone was sincere, with an air of humility.

The Zhang family and the Zheng Family shared a common trait: they were typically sincere and honest with everyone. However, if they encountered unreasonable bullies, they wouldn’t hesitate to argue or fight. But if someone approached them humbly and with a placating smile, they found it hard to hold a grudge. They were classic examples of people who yielded to a soft approach but resisted a hard one.

So, when He saw the elderly Great-grandmother speaking to her so cautiously for so long, she felt too embarrassed to give her the cold shoulder. She even invited her to stay for lunch—she just couldn’t bring herself to ask her to leave. This left He feeling even more stifled, because deep down, she wanted nothing to do with them. She felt that arguing with Great-grandfather that day had been far more satisfying.

Only Huai Zi and Juhua remained lukewarm toward the Great-grandmother. Juhua ignored her outright, but she couldn’t encourage her mother-in-law to send the old woman away—it was against He’s nature. Nor could Juhua overstep her own bounds. If she, a daughter-in-law, angered a guest into leaving, she’d never be able to hold her head high in the village again. So she could only sigh inwardly. ’I’ll just have to be more careful from now on,’ she thought.

And just like that, the two families seemed to reconcile. Seeing this, other relatives also found opportunities to cozy up to them. Even Grandpa Wu’s family acted as if nothing had happened, visiting the Zhangs with effusive warmth.

This time, however, Zhang Dashuan, his wife, and Huai Zi stood firm. While they didn’t officially declare that they were cutting ties, they simply ignored these other relatives whenever they visited.

But it takes all kinds to make a world. There were some so thick-skinned they completely ignored the family’s cold shoulder. This was an eye-opener for Juhua and put her on high alert. ’These kinds of people are the most difficult to handle. "A shameless person is invincible." Once they latch on, you can’t shake them off. And this tactic is most effective against people like Zhang Dashuan and Zheng Changhe.’ She began to carefully consider how to give them a shock that would crush their vulgar little schemes.