"They're planning to treat you to food and drink, aren't they? Weren't they staying at your place recently? Living off you for free—I truly feel for your Uncle and the rest of them. They took such good care of their family when they were alive, but now that they're gone, QiQi, you..." Wang Rui burst out, accusingly, "QiQi, don't you know what people around here are saying about you?"

Wang Rui was furious, naturally. She felt that after incurring so many sponsorship fees for the family, and having her mother find out about the secrets she and her father had kept, she hadn't eaten any real meat for ages. Her father was better off; he could eat well at the office, and failing that, he had his private stash for good food. But she was stuck at home day after day, forced to cram for exams, cram for exams. Meanwhile, although Wang Qiqi was also studying, the meals at her house were absolutely top-notch, and with the air conditioning running, she never felt the heat. In contrast, Wang Rui only had a cooling fan, and it was stiflingly hot.

Me? Wang Qiqi didn't have time to worry about what they were saying. "Does my family business require their approval?" Wang Qiqi thought. Are they trying to influence me with public opinion? Too bad for them—the next year is my crucial senior year. I'm out early and back late every day. What others say has anything to do with me?

But she still needed to explain things, or they might try to find a way to move in. "One, Xiao Man and the others are staying here so we can study together and keep each other accountable. Two, they pay living expenses for staying over. Right now, I only cover the hourly wages for the cleaning lady and the utilities. They pay for all the food and drink. I don't see what's wrong with that arrangement."

Li Cui had been unhappy ever since Shi Man and the others moved into Wang Qiqi’s house. She always felt those perks should have been hers. Although she had grumbled before, she had never truly made a move; she was just waiting for the perfect opportunity to move in herself. But she never expected Wang Qiqi’s classmates to move in instead—what kind of mess was this? Li Cui was furious. For days, she had been looking for a chance to kick them out so she could move in. But she hadn't expected them to actually pay living expenses, and Wang Qiqi even said they could study together...

Wang Rui's eyes darted around. "QiQi, actually, I don't understand so many problems. Could you give me a pointer or two? We could discuss the questions together."

Wang Qiqi looked at Wang Rui, utterly astonished. Does this girl have no brains? "You're in your first year of high school, and I'm heading into my final year. Do you think I have that much time? Should I tutor you, or are you cursing me to fail my college entrance exams and have to take them twice?"

Wang Rui had only thought this was a great excuse to get into the house; she hadn't realized Wang Qiqi would be so literal about the words. "I didn't mean that! How could I think that..." Wang Rui shook her head repeatedly, putting on an act of pitiful fragility. Hmph. At this hour, many neighbors have finished dinner and will be taking their little stools downstairs to cool off. This is the perfect audience to see how Wang Qiqi bullies me.

"No, you didn't," Wang Qiqi said, clutching her chest, feigning a look of being deeply hurt by Wang Rui's provocation. "You didn't, right? Are you still planning to pull the same stunt as before—saying you don't understand the problems right before the exams, forcing me to stop my own homework to tutor you? Xiao Rui, what happened before, I can let slide, after all, I am the older sister..."

Wang Rui had intended to give Wang Qiqi a subtle hint, but she never expected her to bring up past events. "I would never! Am I that kind of person?" Tsk, the main witness isn't even here. Who is going to back up your claims?

"No," Wang Qiqi scoffed coldly. "Yes, now you can deny it. But wasn't that what you meant by your words just now? You did it deliberately, didn't you? Do you think I haven't helped because I wouldn't let Uncle take control of the family assets, or maybe because I didn't sponsor your tuition fees for studying elsewhere? Wang Rui, I, as your elder sister, have done enough for you. Don't forget, you are only my cousin. You have parents above you, whereas I am an orphan. Please, have mercy on me."

Wang Qiqi slammed the items she was holding onto the table. "Xiao Man and the others live with me, and they give me living expenses. It’s simply to ease my burden and cheer me up when I’m in a bad mood; they even take me on trips. I happily bought back local seafood for them. I never expected you to talk about me like this, saying I don't take care of you. I honestly don't know who isn't caring for whom, or who doesn't treat me like family. Forget it, forget it. Why should I be angry? After my parents passed away and you all schemed against me, I should have realized long ago that any kindness you've shown me, now or in the past, was based solely on money."

Wang Qiqi spoke with manufactured sadness, walking toward the door. She closed her eyes. "Xiao Rui, read your books more when you have time. Actually, your aunt is very good to you. Even though she hates spending money, she still used connections to get you into the university you wanted. I used to have someone care for me like that too, but they aren't here anymore. Alright, I’m leaving now; you all finish eating. I think it's better if we maintain this distant acquaintance."

Wang Qiqi offered a bitter smile. "I feel like every time we meet now, the atmosphere becomes tense and explosive. Of course, my temper isn't great either. But in the future, if you, Auntie, and the others still want to interfere in my family affairs, I won't hold back."

After saying this, Wang Qiqi left. Wang Dagui remained completely unbothered and continued eating. Although the dishes were too simple, it was still his dinner. Li Cui and Wang Rui watched Wang Qiqi curse them out again before storming off, then glanced at Wang Dagui, who was only focused on his food and not even bothering to look at Wang Qiqi.

"Eat, eat, eat! Can't you see how your niece is treating us?" Li Cui said resentfully. "Look how your elder brother supported your sister-in-law back then, but you..."

Wang Dagui shot Li Cui a glance and swallowed the rest of his steamed bun. "But do you have any of the real estate left by your sister-in-law's family? Look at your mother’s side—they offer zero help, instead demanding constant money from our family. Didn't your mother’s family ask for seven thousand at the last dinner? I calculated: my elder sister gave two thousand, QiQi gave four thousand, plus the seven thousand from your mother’s side—that’s thirteen thousand. Three thousand was a gift, which means eight thousand was withdrawn from our family savings account."

Hmph, you confiscated my little stash. Thinking of this, he suddenly recalled, "And those two thousand you confiscated from my private fund a few days ago—that means we only need to come up with six thousand. Remember, I don't want to see our savings account go down by a single cent." Although Wang Dagui usually paid little attention to household matters, he was perfectly aware of their total savings. Hmph, trying to push me into a fight with Wang Qiqi? Don't even think about it.

For an uncle to pick a fight with Wang Qiqi now would utterly ruin his reputation. His little brother was right—why was his reputation so foul? It was because of Li Cui! From this moment on, he needed to turn over a new leaf, stop doing bad things, and salvage his former bad name. Wang Dagui had started playing small games of mahjong recently and realized it wasn't that difficult to endure. Wang Dagui was often thoughtless, but that didn't mean he was foolish.

Li Cui watched her husband humming a tune as he headed downstairs to play mahjong, feeling an intense hatred. If only something hadn't happened to Big Brother and his wife back then, my life would certainly be more comfortable now. "Useless people, every single one of them."

Wang Rui saw the situation escalating and cautiously placed her empty bowl in the sink. "Mom, I think I need to go back and review my studies." If she didn't leave now, someone might actually die. She hadn't expected the old man to blow up this time. She knew that the dowry money the maternal grandmother mentioned—eighty percent of it was always fake; the remaining twenty percent they showed would soon be demanded back anyway. Yet her mother still complained about her own family's generosity...

Li Cui watched Wang Rui scurry back to her room like a mouse. Then she saw that Wang Dagui, who had been the last one there, was gone. Li Cui felt a deep bitterness rising. She truly wanted to vent violently, but right now, she knew there was no time for that. No matter what, Wang Dagui was the head of the household. Even if she forcefully took money from the savings account, would Wang Dagui still bring his salary home?

But getting seven thousand yuan from her maiden family was impossible. Her second and third sisters had already given her a thousand as a gift. As for her brother and mother, forget it. If they didn't manage to squeeze even more money out of her, it would be a miracle. Li Cui pondered. She knew Wang Dagui was dissatisfied with her side of the family, but the problem was she had told them before that they were merely acting; otherwise, why would they have been so generous? If she called them now to demand money, she would be the one to suffer.

Li Cui thought through N possible ways to get the money, but she ended up vetoing every single proposal. To her siblings and mother, money was more important than her. The only reason they were kind to her was because she could constantly subsidize them.

It looks like I'm truly going to have to bleed financially, Li Cui thought. She stopped bothering with the dishes and walked to her daughter's bedroom door. "Xiao Rui, go clear the table and wash the dishes."

Wang Rui really wanted to say she needed to study and didn't have time for chores, but seeing her mother's grim expression, she swallowed the words. She already had no one to take her anger out on, and running into a wall now would probably result in a massive verbal assault. Forget it. It’s just washing dishes; consider it exercise. Over the past two months, she hadn't done much else besides chores like this.

Li Cui watched her daughter obediently go to wash the dishes; she didn't care about Wang Rui’s feelings. She hurried into her room, pulled out a thick notebook from a very hidden corner, and then flipped to a certain page, staring at a bank passbook again and again. After a long while, she returned the notebook to its hiding place, but she tucked the passbook into her bag.

Although Wang Rui was busy clearing the dishes, she could see her mother’s movements from a certain angle in the kitchen. Wang Rui found it strange. She knew where their family passbook was kept, but the place her mother took the passbook from was definitely not where their main passbook was stored. Could it be a secret stash?

Wang Rui couldn't think of any other explanation for why a passbook would be in that spot. So Mom has a secret stash too? But then again, her father never handled the small daily financial matters; it wasn't impossible for her mother to save up a private fund. But how much was in it? Wang Rui desperately wanted to know the amount in her mother's secret stash.

Warm Farming Novel Joyful Fields—The Constraint of the Ring Finger—Happy farming, childhood sweethearts, minor troubles, working together to get rich, a happy marriage, and joy for the whole family! Final chapter releasing on May 30th, welcome to subscribe!