novelraw Chapter 26: Purchasing Daily Necessities
Chapter 26: Purchasing Daily Necessities
After leaving Yi Zhonghai's house, Jia Zhangshi hurried back to her own home.
Upon entering, she saw Qin Huairu alone at home and immediately shouted angrily, "Qin Huairu, get out!"
Qin Huairu looked puzzled and asked in a low voice, "Mom, what am I going out for?"
"Just get out of here! Stop talking nonsense and hurry up!" Madam Jia shouted impatiently.
Qin Huairu dared not say anything more and could only turn around and walk out of the room. As soon as she stepped out of the door, Jia Zhangshi slammed the door shut behind her.
Qin Huairu stood outside the door, her mind filled with doubt. She couldn't help but lean closer to the window, wanting to see what Jia Zhangshi was secretly doing inside.
But as soon as she approached the window, she met a pair of eyes staring intently outside. Madam Jia glared at her fiercely, then slammed the curtain shut, startling Qin Huairu so much that she stumbled back two steps.
After making sure no one outside could see her, Jia Zhangshi turned around and walked to the offering table, carefully taking down Old Jia's memorial tablet.
She fumbled around on the back of the memorial tablet, searching in an inconspicuous spot. There, she discovered a small hole carved into the back, containing all of Jia Zhangshi's savings and a gold ring.
Jia Zhangshi took out the money and counted it carefully, one bill at a time, several times before finally taking out 500 yuan.
If Yi Zhonghai saw that Jia Zhangshi had hidden so much money right now, he would definitely cry out that he hadn't gotten enough.
After counting the money, Jia Zhangshi carefully put the remaining money and gold ring back into the small hole, then put the memorial tablet back on the offering table and wiped it spotless.
If Old Jia were alive and knew that his wife was using his memorial tablet to hide her secret stash of money, he probably wouldn't rest in peace even in death. He'd probably come back in the middle of the night to have a good talk with Jia Zhangshi.
Soon, Yi Zhonghai led the families of Liu Haizhong, Yan Fugui, and Jia Zhangshi to the back room.
Zhang Lei was overjoyed as he watched the crowd walk in.
Jia Zhangshi, Liu Haizhong, and Yan Fugui looked helpless and could only hand over all the money they had collected to Zhang Lei.
Zhang Lei counted the money, which totaled about 3400 yuan. He nodded and said to the three of them, "Alright, the amount is correct."
He glanced at Jia Zhangshi, who was gritting her teeth, but didn't take her seriously at all. He then continued, "Now, the three of you can move your belongings home."
After saying that, Zhang Lei ignored the others.
Jia Dongxu, Qin Huairu, and Jia Zhangshi from the Jia family immediately started tidying up the middle room, while the Liu Haizhong family and Yan Fugui family in the other two rooms also got busy.
In no time, the three rooms were emptied.
Just then, Zhang Lei caught sight of Yan Fugui reaching towards the window and quickly shouted, "Stop! What are you doing?"
All eyes turned to Yan Fugui, who was preparing to remove the window latch.
Zhang Lei said, both angry and amused, "Uncle, are you serious? This window isn't furniture."
Yan Fugui felt somewhat embarrassed by everyone's stares and could only awkwardly laugh and try to smooth things over, saying, "I'm used to it, I'm used to it."
Zhang Lei secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Good heavens, if he hadn't reminded him in time, Yan Fugui would probably have peeled off a layer of plaster from the wall.
Looking at the empty house, Ye Shuqin turned to Zhang Lei and asked, "Husband, what should we do now?"
Zhang Lei smiled helplessly and said, "Perfect, out with the old, in with the new, let's go buy some new ones."
As he spoke, he picked up the money in his hand, waved it in front of the three women, and then handed it to Ye Shuqin.
Ye Shuqin looked at the heavy amount of money in her hand and quickly pushed it back: "Honey, you keep this money. I wouldn't dare take so much."
Zhang Lei patted her hand and said, "From now on, you will be in charge of the family finances."
Seeing that Ye Shuqin was still trying to refuse, Zhang Lei's expression turned serious: "I believe you."
Seeing the trust in Zhang Lei's eyes, Ye Shuqin nodded gratefully: "Don't worry, sir, I will make good use of every penny and keep our family doing well."
Seeing her serious expression, Zhang Lei smiled and reassured her, "Don't be too nervous. Spend the money however you want. I can earn more if I don't have it. Don't be reluctant to part with it."
Ye Shuqin nodded heavily.
Soon, Zhang Lei led the three women away from the back house. The gate to the courtyard was not locked, since there was nothing inside and they were not afraid of anyone stealing.
As soon as I walked to the front yard, I saw the two brothers, Yan Jiecheng and Yan Jiefang, pacing around aimlessly.
Zhang Lei thought for a moment, then called out to the two men, "Yan Jiecheng, Yan Jiefang, come here for a second."
When Yan Jiecheng and Yan Jiefang saw Zhang Lei calling them, they were still a little angry, after all, Zhang Lei had just swindled a large sum of money from their family.
Seeing the two dawdling, Zhang Lei said directly, "If you two don't want to make money, I'll find someone else." Hearing the word "make money," the two immediately perked up and quickly walked over to Zhang Lei, eagerly asking, "Zhang Lei, what kind of money?"
Zhang Lei looked at the two men and said with a smile, "You two go and buy me a coal stove, and also buy this month's coal and move it to the back house. I'll give you 5 cents each, how about it?" The two men looked at each other and immediately nodded in agreement: "Okay, you keep your word."
At this moment, Zhang Lei took out a dollar and placed it in Yan Jiecheng's hand, saying, "I'll pay first, okay?" He then handed the money for the coal to the two men. The two were overjoyed to receive the money and quickly assured him, "Okay, don't worry, we'll go buy the coal and coal stove you wanted right away."
Seeing the two brothers' spirited expressions, Zhang Lei couldn't help but smile. He then led the three women out of the courtyard house. Soon, they took a bus to the Wangfujing Department Store. As soon as they entered, the three women were stunned—Zhang Lei wanted to buy so many things, and only here could they find everything, saving them the trouble of going back and forth.
Not only were the three girls stunned, but many people around them were also staring at them in disbelief. After all, most people had only heard of triplets, and very few had actually seen them; at most, they had only seen twins.
Zhang Lei led the three women, picking and choosing in the pots and pans section and then discussing which items to buy in the furniture section. Finally, they had everything they needed for the house, including pots and pans, tables and chairs, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and tea.
Next, he took the three women to a clothing store. Ye Shuqin looked at Zhang Lei and quickly said, "Honey, we've already brought all the clothes, so we don't need to buy any more, right?"
Zhang Lei shook his head, his tone firm: "No, the money that needs to be spent must be spent. Besides, our family is wealthy now. Each of you three must buy two sets of clothes and a pair of leather shoes."
Knowing they couldn't refuse Zhang Lei, the three women stopped declining, their eyes lighting up with joy. Seeing their happy expressions, Zhang Lei's mood also relaxed. Of course, Zhang Lei didn't forget himself, picking out two well-fitting outfits for himself as well.
Soon, everything needed for the house was purchased. Looking at the large and small bags piled up to the side, especially the three solid wood beds and three wardrobes, they were really big and difficult to move.
Zhang Lei simply approached the department store manager and offered to pay for the transportation and labor costs himself, asking the store to help deliver these items to the back room of the courtyard house.