Reborn in a small village in the 1990s

Chapter 289

However, Zhao D'e concealed her true income. In reality, she earned more than 5,000 yuan this month, and she also had savings from last month, totaling more than 8,000 yuan. But Zhao D'e did not tell the truth. It wasn't that Cheng Jinxiang was untrustworthy or anything, but rather that the fewer people who knew about this, the better. Otherwise, there would always be a few envious people who would ask her for money and then not pay it back, which would strain the relationship and be bad for everyone.

Cheng Jinxiang rubbed her eyes and looked at the bankbook. The amount written on it was indeed three thousand. Cheng Jinxiang was shocked. "Big Goose, your water-selling business can really make money!"

Cheng Jinxiang knew that Zhao Da'e was selling water, but at first she didn't care and wasn't optimistic about the business. She thought that he might only earn a few hundred yuan a month, and that he would have to sell the water and pay people to transport it, which would be quite expensive. So Cheng Jinxiang didn't have much hope. But Zhao Da'e wanted to give it a try, and since the cost wasn't much, Cheng Jinxiang didn't say anything.

But when Cheng Jinxiang learned that the water-selling business could earn so much, she was shocked. She couldn't help but ask, "Big Goose, did you really earn this all by yourself? You didn't steal anything, did you?"

Cheng Jinxiang believed in her daughter's character and thought she wouldn't do such a thing, but she still wanted to ask.

Zhao Da'e was almost laughing in anger. She replied, "Mom, is this how you see your daughter? Don't worry, this money is clean. It was really earned by your daughter herself. My name is even on the bankbook."

After hearing Zhao Da'e's words, Cheng Jinxiang asked again, "Are you telling the truth? You really didn't do anything wrong, right?"

Zhao Da'e was so angry she laughed. She could only say helplessly, "Mom, I swear, this money really came from doing business."

Seeing this, Cheng Jinxiang was finally relieved. She knew her daughter's character well, having raised her herself, and could tell whether Zhao Da'e was lying.

"So how much of this money do you plan to give to your aunt?" Cheng Jinxiang asked Zhao Da'e, holding up the bankbook.

Zhao Da'e told the truth, "I plan to give this savings book to my aunt. Three thousand yuan should be enough."

Cheng Jinxiang hesitated for a moment after hearing this, but she still said, "Big Goose, do you need working capital for your water selling business? If you do, keep this money for now, and you can take it out when you have more money."

Cheng Jinxiang understood a principle: you must take care of yourself first before you can take care of others.

Zhao Da'e smiled and said, "Don't worry, Mom. I have some money on me. Giving Auntie this three thousand yuan is so she can have a good New Year."

Zhao Da'e knew that Cheng Jinxi had scraped together more than a thousand yuan, and that two thousand yuan would have been enough. But Zhao Da'e gave her three thousand yuan at once, which would make her aunt's life a little easier. Besides, she didn't need that little bit of money, and she would have income again in a few months.

However, Zhao Da'e also understands that money really doesn't last long. Besides building a new house, she also needs to use the money to rent out shops and businesses, keep some money as working capital, and set up a water plant in the future. Each of these expenses is a major expense, so Zhao Da'e can only take it slowly, save up a small amount of money first, and then do it one by one.

Hearing this, Cheng Jinxiang felt relieved. She knew that her daughter definitely still had a lot of money. However, she still wanted to say a few words to Zhao Da'e, "Da'e, if you take out this money, you must tell everyone that it is all your savings. Otherwise, if the people in the village or your relatives know that you still have money, they will all come to you to borrow money, and it may even ruin your relationship. Aren't we planning to build a new house in the spring? If someone comes to you to borrow money, just say that the family still owes money to others, and this money has all been used to build the new house. We are penniless and have no money to lend."

"As for your aunt, you should offer to lend her the money. If you have money and are well-off, don't pursue it if she doesn't pay it back. After all, your aunt has helped my mother and me a lot. If things get tough, it's not too late to ask for the money back. People's hearts change every day, but no matter what, we must keep a grateful heart. We should repay those who have helped us. We should help them whenever we can. Do you understand, Da'e?"

Zhao Da'e nodded and said, "I understand, Mom."

It must be said that Cheng Jinxiang's words make a lot of sense. If someone has helped you before, and you ask them for help again, they'll most likely come back. You should learn to be grateful to such people; that's how you build lasting relationships. Conversely, if someone you've helped goes back to you for help, they might not come back. So, you need to be discerning when deciding whether to help someone. If the person is of good character, that's fine; but if they're not, helping them might just create resentment.

The logic is simple: a small favor is appreciated, but a large one breeds resentment. If that person asks for help again and you refuse, they will see you as unwilling to help and thus resent you.

Cheng Jinxiang, having lived for decades, had seen a lot, so she taught Zhao Da'e a lot about how to conduct himself and handle affairs, hoping that Zhao Da'e would find it useful.

Feeling touched, Zhao Da'e chatted with her mother for a while before going to find her aunt, Cheng Jinxi. She needed to give the money to her aunt as soon as possible, so that her aunt and her younger aunt could resolve their estrangement sooner. Otherwise, the two sisters' constant bickering was not a good thing.

Zhao Da'e found her aunt in the kitchen, where Cheng Jinxi was still washing dishes. She didn't have to do these things, but Cheng Jinxi was very upset and couldn't help but want to keep herself busy so that she wouldn't have time to think about all sorts of things.

Cheng Jinxi also saw Zhao Dage standing at the door about to come in. She was feeling annoyed. Seeing that Zhao Dage had come to find her alone, she guessed, "Did your sister send you here, or your grandmother? Go back and tell them that I won't ask your aunt for money. Tell them not to worry."

Seeing that Cheng Jinxi had misunderstood, Zhao Da'e quickly explained, "No, Auntie, you've misunderstood."

Upon hearing the word "misunderstanding," Cheng Jinxi frowned. She stopped what she was doing and said sullenly, "What misunderstanding? Do they mean that besides telling me not to borrow money from Cheng Jinxiao, they also want me to find Cheng Jinxiao a good family after the New Year? Tell your grandma not to even think about it. I will not help this ingrate. Just looking at him annoys me."

Seeing that Cheng Jinxi's misunderstanding was getting deeper and deeper, Zhao Da'e quickly explained, "No, Auntie, Grandma didn't call me over."

Cheng Jinxi guessed, "If it wasn't your maternal grandmother who sent you, then it must have been your mother. Could it be that she wanted me to reconcile with your aunt?"

Cheng Jinxi felt exhausted. Why was she getting angry with a seven-year-old? Then Cheng Jinxi sighed and softened her tone when facing Zhao Dage, "Dage, go back. This is an adult matter. You shouldn't get involved."

Zhao Da'e sighed, somewhat helplessly, "No, Auntie, please listen to me first."

As she spoke, Zhao Da'e walked over and tugged at Cheng Jinxi's clothes. "Auntie, I'm here to help you. I can lend you the dowry money so that my cousin can get married."

Cheng Jinxi felt a little helpless. She took Zhao Da'e's words as a joke, after all, what help could a child possibly provide?

She appreciated Zhao Da'e's kindness, but said, "Da'e, don't worry about the betrothal money. I'll figure something out."

After saying this, Cheng Jinxi sighed inwardly. If only her daughter were half as sensible as Zhao Da'e. Look at Zhao Da'e, when she learned that he was worried about the bride price, he immediately came over to comfort her. But her daughter only knew how to eat and sleep all day long, and she would slack off when asked to help with small tasks.

Zhao Da'e was too lazy to explain. She handed the bankbook in her hand to Cheng Jinxi and said, "Auntie, I'm not lying to you. I really can help you. There's three thousand yuan in this bankbook. That should be enough for my cousin's dowry."

Upon seeing the small red booklet, Cheng Jinxi smiled helplessly, then wiped it on her apron and said, "You child, did you give me your mother's savings book? Let me tell you, stealing money is wrong. Although your aunt's family is struggling financially, they won't accept ill-gotten gains. You can't do such petty theft."

Despite this, Cheng Jinxi still took the passbook, wanting to see how much money was in it. When she opened it, she was stunned to see that the amount inside was indeed three thousand.

Seeing that Cheng Jinxi had misunderstood again, Zhao Da'e could only sigh. Why didn't her aunt believe that she could come up with the money? Sigh!

“Auntie, I really didn’t lie to you. There really is three thousand in this savings account. I didn’t steal this money; I earned it myself from doing some small business. I know you’re going through a tough time and really need this money right now, so I brought it to you.”

Cheng Jinxi was still in shock. She rubbed her eyes, clearly unable to believe it. She stared at Zhao Dage, wanting to confirm, "Dage, are you saying this money is really for me? You're lending me three thousand yuan? Also, is the source of this money clean? Let me tell you, even though we're from the countryside, we shouldn't get involved in illegal things."

Seeing that Cheng Jinxi said the exact same thing as Cheng Jinxiang, Zhao Da'e was on the verge of tears. She said helplessly, "Don't worry, Auntie, this money is absolutely clean. I earned it from my small business. Xiangzi knows that. I never do anything illegal. I'm a law-abiding citizen. Just keep this money. You need it urgently, right? With this money, you can solve your cousin's dowry problem."

Holding the passbook, Cheng Jinxi was both excited and moved. Her eyes welled up with tears, and she no longer refused, because she really needed the money. She earnestly said to Zhao Da'e, "Da'e, I won't ask you what kind of business you're in or how you make money, but don't worry, I will definitely pay you back the money you lent me. You silly child, why did you lend me so much money all at once? You only need to give me two thousand yuan, and I can borrow more from others when the time comes. Besides, you're in business, so you must need some working capital, right?"

Zhao Da'e was somewhat moved. Her aunt was very frugal, but her first thought was whether she had enough money.

Zhao Da'e shook her head and nudged Cheng Jinxi's hand, urging her to accept the passbook. "Don't worry, Auntie, just accept the money I lent you. I'll keep some money for myself as a backup. And you don't need to rush to pay me back. You can pay me back when you have the money. Let's focus on making a good living first."

Cheng Jinxi felt a warmth in her heart. She wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes. "Okay, okay, Auntie will listen to you. Da'e, if you need any help in the future, just ask Auntie for help."

Zhao Da'e smiled and shook her head, but there was one more thing she had to say, which was also what her mother wanted her to tell her aunt.

"Auntie, Mom told me to tell you that after you had a fight with Grandma that day, Grandma locked herself in her room and cried silently for a long time without eating."

When Cheng Jinxi heard her mother, Wang, cry for a long time and refuse to eat, she felt terrible, but she said, "So what? Your grandmother only cares about your aunt. She must be crying because of your aunt."

Cheng Jinxi subconsciously felt that in her mother Wang's heart, she was not as good as Cheng Jinxiao.

But Zhao Da'e shook her head and said instead, "Auntie, Grandma cried because of you, not because you made her angry. It's because Grandma felt guilty towards you and shouldn't have kicked you out. That night, Auntie also came home, and Grandma told her to help you as much as she could. Grandma also wanted to apologize to you, but she's an elder and it's not easy for her to say it. Grandma wanted to ask you to apologize several times at the dinner table, but she was too embarrassed to do so."

Cheng Jinxi felt a pang of sadness upon hearing this. "Did your grandmother really say that? Did she... really cry for so long because of me? But she was so heartless as to drive me away back then."

Zhao Da'e nodded quickly and said, "Grandma really did say that. Mom overheard some of Grandma and Aunt's conversation outside the door, so she knows about it too. What mother in the world doesn't care about her own child? Grandma also said that the reason she cares more about Aunt is because Aunt is divorced and has no children. Grandma is worried that if Aunt leaves, no one will protect her, and Aunt will be bullied. But you, Aunt, are married, have three children, and a loving husband. You make things easier for her, so she sided with Aunt and told you not to borrow all of Aunt's money."

Cheng Jinxiang overheard all of this outside the door, and of course, she told Zhao Da'e about it, hoping that Zhao Da'e could pass it on to Cheng Jinxi.

After all, children's words are more innocent and free from the interests of adults, so Cheng Jinxi is more likely to listen to them.

Cheng Jinxi wavered a little. Zhou Yuren had told her these principles before, and she had reflected on herself these days. She had indeed done wrong.

She felt that she had been too hasty lately, and hadn't considered things thoroughly when thinking about them. She was mainly worried about her son's wedding and had forgotten about other things.