“Stop looking, Father is still in Shenzhen, and Mother is naturally there taking care of him!”

The frustration in Mao Guosheng’s chest hadn’t dissipated since Xia Xiaolan’s appearance, and now it was only getting worse.

They hadn’t asked him to stay, and Xia Xiaolan hadn’t even shown up when he left. His gloom was understandable – was she really busy, or did she just not consider him worth her attention?

“This is really…”

Zheng Shuqin muttered, ultimately deciding not to criticize her in-laws in front of her husband.

Seeing Mao Guosheng carrying all those gifts, Zheng Shuqin changed her expression to a smile: “This Little Xia is quite sensible. Is she starting a company with Father’s help? Is one million yuan that easy to come up with!”

While Mao Guosheng was thoroughly annoyed, Zheng Shuqin kept pressing for answers.

After arriving home, Mao Guosheng put down his things and, noticing the empty house, asked unhappily, “School’s about to start, why are the children still at your parents’ place?”

Zheng Shuqin was even more displeased, “School hasn’t started yet, they’ll be back in a few days. I’m asking you questions here, and you’re being as tight-lipped as a clam! You’re going to drive me crazy!”

Though Mao Guosheng didn’t want to answer his wife’s questions, Zheng Shuqin left him no escape.

The household was used to Zheng Shuqin being in charge, and Mao Guosheng had developed a conditioned response – when Zheng Shuqin got angry, he became submissive:

“She does have a million yuan. It turns out her uncle was already doing construction work in Shenzhen, and their family could afford it.”

Could renovation work be that profitable?

Mao Guosheng didn’t understand the industry’s intricacies, but Xia Xiaolan had indeed registered her company. When he left, she was arranging the office with some people and writing recruitment advertisements to hire locally in Shenzhen.

So the million yuan was real. He’d heard his father mention that the registration capital was a full million yuan, without any discount. Xia Xiaolan wanted to buy some land, and without the million-yuan registration capital, her company wouldn’t qualify to purchase land.

Zheng Shuqin drew in a sharp breath:

“How can anyone be so wealthy!”

Mao Guosheng strongly agreed. How could an individual have so much money? Everyone worked for state units, with transparent salaries; there wasn’t supposed to be much disparity between families’ living standards.

Previously, Mao Guosheng hadn’t felt his family’s economic conditions were poor. Both he and Zheng Shuqin worked, making them a dual-income household.

Moreover, he had no burden of supporting his parents since Mao Kangshan earned a higher salary and didn’t rely on him for support.

The expenses came from their three children and supporting Zheng Shuqin’s family.

Overall, their life was ordinary but comfortable.

Drinking tea by West Lake, frequently dining out at restaurants, traveling by plane instead of train, staying in hotels rather than guesthouses… This kind of lifestyle was far from ordinary in 1985!

Mao Guosheng hadn’t felt the economic gap until Xia Xiaolan suddenly appeared, pulling him into another kind of life.

Now, comparing the two, Mao Guosheng felt pain and resentment.

Living under the same socialist flag, why should Xia Xiaolan, so young, be so wealthy? Compared to her, it was as if Mao Guosheng had lived these years in vain!

This sense of disparity greatly angered Mao Guosheng. Yet Zheng Shuqin, oblivious to his complex emotions, kept pressing him with questions. He could only suppress his displeasure and recount his experiences in Shenzhen.

When he spoke of how Mao Kangshan taught Xia Xiaolan, Zheng Shuqin showed no reaction.

When he mentioned accompanying his mother Song Daniang on various outings, Zheng Shuqin showed envy.

When he told of going to Guangzhou with Mao Kangshan to meet Zhou Maotong, and how prestigious Zhou Maotong was at Guangdong Provincial Construction, Zheng Shuqin immediately grasped the key point:

“Father is something else. No matter how rich Little Xia is, she’s still an outsider. Can she be filial to him forever? With such connections, why not use them for his son? Guosheng, did you take the chance to build a relationship with Senior Zhou? Maybe in the future…”

If he could connect with more influential seniors like Zhou Maotong, her Guosheng wouldn’t have to stay stuck at the Provincial Institute taking abuse!

Though Zheng Shuqin wasn’t great to her in-laws, she always considered Mao Guosheng’s interests.

Sharing a bed and meals, having raised three children together – even without love, they shared common family interests. Only if Mao Guosheng did well would Zheng Shuqin’s life improve – this she understood clearly!

Mao Guosheng’s expression became somewhat unnatural, and Zheng Shuqin, knowing her bedmate well, immediately seized upon it:

“Guosheng, is there something you haven’t told me?”

Mao Guosheng steeled himself, “I’ve known Senior Zhou since youth, so he was naturally very warm towards me, even inviting me to work at Guangdong Provincial Construction!”

Zheng Shuqin’s eyes lit up, “Guangdong Provincial Construction must pay better than the Design Institute, right?”

The Design Institute offered fixed salaries, while construction companies provided various opportunities. As Mao’s daughter-in-law, Zheng Shuqin wasn’t completely ignorant about the industry.

“He didn’t specify the salary, but it would be more than the Provincial Institute.”

Zheng Shuqin was delighted at the prospect of higher wages, and even happier about escaping the Provincial Institute. Even their three-room apartment didn’t satisfy her, especially since it wasn’t earned through Mao Guosheng’s achievements at the Provincial Institute where he remained unfulfilled.

“Did you accept Senior Zhou’s offer?”

There was joy and expectation in Zheng Shuqin’s eyes, but Mao Guosheng reluctantly shook his head:

“Senior Zhou had other plans for me at Guangdong Provincial Construction. Since Little Xia’s company is affiliated with them, he wanted me to represent Guangdong Provincial Construction and work at her company… How could I agree? It would mean I’m depending on Father’s last disciple for my rice bowl. Where would I put my face!”

That was true.

How young was Little Xia? She was lucky to open a company with her wealthy uncle’s help, but should her husband have to kowtow to her?

Working under Little Xia would make him her employee.

Not working at her company, he could remain her senior apprentice-brother, and she would have to respect him instead.

There are no perfect solutions in this world. Zheng Shuqin felt quite regretful and casually asked:

“Senior Zhou really… if he sincerely wanted to help, why add conditions? How much could Little Xia’s company pay you monthly? The Provincial Institute may not be great, but it provides housing and various benefits!”

Who would be foolish enough to work for a private company?

Private companies could fail anytime. Even if Little Xia didn’t lose money, government policies could change unexpectedly. If private business became forbidden, what good would her million yuan be then? It would all go down the drain!

Thinking this way, Zheng Shuqin felt somewhat better.

Then she heard Mao Guosheng mumble: “Yes, even a monthly salary of 600 yuan isn’t as stable as the Provincial Institute. Though I only earn just over 100 there, I still have—”

He didn’t finish because Zheng Shuqin grabbed his arm tightly:

“What did you say? How much per month?”

Mao Guosheng’s voice weakened, “Because I refused, Senior Zhou recommended another construction engineer to Little Xia, and she offered a monthly salary of 600 yuan…”

Zheng Shuqin didn’t want to hear the rest. She grabbed Mao Guosheng’s arm and screamed, her voice sharp enough to pierce his eardrums:

“Mao Guosheng, are you crazy? Is your stupid pride worth 60 yuan, let alone 600? You gave away a 600-yuan monthly job to a stranger – do you still want to live a decent life!”