515 All Grown Up

“Alright! We have a deal. You have to introduce a nice girl to my son!” the auntie said.

Auntie Wang nodded. Since she was feeling happy today, there was no need for double the amount of gifts.

“Tell elder sister the truth. How did Zhang Qian and the others bully you?” Qiao Mei asked as she pulled Zhang Miao and Zhang Qin into her arms.

“They came and snatched away all the food at home and took all the money that mom had. They also snatched all the pocket money that we saved up,” Zhang Qin said aggrievedly.

Ever since Qiao Mei promised to give them a share of the earnings when the things they collected from the mountains got sold, they had worked even harder. Basically, each of them had about 10 dollars saved away. Zhang Wei was older and worked hard, so that he had earned more.

Other children did not have a single cent in savings, but for them, they had the final say on how they wanted to spend their own money. They could afford new snacks and toys that were sold in the village convenience store. In the beginning, their classmates looked down on them when they first went to school. Later on, when they saw Zhang Qian and Zhang Chao being able to afford the latest comic book, everyone was extremely envious.

Zhang Qin and Zhang Miao did not have any other hobbies. The girls in their class were envious of their new stationery cases and flower hair clips for a few days. After that, everyone took the initiative to be friendly and wanted to be good friends with them.

With that, they realized the benefits of earning money, so they worked even harder. However, this hardworking attitude was ruined by Zhang Qian. Instead of letting Zhang Qian take all the money they earned, they might as well not go and collect anything from the mountains. At most, they just would not have any money.

“Then did you get injured?” Qiao Mei asked worriedly.

Money was a small matter. Their lives were the most important thing. If they lost their lives, they would not have any chance to take revenge on Zhang Qian.

“We’re all fine, but when dad hit mom, eldest brother would rush forward to protect her. He probably got beaten up too. Eldest brother never told us,” Zhang Miao said softly.

Qiao Mei’s heart ached but she also felt relieved. This was the first time she felt that Zhang Wei had grown up. He was originally the most rebellious kid and did not want to live in the countryside. He even hurt Li Gui with all the things he said. Now, he even knew how to protect his mother well even with his small body.

“I’ll ask Zhang Wei when he comes back later. Since elder sister is back, I won’t let them bully you anymore. Don’t worry,” Qiao Mei said as she comforted them.

Zhang Miao seemed to think of something and grabbed Qiao Mei’s hand excitedly. “Then isn’t brother-in-law very powerful! Elder sister, you always say that brother-in-law is more powerful than wild boars! Then can he defeat all these bad people!”

Qiao Mei did not know what to say for a moment. Should she first explain that Xia Zhe had no direct relationship with the wild boars, or that it was very difficult for a normal person like Xia Zhe to defeat an adult wild boar with tusks using his bare hands, or should she praise Zhang Miao for being smart enough to use a “big devil” like Xia Zhe to defeat those animals from the Zhang family.

At this moment, Xia Zhe quietly stood behind Zhang Miao and said, “Of course I can! I’m very capable!”

“Ah!” Zhang Miao and Zhang Qin were so frightened that they hid behind Qiao Mei.

Qiao Mei patted the two children and said, “Hurry up and go in. I’ll call you when dinner is ready.”

Zhang Qin held Zhang Miao’s hand and returned to the house. They went back to their previous position to observe Xia Zhe and Qiao Mei through the window again.

“Did you badmouth me to your younger sisters again?” Xia Zhe said as he sat beside Qiao Mei.

“I didn’t say anything. You’re making guesses yourself. It has nothing to do with me,” Qiao Mei said guiltily.

Xia Zhe did not continue asking. Just now, when Zhang Wei and Zhang Chao saw him, they behaved like mice who saw a cat. Even when Qiao Qiang tried to explain, they did not listen.

“Both Zhang Wei and Zhang Chao are back. Grandfather said to call him over when it’s time to eat. He’s old and doesn’t like to join in the fun. He said that there are too many people cooking now and that he won’t be able to help even if he comes and will only cause trouble for everyone,” Xia Zhe said.

Actually, he was quite surprised to hear Qiao Qiang say that. After all, in his impression, Qiao Qiang was always very jovial. He had been happy to take care of so many children who were not related to him by blood. Perhaps he was getting older and felt that he had run out of steam.

“Then let’s just do what grandfather said,” Qiao Mei said with a sigh.

“What’s wrong? Is there something on your mind?” Xia Zhe asked as he held Qiao Mei’s hand.

He knew that Qiao Mei liked to sigh when she was troubled by something. If it was something that could be easily resolved, she would only tell him the end results smugly. After that, she would ask him to praise her properly, otherwise she would keep pestering him. If it was a more troublesome issue, Qiao Mei would sit at the side and sigh with a bitter look on her face.

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