Chapter 47: Storm Brewing (Part 2)

When Zhou Jiao heard this, she suddenly remembered that she hadn’t told him yet—she’d already read her mother’s letters.

“There’s something I should fill you in on. My mom actually seems to care about me a lot. She said that any problem money can solve isn’t really a problem at all. See? Her thinking is as modern as someone from the 21st century. And every letter she writes is full of memories of my dad—she keeps saying she’s searching for traces of him, hinting pretty obviously. I don’t know, maybe people who read it would think she’s in denial, refusing to face reality. She keeps telling me to learn to wait, and that she’s waiting too. She said my dad used to say, ‘If a man can’t protect the land beneath his feet and the woman in his arms, he’s not a real man.’ She also said my dad broke his promise, and when she saw my photo, she was furious with him. She said my dad always talked about preparing a dowry for me from when I was little, so that when I grew up, I could live as I pleased.

She’s following in my dad’s footsteps, fulfilling his wishes. Oh, and she said everything is with my grandma. She’s never believed my dad is gone—maybe she’s waiting for some slip-up. Her letters aren’t hysterical, but very sentimental, with that artistic, literary flair. She’s got personality. And every letter starts with money; once there were ration coupons, she’d send those too, and she was careful to use small denominations. She’s a bit like me—kind of a neat freak. The coupons, money, and stationery are all brand new. All the coupons are military supply coupons, so they won’t expire.

In the last two years, she sent three 200-yuan foreign exchange certificates—600 in total, which we can actually use as cash. They’re from our provincial capital, and she explained why she couldn’t bring me to her place. Every letter comes from a different address. She said my grandpa always sent her photos of me from the waist up, never full-body shots, so she didn’t know my clothing size. She made my clothes based on my cousin Xuezhen, who’s the same age and birthday as me. My grandpa never mentioned when he sent the photos, either. I suspect besides all this, he also asked her for money directly.” Zhou Jiao looked at him expectantly, hoping she hadn’t misunderstood anything.

Just as she hoped, Zhang Guoqing gently patted her back and said approvingly, “First of all, it’s clear your mom truly loves you. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have supported you for 17 years. She knows to include coupons in her letters, which means she understands your situation—she sends one openly and another secretly. She always lists what she’s sent in her letters, so you’ll know if your grandpa is being dishonest. She’s a smart woman.”

“So, let’s wait until your mom arrives before we do anything. For now, we stick to one principle: you can’t go to Beijing yet. Your dad needs to stay safe for the next ten years, and the Northeast is the safest place for that. We’ll see what your parents decide. Once your dad is settled, you can go to university in Beijing or anywhere you like. Ideally, Beijing is best for resources and connections, especially if you want a political career,” Zhang Guoqing analyzed carefully.

After a pause, Zhang Guoqing frowned slightly and continued, “Now, the last thing I want to talk about is your oddball cousin. Outside, she’s been saying, ‘Our family lacks everything except money and coupons. My little aunt treats me better than her own daughter. If we hadn’t stayed in the Northeast, the whole family would’ve gone to Beijing. Who cares about this backwater? If my grandpa stamps his foot in Beijing, the whole city shakes.’

If someone with an agenda spreads this, things could get complicated. The main issue is she mentioned your grandpa—over time, people might think you said it. This is the kind of talk that gets you accused of monarchist restoration, or of being anti-imperialist, anti-feudalist, and anti-bureaucratic capitalist—who dares claim that kind of power in Beijing? I heard from my second brother that her mom was so angry she wanted to strangle her.

This is an opportunity. I want to publicly cut ties and nail this issue down, so she can’t cause trouble later. Before your parents come back, I’ll make sure everyone sees it.

I’ve set a trap to see if she’ll walk into it tomorrow. If she comes swaggering over, I’ll deal with her directly. I’ll have Second Sister-in-law spread the word about what they’ve done—the types and amounts of packages they’ve received, and who got what. If she comes over to make a scene, I’ll ask her straight out: is her grandpa, Huang Damao, trying to restore the monarchy? I’ll drag her, the eldest branch, her husband’s Wang family, and Huang Zhaodi’s Huang family all into it, so they won’t cause trouble for your father-in-law. That family’s already a curse on a scholarly household—I worry about it all the time.

If this keeps up, who’ll believe the Zhou family will have a good future? Tomorrow, I’ll take the opportunity to talk about how your great-grandfather was killed along with over a hundred others to protect revolutionary comrades, and how your grandpa, the old revolutionary, had no choice but to keep moving forward.

I just worry the old man might faint. The main thing is, you’re still in confinement. If you go out and speak, it’ll be even more effective—your speeches at university were legendary. If you speak, it’ll be like nailing the lid shut. We have to play the bad guys here. We’ve been kind enough to cover for the eldest branch, and yet they still come to make trouble. Public sympathy will be on our side. I’m sure she’ll fall for the trap, so you just stay home and rest—I’ll handle this.”

Zhou Jiao refused firmly, not agreeing at all.

“No, if you set this up and then I show up, anyone with half a brain will think I’m being two-faced, trying to cut ties between you and the Zhou family. The conversation will spiral into something ugly, and then it’ll be about the Zhang and Zhou families fighting over Jinwa’s custody. That’s not good for your future political career.

Really, I know how these things go—my university office saw this kind of drama every day. If I handle it, it’s different. I just had a baby three days ago—I’m the vulnerable one. No one knows better than me how to escalate things. With her simple mind, she won’t be able to control the situation. If Grandpa Zhou shows up, it’ll lose its impact. We have to end it before he arrives—nail it down completely.

The most important thing is you have to cooperate with me. If Grandpa Zhou faints, I’ll faint too since I just gave birth, and you’ll have to carry me home immediately, or it’ll be hard to wrap things up. Even if he doesn’t faint, I’ll act overwhelmed, face pale from the shock, and you’ll carry me home without worrying about him. That way, everyone will sympathize with us.

Tonight, get all the warm clothes ready—thermal underwear, down jacket, thick scarf, hat—wrap me up so only my little face shows, and put on some powder tomorrow. For the sake of our child and our family, we can’t back down.

Don’t worry, I know her well—she’ll come around lunchtime, when lots of people are getting off work and the weather isn’t too cold. I’ll take care of myself and won’t stay outside for more than 30 minutes. She’s a weirdo, an idiot—don’t worry. Just make sure you control the scene tomorrow. Tell the family not to get emotional, and if you talk to others, stick to the facts—absolutely no swearing, or we’ll look uncultured.”

Zhang Guoqing watched her get more and more excited, knowing that with her temperament, she’d definitely want to be there. He figured she was bored from her confinement and was happy to have an excuse to get out. He’d have to keep a close eye on her tomorrow.

“Alright, fine. Tomorrow will probably be quite a show. I still remember that debate at university—one girl ran out crying, and you were still shouting, ‘Hey, why are you running? You haven’t defended yourself yet!’ The whole place burst out laughing. Later, you grabbed my hand so tight it turned blue from holding back laughter. That’s when I realized I liked this little fox. Tomorrow, let’s show the whole village whether my wife is a pushover or not.”

“You still remember? Back then, I thought you were such a good big brother, always helping me out and pulling me out of the hall.”

“Of course I remember. And our first kiss—you bit my lip and blamed me for sticking my tongue in. And our wedding night, after finally getting the beauty in my arms, you said you were hungry, so we went out to eat…”

“Our son’s here! Go to sleep, stop talking. We’ve got a battle to fight tomorrow.”

Zhang Guoqing laughed quietly. Teasing her always made her bristle like a Persian cat, eyes wide and round, shy but trying to hide it—so cute."