Chapter 127: Chapter 127: Work

After Xu Meiling left, she finally took out a small plate of sweet and sour pork that she’d hidden in her space and shared it with Dacheng.

Meanwhile, at the dining table in the main room, everyone was eating to their heart’s content.

There was fish, meat, and shrimp—showing just how much the Xu family valued this meeting. With Lin Xiaomeng’s cooking skills adding the finishing touch, the Yan family of three was very satisfied with the meal.

Smiles appeared on Father and Mother Yan’s faces as they praised the food for being delicious and authentic.

Seeing that things were going well, Xu Huaiyu finally felt a weight lifted from his heart. Under the table, he quietly gave Yan Lijun’s hand a squeeze.

The two exchanged a smile.

After the meal, it was time to lay all the cards on the table. Since they’d fallen in love freely, without a matchmaker, the next steps would be discussed directly by the elders of both families.

Father and Mother Yan expressed that Xu Huaiyu was a good young man, but he currently had no job and was just staying at home. That wouldn’t do. Yan Lijun had a job in the city—after marriage, it wouldn’t be possible for the couple to live apart, right?

In short, Xu Huaiyu needed to have a job to support the family—even if it was just a temporary job. After all, they couldn’t let Yan Lijun be the breadwinner after marriage, could they?

Xu Huaiyu forced a smile, his expression a bit sour. These old folks still looked down on him for not having a job.

Of course, Xu Mingshan wanted to find his son a good job, but he just hadn’t managed it yet! Besides, Huaiyu was used to loafing around and couldn’t settle down.

Liu Guifang’s face didn’t look too good either. In her heart, her child was perfect, and being criticized—however subtly—made her unhappy.

But what the other side said was true. The third son did need to find a job and settle down. They couldn’t support him forever.

All in all, Father and Mother Yan made their position clear: Xu Huaiyu was a good candidate, but he needed a proper job before they could talk about the next steps.

Once everything was said, Father and Mother Yan got up to leave with Yan Lijun.

Xu Huaiyu walked them to the entrance of the village. Father Yan had come by bicycle, and as he left with his wife and daughter, he patted Xu Huaiyu on the shoulder and said he had high hopes for him.

Hope rekindled in Xu Huaiyu’s heart.

To be honest, he wasn’t all that deeply in love with Yan Lijun. What he really wanted was a city wife—someone who matched his own aspirations.

His eldest brother’s wife was an educated youth from the city, even his crazy second brother had married an educated youth. He couldn’t fall too far behind.

Yan Lijun was good-looking, had a job, and was easy to handle—she was the best he could hope for.

Thinking of this, he hurried home to discuss things with his parents.

Lin Xiaomeng saw the whole family looking worried and thought the matchmaking had fallen through. Her heart skipped a beat—if Xu Huaiyu’s marriage was off, would she have to wait even longer to split the family?

Well, all the food she’d cooked today was for nothing.

When Xu Huaiyu returned, Xu Mingshan gathered the family for a meeting. Only then did Lin Xiaomeng realize the marriage wasn’t off—they just disliked that Xu Huaiyu didn’t have a job and insisted he find one before they’d agree to the wedding.

She was secretly delighted—this little punk Xu Huaiyu finally got a taste of his own medicine!

But in the next second, Liu Guifang turned her attention to Xu Huaizhi.

“Eldest, you’re a skilled worker at the steel factory. Can’t you help your brother get a temporary job there?”

Xu Mingshan looked over too—he had the same idea. Right now, only the eldest had any connections to help.

Xu Huaizhi’s face darkened. “Didn’t I try last time? He turned his nose up at it!”

“Big brother, what kind of job did you find? Shoveling coal slag! Does that match my education and status? I’m a high school graduate, and you want me to shovel coal?” Xu Huaiyu protested.

Xu Huaizhi was annoyed.

“So what if you’re a high school graduate? When I first started, I was just an ordinary worker. I earned the boss’s trust step by step, and only after passing the factory’s assessment did I become a permanent employee.

Now I’m a senior technician, but I worked hard for it. You can’t become successful overnight—aiming too high will get you nowhere!”

“Then at least find me a regular worker’s job! What future is there in shoveling coal slag?” Xu Huaiyu argued.

“There’s a set number of jobs—factory positions have been full for years, and they’re not hiring anytime soon. If it weren’t for my good relationship with my mentor, I wouldn’t have even found you the coal-shoveling job. Don’t be ungrateful!

That job you didn’t want? They found a young guy to do it, and now he’s about to become a permanent employee,” Xu Huaizhi said, hating iron for not becoming steel.

Xu Huaiyu curled his lip. “So what if he becomes permanent? I’m not spending my life shoveling coal. Whoever wants to do it can do it!”

Lin Xiaomeng sneered. With someone like Xu Huaiyu, he’d be a loafer for life.

In her past life, when she left, he still wasn’t married. She didn’t know what happened to him later, but he probably just hid behind his big brother and scraped by.

This life, he could forget about taking advantage of them again.

Luckily, Xu Huaizhi wasn’t as blindly filial as he’d been in her previous life.

Liu Guifang couldn’t stand her two sons arguing and quickly tried to mediate.

“Third, don’t say any more. Your big brother is just trying to help you.

Eldest, you heard what they said—no job, no marriage. Your brother insists on that girl, and your father and I can’t do anything about it. As the eldest, can’t you help your brother one more time?”

Xu Huaizhi frowned, saying nothing.

Xu Mingshan added, “Eldest, if you can pull some strings and get your brother a job, then when the commune elementary school recruits next spring, I’ll let your wife go for it.”

This was a kind of exchange.

Lin Xiaomeng cursed inwardly. The old man had clearly promised to help her get the job, but now it was a bargaining chip.

Truth was, Xu Mingshan wasn’t sure if he could secure the job. Otherwise, why would he promise it to his daughter-in-law instead of his own son? After all, being a teacher was a good job.

Xu Huaizhi knew his wife desperately needed a job to change her situation.

The steel factory was full of men—it was hard to find suitable work for her. The commune elementary school job was a good fit.

After thinking for a while, he said, “I’ll do my best! But whatever job I find this time, you have to take it. If you refuse again, don’t expect any more help from me!”

Xu Huaizhi’s tone was stern. Liu Guifang immediately nudged the third son, “Quick, promise your brother you’ll work hard this time.”

Xu Huaiyu thought that if he could get a job and get married, it would be a good thing, so he agreed readily.

“Big brother, please help me. Whatever job you find this time, I’ll do it seriously.”

Xu Huaizhi’s expression softened a bit.

Lin Xiaomeng didn’t believe a word of it.

But at least the matter was settled for now.

—

On the way home, the Yan family discussed the situation.

“Dad, why did you suddenly raise new conditions? They seemed pretty upset.” Yan Lijun was confused. Hadn’t they agreed before that as long as the conditions were acceptable, they’d agree?

Her father’s sudden demand made her worry that after marriage, the Xu family would hold it against her and make things hard for her.

Actually, she was quite satisfied—the Xu family seemed decent, and being able to offer the “three rounds and one sound” (bicycle, watch, sewing machine, and radio) showed they were well-off.

Most importantly, Xu Huaiyu was good-looking and sweet-talking.

“Silly girl, your dad is doing this for your own good. You only see what’s on the surface. Young people only care about being happy now, but don’t think about the future.

Huaiyu seems nice, but if he doesn’t work, won’t the burden fall on you after marriage?

Besides, you work in the city and he’s in the countryside—how would that work?

Didn’t he say his brother could always help him find a job? This isn’t an unreasonable request!

If you both work in the city, you can rent a place and live there. We can look after you from time to time. If you stay in the village, you’ll have to live under your in-laws’ roof, and that’s not easy.”

Mother Yan patiently explained everything to her daughter.

They really did care for their daughter—otherwise, they wouldn’t have let her finish high school. But there was no other way.

They also worried that if they took the bride price, their daughter would suffer at her in-laws’, so they insisted Xu Huaiyu get a job. That way, the couple could live in the city, and they could keep an eye on her.

Yan Lijun understood her parents’ intentions and agreed it was for the best. She just didn’t know if Xu Huaiyu could find a job—these days, jobs were scarce and hard to come by.

Father Yan sighed, “Who knows when they’ll sort out the job issue. Your younger brother can’t wait much longer. If the girl gets pregnant before the wedding, the neighbors will laugh at us.”

Mother Yan sighed too.

“How did I end up with such a son! Who knows what life will be like when this daughter-in-law joins the family.”

Thinking of her troublesome younger brother, Yan Lijun was filled with frustration. If not for him, she wouldn’t have to rush into marriage or split her bride price.

She could already imagine how angry the groom’s family would be when they found out about this at the wedding—they’d definitely look down on her.

On one side was her own future, on the other, her brother’s life. She felt like she was being roasted over a fire.

Sometimes she really wanted to escape her family. Did being the eldest sister mean she had to be responsible for her brother’s life? She was so unwilling, but thinking of her parents’ twenty years of raising her, she could only accept it with tears in her eyes."