Witty Wife, Better Life-Chapter 807 - 797: Pay for the Phone Call

When Li Hongjun returned to his room, Shen Yunfang was lying on the bed and asked him, "Are you going back?"

"I can’t go back." Li Hongjun frowned. "If I could, I would really like to go back and ask my dad what he’s up to."

Shen Yunfang smirked, not taking it seriously. If the old man could explain what he was up to, he wouldn’t have made such a mess. "Why can’t you go back? Didn’t you just return from a mission? Is your military district that busy recently?"

"Yeah, a few days ago when I returned, the chief told me there’s some follow-up to this mission, and I might have to leave again soon, so I can’t take leave during this period." Li Hongjun didn’t specify what the mission was.

Now it was Shen Yunfang’s turn to frown. "What kind of leaders are these? Either they make you sit idle, or they desperately need you. You sat idle for years before, and now, look, you’ve got mission after mission. Who can withstand that?" She was quite dissatisfied; nobody should be sent on consecutive missions like this.

"Don’t talk nonsense." Now that his wife was home, she started speaking without a filter, "You don’t have to worry about Shen Yingxue’s matter; I have already handed over her criminal evidence, and she won’t appear before you again. As for the matters back home, I guess my mom, seeing that I haven’t returned, won’t give up easily. If she calls and speaks unpleasantly when I’m not home, don’t respond the same way she does. Just act as if you didn’t hear and don’t get angry; it’s bad for your health." Li Hongjun knew that when a mission came up, he might have to leave at any moment and wouldn’t have time to explain to his family, so he took the opportunity to explain now.

"Alright, I won’t get angry. If I got angry, I don’t know how many times I would have died by now." Shen Yunfang felt she had become quite seasoned through it all.

"That’s good. My wife is indeed clever." Li Hongjun spoke with a sense of pride.

Shen Yunfang gave him a sideways glance, "You’re flattering at the wrong time. What does not getting angry have to do with being clever?"

"Come on, let your man explain to you the relationship between being clever and getting angry..."

The next day, Shen Yunfang continued to stay at home, playing the role of a devoted wife and mother, taking care of her husband and children.

That evening, as the family sat in the living room watching TV before going to bed, she expressed her disbelief: "Li Hongjun, your mom didn’t even call today. She might think you actually went back."

"You, why are you so gullible? You’re upset when the old lady calls, and suspicious when she doesn’t. You really are hard to please." Li Hongjun shook his head but internally agreed with his wife; he hadn’t expected his mother to calm down so quickly.

What they didn’t know was that Qiu Shuping also planned to call but hadn’t because she owed five yuan on her phone bill from the night before, and the team wouldn’t allow her to make a call. Moreover, she had a tough day as the team leader had come to her house several times asking for money.

This morning, Qiu Shuping woke up and immediately had a big fight with Old Li, all because she had no money and knew that Old Li had some, so she demanded money from him.

But now, Old Li had no money on hand. Unable to out-argue his wife or produce any money, he left the house feeling dejected, without even having breakfast.

Qiu Shuping sat at the front gate cursing, cursing the entire Li family ancestry, which didn’t bring Old Li back but did bring the team leader to her.

Seeing the team leader heading her way from afar, Qiu Shuping stopped cursing, turned, and darted into the courtyard, then with a bang, she shut the courtyard gate firmly. She also swiftly ran into the house and hid, not coming out again.

Mother Zheng was cooking breakfast in the main hall and saw the entire disgraceful display of Qiu Shuping from start to finish. She said nothing, only showing a face full of mocking expressions.

Captain had spotted Auntie Qiu at the Li Family’s door, but before he could even approach, she had entered the house and shut the door. It was frustrating, but debts owed to the public couldn’t be ignored; nothing was said last night in the dark, but today he had come specifically to collect the money.

Bang, bang, bang...

"Auntie Qiu, are you home? Open the door, it’s Gensheng," the captain said, managing to keep his face calm despite feeling angry inside.

"Auntie Qiu? Auntie Qiu? I just saw you go inside; why aren’t you opening the door in broad daylight?" the captain raised his voice slightly from outside.

Inside, Qiu Shuping lay motionless on the heated brick bed, eyes closed, pretending to be asleep.

Zheng’s mother glanced at the door and then inside the house, pulled a smile, and stood up to open the yard door.

"Oh, isn’t this the captain? You’ve come over so early for something? Quick, come in, come in. My in-law probably got tired yesterday and went back to sleep just now, didn’t hear you, no worries—just go in and call her," said Zheng’s mother with a big smile.

The captain of Taoshu Village knew that the Li Family harbored such a character but hadn’t seen the mother and daughter out and about very often.

"Thank you, Auntie," the captain said politely and headed for the east room.

Hearing Zheng’s mother’s words, Qiu Shuping knew that the old woman had reluctantly opened the door; there was no escaping today, and she had to get up from the bed, just as the captain pushed the door and entered.

"Oh, Auntie, you were really asleep, huh? I hope I didn’t disturb your rest," said the captain, who clearly knew she had pretended to sleep to avoid him, so he entered without any hesitation.

After all, there was a generation gap between the two, so barging in like this wasn’t likely to be misunderstood.

"Ah, Gensheng is here; look at me, I’m of old age, and it’s taken me days to recover; I was so tired, I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow," Qiu Shuping forced a smile.

"Well, I won’t bother you much then, Auntie. About the five yuan for the phone call from yesterday, could you give that first? If it were my money, I would say nothing—whenever you want to give is fine by me, even if you never gave, as your junior, I couldn’t really say anything. But since it’s collective money, I have to ask," said the captain, who was quite eloquent.

Qiu Shuping looked slightly uneasy, but she had to say what needed to be said, "Gensheng, do I look like someone who would default on a debt?"

The captain inwardly scoffed, knowing people’s faces but not their hearts; it seemed she really was someone who would dodge a debt.

"...Auntie just got home a few days ago, and all the household money is with your uncle. He came back late yesterday, and I hadn’t had a chance to ask him for it. This morning, as soon as I opened my eyes, he was gone. How about this—when he comes back, I’ll talk to him, and he can bring it over, okay?" Qiu Shuping didn’t dare to be aggressive, fearing that a wrong move could lead to her being reported and arrested, so she explained herself in a gentle manner.

The captain remained silent, simply sizing her up from head to toe several times; this left Qiu Shuping feeling extremely uncomfortable, yet she dared not make a sound.

"Okay, I trust Auntie’s word. My uncle is older, so I won’t trouble him to bring it over. I’ll come and get it myself around noon," the captain assessed and decided that the money might be easier to collect when the old man Li was home, and thus he conceded.