“I gave her the choice of a better path so that it would be easier for her but she chose otherwise. If anything happens because she chose this path, she’d better not blame it on us. If Zhai Sheng leaves her because of this, it’s all because of her own doing.”

  It would be best if Zhai Sheng got a divorce from that wretched girl so that she would come to her senses. Did she really think that she could forget all about her family and act all high and mighty now that she had married into a good family? Without her family’s help, she would get a divorce even if she were to get married.

  Only by getting along well with her family would Qiao Nan be able to secure her marriage in the future. As long as Qiao Nan refused to acknowledge the importance of her family, she would never be able to lead a peaceful life in the future.

  Qiao Zijin grabbed a bunch of melon seeds in her hand. It did not matter how much nonsense her mom spouted. Since her mom was so insistent that there was nothing wrong with Qiao Nan even after that accident, there was no point in her worrying any further. In short, her mom would look for Qiao Nan and settle the matter of her becoming a civil servant. Then, she would just have to keep that job and never resign from that job that would pay her ten thousand every month. Conversely, if her mom could not handle that matter, her mom would simply have to be thriftier in the future and she should not even think of asking for an allowance from her. She had half her life ahead of her. 1.6 million yuan was not going to be enough.

  Moreover, in such a short span of time, she had already spent quite a few thousand yuan. At the thought of the Qiao family spending even more than she did while she had been in the Chen family, Qiao Zijin felt heartbroken. No matter how great the expenses had been in the Chen family, that had been the Chen family’s business and had nothing to do with her. And the Qiao family’s expenses had even less to do with her since Qiao Nan was the one taking care of them.

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  It was only when she had to work did Qiao Zijin feel upset about how quickly Ding Jiayi spent money. Did she really think that their family owned a gold mine and had an endless supply of money lying around? “Mom, I’m unemployed and I gave you fifty thousand when Dad was hospitalized previously. Before that, I gave you twenty thousand as well, so I think you should cut down on your expenses. Stop asking me for money. If you continue doing that, I might have to go out on the streets to beg for money if I don’t get a job.”

  Her mom had never gotten a job in her life and did not even know how to earn money and yet, she never let up when spending money. In fact, her mom had the best fortune amongst them. Not only did she not have to earn her own keep, but she had also never gone without money. In her youth, her dad had been the one supplying her with funds. Afterward, Qiao Nan had taken up that responsibility, and now, she had to do so.

  She had neither met Qiao Nan nor settled the matter of Qiao Zijin becoming a civil servant. As such, Ding Jiayi did not dare to refuse when Qiao Zijin brought up the topic of her allowance. “Alright. Isn’t your dad still recuperating from his injury? That’s why I spent a little more lately. Otherwise, our family doesn’t spend that much in a month either. Don’t worry. I won’t ask you for any more money this month or next month.”

  At the mention of money, Ding Jiayi could never hold her chest high. Qiao Dongliang had always been the one controlling the purse strings. Ding Jiayi knew what it meant to be thrifty. Even if she could not increase her income, she could cut her expenses.

  Ever since Qiao Nan started working to support the family, Ding Jiayi had started to spend money as though it cost her nothing because of Qiao Zijin’s encouragement. Even though she did not always buy expensive things to eat, she always chose the more expensive option, feeling that the freshness was worth the price.

  There was no way she would be able to get rid of that twenty-year-old habit that Qiao Nan had cultivated right away. The difference was that Qiao Zijin had been the one to teach her mother that habit in the past because she had not been the one paying for it. No matter how much her mother spent, it was not her money. Unfortunately, every dog had its day and her mother’s habit would come to bite her back.

  Of course, neither Qiao Zijin nor Ding Jiayi had realized that at this point in time. Ding Jiayi would have spent a considerable sum of Qiao Zijin’s money before they did. That sum would make Qiao Zijin’s heart break at the very least.

  “What are you doing here, Old Qiao? Don’t you know how severe your injuries are? You need to let your bones heal. Why don’t you just rest in bed?” The mother and daughter had just finished their chat when they saw Qiao Dongliang limping out of the room. Ding Jiayi was taken aback and ran up to Qiao Dongliang right away in case he fell down and needed to be hospitalized once again since that would incur a hefty cost.

  Without a human ATM like Qiao Nan, the only thing the Qiao family ever talked about nowadays was money. In the past, they had spent freely without ever having to worry about money. It was only now that they had to care even about the money that they spent on bare necessities.

  Qiao Dongliang’s expression was cold. He was not deaf and had heard all about the mother and daughter’s plans and ill intentions. “It’s uncomfortable to be lying down on my bed for the whole day. I have to get some exercise every once in a while.” If he did not move around now, what would happen if he could not attend Nan Nan’s wedding?

  Unlike Ding Jiayi, who had not been able to contact or meet Qiao Nan, Qiao Dongliang had intermittent contact with Qiao Nan, especially since she was about to get married. Even if Qiao Nan did not look for Qiao Dongliang, Qiao Dongliang would still send her a text every day, asking about how the preparations for her wedding were going.

  Qiao Nan was getting married, but he was the only relative who was invited to her wedding. As such, Qiao Dongliang was not going to allow himself to lie around all day, in case he became wasted and needed someone to carry him to his daughter’s wedding. How humiliating that would be!

  Upon seeing that Qiao Dongliang had come out from his room, Qiao Zijin could not even be bothered to address him since Qiao Dongliang had not done so himself. Qiao Zijin had noticed her father’s coldness toward her and could see that Qiao Dongliang had only one daughter in his eyes and heart, and that was Qiao Nan. That was in spite of the fact that she had visited her father while he had been hospitalized and had forked out fifty thousand just as Qiao Nan had!

  It was a pity that her fifty thousand was different from Qiao Nan’s. Hers was clearly much less valuable. Qiao Zijin was annoyed that the same sum could have different values in her father’s eyes.

  He could treat her that way if he wanted, but he had better continue treating her as an outsider when he needed money and someone to look after him. If he were to treat her as a daughter only when he needed money and an outsider at any other time, her father would truly be taking advantage of her!

  At this point in time, Qiao Zijin was too frustrated to even take a glance at Qiao Dongliang.