The Heartless, Cheating Scumbag Woman in a Female-Dominated World (Seven)

When Jiang Xuefu returned, Rong Feng had just finished making dinner: three dishes and a soup, all her favorites.

"Brother, why have you been coming over so often lately?"

Jiang Xuefu was simply curious. Rong Feng used to visit only two or three times a month, but this was already his third visit that week.

Yet her words seemed to take on a different meaning to Rong Feng. His expression changed slightly, and he said, half-jokingly, "What, am I not welcome here?"

"Brother, Fufu was just asking." Rong Chao sat close beside Jiang Xuefu, ladled her a bowl of soup, and picked out several mouthfuls of her favorite dishes for her.

Rong Chao said, "Eat more. So, were you tired today?"

"It was all right." Jiang Xuefu focused on eating. "The kids were a little naughty, but they were fairly well-behaved."

Watching how close the two were, the faint smile on Rong Feng's lips grew more strained, and a flicker of gloom passed through his eyes.

He came to cook for her, but every time, all he could do was watch her and his younger brother being sweet and affectionate. Rong Feng used to think it was fine; after all, being able to see her once in a while was good enough.

But ever since his conversation with Rong Chao last time, Rong Feng had found himself growing increasingly dissatisfied with the way things were.

More than once, he had imagined how wonderful it would be if he were the one married to Jiang Xuefu.

Unfortunately, for now, all he could do was imagine.

Rong Feng lowered his eyes, not wanting to watch the scene before him that left him suffocated and miserable.

At the dinner table, Jiang Xuefu and Rong Chao's conversation continued.

"Mom called me today."

Rong Chao paused mid-meal. "Was something the matter?"

"Mm. Dad hasn't been well lately, so Mom is bringing him to City A for a checkup. They'll stay for a while too."

Hearing that Jiang Xuefu's mother and father were going to stay for a while, Rong Chao completely lost his appetite.

He wiped his mouth and asked, seemingly offhand, "About how long are they staying? I'll see about booking a hotel now."

Jiang Xuefu said, "She didn't say. It's fine, they can stay here for now. We'll have someone clean the guest room tomorrow, and they can move right in."

"I see." Rong Chao answered absentmindedly and sighed inwardly.

When he and Jiang Xuefu had first married, her parents had treated him fairly well, but the longer he had been married into the family, the more dissatisfied they had become with him.

Jiang Xuefu's father, Liu He, was especially so. He behaved himself in front of Jiang Xuefu, but behind her back, he often made snide remarks and mocked Rong Chao, spreading gossip all over the village.

But no matter how unwilling Rong Chao was, it was no use. They were Jiang Xuefu's parents, after all; he couldn't stop them from coming to see their daughter.

At noon the next day.

Since it was Sunday, Jiang Xuefu didn't have to work, so she made a special trip to the station and drove her mother and father back herself.

Jiang Xuefu's mother, Jiang Yinghua, walked ahead empty-handed, while her father, Liu He, followed behind carrying bags of all sizes.

"Dad, why did you bring so much? Let me carry some."

Liu He dodged Jiang Xuefu's outstretched hand. "Those are the hands of a boss. How can you carry this stuff? Be good."

"Where's Rong Chao? Why didn't he come down to carry the bags? It's so hot out, and he made you go out to pick us up while he stayed home enjoying the air-conditioning. He certainly knows how to enjoy himself."

The more Liu He spoke, the more dissatisfied he grew with Rong Chao. All these years, he hadn't gone to work, spending their Xiao Fu's money every day. What a wastrel!

They had told him to go to the hospital and get the matter of having a child taken care of sooner, but he kept making excuses and putting it off. Liu He had long suspected there was something wrong with his body.

Liu He said, "Oh, right, sweetheart, do you remember the Chen family's son who used to play with you all the time when you were little? The one called Xiao Yu."

Chen Yu? Jiang Xuefu had some recollection of him. When they were little, he had been dark-skinned and stocky, and hardly anyone wanted to play with him, so he often followed her around, calling her big sister.

"I remember him a little. Why?"

"He works in City A too. His dad asked us to bring him a few things."

So that was it. Jiang Xuefu nodded and opened the elevator. "Then tell A Chao the address later, Dad. I'll have him take you."

As they spoke, the elevator reached their floor. Jiang Xuefu opened the apartment door and called inside, "A Chao, Mom and Dad are here."

Rong Chao came out reluctantly. When he saw the dirty, worn woven plastic sacks Liu He was carrying, a flash of disdain crossed his eyes.

"What are you looking at? Hurry up and help me carry these inside." As soon as Liu He saw Rong Chao, he bossed him around as though it were his right, treating him just like a servant.

After the bags had been put away, Jiang Yinghua sat on the sofa drinking tea at her leisure, while Liu He began inspecting the apartment like its owner. He checked the bedroom, balcony, kitchen, and other areas thoroughly, and only nodded in satisfaction when he found nothing dirty.

At mealtime, the part-time cook arrived with groceries to make dinner, only for Liu He to send him away.

"Why are you still hiring someone to cook? Didn't I tell you last time I was here to have Rong Chao cook? He stays home and doesn't earn any money, and now he's not even willing to make a meal?"

"Dad, hiring a part-time cook doesn't cost much," Jiang Xuefu said helplessly.

"Money has to be saved bit by bit. This doesn't cost much, that doesn't cost much-even if you have money, that's no way to spend it."

Liu He pushed Jiang Xuefu aside, took two aprons from a cupboard, and gave one to Rong Chao. "All right, sweetheart, don't worry about it. Go have tea with your mom. I'll cook today. And remember to fire that part-time worker. Cooking is such a simple thing."

Hearing him say that, Jiang Xuefu couldn't be bothered to argue. She gave Rong Chao a look. Rong Chao forced a smile, took the apron Liu He handed him, and put it on. "It's all right, wife. Go keep Mom company."

He didn't want to put Jiang Xuefu in a difficult position between him and her family, so as long as Liu He didn't go too far, he endured whatever he could.

In the kitchen, the sight of Rong Chao clumsily cutting potatoes made Liu He's anger flare. He walked over and pinched Rong Chao's fair arm hard, his hand enormously strong from years of farm work.

"What a good-for-nothing who loves to eat and hates to work. What was the use of your dad raising you all these years? Look at that dead face of yours, just because I asked you to cut some vegetables. If your family hadn't given you such a large dowry, I'd never have let Xiao Fu marry a useless man like you!"

Almost immediately, a large lump swelled up where Rong Chao had been pinched, bruised black and blue and especially frightening to look at. It showed just how much force Liu He had used.

"You!" Tears instantly welled in Rong Chao's eyes from the pain. He threw down the knife and glared at Liu He, a trace of killing intent flashing in the depths of his eyes.

"What are you glaring at? Get back to cutting!" Being stared at like that made Liu He a little nervous, but he was used to berating Rong Chao and thought of him as nothing more than a soft bun he could knead and squash as he pleased. The little fear Liu He felt quickly faded, and he shouted at Rong Chao again.

His voice was rather loud, loud enough that Jiang Xuefu couldn't ignore it from outside.

"Dad, A Chao? What's wrong?"

Liu He immediately put on a different face for Jiang Xuefu and said with a smile, "Nothing. I'm teaching Xiao Chao to cook."

Neither of the two in the kitchen made another sound after that, so Jiang Xuefu sat back down.

In truth, it wasn't as though she didn't know that Liu He sometimes bullied Rong Chao. She simply pretended not to see.

What else could she do? One was her father, the other her husband. It wouldn't be right to take either side, and involving herself too much was a headache, so she simply stayed out of it altogether.

Besides, she was a woman; her mind should be on building her career. What was the point of always getting caught between two men, dealing with trivial matters?