CHAPTER 709: CHAPTER 704: NOT MUCH OF A MAN

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(Today there was some issue at home, which is why this Chapter was delayed, fortunately, I did not break my promise.)

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Shuanzi finished speaking, and Xibao, who was one of Shuanzi’s subordinates and the one who went to pick up Xu He, remembered the series of events involving Xu He. He slightly narrowed his eyes and then leaned close to Shuanzi, whispering, "Boss, maybe you don’t need to worry, I have a good plan that will ensure the woman obediently hands over the child to you without causing any further trouble."

Upon hearing this, Shuanzi’s interest was indeed piqued, and he immediately nodded to Xibao, "Let’s hear it."

"I discovered a secret when I went to pick her up..." The subordinate named Xibao whispered in Shuanzi’s ear about the odd behavior of Xu He during the pickup, emphasizing the incident with the cookies.

More importantly, the cookies that Xu He asked him to discard were not thrown away; instead, he had kept them and immediately showed them to Shuanzi.

After hearing about this, a smile spread across Shuanzi’s face. He affectionately patted Xibao on the head and said with a laugh, "Good lad, you have potential, with a keen mind. From now on, stay by my side and be my right-hand man."

Hearing this, Xibao’s face immediately looked ingratiating as he thanked Shuanzi, "Thank you, boss."

Shuanzi nodded, his eyes scanning around before calling another subordinate over and giving him a low-voiced order, "Send someone to find out exactly what Xu He has done. After you’ve figured it out, don’t make it public, come back and report to me immediately."

Upon receiving the order, Shuanzi’s subordinate immediately set out to investigate the matter.

Meanwhile, Xu He, carrying a thick stack of money, was already elated, contemplating how she would use this substantial sum of money.

The amount of money given by Shuanzi was not small, but it was not excessively large either. For instance, it was surely not enough to buy a house in the provincial city. However, it would indeed be more than enough if Xu He were to spend it on clothes and jewelry without running out immediately.

Reflecting upon this, Xu He felt some regret. Had she known Shuanzi was so willing to give money, she would have asked for more. Now, this sum presented her with a bit of a dilemma.

If it were the Xu He of the past, she would certainly have thought about using this money to buy a house in the provincial city. Even if she couldn’t afford a nice one, a second-hand property or one in a more remote location would do—it would still be better than living in the countryside. But now, she no longer wanted to buy a house.

That’s because she was already fantasizing that the child she was carrying was undoubtedly going to be a son. Shuanzi would definitely marry her in the future, and then all of Shuanzi’s possessions would belong to her. She wouldn’t need to buy any house herself. In the future, she could have her pick of delicacies and luxury homes, and Xu He would finally be able to live a good life, making all her schemes worth it.

She did not know exactly how much wealth Shuanzi possessed, but seeing him casually handing out money, she figured he must have some assets.

Therefore, Xu He thought to herself that she must, by all means, secure Shuanzi.

However, Xu He, being the kind of person who always likes to have a backup plan, still thought that as long as the child had not been born and her relationship with Shuanzi was not fully confirmed, she couldn’t completely fall out with the Luo Family.

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Anyway, at the very least, she could rely on the Luo Family to support her until the child was born and confirmed to be a son. Only after confirming her marriage with Shuanzi would she unveil the big secret. She also wanted to see the expressions on Zhou Yunmei and Luo Zhiming’s faces when they found out the child wasn’t theirs. That would certainly be something to behold.

So, since this money matter couldn’t be known by the Luo Family, of course, she couldn’t bring it back.

Thus, Xu He found a place to deposit her money and opened a savings book. She originally planned to deposit all the money, but after thinking it over, she took out several hundred yuan to keep on herself.

After depositing the money, she sent US$ 100 to her parents in the countryside and even made a phone call to them from the post office to let Duan Fenghua know.

Duan Fenghua thought the money was earned by Luo Zhiming and was extremely pleased. She kept persuading Xu He that since Luo Zhiming had become promising and was able to earn money, Xu He should live a good life with him and not dwell on unnecessary matters. After all, a woman only needs a reliable man to lean on, and what else could one ask for in life?

Xu He didn’t dare to tell Duan Fenghua about her affair with Shuanzi just yet and vaguely agreed.

Afterward, she bought some food and things for children to nourish their bodies to take back home. Remembering how she had harmed Zhuzhu, she felt somewhat guilty.

When Xu He returned home, Luo Zhiming happened to just get off work from the construction site. He was unaware of the big incident that had occurred at home today. Seeing Xu He bringing home many things, Luo Zhiming frowned and complained, "Splurging again? Do you really think I’m some big boss, bringing home cookies every other day, buying over ten packs at a time, spending several dollars each time? And today is no different. Don’t forget that I’m just a brick hauler, I sweat and bleed for every cent I earn. Spend what you need to spend, but don’t waste money unwisely, a lot of money is going to be needed for the child..."

Luo Zhiming, fueled by his indignation, rambled on and on.

In the past, Xu He might have tolerated such behavior from Luo Zhiming. After all, they were a family trying to make ends meet, and naturally, they would be frugal. But today, after seeing Shuanzi’s generous offer of a large sum of money, looking at Luo Zhiming now made her feel that his nagging over such a small amount of money wasn’t very manly. No wonder he couldn’t father a child; he lacked masculinity.

Thinking this way, her desire to leave him grew even stronger.

Thus, she retorted angrily, "A truly capable man wouldn’t care how his wife spends money. Instead, he would always encourage her to spend, giving the wife the liberty to spend is what brings honor to a man’s face."

Luo Zhiming could hear the sarcasm and disdain in Xu He’s tone. Already annoyed, his anger flared, and he glared at Xu He, "Xu He, what are you trying to say?"

Xu He glanced at him and laid down on the bed, irritably responding, "Whatever you think I mean, that’s what it is, it’s up to you."

"You..." Recently, the house had been particularly noisy due to Zhou Yunmei’s arrival and Luo Cuilan moving in. Luo Zhiming was also annoyed and didn’t want to argue any further. In the end, he just sighed and then asked Xu He, who was lying on the bed, "Where’s my mom and sister? Why is the door still locked at this hour, and they haven’t mentioned anything about preparing dinner?"

Mentioning Luo Cuilan made Xu He shiver. After all, there had been no development regarding that matter, which worried her.

She sat up from the bed, looked at Luo Zhiming, and said, "Zhuzhu had an accident and is now in the hospital. They must still be at the hospital by now."

Upon hearing this, Luo Zhiming became anxious, "What happened? How could Zhuzhu be hospitalized all of a sudden?"

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