MC Bookstore Chapter 31 The Puppy Settles the Family Banquet Debt
Chapter 31 The Puppy Settles the Family Banquet Debt
Braised pork ribs with Sichuan peppercorns and steamed catfish using traditional methods.
A large table was laden with dishes: bitter melon, pork chop and egg pancake, desert onion, frog legs with numbing sensation, and crucian carp soup noodles. Some dishes were homemade, while others were bought from outside.
Without a doubt, these are all dishes that Chen Guanjiang loves to eat.
When Chen Genshuo brought a bowl of taro and dried shrimp soup to the table, his smirking expression held a hint of flattery, making Chen Guanjiang feel as if he himself had been served at the table.
"The dishes are all ready, let's eat..."
Du Huiying smiled and invited everyone to eat, but no one touched the table of fine wine and food. Only a group of people sluggishly gnawed on a bone in the corner.
The couple, along with their seven children, sister-in-law Fan Huilin, and niece Chen Muyao, sat together in a neat family gathering. This family dinner was even more somber than a funeral banquet.
Outside, however, it was bustling with activity. Residents of the estate came in an endless stream, carrying various fruits or food and drinks. If it weren't for the four bodyguards guarding the threshold, it would have been overrun with visitors.
Chen Guanjiang glanced at his younger sister Chen Jiagang, who was drooling with desire, and then looked at his third sister Chen Xiangshui, who was in a daze. He sighed inwardly, feeling utterly helpless.
If I didn't care about them, why would I make myself uncomfortable? I might as well take this opportunity to speak frankly.
It wasn't until Chen Genshuo picked up his wine glass and took a sip, Chen Guanjiang ladled a bowl of fish soup for Chen Jiagang, and then picked up a piece of Sichuan peppercorn ribs for Chen Mangniu, that everyone started eating absentmindedly.
Du Huiying broke the silence first, saying, "It's rare for Alin and Yaoyao to come back, so we ordered a few extra dishes. Sigou, do you think they're alright?"
"Seven dishes and one main course, quite acceptable." Chen Guanjiang nodded in satisfaction.
Upon hearing this, the eldest brother Chen Jiangbei's face turned green, and the father Chen Genshuo almost choked. He put down the "cleansing wine" in his hand, patted his chest, and hurriedly asked Du Huiying to put together another dish.
Du Huiying hurriedly peeled another cucumber strip, then awkwardly tried to make conversation, saying, "Hurry up and try the Sichuan peppercorn ribs, buy the best cuts, only five dollars a pound!"
"..."
Chen Guanjiang's hand, which was holding a spare rib, stopped in mid-air, and he instead picked up a small fish.
Du Huiying chimed in from the side, "Yes! The filefish were just caught this morning, they're incredibly fresh!"
“…………”
Chen Guanjiang silently put the fish he had picked up back down, looking at the dishes on the table, unsure of how to start eating.
Previously, parents used the method of "creating a sense of guilt," making their children their innate creditors by giving birth to and raising them, as if their children were born with original sin and had to atone for it throughout their lives.
Now that Chen Guanjiang has gained power, he has turned to "creating a sense of guilt," emphasizing his enormous sacrifices through emotional appeals and complaints, transforming himself into an inherent victim to make others feel guilty and atone for their sins.
Regardless of the method, it's all about manipulation.
"Si Gou, why aren't you eating? The whole family has been busy preparing this meal all day!" Du Huiying asked with an innocent expression.
Chen Guanjiang said with a forced smile, "Everyone did their part, I didn't help at all! How can I eat this? Everyone does the work, everyone eats, I'll just gnaw on some bones to try it out."
One sentence left Du Huiying speechless. The whole family didn't expect Chen Guanjiang to be so "uncooperative," and they didn't know how to continue the conversation they had prepared in advance.
"Just say it!"
Chen Yandu changed the subject, saying, "Fourth Dog, Second Brother wants to study in London. Can you lend him 50,000 dollars?"
HK$50,000 is no small sum, and it is clear that Chen Yandu did not want to work part-time while studying, so he borrowed three years' worth of tuition and living expenses to focus on his studies.
Before Chen Guanjiang could speak, his sister-in-law, Fan Huilin, nudged him with her elbow.
Chen Jiangbei quickly said, "My elder brother left school at the age of sixteen to struggle in the world. It was very difficult to raise you all. He hasn't saved any money over the years, and your sister-in-law didn't ask for a dowry when you got married."
"Now your sister-in-law's father is sick and needs joint replacement surgery. If they don't have the money, he'll be bedridden after the surgery. Si Gou, you should lend your brother 50,000 yuan. Your brother will definitely pay you back..."
The words were finally spoken.
Chen Guanjiang looked around and saw that no one else spoke, but they were all watching how he would answer. He smiled and asked in return, "Big brother, have you considered a question?"
"Will you ask me to lend you money for short-term and long-term complications and post-operative care? If revision surgery is needed, will you ask me for it again?"
"My sister-in-law's parents are in their forties, which is a high-risk period for illness. As their physical functions decline, they will get more and more diseases. Will I have to pay for their tissues every time my father-in-law gets sick?"
There is no end to medical treatment, only poverty is difficult to cure.
As people age, they often experience cardiovascular and cerebrovascular problems. At that time, will they also need to start taking brain-boosting supplements costing HK$86 per injection? Will they need to take them continuously for 11 years and borrow HK$15 billion to repay the debt slowly?
Does this mean that the older brother's parents-in-law don't want to die and will keep paying to prolong their lives? Whether the older brother can repay the money is another matter, but the real question is when will this end?
Once the door is opened, the follow-up is cut off, which is equivalent to having another family enemy who will watch someone die without offering help!
Continuous giving without expecting anything in return, and in return, a whole family of enemies – a great favor turned into a great enmity!
Or perhaps, from the moment the elder brother spoke, the two were no longer family, or perhaps from the moment they made money, they were no longer family in the pure sense.
Before his elder brother and sister-in-law could reply, Chen Guanjiang said to Chen Yandu, "Second brother, it's great that you want to study at the University of London, but have you thought about what you'll do after graduation?"
"This is an elite discipline that requires a great deal of resources. After graduating from law school, without a senior lawyer to guide you, you can only work as a lawyer for free to gain experience."
"Why does the top lawyer need to bring along neighborhood legal advisors? Do I have to pay a top lawyer to mentor you? Or should you defend people for free, and I'll pay to increase your win rate?"
Many families in Hong Kong have their children study two elite academic disciplines separately.
For example, the late Zhou Junnian studied law, Zhou Xinian studied medicine, Jian Yueqiang studied law, Jian Yuewei studied medicine, Li Guoneng studied law, Li Guozhang studied medicine, Li Zhichong studied law, and Li Zhigang studied medicine.
however!
A fledgling lawyer with no proven track record has no one to entrust their safety to.
A newly graduated doctor has no experience to speak of, so no one will give him or her to practice on.
and so!
Junior lawyers need to work with senior lawyers to increase their chances of winning.
As a junior lawyer grows into a senior lawyer, more and more people will seek him out to handle their cases.
Junior doctors should learn from senior doctors and build their resumes;
As a junior doctor grows into a top expert, more and more people will seek him out for surgery.
However, teaching the apprentice can lead to the master's starvation.
Why would a senior lawyer bring along a junior lawyer?
Why would a senior doctor mentor a junior doctor?
Money is the last resort; resource exchange is the key.
For lawyers and big shots, money is readily available, while social resources and status become the goals pursued by social elites.
Junior lawyers and doctors will transform from resource demanders to resource providers, and their status will change fundamentally.