Chapter 5: Gloomy Clouds

“Old Chen, aren’t you being unreasonable? True, it was my husband, Old Wu, who invited you to open the tailor shop together. But in the end, you agreed to it yourself, didn’t you? Since you agreed to do this together, then profits and losses should be shared—that’s the most basic sense of morality. Oh, now that there’s a loss, you want our family to bear it all? But if we made a profit, would you give it all to us?”

Zhang Caixia was furious, her anger barely contained.

It was simply outrageous.

They had both invested, opened the shop together. Naturally, they should share both the gains and the losses. She might not be highly educated, but even she understood this most fundamental truth.

Now that there was a loss, should her family shoulder it alone? Absolutely not! This was clearly bullying honest people!

Seeing Zhang Caixia’s face ablaze with anger, Chen Boyuan didn’t dare argue any further. He knew he was in the wrong, and it left him feeling weak inside.

The harmonious lunchtime atmosphere in the family was thus shattered.

“Caixia, let it go. Nobody wants to lose money, and it’s come to this; don’t make things harder for Old Chen,” Wu Wanli finally spoke, having held back for some time.

They had been friends for many years, and he understood. Chen Boyuan might be stingy day-to-day, but he generally knew right from wrong. This was just him being pushed too far by his wife, coming here to make unreasonable demands to try and recover the loss. But was it worth breaking up a family over five thousand yuan? He couldn’t do it. He’d rather suffer a little himself than owe his friends anything.

But who could have foreseen—

“That’s easy for you to say! Two families lose money, but one family bears it alone! You can boast all you want, but if you dare agree to pay for this today, I’ll divorce you!” Zhang Caixia, usually gentle and mild, was now utterly enraged.

They had scraped together the five thousand yuan for the shop, borrowing wherever they could. Now it was gone, and they didn’t know how they’d pay it back. How infuriating, this foolish old man—he actually wanted to take on the losses for the other family as well! With all these debts, how would they keep going? Their son was about to start university—where would the money come from? Had Wu Wanli considered any of this? If you’re not the head of the house, you don’t know the price of oil, rice, and salt!

Face? In the face of life’s pressures, it was nothing but mist!

If Chen Boyuan could shamelessly do such a thing, why should they care about face?

Seeing Zhang Caixia, who had never even raised her voice, suddenly so angry, Wu Wanli no longer dared speak. As for Chen Boyuan, he shrank his neck and lowered his head, unable to meet Zhang Caixia’s eyes.

Only Wu Ya’s eyes flashed with sudden delight.

“The tailor shop is on the verge of closing, and Chen Boyuan has come to demand compensation? This didn’t happen in my previous life! It seems my life’s trajectory has already changed because of what happened at the hospital. This is wonderful!”

As he thought this, he suddenly burst out laughing, unable to contain his joy.

“Son, are you alright?” Zhang Caixia’s attention was instantly drawn to him, her face now full of worry and sorrow. Why was her son suddenly laughing so happily? Had the blow to his head, coupled with this emotional shock, made him behave abnormally?

“Wu Ya, what’s wrong? Are you feeling ill?” His father hurried to his side, rubbing his back and looking worriedly at his wife.

“See? Our son just started to recover, and now he’s been upset again! I just don’t understand—what’s more important, money, or the family’s health?”

Hearing this, Zhang Caixia’s anger, which had subsided out of concern for her son, was reignited.

“Hmph! It’s only because of that twenty thousand yuan that you dare act so generous! That was compensation my son risked his life for, and it’s his college tuition! If you dare even think of touching it, I’ll fight you to the end!”

Now she was truly furious.

But to Chen Boyuan, her words were a sudden revelation. He instantly looked up at Wu Wanli.

“Well! Wu Wanli, you’re something else! After all these years of friendship, you’d pull this on me? You clearly have money, yet you come crying poverty to me—were you just using me as a scapegoat?”

His expression brimmed with anger. So the family had twenty thousand yuan? That was perfect! Originally, he’d come here just to try his luck at recovering some losses—anything to appease his wife. But now, knowing they had money, he wasn’t going to let them off so easily. He had to get his money back, to cover his loss. As for their future, or whether Wu Ya would be unable to attend university because of money—none of that was his concern.

Zhang Caixia was stunned. In her anxiety, she’d blurted out the truth, giving Chen Boyuan the perfect excuse to press his claim.

The atmosphere fell into awkward silence once more.

Wu Wanli was lost in conflicted thought. It was true, he had considered that twenty thousand yuan. But Zhang Caixia’s outburst had awakened him. Their son’s education would cost over ten thousand at least, and patching the hole in their shop’s finances would use up the rest—maybe even more. If they paid Chen Boyuan, it wouldn’t just be unfair; it would be a crushing blow to an already struggling family. What should he do? He didn’t know.

Yet as the couple stood there silently, Chen Boyuan could not remain quiet. He suddenly stood, voice laced with anger.

“Wu Wanli, if you don’t give me an answer today, don’t blame me for what happens next! My wife and children will come live here with you—we’ll let your family support us all!”

He made as if to leave on the spot.

Wu Wanli couldn’t take it anymore. Zhang Caixia’s face also changed. Chen Boyuan was stingy enough to carry out such a threat, all for money. If that happened, wouldn’t their household be thrown into chaos? The neighbors would gossip. After a lifetime of hard work, would they be ridiculed by everyone?

But give him money? That was truly unreasonable. It was bullying, plain and simple.

The couple were at a loss, unable to decide whether to stop him or let him go, growing ever more anxious and distraught.

At that moment—

“Uncle Chen, please wait.”

Wu Ya stood up.

A tailor shop, Zhongshan suits—even if they were out of fashion, so what? In Wu Ya’s eyes, this was not a mess but a golden opportunity, a once-in-a-lifetime chance! It was the turning point for his family to escape poverty and begin a prosperous future after his rebirth. It was the origin of his first fortune!