472 Talking Irresponsibly

Not long after, it became much quieter downstairs as the crowd gradually dispersed.

The moment Qian'e entered her house, she was slapped by Zhao Ni. She did not understand what was going on at first, but when she saw her uncle and auntie in the living room, she knew that Zhao Ni had no choice.

Zhao Ni's eyes were filled with heartache, but she had no choice. If she wanted to continue living in the Qian family, Qian'e would have to suffer through this.

"Oh, you're all here," Qian'e said softly.

"We heard that you abused your grandmother yesterday, so we all came over to see what was going on. Sister-in-law, please give us an explanation," said the Qian family's second son.

Qian'e smiled disdainfully. It turned out that the old lady had called up her son to complain and they were all here to denounce her.

"Well... I've already hit her. Let's just forget about this matter. Kids are insensible, so let's not take it to heart. It's all my fault. I had something on last night and came back late, so I didn't have time to cook," Zhao Ni said ingratiatingly.

Even if she wanted to compromise, it would not end well. The Qian family did not care about Zhao Ni and Qian'e at all. In the past, they depended on her good reputation to make money, but now they only saw her as a puppet that could earn money.

"Don't listen to their nonsense! They often starve me!" Old Madam Qian cried out.

When the Qian family's second son heard this, he stood up angrily and reached out to slap Qian'e. Zhao Ni stepped between them and let herself get slapped instead.

"Mother!" Qian'e quickly helped Zhao Ni up.

"You shameless woman, you still want to protect her. Get lost! You don't have the final say in this family!" said the Qian family's second son as he pointed at Zhao Ni.

Qian'e pointed at the Qian family's second son and said, "This is our house! If your heart aches so much for the old lady, then bring her back with you! Look at how fat your mother is! Then look at my mother and me! Who do you think is the one who's being mistreated! If you think we can't take care of her well, then bring her back! Who likes to take care of her!"

The Qian family's second son stood rooted to the spot, not knowing how to retort.

Old Madam Qian's usual hobbies were watching television, eating a lot of food, and occasionally listening to songs on the radio. Other than sleeping and going to the bathroom, she usually just sat cross-legged on the sofa and did not move, like a parasite growing on the sofa.

Moreover, she did not like to clean herself. Sometimes, she would not even wash her hair even when there were bugs in it. If her hands were dirty from eating, she would just wipe them on the sofa. The entire living room was filled with an awful stench.

In addition, she had not worked for so many years and did not have any retirement funds. She was just a parasite that they were feeding at home. This was the reason why her second son's family was unwilling to take care of her. His own son was already an idle and lazy person. If they added another troublesome old lady to the family, they would really have a difficult time!

Back then, Old Madam Qian kept making a fuss about how her sons were unfilial and even went to Qian Wang's workplace to lie down at the front door and act shamelessly. As her eldest son, Qian Wang had no choice but to bring her home and worship her like an ancestor. He himself was not at home all the time, so Qian'e and Zhao Ni bore the brunt of his action.

"You little girl, how dare you talk back to me!" the Qian family's second son said as he pointed at Qian'e.

Qian'e smiled mockingly and said, "Better don't beat me to death. If you beat me to death, then the old lady won't have anything to eat anymore. When that time comes, you guys will have to be responsible for her care. Don't blame me for not reminding you."

"Hey! What are you saying!" said the Qian family's second son.

Qian'e did not care about how they all looked at her. She helped Zhao Ni back into the room, locked the door and did not go out again. No matter how much they shouted outside, the two women ignored them.

"Xiao'e, it's been so hard on you..." Zhao Ni said with reddened eyes.

"If you had gotten a divorce back then, would your life still be so difficult?" Qian'e said to Zhao Ni expressionlessly.

Zhao Ni did not know how to tell her daughter about the "hardships" she had gone through in those days. Back then, she had also thought about getting a divorce, but Qian Wang was making a lot of money at work. At that time, Old Master Qian was still alive and the family was still quite well-to-do. Her daughter was also well-educated and was considered one of the most outstanding among her peers. At that time, Zhao Ni was the target of many people's envy.

No one knew about all her hardships behind this front. She could forget about the insults from her in-laws, but even Qian Wang was a heartless person. Every time he got drunk, he would come home and beat her up. Sometimes, he would even beat her until she was unable to get out of bed. Even so, she could not bear to get a divorce for the sake of her wealth and status. She did not expect her decision to end up hurting Qian'e.