Chapter 189
That's why similar family melodramas are so popular—the more melodramatic they are, the more popular they become.
Jiang Xiaoman spent half a month filming building houses and infrastructure, but no one watched the inspirational rural drama full of positive energy. On a whim, she filmed a short drama about a rural family fighting over inheritance, and it got over five million views overnight!
The number of likes and comments broke his own personal record, and he topped the local trending charts for two consecutive days!
This video touches on a topic of great concern to modern people: elder care. Young people who are not yet married are a little better off, but those with children who see this video can't help but imagine what they will do if their children grow up and become unfilial.
The more she thought about it, the angrier she became, and she immediately decided to cut her children's allowance!
Anyway, even if I spend all the money on you, you won't be grateful to me when you grow up. Instead, you'll take it for granted.
I'd rather save it up for my retirement.
Want some pocket money?
Okay, if you do your homework well, do your chores well, and improve your test scores, you'll have a guaranteed allowance.
If you dare to slack off, not do your homework properly, or get terrible grades on tests, fine, you can go out now and see which street is easier to sweep, and while you're at it, find a culvert or something to shelter you from the wind and rain, so you can get used to the wonderful life of sleeping on the streets and sweeping the streets in the future!
Surprisingly, after seeing the video, Lang Hongfan's two sons not only did not feel ashamed or reflect on their actions, but instead brought their families back to visit their relatives.
The eldest son immediately promised his mother that they would take good care of her and come back to see her every year for the Lunar New Year.
The youngest son immediately added, "She's an elderly woman living alone. If someone tries to take advantage of her with so much money, it wouldn't be good. She can give it to us for safekeeping; we'll definitely not spend it recklessly..."
The two daughters-in-law pushed the children directly into their mother-in-law's arms, while complaining that it was too pitiful for the children to work outside with them. They said that they heard that the new school in their hometown was about to be built and that there were teachers from the province. They wanted to transfer the children to their hometown to study so that they could stay with their grandmother and prevent the old lady from being too lonely.
Their words sounded so dignified and respectable that anyone who didn't know better would think their son and daughter-in-law were very filial.
Lang Hongfan sneered repeatedly.
“Sure, the child can stay in our hometown to study.”
The two daughters-in-law were secretly pleased, but the next second, the mother-in-law started calculating their accounts—
“With two children to support, I can’t farm or go into the mountains to pick wild vegetables anymore. You two families have to give me living expenses. I’m just an old woman and I don’t spend much. Five hundred yuan a month from each family isn’t too much, is it?”
"The expenses for these two children are separate! Children's expenses are high, food, clothing, toys, snacks, everything costs money, right? You've raised children yourselves, you can estimate that it's at least 1,500 yuan a month for each child."
"What?!" The son and daughter-in-law were dumbfounded.
"Mom, don't you earn 80,000 yuan a year? Why are you short of living expenses?" the youngest son said with a forced smile.
"Yes, Mom, we work outside, we have to pay rent and eat, and we can't save much money in a month. Please help us!" the eldest son pleaded.
"You said it yourself, I earned 80,000 yuan a year, not found it on the street!" Lang Hongfan finally ran out of patience, grabbed a large broom from the side and hurled it at his two sons.
He was hitting and cursing at the same time.
"You're asking me to take care of the children! Where am I supposed to find the time to go up the mountain to pick wild vegetables to sell for money?"
"With two kids dragging me along, let alone going into the mountains, I can't even afford to feed these pigs! Don't you need people to gather pig feed and cook pig fodder three times a day? Don't you need people to feed, drink, and take care of the kids?"
"Get out! All of you, get out of here!"
The two grandchildren were so frightened that they burst into tears.
Lang Hongfan looked reluctant, but after thinking for a moment, she gritted her teeth, hardened her heart, pushed her grandson and granddaughter out, and slammed the door shut.
Separated by a wall, Lang Hongfan finally couldn't hold back his tears and shouted out in a choked voice—
"Aren't you going back over there? Hurry up and go back to your father's place!"
"This house was left to me by your maternal grandmother; it has absolutely nothing to do with your family!"
The commotion at Lang Hongfan's house drew the attention of nearby villagers. The two daughters-in-law, who were trying to shift the blame, secretly pinched their own child, who burst into tears. The daughters-in-law then wiped away their own tears with their sleeves, complaining to the villagers as they cried.
It's just that they don't earn much money working outside, and their child has suffered a lot with them. They originally wanted to send the child back to their hometown, thinking that it would be better for the child to stay with his grandmother than to suffer with them in the city.
Who knew that Lang Hongfan, this very grandmother, didn't care whether her grandchildren lived or died...
"Hmph~~ As if you've ever cared whether Aunt Hongfan lives or dies." A cold laugh suddenly came from the crowd.
Like a bugle call, it quickly drew countless condemnations from the crowd—
"Exactly! Raising a child is so difficult these days! And you have two in your family, are you trying to make Aunt Hongfan's life impossible?"
"This is hilarious! You keep saying you want to be filial to your mother, but you don't mean you'll just not give her a single penny and expect her to raise your two kids for free, do you?"
"More than that? I was peering over the wall and heard it all clearly! They even wanted Aunt Hongfan to let them manage the family's money."
"Pah! Don't listen to them, Grandma. If you keep your money in the bank, they'll compensate you if you lose it. But if those two ingrates spend it, you won't get a single penny back!"
Lang Hongfan's sons never expected that not a single villager would help them. Occasionally, when two elderly people felt that Lang Hongfan had gone too far, they were immediately asked in return whether he had given the money to his son and daughter-in-law to manage.
These people immediately fell silent.
After all, who doesn't save up some money for themselves these days?
To put it bluntly, no matter how confident they are in saying that their children will definitely support them in their old age, they probably already know in their hearts that their children are unreliable and are secretly trying to save some money for their own survival.
I don't know where these people get the courage. They're secretly saving money for their retirement, yet they want to advise others to hand over their hard-earned retirement savings to their children for safekeeping? Even Fish Leong wouldn't dare give these people the courage, otherwise it would be too unlucky!
When these two families arrived, Jiang Xiaoman was still at the tea factory construction site and hadn't had time to film. However, he asked around among a few neighbors and got videos taken by others. Although the clarity wasn't as good as his own footage, it was precisely this kind of random, passerby-perspective video that made it more credible!
Netizens were surprised that such trivial rural drama videos would actually have after-sales service.
I happily clicked in, ready to enjoy the gossip, but instead of getting any gossip, I ended up feeling really angry!
"I suggest these two sons change their names. One should be called Heartless and the other should be called Immoral! They even try to steal the little money their mother earns from picking wild vegetables for her retirement. If she spends that money, her hands and feet will rot."
“We can’t give it to them! I know these kinds of people all too well! The family next door to my parents’ house is like that. When their son runs out of money, he comes home to get it. Giving him money would only hurt him! Instead of working hard to earn money, he just wants to sponge off his parents. Last year, he stole the family’s property certificate and tried to sell his parents’ retirement home. Luckily, a potential buyer came to see the house and he was caught. Otherwise, his parents would probably be sleeping on the streets right now.”
“I just had a big fight with my husband because of my in-laws. They’re only in their fifties, but they’re already planning to just lie down and expect us to pay for their retirement. If I could have a good mother-in-law like Aunt Hongfan, I swear I would never cause trouble! These days, mothers-in-law who are willing to earn their own retirement and not be a burden on their children must be an endangered species, right?”
...
Of all the videos Jiang Xiaoman has made so far, this one has the most and longest comments!
Several fans were so angry they couldn't sleep at night. Feeling that the limited number of words in the comments section wasn't enough for them to express themselves, they sent Jiang Xiaoman a long private message, sharing their own experiences and telling her how those parents who unconditionally spoiled and supported their children ended up in such miserable circumstances.
After they finished confiding, they earnestly urged Jiang Xiaoman to be sure to tell their story to Aunt Hongfan, and to tell her to be firm in her resolve!
Once this happens the first time, it will happen countless times!
You absolutely cannot give the other side even the slightest hope, otherwise these people will be like piranhas, once they bite you they won't let go, they won't stop until you're just a skeleton!
Lang Hongfan's story has certainly set a good precedent for this video series.
Fans clutched their chests, saying they were so angry their chests hurt, yet they couldn't help but urge for more updates every day.
I wish I could set up a camera in Aunt Lang's yard and watch her house 24/7, so that those two shameless little beasts wouldn't sneak over the wall and steal money when Aunt Lang isn't home!
It has to be said, netizens were incredibly accurate in their predictions.
The temptation of 80,000 yuan was probably too great, because a few days later, Lang Hongfan's house was indeed burgled.
At that time, Lang Hongfan happened to be carrying a basket of dried radishes to sell to Jiang Xiaoman. After the local radishes were ready to eat, Jiang Xiaoman started buying dried radishes that farmers had sun-dried themselves.
After soaking, this kind of dried radish is delicious whether you pickle it yourself to make spicy dried radish or cut it into sections and stir-fry it with meat. Jiang Xiaoman made it once when he was filming a video and found that many fans wanted to buy it to try. So he made a call in the village and asked everyone to take some to him to sell if they had time, so they could earn some pocket money.
Upon hearing that dried radishes could be sold for money, Lang Hongfan couldn't bear to feed the pigs with the radishes from his own field. Every few days, he would collect two large bags of dried radishes and take them to Jiang Xiaoman to sell.
She had just put the money away when she received a call from her neighbor saying that a thief had broken into her house.
Lang Hongfan rushed home and saw her youngest son being scolded by villager Jiang Youtian, who was pointing his finger at him and looking dejected.
Jiang Youtian was furious!
Just a few days ago, the town officials told them that a high-ranking provincial leader was coming to their village with reporters from all over the country to interview them, as the old man was currently cracking down on various uncivilized behaviors in rural areas.
Unexpectedly, a lawbreaker suddenly appeared at this critical moment?
If this person weren't Lang Hongfan's own son, he would have called the police long ago and had him arrested!
When Lang Hongfan's youngest son, Jiang Yong, saw that his biological mother had finally returned, he felt aggrieved.
"Mom! Please talk to the village. What's wrong with me going back to my own home to get some things? Why are you arresting me?"
Unexpectedly, Lang Hongfan completely ignored him, first thanking the neighbor who helped catch the thief, then apologizing to the village chief, before coldly spitting on his son:
"Pah! You know you're going home? Why didn't you come in through the front gate? Why did you have to climb over the wall? If you climbed over the wall, people will definitely think you're a thief!"
"Can't I just not find the key to the main gate?" Jiang Yong argued.
"Fine, I'll pretend you didn't bring your front door key. You must have your mother's phone number, right? Give me a call before you come back, and I'll let you in," Lang Hongfan sneered.
"Auntie, don't listen to his excuses! He's definitely back to steal your money! Go inside and check if anything valuable is missing," a neighbor quickly reminded her.
To everyone's surprise, Lang Hongfan wasn't in a hurry at all. Seeing his youngest son's guilty expression, he sneered—
"Xiaoman reminded me a long time ago that it's not safe to keep too much cash at home now that I live alone."
“My money was already in the bank. Who still hides money at home these days? The village store now accepts QR code payments!”
She didn't know how she could have given birth to two such idiots. What kind of year is this? They actually climbed over the wall to steal money from home.
Jiang Yong was stunned for a moment, then looked annoyed.
Why didn't he think of that sooner?
No wonder they searched the house for ages but couldn't find any money!
I should have stolen his mother's bank card... Wait! When did his mother get the bank card?
Jiang Xiaoman stood in the crowd watching the excitement, keeping his achievements and fame hidden.
He wouldn't tell the villagers that ever since he discovered some shameless people liked to freeload off his parents, he had encouraged many elderly people in the village to open credit cards at the credit union.
Although keeping it in a credit union card will only earn you current account interest, it's still better than having your money squandered by unscrupulous children, right?
The interest wasn't much, but at least the principal was preserved!
Chapter 190
After all, he was his own son. Although Lang Hongfan was angry, he couldn't bring himself to call the police and have his son taken away.
Jiang Yong was secretly pleased to see this, thinking that his mother couldn't really be heartless towards her son. Maybe next time they would bring the child back and apologize, and they could get some money from his mother to take back home?
Unexpectedly, while he was figuring out how to get money from his own mother, she took the initiative and started asking them for money instead.
“Perfect timing, you’re back. I’ve saved a few dollars on phone bills. Go back and tell your brother that now that you’re both married and have established your own careers, it’s time to take care of your mother in her old age.”