Chapter 343: Chapter 343: Whoever Pays the Money Is the Boss 2
Tan Lin leaned a little closer to Tan You. "It’s about the copyright, right?"
"Mhm," Tan You nodded slightly. "It’s for the copyright."
Tan Lin’s eyes crinkled with a wide smile. "Your mom and I made a special trip to the newsstands and bookstores to check. It’s really selling incredibly well. We went to several places and couldn’t even find a single copy."
Tan You glanced at him. "Even a tightwad is willing to spend some money now?"
Tan Lin just chuckled foolishly, not the least bit offended that Tan You had called him a tightwad. He was a rather shameless person; back in the day, he would say anything to curry favor with his own second uncle.
’Poverty really does stunt one’s ambition,’ Tan You sighed. ’Life in this world is just too hard, especially for the poor.’
Tan Lin said brazenly, "You’re my own daughter. There’s nothing shameful about trying to please you."
Tan You couldn’t help but shake her head. ’Forget it. What’s the point of arguing with Tan Lin? Besides, he’s my own father. No matter how dissatisfied I am with him, I can’t just wash my hands of him.’
"When we pass the garment factory in a bit, Tan Yue, you go in and get Mom. We have to give her the e-bike keys and her phone, or else how will she get home tonight?"
Tan Lin eagerly volunteered, "I’ll pick her up! I’ll pick her up!"
Tan Yue cut in, "But you said you were going to help Big Sis entertain her guest tonight."
Tan Lin said sullenly, "Fine, then... I guess we’ll just let your mom come back on her own..."
Meanwhile, it was lunchtime. Ding Lan looked at Cheng Wenhui, who was clumsily learning to use the sewing machine, then glanced at the time. "Let’s go eat first. The factory has a cafeteria. You can continue learning after you’ve eaten."
Cheng Wenhui nodded and was about to speak when she saw a little girl peeking around the doorframe. The girl had a round face, big eyes, and her fine hair was tied into two small pigtails. She looked adorable.
Instead of calling for Cheng Wenhui first, Tan Yue politely called out, "Master Ding." Ding Lan gave a slight nod. "Are you here to see your mom? Where’s your sister?"
Tan Yue replied, "Big Sis is outside the main gate. She told me to come get Mom to pick something up."
Cheng Wenhui hesitated, but Ding Lan saw this and smiled. "I’ll grab your food for you. After you get your things, come straight to the cafeteria. It’s the room on the right as you exit."
Tan Yue smiled. "Thank you, Master Ding."
Cheng Wenhui also smiled. "Thank you, Master."
She knew she was here to learn from Ding Lan, so it was only proper to address her as Master. Although people weren’t so particular about such formalities these days, Cheng Wenhui, at her core, still valued them highly.
Watching Cheng Wenhui lead Tan Yue away in a hurry, Ding Lan shook her head. After half a day, she had a good impression of Cheng Wenhui. She wasn’t talkative, but she was diligent and showed no signs of restlessness.
Outside the garment factory’s main gate, Tan Lin looked at Tan You, who was sitting on an e-bike, as unmoving as a mountain and showing no intention of budging. Feeling wronged, he could only give up the red e-bike he was sitting on.
He had wondered why Tan You had chosen the black vehicle for herself; it turned out she’d planned this all along. But this little bit of grievance vanished the moment he saw Cheng Wenhui. As if presenting a treasure, he held out the e-bike keys and the new phone to her.
"The phone number is registered under your name. Dad carries the household registration book with him now... You can ride the e-bike home tonight... Do you know how to ride an e-bike?" Tan Lin rambled on. He and Cheng Wenhui undoubtedly had a good relationship.
In the eyes of a man like Tan Lin, a wife wasn’t just a wife; she was the pillar of the family. Of course, he had to have a good relationship with his wife.
Cheng Wenhui glanced at the new phone, then at the e-bike. "I know how to ride it. Why did you buy me a phone too? Just buying one for Grandpa would have been enough."
Tan You found this amusing. "I don’t play favorites. If he gets one, you get one too. And having a phone makes it easier to stay in touch. We can’t just keep borrowing other people’s all the time."
Cheng Wenhui thought about it and didn’t say any more, her feelings a complex mix. In the past, everyone was poor. Even if her own parents had wanted to spend money on her, they didn’t have the means. In her entire life, Tan You was the one who had spent the most on her, buying her an e-bike, a phone, and even arranging a good job for her.
Tan Lin was already whispering in Cheng Wenhui’s ear. "The editor is coming to the house tonight to discuss things. Come home early after work."
Cheng Wenhui nodded. "Alright. I’m heading back in, then. You can park the bike in the shed. Master is waiting for me for lunch."
Watching Cheng Wenhui run off, Tan Lin commented, "Your mom... It’s been a long time since she’s been this happy."
Tan You’s ears twitched. She suddenly felt like she was listening to an old eunuch attending to an emperor. It was just like that classic line you always hear from the sidekick of some domineering CEO or Long Aotian protagonist: ’It’s been so long since so-and-so has smiled like that.’ and so on.
"Let’s go back," Tan You said, moving off the e-bike and helping Tan Yue onto Tan Deming’s little three-wheeler.
Tan Deming smiled, his eyes crinkling. "I thought you were going to ride back yourself."
Tan You laughed. "Why would I ride myself when there’s a ride available? I’m not stupid."
Tan Lin didn’t mind being called stupid in the slightest, sitting on the e-bike with a grin that was practically ostentatious. Watching him, Tan You felt a mix of amusement and sadness.
’Just a single e-bike is enough to make him this happy. In the end, it’s because his world is too small and his life has been too hard. He’s never seen anything truly nice.’
When Tan Lin rode the e-bike back to the village, it didn’t cause much of a stir. Perhaps it was because it was lunchtime and everyone was at home eating. Or perhaps it was because while an e-bike was uncommon, it wasn’t truly that remarkable.
Tan Lin didn’t stay idle when he got home; he had his own professional ethics, after all. Since he had taken his eldest daughter’s money, he would fulfill his promises. Besides, when emotions weren’t involved and everything was transactional, Tan Lin actually found the relationship more relaxing.
Tan You paid Tan Lin no mind, as she was busy herself. When Tan Yue had woken up that morning, she saw the bread oven by the wall and had been pestering Tan You to bake her a small loaf. So, that afternoon, Tan You got busy in the kitchen.
As Tan Lin prepped various ingredients, he watched Tan You fussing with the bread oven and finally couldn’t resist asking, "Can it roast a chicken?"
"It can," Tan You nodded nonchalantly. "Grandma loves roast chicken, so I make it for her every few days."
Tan Lin pursed his lips. "This bread oven... can I use it?"
Tan You said, "Use it if you want, but I’m warning you now: if you break it, you’ll have to build me a new one."
"Don’t worry, I guarantee I won’t break your stuff." Tan Lin knew how to read the room. He understood that in the countryside, he had to listen to Tan You, since this was Tan Deming’s house, not his.
The house in town, on the other hand, was his and Cheng Wenhui’s home. As for whether he would listen to Tan You or she would listen to him there, Tan Lin didn’t even entertain the thought. After all, whoever pays is the boss.
Wang Hunv also saw the new e-bikes. She then looked at the second-hand bicycle Tan Deming had gotten a while back and couldn’t help but feel it was unfair. "They both get new ones, but he’s stuck with a second-hand bicycle... And how much more will the electricity bill be with all this charging at home?"
Tan You replied, "Mom can charge the e-bike at the factory, so she doesn’t need to charge it at home. And please, stop worrying about the electricity bill. Do I look like someone who can’t afford to pay it?"
