"Just tell me if there's anything, my mother is still resting. You don't need to visit her," Li Zhonglou refused, neither subservient nor arrogant.
"Heh, you are such a filial son." Upon hearing this, the beautiful woman beside Liu Zhiru mocked sarcastically, "She's resting quite well."
"Your mother-in-law hasn't slept for two days!"
"According to the Three Obediences and Four Virtues, you need to learn them well."
"You married into the Jiang family, your life belongs to the Jiang family. You don't even call your mother-in-law 'Mom', you only think about your own mother. That's unvirtuous!"
"No wonder Yuxin doesn't think highly of people like you!"
The speaker was Ji Shan, Liu Zhiru's best friend.
She was a sales manager at a real estate company, notoriously sharp-tongued and caustic.
She immediately took the moral high ground, launching a preemptive strike.
Her demeanor was nauseating.
Li Zhonglou had encountered many such people, who had their own set of principles and insisted on imposing them on others.
Reasoning with them was like playing a lute to a cow.
Therefore, he didn't want to bother with her. He looked at Liu Zhiru and said calmly, "I've already told Yuxin what needs to be said."
"I will not divorce."
"Please leave."
Li Zhonglou's nonchalant demeanor instantly darkened Liu Zhiru's face, and she scolded, "Yuxin has already given you one hundred and fifty thousand yuan, why are you refusing to divorce?"
"Your appetite is too big."
"You're always thinking about extorting money from my daughter, being a freeloader, what kind of man are you?"
Her husband was in the detention center, and she couldn't even visit him, as he could be imprisoned at any moment.
She had to rely on Jiang Tao's help to sort things out, and to ask Xu Tianhou, who had a deep network of connections, to intervene.
However, Xu Tianhou used this opportunity to set conditions.
As long as Jiang Yuxin divorced him and married him, he could resolve the matter.
She knew it was blackmail, but what could she do?
Circumstances forced her to bow her head.
Besides, he had never thought highly of Li Zhonglou. Xu Tianhou was a big boss, and compared to him, Li Zhonglou was a useless burden.
As long as their daughter divorced and remarried, not only would her husband be out of trouble, but their family's status would also soar.
It seemed like a good deal no matter how she looked at it.
The hateful part was that this rascal Li Zhonglou had changed his mind.
Fortunately, Jiang Tao had reminded her, so she found Ji Shan, planning to make a scene.
"If Yuxin insists on divorcing, she can sue twice. She doesn't need my consent," Li Zhonglou didn't want to say more, dodging the question.
A divorce lawsuit required a six-month separation period.
This would give him enough time to resolve the trouble.
"Six months! You can wait, but Yuxin and her father can't!"
Seeing that Li Zhonglou was unyielding, Liu Zhiru's eyes flashed with anger, "You unreasonable scoundrel!"
"If you don't sign the divorce agreement, you won't get a single cent."
"Including the one hundred and fifty thousand yuan Yuxin secretly gave you, you have to return it all to me."
"Otherwise, I'll go and reason with your mother right now!"
Ji Shan taught her to use Zheng Xiuzheng's life as leverage to pressure Li Zhonglou.
Li Zhonglou was filial, wasn't he? Let's see if he cared more about himself or his mother.
But with the constant coming and going of people in the hospital, many were attracted by her shouting.
They stood aside and watched the commotion.
"For Yuxin's sake, I call you Mom." Li Zhonglou's expression changed slightly, a coldness flashing in his eyes, "But you shouldn't threaten me."
It didn't matter how Liu Zhiru cursed him; after all, she was Jiang Yuxin's mother, his mother-in-law.
But threatening him with his mother had crossed his bottom line.
"Don't speak so rudely."
Ji Shan sneered, "No one is threatening you. Your mother is related to Zhiru, isn't she?"
"When relatives are sick, it's only right for Zhiru to visit, isn't it?"
"We are reasonable people."
"But if you are shameless, then don't blame us for being unfair!"
With Ji Shan's support, Liu Zhiru became emboldened and deliberately raised her voice to scold, "That's right, everyone, please judge this!"
"This shameless fellow has been a freeloader in my house for three years, taking hundreds of thousands from my daughter."
"Now my daughter wants a divorce, but he deliberately drags it out just to get more benefits."
"He wants to force our family to death..."
Onlookers loved to hear these domestic disputes.
"Truly not human. His mother-in-law comes to his door, and he doesn't even have the decency?"
"With such a high divorce rate now, it's because of these malicious scum who are blinded by money!"
"Any woman who ends up with someone like this has had eight lifetimes of bad luck."
...
The crowd jeered and mocked.
Liu Zhiru and Ji Shan secretly felt smug.
As long as Li Zhonglou had a weakness, this matter wouldn't be difficult to handle.
If he didn't divorce?
Then they would make sure the entire hospital knew about it.
"Mom, this is between him and me!"
At this moment, an anxious voice sounded from not far away, "If you make such a scene, you'll just become a laughingstock!"
Jiang Yuxin, her black hair cascading over her shoulders and disheveled, her feet in slippers, had clearly rushed out without even time to change her shoes.
"Laughingstock of whom?"
Seeing that her daughter was still defending Li Zhonglou, Liu Zhiru became even more enraged, "Are you even my daughter? You're already siding with outsiders."
"In three years of marriage, has he ever earned a single penny?"
"Has he ever bought anything for your father and me?"
"I endured him for three whole years. You agreed to a divorce at first, but now that I've given you money, you've gone back on your word. It's clear you're just trying to get more benefits."
"He's the real joke!"
She wasn't afraid of making a scene; the more the better, if it could make Li Zhonglou wish he were dead, or even drive her mother away.
"Yuxin, you're still young and easily deceived."
Ji Shan grabbed Jiang Yuxin, pretending to advise her sincerely, "Auntie knows you're kind-hearted and can't bear to be ruthless, that's why your mom and I are here to help you get justice!"
The entire incident was orchestrated by her.
Jiang Tao had promised her fifty thousand yuan if she could handle Li Zhonglou.
The real estate market had been sluggish recently, so this was a profit without risk!
As for Liu Zhiru, she was merely a tool being used by her.
Best friend? More like a brainless fool.
Jiang Yuxin struggled a few times but couldn't break free. Helplessly, she said, "Mom, please, I'm begging you."
"After Li Zhonglou's mother finishes her surgery, can we sit down and talk things over?"
"I can handle my own affairs."
"Silly girl." Before Liu Zhiru could reply, Ji Shan sneered, "What is there to talk about with someone like him?"
"Perhaps after the surgery, he'll come up with other conditions."
"To him, money is the most important thing."
"He refuses to divorce, so let him return the money."
Liu Zhiru quickly nodded, "That's right, Li Zhonglou, either sign the agreement or return the money!"
"The betrothal gift when you married into our family was two hundred thousand yuan, plus the one hundred and fifty thousand yuan Yuxin secretly gave you."
"I'm being generous by not calculating the money you spent on food, drink, and daily expenses these past three years."
"A total of three hundred and fifty thousand yuan. Can you afford to pay it back?"
"Mom, do you have to push him to a dead end?" Jiang Yuxin's beautiful eyes showed guilt.
Although she was angry that Li Zhonglou was dragging his feet on the divorce, she had never intended to force him this way.
Nor would she have come to the hospital to make such a scene.
Regardless, they were husband and wife; this was basic respect.
She also knew that Li Zhonglou had no source of income. If she hadn't fronted the one hundred and fifty thousand yuan, he wouldn't even be able to afford the surgery.
Her mother, not knowing the gravity of the situation, had listened to Ji Shan's instigation.
She knew it was wrong but was powerless.
"I'll return the money, but I have conditions too!"
Li Zhonglou took in the expressions of the three women and said coldly, "Come to get the money in three days. During this time, you are not allowed to come to the hospital again."
Jiang Yuxin was surprised by his words.
She hadn't expected Li Zhonglou to agree so readily.
Before this, she had indeed thought that Li Zhonglou was refusing to divorce for the sake of money.
But now...
Not only she, but even Liu Zhiru was clearly taken aback.
Li Zhonglou's choice was completely unexpected.
"You don't actually believe him, do you?"
At this moment, Ji Shan sneered, "Before coming here, I had someone check his bank account. He only has twenty-five thousand yuan. Not even enough for a fraction of it."
"How can he, a freeloader, get three hundred and fifty thousand yuan in three days?"
"He's clearly just stalling you!"
"After the surgery is done, what else can you do to him?"
Ji Shan's words made Liu Zhiru suddenly realize, "Are you taking me for a fool?"
"Just with your words."
"Let me tell you, if you don't sign today, you have to pay the money, otherwise, you're not going anywhere!"
After saying that, she secretly felt fortunate to have Ji Shan's help.
Otherwise, she might have been fooled by Li Zhonglou by herself.
After this matter was resolved, she would treat her friend to a big meal to thank her properly.
"Come and get the money tomorrow!" Li Zhonglou clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white, wishing he could punch Ji Shan's disdainful face.
This woman had been sowing discord and instigating.
He knew Liu Zhiru's personality; although impulsive, she wasn't that cunning.
If it weren't for Ji Shan, she probably wouldn't have thought of coming to the hospital.
But the consequences of Wu Zhijie's incident forced him to suppress his anger.
This was a critical moment, and no more accidents could happen.
As the saying goes, a hero can be brought down by a penny.
The one million yuan he had just obtained last night was not only lost but he also owed Lin Ying another million.
Now, even an immortal couldn't conjure up three hundred and fifty thousand yuan.
"No, it has to be today!" Ji Shan was relentless.
"You short-sighted bitch, a mere three hundred and fifty thousand yuan is nothing!"
Just then, a gruff voice boomed from within the crowd, "My brother said he'll pay tomorrow, so he'll pay tomorrow."
"If you dare to make trouble again, don't blame me for being impolite!"
Wang Dehai, dressed in a suit, led a young, burly man with a full-sleeve tattoo, pushing through the onlookers.
He walked to Li Zhonglou's side.
Having been in the underworld for over a decade, his imposing presence immediately made many onlookers retreat several meters.
He had arrived shortly after Jiang Yuxin, but had held back from revealing himself.
After all, he couldn't rashly interfere in family matters.
It wasn't until Ji Shan instigated repeatedly, pushing Li Zhonglou's face to turn cold, that he couldn't help but curse.
Seeing this situation, a hint of fear flickered in Liu Zhiru's eyes.
Ordinary women naturally feared such hooligans.
Jiang Yuxin's beautiful eyes were filled with doubt.
Li Zhonglou had stayed at home for three years, rarely leaving except to buy groceries. Where did he get such tattooed brothers?
"Who are you?"
Ji Shan sized up Wang Dehai and his subordinate. The large floral tattoo was clearly a mark of a hoodlum.
She had seen all sorts of people and was not intimidated at all.
She sneered, "Putting on a show, does being a thug make you great!"
"What skills do you social scum have besides blustering?"
"Try me if you dare, come and hit me if you have the guts..."
*Slap!*
Before she could finish speaking, the tattooed youth violently slapped Ji Shan across the face.
The sound was as crisp as a firecracker, with no restraint whatsoever.
He sent Ji Shan sprawling to the ground, a trickle of blood flowing from the corner of her mouth.
*Whoosh...*
The entire crowd was shocked.