At night, Qin Shu and Wei Yin couldn't sleep, and the two girls analyzed the matter face to face in bed.
Qin Shu has her own guess about the criticism in the newspapers. She said:
"I don't believe that we donated the least at the ball that day. Not everyone will donate money at this kind of ball. But we were the only ones reported in the newspaper. Maybe someone was secretly plotting against us. Who did we offend? Even if Ms. Chen doesn't get along with me, I don't like her meanness, but it's not necessary to make enemies with her. Besides, I haven't been in contact with her for a long time. She doesn't seem like that kind of person. Miss Han is not that kind of person either. Although we are not close friends, we have never had any grudges against each other. As for Miss Wen, she and I are still distant relatives. Although she had a quarrel with my second sister-in-law, it has been a long time. It shouldn't be that serious, right?"
Qin Shu mainly targeted Chen, Wen, and Han because they organized the party that day, and they knew the details of each person's donations best. Look at what was written in the newspaper, how much money they donated was clear, which was obviously related to the charity ball that day.
Wei Yin had another analysis, "Ms. Chen has always been narrow-minded and loved to make fun of people. Besides, we all followed her in organizing the donation this time, and with the promotion of the rice and flour lottery, our business is not bad. If you say she is jealous of us, it is not possible for Ms. Chen to donate 10,000 yuan at once. It is impossible for Miss Han to do so either. We have no grudges against her and are not familiar with her at all. As for Miss Wen, we have not been in contact for a long time. If it is about money, the three of them are all rich people. Each of them can give out 10,000 yuan. They will not be angry because of our 40 yuan. They all know that we are not very rich."
Qin Shu thought for a moment before quietly telling Wei Yin, "The invitation was signed by the city government, so I suggested we go together. If I had known it was some women's relief society organized by the three of them, I would not have gone at all. Ah Yin, there are many such organizations in Shanghai. Think about it, this is an organization run by them, and they said each person would donate 10,000 yuan, but who has seen the money? The last donation was a government donation, so it was donated. Their organization is called a relief society, but who are the people in it? Who will receive the donated money and who will supervise it? They didn't make it clear, so our money would be wasted."
Wei Yin was stunned. "Is there such a thing?"
"A lot." Qin Shu was more clear about the ins and outs here, and told Wei Yin some of the things here, "So you must look at the organization when donating money. The last time we donated 500 yuan, we donated it to the government. Although there are still many refugees, I heard that a porridge factory has been set up in the outer city." Then, Qin Shu also told Wei Yin about several well-known charitable organizations, "These ones have a good reputation. For others, if you don't know their background, you have to be cautious."
Wei Yin felt that Qin Shu knew a lot.
Qin Shu also suggested asking someone to find out who the reporter who wrote the news was, so that they could follow the clues to find out who was against them.
Wei Nian's friend Cheng Su was the deputy editor-in-chief of the Beiping Daily. It was a reporter from the Beiping Daily who threw mud at the two sisters-in-law. It was not difficult to find out about this matter. But the result of the investigation was frustrating. Chen Xuan even said to Wei Nian, "Were you blind before?"
Wei Nian was confused. He was analyzing with his wife why Wen Yaying was crazy and wanted to pick on his wife and sister. In fact, in Wei Nian's opinion, his sister was just a bystander, mainly targeting his wife. Obviously, his wife had quarreled with Wen Yaying before and had a grudge against her. Wei Nian was talking about this, but when he heard Chen Xuan's unreasonable words, he couldn't help but be confused. Chen Xuan glanced at Wei Nian who was changing the diaper of her little girl, and put the changed diaper in the diaper basin on the ground, and said, "I told you before not to dance with Miss Wen. I could see at a glance that she was a bad person."
Chen Xuan suddenly got jealous, and Wei Nian immediately felt guilty. Chen Xuan was not unreasonable. Thinking about the quarrel with Wen Yaying before, Wen Yaying was too vindictive. Chen Xuan said, "I always feel that it's not good to let Madam Wen know about this, but if I pretend it never happened, I feel helpless."
Wei Nian changed his daughter's diaper, patted her little butt, and asked Chen Xuan, "Why do you want to pretend nothing happened?"
Chen Xuan shook her head. "It's not a big deal. To be honest, Brother Anian, I really don't have the energy to argue with Miss Wen about this. The news in the newspapers is all about this and that. The hot topic in the newspapers now is not about the amount of donations. The newspapers are all cursing the Northeast Army and Young Marshal Zhang. Who cares about our 40 yuan? I'm not saying that Miss Wen wants revenge, but she didn't choose a good time. Since this matter was reported in the newspaper, our store has gradually received more customers these days. We are already busy with business, so how can we have time to fight a verbal lawsuit with her?"
Then, Chen Xuan said her plan, "Besides, I don't want to donate anymore. Those things that the government insists on donating, we just donate some for the sake of business. But for things like the Relief Society, Ah Shu also said that they are unreliable, so I don't want to donate anymore. Forty dollars, people in the city always think we are stingy, but in the countryside, if a family has forty dollars, it can last a lifetime. We have a little girl now, and in the future, in addition to the money for us to study abroad, we have to save up a dowry for the little girl."
Chen Xuan said she didn't want to donate money anymore, but she was a little conflicted. "Sometimes, when I see those refugees out there who have nowhere to go, I feel pity for them and want to donate money to our little girl. But sometimes I feel that we are not a wealthy family, so I feel bad about spending money."
Wei Nian smiled, "Then don't donate. I don't want to donate either. We still have little money now. If we had more money, we would do charity. However, not now. We haven't saved enough for the dowry of our little girl. Besides, we will have more than one child in the future, so we have to save some for each child. We love our country, but we still have to put our own family first."
Chen Xuan nodded quickly, feeling that what Anian said touched her heart.
This is what Chen Xuan thought. What's the point of donating money and causing trouble
Chen Xuan was really too busy. Business was not going well now, so she had to worry more. In addition, she had a little girl, who was the apple of her eye. Every time she saw her daughter, all her worries disappeared. Besides, she had to study in the evening. Chen Xuan really couldn't take care of Miss Wen. Besides, Qin Shu took the initiative to solve the problem, so Chen Xuan didn't intervene.
I have to say that people are always growing.
For example, if the old Qin Shu knew that someone was so mean to her friend, she would never give up. According to her personality, she would roll up her sleeves and fight. After all, it was Qin Shu who received the invitation that day, and it was Qin Shu who invited Chen Xuan and Wei Yin to go with her. As a result, someone plotted against her.
However, things are different now. Qin Shu has made great progress in Beijing in the past few years.
Qin Shu thought that Wen Yaying was half responsible for Chen Xuan and Wei Yin's misfortune because of how she treated her friends. She didn't really go to Wen Yaying to settle the score. She first went to ask Xu Ning from Peking University about Wen Yaying's current situation. Qin Shu didn't know until she asked. After asking, she found out that Wen Yaying had dropped out. Xu Ning had a lot of connections at Peking University, and she even knew the reason why Wen Yaying dropped out. Xu Ning said, "Miss Wen's grades have been very poor since the exam at the end of last year. Not to mention this year's promotion exam, her grades are definitely not going to be promoted. When she applied to drop out, she said she wanted to do some business, but it's just for fun, who would take it seriously?" Xu Ning, a top student who gets scholarships every year, is naturally a little disapproving of young ladies like Wen Yaying. She is very familiar with Qin Shu, so she was not very polite when she spoke.
After finding out about Wen Yaying's current situation, Qin Shu bought a gift and went to visit Miss Han's mother, Mrs. Han, and told her about what happened in the newspaper. Qin Shu's personality hasn't changed much, but she has suffered a lot in the past few years, so her character has been tempered. Mrs. Han is not easy to meet, but fortunately, Qin Shu can still use her father to save the situation, and finally met Mrs. Han smoothly. Mrs. Han said affectionately, "I haven't seen you for a long time, Xiaoshu. You younger generations are most afraid of us elders and don't usually play with us. Xiaoshu, you are a rare guest, it's a good opportunity for you to try the cookies they just made."
Qin Shu took the coffee brought by the maid with a smile, and ate a small piece of cookie, praising the taste. Although Qin Shu had a bad temper, he had been out with the elders since he was a child, and he had very good etiquette when visiting. He also exchanged a few words with Mrs. Han, "Aunt Han, you are busy, I used to play with Xiao Han, if it weren't for this matter, I really didn't want to bother Aunt Han." Then Qin Shu took out the newspaper and told her that she had received the invitation and brought her friends to attend the dance. Qin Shu said, "If I hadn't asked them that day, they wouldn't have gone to the dance. My financial situation has not been very good in recent years. Aunt Han, you and Xiao Han all know about these things. For a relationship like ours, I won't spend a penny, and you and Xiao Han won't say anything." Seeing that there was no fluctuation on Mrs. Han's delicate face, Qin Shu knew in his heart that a sophisticated person like Mrs. Han would never implicate her daughter in such a report. Qin Shu didn't come here to cause trouble today. She continued with a smile, "I don't know who to ask for this matter. It's just that I thought that Ms. Chen was a guest in Beijing, and she was like a rootless duckweed. Miss Wen didn't stay in Nanjing and Shanghai, but ran to Beijing, because Aunt Wen was gentle and soft, and let her do whatever she wanted. I can't afford to provoke her temper. So, I had to ask Aunt Han for help."
"They are my friends and business partners, Aunt Han. I am unfamiliar with Peking and have no one to turn to, so I ask Aunt Han to suppress this matter for us." Qin Shu smiled warmly.
Mrs. Han smiled like an elder doting on a younger person, and said to Qin Shu, "I think it's nothing worth your personal visit. Just call me and tell me."
"That won't work. If I call, I won't be able to eat the cookies here, Aunt Han." Qin Shu also smiled warmly, as if Mrs. Han was really her biological aunt.
This matter was not a big deal, Qin Shu did not want to make a big fuss or pursue it, so Mrs. Han said it would be done. Miss Han also expressed some apologies to Qin Shu in a tactful way, saying that there was no such thing as people being scolded for donating less money. Qin Shu felt more and more bored with these people. Qin Shu sometimes felt strange about how she used to make friends in social occasions in Shanghai during those years, and she did not seem to feel bored at that time.
When the newspapers kept reporting on the news of the Women's Relief Association, the three organizers of the Women's Relief Association, Ms. Chen, Ms. Wen, and Ms. Han, all became celebrities in the city. For some reason, Qin Shu suddenly thought of his ideal - to be successful and famous. According to the secular understanding, these three people are not successful now, but they are definitely famous. However, even Qin Shu looked down on such fame.
Qin Shu thought, I can't live such a hypocritical life like them.
My ideal is definitely not this kind of illusory fame.
The author has something to say: ps: Good night everyone!