Chapter 122 300,000 Yuan Bride Price Turns into 500,000 Yuan

Chapter 122: The Bride Price Increases from 300,000 to 500,000. Chen Ang sat down on the sofa and took the tea Wen Zhiyong handed him. Just as he took a sip, the door was pushed open.

Wen Huilin stood at the door, wearing a black trench coat, light makeup on her face, and her hair tied up simply. She was a completely different person from the woman who had been slumped on the floor of Sheng Huating Residential Area crying her eyes out last night.

Her steps were steady as she walked in. Her gaze swept over Chen Ang without any pause, and she sat straight down next to Wen Guodong.

Chen Ang glanced at her, and he immediately understood what was going on.

Since she was so calm, there was a high probability she had gone to see Tu Yuandong today, and he had likely revealed some information to her.

Or rather, she had been reassured by whatever rhetoric Tu Yuandong had used on her.

Furthermore, knowing her character, she must still be holding onto some trump card she thought she could use.

Putting down his teacup, a very faint smile appeared on Chen Ang's lips.

Wen Guodong cleared his throat and got straight to the point.

"Zhiyong and Shanshan's wedding can't be delayed any longer. They're both getting on in years, and we as parents want to hold our grandchildren as soon as possible."

He paused, directing his gaze at Wen Huilin. "Huilin, Zhiyong, you two siblings discuss it. We need to reach a conclusion on the bride price today."

Wen Zhiyong slowly pulled out a cigarette and put it in his mouth. "Sis, I'm still saying the same thing. Shanshan's family wants 480,000. Mom, Dad, and I put some money together, but we're still short of..."

"300,000." Xue Shanshan filled in the number for him. As she spoke, she didn't look at Wen Zhiyong or Wen Huilin, but instead kept her eyes on Chen Ang.

"I'll lend you this money." Wen Huilin's attitude was very calm—so calm that even Li Meifeng was stunned. Her hand holding the remote control froze in mid-air as she turned to look at her, as if she hadn't heard correctly.

Wen Zhiyong was also stunned, his eyes widening, and the cigarette in his mouth almost fell out.

He looked back at Wen Guodong, then at Chen Ang, and finally let his gaze fall back onto Wen Huilin. The expression on his face slowly turned from shock to ecstasy. "Sis, are you serious? You've finally come around!"

"However, you have to write an IOU. The interest will be calculated according to bank rates, and you'll pay it back monthly after you get married." Wen Huilin's gaze crossed the coffee table, met Chen Ang's for a brief second, and then drifted away.

Chen Ang leaned back on the sofa, looked at Wen Huilin, and suddenly smiled.

In his heart, he marveled at Tu Yuandong's ability to deceive people.

In all likelihood, what she had heard was that Jinhui Real Estate behind Dingxin would take action. At that time, Company's capital chain would be drained, and Hengxing Investment's commercial layout would completely collapse.

Under this expectation, Wen Huilin probably felt that she had bargaining chips in her hands again. She didn't need to play the victim anymore; she could stand tall and go back to being that shrewd, calculating woman.

So, lending money to Wen Zhiyong was one of her steps in transferring assets.

Since it was an IOU, assets would definitely be divided during the divorce. This 300,000 debt claim would also be part of their joint marital property, so she would only lose half.

And if Chen Ang wanted to recover this money, he would have to go to court with Wen Zhiyong.

That was why she agreed so readily.

She wasn't helping Wen Zhiyong; she was using him as a shield to convert the cash under her name into a debt claim destined to become a bad debt.

She thought she was playing a very clever game of chess.

Chen Ang picked up his teacup, took a sip, and gently rubbed his finger along the rim.

This was just as well. He also needed a marital expenditure to drain the last of the cash under Wen Huilin's name.

As for whose hands the money would ultimately end up in, that remained to be seen.

He took out his phone from his pocket and sent a message to Xue Shanshan: "Shanshan, I remember that in your hometown, besides the bride price, there are other monetary gifts for marriage, right? Things like the 'getting-out-of-the-car' gift, the 'parental address-changing' fee, the three golds, the five golds, and so on—all of that probably costs around 200,000, right?"

Xue Shanshan's phone vibrated; it was Chen Ang. She looked up, her puzzled gaze meeting Chen Ang's for a brief moment.

Seeing Chen Ang nod slightly, her eyelashes fluttered. She then put down her phone and spoke in a very casual tone, "Uncle, Auntie, my mom said that according to our hometown's customs, in addition to the bride price, we also need a getting-out-of-the-car gift and a parental address-changing fee."

Ignoring the sudden silence in the room, she continued, "The getting-out-of-the-car gift is given when welcoming the bride out of the car, for good luck—usually 88,000. The parental address-changing fee is given during the wedding when I start addressing you as Mom and Dad. We don't need the five golds anymore either, so we can just convert them to cash. To round it up, it'll be 200,000 in total."

As soon as she finished speaking, Wen Guodong's smile froze on his face.

Wen Zhiyong's mouth, which was holding the cigarette, fell slightly open, and he didn't even notice when the cigarette butt fell onto the table.

Wen Huilin's originally calm expression also changed abruptly.

Her mask of composure cracked, and a distorted expression spread across her face at a speed visible to the naked eye.

She turned her head to stare at Xue Shanshan, her lips trembling and her voice shrill. "Why didn't you say so just now? What do you mean by suddenly bringing this up now?"

"Weren't we just discussing the bride price earlier? These monetary gifts are only discussed after that is settled. My mom said this is the custom, and it can't be skipped."

"Besides, I won't be taking this money back to my family. I'll bring all of it back to be used for the expenses of Zhiyong's and my new household."

Xue Shanshan spoke with perfect confidence, making it completely impossible to tell whether she was telling the truth or not.

She wasn't stupid; she had long since seen who the person truly in charge was in this room.

Since Chen Ang wanted her to raise the stakes, she would raise them.

She had deeply felt her brother-in-law's generosity, and that was the kind of life she ought to be living.

"500,000," Wen Huilin's voice squeezed through her teeth. "Do you think I run a bank?"

"Sis, weren't you just talking so nicely about it? Brother-in-law, help me out here. Brother-in-law, don't you agree?"

Wen Zhiyong didn't care how much Xue Shanshan asked for. Since it would all be brought back anyway, and his sister was the one paying, he wouldn't have to contribute anything himself. He cast a pleading look at Chen Ang.

Chen Ang cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention.

Then, he smiled and said, "It's normal for Zhiyong's wedding to be a bit decent. Shanshan is a good girl, after all, and we shouldn't treat her unfairly. 500,000 is a nice round number. Huilin, you can afford it."

Wen Huilin whipped her head around, her gaze stabbing into Chen Ang's face like a knife, trying to find a single flaw in his expression. But all she found was calmness.

Even though she had planned to lend the money anyway, the sudden increase still made her lose her composure slightly.

Moreover, she didn't know what Chen Ang's purpose was in doing this.

As a result, she felt guilty and terrified.

She was afraid Chen Ang was scheming against her again.

After Chen Ang finished speaking, he remained silent, not caring how others looked at him.

He leaned back on the sofa, crossing his legs with his hands folded over his stomach, a faint, fleeting smile playing on his lips.

And Wen Huilin was all too familiar with this smile of his.

When he paid the 100,000 tutoring fee, the 3,000 for the seafood delivery, swiped 140,000 at the police station, swiped over 10,000 at Lintian Pavilion, and swiped 36,000 at the front desk of Qianxi Hotel, Chen Ang had this exact expression on his face.

"Where would I get that much money?" she squeezed out through gritted teeth, word by word.

"You have it," Chen Ang said, looking into her eyes. His tone was very soft, yet extremely serious.

Wen Huilin's expression shifted repeatedly, a mixture of anger and fury.

Forcing down the rising pain in her chest, she glared fiercely at Chen Ang.

She knew that if this continued, she would in all likelihood end up ruined at Chen Ang's hands.