Ficorpio
Chapter 1
My parents had spent their entire lives being weak and ineffectual.
But when it came to my sister-in-law, they made up for it by throwing their weight around.
They were convinced that Evelyn Sterling had chased after my brother since high school and couldn’t survive without him.
When they got married, my mother refused to contribute a single cent. She even took over the East Room, which Evelyn had paid to renovate, as though it were only natural.
Evelyn never objected.
That convinced my mother she had found a soft target—someone she could control completely.
Whenever she met anyone, she proudly praised my brother for being so capable that he had married a beautiful, hardworking woman who was willing to bankroll his family.
What they didn’t know was what happened late at night, after every insult and demand they threw at Evelyn.
My brother would kneel before her and beg for forgiveness.
He looked like a dog desperately wagging its tail for scraps.
In the second year of their marriage, Evelyn never came back to the village again.
Neither did my brother.
Evelyn had been my brother’s classmate in high school.
They had gotten together in college and stayed together for seven years.
Whenever my mother talked about her, she wore a knowing expression.
“I met her back then,” she would say. “She followed your brother around with a smile on her face and greeted me so enthusiastically.”
“Your brother said they were just classmates, but I could tell she was already throwing herself at him.”
Evelyn really had gone all out for my brother.
My brother said so himself.
“She’s always treated me well.”
From Suzhou to Nanjing, and then to Shanghai, they had drifted from one city to the next. Wherever they went, Evelyn arranged everything.
She found the apartments, furnished them, and made sure they were settled. She paid the bills and did all the work.
She worked hard, too. Her salary rose quickly, until eventually she was earning twice as much as my brother.
Yet she had never held that over him.
Even the wedding had been her pushing things forward.
In our village, families were expected to treat a bride like royalty. From the formal betrothal to the wedding itself, money had to flow out like water.
Evelyn was the only exception.
She spent lavishly on my family.
The first time she visited our home, she gave each of us a pearl necklace, every one tucked inside an exquisite box.
Chapter 2
When she saw how run-down our house was and realized it wasn’t suitable for newlyweds, she paid for the Bennett Family Home Renovation herself. Before long, the place looked completely different inside and out.
Later, when they discussed the Betrothal Payment, she asked for only one hundred thousand yuan.
But the moment my mother heard the amount, she began complaining about how poor we were.
“One hundred thousand? Where are we supposed to get that kind of money? Is she trying to drive us to our graves?”
My brother was exasperated.
“Mom, one hundred thousand is already the lowest amount she could ask for while dealing with pressure from her parents. If we offer any less, how is she supposed to explain it to them?”
My father, who had always been so proud of my brother, lowered his head with a grim expression.
“It’s not that we don’t want to pay. We supported both of you through school. How could we have any savings left?”
Then he sighed. “Son, Evelyn has a good temper. Go talk her around. She’s already twenty-eight, a year older than you. Of course her family is anxious.”
“Mom,” my brother tried to reason, “Evelyn can earn money herself. If we show her family the proper respect and give them a formal engagement gift, she’ll feel better about it. Wouldn’t that make her more willing to fulfill her Filial Duty toward you later?”
“Filial Duty?” My mother curled one corner of her mouth as if he had told her a joke.
“Once she marries into this family, she’s one of the Bennetts. Being good to her parents-in-law is only natural. Why should we have to buy it?”
“What if she refuses to marry me?”
My mother laughed at once, a sharp gleam appearing in her eyes.
“She’s been with you for so many years. Everyone for miles around knows it. Who else could she possibly marry except you? She knew what our family was like from the beginning. I don’t believe she’d throw away her Social Reputation over a little money. If you won’t talk to her, I’ll go myself.”
My brother was afraid she would truly go and tear the families apart, so he forced himself to make the trip.
When he returned, his face was ashen.
And on Evelyn’s side, she had suddenly said she wanted nothing at all.
My mother slapped her thigh in delight.
“Really? I knew Evelyn was a good girl! Tell her not to worry. From now on, I’ll treat her just like my own daughter.”
My brother didn’t answer. He walked into his room in silence.
My mother, however, was so pleased with herself that she could barely keep the smile off her face.
“I told you, didn’t I? The more educated someone is, the thinner their skin. In the end, they’re still easy to control.”
On the day of the formal engagement, Evelyn’s relatives filled the house.
Chapter 3
But my mother stubbornly changed the agreed-upon seventeen-thousand-yuan engagement gift to eleven thousand.
She pressed the thin red envelope into Evelyn’s hand and made her words sound sweet.
“Eleven thousand is a wonderful omen. It means you’re one in ten thousand. You have to accept it.”
Evelyn’s parents’ expressions darkened instantly.
My brother hurried to stop her. “Mom! We agreed on seventeen thousand!”
“That’s how we’ve always done things around here!”
Instead of feeling ashamed, my mother looked hurt. She stared directly at Evelyn.
“Evelyn, you’re not seriously saying it’s too little, are you?”
Evelyn raised a hand to stop her parents before they could lose their tempers. The corners of her mouth lifted faintly as she pushed the envelope back.
“Mrs. Bennett, I can’t accept this money. Ethan and I can earn our own living. You and Mr. Bennett should keep it for your retirement.”
At the time, my mother didn’t understand what Evelyn was really saying. She only pretended to push the envelope back and forth a couple of times before turning to her new in-laws with a dazzling smile.
“Your daughter is such a thoughtful girl!”
That was how the engagement was settled, amid my mother’s smug delight.
As soon as the guests had left, she couldn’t wait to boast to everyone in the neighborhood.
“Oh, our daughter-in-law is just too considerate. She knows how hard things have been for the two of us, so she absolutely refused to take any money. She said that as long as she could be with Ethan, she’d be completely satisfied.”
The pride written all over her face was clearly praise for her son.
They had managed to marry off a beautiful, capable woman without spending a cent—and she was even willing to bankroll them.
For the first time in their miserable, humiliated lives, my parents could finally hold their heads high.
The village neighbors were green with envy.
“The Carter family really struck it lucky. They didn’t even have to spend much to get a daughter-in-law.”
“I heard she’s capable, too. She even bought a place in the city!”
“Exactly. Unlike my daughter-in-law. The first thing she did was ask for hundreds of thousands. I worry so much I can’t sleep.”
My father listened with a proud smile and began sharing his wisdom.
“Introductions aren’t reliable. You have to let your child find someone from school. Once there’s real affection between them, money doesn’t matter as much.”
“Your boy is something else. Mine could never compete with Ethan. He even got into a good university!”
One of the neighbors offered my father a cigarette, his face full of admiration.
My father immediately put on the same foolish, timid smile he had worn for decades.