Reborn as a Tough Army Wife

Luo Honglan's words were too direct, leaving Luo Cuilan stunned and somewhat embarrassed to admit it outright.

After a pause, she took Luo Honglan's hand and said, "Hong Lan, I really didn't mean anything else, I am doing this entirely for your sake."

Even if not the brightest, Luo Honglan still knew who treated her well and who didn't.

She didn't respond to Luo Cuilan's words, but just looked up at her and asked directly, "Big sister, is it true that the Zhang family has treated you poorly, that you're having a hard time at their home?"

"I..." Luo Cuilan initially wanted to deny it out of vanity, but then remembering that Luo Honglan was a tender-hearted person, she changed her mind and nodded as she looked at Luo Honglan, "Yes, the Zhang family has never been very good to me. Now that I have health issues, they look down upon me even more, and Zhang Jianguo's sister-in-law belittles me every day. I really can't stay at home any longer, so I followed mom to the provincial city hoping to get a checkup and have a change of scenery."

Luo Honglan felt genuinely sorry for Luo Cuilan upon hearing this.

She sighed softly and said to Luo Cuilan, "Big sister, this is also a result of your own past mistakes. If you had believed big brother and sister-in-law back then, none of this would have happened."

"I..." Upon hearing the names of Luo Zhiyong and his spouse, Luo Cuilan felt like lashing out, but she held back, looking helpless she said, "Who would have thought that the Zhang family would be like this? At first, I thought Jianguo was good to me."

"Big sister, what do you plan to do now?" Luo Cuilan didn't say much, remaining silent for a while before asking, "Are you going to continue living with Zhang Jianguo?"

Luo Cuilan let out a wistful sigh, "What else can I do? I'm not young anymore, and I've been with Jianguo for so many years; there are indeed some feelings. I still hope to get better and have a good life with him."

"It's best if you think this way. After all, keeping a family together isn't easy, and you and your brother-in-law have been together for so many years," Luo Honglan nodded and said. Given Luo Honglan's nature, she would definitely advocate for reconciliation rather than separation.

"Isn't that the truth," Luo Cuilan glanced at Luo Honglan and then abruptly brought up the issue of medical expenses, "But I want to get treatment now, and I don't have the money. A single hospital visit costs several tens of dollars, and I don't even have that much on me."

Luo Honglan frowned at her, "As for the money, didn't big brother tell you to inquire with the Zhang family? They should be able to afford some."

"I don't mean to conceal this from you, but I called back to the village a few days ago, and it was my mother-in-law who answered," Luo Cuilan waved her hand with an air of hesitance, "Sigh, I don't even want to talk about it; it embarrasses me to say that I used to live such a good life at my parental home. After marrying into the Zhang family, their folks never treated me as a human... I..."

Luo Cuilan paused, then bowed her head and wiped her tears. Half of her tears were real because the Zhang family had indeed treated her poorly since she married in—they were a genuine step down from her life in her parental home.

But choosing her in-laws was her own decision, having defiantly married into their family against her own family's objections, she felt awkward about lamenting too much to them.

The other half, naturally, was to gain Luo Honglan's sympathy, in hopes that Luo Honglan would lend her money.

Luo Honglan really fell for it. Seeing her secretly shedding tears, she hurriedly grabbed her hand and asked, "Elder sister, what's wrong? What did your mother-in-law say?"

"She said..." Luo Cuilan paused for a moment, then continued, "If I don't get cured and still can't have children when I return, unable to carry on the Zhang family's lineage, she told me not to come back—that I might as well just die in the provincial city."

Luo Honglan got angry upon hearing this. With a sullen face, she said, "Your mother-in-law is going too far."

"Isn't that the truth," Luo Cuilan replied. "But there's nothing I can do about it. It's because my own family isn't supportive. No one cares about how I'm doing now."

Luo Honglan knew all about Luo Cuilan's insistence on marrying into the Zhang family at the start. She felt that one couldn't blame their own family for this, and if anyone was to blame, it was Luo Cuilan herself. Thus, Luo Honglan didn't continue the topic.

Of course, Luo Cuilan's purpose in saying so much to Luo Honglan was to borrow money. She definitely wouldn't let the topic drop without achieving her goal.

Seeing Luo Honglan silent and not speaking, Luo Cuilan bit her lip and decided to lay bare her intentions, "Honglan, your elder sister is begging you, please help your big sister, okay?"

Luo Honglan, hearing the seriousness of her words, immediately held her hand and said, "Don't say beg. We're sisters. Just tell me how you want me to help you."

"I need to borrow some money for my treatment." Seeing Luo Honglan's face change, Luo Cuilan immediately grabbed her hand again, "Little sister, I promise you, if you lend me all the money you've saved up now, I'll pay you back very soon."

Luo Honglan had already guessed a bit beforehand that it would be about money, and upon hearing Luo Cuilan actually asking to borrow money—and even suggesting borrowing all of her savings—she became extremely troubled.

That's because, after the last time she lent money to Luo Cuilan for an abortion, Fang Pingying had a private word with Luo Honglan, advising her not to lend money to Luo Cuilan so easily, because once borrowed, no matter the amount, it was never coming back.

Seeing Luo Honglan not responding, Luo Cuilan knew she was reluctant to lend the money and her face darkened, "Honglan, your big sister isn't trying to take your money. It's just for medical treatment. If you're not even willing to help me with this, then what kind of sisterly affection is there to talk about between us?"

"Elder sister, I..." Luo Honglan faltered, not knowing how to respond. She definitely didn't want to lend the money; Fang Pingying had warned her many times not to lend money to Luo Cuilan casually.

But because of her personality, she couldn't outright refuse.

Luo Cuilan knew Luo Honglan was hesitant to lend and decided to provoke her with a tactic used before, "Little sister, are you worried about asking your sister-in-law for the money you gave her for safekeeping?"

"No..." Luo Honglan immediately denied and thought about just rejecting Luo Cuilan, lest the burden fall on Fang Pingying.

"If it's just about this concern, I can solve that for you." But Luo Cuilan suddenly interrupted her, "You just say that you wanted to save the money with our mom, setting it aside for your future dowry. If you just ask, Fang Pingying won't refuse to give it to you. Besides, that money was originally yours, there's nothing wrong to ask for it."

"Elder sister, it's not that." Luo Honglan finally seized an opportunity to express her own thoughts, "The money I've saved was also from my own hard work. I don't want to be like you, handing everything over to my mother-in-law before getting married. I want to have some savings to feel more at ease when I get married and move to my husband's house. Right now, I don't want to touch that money." (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation votes and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)