Back to the 70s: My Childhood Sweetheart Spoils Me Rotten-Chapter 683 - 685 Candidate

"Sis, what do you think will happen when Zhuge Mingshan finds out about this?"

Lying in bed, Gong Ruini yawned and was about to sleep. It had truly been a busy day, so busy that she hadn’t had the chance to rest properly. Especially now, lying in the warm, cozy bed, she was quickly drifting into a rhythm of sleep.

Gong Ruwen was quite exhausted, but the events at the dinner table today made it impossible for him to sleep. The news was exceptionally sensational.

"What happens when she finds out has nothing to do with me." Gong Ruini wouldn’t worry about Zhuge Mingshan. After all, that girl wasn’t friendly toward her.

"And besides, they have nothing to do with Grandpa Zhuge anymore either." Although she didn’t know all the details, it seemed like Zhuge Zhi paid a hefty price this time.

Of course, these costs were to encourage the Zhuge family’s efforts to enter high school and college. In this way, those who constantly made trouble didn’t gain any benefits at all.

Gong Ruini really had no idea how those people would think about it. Would they be very frustrated?

The Zhuge family was indeed frustrated, especially Zhuge Zhi’s brothers and their families. Not to mention anything else; just the dismal atmosphere at the New Year’s table made them so angry that they didn’t even want to speak.

"The third one is too much."

"Having so much money and not sharing it with us."

"Exactly, if we had known when Grandpa split the family, we shouldn’t have given anything to the third child."

Thinking about the things that had to be given to the third child, who wouldn’t feel heartache? Each of them wished they had stepped up back then to prevent Zhuge Zhi from donating the money.

That was a huge amount of money. "You say Third Uncle contributed so much money and also lent money for those few people to buy houses. Third Uncle has a lot of money."

Zhuge Zhi didn’t take things out; he took out real gold and silver. How could that not make people envious? "Unfortunately, our Shanshan didn’t live up to expectations, otherwise..."

Although the rest of the sentence was unspoken, the meaning was clear: Zhuge Mingshan hadn’t done well enough. If she had managed to charm Zhuge Zhi back then, would things have turned out to benefit others?

Zhuge Mingshan didn’t want to pay attention. Her life at home was difficult now, and everyone seemed to take a shot at her whenever they saw her, though not too publicly.

Yet, it was brought up during the family New Year’s Eve dinner. Were they planning to roast her over the fire?

Zhuge Mingshan glanced around and found that no one stood up to speak for her. Instead, they looked at her with mocking eyes, all waiting to watch the show.

If she couldn’t see the problem now, she’d be a fool. "Yes, I haven’t lived up to expectations, but neither have the others."

"Actually, Third Grandpa still hopes to find a guy; otherwise, why give Hongjie a chance?" She wasn’t very clever, but were the boys in the family any better?

"I think if my brothers worked harder and were more promising, Third Grandpa wouldn’t have chosen Zhuge Hongjie."

"Things wouldn’t have exploded."

Zhuge Mingshan wouldn’t back down. Some things had already cornered her. If she retreated now, everyone would surely laugh at her.

She said what she did to save herself, but she had to admit her words made sense.

Especially seeing every grandparent lost in thought, Zhuge Mingshan sighed with relief. No matter what, for now, she was momentarily safe.

Zhuge Mingshan was temporarily safe, but the rest, especially Zhuge family’s grandsons, grew nervous.

"Yes, relying on girls is useless." Zhuge family’s fourth brother said sinisterly. Before, he was always dissatisfied with Zhuge Mingshan’s prominence.

"No matter how capable girls are, they eventually have to marry out. Instead of raising girls, it’s better to cultivate boys." 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Listening to Fourth Grandpa’s sarcastic remark, Zhuge Mingshan clenched her fists. She knew he didn’t like her. It was just that he hadn’t found the chance to speak out, and now this opportunity arose; it would have been strange if he didn’t seize it.

"That’s right."

"I always said girls, no matter how good, are useless."

Thus at the New Year’s Eve dinner, everyone set the tone: no matter how successful or capable girls might be, they wouldn’t be cultivated as a priority.

Zhuge Mingshan smirked. This was clearly about her. The family wouldn’t invest in her anymore. Anyway, the ones here were just like pig teammates; counting on them to succeed was a dream.

But in a way, this was good. She wouldn’t be under scrutiny and could have more private time to think and plan for herself.

The old Zhuge Mingshan might have worried about whether this was right since the family treated her fairly well. But now, she felt no burden at all.

Those words from the elders made some of the uneasy Zhuge family grandsons come alive, even throwing a few smug glances at Zhuge Mingshan.

Though she had been the good child in the elders’ eyes, she still fell from grace. In the future, they could bully her.

Regarding those gloating glances, Zhuge Mingshan wasn’t surprised at all. When she was doing well, hadn’t she given them similar looks? So now, she didn’t care.

Moreover, without Third Grandpa’s support, would life at home be any better?

"I wonder, Grandpa, who will you choose?" Zhuge Mingshan expressed with a curious face.

Zhuge Mingshan calmly ate, making those who came to watch the show feel bored and shift their gaze. More importantly, though the family said they would focus on nurturing male descendants, they hadn’t decided on whom.

As for laughing at Zhuge Mingshan, they’d wait until they became victors. Thinking of that, everyone eagerly looked at the grandparents seated at the main table, for they would decide who would become the family’s focus.

Zhuge Zhi’s brothers certainly had their thoughts. They previously chose Zhuge Mingshan because she performed well. Even if some thought she wasn’t worth the family’s focus being a girl, there were no better options.

But now seeking a suitable male heir was truly challenging. There was simply no outstanding candidate—they were all about the same level.

Since they were all about the same, everyone had to carefully select someone. Each family believed it would be best for their candidate to be the focus.

So everyone started plotting. Even the previously united brothers began to think about who to unite with and whom to oppose.

The elders got busy with it, and so did the juniors, who were also racking their brains, wanting to push their sons forward.

Zhuge Mingshan watched those eager eyes and ate quietly. No longer being the family’s focus, her status in the clan would suffer. Who knew when she’d get to eat this well again? Of course, now was the time to eat more while she could.

And to appetize herself, as she ate, Zhuge Mingshan watched the drama unfold, even if this farce didn’t end anytime soon. Watching a few more scenes didn’t hurt.