CHAPTER 70: THIS DOUBLE STANDARD IS A BIT TOO MUCH

"Son-in-law, what do you think?"

Subtly influenced, Ruth looked at Luis, feeling that he should make the decision.

When she said this, the three Wood sisters also looked at Luis together, seemingly having already acknowledged his position as the head of the household. At this moment, Lily smiled even more happily.

Luis sat cross-legged on the floor, smoking with an ashtray set out.

This showed his elevated status in the household. In the past, he would have been scolded for smoking in the living room, but now he could smoke right in his mother-in-law’s room, and none of the four had any objections.

"I think it’s fine too!"

Luis said cheerfully, "It’s up to you sisters to discuss and decide. Mainly, Leah spends most of her time at school, and eldest sister doesn’t come back to stay often either."

"Alright, then let’s find someone to tear it down!"

Merging the two small rooms into one means the upstairs will only have two master bedrooms and one bathroom. The happiest is naturally Leah, because her living environment has been significantly upgraded.

After chatting for a while, Luis received a call from the appliance flagship store downstairs.

As soon as the housekeeping staff left, several workers immediately came upstairs to remove the old air conditioners. At the same time, the craftsmen found downstairs also came to dismantle the plywood, working with high efficiency.

"Honey, what did you mean earlier about splitting into two groups?"

Lily finally asked.

Luis said with a smile, "In a bit, you three sisters will go to the furniture mall and pick out the furniture you like. If delivery tonight is too rushed, have it delivered tomorrow morning."

"Mom and I will wait at home for the air conditioners to be installed and debugged. Also, the craftsmen will come tonight to remove the wooden wall. After it’s taken down, we’ll apply a little paint so it won’t delay the furniture assembly tomorrow."

As he spoke, Luis directly transferred 5,000 dollars to his wife. Lily looked surprised and said, "Honey, that’s too much."

"For our own home, choose better quality."

Luis also affectionately patted his sister-in-law Leah’s head and said very seriously, "Being frugal and managing the household well is a virtue, but since the money is being spent, don’t be too calculating. Let Leah choose whatever bed and desk she wants. You two, as older sisters, are not allowed to criticize her."

This was preemptive, as Leah was at the bottom of the family hierarchy. When it came to spending money, not only would Nancy, being the eldest sister like a mother, manage her, but even the usually gentle Lily would certainly lecture her.

Leah giggled flirtatiously, "Thank you, brother in law. Long live brother in law. If there is the slightest movement, I will definitely report it to you."

"Pick a larger wardrobe. At the very least, big sister needs to place some pajamas and underwear at home."

"No need!"

Ruth, with her straightforward personality, immediately spoke up, "I need to clear out some of my clothes too. The wardrobe on mother’s side is big. When the time comes, just put them in my place."

"Alright, you all go shop on your own!"

"Husband, what will you and mother eat then?"

"We’ll just buy boxed meals later."

The truth was, someone really needed to stay home. Besides the craftsmen breaking down the walls, the air conditioning had also started being installed. Moreover, the housekeeping staff hadn’t left after cleaning the second floor; they were now doing a deep clean of the kitchen and bathrooms downstairs.

After the three sisters went out, Ruth, who had just been acting composed, suddenly felt a bit awkward. Her voice trembling, she said, "I’ll go down to buy the boxed meals."

"Mother, no rush!"

Luis grabbed her hand. Ruth’s breathing became rapid, and she was very nervous. She tried to shake it off but couldn’t break free.

The housekeeping staff were all downstairs, and they would see each other often. Ruth didn’t dare struggle or speak, her face flushed red as she looked at Luis.

"Let go, there are so many people at home..."

"Mother!"

Just as Luis wanted to cherish this moment alone with her, a housekeeping staff member came out to discuss how to clean the refrigerator.

The moment he loosened his grip, Ruth immediately ran upstairs. Luis was extremely frustrated, but there was nothing he could do. With so many people around and so many eyes at home, it really wasn’t the right time to flirt with his mother in law.

Extremely frustrated, Luis sat down and lit a cigarette. Just then, a Whatsapp notification sounded. It was a message from his mother in law, Ruth:

"Son in law, that night we both made a mistake because we had too much to drink. We are a family living under the same roof. I can see how much Lily loves you, and mother is also very happy to see you two so deeply in love. Let’s forget that dream. We shouldn’t be like that!!"

Luis smiled as he read it. His mother in law’s education level seemed to fluctuate. In the past, that shrew would always curse, quick to anger and swear. Now she seemed quite refined and really cute.

Who would agree to such a request? Luis pondered how to reply to this message.

Suddenly, another Whatsapp notification sounded. It was a video sent by his sister in law, Leah. The background showed her two older sisters walking ahead after dinner, while she played the role of a follower from behind.

"Lily, it feels like Luis is a completely different person."

"Not really. He’s always been like this. There’s no difference."

"Today, he arranged everything so methodically, and the timing was perfect too. Everything was orderly, and we were all very relaxed. If mother had handled this, we would have been exhausted to death."

"Big sister, I’ve long said you were biased against him before. Luis just doesn’t like to boast, but he’s actually very smart, okay."

"Stop showing off your husband. We know he’s great, alright!"

"I just didn’t expect that today he specifically went to pick little sister up and bring her back."

"Luis already said it. Little sister has grown up, and we as older sisters should respect her. Let her tidy up her own things."

"Little sister, you should be grateful to your second brother in law. None of us thought about this matter; only he remembered it."

The video ended here. Leah didn’t send anything else, nor any emojis or the like, but the meaning was self-evident.

Luis smiled. He hadn’t expected that the three sisters would all be each other’s divine helpers, and that they would actually say such nice things behind his back. It was quite surprising. It could be said that thanks to the mother’s role as the antagonist, they appeared very united.

Lost in his thoughts, Luis immediately received another video from his sister in law, also secretly recorded, but the setting had changed to a furniture store:

"Lily, honestly, neither of you are big spenders. Why did you buy that bracelet and even get two for mother? That adds up to over 10,000 dollars, right?"

"Luis suddenly bought it. I was a bit surprised too. Maybe it’s my fault. This series is too trendy; many women at our hospital wear it. I just mentioned it two or three times, and he secretly bought it for me."

"Nonsense, you’re just showing off. You said it, and your husband remembered. But why did you buy one for mother??"

"What’s wrong with buying for mother? Aunt Yana is always boasting, and it must bother mother. That teahouse is full of bitches; who can stand it?"

At this point, Lily was clearly bragging again, shaking her head as she said, "Luis doesn’t understand these things. He went and asked for the most expensive one. As a result, that bracelet was as heavy as handcuffs. Mother wanted to show off but said her wrist ached, so Luis bought her a cheaper one!!"

Leah, who had been secretly recording the video, spoke up first, "That’s not right. Brother in law is such a frugal person. He spent that much money??"

Lily said, both crying and laughing, "Your brother-in-law isn’t frugal!"

Leah said seriously, "Brother in law’s clothes are all free T shirts with logos. His underwear is almost all torn and full of holes."

Lily smiled even more happily. Nancy seemed a bit jealous and asked, "You seem to have an opinion. Did brother in law skimp on paying your tuition fees, you little ingrate?"

Leah giggled, "Not at all. Brother in law is very generous. I was just thinking about why brother in law is so stingy with himself."

Lily sighed, "That’s just how he is. If I want to buy clothes and it costs a thousand, he’d say I shouldn’t have called to ask him. But for himself... he’d just casually wear underwear that costs a few dollars."

"I know about that, Mom couldn’t stand it anymore and bought him several new outfits."

Leah laughed heartily: "Brother-in-law bought Mom jewelry worth seven or eight thousand dollars, then Mom bought him clothes worth a few hundred dollars, and he even scolded her for wasting money."

"This double standard is a bit too much."

Even Nancy widened her eyes in surprise.

Leah, however, suddenly spoke with full confidence: "Brother-in-law is the kind of person who would walk miles to eat a five-dollar bowl of plain noodles, but when it comes to our family needing money, he won’t allow us to save a single cent."