Grandma Victoria smiled and replied, “Alright, thank you. I understand.”
At this point, when someone offers help, it’s out of kindness, and it’s perfectly normal if they don’t. Grandma Victoria understood the value of courtesy.
The Smith family urged her, “Why don’t we just forget it and not reopen? Old Ye, let me give you a piece of advice: this shop won’t make it. If you’re short on food or clothing, we old folks can still secretly help out.”
The word “secretly” hinted at the true nature of things.
Five thousand wasn’t a big deal for families like theirs. It might not even cover the cost of a meal that Mary would host, but she refused to give it, and she didn’t want anyone else to either.
People often talk about wicked mothers-in-law, but they rarely mention that some daughters-in-
