Chapter 45 They Would Go Halves
Hubert was a bit of a clean freak. He thought that the boy had gotten the new toys dirty, so he generously gave him a new set of toys.
The two children stopped fighting, and the atmosphere of the adults eased.
Although Hubert didn't say anything, the look in his eyes just now and the expression on his face had already let the Cerone family know that Teresa's husband was not to be messed with.
Penny felt that Teresa was not a pushover in the first place, and now she had found a man who was not easy to mess with. She knew that her daughter-in-law Leila and her sister Teresa were close, and she also knew what her son was like.
She had to find an opportunity to remind her son not to go too far. Leila couldn't make money because she was a housewife looking after her son full-time, but she gave birth to the eldest grandson of their Cerone family. She had contributed to the family, so Patrick had to show some respect for Leila.
Patrick came back soon.
After he came back and sat for a moment, Leila asked everyone to have dinner.
Teresa followed her sister into the kitchen to bring the dishes and saw several kinds of seafood. She said softly to her sister, "Leila, Hubert, and I are not outsiders. An ordinary meal will do. You didn't need to buy so much seafood."
"Patrick asked me to buy more. You know, his sister's family loves seafood. They are reluctant to eat it at home because it's expensive. Every time they come here, they specify that they want to eat seafood, and they choose the expensive ones. My mother-in-law also wants to eat beef. Why would I let them eat what I paid for? I didn't make it for them at noon. I've kept it in the refrigerator for tonight, waiting for you and Hubert to come and eat together."
At noon, she had only cooked two simple dishes to entertain her husband's family. They were not happy, so Leila just pretended that she hadn't seen it.
This dinner was quite enjoyable for everyone.
After dinner, after sitting for a while, Hubert wanted to leave, and Teresa had to go home with her husband.
As soon as the young couple left, Leila picked up her and the couple's tableware and went back to the kitchen to wash them.
Patrick wanted to cut the watermelon for his parents and sister, so he took out the iced watermelon from the refrigerator. Seeing that the dining table was not cleaned up, he shouted, "Leila, didn't you see that the table was not cleaned yet? Come out and clean up the table."
Leila didn't come out, and she said in the kitchen, "You said that we would go halves in the future. The money I spent on vegetables and fruits today is considered to make up for the money I paid for the clothes out of the living expenses last time. So let's call it even. But in housework, let's do our things to be fair. I have already cleaned up the tableware of Teresa, her husband, and me. The rest is for you and your family. You can clean up if you like. But if you don't clean up tomorrow you'll continue to use it, and I don't care."
Hearing this, everyone in the Cerone family looked at Patrick.
Penny and Priscila had already reminded Patrick that he and Leila should go halves. They felt that Leila had taken advantage of Patrick, and felt sorry about Patrick's wallet.
Now when Patrick and Leila start going halves, Leila even applied it to housework.
Patrick's face flushed all of a sudden. He was about to enter the kitchen with a fruit knife, but his mother grabbed him, "Leila, Patrick has to go to work every day. His work is busy and tiring. He makes money to support his family, including you and Andy. You are his wife and you should take good care of him. How can you let Patrick do the housework? Patrick said that you two would go halves just because he didn't want you to spend a lot of money. You're husband and wife. How can you care about so much? Hurry up and clean up the table. Don't make Patrick angry. He's tired enough to work outside. You have to be considerate of him."
Priscila agreed with her mother, "That's right. You don't go to work, and you only take care of Andy at home. You spend Patrick's money on food, clothing, and housing. How can you let Patrick do housework?"
Leila came out of the kitchen, walked over to the children's motorcycle and picked up her son, and said with a blank face, "I have no job, no source of income. I take care of our baby full-time at home and rely on Patrick to support us. But he wants to go halves with me. What does he mean?"
"Okay, I accept it. Whether it's living expenses or housework, we're going halves in both and each of us will do his own thing. Don't you say that I have a lot of time at home with my baby? Don't you say that I do nothing? Then I won't do it so that Patrick will know that the house doesn't get clean and tidy by itself, and his dirty clothes and socks don't automatically get clean."
Holding her son in one hand, Leila picked up the things her sister and her husband had brought with the other. She went straight back to the room and slammed the door shut.
"How dare she?!" Patrick was so angry that he put the fruit knife on the coffee table, rolled up his sleeves, and was about to go into the room to teach his wife a lesson.
"Patrick." Penny grabbed her son again, "What do you want to do? Andy is still inside. Don't scare Andy. If you want to teach her a lesson, wait until Andy falls asleep. Also, when you hit her, don't do it so obviously. If Teresa sees it, that girl will come to talk to you. Her husband is not someone to be messed with at first glance."
Patrick knew that Hubert worked in a big company, but Leila and her sister did not say which company he was working for. He also wanted to have a good relationship with Hubert, but Hubert was always alienated and cold. He was a manager in the company after all. Seeing Hubert's indifferent attitude, he didn't want to have a good relationship with Hubert anymore.
Hearing his mother's words, he thought that he was despised by Hubert, and he became even angrier. He said angrily, "We're husband and wife and it has nothing to do with them. Does Teresa dare to beat me? Her husband is not easy to mess with. Do you think I'm so easy to mess with?"
Priscila also encouraged him, "Patrick, Mom is right. Even if you want to teach Leila a lesson, don't scare Andy. What's wrong with Leila? You provide her with everything and she is not satisfied. Isn't she embarrassed to let you do housework? After your brother-in-law comes home after work, I even run him a bath."
"When a man is working outside to make money, as women, we have to clean up the house. Let the husband do the housework? Such a wife isn't virtuous at all." Priscila seemed to be persuading her brother, but what she said was adding fuel to the fire. She wished her brother would go in and teach Leila a lesson immediately.
Thinking that his son was still young and his mother was grabbing him, Patrick temporarily gave up the urge to go into the room and teach Leila a lesson.
"When Andy falls asleep, let's see how I'll teach her a lesson. She has nothing to do all day long. She's fat like hell. She dares to disrespect me and tell me to wash the dishes!" Patrick picked up the fruit knife again and cut the watermelon.
Penny asked her daughter to help her clear the dining table.
After a while, the mother and daughter went back to the sofa and sat down. Priscila picked up a piece of watermelon to eat and said to her brother, "Patrick, your nephew, and niece will soon enter junior high school. I want them to go to junior high school in the city. Look, can you transfer them to the primary school in the city and live with you? After studying in the primary school in the city for a year or two, it will be easier for them to go to junior high school."