Zhong Xiaoxiao pursed her lips and muttered softly: "Mom, I know I was wrong..."
She raised her head, her eyes still a little red. "At that time, I was also very angry with them. They...they insisted that I was so naughty at such a young age and wanted to seduce Teacher Song...I was so angry that I said that..."
When Zhang Chunxue heard the word "seduction", her face instantly darkened and her eyes became colder.
"These gossipy women!" Her voice was filled with uncontrollable anger. "They are so shameless to make up stories about a teenage girl!"
She took a deep breath, suppressed the anger in her heart, looked at Zhong Xiaoxiao, and her tone became serious.
"Xiaoxiao, remember this for Mom!"
"Next time you meet someone like that, who's so careless and spews shit, don't bother explaining to them!"
Zhong Xiaoxiao blinked in confusion: "No explanation? Then won't they talk nonsense even more?"
Zhang Chunxue sneered, "Explaining to them is flattering them! The more you explain, the more they'll think you're easy to bully, and the more they'll think they're right and have you in their power!"
"To deal with people like this, you have to be tougher than them!"
"If they dare to talk nonsense again, just go up to them and point your finger at their noses and yell at them! Yell until they're scared to speak again!"
Zhong Xiaoxiao was stunned when she heard this, her mouth slightly open.
Zhang Chunxue continued, "Don't they know in their hearts that they are just making things up? They know it very well!"
"But why do they still say it?"
"Don't you just want to see them make you blush and feel angry, helpless, and jump up and down in anger?"
"The more you act like you care, the happier they become!"
"So, as long as you don't let them succeed and don't give them the reaction they want to see, they will be bored themselves."
"Either treat them as farts, or curse them back harshly and let them know you are not to be trifled with!"
Zhong Xiaoxiao's eyes became brighter and brighter as she listened, and the grievances and uneasiness she had felt before were long gone.
She looked at Zhang Chunxue with admiration: "Mom! You're amazing! You know all this!"
Zhang Chunxue just smiled faintly and said nothing more.
But she thought to herself that she was a person who had lived a new life after all. What kind of filthiness had she not seen in her previous life, what were those people's tricks?
In this life, she would never let herself and her children suffer that kind of humiliation again.
The mother and daughter held Zhong Hongqing's hand and talked as they soon arrived at the tofu shop at the west end of the village.
Zhang Chunxue picked out a piece of the freshest tender tofu and weighed some bean sprouts before paying.
When I got home, it was already dark.
Zhang Chunxue put the tofu on the kitchen chopping board and started rolling up her sleeves to prepare dinner.
Zhong Xiaoxiao also obediently followed beside and helped pick and wash vegetables, her little face once again filled with anticipation and excitement.
After a while, Zhou Mingli also came back from get off work.
She was holding an oil-paper bag in her hand, and as she walked in, she said with a smile, "Chunxue, I passed by the delicatessen at the corner of the street, and saw that their braised pig's head was quite good today. It smelled delicious, so I bought some back to add to my dish."
Zhang Chunxue took the oil-paper package, sniffed it, and found it indeed fragrant. She smiled and said, "You bought this at the perfect time. I've invited Secretary Song to dinner tonight."
When Zhou Mingli heard this, her eyes lit up immediately, a surprised smile appeared on her face, and she nodded repeatedly: "Of course, of course!"
"Clerk Song has done so much for our family, helping me find a job. We should treat him to a nice meal! This pork head is perfect, perfect with wine!"
Zhang Chunxue placed the pork head on the chopping board, and before she even dropped the knife, she casually said, "By the way, Mingli, Chengren is back."
Zhou Mingli was taking off her coat. When she heard this, she paused and the smile on her face faded a little, leaving only a faint shadow.
She responded in a low voice: "Is, is that so..."
Zhang Chunxue glanced at her and cut the tofu into thick slices. "You have your own job now, with a salary that can support yourself. Why are you still afraid of him? Why do you care about him?"
"Mom, I don't care." Zhou Mingli bit her lip and nodded vigorously, "From now on, I will live my own life."
Zhang Chunxue hummed in satisfaction, poured the bean sprouts into the basin of water to soak, and said no more.
It was getting dark outside the kitchen window, and a ray of sunset glow shone in obliquely, making the chopping board look red.
Suddenly, footsteps were heard outside the door, and Zhong Xiaoxiao exclaimed in a low voice, "Teacher Song!"
When Song Xingzhi pushed the door open and walked in, he was wearing a light grey shirt and looked remarkably refreshed. He was carrying a paper bag, two bottles of wine, and two large food containers from a state-owned restaurant.
"Oh, we're here so soon!" Zhong Xiaoxiao's eyes lit up and she trotted over to help pick up the things.
Song Xingzhi handed her the candy with a smile: "Sister Chunxue, Mingli, are you all right?"
Zhou Mingli quickly wiped her hands and came out to greet him. Her voice softened before she even reached him: "Secretary Song, long time no see!"
Zhang Chunxue's eyebrows immediately shot up when she saw him carrying so many things. "What are you doing? Didn't we say we'd just have a home-cooked meal? Just show up, why are you buying all this?"
Song Xingzhi placed the gift on the table and replied calmly, "How can you go to someone else's house for dinner empty-handed? This is the rule."
The two looked at each other, one with a smile on his face and the other pretending to be angry, but neither of them looked away.
The air seemed to be filled with hot smoke, slightly thicker than the stew in the pot.
At this time, the door of the main room was pushed open and a gust of wind blew in.
Zhong Chengyi walked into the yard, dusting off the dirt while shouting, "Mom, I'm back—"
As soon as he stepped into the kitchen, he saw Song Xingzhi stunned. He subconsciously frowned and asked, "Huh? Why is... Secretary Song here too today?"
Zhang Chunxue glanced at him, her tone calm but commanding, "I'd like to treat Secretary Song to a meal. Is that a problem?"
Zhong Chengyi quickly waved his hands and leaned his schoolbag against the wall. "How dare I object! You, old man, have the final say on family matters. I'm just curious..."
He paused here, then added smartly, "Come to think of it, it's right to treat him. After all, it's because the clerk helped my second sister-in-law find a job that we're in this situation today!"
He forced a flattering and awkward smile at Song Xingzhi, then stretched his neck to look at the box of braised food on the kitchen stove, his nostrils twitching slightly. The aroma made his stomach growl.
"Clerk Song, would you like to sit in the main hall for a while?" Zhong Chengyi moved closer, nudged Song Xingzhi with his elbow, and whispered, "Men should chat with each other, but don't always hang out with women. It's not nice to be disliked for being nagging."
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