“A mother can’t be too biased. The second son was dressed so well when he went to town to buy things today; look at the eldest son, his clothes are not only worn out, but also patched up with piles of holes, and the wind can’t even keep him out. He does all the hard and dirty work at home by himself. Outsiders would think he was picked up off the street…”
Zhu Xiuqin's heart skipped a beat, as if something had hit her. She jumped up from the stool in a panic, her expression somewhat embarrassed.
"Oh dear, how could I not love both my sons? They're both my flesh and blood, how could I possibly favor one over the other! You mustn't listen to those baseless rumors circulating outside."
“Eldest daughter-in-law, you’re going too far with what you’re saying. I never asked you to give up all your dowry. I just thought you should make a decent dress for the second son. It’s okay if you don’t want to.”
"Of course not."
“I’m the eldest son’s wife, not someone to be a slave to your whole family.”
Seeing that the situation was just right, Su Qingzhi thought to herself that the opportunity was perfect, and took the opportunity to say what she had been holding back for a long time.
"Mom, you still say you haven't favored anyone? Then tell me, I heard that the job my second brother was doing at the supply and marketing cooperative was originally assigned to the eldest brother? Who asked him to give it up? Was it you?"
Her tone was aggressive.
"The eldest son was born hardworking and capable. Back then, in order to support the family, he did those hard and low-paying jobs in the production team every day, earning work points day after day to support everyone in the family. But you never thought of speaking up for him or showing him any love? Even buying him a set of clothes would have been enough."
“Look around our family, who’s dressed poorly? Only Shen Cunpu wears old clothes and shoes from morning till night, looking disheveled. Don’t you treat him like your own son at all?”
Zhu Xiuqin was speechless for a moment, her face flushed red and then turned pale. She stammered for a long time before waving her hands in denial.
"I...I didn't mean that...it's just that he's never really paid attention to these little things. I didn't even ask him if he wanted to buy new clothes. If he had just said yes, how could I not want to?"
Su Qingzhi chuckled coldly twice and did not press the matter further.
"Mom, you're right."
It was Shen Cunpu who spoke after a long silence.
He raised his eyes and looked at Zhu Xiuqin, his gaze calm.
"If you offer to buy it for me, I will accept it."
"That's right, who can resist wearing new clothes? Once you change your clothes, your whole demeanor and spirit are completely different."
Su Qingzhi smiled broadly.
“Especially the eldest brother works hard every day, he deserves a decent set of clothes.”
Several neighbors chimed in.
“Sister Zhang, Cunpu is such a capable boy, you should take care of him too.”
"That's right, Auntie. The eldest son is the pillar of this family. He's the one who carries water, chops firewood, farms, and hauls grain every day. The whole family depends on him to keep things going. We have to take good care of him, otherwise, where would he get the strength to support the whole family?"
...
The words spoken by the crowd were all reasonable, and Zhu Xiuqin blushed deeply.
After thinking for a moment, she finally gritted her teeth and went inside. She took out a crumpled twenty-yuan note, came out, and handed it to Su Qingzhi: "Here you go. Take it and buy some decent clothes. The eldest brother's clothes can't be too shabby. We should all have some dignity."
Su Qingzhi accepted the money without hesitation.
She gathered the money in both hands, then turned to look at Zhu Xiuqin with a smile.
"Thank you, Mom."
After saying that, she happily took Shen Cunpu's arm.
"Honey, let's go to the market today and buy some clothes while we're there."
Upon hearing this, Shen Mingyu and Shen Xingxing immediately came over, jumping up and down, saying, "Sister-in-law, sister-in-law! We want to go too! Take us with you!"
"Sure, let's all have a good time together as a family."
Su Qingzhi nodded in agreement.
The neighbors saw that the matter on this side had come to an end.
Everyone left satisfied.
Soon, only the rustling of leaves in the wind could be heard in the courtyard.
Zhu Xiuqin waited until the courtyard was completely empty before she could no longer maintain her smile.
She sat heavily on the stone bench in the courtyard.
With a "bang," it was as if the last breath in one's heart had been released.
This time, instead of succeeding in stealing a chicken, they lost their rice!
Just now, they were spouting a bunch of plausible arguments.
As a result, not only did he fail to get his hands on Su Qingzhi's money, he also lost twenty yuan himself.
She gritted her teeth, her eyes reddening with anger, and grabbed the remaining meat from the table.
He picked it up with a "whoosh" and stuffed it into his mouth.
"Hmph! I refuse to believe I can't handle you!"
Her teeth were practically grinding the piece of meat into pieces as she chewed, muttering threats as she did so.
"With that aggressive mouth of yours, you'll get what's coming to you sooner or later! You'll be sorry!"
On the other side, Su Qingzhi had already taken Shen Cunpu's hand and was happily walking outside.
Two teenagers ran and shouted as they went.
"Sister-in-law! The candied hawthorns at the market are a real bargain today, only two cents a skewer! They're sweet and juicy!"
“Absolutely,” Shen Xingxing added, “Those bright red hawthorns coated in glistening sugar make your mouth water just looking at them!”
"Who said I took you there? Get to school and register right now!"
Shen Cunpu sternly chased the two away, then pulled Su Qingzhi to the big tree and gently brushed the stray hairs behind her ear.
"Honey, I'm sorry you had to go through that."
"That's just how my mom is; she's often unreasonable."
He paused, his fingertips gently stroking her temples.
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