Chapter 56 Chapter 56 (Second update) "Let's get out of here...
Xu Yingxia came this time mainly to exchange some meat coupons and the roast chicken she had eaten at Liu's house last time. After returning home, her two children often talked about it and she thought it was very delicious, so she thought of asking her grandfather to help order another one.
"It's easy. I'll just tell him when he comes back." Qian Yuying was very straightforward. She went back to the house and took out three one-kilogram meat tickets. She didn't take the money she handed over and said, "We won't exchange money. When Xiao Jiang is free, let her get more bait for the old man. Thanks to the bait she got, the old man finally didn't come back empty-handed. He looks more energetic than before."
She was really grateful to Xiao Jiang for this.
Originally, because of Xiao Mao'er's incident, the old man didn't even dare to go out of the yard and stayed at home watching over him every day, for fear that Xiao Mao'er would be kidnapped again.
Fortunately, Xiao Jiang helped to persuade the old man and prepared some bait for him to continue fishing. His spirits have been getting better and better these days, so the younger generation feel more relieved.
"That won't do. Let's keep things separate." Xu Yingxia disagreed and stuffed the money into her hand.
"Look at you... OK, OK, that's it." Qian Yuying smiled helplessly, and stood up again as if she remembered something, "Wait a moment."
He went back to the house and rummaged around for a while. When he came out, he was holding a small porcelain jar in his hand. "These are some pickled vegetables I made myself. They're not very rare, but they're made the way they're made in my hometown. They're sweet. You can try them."
"What a great thing!" Xu Yingxia praised, "My kid loves sweet food, so his sister used a handful of candy to order him to do this and that, not to mention cleaning the house."
When it comes to how to raise a child, she obeys no one but Shuangshuang.
She managed to raise a naughty kid who was hated by others into a good boy who could both cook and cook. She dared to say with confidence that whoever would marry her boy in the future would not be able to enjoy a good life but would definitely feel much more relaxed.
It can do housework and cook, which saves a lot of trouble.
"Speaking of this, I really want to ask him for advice. My grandfather said that the fish cooked by Jiang Xiaozhou is especially delicious. I'll ask him to teach me when he's free."
"Sure, any day will do."
The two of them chatted back and forth, forgetting the time as they talked.
It was not until Mr. Liu came in carrying a fishing rod that Xu Yingxia realized it was time for dinner. She stood up quickly and said, "It's already this late. I have to go back quickly."
"Why go back? Just eat here." Mr. Liu stopped the man and said mysteriously, "If you don't stay, I won't tell you who I just met."
Xu Yingxia looked puzzled, "Who is it?"
Grandpa Liu didn't respond to her, but took out two pike from the bucket and said, "Second brother's wife, kill a fish and steam it. You and Comrade Xiao Xu can eat and chat later."
"You are not allowed to leave. Eat here. This fish was caught thanks to your family. If you don't eat it, who will?" Qian Yuying really wanted to keep her guest.
Even though there was not enough food now and everyone who visited had to bring their own food, she really enjoyed interacting with Xu Yingxia's family. It was just a meal, so it was hard to say who was losing and who was gaining.
Faced with the Liu family's warm hospitality, Xu Yingxia had no choice but to stay, thinking that they would send something back in a few days. She couldn't really take advantage of them.
Thinking this way, she felt nothing to be embarrassed about. She didn't want to be shy when someone invited her so warmly. She asked during the meal, "Master, can you tell me now? Who did you see just now?"
"Your twins."
"What's so mysterious about meeting Shuangshuang..." Just after saying this, Xu Yingxia seemed to remember something and asked quickly: "Did you meet Shuangshuang's partner?"
Qian Yuying was also very curious this time, "Dad, did you really see it?"
Old man Liu nodded and raised three fingers. "I met him three times, all in the park."
I met Shuangshuang and her girlfriend in the park earlier.
After a formal introduction, he also mentioned that he would bring him home in the near future, so when he met Xiao Xu this time, he did not hide the fact that "Last time, Xiao Maoer was kidnapped by traffickers, and it was Comrade Xiao Cheng and Shuang Shuang who rescued him. At that time, the two of them were chatting in the pavilion of the small park."
"What a coincidence?" Qian Yuying was delighted. "Then I must invite Shuangshuang and Comrade Xiao Cheng to come over for dinner. I must thank him very much."
Xu Yingxia was puzzled. "On the day Xiao Maoer was kidnapped...didn't Shuangshuang meet Cheng Jin?"
Mr. Liu heard her mumbling and nodded, "Yes, it's Cheng Jin."
This scared Xu Yingxia, "Cheng Jin? How could it be Cheng Jin?!"
"Uh... that's him." This puzzled Old Man Liu. What happened to Cheng Jin? Why did he look at Xiao Xu in surprise?
"No, no, no, it can't be Cheng Jin. Didn't he go back a long time ago? Our two children can't stay with him." Xu Yingxia was really frightened. She really looked down on Cheng Jin as her son-in-law. She thought that Comrade Cheng was the man who drove the big jeep to take them back to the city that day, not the Cheng Jin who couldn't utter a word for a long time.
"Why does the name Cheng Jin sound so familiar to me?" Qian Yuying frowned. It really sounded familiar but she couldn't think of where she had heard it for a while.
"How could he not sound familiar? He's the Cheng family kid who was having an affair with Jiang Nannan." Xu Yingxia was so anxious that she didn't even bother to eat. She stood up and gestured with her hands: "Old man, is the person you saw this tall or this tall? Does he look tough or delicate? He won't be the type who stutters when he speaks, right?"
Qian Yuying was reminded by her and finally remembered who Cheng Jin was. Everyone in their district had heard about the messy affairs of the Jiang family. Even though more than half a month had passed, some people still used their family as a topic of conversation and would talk about it endlessly.
The main reason is that the Jiang family has too many things to talk about.
Jiang Qing's story, Jiang Nannan's story, and Jiang Xiaopeng who was sent to the farm for reform, we really couldn't stop talking for hours.
She also looked at the old man, "Did you get the name wrong? I heard people mention Cheng Jin, and he is definitely not someone you can trust."
"Are you sure?" Old man Liu was confused by them.
What he cares about most is fishing, or playing chess with others. He really doesn't like to join in the fun and chat with others.
Even if I had heard about the things about the Jiang family, I would forget them as soon as I heard them, and I couldn't even remember their names, so I really didn't know who the Cheng Jin they were talking about was.
Then he gestured like Xiao Xu, "He's half a head taller than me, but he doesn't look tough. I saw that the smile on his face when he looked at Xiao Jiang was quite gentle. He's also good-looking, and many girls passing by looked over here."
Xu Yingxia breathed a sigh of relief when she saw him making the gesture.
Cheng Jin is not that tall. Comrade Cheng and Mr. Liu are about the same height. "Then it shouldn't be Cheng Jin. Why do they have the same name?"
Qian Yuying also asked, "Dad, did you remember it wrong? Which course is it? Which one is it?"
Old Liu shook his head. "I don't know."
"It's okay, it's okay. I'll ask Shuangshuang when I get back." Xu Yingxia waved her hands, picked up her chopsticks and continued eating. She thought that she would ask when she got back.
Either I remembered it wrong, or it was just a coincidence.
But this...isn't it too coincidental?
With something on her mind, Xu Yingxia was unable to work properly the whole afternoon. She had already piled up a lot of work in the morning, and was absent-minded in the afternoon and failed to keep up with the progress. If it weren't for a familiar colleague who helped cover up for her, she would have been criticized by the director.
But at this moment, I really couldn't care about these things. I hurried home after work. As a result, I was stopped by Xu Tan before I left the factory gate. "Aunt, I told my family about what happened that day. Dad plans to come over tomorrow to give us money and some clothes to change."
"Your dad is coming over?" Xu Yingxia couldn't remember when her younger brother came over last time. Even if he came, he left on the same day and brought a few cakes with him for fear of having to eat at her house.
He thought that if he ate one more bite, his elder sister and nephews would have to eat one less bite, so no matter how much they were persuaded, they refused to eat.
If you are really hungry, just go to the yard and fetch some well water to drink.
It can hold out for a while if it is full of water.
But at that time, her family really didn’t have much to eat, and they couldn’t afford to treat him, so she quickly said, “Pick up your dad tomorrow, but don’t let him go like this. Send him to your eldest aunt’s house.”
Fearing that Xu Tan would not listen, he stressed: "You must deliver it. If you leave without even saying hello, I will be very angry."
"Okay, I'll definitely send it over." Xu Tan smiled, "Mom said the harvest is good this year, so she asked Dad to bring you some rice. He will definitely come over."
"Keep it for yourself, why are you bringing it to me?" Xu Yingxia wanted to refuse, but Xu Tan turned around and ran away. He waved at her after running a few steps, "Aunt, I'm going to the cafeteria to eat first. See you tomorrow!"
"...This child." Xu Yingxia glared at him unhappily, but she still felt relieved in her heart.
It was worth it that she had been taking care of her younger brother since he was young. Whenever his family got something, they would always give it to her. Unlike that black-hearted elder brother, it must have been a sin for him to be his brother.
This delay doesn't make me so anxious anymore.
I walked all the way home, and when I saw that Jiang Shuangshuang hadn't come back yet, I drank a glass of water and sat on a chair waiting.
After waiting for about ten minutes, Jiang Shuangshuang did not go back to the house directly, but went to the stove first.
Jiang Xiaozhou has already started school and cannot come back for lunch, but he finishes school early in the afternoon, so the dinner is still his responsibility.
As soon as he got home from school, he went into the kitchen and started busying himself.
After lighting the fire in the stove, we have to smoke the pork for two or three hours. Master Cao said that we must smoke the pork for two or three hours every day without fail. If we persist for a month and a half, we will harvest a batch of extremely delicious smoked meat.
This job is more exciting than studying.
He felt drowsy in class, but was so busy and energetic in the kitchen that he didn't even notice his mother coming back. If his second sister hadn't pushed open the door of the kitchen, he wouldn't have known it was time to get off work.
There is no clock or watch at home, so it is difficult to calculate time.
But there was a gap of two and a half hours between his school time and his second sister's get off work time, so every time his second sister came back he could put out the fire and start cooking their dinner tonight.
"You don't have to cook tonight. Just heat this up and make a pot of rice." Jiang Shuangshuang handed over two lunch boxes.
I went out to eat with Comrade Cheng again at noon today. Since we had plenty of time, we did not go to the nearby state-owned hotel, but instead took a detour to eat at a state-owned mutton restaurant.
After having a pot of mutton hotpot, which was milky white and not greasy, and paired with steaming mutton soup, she seemed to have found the motivation to make money at that moment.
Just for this bite of food, she has to spend a lot of money!
Without those entertainments, we can't even have a bite of delicious food, right?
Of course, she's not the only one who has to make money.
She also has to urge Comrade Cheng to make a lot of money.
Apart from anything else, it must be common for me to go out to eat with her, and if I don't save money carefully, I can't afford her spending.
After finishing the shabu-shabu, Comrade Cheng suggested packing up a portion of halved lamb chops for her and her family to eat in the evening.
Jiang Shuangshuang naturally would not refuse this excellent proposal.
Look, a portion of halved lamb chops that hadn’t even been touched was packed up.
"Wow! Spare ribs! It's spare ribs!" Jiang Xiaozhou's eyes widened when he saw the food in the lunch box. He took a deep breath and the aroma made him very hungry, but he was a little confused: "Sister, what kind of meat is this? Why doesn't it look like pork?"
"Balcon chops." Jiang Shuangshuang patted his shoulder and drew a bigger cake for him. "Work hard, and I'll take you to eat mutton hotpot in the future."
"Okay!" Jiang Xiaozhou nodded frantically.
I swear that I will work hard!
In fact, he vaguely knew that his second sister was coaxing him, but he also ate a lot of things he had never eaten before, like the lamb chops this time. He had only heard of lamb before, but never knew what lamb tasted like.
So, it’s always right to listen to your second sister!
He put the pot on the stove and went to the well to fetch water.
Master Cao told him that if one wanted to preserve the original flavor of halved vegetables like this, they could be steamed over high heat.
I didn't have a chance to try it before, but now is the time to try it.
As soon as he came over with the wooden bucket, Fengzi came running over and said, "Boss, if you need to fetch water, just call me. Why do you have to do this kind of work by yourself? Come on, I'll fetch it for you!"
Jiang Xiaozhou had no idea what he was thinking, "There's no fish soup to drink today."
Fengzi felt a little regretful when she heard this, but she said nicely, "It's okay. I'm not following you just for the fish soup. I just think you're very loyal! If you were a few years older, I would have wanted my sister to marry you."
"Don't!" Jiang Xiaozhou was frightened by him.
Fengzi smiled foolishly, "Hehe, there is no fish soup today, but there may be one tomorrow. As long as he follows the boss, he can always get a sip!"
The boss in particular is very easy to talk to, and when he is in a good mood he is willing to scrape some fish meat for them to eat. Who wouldn't want to follow such a generous boss?
He said, "I'm serious. It's better for my sister to marry you than to marry a stingy man. You don't know how stingy my brother-in-law is. The candy he gave me was licked by him before!"
But in the end he was reluctant to throw it away, so he put it in hot water, washed it, and ate it.
How could Jiang Xiaozhou not know this?
Living in a big house, and with Fengzi being a big mouth, the whole neighborhood knew about it, making the brother-in-law too embarrassed to come to his house anymore.
"Big brother, I heard from Mrs. You that your second sister has also found a partner." Fengzi asked while drawing water from the well, "Is your future brother-in-law a door-opener?"
Jiang Xiaozhou was silent.
Although his family didn't tell him, they didn't hide it from him either, so he actually knew that his second sister had found a partner. These past two days, his mother had been busy inside and outside, thinking about how to entertain his future brother-in-law.
I don't know what kind of person he is...
You wouldn't be like Brother Fengzi, and give him a candy that he has eaten before, right?
So should he throw it away?
No...I'm a little reluctant.
How about doing the same as bees and washing them before eating?
But half an hour later, Jiang Xiaozhou forgot about his future brother-in-law, mainly because the lamb chops tasted so delicious!
It smelled so good that he almost buried his head in the bowl and forgot what he was eating. He only knew that this lamb chops was definitely one of the most delicious foods he had ever eaten!
So much so that he was still eating lamb chops in his dream that night.
He was reluctant to stop even though his belly was bloated, and finally... with a "bang" he turned into a curly-haired lamb, which scared him so much that he jumped out of bed.
Xu Yingxia heard the noise and looked into his room through the partition. "Why haven't you gotten up yet? Hurry up, or you'll be late."
"Mom, I dreamed that I turned into a sheep. It was so scary!"
"What's up? Did you dream that you were skinned and roasted?"
"..." Jiang Xiaozhou didn't want to talk anymore.
Mom is even scarier than his dreams!
Xu Yingxia found his incomprehensible expression funny and stopped teasing him. Instead, she said, "Your uncle will be coming over tonight. Remember to cook more food for three people. Go to Mr. Zhou's house to borrow some peppers. I'll bring some meat back tonight and stir-fry it."
"Okay!" Jiang Xiaozhou was immediately happy. He would have meat to eat in the evening again!
I really hope my uncle will come soon.
…
On the other hand, Ma Jian was also looking forward to Li Zhen's return. When she left, she took her two nephews away. He and the two children were left alone at home. He couldn't sleep well at night.
He was woken up by nightmares several times, fearing that Jiang Qing would suddenly kick open the door and rush towards him.
After being tortured for several days, he missed Li Zhen so much.
Fortunately, this morning when she was about to go to work, she saw Li Zhen walking over with a boy of about seven or eight years old. Without exaggeration, when he saw her, tears started to flow down his face. He rushed to her and said, "You're finally back!"
"..." Li Zhen looked puzzled.
They don't seem to be close enough to the point where they miss each other so much after being apart for a few days, right?
However, in front of her son, she didn't say much. Instead, she half-knelt down and said with some unfamiliarity but deep tenderness, "This is Uncle Ma. You can call him... Dad."
Doudou said crisply, "Okay."
Not only did he agree quickly, he also comforted her, "Don't worry, mom, I will be obedient."
Li Zhen pursed her lips and her eyes instantly turned red.
Doudou's adoptive parents are really nice. They raised and educated him well, and they really love him as their own son. They would not have sent him back if something hadn't happened at home.
But because of this, Li Zhen felt that she was mistreating her child.
Because Doudou stayed with her, not only did her living conditions become worse, but she also encountered more gossip.
On the way here, many people had been asking Doudou, openly or secretly, about whose family she was from. Even if she made up a reason, the way those people looked at her made her very unhappy.
But what can we do?
She could only blame herself for being an incompetent mother who was unable to protect him from the wind and rain.
"Is this Doudou? You guys go back to the house and rest first. I'll go buy you some meat buns!" Ma Jian said as he ran away. He even said hello to the people he knew on the road. "Xiao Chen, when you go to the factory, ask for leave for me. Just say my son is back and I'll go back to work in the afternoon."
"Your son? Hasn't your son been at home all the time?" Xiao Chen looked confused, but no one was there to answer his question. Ma Jian just said a few words and disappeared.
I bought ten big meat buns at the state-owned hotel.
Although it hurt, Majian paid without hesitation. He shared the ten buns between two adults and three children, giving each person exactly two.
He has to spend the money, otherwise he will be too embarrassed to ask for it later.
When he returned home, Doudou had already fallen asleep on Guanjun's bed.
Li Zhen looked at the buns in his hand and frowned slightly, "Why did you buy so many?"
"Not much, not much, two each." Ma Jian thought she was blaming him for spending money recklessly, and hurriedly said, "Aren't you going out of town? I'll collect my salary first, but don't worry, I'll give you everything later."
"That's not my intention. Just buy the children's portion in the future." Li Zhen took the buns and waved to the two siblings, "Come here."
Since their mother came into the family, the lives of the two siblings have changed a lot.
Ma Guanjun's life has become much harder. In the past, he was spoiled by his grandmother and could get what he wanted by howling a few times if he was not satisfied. But after his stepmother came into the family, he has been beaten countless times.
If you don't listen, your stepmother will slap you on the hand.
He was making a lot of noise and yelling, and his cousin Li kicked him on the butt.
It’s not okay to be not obedient.
Compared to Ma Guanjun's "miserable" days, Ma Hongjuan is much happier. Her grandmother would not point at her and scold her for paying money, and she would not be ridden like a horse by her younger brother. Although she still has to do housework, her stepmother helps her share a lot of the work, so she always has free time to go downstairs and play.
More importantly, now she eats as much as her younger brother eats, unlike when her grandmother was around, when the amount of food in her bowl was only half of her younger brother's.
So, she really likes her stepmother very much!
She also likes the two cousins brought by her stepmother. When her younger brother or the kids outside bully her, her cousins will stand up for her. It would be great if her stepmother and cousins could always be there.
Seeing her stepmother waving at them, Ma Hongjuan immediately went over and called out sweetly, "Mom."
Ma Guanjun was reluctant but did not dare to disobey and followed his sister.
Li Zhen put a meat bun in each of their hands and said, "One for each of you, and save the rest for lunch."
As soon as the division was over, Ma Jian started to shoo people away, "You guys go out and play first."
The two siblings did not move, but looked up at Li Zhen.
Li Zhen had already seen that Ma Jian had something to say to her, so she nodded to the two siblings and warned the naughty boy, "If I find out that you snatched my meat buns, you won't be able to eat today."
"...I won't rob!" Ma Guanjun was so frightened that he quickly dismissed the idea. How could she be so powerful that she knew everything he was thinking? !
What a terrible woman.
The two siblings walked out of the room obediently. Ma Jian quickly closed the door and said to Li Zhen impatiently, "Let's get out of here!"
Li Zhen was stunned. "Leave? Where else can we go if we leave here?"
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