Old Mrs. Chen was quite pleased to see her family so united and supportive of her decisions. However, even a single rotten apple in the porridge could spoil their mood!
However, she couldn't do anything to her third daughter-in-law. She couldn't very well kick her out of the house, could she? No matter how lazy or gluttonous she was, she had followed them this far. Considering that they had accompanied her for so long, Old Lady Chen couldn't go too far!
As for Song'er and Shao'er getting lost, she still couldn't believe her daughter-in-law would be so cruel until she found out the truth. After all, in her opinion, although Mo was a gossipy, greedy, and lazy person, she wasn't that malicious. As for whether she had been tricked by someone else, that was hard to say!
Mo was still somewhat wary of Old Mrs. Chen. She felt that her husband wasn't exactly tough, and that her mother-in-law held absolute power in the family. Having been rebuffed, Mo didn't dare get angry, and said with a forced smile, "I was just saying. How could I really not wait for my nephew to eat? Besides, Ah Song is quite capable now; he's doing business alongside Da Wa!"
"You know that's good! You'll be cleaning up the dishes after dinner today, and you can also wash all the dirty clothes in the house!" Old Mrs. Chen wasn't going to let her off the hook. If she hadn't specifically named her, this task would definitely have fallen to her other two daughters-in-law.
The eldest and second daughters-in-law exchanged a glance, neither of them saying a word, but their eyes were filled with joy. These three sisters-in-law were really outrageous, always shirking their responsibilities when it came to chores. They couldn't very well complain to their mother-in-law, otherwise they would inevitably have a verbal battle!
What? This works?
The eldest and second eldest brothers of the Lu family were chopping firewood outside with their father. They could hear everything clearly coming from inside, but being men, they couldn't say anything to their younger brother and sister-in-law. After all, their younger brother was in the middle, and he was a reasonable person. Besides, which family doesn't have its share of troubles? Their family was actually considered good! At least their parents were kind and gentle.
"Song'er is back!" Old Man Lu, who was resting nearby, was the first to see his grandson approaching. He was increasingly pleased with his grandson.
Previously, Old Man Lu thought his eldest son was the best in Lu Family Village, both in terms of character and ability! Now, he felt that his grandson Lu Song was the hope of the Lu family, and he vaguely felt that the prosperity of the Lu family would probably depend on his eldest grandson!
Seeing that his grandfather was still working, Lu Song quickly strode over to them. Having been around Da Wa for a long time, he had also interacted with all sorts of people, and his personality had become much more stable than before, showing a calm and composed demeanor.
"Grandpa, Father, Second Uncle, you all need to rest for a while. I'll take care of the rest."
Grandpa and the others have almost finished. There's still some firewood to chop, which he'll treat as practice for now, since he's currently practicing martial arts!
"These are mooncakes that Auntie San and Granny Liu gave us. I couldn't refuse them, so I brought them back for everyone to try."
"What, mooncakes?" The Lu family elders were taken aback.
Boss Lu was the first to react, "Yes, isn't it almost Mid-Autumn Festival? We have to make mooncakes! Wow, these mooncakes smell so good, they're definitely loaded with fillings! They're sure to be delicious!"
"Oh my, it smells really good. The patterns on it are also quite unique. I haven't had mooncakes in a long time."
...
Old Man Lu stopped thinking about it so much. They'd settled in Shiligou, and with so many favors owed, he'd come to terms with it. Fine, he'd pay them back slowly! He still had his son to pay them off, then his grandson and great-grandson…
The mooncakes that Lu Song brought back were unanimously worshipped by the whole family. Several children gathered around, their mouths watering from the enticing aroma. Even Shao'er, who was usually very restrained, had his eyes sparkling.
Not wanting the children to be envious, Old Mrs. Chen quickly took a few to share. However, because the mooncakes tasted different, the children looked at each other, each thinking that the other's mooncake must taste better.
Old Mrs. Chen sighed. She had originally planned to keep two for the children as snacks, but now there was no need to keep them. She should cut them into pieces and divide them up so that everyone could have their fill.
The Lu family ate to their hearts' content; they had never tasted such delicious mooncakes before.
Zhang was the best cook in the family, and she was the one who made mooncakes for the Mid-Autumn Festival. Zhang considered herself to be quite skilled, but she was still far inferior to the ones made by Da Wa's mother.
"Eldest daughter-in-law, the mixed sugar mooncakes you made are quite delicious. Make a few tomorrow and send them to Da Wa's family, as a way of returning the favor!" Old Mrs. Chen said suddenly after taking the last bite of her mooncake.
Zhang was taken aback, clearly not expecting her mother-in-law to ask her to make mooncakes. After all, their family's circumstances...
Old Man Lu also said, "If your mother tells you to do it, then do it. This is the first time our family has spent the Mid-Autumn Festival in the south. We still need to pay respects to our ancestors, let them know we are safe, and pray that they can bless us so that we can settle down as soon as possible. Don't worry about the money. Haven't the brothers earned some money these past few days?"
"Sister-in-law's cooking is excellent, and her mixed sugar mooncakes are delicious. I can help out!" Madam Mo quickly said, her mouth full of sweetness making her reluctant to swallow.
Zhang's cooking skills were so good that no one knew it better than her, her sister-in-law who loved to eat. Before, her eldest sister-in-law had lost her children and had no heart to cook. During that time, her mother-in-law and second sister-in-law were in charge of cooking. Oh my, it was not human food at all, it was even worse than pig food!
Old Mrs. Chen ignored her, thinking to herself, "If you help, how can there be any left over?"
"Okay, your second son's wife will come with you. We'll go to town together tomorrow to buy some ingredients. We're also short of some seasonings at home. We don't need soybean oil, but we can buy some lard to render oil. We'll also buy a little salt."
Soybean oil is too expensive; they can't afford it! Salt is expensive, and sugar is even more expensive! Old Mrs. Chen felt a pang of heartache, but she had other plans and naturally wouldn't dwell on the pain at this moment.
After the meal, everyone went about their own business. Mo slowly took the bowls to the well in the backyard to wash them. Ah, thank goodness there was a well; this was much better than washing dishes by the river! After mentally preparing herself, Mo happily started washing the dishes.
"Grandpa, Grandma." Seeing that the two elderly people were alone, Lu Song quickly went forward and closed the door.
Seeing his actions, Old Man Lu knew that his grandson was planning to talk to him about something! He couldn't help but feel happy. Look how perceptive his eldest grandson was!
When Old Mrs. Chen saw him come in, she still didn't shy away from taking out her bundle from under the bedside cabinet. Her sons' wages were all in there!
The small cabinet is usually locked. She's not worried that her family would dare to steal money; she's just used to it and keeps it as a precaution.
As she calculated tomorrow's expenses, Old Mrs. Chen counted her coins with difficulty, her eyes clouded.
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