Two days before the Qingming Festival, Xu Yan and his parents returned home one after another. Xu Lai got up early to go to the street to buy groceries. This was the first time the family had all gathered together since the Lantern Festival.
She bought a pig's trotter, and when she saw that it had a pig's belly, she asked the vendor to pack it up for her. She also bought two pounds of prawns and one pound of chicken feet.
When I got home, my mother texted me, saying that she had gotten off the highway and would be home in about 20 minutes. Because they had bought a house in the county, they didn't have enough money to buy a car. If they wanted to go home, they could only hitch a ride or take the high-speed train to the county.
Xu Yan was also on the bus home; he had bought a ticket for the earliest high-speed train.
Xu Lai then started cooking. She brought a microphone today to record the sound, as some people had commented that the sound in her previous videos was too low and they couldn't hear it at normal volume. Now, her videos have received hundreds of likes, and Xu Lai feels that making a little progress every day is quite good.
She explained, "Wash the pig stomach clean, blanch it, slice it, heat oil, add the pig stomach and stir-fry with some pepper, then transfer it to a casserole, add ginseng and astragalus, boil over high heat for an hour, add chopped chicken pieces, and boil for another half hour."
Because she had made pork tripe and chicken soup, she put the pig's trotters in the refrigerator, planning to cook her mother's specialty, braised pig's trotters, when she came back.
Xu Lai had just finished preparing the dishes when the phone rang. Xu Yan's voice came through: "Sister, I've arrived in town. Can you come and pick me up?"
She said okay and rode her electric scooter to town. Xu Yan didn't wait for her there. He was heading home when Xu Lai picked him up. He had already traveled a third of the way.
Xu Yan only brought a bag with him when he came back. He climbed onto the back seat, and Xu Lai felt the weight behind him and complained, "Xu Yan, have you gotten heavier again? You're going to flatten this little electric scooter."
Xu Yan is tall and weighs at least 130 pounds. Hearing this, he said, "How about we switch? I'll ride the bike."
Xu Lai ignored him; it was only a few minutes' drive from home, why bother?
When Xu Yan got home, she went to see her grandparents first before going to her room to put her things away.
A short while later, there was a noise at the door; it was Mr. and Mrs. Xu returning home.
As soon as Xu Lai returned, she started cooking. Today, she made a chicken feet stew. She cut potatoes and corn into chunks, blanched the chicken feet, pan-fried the shrimp and potatoes, and then stir-fried the seasonings in the remaining oil. She added the chicken feet, stir-fried them for a few seconds, and then added beer and hot water to simmer.
Finally, make some lettuce with oyster sauce, and then it's ready to eat.
Xu Lai was raised by her grandparents, so she was never very close to her parents. When they were in school, they didn't see each other often, which was fine.
When she goes home for vacation, she often stays in her own room because her dad often watches TV in the living room. She feels uncomfortable if she can't be in the same space as him.
When they returned this time, Xu Lai was indifferent. She was long past the age of needing to rely on her parents, even though she was still a child in their eyes.
Xu Zhicheng was in a good mood. His son and daughter were both home, and there was a hot meal waiting for him as soon as he got back. He even drank half a glass of wine at noon.
Once this man started drinking, the alcohol kicked in, and he became lazy and started talking. He looked at Xu Lai and asked, "Xiao Lai, when are you and Xu Zhou going to settle down? You two have been talking for so long, I think you should get married this Chinese New Year."
Xu Lai gripped her chopsticks tightly and said, "Dad, don't you know? He and I have broken up?"
Xu Zhicheng exclaimed in disbelief, "What? You actually broke up with him? Who told you to break up with him? He's a resident of City B, and his family is well-off. You missed out on him. Is there anyone better who would even want you?"
Xu Lai had almost finished eating. She put down her chopsticks and said in a defiant tone, "Not everyone needs to get married to change their fate. Besides, with our family's circumstances, would anyone want to marry me?"
Xu Zhicheng said angrily, "Do you think I'm incompetent? Xu Lai, I'm the one who supported you and your brother's education. Without me, you two would probably be playing in the mud somewhere. Now you think you're all grown up and dare to talk back to your old man?"
She pushed open the door and went back to her room. Xu Lai felt suffocated if she said another word to him.
Xu Yan's face was extremely pale. He slammed his hand on the table. "That's enough. I don't need my sister to do anything for me in the future. She's been good enough to me. Just because she's my sister doesn't mean she has to take care of me."
Xu Yan recalled when he first entered junior high school, his sister was about to go to university. With her grades, she could have gone to a 211 university, but in order to let him go to a private junior high school, the family wanted to save money, so his sister's application was changed by his parents.
Finally, it was the homeroom teacher who contacted Xu Lai to ask if she was sure she wanted to study for the free teacher training program. Only then did she realize that her application had been changed.
Xu Lai was trembling with anger, but fortunately there were still two hours left before the deadline for college application, so she changed her application back to her original choice.
She didn't make a fuss at the time. When the admission notice came, they thought it was for a free teacher training program, but it turned out to be a university in City B.
Xu Zhicheng slapped Xu Lai across the face, saying, "Who told you to change it?"
Xu Lai's face immediately swelled up. She covered her face and laughed, mocking, "Didn't you guys change it first? I just changed it back."
Xu Zhicheng threatened, "Then you can fend for yourself. I won't give you a single penny for tuition or living expenses."
At that time, Xu Yan wanted to stand up and say that he would not attend the private junior high school anymore, and that he would study hard in the future to try to get scholarships so that his sister could go to university. However, he was afraid. Xu Zhicheng's expression at that time made him back down.
Therefore, Xu Lai spent her entire four years of university working part-time and receiving scholarships. After graduation, she spent a year and a half paying off her student loans.
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