Chapter 141: Extreme Biased
"Isn't that so? I saw it all." Liu Min pouted and pulled her mother directly to the tomato stall.
Dai Qing turned around and saw Liu Min calling out to the stall owner, "Boss, weigh some tomatoes for me."
"Okay, are six enough? I promise to weigh them high for you." The stall owner took a plate and weighed a few tomatoes. "Five yuan and fifty cents."
"What? Are you trying to steal money? What tomato costs five dollars and fifty cents?"
When Liu's mother heard this, she was furious. She shook off her daughter's hand, rushed to the stall, and stared at the stall owner fiercely.
"You want to fool people, but don't you know who I am? Be careful or I'll smash your stall."
"Hey, you are so powerful! You smashed my stall, so you have to pay for it. My tomatoes are new varieties, just picked from the greenhouse, and they are all very fresh."
The stall owner was not afraid of him. He stood up and glared at Liu's mother with contempt in his eyes.
"Can't you afford it? Tomatoes are expensive this season. Two yuan and a half per pound is acceptable to everyone, but you think it's too expensive. If you can't afford it, don't eat it. There are radishes and cabbages next to it, you can just buy them. Why are you staring at my tomatoes?"
After being defeated, Liu's mother's face turned red, but she was usually a spoiled child and refused to admit defeat. She pinched her waist, raised her neck, and got into a fighting posture.
"How dare you talk like that? Who said I couldn't afford it? You actually charged 2.5 yuan per pound for a cheap tomato. You black-hearted profiteer, aren't you afraid that I will sue you and fine you to the point of bankruptcy?"
"Hey, look at how capable you are. If you have the guts, go ahead and sue the administrator. Will he punish me? I sell off-season vegetables. The cost is high, so the price is naturally high. If you can't afford it, it's OK as long as others can. Look at this little girl. She just bought two kilograms, but she didn't say anything, did she?"
Dai Qing: “…”
She was just there to watch the fun, why did she get involved?
It's also her fault. She shouldn't have been so complacent and just enjoyed herself. She deserved it.
Following the stall owner's finger, Mrs. Liu looked at Dai Qing's vegetable basket. Her face twisted and she glared at her fiercely.
"It's okay if other people buy it. I don't care if someone wants to be a scapegoat, but don't even think about cheating me. I don't know where these off-season vegetables are from."
Dai Qing: “…”
You are the one being cheated, and your whole family is the one being cheated.
"I'm planting scientifically. I can tell you're just a housewife who knows nothing. I won't argue with you. If you don't want it, forget it. Don't delay your business."
The stall owner was also a well-informed man. As soon as he saw Liu's mother's posture, he knew who she was. He took the tomatoes out of the plate, rearranged them, and urged the mother and daughter to leave.
Seeing the stall owner's disgusted expression, Liu's mother became angry again.
"Bah, what scientific planting? I think you are just guilty. If you don't do anything shameful, you don't have to worry about ghosts knocking on your door. You have a black heart and a bad conscience, so you don't have to worry about being struck by lightning."
"They dare to charge 2.5 yuan per pound for a lousy tomato. I won't even eat it if it's 20 cents in the summer."
"Why are you being unreasonable, old woman? I've already given in, what else do you want? If you can't afford it, don't buy it. What's the point of being so stubborn? Go away, don't delay my business."
Dai Qing watched the two parties getting entangled and arguing more and more fiercely, so she quietly withdrew and shook her head speechlessly as she watched Liu's mother spitting everywhere.
Two yuan and a half for a tomato is nothing. In the winter of 1982, cucumbers were still ten yuan a pound, but people still bought them crazily.
They were all out-of-season vegetables, and they were just in time for the Chinese New Year. At that time, if a plate of smacked cucumber appeared on someone's table, it would be a very prestigious thing.
Off-season vegetables have been very popular in recent years, especially during the New Year period.
Liu's mother is someone who saves money every day. She won't touch any expensive vegetables, so naturally she doesn't know the price.
The scene of the heated argument attracted the market manager. After understanding the whole process, he tried to smooth things over by giving both parties a slap on the wrist and letting them go.
"He is a grown man, but he just cursed at us, an orphan and a widow. It made me so angry that my heart ached. I want him to pay compensation."
Liu's mother was still not convinced and angrily grabbed the stall owner's clothes and refused to let him leave. She insisted that he compensate her, but was directly scolded by the manager.
"Okay, stop making a fuss. No one forced you to buy it. If you think it's too expensive, just leave. There's no need to be so stubborn. It takes two hands to clap. You're both wrong. Let's go."
The manager took a look at her. He walked around the market every day and was used to seeing people taking advantage of others. How could this mother and daughter be so fooled by him?
"If you really don't want to, we can find a place to judge according to the Public Security Management Ordinance."
Upon hearing this, Liu's mother immediately became dispirited. She turned around and looked at the girl who was hiding behind her like a quail, and slapped her directly.
"Hurry up and leave, you greedy girl. This is all your fault. How could I have given birth to someone as greedy as you? You bring shame to me..."
The mother and daughter left swearing at each other, and when the crowd saw that there was nothing exciting to watch, they also dispersed.
The uncle selling tomatoes spat, cursed, and continued to watch the stall.
Dai Qing was walking home with a basket of vegetables. As soon as she walked out of the Life Square, she saw the mother and daughter arguing with Liu Ming about something.
"Brother, can you give our mom some money? We are so tight at home that we can't even afford vegetables. Just now I wanted to eat a tomato but our mom wouldn't let me buy one."
Mother Liu looked at her son. After not seeing him for several months, he looked so haggard?
"Ming, how are you doing? I've always wanted to come visit you. But there are always so many things to do at home that I can't leave. I'm almost worried to death every day."
"Mom, I don't have a job, so what can I do? Isn't it all you who caused me to be like this? If you hadn't coveted the Cao family's things, would I have to compromise?"
Liu Ming looked at her with red eyes. His life was ruined by his loved ones and there was no going back.
"Brother, why are you still saying all that now? My sister-in-law has money anyway, so just ask her for it. I want to eat tomatoes." Liu Min grabbed his arm, pouted, and looked unhappy.
Looking at his beloved sister, Liu Ming said indifferently, "I want to divorce Cao Yingzi..."
"What? Divorce? You don't have a job. How are you going to live after a divorce?"
When Liu's mother heard the word divorce, she immediately pushed her daughter aside and looked at her son anxiously.
"Life is bound to be bumpy. Just bear with it and it will pass. If you get divorced, what will you do? How will you find food and shelter?"
"You won't even give me a bed at home, right?" Liu Ming stared at his mother quietly, his eyes full of mockery, "Or is it that there is no place for me in the family anymore?"
"Brother, your room is prepared by mom and dad for your second brother to use as a wedding room, and your second brother's small room is given to me."
Mother Liu glared at her daughter, feeling guilty, but knowing she couldn't keep it a secret, she simply told the truth.
"Well, your brother has reached the age of marriage. If he doesn't even have a room, the woman will definitely not be happy."