Chapter 159 (This last part is a fragment and doesn't translate directly. It's likely a mistake or incomplete sentence.)
Zhou Xiangling stood at the entrance of the communal kitchen and shouted towards the living room, "Mom, sister-in-law, have you gotten your things? Why aren't you coming over to help with the cooking?"
She knew nothing about what was happening in the living room. All she knew was that the Zhou family was having a reunion dinner that night, and she was the only one busy in the kitchen. Her mother and sister-in-law said they were going to get something, but they ended up taking a long time to get it.
She couldn't wait any longer. If they took the food away, she would have to cook it all herself. That's why she called them back. She couldn't let herself be working herself to the bone in the kitchen all by herself.
Zhou Xiangling's voice interrupted the jumbled thoughts in Xue Ma's mind. She glanced at the things on the cabinet, which were the things she had brought over and which Zhou Ma had casually placed on the cabinet.
She cleared her throat and said to Sister-in-law Xue in a serious tone, "Go ahead and do your work! You don't need to keep me company. I'm going to sit on the sofa and take a nap."
Sister-in-law Xue thought for a moment and suggested, "Why don't you go and take a nap on my bed? It's not as comfortable to nap on the sofa."
Aunt Xue quickly waved her hand, refusing, "No need for that trouble, I won't be able to nap for long."
Seeing that her mother's attitude was so firm, Sister-in-law Xue did not continue to force her.
As she walked toward the communal kitchen, she answered Zhou Xiangling loudly, "Sorry to keep you waiting, I'm coming right now."
When Zhou Xiangling saw Sister-in-law Xue walk out of the living room empty-handed, she was so angry she almost laughed. Although she had expected this to happen, she still couldn't help but feel furious when it actually occurred.
She knew they were trying to slack off, so she was the only one doing all the work in the house.
Seeing Zhou Xiangling's cold face, Sister-in-law Xue knew that Zhou Xiangling was angry. She quickly explained, "I didn't want to be lazy, but Aunt Wen and the others held me up. You have no idea what happened in the living room just now..."
After hearing Sister-in-law Xue's explanation, Zhou Xiangling felt less upset. At least they weren't deliberately being lazy. She didn't dare to ask her mother to come and cook dinner with her; she didn't want to add fuel to the fire.
On the other side, after seeing her sister-in-law leave, Aunt Xue revealed a smug expression. She tiptoed to the cabinet and took her things off it.
Since Lin Yuanshu wasn't at the Zhou family's place, there was no need for her to send anything to them; she wasn't about to take advantage of them so easily.
But she didn't want to leave just like that. After all, she had come all this way, and it would be a waste not to have a meal before leaving!
She hid her belongings in a corner next to the door, covering them with an enamel basin. Although it wasn't completely hidden, it wasn't so well concealed that anyone could see them at a glance.
Sitting on the sofa, Xue's mother couldn't help but keep glancing at the enamel basin. After thinking it over, she still felt it was a bit unsafe to leave it there, so she put her things in her daughter's room. Fortunately, her daughter didn't have the habit of locking her room door at home, so this was the only way to ensure that nothing went wrong.
She had already thought it through. If her aunt asked her later, she would deny taking anything. With so many people around, it wasn't impossible for someone to have taken it.
In the evening, Zhou Dafu and his older brother went home after get off work. Xue's father was playing chess with someone downstairs in the tenement building. When he saw the two of them, he stopped playing chess and followed them back to the Zhou family home.
The Zhou family prepared a very lavish reunion dinner today. Instead of steamed buns made from a mixture of wheat and water, they ate white steamed buns, and the meat dishes included both chicken and fish, making it a veritable feast.
After the meal, everyone was so full they didn't want to move. After all, this was the only day of the year when they could eat meat to their heart's content.
While everyone was distracted, Xue's mother nodded slightly to Xue's father and then volunteered, "You all sit down, let us do the dishes! You've brought out so many good things to treat us, we'd be embarrassed to face anyone if we didn't reciprocate."
Mr. Xue nodded in agreement, and then helped Mrs. Xue clear the table, without a trace of reluctance on his face.
Chow Tai Fook was quite surprised by the couple's actions. It was rare for Mr. and Mrs. Xue to be so diligent in front of them, perhaps because they wanted to set a good example for their granddaughter. This time, the two of them behaved quite like normal people, unlike their stingy behavior before.
Zhou Xiangling and the others did not stop the two from doing their thing. They were just hoping someone would help with the dishes. They might not be good at doing chores, but when it came to resting, no one could resist!
Aunt Xue took all the leftovers into the communal kitchen. She not only washed the dishes but also packed up the leftovers.
Xue's father chatted with Zhou Dafu in the living room, constantly flattering him. Because he agreed with Zhou Dafu's words, the atmosphere in the living room was very harmonious.
He felt that Aunt Xue should have finished washing the dishes, so he made an excuse to go to the toilet and left the living room.
Zhou Dafu didn't notice anything amiss and continued chatting and laughing with his older brother.
After Mr. Xue arrived at the communal kitchen, Mrs. Xue handed him the leftover food she had packed. Then she went into Mrs. Xue's room and took out the things they had brought.
To avoid any complications, the two left the tenement building without saying a word or even looking back.
Sun Yiyi, who was cooking outside in the corridor, saw everything. She didn't shout or alert the Zhou family, but acted as if she hadn't seen anything. She was happy as long as Zhou's mother was in trouble.
After some time, Zhou Dafu, seeing that Xue's father hadn't returned, said in a puzzled tone, "Old Xue, why is he taking so long to go to the toilet?"
Upon hearing this, Zhou Ma suddenly had a bad feeling. She slapped her thigh excitedly and said with a constipated look, "Now that you mention it, I suddenly remembered that Old Xue's wife is still washing dishes. Isn't that taking too long?"
Everyone left the living room and headed to the communal kitchen, which was empty except for the clean bowls on the stove.
Sister-in-law Xue's expression was very complicated. She didn't know what to say. This wasn't the first time her parents had embarrassed her. At least this time they washed the dishes, so she wouldn't have to wash dishes anymore.
With her hands on her hips, Zhou's mother was furious and raged, cursing, "Taking away the leftovers is one thing, but they even took our biggest bowl! I'm so unlucky to have such in-laws. They're not even as good as my second daughter-in-law's parents. They're much more reasonable and wouldn't do something like this..."
Zhou Dafu didn't stop his wife from cursing. He was also angry this time. What Xue's parents did this time was too dishonest. They took advantage of him and ate his food. They were shameless.
His wife, out of consideration for Ruyi, didn't kick them out and kindly let them have a family reunion dinner. But this is how they treated them. It's true that kindness is never rewarded!
Sister-in-law Xue lowered her head in embarrassment, having lost both face and dignity.
Hearing Zhou's mother utter such foul language, the neighbors gathered around and asked curiously, "Old Zhou's wife, what are you cursing about?"
Because Zhou Ma was cursing so fiercely, all they heard was a long string of profanities.
Zhou Ma was just about to explain the whole story and let everyone judge for themselves.
But Zhou Dafu felt that family scandals should not be aired in public. If this matter were publicized, his family would become a laughing stock. So he spoke up to stop them, saying, "It's nothing. It's just that our in-laws left suddenly without telling us. We were a little worried about their safety walking alone at night."
The neighbors looked at Zhou Dafu with suspicion. They didn't really believe his story, but since Zhou Dafu and his family were unwilling to tell the truth, there was nothing they could do.
Seeing the Zhou family's exasperated expressions, Sun Yiyi smiled brightly, promising to help them spread the word.
How could she be the only one who knows about something this exciting!
She was doing it for the Zhou family's own good, to prevent them from suffering in silence, and to make sure they suffered a significant loss.
The Zhou family returned to the living room dejectedly. After all, there was still some meat in the leftovers. Since Lin Yuanshu left the family, it had become much more difficult for them to buy meat. The meat that Xue's parents took with them was enough for another meal.
Zhou's mother searched the living room thoroughly but couldn't find the things that Xue's father and mother had brought. Her heart finally died. She had thought that at least there were still things that Xue's father and mother had brought in the living room, so her family wasn't really at a loss.
She hadn't expected that she had thought too highly of Mr. and Mrs. Xue; they had actually given them a show of force!
Zhou Ma hurled insults at Xue Dasao, cursing not only Xue Dafu and Xue Ma, but also Lin Yuanshu and Zhou Xiangyang. She didn't spare anyone present except Zhou Dafu, cursing them all as well.
Ruyi had never seen anything like this before. A little frightened, she shrank into Sister-in-law Xue's arms and whispered, "Mommy... I'm scared..."
Seeing this, Zhou Dafu said with a serious expression, "Control your temper, you've scared Ruyi."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Ma stopped throwing a tantrum and forcibly suppressed her anger. She still had some affection for her granddaughter Ruyi and didn't want to be the bad guy in front of her.
But every time she saw Sister-in-law Xue, she was reminded of the despicable things her parents had done, and the more she thought about it, the angrier she became. So she waved her hand at Sister-in-law Xue and said irritably, "Take Ruyi back to her room first and coax her properly, so that she doesn't have a bad memory of what happened today."
“Okay,” Sister-in-law Xue said quickly.
She left the living room without hesitation. She didn't want to stay there and be scolded by her mother-in-law. Luckily, she had a good daughter who helped her and ended the matter. Otherwise, she wouldn't have gotten away so easily.
Sister-in-law Xue returned to her room, hugged Ruyi, gently patted her back, and said tenderly, "Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, Mommy is here, Mommy will protect you."
Ruyi blinked and said excitedly, "I'm not afraid, that's what Grandma taught me to say."
Sister-in-law Xue: "..."
There was a sense of helplessness that she couldn't quite put her finger on. She felt that her mother had spoiled Ruyi, but then again, as long as her mother-in-law hadn't frightened Ruyi, that was fine.
Thinking of her parents, she couldn't help but sigh and asked softly, "What else did Grandma say to you?"
Ruyi pointed to the pillow and said, "Grandma said there's something underneath."
Sister-in-law Xue put the Ruyi down, lifted the pillow, and saw a red envelope under the pillow.
She felt a mix of emotions. She opened the red envelope, and inside was a crumpled 100-yuan note.
To be honest, if the price of receiving the red envelope was such humiliation, she would rather not have it.
Oh! This is so worrying!
Her parents' love for her was genuine, but so was their embarrassment of her.
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