Just as Zhao Shi's resentful gaze was about to shift to the tree, a loud wail of "Uncle Zhao!" suddenly erupted from the crowd.
The old man's other companion also looked on in disbelief.
“Dad, this is the godfather you asked me to recognize! Our two families are on good terms, and seeing that he is an old man, we would often send him some firewood.”
A man in his thirties stepped out from the crowd, his expression indignant. "But he kept all these things a complete secret."
“I…” The other old man also belatedly realized something.
"Seven years ago, I went to town to sell vegetables and saw a young woman drop her purse, so I chased after her and returned it. After that, the young woman came to my vegetable stall a few times to buy vegetables, and we got to know each other. The young woman was beautiful, her father was a clerk in the government office, and her mother was a cook in the Wen family. We were already in love, and the young woman also wanted my family to come and propose marriage..."
At this point, the man's chest heaved, "And the result?! Do you know what the result was?!"
Everyone pricked up their ears and listened intently.
Even A-Mian in the tree was listening intently, so Meng Chijian quickly reminded her from below, "Lu A-Mian, hold on tight!"
"When this old man Zhao found out, he somehow got hold of the girl's birth date and time within two days, saying that she was incompatible with me and would bring me bad luck for life! Later, he told my father that he had specifically gone to see the girl and found that she was short, so her children would definitely be short too... He also said that I was handsome and hardworking, so what kind of good girl wouldn't I find in the future?... And just like that, my excellent marriage was ruined..."
Clearly, since that girl seven years ago, no woman has been willing to marry him.
"How can you blame me? It's your own fault..." Old Zhao muttered a couple of times, "Didn't you think what I said made sense back then? Could I force you? You thought that if the daughter of a minor official was in love with you, then maybe the daughter of a high-ranking official would also fall for you in the future!"
The man, who had been single for most of his life, was now furious. "I'll teach you to stir up trouble! I'll teach you to stand by and watch others do well!"
He charged straight at Zhao Shi and knocked him to the ground with a single punch.
The scene immediately descended into chaos, with some shouting to call the village head, and in the end, they hurriedly tried to break up the fight.
Zhao Shi wanted to say a few more words, but his nose started bleeding profusely. When he looked up, he saw that everyone was looking at him with a mixture of resentment and disdain.
As the saying goes, it's better to tear down ten temples than to break up one marriage.
In the countryside, people like Zhao Shi would be punished by heaven.
Moreover, there was already a lot of gossip circulating among the crowd.
"No wonder, he always picks on me to go against my daughter-in-law..."
"Whenever someone in the family is arguing, he quickly runs over to eavesdrop."
Only the man who couldn't find a wife stared intently at Zhao Shi with his bloodshot eyes, saying, "You've ruined me! I'm not done with you yet."
"You'll never have an easy time from now on."
This feud was now firmly established. Zhao Shi's face turned ashen, and he collapsed to the ground.
On the other side, Meng Chijian shouted again, "We don't want the pears anymore! Throw the basket down!"
Everyone looked up and saw that Xiao Amian had been holding on in the tree for a long time, and now her arms were trembling, making it difficult to move forward or backward. She was still carrying the basket of pears on her back, moving with great difficulty towards the bottom of the tree.
Now look at this young lady—although she's a bit mischievous, a bit short, and a bit wild, she's still quite nice. How can she be divorced so easily, as outsiders say? Besides, it's not a big deal after all.
The farmers, being simple-minded, started offering suggestions: "I'll go home and get a cotton quilt; it can catch you if it falls!"
“These are my pears!” A-Mian stubbornly refused to throw down the basket.
Meng Chijian's voice was even colder, "Lost."
Lu Amian ignored him and forced herself to move several more steps. Her arms and legs were sore and numb, as if they didn't belong to her.
She gritted her teeth, but when she reached a height of more than one person, she could no longer hold on and fell flat on her back.
Meng Chijian caught her in a bad mood, didn't say anything to her, put her down and left.
Amian also sensed that something was very wrong, and followed him furtively back to the Meng family.
Meng Jing stopped crying and obediently slipped into the kitchen, whispering to A Mian to pray for good luck.
Second Sister-in-law's family had already returned home, and Meng Chijian still didn't look at A Mian, instead packing the luggage he had brought back over the past few days.
After tidying up, he went into the kitchen to start cooking.
This meal was meant to teach Ah Mian a lesson, so he decided to make hand-pulled noodles.
Take the flour out of the bag, add water and stir, knead it into a dough and put it in a bowl.
While waiting, Meng Chijian washed the cucumbers he had brought back, sliced them into strips, and put them in a bowl. Lu Amian, who was peeking through the window, wondered how he could cook, given his rather impressive knife skills.
Then Meng Chijian began chopping meat with a knife, the sound of heavy chopping on the cutting board was continuous, and Lu Amian felt a chilling wind on her neck.
She swallowed hard, her eyes glued to the man as he began frying the meat sauce.
Once the oil is hot, pour in the minced pork. It sizzles and releases a cloud of steam with a meaty aroma. Continue frying until there's almost no moisture left in the oil. Then add some chopped ginger, garlic, peppercorns, and salt, and stir-fry constantly. At this point, there's no need to add firewood. Just add a little more seasoning after a while, stir well, and it's done in a short time.
Next, the dough is cut into pieces to make hand-rolled noodles before cooking them.
During this time, Ah Mian kept inhaling the aroma of meat into her stomach, and her already hungry stomach began to rumble.
It smells amazing!
Ah Mian had no choice but to run to the backyard and sort through the pears she had worked so hard to get.
She packed all the large ones with intact skin into a basket, planning to sell them by the roadside on her way to town the next day.
There were some leftovers that didn't look very appealing, so they weren't suitable for sale. However, they were quite sweet enough for our own consumption, so she washed them clean, put them in a basin, and very cleverly placed them on the dining table.
Once the noodles are cooked, they are served steaming hot in a large blue porcelain bowl, topped with meat sauce and shredded cucumber.
Meng Chijian packed three bowls of noodles. He gave the extra cucumber shreds to his mother, who loved this dish, and the other two bowls were for himself and his younger sister.
Amian didn't dare to ask why she didn't have her own. She stood far away, watching and secretly nibbling on her fingers a couple of times.
"A-Mian, come here."
Meng Chijian's eyelids twitched, and he said calmly, "Do you know what you did wrong today?"
Meng Jing quickly pleaded, "Sister-in-law already knows she was wrong, please let her eat it!"
“I haven’t even taught you a lesson yet. What did I tell you before I left?” Meng Chijian put down his bowl. “I asked you to help A-Mian with the work. What did you do? Let me tell you again, you’re not eating. You’ll have to stand with her as punishment.”
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
