It was lunchtime, and the state-owned restaurant was bustling with people. Waiters were carrying aluminum trays and shuttling between the eight tables.
The two had just ordered their dishes. Li Guifang and Wu Qiuhe found an empty seat in the corner and sat down when they heard a surprised greeting from behind them:
"Aunt! What a coincidence!"
"Hey, Xiaoqiu and Xiaoxia, you are eating here too!" Wu Qiuhe waved enthusiastically, completely unaware of Li Guifang's slightly stiff back beside her.
He Qiu and He Xia were greeting Wu Qiuhe. When they came up, they saw that the person with Wu Qiuhe was Li Guifang!
The smiles of the two froze the moment they saw Li Guifang, and their faces looked unhappy!
The air suddenly became thick.
He Xia turned his face away, his fingers unconsciously stroking the watch strap to hide his embarrassment!
For He Xia, Li Guifang is her husband's aunt-in-law and her mother-in-law's sister-in-law. However, a while ago, she made a big fuss at the other party's house and had a quarrel with her husband because of it. She felt disgusted when she saw Li Guifang!
As for He Qiu, it was because last year at the grain station, she thought that Li Guifang's daughter did not pay enough grain coupons to get grain, and the two sides had a bad argument at the grain station.
In the end, although she was clearly performing her duties, her leader scolded her for being rigid and inflexible, and she was punished, so Li Guifang did not have a good impression of her!
However, it was the lunch rush hour and there were no empty tables. Wu Qiuhe knew nothing and everyone knew each other.
Seeing that the two sisters didn't have a seat yet, she invited them to share a table. Of course, Li Guifang had no objection.
"Hurry up and sit down!" Wu Qiuhe greeted the two sisters enthusiastically, not noticing how awkward the smile on He Qiu's face was. The corners of He Xia's mouth twitched twice, and finally she forced a smile.
Li Guifang looked normal and even moved her stool to the side.
She casually pushed the enamel pot with "Times Worker" printed on it to the corner of the table to make room for the two sisters.
The waiter quickly added two sets of bowls and chopsticks. The aluminum chopsticks rolled half a circle on the table, making a crisp clash sound.
There was a subtle awkwardness hanging over the table, but luckily the dishes arrived quickly: braised pork, stir-fried vegetables, and a plate of golden fried eggs, all placed steaming in the middle.
Wu Qiuhe enthusiastically picked up some food for Li Guifang, and the two chatted animatedly.
The He sisters seem very silent!
He Qiu lowered his head to eat rice, and his chopsticks gently stirred in the bowl, as if he wanted to count the rice clearly.
He Xia stared at the food in his bowl, occasionally making a perfunctory "hmm" in response to Wu Qiuhe's question.
Halfway through the meal, Wu Qiuhe finally noticed that the atmosphere was not right. He put down his chopsticks and asked hesitantly, "Do you... know each other?"
As soon as the words fell, three people spoke at the same time -
"Not familiar."
"Yes."
"I've seen it at the grain station."
As soon as the words came out, the atmosphere became even more tense.
Wu Qiuhe laughed dryly twice: "Oh..." and thought to himself, why is this person so talkative?
At the next dinner table, several people tacitly sped up their eating speed, and the sound of chopsticks hitting bowls was particularly crisp.
He Qiu felt so embarrassed that he went out to get a bowl of soup!
Fortunately, the meal was eaten quickly and the awkward dinner was finally over.
Walking out of the hotel, the sun was shining brightly on the street. Li Guifang had just breathed a sigh of relief when she suddenly heard a quarrel in the hotel!
Li Guifang looked back and saw a group of people gathered inside, making a lot of noise. She could also vaguely hear the sound of pushing and shoving - someone was fighting.
She frowned, turned around and walked straight to the other side.
It is better to have less trouble than more. These days, just watching the fun may get you into trouble.
I had originally planned to get closer to Wu Qiuhe, but now seeing that her family has such disgusting relatives, I have lost interest!
——
After eating the free lunch, Li Guifang was in a very good mood. She had a smile on her face the whole time while working in the afternoon!
But this good mood did not last until the evening.
Li Guifang hummed a little tune as she pushed open the door, but the smile on her face froze instantly when she saw what was happening inside the house!
Li Jianghai was pressing Li Mingyu's shoulders and rubbing the wound on his forehead with a cotton swab dipped in red medicine.
"Ouch! Dad, be gentler!" Li Mingyu grimaced in pain, tears welling up in the corners of his eyes.
There was a scratch on the wrist that was still bleeding.
"What's going on?" Li Guifang put down her bag and immediately frowned.
"Mom..." Li Mingyu started sobbing as soon as he saw Li Guifang coming back!
With a pouting look on his face as if in grievance, his tall body curled up on the bench, he looked like a primary school kid who had been scolded!
"Slow down, what's going on?" Li Guifang sat down next to her son and looked at the wound on his forehead, grimacing in disgust. Could this be disfiguring?
Li Mingyu continued to talk with sobs.
It turned out that at noon today, the waiter who collected the money at the restaurant discovered that some money was missing.
The waiter insisted that he had received all the money and put it all in the drawer, but when he came to calculate the change, the number didn't add up.
To make matters worse, a new waiter swore that he saw Li Mingyu "sneaking around" near the counter.
"I just went to the front desk to get Moutai for the guests!" Li Mingyu became more and more excited as he spoke, his voice rising.
"The one who collected the money did the accounting himself, but when he couldn't figure it out, he casually accused others!
I argued with them, but they didn't listen and pushed and shoved..."
As he spoke, tears began to fall, and he wiped his face fiercely with his hands: "The boss didn't even ask me clearly and just fired me!"
Li Guifang looked at her son's red eyes and felt angry and painful.
She knew her son too well. Although he was usually clever, he would never do something like stealing money.
"Okay, okay," she patted her son's shoulder. "Mom believes you. I'll go to the restaurant tomorrow and find out."
——
In the grain station dormitory
He Xia, who had just returned from get off work, couldn't wait to approach He Qiu and asked, "Sister, what's wrong with you today? That Li Guifang... do you know her?"
He Qiu was cooking noodles over a coal stove. Her chopsticks paused as she heard this, the heat blurring her expression. "There was a scene at the grain station last year."
"Why?" He Xia curled his lips and took out a piece of candy from his pocket and put it in his mouth, "I think your eyes are about to pop out."
The noodle soup was bubbling. He Qiu suddenly put down his chopsticks with a snap: "Her daughter came to collect grain last year and caused a misunderstanding. They had a big fight at the grain station..."
He Xia's eyes lit up, and the candy on his cheeks made a bulge: "So that kid today..."
"Eat." He Qiu put the bowl of noodles heavily on the table, and the soup splashed onto the certificate with the words "Advanced Worker" printed on it.
She won that award two years ago for her outstanding work, but last year she lost this honor because of a complaint from Li Guifang!
He Xia wisely shut up, but secretly smiled!
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