There was some commotion in the east wing. It was Grandma Hanhan, throwing things around and muttering something under her breath. Grandma Hanhan and her aunt had always been at odds; these two sisters-in-law were sworn enemies, fighting each other ever since they married into the Tang family, and Grandma Hanhan had never won.
Qin Xiaoyu knew this meal was special. The old lady had never given their branch of the family a kind look, so for her to be allowed to have a meal with the three of them was a huge favor.
Never mind, let's eat first.
Qin Xiaoyu was still a little unaccustomed to entering the main room. The host only had the opportunity to bring the children over to kowtow to the wife during the New Year. She didn't even dare to lift her eyelids, and everything looked unfamiliar. She came from the 21st century and had seen a lot of the world, so her horizons were quite high. However, after getting used to dilapidated and cramped spaces these days, she was still somewhat taken aback when she suddenly saw a clean and tidy big house.
The kitchen is located at the entrance of the main house, which is divided into two rooms, east and west. The east room is where the wife lives, and the west room is where the eldest aunt and uncle live. Meals are usually eaten at the west room.
In the east room, a curtain with a "福" (good fortune) character pattern and grass beads hung, obscuring the view inside. In the west room, against the north wall, was a row of kang (heated brick beds), upon which sat a mahogany kang table. Against the west wall stood a tall kang qin (a type of zither), its dark purple wood carved with landscapes and figures—clearly an antique. A large portrait of Mao Zedong hung on the west wall, below which sat a rosewood eight-immortal table, next to two matching armchairs. Under the window were two low chairs and a small tea table, on which sat a colorful glass vase filled with delicately woven plum blossoms. On the windowsill was a row of flowerpots: fuchsias, jasmine, begonias, and most abundantly blooming was a pot of yellow roses.
The table was already set up against the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), with the wife and eldest brother sitting on it, and the others sitting in a circle.
My uncle's second son, Tang Wenxuan, and his wife were also there. Their son, Tang Long, was already a senior in high school. He was tall and had a serious face. He didn't greet anyone or say anything, and just kept eating the rice in his bowl.
Children don't usually sit at the table during meals, so giving Hanhan and her younger sister seats today seemed unusual.
"Xiao Qin, sit next to Hanhan." Seeing Qin Xiaoyu standing in the room wringing her hands helplessly, the old lady spoke up.
The dishes on the table were plentiful, with as many as ten dishes. A few seasonal vegetables were fine, but what was rare was a chicken stew with mushrooms and a dish of pork head meat with cucumber strips. You wouldn't see such a lavish meal unless it was a holiday.
My cousin's wife kept piling meat into her son's bowl. My aunt glared at her, and my cousin quickly kicked her under the table.
"Little Qin, I've called you here today because there's something I need to discuss with you," the old woman cleared her throat and began.
"Okay, I understand, no problem." Qin Xiaoyu didn't care about anything else, she was gnawing on a chicken leg with her mouth full of oil, and she snatched the other chicken leg and put it in Hanhan's bowl. Hanhan was frightened and didn't dare to eat it, she just looked at it timidly.
"Hanhan, you eat it." The old lady was unusually lenient, and Hanhan breathed a sigh of relief. She quickly tore the meat off the chicken leg and fed it to her little sister bit by bit.
"I know it's upsetting to say this now, but things are urgent, there's no other way." The old woman sighed, then cast another sharp glance at her cousin-in-law. The cousin-in-law put down the chopsticks she had just reached for.
"Mmm, mmm." Qin Xiaoyu was too busy to speak; she had completely lost her composure. She had just grabbed a chicken neck and was tearing off the skin with both hands. She guessed that something important was going on, but she knew that such a good meal was a rare treat, so she decided to let the old lady talk first.
"Ahem." The lady couldn't stand it anymore and warned Qin Xiaoyu. Startled, Hanhan almost dropped the chicken leg. He quietly reached out and tugged at Qin Xiaoyu's collar.
"It's alright, eat up. You eat too, don't just feed it to your little sister." Qin Xiaoyu then noticed that Hanhan had fed the whole chicken leg to her little sister and hadn't eaten much herself. She quickly reached out and picked up a chicken wing root, instructing her, completely unaware of Hanhan's intention.
"Eat up, eat first." The old woman realized she couldn't communicate with her, so she had to give up. All that could be heard on the table was the clatter of bowls and chopsticks. With Qin Xiaoyu leading the way, everyone ate with extraordinary ferocity.
The chickens had already been almost completely destroyed. Qin Xiaoyu reached for the pig's head meat with her chopsticks, first picking up several large slices for Hanhan, then pulling her chopsticks back. The plate was half empty, and her cousin-in-law's eyes widened in disbelief.
She ate even more than she had at noon, and Qin Xiaoyu felt like she had come back to life, and her mood improved. Seeing her cousin-in-law starting to pick up the bowls, she quickly got up to help.
"Let her do it, come and sit down." The old lady gestured for Qin Xiaoyu to sit on the chair by the window.
The lady didn't rush back to her own room. She listened to their conversation from the side. The eldest brother pulled a quilt out of the kang (a heated brick bed), rolled it up, and leaned it against her back.
"Little Qin, we are also very saddened by the passing of Wen Zhiren. We know it must be a huge blow to you. Please take care of yourself and look after the two children," the old woman comforted Qin Xiaoyu.
"I'm alright," Qin Xiaoyu blurted out, caught off guard. The woman on the kang (heated brick bed) couldn't sit still any longer and started coughing violently. Her uncle rushed over and patted and soothed her until she calmed down. Her aunt's face looked quite pale.
Qin Xiaoyu realized she had spoken out of turn. She had just spoken the truth without thinking. It was certainly sad to see someone die, but it was someone she had never even met. How could she be sad?
"Let me be blunt," the old woman said anxiously. "Wen Zhiren is gone, and the factory has a vacancy. He was injured on the job, so his immediate family can take over. Hanhan is too young for that. I'm thinking of having Tang Long take over. What do you think?"
"Tang Long taking over?" Qin Xiaoyu's brain was a bit overwhelmed. There was too much information to search for, and it was spinning so fast that she could almost hear a sizzling sound and smell the burning.
“Yes, it’s a pity that no one is going to take over. Don’t you think so? We should keep the good stuff in the family. This is Wenzhi and your nephew, isn’t it?”
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