Seeing Zhou Chunping's unhappy expression, Wu Jinfeng had no choice but to go to the kitchen dejectedly and quickly made breakfast.
Time was short, so Wu Jinfeng didn't care about saving food and started making noodle soup. Wu Jinfeng knew that when Zhou Chunping was angry, a bowl of fragrant noodle soup could soothe his temper.
There was little flour left in the cupboard, and Wu Jinfeng sobbed with heartache. Yuyuan County, located in the south, grows two crops of rice and one of wheat. Wheat yields are low, and flour is half the price of rice. Wu Jinfeng's meager share of wheat yields less than ten kilograms a year, and the family buys all the flour they eat in Sanhe Town.
Although Wu Jinfeng had money in her pocket, she was very stingy and had to carefully calculate the food supply at home throughout the year. Besides, Wu Jinfeng had a poor family that could barely get enough to eat. If Wu Jinfeng didn't save a few cents, how could she help them?
"You damn whore, you'd better pray that I don't get any evidence against you, otherwise, I will make you pay!" Wu Jinfeng stirred the batter in the basin with the chopsticks in her hand, muttering and cursing Zhao Yunxiang.
In the past, Zhao Yunxiang would get up before dawn to help Wu Jinfeng simmer a pot of fragrant, sticky porridge. Even with two meals a day, one dry and one liquid, Wu Jinfeng never noticed the rice jar running low so quickly.
In the past month, after Zhao Yunxiang returned to her parents' home, Wu Jinfeng couldn't get up in the morning. Most of the time, she made noodles or dough balls, which consumed a lot of food.
In the next room, Li Chunjiao just got up.
Zhou Zhigang didn't get home until midnight last night. After being woken up by the noise, Li Chunjiao felt like something was wrong and couldn't sleep well, tossing and turning.
Li Chunjiao closed her eyes just as dawn was approaching, but it seemed as if she had not slept for long, as she was woken up by Zhou Chunping's voice scolding Wu Jinfeng.
Looking at Zhou Zhigang sleeping soundly on the bed, Li Chunjiao's face was gloomy. She didn't know if it was her imagination, but during this period of time, Li Chunjiao often smelled a faint fragrance on Zhou Zhigang. Could Zhigang have a woman outside?
Li Chunjiao was shocked by her own assumption.
A few days ago, Zhou Zhigang slapped her twice for no reason. Li Chunjiao was stunned at the time and didn't think anything of it. After calming down, Li Chunjiao remembered Zhou Zhigang's unusual behavior recently, and the more she thought about it, the more frightened she became.
Li Chunjiao and Zhou Zhigang had been married for over a decade, and Zhou Zhigang had always been indifferent to her. Li Chunjiao thought it was just his personality and didn't take it seriously. As the saying goes, "A man provides food and clothing." A man's willingness to support the family is more valuable than sweet words.
Over the years, Zhou Zhigang would give some of his earnings to Li Chunjiao for safekeeping. Li Chunjiao knew Zhou Zhigang still had some money on his hands, but she was content. Li Chunjiao's father-in-law had always controlled the family finances. While the total amount wasn't much, it established his position as the one who had the final say in the family, right?
For Li Chunjiao, the fact that Zhou Zhigang gave her the money for safekeeping was much more symbolic than the money itself. This was Zhou Zhigang recognizing her status in the family!
During the first two years of their marriage, Li Chunjiao constantly worried that Zhou Zhigang would dislike her. She knew she wasn't good-looking, being rather bulky. But her looks were her parents', and there was nothing she could do to change them. So she just worked harder and carefully served Zhou Zhigang at home.
After the incident with Widow Wang, Li Chunjiao finally felt relieved. She hadn't made a mistake. His Zhigang wasn't a lecher. Widow Wang was beautiful, but Zhou Zhigang wasn't attracted to her at all. He even scolded Widow Wang in front of her, making her so embarrassed that she married someone else soon after.
However, what happened two days ago left Li Chunjiao feeling depressed. Zhou Zhigang, a grown man, had beaten and scolded her early in the morning over a piece of clothing. Even if she had truly lost that piece of clothing, Zhou Zhigang wouldn't have been so furious, right?
Could that dress hold some secret? She'd turned it over several times before washing it, even feeling the hem, but she couldn't find anything unusual. Li Chunjiao pondered over it, but couldn't figure it out.
Yesterday afternoon, Zhou Zhigang again said he had something to do at the brigade headquarters. He left after dinner and didn't return home until midnight. This was the third time in over a month that Zhou Zhigang had returned late. After the beating she'd received two days earlier, Li Chunjiao didn't dare ask Zhou Zhigang what was going on at the brigade headquarters, but she kept a close eye on him.
Li Chunjiao remembered that every year after the grain distribution in Zhoujia Village, the brigade headquarters would be free. In previous years, Zhou Zhigang would stay home for a while. Was last night's incident just an excuse? Or was there something really going on at the brigade? The more Li Chunjiao thought about it, the more dizzy she felt.
Forget it, I don’t want to think about it anymore, I’d better go out and take a look!
Li Chunjiao made up her mind, quickly cooked a pot of porridge and simmered it in the pot. She carried an empty basket in her hand and went to the east end of the village.
Li Chunjiao's family has a vegetable plot at the east end of the village, not far from the home of the village chief Zhou Hongming.
Along the way, Li Chunjiao smiled and greeted the villagers she met. Li Chunjiao was not good-looking, but she never cheated or played tricks when working in the production team. Such a person was regarded as a real person by the villagers, so Li Chunjiao had always been popular in Zhoujia Village.
There were only some Chinese cabbages and carrots in the vegetable patch. Zhoujia Village's terrain was like this; in winter, heavy snow fell. Once other vegetables were frozen, their leaves would be shredded. Only the cold- and snow-resistant Chinese cabbages and carrots became sweeter after being frozen.
Li Chunjiao picked up a broken kitchen knife from the basket, cut a few cabbages in one breath, and pulled out a dozen carrots. When the basket was full, Li Chunjiao carried the basket and walked towards Zhou Hongming's house.
Zhou Hongming's yard is very grand. Compared with Li Chunjiao's house, although Zhou Hongming's house is smaller, it is much newer.
Zhou Hongming's house was built five years ago. The five-room blue brick and tiled house is one of the best in Zhoujia Village.
Li Chunjiao tiptoed and looked outside the wall of Zhou Hongming's house. In the yard, Zhou Hongming's wife Li Cuilian was feeding the chickens with a handful of chaff.
Oh my! This village chief's family is different. Many families in the village grind up chaff and mix it with corn as their staple food, but this village chief's family feeds chickens? No wonder my cousin's chickens are so greasy. Li Chunjiao was secretly jealous.
"Sister Cuilian." Li Chunjiao walked up and knocked on the gate, calling out. The village chief's wife, Li Cuilian, was Li Chunjiao's cousin within five generations. Li Cuilian's father and Li Chunjiao's father were first cousins, and the two families had a good relationship.
Although they were cousins, Li Cuilian was much more beautiful than Li Chunjiao. Among all the young wives in Zhoujia Village, Li Cuilian's looks were among the top three, otherwise Zhou Hongming would never have been attracted to her.
Li Cuilian also played a significant role in Li Chunjiao's marriage to Zhou Zhigang. Wu Jinfeng and Zhou Chunping were attracted by Li Chunjiao and Li Cuilian's relationship, which led them to try to get Zhou Zhigang to marry Li Chunjiao. There was no other way. Zhou Chunping's family was an outsider, and having a connection to the village chief's family would make everything easier, right?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
