“Jiaxiang wants to eat wontons, buy him a bowl.” Ding Ermei stood next to Zhao Zhenzhu and said with a long face.
Zhao Zhenzhu didn't even look up. After finishing the last wonton in her bowl, she wiped her mouth and stood up.
"Zhao Zhenzhu, I told you to buy Jiaxiang a bowl of wontons, are you deaf?" Ding Ermei raised her voice.
"Oh! What brings Grandma and Jiaxiang here? Are they at the market in town?" Zhao Zhenzhu asked, pretending she had just seen Ding Ermei.
Ding Ermei was so angry she nearly fell backward.
She and Zhou Jiaxiang had been standing there for a while, and Zhao Zhenzhu was still asking them if they had come to town for the market. Wasn't that obvious?
"Zhao Zhenzhu, buy Jiaxiang a bowl of wontons, and buy me one too, I'm hungry." Ding Ermei tugged at Zhou Jiaxiang's hand, and the two sat down opposite Zhao Zhenzhu.
“Grandma, I don’t have any money. If you want wontons, buy them yourself.” Zhao Zhenzhu refused.
"You have no money? You're kidding me! Jiaxiang saw it. You just bought some fried dough sticks up ahead, and after eating them, you brought Yunyun here to eat wontons. Hurry up, or I'll scold you for being unfilial." Ding Ermei glared at her and said fiercely.
"I really have no money." Zhao Zhenzhu lied without batting an eye.
Zhao Zhenzhu didn't care whether Ding Ermei believed it or not.
Asking her to spend money to buy wontons for Ding Ermei? Ding Ermei is probably dreaming.
Zhao Zhenzhu would rather buy too many wontons and feed them to the dogs than feed them to Ding Ermei.
"Buy it now, or I'll send Bingchen a letter tomorrow demanding you get a divorce," Ding Ermei threatened.
"Grandma, I really don't have any money. I haven't paid for this bowl of wontons yet! You can ask Uncle Jin if you don't believe me," Zhao Zhenzhu said, feigning a wronged expression.
In reality, Zhao Zhenzhu was secretly laughing her head off.
If it weren't for the need to maintain her public image, Zhao Zhenzhu would definitely have retorted to Ding Ermei, urging her to write a letter urging Zhou Bingchen to divorce her.
Hmph! Zhou Bingchen, when I liked you, I treated you like a treasure. Now that I don't like you anymore, you're nothing!
Ding Ermei blinked, looking somewhat hesitant.
Zhao Zhenzhu used to adore Zhou Bingchen the most. As long as Ding Ermei threatened to make them divorce, Zhao Zhenzhu would agree to anything.
Could it be... that Zhao Zhenzhu really has no money?
“Mother-in-law, you’ve come at the right time. When you pay later, please pay for mine too. That way I won’t have to go back to my mother to ask for the money and then have to return it,” Zhao Zhenzhu said.
"You wish! You dare to take advantage of me?" Ding Ermei jumped up.
"Auntie, you want two bowls of wontons, right? Four cents, six cents including the ones with pearls." Uncle Jin came over to collect the money from Ding Ermei.
"Wait, don't put our wontons in yet, I don't have the money to pay." Ding Ermei clutched her pocket tightly, looking at Uncle Jin warily, and said, "Go ask Zhao Zhenzhu for the money for the bowl of wontons she ate, don't come to me."
"Aren't you Grandma Pearl? Pearl didn't bring any money, so it's only right that you pay for her first, isn't it?" Uncle Jin's face darkened.
“My family is large, and each household has to pay for their own snacks. As the mother-in-law, I’ve always treated everyone equally,” Ding Ermei explained.
"Auntie, you're being a bit hypocritical! Each household eats snacks with their own money? I just heard you asking Pearl to buy two bowls of wontons for you and your grandson!" Aunt Jin couldn't stand it anymore and couldn't help but speak up for Zhao Pearl.
"The old woman didn't want to spend money on her daughter-in-law, so she said we should each spend our own money. If she wanted to take advantage, she should have her daughter-in-law buy it for her!"
"It's understandable that the old woman would ask the child for a few wontons, but one bowl wasn't enough, so she asked for two. The old woman is really shameless."
"He expects his daughter-in-law to pay for things and then yells at her. He's shameless."
"Yeah, yeah! That's so shameless."
······
The customers at the wonton stall were talking amongst themselves, and they all looked at Ding Ermei with a hint of disdain.
"No, I'm Zhao Zhenzhu's mother-in-law. What's wrong with her giving me a bowl of wontons as a sign of respect? It's none of your business!" Ding Ermei's face turned red with anger.
“Bingchen sends back twenty yuan every month, and you keep it all to yourself, Grandma. It’s not like you can’t afford two bowls of wontons. Why do you insist that I buy them for you? My mom feels sorry for me and asked me to take Yunyun out for a walk and buy some food. I need to go back and ask my mom for the money for the wontons later!” Zhao Zhenzhu said helplessly.
“The money Bingchen gave me is Bingchen’s, and the money you gave me is yours. How can they be the same? Go back and ask your mother for a few more cents so you can treat us to wontons,” Ding Ermei said matter-of-factly.
“Mother-in-law, you can’t be so unreasonable. Over the years, you’ve taken all the money Bingchen sent me. I’m just a weak woman, and I’ve only been able to support myself and my two children thanks to the support of my family. I don’t even have the face to ask my mother for money to buy you wontons.” Zhao Zhenzhu didn’t want to get entangled with Ding Ermei, so she turned and left after saying that.
"I was in a hurry to leave today and forgot to bring any money. Can you lend me a dollar first, and I'll pay you back when I get back? Is that alright?" Ding Ermei grabbed Zhao Zhenzhu's arm, preventing her from leaving.
Ding Ermei's mind was racing with calculations.
Two bowls of wontons cost four cents. She asked Zhao Zhenzhu to "borrow" one yuan, and she could still earn six cents.
Anyway, Zhao Zhenzhu is easily embarrassed, and since her mother-in-law said so, she definitely wouldn't be able to refuse.
"Grandma, I didn't bring any money either. If you and Zhou Jiaxiang want wontons, buy them yourselves. If you don't want them, hurry up and leave. Don't delay Uncle Jin's business." Zhao Zhenzhu said impatiently.
The market was crowded.
Ding Ermei had a loud voice, and she started babbling on and on. People thought there was something interesting to see, so they all crowded around Uncle Jin's wonton stall.
Zhao Zhenzhu enjoys watching plays, but dislikes being the one being watched.
"Auntie, do you still want your wontons? If so, I'll cook them now. If not, you'd better leave!" Uncle Jin also said, urging her to leave.
The small wonton stall only had two tables, and they were almost full right now.
Ding Ermei and Zhou Jiaxiang took up two seats, which really delayed Uncle Jin's business.
Ding Ermei was so angry that her head went blank.
Despite saying so many nice things, Ding Ermei still couldn't gain any advantage from Zhao Zhenzhu. How could she tolerate this?
"You, Zhao Zhenzhu, all you ever talk about is his business. Are you having an affair with this man? No wonder you insisted on taking the children back to your parents' home to meet your lover, didn't you?" Ding Ermei pointed at Zhao Zhenzhu and shouted.
As soon as Ding Ermei finished speaking, Aunt Jin jumped up with a "whoosh" and slapped Ding Ermei hard across the face.
"You old hag, you spew filth from your mouth! If you can't speak properly, you might as well not have a mouth at all!" Aunt Jin slapped Ding Ermei several times across the face.
Aunt Jin is not someone to be trifled with. She has six siblings, and they've been fighting since they were little, so she's very experienced in fighting.
Ding Ermei slandered Uncle Jin in public, and Aunt Jin was so angry she wanted to tear Ding Ermei apart.
Ding Ermei was stunned by the beating.
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