Before Liu Yun had even finished her tea, Liu Jing took a handful of water spinach and a handful of green beans from the burlap sack she had just brought back, filled it with a winnowing basket, grabbed two low stools, and dragged Liu Yun toward a corner of the living room.
While folding vegetables, she tossed them into the kitchen. Liu's mother and Xu Hongxing were in the kitchen, while Liu's father and Liu Aiguo were at work without leave. Liu Aidang had gone outside to kill fish and chicken. It was said that Liu Aiguo had planned to ask for leave, but Xu Hongxing hadn't allowed it.
Liu Jing lowered her voice and said, "Little sister, come back with me later and get some fabric. Things aren't so bad now. I have a lot of fabric on hand. Take it to Cheng Ke and tell her that you made the same thing as before. See if she makes it. If she does, give her the fabric. If she doesn't, keep it with you for now, and I'll pick it up this weekend."
Liu Yun glanced at her twice, then said, "Okay."
To be fair, Liu Jing and her husband are really quite capable. If it weren't for the times, Liu Jing would definitely be a strong woman with courage and ambition.
"I bought a few pieces of pink floral fabric. Go take a look and buy some to make a dress. Also, don't you like wool coats? I saved two for you."
Hearing this, Liu Yun's lips twitched, and she felt quite pleased. If Xu Hongxing were to take advantage of her even a little, Liu Jing would cause a huge uproar. This was a considerable sum, not a lavish one—just two wool coats and some fabric, worth at least three or four months' salary—given away so casually. If Xu Hongxing found out, she'd be furious.
After spending several years with the male and female leads, as well as the supporting male and female characters, Liu Yun has come to understand some of the principles involved.
Take the main characters, Xu Hongxing and Liu Aiguo, for example. Xu Hongxing grew up in an environment with extreme patriarchal bias, so even with the "female lead halo," her selfishness and snobbery are still evident. As the eldest son, Liu Aiguo received everything he wanted from a young age, with his parents doing their best to fulfill his every wish. He was always given priority in the family, so it's understandable that he has a somewhat selfish personality and lacks assertiveness.
Cheng Ke grew up in a mansion, where she learned scheming and intrigue from a young age.
As for Liu Jing, being the second child with an older brother and being the first daughter, her parents genuinely loved her, but ultimately couldn't compare to the eldest son, so she started planning for herself from a young age.
Actually, Liu Jing wasn't being taken advantage of. It's easy to add flowers to brocade, but difficult to provide charcoal in the snow. She just knew that Liu Yun wasn't the type to take advantage of others.
When she got married, her mother couldn't even afford to make her a new dress, thinking that the family's cloth ration coupons were for her older brother's wedding. Liu Yun, though wealthy at the time, certainly didn't have a lot of money (this was a beautiful misunderstanding), but her mother bought her a red dress (she was lucky), making her look good. Later, during her postpartum confinement, even her mother didn't provide as much as she did. For a whole month, she had eggs and duck eggs without fail, chicken, duck, and fish every few days, along with fruit, vegetables during the off-season, and, luckily, goose eggs. And this happened with both of her pregnancies; she remembered all of this.
If Liu Yun knew all this, she would definitely say, "Sister, you're overthinking it."
She didn't lack the gifts given during her pregnancy and postpartum period; in fact, she had more than enough. Liu Jing had given her so many things, and she felt embarrassed to take advantage of her.
Another thing is postpartum care. As people of the 21st century, we should know the importance of this. If a woman doesn't take good care of herself during postpartum care, the resulting illnesses can last a lifetime. Besides, she didn't lack those things, and this older sister was kind to her, which is why she gave them to her.
She's not a saint; she understands the saying "a little kindness is appreciated, but too much can breed resentment." In short, they both felt the other wasn't the type to take advantage, so a give-and-take approach was essential for a lasting relationship.
"Are you planning to give your parents money later?" Liu Jing asked, pulling at the vegetables in her hands.
"I won't give it to you, what about you?"
"I won't give it either. I've said it before, I won't skimp on what's rightfully mine for my parents. As for anything else, dream on. We've been providing them with food and clothes. Look at what the eldest brother's family has given us. The fourth brother even took a day off to help out. Look at the eldest brother, who knows where the money will end up!"
It is clear that Liu Yun is extremely dissatisfied with Liu Aiguo and his wife. Liu Yun also dislikes the couple, as they were the main instigators of the original owner's death.
After the two sisters finished picking the vegetables and cleaning up, they went to chat in a corner.
"Your brother-in-law said he'd see if we could get two bolts of fabric for wool coats next time. It's much cheaper than buying ready-made clothes, and with Cheng Ke's craftsmanship, they'll definitely look great. How many coats do you need?"
"Minimum three items, two of which must be men's."
"Okay, why do you like this kind of clothing so much? But it is indeed beautiful."
"I just like it, is that okay?" "It's definitely beautiful! You know, this kind of clothing never goes out of style, it's still durable even in the 21st century! Young man."
"By the way, I heard someone fell into the latrine in your compound a while ago, is that true? Tell me about it!" Liu Jing got excited whenever something exciting came up, which was completely inconsistent with her name.
Liu Yun was speechless when she heard this. Since it was almost time to eat, she had no choice but to recount the whole story and its ending to Liu Jing. Liu Jing listened with great interest. Even Liu's mother and Liu Aidang came over and expressed their opinions, but in the end, they all told Liu Yun to keep a close eye on her child and not to have any contact with the three Wang brothers in the future.
This shows just how bad the reputation of the three Wang brothers is now.
At noon, Liu's father and Liu Aiguo returned. After lunch, Liu Yun and her sister helped pack up their things and then left under the pretext of having something to do.
Liu's mother wanted her two daughters to take something back with them, but neither of them wanted it. As Liu's mother packed their things, Xu Hongxing's face turned extremely ugly. To be honest, neither of them liked this kind of person.
Upon arriving at the Xiao family home, Xiao's mother was playing with her grandson, putting him to sleep.
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