"Huanwu, Aunt Chu said you went to the city to pick up some goods in a hurry. Why are you back so soon? I was planning to go to the city to find you after breakfast!"
Zhou Jiuzhen put down his chopsticks and quickly pulled her over, pushing the soup that Chu Mei had just served him in front of her, "Try it quickly, Aunt Chu's soup is delicious."
Ling Huanwu smelled the delicious aroma of duck meat and happened to be hungry.
No matter what else was on her mind, she planned to ask Chu Mei after she finished eating.
To everyone's surprise, Chu Mei looked pained and quickly snatched the duck meat, feigning grievance, and said, "Did you two hear what I just said? I, an elder, was hit by you, a junior, and you didn't even apologize?"
"I'm sorry, Aunt Chu, I really didn't mean it last night. Why don't you hit me with an enamel basin later?"
As Ling Huanwu spoke, she reached into the bowl with her chopsticks and picked up a duck leg.
It's just that the duck meat smells so good.
Unexpectedly, as soon as she picked up a piece of meat, she felt a sharp pain in her hand, and the duck leg fell back into the bowl.
Ling Huanwu stared in disbelief, and Zhou Jiuzhen beside her also frowned.
Just moments ago, Chu Mei had been feeling wronged, but in an instant, her expression changed. She glared at him, her eyes filled with accusation and dissatisfaction.
"I cooked this duck soup, you didn't do anything, so why should you eat it?"
Ling Huanwu put down her chopsticks, looked at Chu Mei's mean face, and thought of Wang Guihua.
She remembered how Wang Guihua used to always put the best food into her bowl whenever she had something delicious.
She had never experienced what those aunties meant by the difficulty of getting along with mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law before, but now she truly understands it.
Chu Mei placed the duck meat in her hand back in front of Zhou Jiuzhen.
With a gloomy face, Zhou Jiuzhen poured the entire bowl of duck meat back into the basin under Chu Mei's loving gaze once again.
"I didn't do anything, so I'm not entitled to eat this. You should take this duck meat back and eat it yourself!"
Zhou Jiuzhen got up and shoved the half-basin of duck meat back into Chu Mei's hands. He then pushed the still bewildered Chu Mei out of the house and slammed the door shut with a "bang".
Chu Mei stood blankly at the door, holding a large basin of duck meat, unable to come to her senses for a long time. Why was she kicked out by the son she had tried so hard to please?
Inside the house.
Zhou Jiuzhen sat down on the bench next to Ling Huanwu, pulled the woman next to him onto his lap, held her reddened right hand in his hands, and gently blew on it.
"I never expected her to be this kind of person. I should have never let her in."
Zhou Jiuzhen's eyes were full of guilt, and he leaned in to whisper sweet nothings in her ear.
Ling Huanwu pushed him, but couldn't budge him, so she could only let him be. "Forget it, she's still your mother. After all, she gave birth to you. I heard that she suffered mental trauma all these years while searching for you, and her condition fluctuates. Don't upset her."
Zhou Jiuzhen sniffed her body and asked, "What happened to you? You smell strange."
Ling Huanwu lowered her head and pouted as she pondered. She had no evidence to prove that Chu Mei was responsible for that batch of parts.
Speaking out now will only affect the relationship between the two and exacerbate the conflict between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law.
She shook her head, lying and pretending to be relaxed, "It's nothing. You have such a keen sense of smell, you thought I had tapeworms in my stomach!"
As she spoke, she tugged at her wrinkled pants, making a move to get up.
She had just gotten up when the man behind her spun her around and pulled her back onto his lap.
Zhou Jiuzhen gently pulled off the red hair tie at the end of her braid, pinched her pouting mouth, tied her thin lips together, and even tied a pretty bow.
Ling Huanwu glared at him angrily with her almond-shaped eyes wide open. She couldn't open her mouth, so she could only mutter "mwah mwah mwah" to scold him.
Zhou Jiuzhen turned her around and sat down, reaching out to loosen her somewhat messy and frizzy braids.
Her long, seaweed-like hair, with slight curls at the back of her braids, fell onto Ling Huanwu's slender shoulders.
He had calluses on his neck. When he gently gathered his hair to braid her hair, the calluses brushed against her neck, instantly leaving a red mark.
Zhou Jiuzhen frowned, blew on the red mark, and his guilt deepened.
Ling Huanwu's skin is very white and tender. It's the kind of white that won't tan even after being exposed to wind and sun, and the kind of tender that will turn red with the slightest touch.
Even though he was usually very careful, her body was still covered in bruises.
Every time that happened, she would always call him a dog with a resentful look on her face.
Zhou Jiuzhen skillfully straightened her hair and braided it for her, strand by strand.
He didn't untie the red hair tie from her lips until the braid reached her waist, and then carefully tied it back up for her.
"Your hair is so frizzy, you'll have to wash it again tonight."
Zhou Jiuzhen placed the braid on her chest and looked at her with his almond-shaped eyes.
Ling Huanwu shuddered, her face flushed red, and she jumped up from his lap.
"I already told you, I'll wash my own hair from now on!"
She practically yelled it out, then grabbed her bag from the table and stormed out the door.
The auntie passing by the door was so frightened that she thought the two were arguing.
Zhou Jiuzhen, sitting inside, stared blankly at the woman's retreating figure, secretly suppressing a smile.
*
In the cooperative.
The aunties paced back and forth like ants on a hot pan.
Several sewing machines had broken belts and were unable to operate.
Several people gathered at the door, waiting for Ling Huanwu to return.
Instead of seeing Ling Huanwu return from afar, they were greeted by Song Yaoyao, who arrived arrogantly with a group of people.
"What? I heard your cooperative is due to deliver the goods in a few days, but the sewing machine won't work. What are you going to do? If you can't deliver the goods, the cooperative will lose all credibility. Not only will you lose money, but you won't get any more orders in the future."
"You'd better be sensible now and come work for our cooperative. I'll probably still want you then. Otherwise, I won't let you come in the future!"
Song Yaoyao appeared magnanimous and forgiving, as if she was certain that Ling Huanwu's cooperative would close down and that the aunties would come to her cooperative.
The aunts looked at each other, speechless, and were about to ignore her and go inside to wait for Ling Huanwu to return.
Song Yaoyao spotted Zhou Shuyao moving fabric inside the house at a glance. Without saying a word, she ran in, grabbed a stool, and threw it at him, yelling, "Didn't I tell you to stay home and take care of the kids?"
"Are you just going to leave the children at home like this?"
Zhou Shuyao was hit on the back by a stool, and he wanted to pick it up and retaliate, but Song Yaoyao pointed at him with a half-smile, "If you dare to smash it, believe me, I'll expose all your shameful secrets!"
"You dare!"
"What wouldn't I dare? Zhou Shuyao, you're trash. I was blind to marry you. If you obediently go back and take care of my child, I might still support you..."
"I'm not going back to a place where the man of the house takes care of the child!"
"Fine, you're not going back, are you?"
Song Yaoyao curled her lips into a cold smile, then turned to the crowd around her with an indifferent attitude, "Aunties, do you all think my husband is head over heels in love with his sister-in-law? Now I'll tell you a secret..."
Song Yaoyao's words were so captivating that the aunties from both cooperatives strained their ears to listen attentively.
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