Chapter 7 Exposure
Zhou Chengyu was in a daze after leaving the school. He couldn't understand why he had to drop out. His mother had always said that he was a literary star incarnate and would definitely pass the imperial examination and bring glory to the family. Now, she was making him drop out of school.
After helping him drop out of school, Song Yushu ignored him and went back home on her own after buying everything.
"Why are you back? Isn't this the time of year when the school is on holiday?" Zhou Chengzhu was somewhat surprised to see Zhou Chengyu following behind Song Yushu.
"Hmph! I'm dropping out of school!" Zhou Chengyu said, then slammed the door shut.
"He dropped out of school? Mother dreams of him passing the imperial examination, how could she let him drop out? She must have gone crazy again," Zhou Chengzhu didn't believe he would drop out of school, and just thought he was throwing a tantrum.
Even after the meal was finished, Zhou Chengyu didn't come out of the house. In the past, the original owner would have already gone to coax him, but Song Yushu didn't have the time. She was busy processing the ingredients she had bought.
Zhou Chengyu's stomach had been growling with hunger in the house for a long time, but he still wanted to wait for his mother to coax him like before, so that he could have a way out. But he didn't get anything. In the middle of the night, he was so hungry that he couldn't stand it anymore, so he secretly slipped into the kitchen to eat leftovers.
At three in the morning, Song Yushu got up as usual to prepare the seasonings and braise the ingredients.
Zhou Chengzhu also got up early to help, and Song Yushu, seeing that she was honest, left her two pig's trotters and a few chicken feet.
"Zhou Chengzhu, what are you eating?" Zhou Chengyu, with dark circles under his eyes, stared intently at the tempting-looking braised pig's trotter in Zhou Chengzhu's hand.
"Braised pig's trotters, have you never had them before? They smell amazing!" Zhou Chengzhu rarely gets to eat pig's trotters, but Song Yushu saved them for her today because she was so hardworking.
"What are you doing eating pig's trotters, you little brat? Your mother must have saved them for me. Put them down right now!"
Zhou Chengyu couldn't believe that his mother, who was so stingy, would be willing to leave meat for Zhou Chengzhu. She probably wanted to save it for him, her son, hoping he would forgive her for dropping out of school. He never expected that Zhou Chengzhu would steal it. That must be it!
“It was left to me by my mother, why should I give it to you? You haven’t done any work!” Zhou Chengzhu had finally managed to eat the braised pig’s trotters she had been craving for a long time, how could she possibly give them to Zhou Chengyu?
"Give it to me!" Zhou Chengyu hadn't eaten enough yesterday, and the smell of braised pig's trotters made his eyes practically pop out of his head. He had no patience to argue with Zhou Chengzhu anymore and just grabbed it.
"Waaaaah...Grandma, look at him! He snatched my food first thing in the morning and beat me like this!" Zhou Chengzhu cried in front of Grandma Zhou, her face streaked with tears.
"It was clearly left to me by Mother, and you stole it!" Zhou Chengyu's hair was also pulled into a mess as she vented her dissatisfaction on her twin sister.
"Enough! What kind of behavior is this, arguing like this over a little food? Can't you learn from your older brother?" Old Mrs. Zhou was getting a headache from all the commotion.
"Hmph!" Zhou Chengyu and Zhou Chengzhu were still unconvinced by the other side.
“You two are siblings, how can you quarrel like this over two pieces of meat? But the second son’s wife is really wasteful. Chengli is getting married in less than three months, and she still has spare money to buy meat to eat.”
Zhou Laoda's wife, Qian Yue, was also feeling uneasy. Her family hadn't eaten meat for many days because they were trying to raise money for Zhou Chengli's betrothal gifts.
"Did your mother buy this meat?"
Grandma Zhou immediately grasped the key point and asked the twins without changing her expression.
"Yes, it must have been Mom who forced me to drop out of school yesterday, and she bought it to apologize to me, but Zhou Chengzhu has ruined it all!"
"You're talking nonsense! It was clearly Mom who bought it to make braised meat and sell in town!"
Provoked by Zhou Chengyu, Zhou Chengzhu finally couldn't help but reveal that Song Yushu had gone to town to sell braised meat.
Before Grandma Zhou could recover from the news of Zhou Chengyu dropping out of school, she was shocked by the news that Song Yushu was selling food in town.
"Girl, tell your grandmother, does your mother ever sell out all the food she goes out to sell?"
“I don’t know either, but every time my mother took the braised meat out to sell, there was never any left over.”
Zhou Chengzhu hesitated for a moment, but seeing that Old Madam Zhou didn't seem angry, she told her what she knew.
When Grandma Zhou and Qian Yue heard this, they immediately understood: if there were no leftovers, it meant that everything had been sold, and they would definitely make money.
"My dear child, you've suffered so much. Wei's actions were so reckless, just letting Chengyu drop out of school without even discussing it with us. She's out there making money without thinking about the Zhou family. When she comes back, I won't let her get away with it!"
"Eldest brother, when he comes back, have him go to town and call the second brother back, and while he's at it, ask him how Wei's food business is going."
As expected of an old woman of her age, Grandma Zhou quickly and clearly calculated everything.
Song Yushu was unaware that her two mischievous children had told everyone about her selling braised food, and was currently busy greeting customers.
"Boss, your braised meat is really tempting, we've emptied our pockets..."
"Yes, I originally wanted to buy these to take home as snacks with drinks, but all the kids and elderly people in my family like them, and there aren't enough to go around. Could you give me a discount?"
Song Yushu methodically cut and packed the meat, listening to the guests' chatter with a smile, and occasionally chiming in with a few jokes.
"Master, is that Madam Zhou who visited you yesterday? I didn't expect her cooking skills to be so good. Recently, many people in town have been waiting for her to open her braised meat stall! Why don't we buy some to take back for Miss? Miss hasn't had much of an appetite lately."
Xue Huai'an's servants, seeing that many people were buying it, guessed that it must taste good.
"Go ahead, buy a little of everything."
Xue Huai'an had a headache just thinking about his picky and sickly daughter. He had originally wanted to come out for a walk to clear his head, but he didn't expect to run into Song Yushu. However, when he thought about what she had said to him yesterday, he felt that she was not as rumored, and that he had just followed the crowd. He couldn't help but feel ashamed.
"One of each, please. Please wait a moment," Song Yushu said, quickly speeding up his work when he saw a big customer arrive.
Only after the man left with the packaged braised meat did she realize that he was actually a servant of Master Xue. She couldn't help but feel annoyed. If she had known, she wouldn't have taken his money. After all, he had cooperated with her in putting on a show yesterday.
"Your sister-in-law's business is doing so well!" Old Zhou and his second brother had been watching from a distance for a while and were genuinely surprised.
"Second brother, Wei is still your wife. You really didn't know she sells food in town?" Zhou the eldest couldn't help but be a little suspicious.
"Brother, I really didn't know. I've been busy saving money for the wedding banquet these past few days. How could I have had time to go back?" Zhou Lao Er was also frustrated, not expecting that Song Yushu had kept it from him so well.
"Forget it, let's ask Mother when we get back. She's your wife, after all. This is really outrageous," said Old Zhou, though he was suspicious, but he didn't say anything when he saw him like this.
As soon as Song Yushu returned, he was caught red-handed by Qian Yue.
"Sister-in-law, we're family after all. You went to town to make money behind our backs. Don't you even care about the Zhou family?" Qian Yue stared at the basket on Song Yushu's back, which was full to the brim, and her eyes turned red.
"I can do whatever I want. We've already separated, so why should anyone interfere?"
At this moment, Song Yushu was glad that the second branch of the Zhou family had sent Zhou Chengli and Zhou Chengyu to school. The first and third branches of the Zhou family did not want to spend money from the public funds, so they encouraged Old Madam Zhou to divide the family property. Otherwise, wouldn't all the money she earned have benefited the Zhou family?
"Hmph! Wait till you see the old lady, then we'll see how arrogant you are!" Qian Yue was angered by her attitude and thought she would rely on the old lady to put Song Yushu in a bad mood.
When Song Yushu arrived at the Zhao family's old house, Old Mrs. Zhou ignored her, clearly intending to leave her hanging.
Song Yushu simply found a stool nearby and sat down to watch them chat.
"It seems that this old woman is too old to manage you all anymore," said Mrs. Zhou, seeing that she wasn't falling for her tricks, so she had to steer the conversation towards her herself.
“Mother, what are you saying? It hasn’t been easy for you to raise us brothers all these years. Now you have grandchildren to take care of. Mother, you can’t say such things,” Zhou the eldest quickly expressed his filial piety.
"Yes, with a mother-in-law like Mom, everyone in the village envies us daughters-in-law!" When it comes to flattery, Qian Yue from the eldest son's wife is the best at it among the Zhou family's daughters-in-law.
"Hmph, if she really cared about me as her mother-in-law, she wouldn't have to hide everything she does," Old Mrs. Zhou sneered, looking directly at Song Yushu.
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