Seeing Bai Xiaoyue staring blankly at him, Yan Ci's smile vanished, his lips pursed, a fleeting moment of beauty.
Bai Xiaoyue said to Yan Ci:
"You should smile more often. You look beautiful when you smile, really."
After she finished speaking, she calmly went about her business, trying to ignore the pounding of her heart.
Yan Ci was both annoyed and amused.
The village bought 500 jin of grain, and the village officials allowed families in the village who were running out of food to buy it with money or borrow grain.
Because so many families wanted to borrow grain, even after borrowing 500 jin of grain, it wasn't enough.
Later, Uncle Bai, along with Captain Ye and Accountant Wang, went to every household to ask.
If there is surplus grain at home, it should be sold to the village collective or lent to the village collective.
I hope everyone can work together to overcome this difficult time.
Surprisingly, there were some good results. Several families had surplus grain to lend, and Bai's father also lent some to the village collective.
Families without food were encouraged to borrow grain from the production brigade, ensuring that no more corn cobs were lost and that the harvest would proceed smoothly until the autumn harvest.
Later, Bai Xiaoyue asked Uncle Bai why they didn't catch the thief who stole the corncobs.
Uncle Bai said it was all because they were too hungry. If they kidnapped adults, what would happen to the children?
Many people were arrested in other villages, given criticism and education, and then released to continue stealing.
The fundamental solution is to solve the food problem. Even if there is only a little food to survive, who would want to become a thief!
Bai Xiaoyue felt that her uncle was a wise man. Although he was a little confused about his aunt's affairs, his merits outweighed his flaws.
Before the autumn harvest, Bai Xiaoyue planned to go shopping. Now that they no longer eat from the same pot, she could buy more delicious food to nourish her family.
The autumn harvest is a tight schedule and a heavy task, so everyone has to work in the fields. Just thinking about the scorching sun makes my face and hands ache.
Bai Xiaoyue felt she had to buy herself more things to reward herself.
She asked Li Mingyue to have Wang Weiguo help her buy meat—any kind, pork belly, pig's feet, offal, anything would do. She didn't have any ration coupons; she could only rely on connections.
Seeing that Li Mingyue looked unwell, she thought she was sick and quickly asked:
"Mingyue, what's wrong? If you're sick, go see a doctor. You can't delay."
Li Mingyue rolled her eyes at her:
"You should wish me well! I'm just in a bad mood."
It turned out that the problem stemmed from the lack of food. Seeing that everyone was struggling, Li Mingyue discussed the matter with Wang Weiguo.
Since we have our own grain, we'll give 30 jin to Brother Mingyue and 30 jin to Brother Wang.
When they first received the food, everyone was very happy and grateful to Mingyue and her husband.
Not long after, the eldest brother and his wife from the Wang family came to borrow grain. They were in a terrible state, saying that they only ate two meals a day and were so hungry that they didn't have the strength to go to work.
Wang Weiguo knew they were lying, but thinking of his parents being with them, he gave them another 30 jin.
Now, it seems that the eldest brother and his wife have found the secret to getting rich. Every now and then, they come here to play the victim and scam grain.
Once, Wang Weiguo came home and found his parents eating mixed grain pancakes, which he found very strange.
Looking at the two old people, they were pale and thin. The older brother brought home so much refined grain. It couldn't be that bad!
After making careful inquiries, it was discovered that the elder brother and his wife had lied to both sides, claiming they were helping Wang Weiguo and his wife, but they had also taken away the family's fine grains.
Wang Weiguo was furious. As soon as his older brother and his wife got home from work, he beat up his older brother.
He then learned that his sister-in-law had taken some of the grain back to her parents' home, and sold the rest at a high price.
When asked about the money from the sale, the couple said they had used it, and asked them to give them the remaining money.
The sister-in-law threw a tantrum, saying that her brother-in-law was trying to force her to her death, and that she wanted to take her child back to her parents' home, basically acting like a scoundrel.
Seeing that his elder brother was also going along with his sister-in-law, Wang Weiguo was so angry that he slammed the door and left.
Some time later, Brother Wang and his wife came to borrow grain again, which almost made Li Mingyue and her husband furious.
Later, it was Old Master Wang who spoke up, saying that if she continued to cause trouble, he would sever ties with them and kick the couple out of the house, which finally calmed things down.
It's not usually apparent, but it's during difficult times that humanity is truly tested.
A life of hardship is like a mirror, revealing whether someone is human or a monster.
Bai Xiaoyue gave her friend a hug to comfort her:
"Take advantage of this incident to see your older brother and his wife for who they really are, so that you two won't make the same foolish mistakes in the future. You've paid for this lesson with your money."
From now on, I should save my money myself and not tell my parents how much money I have.
Don't be too generous to your relatives; remember that a little kindness is appreciated, but too much kindness breeds resentment.
No one can predict what the future holds, so it's always good to have a backup plan!
Li Mingyue was originally a straightforward and generous person, and after Bai Xiaoyue's words of comfort, she also came to terms with it.
He started caring about his friends' lives again.
Bai Xiaoyue didn't hide anything and told everyone that her house had been burgled.
She described how her mother forced her to go on blind dates, and how she ended up finding a fake partner to fool her parents.
I told my friend everything, just so he could have a good laugh.
Sure enough, this made Li Mingyue laugh heartily, dispelling her gloom.
Wang Weiguo was very helpful; he bought Bai Xiaoyue 3 jin of meat and a pig's trotter.
Carrying her shopping bags, she pushed open her courtyard gate and saw Yan Ci weeding in the vegetable garden, with Chang Le following behind him like a little tail.
The cold, stern man and the chattering child actually get along quite harmoniously.
Seeing her mother return, Chang Le cheered, dropped the grass she was holding, and rushed over to hug her.
Yan Ci grabbed her and carried her to wash her hands. Bai Xiaoyue handed her daughter a piece of chicken cake.
Soak the soybeans; we'll make braised pork trotters for dinner. Yan Ci, seeing Bai Xiaoyue preparing the meal, started a fire.
Bai Xiaoyue chopped up the pig's feet, blanched them, and then used tweezers to pluck off the fine hairs one by one.
Once the preparations are complete and the soybeans are soaked, heat oil in a pan and stir-fry the pig's trotters until the skin of the pig's trotters develops golden brown spots.
Add ginger, garlic, soybean paste, a dozen peppercorns, and a few dried chilies, and stir-fry for a while until the aroma of the spices is released. Then add water, a little more than the amount of pork trotters.
Bring to a boil, then simmer over low heat for an hour before adding soybeans.
Simmer for another hour, season with salt, reduce the sauce over high heat, and then it's ready to be served.
Yan Ci looked through the flames at the quiet woman busy at the stove, and the aroma of food wafted from the pot. He felt a sense of satisfaction he had never experienced before.
Bai Xiaoyue also made a cucumber dish, along with fragrant and tender pig's feet, crisp cucumber, and served with steamed buns and millet porridge.
Someone once said that there is nothing that good food cannot cure.
She thought that was absolutely right; she didn't even miss her phone anymore, all she wanted to do was eat.
Mr. and Mrs. Bai were no longer surprised that their daughter would buy meat for them every now and then.
Living in this day and age, getting a decent meal is incredibly difficult. Everyone has a keen sense of smell; they can tell exactly what everyone is cooking.
Bai Xiaoyue only buys meat to eat on the day she receives her monthly allowance from Chang Le.
She has always maintained a low profile, so she doesn't buy things indiscriminately.
Although I have money, I have no legitimate reason to do this. I need to find a way to give the money a legitimate explanation.
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