Chapter 73

“Dad, I want, I want…” Er Bao watched as his older brother and younger brother were both lifted high, shouting that it was his turn.

Immediately, his laughter flowed continuously into the kitchen: “Hahaha… Dad, hurry up, hurry up… Hahaha…”

Ning Shu placed the cooked dishes on the table. She was very satisfied with her current life.

The childhood she lacked, the parental love she never received, didn’t happen to her children.

That’s great.

San Bao was still young, he wouldn’t remember how she had neglected him due to the struggle with the storyline.

Although Yi Bao and Er Bao were only five years old, they already had memories of the past.

So she wanted to make the rest of their lives happy and not be affected by that period.

“Time to eat, San Bao, your meat is ready.” Ning Shu came to the kitchen door, watching the noisy group of three children playing and laughing loudly.

She hadn’t made up her mind about following the army before.

Although she planned to deal with spinach after the New Year before going, she still procrastinated.

But now, seeing the happy children playing, she was determined.

Dealing with spinach would be put on the agenda as soon as possible.

Children’s growth not only required a mother but also a father. This is what could give them a happy and complete childhood.

As for meeting Ning Qin in the family courtyard.

She thought, before they couldn’t beat their family, let alone after going to the countryside?

In the storyline, Ning Qin would rise above her.

Because it was part of the storyline, she could overlook it.

But if she came to cause trouble after following the army, she wouldn’t let her off.

By then, she would clean up along with the Ning family.

“Meat…” San Bao heard his mother’s shout and staggered up to the cement floor under the eaves.

It was probably about 30 centimeters high. San Bao climbed very quickly. When he climbed onto the cement floor, he ran to Ning Shu’s side and hugged her leg.

“Mommy…” His tender voice softened Ning Shu’s heart.

“San Bao, it’s time to eat meat. Did you see your brothers eating just now? Are you hungry?” Ning Shu held his little hand and went inside to wash it.

“Eat… Bao eat… meat…” Each word popped out separately, which was San Bao’s characteristic.

But at this age, most kids spoke like that, quite cute.

Ning Shu washed San Bao’s hands, dried them, and then lifted him onto the child seat.

His wooden bowl was already set with pork rib porridge emitting a strong aroma. Because it had cooled for a while, the temperature was just right, not too hot for San Bao.

San Bao’s eyes lit up when he saw the pork ribs.

He used a spoon to fish out the ribs from the porridge, then reached for them with his little hand and started gnawing.

The pork ribs had stewed in the porridge until very tender.

With each bite, it seemed as if the flavor melted in his mouth.

San Bao finally got to eat meat, revealing a happy smile.

“I want to eat pork ribs too.” Er Bao bounced in, followed by Yi Bao, and then Lin Guodong.

They had just finished washing their hands outside.

“Wow, there are so many dishes today, one, two, three, four, five…” Er Bao saw besides the pork ribs, there were other meats and curiously asked, “Mom, what kind of meat is this?”

Lin Guodong sat down, and Ning Shu had already served them rice.

He was also curious, “Is this roasted duck available for purchase?”

Roasted duck and soy sauce duck were quite similar, and many people couldn’t distinguish them.

So Lin Guodong thought it was roasted duck.

Ning Shu explained, “These were made by a friend I know in the county town. She sells them privately to acquaintances, but it’s not common because ducks are hard to come by. Today was just lucky. I also bought some cakes from her. Speaking of which, occasionally making and selling things like this can be quite profitable.”

She didn’t specify whether it was soy sauce duck or roasted duck; they were quite similar anyway.

Lin Guodong knew she often went to the county town before and frequently visited state-owned restaurants, so he wasn’t surprised she had friends there.

Moreover, many people in the county town conducted such transactions privately, not just in their county town.

So he didn’t doubt Ning Shu’s words.

Lin Guodong doesn’t mind going to the black market. In fact, if there’s something he wants to buy there, he’ll go.

He’s not a rigid person, but he advises, “Be careful when you buy. If things get dicey, it’s better to let go of the goods and money. If things get worse, find Meng Jie.”

The Red Turban soldiers don’t arrest people for buying things; they mostly just confiscate what they’ve bought.

Buying things isn’t considered profiteering; it’s the selling that is.

So, if you get caught buying at the black market, it’s just a loss, nothing more.

Sometimes, the Red Turbans might even let you go on purpose so you come back and they can confiscate more goods.

Isn’t that good for business in the long run? But there are always surprises, so Lin Guodong still warns her.

“Well, I’m careful. When I go to her house, I bring a basket with me. To others, it just looks like I’m visiting relatives. Besides, she doesn’t sell much privately, and not many people go there, so it doesn’t attract much attention,” Ning Shu said.

“But I only go once or twice a month to improve our meals.”

“Mom, is this tasty?” Yi Bao asked, nibbling on a piece of sweet and sour spare ribs.

He hadn’t tried this sauce duck before, but it looked similar to braised pork, so it seemed tasty.

“Everyone has different tastes. Some like sour, some like sweet. It depends on whether you like this flavor. You can try it,” Ning Shu replied, smiling.

She liked it, but she didn’t like eating the skin.

“Meat is definitely tasty. How could meat not be tasty?” Er Bao said.

Ning Shu chuckled and offered him a piece, but added, “I don’t like eating the skin. Which one of you wants it?”

“Give it to me, give it to me…” Er Bao reacted the fastest.

Yi Bao glanced over, seeing his younger brother wanting to eat, so he didn’t say anything as he hadn’t finished his spare ribs yet.

Lin Guodong directly handed the bowl over, taking advantage of his longer arms, he reached the bowl in front of Ning Shu.

Er Bao protested, “Dad, why are you snatching duck skin with the kids?”

He reached out, handing the bowl over, but his hand wasn’t as long as his father’s.

Lin Guodong replied, “If you want some, take it from your own bowl.”

“Hmph.” Er Bao huffed and picked up a piece of sauce duck, then peeled off the skin from the meat.

“I have mine too.”

Ning Shu was speechless. She handed her piece of meat skin to Lin Guodong.

“You can have it yourself. I’ve heard people say that the soul of this meat is in the skin.”

Lin Guodong said, “You like meat, I like skin, it’s perfect.”

He enjoyed eating the skin, just like he enjoyed eating dried sweet potatoes. He liked something chewy.

Ning Shu didn’t know, she thought he was just being polite and found this man quite good at it.

While this family was happily eating, the people in the old house were not happy at all.

After returning from Ning Shu’s house, nobody dared to speak.

Even Lin’s mother didn’t feel like cooking, she just mixed rice and sweet potatoes together and made porridge directly.

During dinner, Lin’s father broke the silence, “It’s almost Chinese New Year, about twenty days left. When the time comes, we’ll have to distribute grains and such. Since it’s a rare reunion for the whole family, we’ll postpone the division until after the New Year. Eldest son, second son, don’t think too much about it. This family won’t remain undivided. Even if your mother and I are gone in the future, it will have to be divided. It’s better to split cleanly now, so nobody will harbor grudges about who got more or less.”

Even the discerning could tell that Lin’s father was still upset about the incident where they said the three children at the old house were eating for free.

Indeed, Lin’s father was upset.

At the age of the three children, how much could they eat? Even if they were eating for free, it was the grain earned by him and his wife through hard work.

Although they hadn’t divided from the eldest and second households, did they not have the right to decide on the grain they earned themselves?

“Dad, do we really have to divide? Can’t we just leave it undivided?” Lin Guofeng felt uneasy.

Qian Aifen remained silent.

Although dividing the household meant they, as a couple, would have to earn grain for six people, it would be tough.

But at the same time, they could raise chickens and pigs at home.

So, in a way, there was hope.

At least they wouldn’t have to earn a single egg for several people.

“Father, I don’t want to divide either. Hasn’t Little Sister’s job issue been resolved? If so, let’s just stay well together,” Lin Guoliang said.

Zhang Qinfang also didn’t speak, but she was happy about the division.

Both she and the head of the household were capable workers.

They only had one son, and their three daughters were married off. The dowries were a considerable amount of money, and they could save it for their son’s marriage.

If they didn’t divide, the dowry would have to be given to the mother-in-law.

Wouldn’t that mean their daughters’ dowries would be used for the elder household’s sons’ marriages?

Moreover, they had the same number of children as the elder household.

The elder household had three sons and one daughter, while their family had three daughters and one son.

Their food consumption couldn’t match the elder household’s. If they didn’t divide, the elder household would still have the upper hand.

Even when their sons got married, how much dowry would the elder household’s three sons have to give? How much would their one son have to give? So, in her opinion, it was better to divide.

But Zhang Qinfang wouldn’t voice her thoughts.

In the current situation, if she spoke up, wouldn’t she be inviting criticism?

“You don’t need to say much; I’ve already made up my mind,” Lin’s father said. “Instead of waiting for more conflicts and then dividing, it’s better to divide now. At least the relationship between brothers will remain intact. If you bring up division later, it will tarnish your reputation. Now that I, the old man, have brought up division, it won’t affect you.”

Thinking back to how the youngest daughter-in-law caused a scene over division, wasn’t she ridiculed by the villagers for years? Thinking of this, Lin’s father deeply regretted why they hadn’t divided together back then.

Listening to their conversation, Lin Xiaojing remained silent.

If in the past she had no opinion about dividing the household, then now she was in favor of it.

Today, seeing the attitudes of the two sisters-in-law, she realized she wasn’t someone who repaid kindness with resentment.

Since they wanted to compete with her for jobs, she was happy to divide the household.

After the division, she would give the money she earned to the third sister-in-law. Then, if there were any benefits, she could use them to help her parents improve their health.

Thinking about these things, Lin Xiaojing’s suppressed mood began to lighten.

Her third brother was right; one should look forward.

Holding onto grudges was just being stubborn with oneself.

Lunch at the old house ended in this somber atmosphere.

After eating, the two daughters-in-law cleaned up, while Lin’s father and mother took Lin Xiaojing to Ning Shu’s house.

They needed to write up the contract agreement regarding the job and also get a certificate from the brigade leader.