Chapter 12: Eating for Free, Complaining

Lu Huaiguo froze for two seconds, still not understanding what Zhuang Meifeng meant. He frowned in hesitation. “It’s almost done, no need for two people.”

“Then take a day off.” Zhuang Meifeng said with a look that suggested she was thinking for Lu Huaiguo’s sake. But her little scheme was far too obvious. Lu Hailiang was so embarrassed he covered his face, and under the table, his hand desperately tugged at Zhuang Meifeng’s arm, signaling her to stop talking.

Zhao Menglan narrowed her eyes, as if seeing her eldest daughter-in-law for the first time. If someone wanted to be wicked, they should at least be clever about it—Zhuang Meifeng was wicked and stupid at the same time.

She had clearly arranged everything already. Wu Laidi scoffed with disdain. “If you want to freeload, just say so.” Everything was nearly done, and suddenly she wanted to switch people—wasn’t that just so she could eat? And yet she made it sound so righteous.

“What are you saying? What do you mean freeload? I just wanted Second Brother to take a day off. How did it become my fault from your mouth?”

“Shut up.” Lu Hailiang couldn’t bear it any longer. He directly cut her off with a cold voice, then looked at Lu Huaiguo with slight shame. “Second Brother, you go tomorrow as usual. I won’t go.”

Back in the room, the two had another big argument and parted on bad terms. Zhuang Meifeng sat alone in the room crying like falling pear blossoms, wiping her tears and mumbling: “Who did I do all this for? It was all for your good, and still no one appreciates it.”

After a trip back to her parents’ home, now her man didn’t care, and the child didn’t love her—who was she supposed to reason with?

The wall at Ye Qiu’s home was fixed by Lu Hailiang in just two days. When he left, Ye Qiu even gave him a small bag of jiangmitiao (glutinous rice sticks).

Jiangmitiao spoiled easily over time, and the malted milk powder had been bought when the original host was still around. Ye Qiu tasted it once—it wasn’t as good as milk—so she gave it to Wu Laidi as a thank-you to the second household.

After the empty space in the yard was cleared, Ye Qiu planted a lot of vegetables. The two children squatted in the yard every day, waiting for the seeds to sprout.

Days passed one by one. Under Ye Qiu’s care, Lu Zhinan and Lu Zhibei completely transformed. Their heads were round, their faces fair and soft with baby fat. They looked better than the children in Xiancheng.

Even the villagers who saw them couldn’t help but stop and praise them. Ye Qiu, standing beside them, felt truly happy. While the mother and her two sons were relaxing under a tree, a sharp-eyed, shrewd-looking woman walked straight toward the Lu family.

Ye Qiu didn’t pay attention at first, but Lu Zhinan, ever observant, spotted the woman and immediately jumped up. “Mom, someone’s coming. Looks like she’s here to see you.”

She looked familiar. Just as Ye Qiu stood up, Widow Zhao came forward with a big smile, dragging her daughter behind her. “Chuanzi’s wife, lying at home again, I see.”

Seeing Ye Qiu’s hands, soft and untouched by labor, and the ever-changing nice clothes she wore, Widow Zhao was filled with deep regret. Had she known the Lu family was doing so well, she would’ve married her daughter into the Lu family in the first place.

People in the same village all knew each other. Even if her daughter got bullied, Widow Zhao could stand up for her. If she married into another village and faced illness or misfortune, Widow Zhao wouldn’t even know about it.

After a few fake pleasantries, Widow Zhao finally got to the point. She rubbed her hands together shamelessly. “Can I borrow some clothes from you for a few days? My Xiaohuan is getting married soon. I’ve seen the ones at the Supply and Marketing Cooperative, but they’re not as nice as yours.”

Ye Qiu couldn’t deny it—the clothes the original host left behind were indeed stylish, even by future standards: plaid skirts, solid-color bulaji dresses, and embroidered white blouses. No wonder Widow Zhao came asking to borrow them.

Upon hearing her request, Ye Qiu politely refused. “Auntie, clothes really need to be tailored to fit. Xiaohuan and I have different body shapes, so it wouldn’t fit well.”

Lu Xiaohuan glanced at Ye Qiu, then looked down at her own flat chest. Her face turned red with embarrassment.

“What do you mean it won’t fit? I’ll just alter it when I get home and return it afterward.” said Widow Zhao, lifting her chin and speaking with an air of indifference.

Ye Qiu’s brows furrowed even deeper. Now she had even less desire to lend her anything. A piece of clothing only used a bit more than two feet of cloth, and Widow Zhao couldn’t even spare the fabric coupons to sew clothes for her own daughter? Who borrows someone else’s clothes and then alters them?

“Then how about I just give the clothes directly to Xiaohuan?” Ye Qiu curled her lips into a not-so-friendly smile.

Widow Zhao didn’t catch the sarcasm in her words at first. Clapping her hands, she laughed. “People say you waste money and are a spendthrift, but I think Chuanzi’s wife, you’re really kind. Our Xiaohuan won’t mind. If you have clothes you don’t want, just give them to us.”

Getting something for free without spending a dime—Widow Zhao had taken Ye Qiu for a foolish rich woman and truly believed she could get a few outfits out of her.

Lu Xiaohuan was so ashamed her ears turned red. She pulled on her mother’s sleeve hard and whispered angrily: “Mom, stop talking.”

“Stop it. I don’t want them.”

“You silly child, what do you mean you don’t want clothes? Did a donkey kick your head?” Widow Zhao scolded: “Why waste money? Your sister-in-law from the Lu family is giving you clothes, and you’re too proud to accept hand-me-downs?”

“Mom, she never planned to give them to us.”

Only then did Widow Zhao look up at Ye Qiu, who stood with her arms crossed. Suddenly, she realized Ye Qiu had been mocking her the whole time. She had been played! Her eyes widened in rage and she immediately prepared to curse, spewing out vile insults one after another.

She cursed all eighteen generations of Ye Qiu’s ancestors. If the Ye ancestors could hear her from the grave, they would probably come back to life out of sheer fury. Ye Qiu showed no reaction. Let her curse. She herself wanted to curse the Ye family too—they were a bunch of freaks.

A father who didn’t care, a mother who favored sons over daughters, and a useless, lazy brother.

Thinking of the original host’s family, Ye Qiu remembered how many things she had sent them before. It was time to visit and take those things back.

Widow Zhao, speaking without thinking, began spreading rumors about Ye Qiu and her two children. That was something Ye Qiu could not tolerate. Instantly, she covered Lu Zhinan’s ears. “Take your brother inside.”

Lu Zhinan looked at his mother with concern, worried she would be bullied. But the next second, he saw his mother pick up a stick from the ground and swing it at Widow Zhao’s legs. One against two, she held her ground and even chased after them swinging the stick.

That fierce figure left a deep impression on young Lu Zhinan, so much so that even as an adult, he never forgot his mother’s heroic moment.

Widow Zhao wailed all the way to the Lu family house, banging on the door and shouting like thunder without rain. Her voice was loud, but not a single tear fell. “Old sister! Hurry and take control—your daughter-in-law is about to tear the roof off!”

Zhao Menglan came over when she heard the noise. Which daughter-in-law? The eldest or the second?

“Your third daughter-in-law is really something. I just wanted to borrow some clothes… and she beat me out the door.”

Widow Zhao furiously lodged her complaint in front of Zhao Menglan, painting Ye Qiu as a vile woman who resorted to violence at the drop of a hat. Zhao Menglan rubbed her nose awkwardly and looked down.

“Well… the third one… I can’t control her either.”