Chapter 19: A Special Dinner

When the group arrived at the kitchen, Zhao Lili and her two younger brothers had already set the table.

Zhao Wen’s eyes lit up several degrees as he looked at the big bowl in the middle of the table filled with chicken and pork belly. “It smells really good. Looks like we’re lucky to have Eldest Sister-in-law’s blessing today, to eat such delicious food.”

Liu Dani nodded with satisfaction, “This time Xiulian was generous — both chicken and pork belly. Now this is how you treat guests properly.

Though your sister is family, she’s married now, so when she comes back to her parents’ home, she’s a guest. We should be polite.”

“Hello, Eldest Sister-in-law,” Zhao Pingping timidly greeted Zhao Dehua.

Zhao Dehua gave a perfunctory nod and didn’t even glance at Zhao Pingping sitting beside her.

She turned and circled around, pulling Zhao Guang, who was secretly nibbling on some bread, into her arms and doted on him, saying, “Haven’t seen Zhao Guang for a few days. This kid looks so thin.”

Then, quietly, she slipped her hand into Zhao Guang’s pocket and put five yuan inside.

Zhao Guang smiled with his chubby little face and whispered, “Thank you, Auntie.”

Zhao Dehua thought this secretive gesture was unnoticed by others.

In fact, everyone sitting at the table saw it clearly.

Zhang Xiulian picked up a bowl and served each person a full bowl of meat and vegetables.

When she brought the bowl to her eldest sister-in-law, she jokingly said, “Eldest sister, you just gave money to Zhao Guang, so you might as well give me the money for my clothes too. I have a bad memory and don’t want to forget later.”

Zhang Xiulian saw that her eldest sister-in-law wanted to pretend not to hear and kept holding out her hand, keeping the posture of asking for money.

The atmosphere in the room suddenly became awkward.

“All right, isn’t it enough if I give you?” Zhao Dehua, protecting her nieces and nephews, didn’t want to lose face.

She would rather suffer silently than ruin her image in the children’s eyes.

She searched through all the pockets of her jacket and pants, and all she had was 25 yuan in total.

“That’s all I have. I’ll give you the rest next time.”

“It’s okay, eldest sister, you don’t have to pay the rest.

If you want to wear new clothes next time, just tell me and I’ll buy them for you.

Clothes that fit well look better, don’t you think?” Zhang Xiulian teased sarcastically.

“All right, all right, let’s eat,” Zhao Debao urged to start the meal.

Zhao Wen and Zhao Guang couldn’t wait any longer. They pulled their bowls close, dropped their cheeks, grabbed their chopsticks, and started eating.

Zhao Dehua was also attracted by today’s meal—chicken stewed with pork belly and dried beans, paired with corn cakes.

The taste definitely couldn’t go wrong.

She picked up a piece of pork belly and put it into her mouth. The pork belly, having been simmered for a long time, gleamed with an oily shine. Whether fatty or lean, it melted instantly in the mouth, rich with fragrance.

But the next second, Zhao Dehua’s face flushed all at once—from the base of her ears to her hairline.

Her mouth felt as if it was filled with blazing fire, burning without mercy.

Even her facial features felt scorching hot; tears and snot streamed down together.

“It’s so spicy, water, water…”

Zhao Dehua fanned her mouth desperately with her hand, hoping to cool it down.

Zhao Wen stood up to pour water for his eldest aunt, checking all the warmers in the kitchen—there wasn’t a single drop of water inside.

He immediately grabbed a cup and rushed to the yard to get some cold water, but the bucket was also completely empty.

“Eldest Aunt, quickly eat some flatbread to calm it down,” Zhao Guang handed her a piece of flatbread.

Zhao Dehua, like grabbing at a desperate straw, stuffed the corn flatbread into her mouth with all her might.

After eating three in a row, her mouth gradually regained feeling.

But her upper and lower lips had already swollen up like sausages.

“Ah, big sister, I’ve been tricked by this chili vendor.

I told him I don’t eat spicy food and specifically asked for a mild variety, but who knew these chilies were so hot?

That bastard—next time I see him, I’ll overturn his stall!”

Zhang Xiulian preemptively cleaned herself up quickly.

“You…” Zhao Dehua just opened her mouth, but her throat hurt like knives tearing flesh.

Zhang Xiulian and her two daughters all loved spicy food, and Zhao Debao and his two sons could handle some chili too.

Only Liu Danni and Zhao Dehua couldn’t tolerate any spice.

Every time, Zhang Xiulian would make a separate dish for them without a trace of chili.

Yet they still found faults, complaining it was too salty, too bland, too oily, or too plain—always something wrong.

This time, with the mother-in-law calling in the eldest sister-in-law, any clear-sighted person would know it was to settle scores with Zhang Xiulian.

In her past life, she was familiar with this pattern: whenever her mother-in-law was displeased, she would immediately call her eldest daughter to vent.

Why should she repay evil with kindness?

Liu Dani’s face darkened; she threw down her chopsticks and dragged her daughter back to their room.

“They can’t eat spicy food, we’ll eat it. Such a big pot shouldn’t go to waste,” Zhang Xiulian added another spoonful of meat to Zhao Debao’s bowl.

Zhao Debao wanted to leave with his mother and sister, but thinking of the crazed Zhang Xiulian that night, a cold sweat broke out on his back.

So he still picked up his bowl and started eating.

No denying, tonight’s meal was truly delicious—better than dining out.

The children were all sweating from the meal.

Just after finishing, Zhao Debao heard his eldest sister Zhao Dehua’s voice from the yard.

“Mom, I’m leaving now. I’ll come visit you again in a few days.”

“My dear daughter, you came back to your mother’s house without eating, and left on an empty stomach. That really pains my heart,” Liu Dani wiped her tears, choking on her words.

Zhao Debao quickly gathered the children to go outside together. “Let’s hurry and see your aunt off.”

“Big sister, why are you leaving so soon? Why not stay the night before you go?”

Zhao Debao made a fake attempt to persuade her to stay.

Before, if she wanted to stay for days, she would.

No matter how much trouble she caused, he was sure Zhang Xiulian wouldn’t say a word.

But now, things were different.

If his sister still caused trouble like before, Zhang Xiulian going berserk could swallow him whole.

“That’s right, big sister. Stay a few more days before going back.”

Zhang Xiulian pretended to agree.

Liu Dani’s face darkened, glaring angrily at Zhao Debao and Zhang Xiulian, her eyes full of resentment. “Stop pretending here. Don’t you feel ashamed and disgusted?

I think you’re just hoping my daughter will leave!”

She was definitely unhappy. Originally, she had sent word to get her daughter to come to vent her anger.

But after a whole day, she got no relief.

Her daughter had not only been beaten and splashed with water, but also ended up paying out twenty-five yuan herself.

This was truly a case of losing more than you gain!

The more Liu Dani thought about it, the more aggrieved she felt.

Even more frustrating was that her son saw his eldest sister being tormented by his wife but didn’t dare say a word!

Luckily, the chicken and pork her daughter brought weren’t taken out.

Otherwise, it would have been an even bigger loss.

“Debao, take good care of Mom. I’ll come again when I have time,” Zhao Dehua said with tears in her eyes, then turned and rode away on her bicycle.

Zhang Xiulian was both a daughter-in-law and a daughter herself.

If her eldest sister-in-law didn’t cause trouble, she would gladly welcome her frequent visits.

After all, this was her home too.

But if she couldn’t tell right from wrong and stirred up trouble like before, she wouldn’t be polite.

After cleaning the kitchen, Zhang Xiulian didn’t return to her own room but quietly hid in her daughter’s room.

After lights out, she and her eldest daughter stood by the window, watching every move near the kitchen.

A few minutes later, Liu Dani tiptoed and pushed open the kitchen door.

After some noisy clattering inside the kitchen, she came out cursing, “This is really strange. I clearly put it in the jar, so how did it just disappear?”