Chapter 14 : Crying

“It’s all Little Auntie’s fault for jinxing it.” Recently, the relationship between the aunt and nephew had improved. Songzi, being young and forgetful, had almost forgotten Liang Qingqing’s previous bad temper. Now, he even dared to joke with her.

While Songzi had forgotten, Liang Shuqiang had not. He first glanced at his sister’s expression and, seeing nothing amiss, put Songzi down. “You didn’t watch where you were going. Didn’t you see that big rock? How can you blame your little auntie? Aren’t you ashamed?”

“Exactly, exactly,” Liang Qingqing chimed in, walking over and making a funny face at Songzi until he shyly looked down. Then she sweetly called out to Liang Shuqiang, “Big Brother.”

AlthoughLiang Shuqiang and Liang Junqiang were close in age, their personalities were worlds apart. One was so quiet he seemed old-fashioned, while the other was so lively he could be annoying. Because of this, Ma Xiuzhi often lamented that their father hadn’t chosen their names well; it would have been better if they had balanced each other out.

“Give me your things. I’ll carry them for you.”Liang Shuqiang saw the bag on Liang Qingqing’s back and quickly reached out to take it.

Grateful for the help, Liang Qingqing handed over the bag. With her hands free, she took Songzi’s hand. The boy, shy at first, tried to hide behind her but eventually took her hand with his chubby little one.

Songzi glanced up at Liang Qingqing, secretly thinking how soft her hand was, how nice she smelled, and how beautiful she looked.

“Why are you two here? It looks like you were waiting for me.”

“It’s getting dark, and Mother was worried, so she asked me to come and get you. Songzi overheard and insisted on coming along,”Liang Shuqiang said, recalling Songzi’s tantrum, and his lips curved up slightly.

“I did not cry!” Songzi’s face turned red with embarrassment at being called out by his own father.

Liang Qingqing laughed heartily, feeling a warm surge inside. It felt wonderful to be cared for and thought of all the time.

“I stayed in town a bit longer to walk around.”

“A good walk can help clear your mind and sort things out. I’m very pleased,”Liang Shuqiang said.

It was clear that Ma Xiuzhi had told the whole family about her “breakup.” Otherwise, someone with Liang Shuqiang’s personality would never have said such considerate things.

Upon hearing this, Liang Qingqing forced a dry laugh and couldn’t continue the conversation.

Fortunately,Liang Shuqiang wasn’t much of a talker either. On the way home, she spent most of her time playing around with Songzi. As they approached the courtyard gate, they saw Ma Xiuzhi standing in front of the yard feeding the chickens. Her eyes kept glancing outside, and when she saw them, her expression visibly relaxed.

“You’re back? We’ll eat when your father returns from the private plot.”

After speaking, she turned and asked, “Qingqing, where did you go in town?”

“I just wandered around, didn’t do much,” Liang Qingqing replied. She asked Liang Shuqiang to take the bag inside the house and then stood next to Ma Xiuzhi, watching her feed the chickens.

Wilted vegetable leaves mixed with some rotten sweet potatoes were poured into a large bamboo tray, and the two large hens eagerly pecked at the food.

These two large hens were precious treasures in the family; no one could go hungry before them.

Nowadays, everything was done collectively, and each household was allowed to raise a maximum of two chickens. Having more was not permitted, and the chickens weren’t raised for meat but for the eggs they laid.

Eggs were valuable; when enough were collected, they could be exchanged for money at the county’s supply and marketing cooperative. This was one of the few significant sources of income for rural families.

After watching for a while, Liang Qingqing returned from the private plot.

The family sat around in the kitchen, with Ma Xiuzhi, who managed the household, responsible for serving the meal. As usual, they had a meal of potatoes and mixed grains. It wasn’t particularly tasty, but it was filling.

The dishes included stir-fried winter melon with chili peppers, eggplant, and loofah egg soup. Although it was called loofah egg soup, there was only one egg in it, beaten and barely noticeable in the large pot of soup.

“Alright, let’s eat,” Ma Xiuzhi said. The Liang family didn’t have a rule that women couldn’t sit at the table to eat. Couples sat next to each other, and since Liang Qingqing wasn’t married, she sat next to the child, Songzi. The large table was fully occupied.

Once they started eating, the only sounds in the kitchen were the clinking of chopsticks against bowls and plates.

Everyone had been busy in the fields all day, all for this moment of enjoying a hot meal together as a family!

Liang Qingqing had a small appetite, so even though she was very hungry today, she was still the first to put down her chopsticks. After finishing, she didn’t rush off. She waited until everyone had almost finished eating before running to her room and bringing out a pack of egg cakes.

“Don’t leave yet, I have something for you all. One for each person.” She had calculated it in advance: there were ten egg cakes in total. She ate two for lunch in the city, and the remaining eight were just enough for everyone in the family.

She handed a golden-yellow egg cake to each person. The lively atmosphere in the kitchen gradually quieted down. The family members had different expressions, except for Songzi and Liang Junqiang, who were overjoyed and happily thanked Liang Qingqing.

Seeing this, although Liang Xueyong was happy, he couldn’t help but frown. He glanced at Ma Xiuzhi with a look that seemed to ask, “Didn’t we agree not to give Qingqing any money this time? Did you secretly give her some?”

Ma Xiuzhi didn’t respond to Liang Xueyong. She was also puzzled. Holding the egg cake in her hand, she felt both happy and conflicted. As Qingqing’s mother, she knew exactly how much money her daughter had.

Liang Qingqing was never one to save money; she spent whatever she had. How could she have saved enough to buy so many egg cakes?

She was about to ask Qingqing where she got the money, but when she noticed the expressions of the people around her, she decided to hold back her question.

On her right,Liang Shuqiang and her wife were smiling gently, with a hint of surprise in their eyes. Their surprise wasn’t about how Qingqing had so much money, but rather that she had shared it with everyone. It was rare for her to do so.

Every time Qingqing went to the city, she would bring something back, but she usually didn’t share with everyone. It seemed their little sister was slowly growing up. They exchanged a glance, both showing a comforting smile.

On the other side, Liang Junqiang and his wife were reacting differently. Junqiang was grinning like a fool, while his wife’s smile looked more like she was about to cry.

Unable to hold it in any longer, Huang Shumin pinched Junqiang’s thigh under the table. “This idiot!” she thought. How could he find this funny? Their parents were clearly playing favorites, and yet he was still smiling! It was bad enough that things weren’t always fair, but today’s situation was too much.

They were all part of the Liang family, yet between the two of them, they barely had a few cents, while Qingqing had handed out seven or eight egg cakes. It was infuriating and unfair, making life seem unbearable.

“What’s wrong? Hurry up and eat,” Liang Junqiang said, seemingly oblivious to his wife’s mood. He urged her to eat, his eyes crinkling into crescent shapes as he smiled.

Liang Junqiang wanted to say something, but looking at the expectant eyes around him, he couldn’t bring himself to speak. After hesitating for a while, he finally held back.

“I’m not feeling well; I want to lie down in my room for a bit.”

“What’s wrong? Do you want to see the village doctor?” someone asked, concerned.

Liang Junqiang stood up as well, mumbling something unclear.

Seeing Liang Junqiang’s behavior, Huang Shumin almost burst into tears from frustration. She raised her voice, “No need!”

She stormed out, accidentally tripping over a chair placed near the kitchen door. With a loud “bang,” she paused for a moment, then bit her lower lip and hurried out of sight.

The atmosphere inside the room became particularly awkward. Even Songzi sensed something was wrong and hid in Wang Xiaomei’s arms.

“Is Second Sister-in-law okay? Should you go check on her?” Liang Qingqing asked, scratching the back of her head, realizing belatedly that she might have unintentionally caused trouble. She had thought it would be better to share the treats publicly after dinner rather than privately, but it seemed to have upset Second Sister-in-law.

She guessed the reason for Huang Shumin’s displeasure. Based on a conversation she overheard one night, it was likely because she felt their parents were playing favorites and had given her extra money.

However, the truth was, the egg cakes weren’t bought with money from the family. With this in mind, she casually explained the origin of the egg cakes.

“And that’s how it happened,” she concluded.

Hearing this, Liang Junqiang angrily furrowed his brows. “It’s a good thing nothing serious happened, or I would have confronted her tomorrow. Just because we’re from the countryside, they look down on us?”

“Anyway, they’ve already apologized, so there’s no need to dwell on it,” Liang Qingqing shrugged. The past was in the past; there was no point in getting upset over it now.

Liang Junqiang nodded, clicking his tongue a couple of times in frustration. He didn’t actually care much about how the egg cakes came about. He was just happy his sister shared something with him. What was more important now was checking on his wife.

So, he quickly finished his egg cake and, muttering under his breath, started to walk out. “Your second sister-in-law was fine just now. I don’t know what happened. I’ll go check on her.”

“Wait a moment,” Ma Xiuzhi called out, stopping Liang Junqiang. He paused and looked back, puzzled. “Mother, what’s the matter?”

“I have something to say, and I want you all to listen carefully.” Ma Xiuzhi’s gaze swept over everyone’s faces and finally settled on Liang Qingqing. She raised her voice and spoke solemnly, “Recently, the family’s money has been almost entirely spent due to various expenses. I’m sure you’ve all noticed.”

At these words, everyone looked up, wondering why Ma Xiuzhi had suddenly brought this up.