Chapter 2

Zhou Pingguo has always been submissive. Easy to talk to, thin-skinned, and at the mercy of others seem to be labels that she can never tear off.

It was the first time that he spoke so righteously, and the three siblings of the Zhou family were a little stunned.

Zhou Sen was the one who reacted the fastest, “I didn’t!”

“Go by yourself, quickly, don’t let Jingjing and Leilei starve.” After saying that, he couldn’t help but glance at the dimes in Zhou Pingguo’s hand.

Zhou Pingguo pulled Zhou Lei over and said, “Let Lei Lei go with me. He has a keen nose and knows which ones are fresh and delicious.”

When Zhou Lei heard that he was going to be taken there, his eyes lit up, “Let’s go, let’s go.”

What a success! Zhou Sen cursed his brother in his heart, but he didn’t stop him, “Slow down, slow down!”

For convenience, the third brother made lunch boxes a little far away from the center of their village. He built a small house near the provincial road and washed vegetables and cooked there.

There was a bicycle at home, but the original owner didn’t know how to ride it, so he could only move forward holding the child’s hand.

About 20 minutes later, Zhou Pingguo brought Zhou Lei home and put two meat dishes in an iron basin. The meat was oily. In the past, Zhou Ping, who advocated healthy living, would not even look at it. But now, she couldn’t help but secrete saliva in her mouth just by smelling the smell.

Just now, Zhou Pingguo has brainwashed the little one who was guarding the food, saying that everyone is a family, her brother works hard, and it is not easy for her either, and that delicious food should be shared together. Leilei has already agreed that everyone will eat together later.

Zhou Pingguo said she was quite satisfied that the answer made sense.

The lunch was not good, but the rice was cooked well, not undercooked or burnt. After putting the food on the table, Zhou Sen looked at Zhou Pingguo’s hand and said, “No change?!”

Zhou Pingguo saw that he was so stingy that she thought he was just like the boss when she first started working, who was reluctant to let his employees drink even a sip of water. “The third boss is closing the stall and has some leftovers. Let us buy them all. We won’t lose out.”

After hearing this, Zhou Sen took a closer look at the contents of the basin. It was indeed full. He nodded and said, “Okay, it’s cold now, so things won’t spoil easily. Leilei and Jingjing can eat it. If they can’t finish it, they can eat it in the evening.”

“Brother and sister-in-law should eat too.” Zhou Lei’s mouth had already started to drool, but he was a trustworthy child. Since he had just promised Zhou Pingguo that the whole family would share together, he naturally had to keep his promise now.

“You guys just eat it, I’ll eat this! Hurry up, otherwise it will get cold and you will get a stomachache if you eat it.” Zhou Sen insisted.

“You are a child too, and you are growing up. You have to eat the good food. Otherwise, you will look like Wang Erliu in the village. What will you do then?” Wang Erliu was a dwarf, only 1.4 meters tall. Zhou Pingguo used him as an analogy to scare Zhou Sen.

After all, her short-lived husband was 183cm tall. Even if Zhou Sen’s nutrition couldn’t keep up, he wouldn’t be that short.

“Besides, you don’t want Leilei and Jingjing to develop the habit of eating alone, right?” Zhou Pingguo’s words seemed to annoy Zhou Sen.

“They won’t!” Zhou Sen, who is very protective of his children, can’t stand anyone saying a bad word about them.

“Leilei and Jingjing are definitely good people by nature.” Zhou Pingguo patted the little girl’s head to calm her down. “But education is also crucial. Blindly pampering them is not enough. Besides, you are also a child. There is no reason to always ask you to make sacrifices.”

“I’m the older brother.” Zhou Sen was very thin. Long-term stress made him mature, but his face was still childish. This contradiction reminded Zhou Ping of her childhood self, and a sense of oppression and desolation arose spontaneously. Zhou Ping felt sympathy for a moment, but when she thought of his attitude towards her, her heart hardened immediately.

“Okay, I’m still your sister-in-law! Just listen to me.” Zhou Pingguo said.

Zhou Sen looked at Zhou Pingguo unconvinced.

Zhou Ping glared back without hesitation, “Listen, Zhou Sen. Let me tell you why the food today is like this.”

“I’m poisoned!” Zhou Ping said viciously, “You control every penny, so we can only use the poor quality honeycomb coal we made. When I cooked today, the doors and windows were closed tightly. I haven’t been to school, so I don’t know what happened. I just felt chest tightness and shortness of breath, and then I fainted.”

“I have been through the gates of hell once. I know that your Zhou family has been very kind to me, but your brother has been dead for two years. During these two years, I have done my best to take care of you without slacking off for the moment. I don’t think I have done anything to let you down.”

“If you always treat me as a nanny, not as a member of this family, not as your sister-in-law, then fine, I will treat me as a nanny!”

“Your brother gave my family 1,000 yuan as a dowry, but I didn’t have much dowry, and prices have indeed become more expensive over the years, so I calculated it as 1,200 yuan. Now I work in the city, doing piecework, and I can earn about 100 yuan a month. If I calculate it as 100 yuan, I can pay off your family’s dowry in a year.”

“At the time, I was not old enough, and I didn’t get a marriage certificate with your brother. I am willing to stay and be your sister-in-law today because I have a conscience. You’d better not push it any further.”

Zhou Ping used to be a real estate salesman. She could flatter clients to the sky with her mouth, and naturally she could also make people want to burrow into the ground.

Zhou Sen has already had many fears in his life, including the successive deaths of his parents, the tragic news about his brother, and the sudden death of his aunt.

Fate had been very unfair to him, and Zhou Pingguo’s words were like the last straw that broke the camel’s back, making him pale.

He bit his lower lip tightly. After a struggle between his conscience and his conscience, he lowered his head, which he thought was proud, and said, “Sister-in-law, let’s eat.”

Zhou Ping nodded with satisfaction, “That’s right, a child like you won’t grow tall if you keep worrying so much all day long.”

Zhou Pingguo said again that she can’t grow taller!

Zhou Sen was a little unhappy, and secretly swore in his heart that he must exercise well and grow up to be as tall and mighty as his brother. He must not let this woman look down on him.

The argument between Zhou Pingguo and Zhou Sen caused the food to get cold. But no one said anything and they finished their meals in silence.

Zhou Pingguo put the dishes in the kitchen first, planning to boil some hot water in the afternoon to wash them.

In the middle of winter, she would not be happy if she was asked to wash with cold water.