PCJ – Chapter 96 Comparing Hearts with Hearts

“Jie, do you think I’m too immature?” Zhao Lanying reflected on her actions and felt deeply regretful.

“How could I? You didn’t do it on purpose. Besides, you’re not the only one at fault here. Biaozi is also to blame. If he had spoken properly, it wouldn’t have come to this. I’ll have a good talk with him later. He’s old enough to know better than to cause worry for the elders,” Liu Qiaoye responded impartially, neither blaming Zhao Lanying entirely nor indulging her completely.

Zhao Lanying fully accepted Liu Qiaoye’s words. She was quite smart, deciding to come to this sister’s house instead of their parents’ home. If she had gone to their parents, the issue would have escalated into a conflict between the Zhao and Liu families. A quarrel between the couple could have turned into a matter of family honor.

Zhang Jiaohua and Liu Xi didn’t need to worry about the adults’ problems; they were only concerned about how many chicken legs they could get from the cooked wild chickens. The wild chickens were quite fat, but they definitely weighed less than domestic chickens of similar size. Each wild chicken weighed just over two pounds. However, autumn wild chickens were quite solid, and once cooked, they filled two large bowls.

“Jiaohua-ge, these wild chickens taste better than domestic ones, don’t they?” Liu Xi tried to please Zhang Jiaohua.

“Yes, of course. Wild chicken meat is much more tender,” Zhang Jiaohua proudly nodded.

“Can you take me to the mountains to hunt wild chickens tomorrow?” This was Liu Xi’s true intent.

Zhang Jiaohua shook his head. “No way. You’re too young. You can’t handle the mountain paths.”

Zhang Jiaohua didn’t dare take Liu Xi along as a burden. The last time they encountered a wild boar, he could barely manage himself. Bringing Liu Xi along would be asking for trouble. Despite being amused by Liu Xi’s words, Zhang Jiaohua didn’t let it go to his head.

Liu Xi was disappointed that his plan didn’t work. “When I get back, I’ll train Xiao Hui to be a hunting dog. She’s the mother of Zuan Sanbao, so she must be even more formidable.”

“Xiao Hui is already grown; no matter how you train her, she won’t become a hunting dog. Training a hunting dog isn’t that easy,” Zhang Jiaohua reminded him.

“Jiaohua-ge, will you tell me how to train a hunting dog?” Liu Xi asked eagerly.

“Of course. When Xiao Hui has puppies again, I’ll tell you how to train a hunting dog,” Zhang Jiaohua readily agreed.

If Zhao Lanying and her son hadn’t come, Liu Qiaoye would have surely taken a bowl of food to Zhang Jiaohua’s grandparents. Regardless of whether the elders showed favoritism towards the children, they were still the elders. And they hadn’t treated Zhang Jiaohua too badly overall. Essentially, they had been fair most of the time. Liu Qiaoye believed she needed to set a good example for her child.

Meizi’ao had a long-standing story about filial piety. A couple was unkind to their parents, making them eat with bamboo bowls and feeding them leftovers, hot and cold, on and off, very pitiful. This couple had a child they loved dearly. One day, they saw their child making bamboo bowls. They asked why, and the child said, “I’m making bamboo bowls for you, for when you’re old like grandma and grandpa.” The couple realized their actions were setting an example for their child. From that day, they changed their ways and became the most filial in the village.

Liu Qiaoye believed that no matter what, one should be filial to the elderly. Supporting elders shouldn’t be an equal exchange, and family affection isn’t a transaction. Most importantly, she wanted to set a good example for her child.

The wild chicken meat filled two large bowls. Liu Qiaoye thought for a moment, then filled another bowl and patted her child’s head. “Take this to your grandparents.”

“I’m not going. If Yuanbao eats it and chokes, they’ll blame me. Uncle’s family never takes anything to grandpa and grandma,” Zhang Jiaohua complained.

“This is for your grandparents. When they kill chickens, don’t they always save a drumstick for you? How can you be so stingy? When your parents get old, will you also neglect us?” Liu Qiaoye said seriously.

Zhang Jiaohua pouted but reluctantly took the bowl of wild chicken and walked out.

“Be careful not to trip,” Liu Qiaoye called out.

Zhang Jiaohua, already hungry, couldn’t resist the aroma of the chicken. He looked around to make sure no one was watching and sneaked a piece of wild chicken into his mouth, chewing quickly and swallowing without spitting out any bones.

His grandparents’ house was a few fields away. He couldn’t resist and ate another piece. By the time he reached their house, he had eaten three pieces. At the door, he wiped his mouth with his sleeve, making sure no trace of the chicken was left.

“Grandpa, Grandma, my mom sent some wild chicken for you,” Zhang Jiaohua said, glancing at the bowl to ensure it wasn’t obvious he had eaten some.

His grandparents were delighted, not because of the chicken, but because of the thoughtfulness.

“Did you eat any yourself?” Zhang Manyin asked with a smile.

Feeling guilty, Zhang Jiaohua quickly denied it, “No, I didn’t eat any on the way.”

This obvious denial made his grandparents laugh. They could tell he had snacked on the way just by the oil on his mouth.

“Of course, you didn’t eat any. Why don’t you join grandpa for some?” Zhang Manyin laughed.

“No, I have to go home. My aunt and cousin are visiting, and there are plenty at home. I need to hurry back before Xi eats all the drumsticks,” Zhang Jiaohua said, running home.

His grandparents exchanged a look. “See, Qiaoye always sends something over whenever she cooks something nice. We should treat all the grandkids equally,” Ma Donghua said.

“I never looked down on Jiaohua,” Zhang Manyin blushed.