RGL – Chapter 11

Su Min heard this and glanced at Su Changgui, who was still drinking with his friends. She understood him well—he was the only college graduate in the village, now living comfortably in the city with a respectable job. Naturally, he looked down on low-end labor like theirs. But he didn’t realize—not everyone had his kind of luck: access to education, a way into the city, a stable job.

She worried that her dad might lose confidence after being scolded by his younger brother, so she quickly tried to comfort him.

“Dad, don’t let it get to you. What Third Uncle said is just his opinion. As long as we’re okay with it, that’s what matters. You’ve seen how many people are struggling just to survive. We’re not doing anything illegal, we’re making money and keeping our conscience clear—why care about what others think?”

Sun Qiufang agreed, clearly upset too. “Minzi is right. We’re doing honest work and finally earning money. We can’t stop just because Changgui looks down on it.”

“Okay, okay, I was just saying it offhand. I’m not quitting,” Su Changrong said, trying to play it down. He’d been momentarily shaken, but it wasn’t enough to make him give up entirely.

Su Min said, “Dad, there are more and more rich people these days. And nowadays, people laugh at the poor, not the indecent. If we have money, who’s going to care what kind of job we do?”

“You little rascal, where did you learn such talk? Laugh at the poor, not the indecent?” Sun Qiufang gave her a stern look. “Kids shouldn’t say things like that.”

Su Min stuck out her tongue and said, “I just heard it somewhere. Anyway, the point is, as long as we make money, people don’t care what we do.”

“Alright, alright, our Minzi always makes the most sense,” Su Changrong quickly stepped in to ease the mood, then added with a laugh, “Come to think of it, it’s all thanks to Minzi’s idea that we came to the city. Otherwise, how could we be living like this?”

Hearing that, Sun Qiufang finally smiled and let it go. “You’re right. Our Minzi really is our lucky star.”

Su Min smiled and picked up some food for the both of them. “And this is just the beginning. Our life is only going to get better from here.”

Sun Qiufang laughed, “Listen to this girl. Compliment her a little and she’s already showing off.”  She ate the food Su Min gave her, heart filled with hope for the future.

No more mother-in-law constantly criticizing her, no more bickering with her sisters-in-law. Now it was just the three of them working hard together, and the money they earned stayed in their own hands. This really was the best kind of life.

By the time the family finished eating, Su Changgui and his group had already left—without even saying goodbye.

Su Changrong felt a knot in his chest. After all, they were brothers. Meeting by chance in the city should’ve been a joyous reunion, yet it felt so distant. How could he not take it to heart?

On the way home, Su Changrong brought up again that they were going to Su Changgui’s house for dinner the next day.

Sun Qiufang was actually quite happy to hear that. No matter what Su Changgui thought of their work, having a relative in the city they could stay in touch with was still a lively and helpful thing. When things were quiet, the two families could visit each other and look out for one another.

“Just right, I was thinking of asking Changgui if our Minzi can study at the county middle school. Let’s ask ahead so we can start preparing early.”

When Su Changrong heard that, he also remembered the issue of his daughter’s schooling. It was already October—if they could get her enrolled after winter break, that would be great.

“You’re right. I’ll ask Changgui tomorrow. He’s a teacher—he should have some way.”

Upon hearing this, Su Min quickly said, “Dad, Mom, don’t bring this up with my third uncle. He teaches elementary school—how can he help with middle school stuff? Besides, tomorrow’s just a dinner. If you bring up things like this, Third Uncle will think we only came for help. That’d be so awkward.”

Having experienced the coldness of the world in her previous life, she hadn’t planned on asking anyone for help in this one. It was better to rely on herself than on others. Depending on others only invited disdain and cold shoulders.

“But he’s your third uncle—we’re just asking.” Sun Qiufang, though she knew it wasn’t ideal to ask for help, was still willing to put aside her pride for her daughter.

“Oh, Mom, just trust me. I haven’t even finished this semester. If I want to go back to school, I’ll have to start over from the first year of middle school—otherwise schools won’t accept me. So asking now is pointless. How about this—I’ll get myself a set of textbooks and review on my own. When September comes next year, I’ll go enroll then. Sound good?”

“There’s a thing like that?” Sun Qiufang, who hadn’t studied much herself, didn’t know it worked that way. If it was true, then it really was too early to ask, and it’d be a waste.

“Alright then, I won’t bring it up,” she said.

Su Min smiled. “Leave the school stuff to me. You and Dad just focus on earning money.”

Su Changrong chuckled, “Alright, our girl’s grown up—let her decide for herself.”

“You’re always taking her side,” Sun Qiufang shot him a look, but then took Su Min’s hand and started walking forward with her.

Seeing this, Su Changrong quickly caught up. What had he done wrong? He just loved his daughter a little more, that’s all!

Early the next morning, the family of three headed out again for work. Over the past month, a few more people had joined the scrap-picking scene. Since Su Min’s family had started early, they hadn’t run into any turf wars. Everyone minded their own business, and when they bumped into each other, they could even exchange a few friendly words.

Only after chatting did they find out that some of these folks had only turned to scrap-picking because their families had fallen on hard times. With no trade skills to speak of, this was the only way they could make a living. As long as they could feed their families, who cared whether it looked respectable or not?

After hearing everyone’s stories, Su Changrong felt a deep sense of empathy. When you’re broke and can’t even put food on the table, what’s face worth? You can’t feed your family with pride alone.

Because they were going to Su Changgui’s place for dinner that night, the family wrapped up work around five in the afternoon. After selling the day’s scrap, they went home to wash up and change into the neatest clothes they had.

The clothes they’d brought from the village were all worn and shabby. Thankfully, Sun Qiufang had picked up some old clothes while collecting scrap. She’d patched and altered them until they looked halfway decent, managing to put together a few outfits that could pass for presentable.

Wearing his black coat, Su Changrong looked at himself and laughed. “This coat actually looks pretty good. I’ve never worn anything this nice in my life.” He looked over at his wife’s red jacket and his daughter’s long-sleeved plaid dress, and for a moment, it really did feel like they were city folks.

Sun Qiufang didn’t bother with his vanity. Instead, she checked the cabinet and realized they didn’t have anything decent to bring as a gift. You couldn’t show up to dinner empty-handed, especially not when visiting relatives. Looks like they’d have to spend money.

Thinking about how just one dinner would eat up an entire day’s earnings made her a bit reluctant.

Back in the countryside, a pound of meat would’ve been enough. But it was different in the city, especially with that third sister-in-law. She was a bit more particular—one pound of meat just wouldn’t cut it.

But Sun Qiufang was a practical woman. Even if it hurt, she knew that when something needed spending on, you had to spend. So she took out a few bills. “We still need to buy something. Let’s head out quickly or it’ll get dark.”

Su Changrong was still admiring himself in their cracked mirror, but he finally stopped preening and followed his wife and daughter out the door, grinning.

The butcher stall was still open, so Sun Qiufang quickly bought two pounds of pork.

The butcher was the same man who had previously given them pig bones—Zhu Qiang. Lately, Sun Qiufang and Su Min had been frequenting the market to pick through vegetable scraps, so they’d gotten to know each other.

When Zhu Qiang heard she was buying two whole pounds of meat, he chuckled. “Buying a lot of meat today, huh?”

While choosing the pork, Sun Qiufang replied, “We’re going to my husband’s younger brother’s place for dinner. Need to bring a gift.”

Zhu Qiang smiled, “If it’s for gifting, I’ll cut you something that looks nicer.” As he spoke, he neatly sliced a solid piece of pork belly.

He even tossed in an extra ounce of fatty meat for rendering into lard.

Sun Qiufang quickly thanked him over and over.

“No need to be polite. I’m about to close shop anyway,” Zhu Qiang replied.

“Boss Zhu, are you done yet?” A plainly dressed but well-kept middle-aged woman carrying a large basket came over. The basket was big—clearly meant for hauling meat.

Zhu Qiang’s face lit up when he saw her. “All ready for you. I’ve saved the twenty pounds of pork and intestines for your restaurant. How come you’re here alone today? No one came with you?”

The woman smiled. “It’s fine. I know the route well now. I can handle it on my own.”

As she spoke, she began loading the goods.

Zhu Qiang handed the meat to Sun Qiufang and then rushed over to help the woman.

Su Min looked at her and felt a strange sense of familiarity. She was sure she’d never met this woman before, but the woman reminded her of someone she had seen.

“Minzi, what are you spacing out for? We still need to buy more stuff—come on.” Sun Qiufang handed the meat to Su Changrong and tugged on Su Min’s arm.

Su Min snapped out of it, gave the woman one last glance, and walked off with her mom.

On the way, they passed a fruit stand, and Su Min suggested they buy some fruit. City folks didn’t care much for canned goods or brown sugar—they preferred fresh things.

Hearing this, Sun Qiufang bought three pounds of red apples.

She sighed to herself. Buying all this just for one dinner—if she had a choice, she definitely wouldn’t be going.