RIRW – Chapter 25

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Although Zuo Chengcai usually didn’t like working, once it came to making money, he immediately became an action-oriented person. After learning he could earn eight yuan a day, he barely wanted to eat lunch. He quickly shoved a few bites into his mouth, ate until he was about 80% full, and then hurried off to ask Zuo Shuisheng for leave.

Grandmother Zuo, seeing his lazy attitude, thought he was going off to slack again. Angrily, she muttered, “Little beast, how did I end up raising such a little beast?”

Inside the house, Zuo Dan, while eating, secretly enjoyed hearing the old lady complain. She felt that asking Zuo Chengcai to work was a very wise decision. Most of the people in the production team followed the routine, working and earning points. If someone didn’t show up for work, they would immediately become the focus of the whole village. How could they get anything done? Only people like her third uncle, who had always been a bit of a troublemaker, could still slack off without anyone paying attention.

In the afternoon, Zuo Chengcai didn’t go to work. He had to go to the town’s road to intercept the truck drivers he knew and arrange a time to pick up the grain. Only after the arrangements were made could he start collecting the grain.

As for whether the grain could actually be collected, Zuo Chengcai wasn’t worried at all.

There were so many production teams under the Dahe Commune, how could they not collect two hundred pounds of fine grain? He was confident that once the grain was distributed, no one would dare eat it. They would definitely trade it for coarse grain or save it for the holidays. If anyone ate up all their fine grain right away, they would be laughed at.

Zuo Dan wasn’t worried either. If her third uncle couldn’t even handle this small task, she’d fire him and return the money to Li Chenliang. It wouldn’t be a big loss.

As for Zuo Chengcai getting caught hoarding grain? Their family didn’t have enough food, so couldn’t they exchange it for some? Should they eat tree bark?

Both of them had already thought through all possible scenarios and come up with countermeasures, ensuring everything would go smoothly.

In the afternoon, Zuo Dan and Li Chenliang were finally assigned to work together.

Li Chenliang whispered, “How’s it going?”

“No problem. How about you? When the grain is delivered to the address, someone must be there to receive it. If something goes wrong, I’m not responsible.”

“Don’t worry. I have relatives at the provincial post office in the city. They’ll definitely accept it when they see it,” Li Chenliang said confidently.

While they were talking and working, Su Xue and Lu Dai, who were working nearby, noticed the two of them chatting and laughing. Su Xue’s eyes flashed with dissatisfaction. She bit her lip and said to Zuo Dan, “Zuo Dan, let’s switch.”

Zuo Dan was already annoyed by how careless Li Chenliang was with his work, making her do extra. Hearing Su Xue’s voice, she glanced at her.

Li Chenliang frowned, “What’s the switch for? The team leader already arranged it.”

Su Xue didn’t expect this reaction from Li Chenliang and felt a bit embarrassed. She was much fairer than Zuo Dan, yet Li Chenliang wouldn’t even look at her. She bit her lip and lowered her head, glaring at her chafed hands. In her heart, she was seething, thinking she had to return to the city. She definitely had to go back.

Seeing Su Xue’s expression, Zuo Dan chuckled and looked at Li Chenliang. “Li Chenliang, this girl seems to have taken a liking to you.” She had a feeling that, since they were all young people from the city, how could there not be some dramatic love story?

“Her?” Li Chenliang snorted disdainfully, his eyes full of rejection.

He was very clear in his mind—Su Xue wasn’t interested in him; she was after the connections he had, which could help her return to the city. Just like Li Hongbing, she had fallen for Shen Yiming. Before she knew Shen Yiming’s background, she had been competitive and jealous, but once she learned about his family situation, her attitude had completely changed.

How stupid was he to have ever liked such a woman?

Of course, he wouldn’t admit it, but Su Xue first liked Shen Yiming and only later became interested in him because of his background. That really made him feel dissatisfied.

He wasn’t any worse than Shen Yiming. Why was it that everyone seemed to prefer Shen Yiming?

Li Chenliang couldn’t figure it out and looked at Zuo Dan, who was working, with a complicated expression. “Hey, I need to ask you something. Do you think I’m better, or is Shen Yiming better?”

Although she was a country girl, at least she was still a woman.

Zuo Dan didn’t expect Li Chenliang to ask such a silly question. Seeing how confident and arrogant he usually was, it was surprising that he had some insecurities.

She rubbed her chin and looked him over carefully.

Li Chenliang grew nervous. If even this girl thought Shen Yiming was better…

“I think you’re better than Shen Yiming,” Zuo Dan said sincerely.

“Really?” Li Chenliang’s heart leaped in joy. “You really think I’m better than Shen Yiming?”

Zuo Dan nodded seriously, thinking to herself, of course, you’re better. You can help me make money, but if I were to meet Shen Yiming, I’d probably end up losing money. Who wouldn’t want someone who could let them profit?

Having heard Zuo Dan’s words, Li Chenliang seemed pleased and worked more efficiently. By the end of the afternoon, Zuo Dan found things a lot easier. Li Chenliang had finished all the work.

Li Chenliang usually worked lazily, but now he was showing such enthusiasm and effort. Some people noticed and couldn’t help but wonder about it.

When work finished and they returned home, Zuo Chengcai hadn’t yet returned. Grandmother Zuo was furious, feeling like this son was hopeless. He had only been well-behaved for a few days before falling back into his old bad habits.

Xu Fengxia privately complained to Zuo Hongjun, “Look at your third brother, always out of the house, and still taking up a whole room. Our family, with so many people, has to share a room, why should he get a room to himself?”

“Then what do you want to do, take his room?” Zuo Hongjun responded irritably. Since the family split up, he hadn’t spoken much to the second or third brothers. His mother didn’t give him any respect either. He didn’t understand what was happening. Since the split, he hadn’t benefited at all but now, it seemed like everyone was holding something against him. He felt some resentment toward Xu Fengxia.

Xu Fengxia continued, “Of course, it’s right for him to give it up. Huanhuan doesn’t want to live with the old lady. She sleeps in our room, how can we do anything…?” Her voice lowered as she spoke.

Huanhuan had stayed in the old lady’s room for two days, but now she refused to go back. She said she was too scared to get up at night. Now, she insisted on sleeping in Zuo Hongjun and Xu Fengxia’s room. She could stay there, but it wasn’t ideal for her to live there permanently.

Zuo Hongjun’s dark face flushed slightly, “What are you talking about? Just let her stay with the old lady. Isn’t Qingqing living just fine there? Why doesn’t Huanhuan want to go?”

“Huanhuan isn’t the same as Qingqing. Huanhuan’s going to the town in the future, how can she be treated the same? And look at the second brother’s family. Little Cong isn’t even living at home now. Dandan has a room to herself, and it’s even bigger than ours. Why should that be?”

Xu Fengxia’s eyes reddened as she spoke. “You’re the head of the family. If it were before, all the family property would be yours. Now, our daughter doesn’t even have a life as good as the second brother’s daughter. Why is that? Their son-in-law is the commune secretary and lives in the town. If you were the commune secretary, we wouldn’t care about this house. We’d be living in a big house in the town.”

Zuo Hongjun felt uncomfortable hearing this, “So what do you want to do? We don’t have the money to build a house.”

“Build a house? No need. I’ve thought about it. I’ll talk to Dandan about an arranged marriage. My nephew is pretty good. I’ll go to their house tomorrow and make it happen. We’ll get Dandan married off. I’ve figured it out. All the problems in our family started with her. Once she’s married and out of the house, everything will be fine.”

Since the family split, Xu Fengxia had been holding a grudge. She felt that Heaven had wronged her, making their family worse off while the second brother’s family was doing better. Clearly, the second brother’s wife was exploiting others—why should she have a better life?

After thinking over everything, Xu Fengxia had come up with a plan. Dandan was the source of their family’s troubles. If she weren’t at home, things would return to the way they were. But now, they had no house, and she and Huanhuan had to go work every day to support themselves.

Zuo Hongjun hesitated, “Do you think the second brother’s family would agree?”

“Why wouldn’t they agree? My family has been poor for three generations, and we’re just as good as they are. My nephew probably won’t mind marrying her.”

Xu Fengxia snorted coldly. “If she’s going to be a daughter-in-law, she can’t be picky. Once Dandan gets to my family, with my sister-in-law’s character, she’ll definitely be able to control her.”

While they were talking, Zuo Huan entered the room, pushing the door open. “Mom, I want to eat braised pork.”

When they saw Zuo Huan, Xu Fengxia and Zuo Hongjun stopped their conversation. Xu Fengxia’s expression softened, and she asked, “Didn’t you just have some yesterday?”

“Yesterday it was boiled, it didn’t taste good. I want braised pork. I saw Second Aunt making it, and she just sent some to Grandma. It’s good meat, not like the pork we usually get. She even added brown sugar, and it’s all red and glistening,” Zuo Huan said, licking her lips. The meat smelled so good, she could even smell it from outside the yard.

Xu Fengxia was irritated. “Look at them, they’re already living better. It’s only been a few days since the split, and they’re eating meat now.” She regretted that if they hadn’t split, she would’ve been able to enjoy the meat herself.

“Let’s go, we’ll go take a look.”

Xu Fengxia grabbed Zuo Huan and headed out. Zuo Hongjun said, “It’s just some meat, we’ll buy some later.”

“Buy what? They’re making meat, why can’t we eat some too?”

She ignored Zuo Hongjun’s words and, fuming, dragged Zuo Huan to the west room.

Zuo Dan was sitting there, eating a big plate of braised pork. The flavor was amazing. Although the seasoning wasn’t perfect, the meat was wild boar, pure and natural, with no feed, so it had a delicate sweetness and wasn’t greasy at all.

Watching Zuo Dan eating happily, Li Hui and Zuo Dacheng smiled with satisfaction. Especially Li Hui, who had remembered that last time, when the meat was divided, Zuo Dan had given her portion to Su Xue and hadn’t eaten any herself. This had been on her mind for a long time. Now that she saw Zuo Dan eating meat, she finally felt somewhat reassured.

Zuo Dan didn’t hold back at all. She devoured most of the braised pork in one bowl, and occasionally picked up a few pieces to serve to Zuo Dacheng and Li Hui. By the time Xu Fengxia arrived with Zuo Huan, the meat was almost finished.

Seeing that they were almost done eating, Xu Fengxia gritted her teeth and sarcastically said, “Second brother, so you’re eating meat now, but you never said you’d invite your older brother to have a few bites.”

Li Hui and Zuo Dacheng furrowed their brows, surprised by Xu Fengxia’s sudden comment. Zuo Dacheng responded, “Didn’t we just divide the meat? Didn’t we send some of our portion to your side?”

After the family split, Zuo Dacheng’s attitude had changed. It used to be that the family worked and spent money together, but now that they were separate, he had to think about the two children in his own family.

Li Hui said, “We didn’t eat much either, it was all for the kids. Dandan didn’t have any meat before.”

“So, are you saying your older brother isn’t as good as this girl Dandan? Dandan should be more respectful to the elders when she has meat. Who taught her?” Xu Fengxia glared at Zuo Dan coldly.

“I’m not giving him any!” Zuo Dan slammed her chopsticks down and shouted.

“Dandan, what are you saying?” Zuo Dacheng scolded. Even if she didn’t want to share, she shouldn’t speak like that. Li Hui pulled on Zuo Dan’s sleeve, “Dandan, just eat quietly, don’t say anything more.”

But Zuo Dan ignored them. She stood up and walked to the door, saying, “I’m not giving my uncle any meat. I’ll give it to the old lady, and I’ll save some for my third uncle, but I won’t give it to my uncle.”

Hearing this, Xu Fengxia was so angry that her body trembled. She pointed at Zuo Dan, shaking with fury. “Second brother, look at your daughter. If you really care about your older brother, you should teach her a lesson!”

Zuo Dan retorted fiercely, “Teach me? I won’t give him any.” She ran out into the yard and shouted, “My uncle is ungrateful to the old lady, so why should I give him meat? If I have meat, I’ll give it to the old lady. My third uncle is respectful to the old lady, so I’ll save meat for him. Why should my uncle get any? If he hadn’t insisted on the family split, the old lady wouldn’t have been upset. The old lady worked so hard raising him, and now he’s demanding the split, upsetting her. He’s ungrateful, so why should I be respectful to him?”

“You little brat, talking nonsense!” Xu Fengxia was so angry her face turned red. She rushed towards Zuo Dan.

“Anyone who wants meat can take mine!” The old lady suddenly walked out of the main room and shouted in a loud voice.

The old lady had been in a bad mood lately. After the family split, the sons had their own lives, and she no longer had control over the household. She had been suppressing her anger because of the previous promise to split the family, but now hearing Zuo Dan defend her, her anger flared up again.

Holding a bowl of meat in one hand, she pointed at Xu Fengxia with the other. “What’s going on? The second brother’s family gets a bite of meat, and now you’re all concerned? Why didn’t you think about giving them more when the family split? You’re thinking about the meat in my bowl when you haven’t been respectful to the elders. I’ll give him meat, but can he even eat it? When we divided the meat, why didn’t anyone think about showing respect to me, their old mother?”

In the east room, Zuo Hongjun covered his face and silently smoked a cigarette, his eyes red. He took a puff and coughed, then yelled out the window, “What’s all this nonsense, woman? Get in here now!”

Xu Fengxia didn’t expect that discussing the meat would disturb the old lady and cause such a commotion. Hearing her husband’s shout, she tightened her chest, swallowed, and didn’t dare argue with the old lady. She silently pulled the upset Zuo Huan inside.

As soon as they entered the house, Zuo Hongjun grabbed Xu Fengxia’s arm and, red-faced, angrily scolded, “If you keep this up, I’ll hit you!”

Hearing Zuo Hongjun reprimand Xu Fengxia inside the house, the old lady finally felt her anger subside.

Zuo Dan spoke up, “Don’t be angry, Grandma. My uncle isn’t respectful, but Dad and my third uncle are very respectful. Little Cong is respectful too—he bought the meat with his own money and said it’s for you first.”

The old lady smiled despite herself at hearing this. She couldn’t help but keep looking at Zuo Dan.

“Why is it just you who’s respectful?” This remark carried a hint of nostalgia. She then turned to Zuo Dacheng, “The oldest son’s family shouldn’t get anything. If they’re not respectful to the elders, they shouldn’t be given anything.”

The old lady still resented Zuo Hongjun and his wife for initiating the family split, which felt like a “coup” to her. She felt Zuo Dan was right—people who were ungrateful to their elders didn’t deserve anything, not even food. She had always treated them well, but now they were acting this way.