Ugly girl only wants to farm

Chapter 295 The Calm Lake (35)

Xu Chaoyan quickly sat down: "What's wrong? Who upset you so early in the morning?"

Seeing her concerned expression, Zhang Rongrong suddenly regretted coming here: "I'm so sorry to have come to your shop so early in the morning. I know that business people are most averse to these things. But I was just too angry and couldn't find an outlet for my anger. There was no one to listen to my rant, so I just ended up here."

Zhang Yueniang brought them a plate of freshly steamed buns and a bowl of soup: "It's still early, why don't you two have a bite to eat?"

The meat buns made with fresh bamboo shoots were large, plump, and fragrant. Some were even oozing oil. She couldn't resist reaching for one, but ended up burning herself and involuntarily hissed.

Xu Chaoyan quickly handed over a pair of chopsticks: "Here, use these, no need to rush. This is a new product we just made recently, we'd like you to try it and give us your valuable feedback."

Xu Chaoyan suggested yesterday that they steam a batch first so the family could try it and see if there was anything that needed improvement. She doesn't have much talent for making pasta dishes, which is why she and her sister-in-law went to the shop a little later. But she does have quite a few ideas about preparing the meat filling.

Nowadays, most of their business comes from students at the county school. Although they may not become rich, they can make a living, but with the weather getting hotter, their meat-filled tofu pudding isn't selling as well as before.

If you put a small charcoal stove on the table at midday, you'll be sweating buckets from the heat.

She's been troubled by this lately. Although their tofu pudding tastes good and is affordable, it's really uncomfortable to sit in the house on a hot day.

There are breakfast stalls outside in the morning, such as wonton shops, fried dough sticks, and noodle stalls.

She had previously checked out a meat bun that cost around three coins. It wasn't very big, with just a tiny bit of meat. If a man ate one, he wouldn't feel much of a difference.

She then thought that she might as well sell some breakfast items. Grinding tofu takes some time, so steaming a few baskets of buns and boiling a pot of soy milk would also work.

Now, there are two more mouths to feed in their family, and Grandmother is constantly complaining of aches and pains. A lot of money has been spent, and seeing all that money go to waste is like a knife to her heart. If she doesn't let her see the doctor, Meng Jiuhe will be labeled an unfilial son, and how will he ever be able to pursue the imperial examinations again?

This mother and daughter really are staying here and won't leave. These days she's been feeling short of breath and her chest feels tight, and the more she sees them or hears them talking, the more irritated she becomes.

After finishing a large pork and bamboo shoot bun, Zhang Rongrong gave a thumbs up and said, "Sister, these buns are really good. They taste much better than the ones sold in shops outside. You're amazing."

Zhang Yueniang blushed: "It's not as exaggerated as you say, it's just a steamed bun."

Xu Chaoyan picked up the bowl of soup on the table and slowly blew on it before drinking: "Why are you in such a hurry today? You can tell me now, right?"

There weren't many customers in the shop at the moment, and only a few people on the street. The group sat down and started chatting. As the saying goes, three women make a drama, and now four women were sitting together, chattering away.

But it was mostly Xu Chaoyan and Zhang Rongrong doing the talking. Zhang Yueniang was naturally introverted and rarely spoke, only occasionally chiming in with a few words. Jiang Xinyi seemed to be hiding something. Although she wore a smile, there was always some sorrow in her eyes.

"It's all because of my mother-in-law causing trouble again. You know we've been married for a long time but still don't have a child. She's been nagging my husband about it several times. My husband is easily swayed, so he doesn't dare to be too disrespectful in front of his mother. Every time I get him some medicine, he obediently brews it and makes me drink it. At first, I thought it was tonics, but then one time my mother-in-law let it slip, and I found out that the bitter medicine was actually a secret recipe for having a child. I was so angry that I smashed the medicine pot."

Zhang Yueniang looked on with empathy: "I understand your suffering, but this can't be rushed, we have to take it slowly."

When Xu Chaoyan heard her say that her mother-in-law was causing trouble again, she thought to herself, "No wonder Shen Siheng has been eating at their place every day these past few days and doesn't want to go back. It turns out there's been another fight at home, and his mother is probably angry again."

Xu Chaoyan: "Don't wrong yourself. Why don't you two separate and start your own family? If this continues, people will go crazy. If you really can't live like this, then get a divorce. Tell her to find a woman with a big bottom who can have children."

Zhang Rongrong burst out laughing when she heard this: "I wasn't in a good mood to begin with, but your comment about having a big butt and being able to have children made me laugh. You really guessed right, my mother-in-law really did pick a woman with a big butt, wanting her to be my husband's concubine. But she didn't want to be the bad guy, so she had my husband come back and talk to me in person. And as they say, walls have ears, and I overheard them whispering about it. How could I not be angry? That woman with the big butt is the one he broke off the engagement with before."

Zhang Yueniang nodded: "It's really infuriating. These mothers-in-law just like to waste people's time. They've been daughters-in-law for many years and now they're mothers-in-law, and they start to treat their daughters-in-law like they're mothers-in-law. Back when I first got married, I wasn't pregnant yet, and I don't know how many times my mother-in-law talked about me behind my back. I drank all sorts of folk remedies and secret prescriptions. There were even a few times when she caught some black insects from some ravine, burned them in the stove, ground them into ashes, and insisted on forcing them down my throat."

After hearing this, Zhang Rongrong's face turned pale, and she patted her chest to keep herself from vomiting.

Xu Chaoyan quickly offered a few words of comfort: "Sister, all of that is in the past. Don't dwell on those unhappy things. Look forward."

Moon Maiden nodded: "I have to thank you for getting me out of that swamp and stopping me from struggling so desperately, otherwise I don't know how long I could have lasted."

Xu Chaoyan: "You're getting angry over this? It's such a small thing, it's not worth getting upset over. You'll only hurt yourself."

Zhang Rongrong sighed helplessly: "If it were really just for such a small matter, I wouldn't care. I'm not that petty. You know my brother-in-law is not young anymore, and he's not good enough for his studies. So my mother-in-law is thinking of finding him a wife to have children."

Xu Chaoyan and Zhang Yueniang nodded: "That makes sense. Shen Siheng is not young anymore, and he's always acting like a slacker."

Then she changed the subject: "But he's the second son in his family, and with you guys supporting him, it won't be a problem for him to play for another two years."

"That's what I said to my husband too, and he just said that since we can't have children, his younger brother should get married soon so that his parents can have a grandson. I don't know what got into my mother-in-law, but she took a fancy to the girl at the pawnshop on East Street. That day she insisted on dragging me along to take a look."

"You think you can just look like that? That family is a good match for ours, right? She actually started criticizing them, and while the girl was standing there, she pinched her buttocks, which made her scream. In the panic, the two of them fell together."

The three of them stared wide-eyed in surprise, and Jiang Xinyi rarely spoke up: "Isn't this a bit abrupt?"

Zhang Rongrong: "As a result, she and that girl fell to the ground, and she even pinched the girl's waist, saying that the girl's waist was too thin and she wouldn't be able to support a child. I was so embarrassed. Originally, I had asked my mother to shamelessly arrange to go to a temple to burn incense, without even explaining the reason. But she made me feel like I was in a terrible situation. Now my family resents me, and my brother-in-law is also giving me the cold shoulder. Why is my life so difficult?"

The four of them sat there and couldn't help but sigh. Alas! Every family has its own troubles.

Jiang Xinyi originally felt that she had suffered enough, but after listening to what Zhang Rongrong said, she felt that her own problems were trivial and not worth mentioning.

The old woman came running over, panting, and when she saw them sitting there, she quickly called out to them.

“Meng family daughter-in-law, Meng family daughter-in-law, why don’t you go back and take a look? I just saw Zhang Qiao’er go to our courtyard. She stayed in your grandmother’s room for half an hour, and then she went out mysteriously with your aunt. I wonder what kind of trouble she’s up to now. I saw her banging on the door frame in front of your room, and she looked flustered when I went out to do laundry.”

Xu Chaoyan knew what kind of person her aunt was. Both her and her sister-in-law's rooms were locked, and there was basically no cash left in the house.

She had hidden the earthenware pots she used to save money in a pit, and even Meng Jiuhe didn't know. Sure enough, a leopard can't change its spots; the mother and daughter were still the same old thing.

If these two don't send her back soon, they'll cause trouble sooner or later. And that Zhang Qiao'er, with her perpetually manipulative and scheming nature, is disgusting to look at. Even if she wants to divorce Meng Jiuhe in the future, she doesn't want to see him with that green tea bitch. Any woman is fine, just not that green tea.

I overheard from Meng Xiuzhi that the woman's husband died not long after she married into the family, and her parents-in-law also passed away one after another, leaving behind a house and some land, which was considered a small fortune.

She hadn't originally planned to pay any attention to the mother and daughter, but then she thought it best to go back and check. Meng Jiuhe's study was unlocked and contained several books, all of which were rare copies.

She and her aunt hurried home. Now, Qi Yu and her son had settled down in this courtyard. A few days ago, they had said they wanted to go home, and they went back home right after she left.

The uncle had taken Ya Ya out for a stroll through the streets, leaving the mother and daughter alone at home. Who knew what kind of trouble they might cause? Before the two even got close, they heard cheerful laughter coming from the courtyard.

"My grandmother would tease me, saying I'm almost twenty. I look like a haggard old woman, who would want me? I'm content just to live the rest of my life well every day."

Grandmother, who had a loud voice, didn't hold back even though there was no one in the courtyard: "Poor Qiao'er, if you had become my granddaughter back then, I would probably be holding my great-grandson by now. How could that barren hen Xu be worthy of my grandson? Don't worry."

Xu Chaoyan didn't hear the last few words, so the three of them probably didn't dare to be too arrogant and spoke very quietly.

A surprised voice rang out: "Really? Grandmother."

Meng Xiuzhi's voice came through: "It's definitely true, so don't worry."

With a loud bang, the courtyard gate was opened, startling the three people like birds.

Xu Chaoyan looked concerned and said, "Grandmother's leg is healed quite well. I think she can set off home in two days. After all, Aunt has been away from home for a long time, and Uncle is the only one at home. Aren't you afraid of being cheated on? You're really carefree."

Grandmother, leaning on her cane, quickly leaned against her daughter: "My legs hurt every night. Today the weather is nice, so I came out to let your aunt help me walk around. I haven't seen the light in a long time. I'm not a ghost. If you were a filial person, you should carry me out for a walk every day instead of letting me rot in bed. Fortunately, Qiao'er is filial and came to see me. She's nothing like you, you black-hearted, rotten-lung wretch."

I recently dealt with those three scheming women; they annoyed me too. But their presence was what propelled the plot forward.