Free Web NovelChapter 57: Chapter 40: Forsaken Wife from the 50s (40)
But Dou Ding, at the front of the group, excitedly held out a basket. He acted like a little adult, spouting polite words even as he shoved the basket right in front of her. "Grandma Wang, you’re a truly generous person, so much better than so-and-so from our courtyard who only says nice things but never actually does anything."
Old Mrs. Wang’s heart ached as she shook some of the fried food from her enamel jar into the basket. ’He brought a whole basket, so I can’t just give him one or two.’ She shook out three or five pieces, but against the mouth of the basket, which was even wider than her jar, they looked pathetically few.
She had no choice but to shake out a few more.
Zhu Yun, who had been listening to the commotion, opened her door and peeked her head out, eyeing the jar with a smirk.
Her expression seemed to say it all: ’Oh, come on. Counting out fried meatballs one by one? To bring that level of stinginess to the family courtyard... how embarrassing.’
Old Mrs. Wang had complicated feelings, to say the least, for Zhu Yun. This was the former daughter-in-law she had kept under her thumb for seven years, who had suddenly escaped her control. She felt like she could still boss her around, yet she hadn’t managed to gain the upper hand in their last two encounters.
In front of other people, Old Mrs. Wang could maintain her usual demeanor. In front of city folk, she could even shrink back and act meek for a while. freёweɓnovel.com
But in front of Zhu Yun, Old Mrs. Wang refused to be made a laughingstock!
’That little hussy couldn’t even hold on to a man. She doesn’t deserve to laugh at me.’
With a smile on her face and a bleeding heart, Old Mrs. Wang put on a show of generosity, giving each child half a jar’s worth of fried food. "Grandma made plenty. If it’s not enough, just come on back for more, alright?"
"I might not be good at much else, but when it comes to fried meatballs, crispy pork, and sweet rice cakes, I’m the best for miles around!" freewebnoveℓ.com
The children giggled, nodded, and chimed in with praise. Now that they each had half a jar of treats, they didn’t linger, scampering away in a flash.
With the weather so hot, most food didn’t keep for long. The Lin Family, for instance, had a refrigerator. Old Mrs. Wang, however, figured she would make a large batch of fried food. She could add a few pieces to her stir-fries, which would save oil, taste delicious, and provide some nourishing energy.
And so, she had dug out all the flour in her house and made it into meatballs, crispy pork, and sweet rice cakes. She first boiled them in plain water and let them air-dry before giving them a quick fry in boiling oil and setting them on a rack to drain.
Food fried this way only had a thin layer of oil on the surface, making it perfectly crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. She fried and fried until she had used up the very last drop of oil from her half-full can.
In the past, the old woman only went to such trouble for the New Year. Afterward, for the next two or three months, she would add two or three pieces to every meal. The resulting dishes would glisten with oil, and both the elders and the children would go absolutely wild for them.
So, even though the old woman had fried a huge amount, by the time the last child had been sent away, not a single scrap was left in the kitchen. ’My heart is bleeding a river!’
But she had to keep up appearances in front of Zhu Yun to salvage her pride. Otherwise, all that food would have been given away for nothing.
"Our Xianbing is so capable. He has a high salary, great benefits, and he married a wife from a good family that’s his equal. Food like this, stuff we used to only eat during the New Year? We don’t even think twice about it now. We just share it with the neighbors to build good relationships."
"We’re all neighbors here, Zhu Yun. Don’t be so stubborn. If you need something, just ask. We’re from the same hometown, and you were a daughter-in-law of the Wang Family. It would be only natural for Xianbing to help your husband out a bit."
Zhu Yun listened with a tight-lipped smile as the old woman continued her act, nodding occasionally. Finally, she couldn’t resist asking, "Aunt Wang, if I need help, I’ll naturally ask my own husband. And if it’s something my husband can’t handle, your precious son wouldn’t be any help either."
The old woman hated nothing more than hearing someone suggest her youngest son wasn’t capable. "My son is a Director! A high-ranking official with a desk job! He’s in charge of lots of people, and he’s the one who has the final say on the benefits you all receive!"
Zhu Yun burst out laughing and pointed to herself. "Aunt Wang, I’m a director too. People can’t eat until I give them the nod."
Old Mrs. Wang’s eyes widened. She looked Zhu Yun up and down, her lips curling in utter contempt. "You? You’ve only been here for two months. You think sticking a chicken feather in your tail makes you a phoenix?"
"You work in the cafeteria, don’t you? Mopping floors or washing vegetables? Your husband looks pretty clean-cut, so his family must have some connections. Has he even passed his probation period yet?"
"Don’t think you’re so special just because you live across the hall from our Xianbing. That Wu fellow lives right above us, and he just got his permanent position. His salary isn’t even half of Xianbing’s, so what’s he got to show off about?"
Zhu Yun froze for a second, then leaned against her doorframe and roared with laughter.
"Aunt Wang, the apartments from the fourth floor up are all three-to-a-floor and not very large. Of course they can’t compare to your Xianbing’s place." She turned sideways and jerked a thumb over her shoulder toward her own apartment. "We may live across the hall, but you have a two-bedroom, one-living-room unit. Ours is a three-bedroom, two-living-room. It’s a full 50% larger than yours."
The old woman choked, speechless. "Impossible!" she sputtered in disbelief. "My son is a college graduate! A Director! The Director of the Logistics Department!"
