Northeast: My Absurd Woman

Chapter 175 A Woman Like a Rotten Cabbage Sprout

Xiao Douzi looked at the bowl in Zhang Changyao's hand and wiped his drool with his sleeve.

"Here you go, little Douzi, these are meat dumplings. Your mother asked me to bring them back for you."

Tears welled up in Zhang Changyao's eyes as he placed the bowl of dumplings on the kang (a heated brick bed).

He opened the handkerchief, grabbed a dumpling, and placed it in Xiao Douzi's hand.

"Third Uncle, where are my mother and little brother? Are my little brother with my mother?"

Mom said the meat dumplings should be given to the little brother first, and I'll eat them after he's full.

Xiao Douzi held the warm dumplings but didn't eat them, looking towards the doorway where Zhang Changyao had just come in.

"Little Douzi, your mother said your little brother has already eaten his fill, this is for you."

From now on, whenever there's something delicious, you don't need to save it for your little brother; just eat your fill first.

Zhang Changyao pushed Xiao Douzi's hand and stuffed a corner of the dumpling into his little mouth.

Zhang Shuhua was crying so hard she couldn't speak; the guilt she felt towards Liu Guimei pierced her heart once again.

"Third Uncle, when you see my mother again, tell her that I miss her."

She left with my little brother and didn't come back to see me.

Little Douzi took a bite of the dumpling edge, pouted, and looked like he was about to cry.

"Little Douzi, your mother said that she will come back to see you when you grow up."

"You must eat a lot and grow up quickly, so you can see your mother and little brother when you grow up."

Zhang Changyao pinched Xiao Douzi's cheek, trying not to let Xiao Douzi see his discomfort.

"Changyao, when you're not busy, go see your father. Zhao Xiulan got angry with him and moved to Hou Jiu's house."

Your father went to beg her several times, but that woman still wouldn't come back.

Zhang Shuhua wiped away her tears and looked up at Zhang Changyao.

"Auntie, this Zhao Xiulan is really interesting. Why did she go to Hou Jiu's house when she was angry with my father?"

"Ma Pengsheng is her own son, isn't he closer than Hou Jiu?" Zhang Changyao frowned in confusion.

"Who knows? I heard from others that she and Hou Jiu are having an affair."

"That old guy really has the guts. How old is Hou Jiu? Twenty?" Zhang Shuhua counted on her fingers.

"Aunt, it's good that Zhao Xiulan left my father, so he won't keep whispering in her ear all the time."

As for Hou Jiu, we have no relatives, so it's not appropriate for us to directly manage him.

It was consensual between the two of them, so who can say anything? Interfering won't do any good.

Zhang Changyao went to the cupboard in the outer room and took out a bowl.

I poured the dumplings that Xiao Douzi hadn't eaten into the bowl, then took the empty bowl home.

As soon as I entered the courtyard, I saw Hou Jiu climb over the front garden wall and walk towards his own house.

"Xiao Jiu, why are you back so early? Didn't you eat at Brother Ga Zi's house?"

Zhang Changyao held the garden gate with one hand and asked Hou Jiu before Hou Jiu got close.

"Brother Changyao, what are you still eating? We've almost beaten a dog's head off."

My eighth sister was cleaning up my house when she saw Zhao Xiulan lying on the kang (heated brick bed) in my house, so she went to Brother Ga Zi's house to find me.

I'm thinking of going home and talking to Zhao Xiulan, and asking her to go back to your father's house to stay.

The old lady absolutely refused to do it and even cursed me for being heartless, saying I would kick her out after I finished using her.

How could I have ordered her around? She insisted on coming to tidy up the house for me, and now she's turning around and blaming me.

My eighth sister said that from now on, she doesn't need to tidy up the house, and she shouldn't come to my house.

Unexpectedly, the old lady went straight for my eighth sister and tried to scratch her.

My eighth sister wasn't afraid of her either, and the two of them just kept fighting like that.

In my anger, I slapped Zhao Xiulan.

That slap caused trouble; the old lady fell to the ground with a "thud" and is now lying on my floor, acting like a spoiled brat.

Hou Jiu followed Zhang Changyao into the house and told him the cause and effect of the matter.

"Xiao Jiu, Brother Changyao has a question for you, and you have to tell the truth."

"Is there something going on between you and that old lady Zhao Xiulan? Everyone in the village says you two have a complicated relationship."

"Brother Changyao, how come Zhao Xiulan and I are not related? These gossipy old women are talking nonsense."

Zhao Xiulan insisted on tidying up the house for me, but I said no, she said she had nothing better to do.

She brought me food, but I didn't dare to eat it at first.

She said she gave me food because she saw that I was a pitiful child without parents.

She said she was kind-hearted and couldn't bear to see a pitiful child like me.

Why should I be polite? It's nice to have an extra mom to take care of my food and drink and clean my house.

It was...it was her who helped me take a bath and scrubbed my back.

I felt a little embarrassed when they sewed my crotch and picked lice off me.

Besides, she's quite old, she's seen enough men's bodies, why would she bother looking at me?

My eighth sister is such a busybody; she can't be at my house every day to help me.

I feel great to have a mom who's good to me and doesn't cost me anything.

Hou Jiu forgot why he came, and sat down next to Liao Zhi, poking his face with his finger.

"Little Jiu, you're a real tiger. Do you think your Eighth Sister would ever harm you?"

She's not a shrew, so how could she have started a fight with Zhao Xiulan for no reason?

"Go back quickly and send Zhao Xiulan back to my father's house, so your eighth sister won't be in a difficult position."

Zhang Changyao grabbed Hou Jiu's arm and chased him back.

"Brother Changyao, I'm not going back. I've already helped my eighth sister beat up Zhao Xiulan."

I'm afraid she'll die in my house and they'll say I beat her to death.

Besides, Zhao Xiulan hasn't done anything wrong. She can stay in my house, so what?

I don't know what's wrong with my eighth sister, she insisted on chasing people away.

I didn't care about her. Unable to persuade Zhao Xiulan, my eighth sister left on her own.

Hou Jiu pulled his arm out of Zhang Changyao's grasp, grabbed Liao Zhi's blanket, and refused to leave.

"Hou Jiu, Zhao Xiulan has taken a liking to you and wants to get along with you so that you can become husband and wife."

You're just a young piglet, you haven't even tasted meat yet.

"We can't just go and pick up a rotten cabbage stalk that's already broken and can't even be picked up properly, can we?" Liao Zhi couldn't help but offer Hou Jiu a few words of advice.

"What piglet? What rotten cabbage stalk? I don't understand."

Hou Jiu pried open Liao Zhi's lips and treated him like a rare species.

"Little Nine, your Eighth Sister is an experienced woman. She saw through Zhao Xiulan's intentions, otherwise she wouldn't have fought with her."

If you like old women crawling into your bed, then you can wait here for your eighth sister to leave.

If the old man causes you trouble, don't blame your eighth sister for not taking care of you.

"Then I'll call you Uncle Xiulan, and you'll sleep with my dad under the same roof."

Seeing that Hou Jiu was impervious to reason, Zhang Changyao simply gave up.

To achieve this in one fell swoop, use plain language he can understand to make fun of him.

"Wow! Brother Changyao, what you're saying actually makes sense."

I was wondering why my bed felt so warm these past few days.

Last night, I was half asleep when I touched a pile of flesh.

I thought I was dreaming and helping someone slaughter a pig!

Damn it, that old hag is trying to take advantage of me.

No, I'm going right now to drag her out of my house.

Don't smear this rotten vegetable stalk on me, or how will I ever get married? Who the hell would dare marry me?