novelraw Chapter 198 - 109: Such a Daughter-in-law
Chapter 198 - 109: Such a Daughter-in-law
She was only offering a casual word of comfort, but Liu Xiaomei said proudly, "You bet! Juhua, you don’t know this, but my Second Brother is incredibly skilled—the wickerware he weaves is so delicate. My Third Brother is a master at catching fish and shrimp; we rely on him for all our meat dishes. My Fourth Brother is smart, too. He hardly studies, but his teacher still praises him for learning well, saying that if he just applied himself a bit more, he could be as brilliant as Yangzi. For any chore at home, as long as Dad lays out the plan, we get it done in a flash. If my eldest brother wasn’t being controlled by that woman, wouldn’t our family be so much more lively? When I was little, my brothers absolutely doted on me. My name wasn’t even given to me by my dad. Since my brothers were always calling me ’little sister, little sister,’ everyone else just started calling me Liu Xiaomei. It stuck, so we never bothered to change it."
Her eyes grew red as she spoke.
Hearing her praise the chubby boys into a Hua’er, Juhua couldn’t help but smile. ’This little sister certainly thinks the world of her brothers.’
The two of them finished cleaning Ni Qiu and then moved on to the small fish.
Liu Xiaomei’s family hadn’t slaughtered a pig for the New Year, and money was tight, so all the meat dishes on the table came from the rivers and fields. The two girls had been busy in the kitchen for days with Shi Tou’s maternal grandmother and had learned to create some variety. They took the river snails, Ni Qiu, small fish, and shrimp, along with the family’s eggs, and paired them with pickled vegetables, chives, or chili peppers, managing to cook up a respectable-looking feast. The eaters were still full of praise.
Of the four Liu Family brothers, the eldest had moved out to live on his own, but he at least came back to help his parents with transplanting the rice seedlings. As for the other three brothers, because they had helped out one family here and another there, quite a few people showed up to return the favor when it was the Liu Family’s turn to plant their rice.
Watching the dark mass of farmhands crowd into the house to eat, Liu Xiaomei stuck out her tongue and pouted. "They could probably eat a whole cow! After we feed them lunch, we have to start preparing dinner. Ugh! There aren’t enough dishes, this is killing me. Good thing my Third Brother caught a lot of small river fish earlier and dried them."
Juhua comforted her, "Don’t worry. We learned a lot of dishes from Shi Tou’s grandmother. Look, we made two different dishes just with the egg dumplings alone. We can make plenty of dishes with all this fish and shrimp, too. Plus, your brother gathered all those river snails that are soaking over there. We can just add one new ingredient to change up the style. If we put our heads together, we can definitely get through the next two days."
Just as she said that, Liu Sanshun walked into the kitchen carrying a basket. He smiled at Mei and said, "The Huang Shan baskets I set yesterday... look, we caught a lot of Huang Shan! I let the small ones go, but there’s still enough for two big bowls."
Liu Xiaomei was overjoyed at the sight. She quickly took the basket and said excitedly, "Another dish! Juhua, we can stir-fry it with green garlic shoots, add a few other things, and we can even make three bowls out of it."
Juhua nodded with a smile.
Seeing his sister worrying about the food, Liu Sanshun quickly asked, "Isn’t all that fish enough? We still have the river snails and Ni Qiu."
Liu Xiaomei shot him a look. "We can’t just serve dried fish for everything. We need more variety. With so many people, if we don’t make enough dishes, the bowls will be empty after just a few bites. How embarrassing would that be?"
Juhua quickly said, "This is plenty. If you count them up, it’s no fewer dishes than what my family would make."
Just then, a young man slightly taller than Liu Sanshun came in, carrying a piece of cured meat. He smiled at Liu Xiaomei and said, "Mei, this meat is for you. It’s another bowl’s worth of a dish." Judging by his looks, he was definitely another one of Liu Xiaomei’s brothers.
And indeed he was. Liu Xiaomei stared at him, stunned. "Eldest Brother, does Sister-in-law know you brought this meat? If she finds out, she’ll throw a fit later. You should take it back." Her eldest sister-in-law had gone back home after a short visit and wasn’t there.
Her mother came in as well, chiming in, "Are you looking for trouble again? It’s not like we’re desperate for that one piece of meat. Hurry up and take it back."
Liu Dashun’s face flushed red. He said uncomfortably, "Mom, listen to yourself. Can’t I even make a decision about a single piece of meat? Enough said. I brought it, and I’m not taking it back. I’m going to eat." With that, he grabbed a bowl and chopsticks, filled his bowl with rice, and headed for the main hall.
Seeing her brother stand up for himself, Liu Xiaomei grinned happily. "Mom, let’s just cook it. It’s not like we’re afraid of her. A son she raised has to watch his wife’s mood just to eat a piece of meat... no matter how you spin it, she’s the one in the wrong."
Her mother sighed and smiled at Juhua. "Listen to this child. Why would I be afraid of her? I just feel bad for my son. When there’s a fight, he’s the one who gets most upset. When the house is in turmoil, he’s the one who suffers. Unless you’re ruthless enough to get rid of this wife, all the fighting just ends up making the son miserable. You kids are young; you think one big fight will solve everything. If it were that simple, weren’t the last few fights fierce enough? My thinking is, she’s just trying to protect her own household, and she doesn’t take things from us to her parents’ home—in fact, she brings a lot of things back from her family. She’s hardworking, too, so I just put up with it. Her being tight with money is just saving your brother’s money, isn’t it? Besides, she’s never asked us for anything. She was just born with that difficult personality. Trying to change her would be next to impossible."