Chapter 3: Stir-fried Meat

Shao Qixuan clutched his hand, frowning in pain. He understood Grandma Li’s intentions; if he didn’t suffer a little, she wouldn’t forgive him. He felt he deserved it, too, for having hurt their hearts so deeply.

"Grandma, if you won't let me wash them, I won't. I'll go chop wood, I'll go chop wood." Shao Qixuan looked at the large logs leaning against the kitchen wall, walked over, picked up the hatchet, and got to work. He had made up his mind: in this life, he would not let the relationship between the two families become as stiff as it had been in his previous life.

Grandma Li glanced up at him, a faint hint of a smile appearing, before she lowered her head to continue washing the clothes.

Once the laundry was hung on the line, Grandma Li saw that it was getting late, so she got up and went to the kitchen to prepare lunch.

This spring, the village had begun implementing the household responsibility system. Each family had their own land, and after handing over the state-mandated quota, the rest of the harvest belonged to them.

This policy brought joy to some and worry to others. The diligent ones were happy, and they were especially pleased to watch those who used to slack off alongside them now having to work.

Those who were lazy and disliked working were the ones suffering. In the past, they could get by and stay fed just by coasting through the days, but now, if they didn't tend to their crops properly, they could look forward to going hungry.

The Li family was large. Grandma Li had four children—three sons and one daughter—and five grandchildren. Including the daughters-in-law, there were thirteen people in the house, not counting the daughter who had already married out.

As soon as Grandma Li entered the kitchen, Shao Qixuan hurried over, carrying the eggs and meat from the table. He poked his head into the kitchen, smiling brightly at Grandma Li.

"Grandma, stir-fry the pork. Siwen just woke up after falling into the river and her body is very weak. Stir-fry it to help her recover. And these eggs—boil one for her every day. When they run out, I'll bring more."

Grandma Li snorted coldly. "Leave them there. Do you think I don't know how to care for my own granddaughter? I don't need you worrying about it."

Seeing this, Shao Qixuan scratched his head, not daring to talk back, and ran over to the woodpile to continue chopping.

Just as lunch was ready, Grandpa Li arrived right on time with his sons, daughters-in-law, and the eldest grandson.

Behind them, several children followed, hiding and not daring to show their faces.

Taking advantage of the fact that Grandma Li wasn't looking, Li Yonghao quickly led his younger siblings into the room and tossed them some clean clothes.

"Yongtian, this is the last time. If you dare to take them to jump in the mud pits again, I won't care about you anymore. Just wait for Grandma to beat you!"

Li Yongtian changed into the clean clothes, stuck his tongue out at Li Yonghao, and ran out of the room.

Li Yongxin and Li Yong'an followed him out.

Watching them run off, Li Yonghao helplessly picked up the dirty clothes from the floor, silently swearing to himself that this was the last time he would help those little brats.

As soon as Grandpa Li entered the courtyard, he felt the person chopping wood looked familiar. It wasn't until Shao Qixuan turned his head and called out to him that he realized who it was.

Furious, Third Uncle Li picked up a wooden stick and swung it at him. "Good! You little brat, you still dare to come to my house? Look at what you've done to my daughter! Today, I’m going to teach you a lesson on behalf of your father."

Shao Qixuan didn't dare dodge the incoming stick, hoping that taking the hit would lessen his Third Uncle's anger.

Grandma Li wouldn't let the boy have his way; she quickly pulled Shao Qixuan aside, causing the stick to miss.

Her granddaughter had suffered so much; she had spent those days washing her face with tears, and it broke her heart to watch. If this boy thought he could just take a hit and be forgiven, he could forget it.

He would have to pay back every bit of suffering her granddaughter had endured.

Shao Qixuan stepped back, unhitched, with a mournful look in his eyes. A good opportunity had been missed, but he wasn't discouraged.

Looking at Third Uncle Li, Shao Qixuan put on a fawning expression. "Third Uncle, you're back. You must be exhausted after working all day. You must be thirsty; I'll go pour you some tea."

After saying this, Shao Qixuan went to the main room. He had spent most of his childhood at the Li house and was very familiar with their things. He grabbed a thermos and several cups, brought them to the courtyard, and poured a glass for everyone.

When Grandpa Li took the water, his expression was unnatural. He gave him a strange look before downing the water in one gulp.

The eldest son, Uncle Li, didn't think much of it, only feeling that the boy still had a conscience to come and see Siwen after she was injured because of him.

However, the second daughter-in-law had a sharp nose. She asked Grandma Li, "Mom, you stir-fried meat for lunch? Where did we get meat?"

This year, with the land divided, work points were no longer used, but ration coupons were still necessary. Where would they get meat coupons?

Not to mention the coupons, the family couldn't afford meat anyway. It was so expensive; given their conditions, just filling their stomachs was difficult enough.

In this era, every household struggled to get enough to eat, and meat was a rare treat.

Grandma Li glared at her. "Meat, meat, meat—all you think about is meat. That meat is for Qixuan to help Siwen recover. Don't even think about it."

Lü Chuanmei wasn't upset when she heard this; a little bit of meat scraps would be fine. Besides, knowing Siwen's personality, she wouldn't eat it all by herself; she would share it with the family. So, she didn't bother arguing with her mother-in-law.

"Oh, then let Siwen have it all. She's been weak these past few days; she needs to build up her strength."

After saying this, Lü Chuanmei turned her gaze to Shao Qixuan. "My, it's rare for Qixuan to still be thinking of our Siwen. I suppose the kindness Siwen showed you in the past wasn't entirely in vain. But Qixuan, since you want to be with Yang Min, you shouldn't come looking for our Siwen anymore."

"Exactly. It was hard enough for Siwen to agree to break off the engagement. If you keep coming around, she's going to get attached again," Fu Qiu added. She had been heartbroken seeing the girl cry a few days ago, and now she looked at Shao Qixuan with pure hostility.

"Eldest daughter-in-law, if you can't say anything nice, shut your mouth." Grandma Li was full of anger at her eldest daughter-in-law. What did she mean by saying Siwen would get attached if he came around? How great was he? Her Siwen didn't care for him at all.

Fu Qiu saw her second sister-in-law winking at her and immediately understood. She looked at Shao Qixuan and started shooing him away. "You better leave quickly, or our Siwen will be angered to death by you. She finally saw things clearly this time; if she sees you again, she might just pick up a tool and hit you."

Yu Ying, seeing that they had stopped talking, turned to Shao Qixuan and lashed out: "Shao Qixuan, you little rabbit, get out of here! I wasted my kindness on a white-eyed wolf like you. You hurt my daughter so badly, and you think you can just brush it off with a meal of meat? Keep dreaming!"

"Exactly, 'keep dreaming'—that's a good one, wife. You're making progress," Third Uncle Li said, flattering his wife.

Yu Ying preened a bit and looked at Shao Qixuan. Seeing he didn't move, she grabbed a broom from the wall. "You brat, you're not leaving? Are you waiting for me to chase you out?"

Shao Qixuan saw the hostility in all of them and knew this was no place to stay. However, Siwen had agreed to break off the engagement—that was great. He had always treated Siwen like a younger sister and truly had no romantic feelings for her. Now that she could see things clearly, it was for the best.

Shao Qiaoying was lying by the window watching the excitement. Hearing her third brother's voice, she looked at Siwen. "Sister Siwen, I'm going back now. Don't worry, I will never acknowledge Yang Min as my sister-in-law."

Li Siwen felt nothing for this "Min" person and didn't care much for Shao Qixuan either. She nodded at Shao Qiaoying, telling her to walk slowly.

As soon as Shao Qiaoying stepped outside, Grandma Li called her over. The meat Shao Qixuan brought in the morning was quite a lot—at least two pounds. Meat wasn't easy to buy, and she guessed that this stubborn boy must have brought all the meat his family had.

"Qiaoying, take this bowl of meat back to eat."

Shao Qiaoying didn't stand on ceremony; both families were used to this. However, although she hated her third brother's recent actions, she didn't forget to put in a good word for him.

"Mm, then I won't be polite. My mom just bought some meat, and it hadn't even warmed up in the kitchen before my third brother took it all to help Sister Siwen recover. It's good he has a conscience and remembers Sister Siwen. If he had given it to that vixen, my mom would have been furious."