Chapter 41: Heartache for Eggs

If Second Brother Xu really married Qiuye, then there would be another person eating the government-supplied grain in the family. Oh my, this would be incredible, walking out later would probably make others die of envy.

In ancient times, wouldn’t she be an Imperial Decree then? Almost everyone in the family would be eating the nation’s grain.

Mrs. Xu was so happy she nearly slapped her thigh; she didn’t even want to eat, just wanted to go out and show off.

“Hurry up and eat, where are you going?” Mr. Xu saw Mrs. Xu about to leave and immediately shouted. It was getting dark, and she still wanted to go out without eating.

Mrs. Xu chuckled, her head raised proudly as she said, “I’m going to chat with my sisters, you guys go ahead and eat, you eat first.”

If it weren’t for the continuous smile on Mrs. Xu’s face, Xu Qiuye would have thought Mrs. Xu didn’t like her and was looking for an excuse to leave.

Mrs. Xu was also mindful of this and, holding Xu Qiuye’s hand like her own daughter, had her sit at the table to eat: “You guys eat first, I’ll go out for a bit and be right back.”

After finishing her words, Mrs. Xu grabbed a basket full of eggs and ran out, knocking on every door along the way.

“Oh my, big sister, my Second Brother just passed the exam to become a teacher at the commune, yes, indeed. And he’s got a girlfriend too, the former Accountant Xu from our village who works at the textile factory.”

“That girl now works at the supply and marketing cooperative. If these two get married, they’ll both be eating commodity grain.” Mrs. Xu squinted her eyes, smiling so much that her eyes disappeared.

Ignoring the envious looks from across the way, Mrs. Xu continued to brag, “My eldest daughter is amazing too. She went to cook for a big leader yesterday, and she earned ten yuan for just one meal.”

“You, sister-in-law, will be blessed from now on. Several of the kids in the family will be eating commodity grain, and your daughter cooks so deliciously; good days are all ahead.”

If it weren’t for the fact that Mrs. Xu was the wife of the team leader, she’d be too lazy to say these flattering words.

Who would go out of their way to show off at someone else’s doorstep?

Mrs. Xu’s basket contained more than twenty eggs. It took her an hour and a half to hand them all out, just bragging away, making those people both envious and jealous.

You could just say your family is well-off, why come over to our doorsteps and flaunt it? Isn’t this just infuriating?

One by one, they saw Mrs. Xu off, then started cursing in their yards.

Mrs. Xu didn’t care about any of that. When she returned with her empty basket, she was pained to the core; if she had known better, she wouldn’t have given those eggs away.

More than twenty eggs, how much money was that?

“Mom, what’s wrong with you?” Xu Ying saw that something was off and asked.

Mrs. Xu, not wanting to speak in front of outsiders, held it in until everyone had left. Then, crying, she wailed, “My eggs, oh, over twenty of them, all given away.

I’m heartbroken, those people don’t deserve my eggs, I’m upset, it pains my heart.” Mrs. Xu howled.@@novelbin@@

“Alright, they’ve all been given away now, what’s wrong with sending a few eggs for a happy occasion anyway.”

“Yeah, Mom, our hen at home can lay eggs; they’ll be back in no time,” Eldest Sister-in-law Xu added her persuasion.

Mrs. Xu immediately stopped crying, thinking of the promising hen at home, her mood instantly brightened.

Indeed, more than twenty eggs, their hen could lay them in just seven or eight days.

Having come to terms with it, Mrs. Xu no longer felt the loss.

By the time Xu Qiuye and Gu Fuying returned, it was already late. Second Brother Xu had borrowed a car from the Old Mansion specially to take Xu Qiuye back home.

Xu Qiuye dared not let Second Brother Xu enter her house. She had just pushed her bicycle home when Accountant Xu asked sternly, “Why are you coming back so late, look at the time, it’s completely dark now.

You’re a girl, how can you come back this late, do you care about your reputation at all?”

Mother Qiuye, seeing her own daughter, was also angry, “It’s already past nine, where have you been?”

Xu Qiuye, frightened, looked at her parents, “I went with Fuying to Xujia Village, to see Yingying.”

“Fuying, are you talking about your female colleague from the supply and marketing cooperative?” Accountant Xu, who was trickier than a dice, asked, “What’s she doing at Xujia Village?”

Accountant Xu knew of Gu Fuying, the girl whose father was a leading official and whose mother was a teacher—people he sought to ingratiate himself with.

What could this girl possibly do in Xujia Village though?

“She and Xu Ying are good friends, we both went to play at Uncle Xu’s place,” came the reply.

When Accountant Xu heard this, he suddenly remembered about Xu Shengcai’s exam and asked, “How did Second Brother Xu fare on the exam?”

“He got the teaching position, he’s going to report next week.” Xu Qiuye’s face lit up with a smile when she mentioned it.

Accountant Xu, on the other hand, was not in a good mood at all. Shock and anger swept across his face, not having expected that person to take the goods and not do the job.

“Dad, I heard that if Shengcai gets the teaching position, you would agree to our dating, right?” Xu Qiuye inquired.

Once said, it’s like water spilled—Accountant Xu, although reluctant, still nodded his head.

Mother Qiuye did not show any change in expression upon hearing this news.

As long as her daughter was happy and the boy’s family was reasonably well-off, that was fine.

She was not as demanding as the men, nor did she harbor such lofty ambitions.

Seeing her dad nod, Xu Qiuye’s face was filled with surprise and delight.

“Dad, thank you.”

Accountant Xu forced a smile and said, “You two can date, but if you’re going to get married, Xu Shengcai must teach in the county.”

Listening to him, Xu Qiuye knew her father was deliberately making things difficult, but she dared not say a word at the moment.

Accountant Xu felt as if his heart was bleeding. His daughter had not been easy to raise, and he had hoped she would find a successful son-in-law who could help lift the family’s fortunes. To his dismay, his precious girl had fallen for a countryman.

After being rebuffed by Xu Ying the last time, he dared not openly criticize country folks anymore—for fear of being labeled and finished.

The Gu family felt similarly. Upon seeing their daughter return home so late, Mr. Gu and Gu’s mother were filled with both rage and concern, “Fuying, didn’t you finish work at six? Why are you home so late?

Do you know how worried your dad and I have been for you? Why can’t you be more obedient?”

Mr. Gu and Gu’s mother cherished their only beloved daughter who was pampered at home.

Now seeing their daughter return safely, Mr. Gu was relieved but still scolded her.

Gu’s mother couldn’t stand it anymore. “Enough, just say less. Our daughter is back, isn’t she?”

Mr. Gu huffed and said no more.

It was then that Gu Fuying spoke up, “Mom and dad, I went to Yingying’s house today—the girl who saved me a few days ago.

It’s a pity you didn’t come; otherwise, you would have tasted a meal fit for Heaven.”

Mr. Gu and Gu’s mother gave their daughter a look—Heaven’s imperial banquet, was it that good?

Gu Fuying licked her lips, still reminiscing about the beer-steamed duck from dinner—it was absolutely superb.

“Mom and dad, since elder brother is getting married, let’s have Yingying take charge of the cooking for the banquet. Her cooking is super delicious,” said Gu Fuying, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

Firstly, she really wanted to eat another meal prepared by Yingying; secondly, she had heard about Yingying earning money by cooking today.

She was eager to give Yingying the chance to make some money, and also, since her elder brother’s marriage would be attended by prominent people from the county, perhaps someone would take notice of Yingying’s culinary skills and arrange a job for her.

If only she could work at the State-owned Restaurant, then she could eat Yingying’s cooking every day.

Mr. Gu and Gu’s mother were unaware of their daughter’s scheming. It wasn’t easy to organize a wedding banquet for their Eldest Son, who was finally getting married this year—they definitely did not want to turn it into a laughing stock.