Li Baoying scooped more than half a bowl of vegetables for herself, topped it with a little white rice, and began to eat with great relish.
The sweet potato noodles had absorbed the rich meat broth, becoming soft and flavorful, and with the pork pairing, the napa cabbage was also transformed into a delicious dish.
As the family was eating with great enjoyment, a knock came from the door.
Who could be dropping by at this hour?
Li Baoying glanced toward the door, quickly shoveled down a few mouthfuls, signaled for the others to eat faster too, and called out, "Who is it?"
"Auntie, it's me!" a young woman's voice replied.
Li Baoying's expression changed slightly. She finished the rice in her bowl before walking over to open the door.
The visitor was Liu Cui, the eldest daughter-in-law of their neighbor, old Wang's family.
Who in the neighborhood didn't know what kind of person Liu Cui was? She loved taking advantage of others. Whenever any family cooked something good, she would catch the scent and come over carrying her two-year-old son.
Coming here this time, one didn't even need to guess what was going on.
Old Wang's family had three sons and two daughters. The eldest and second sons were both married and had children, the third son was not yet betrothed, and the two daughters were still young and not yet spoken for.
The eldest daughter-in-law, Liu Cui, was shrewd and calculating, while the second daughter-in-law was capable but poor with words; most of the housework was done by the second daughter-in-law.
The eldest daughter-in-law just carried her son around to play everywhere.
Old Wang and his wife were somewhat biased toward boys. Seeing that the eldest daughter-in-law had given them their first grandson, they didn't say anything. Even though the second daughter-in-law was capable, who told her to give birth to granddaughters?
In her past life, when old Wang and his wife grew old, they were shunned by the eldest son's family, and it was actually the second son's family who provided for their old age.
Thinking of this, Li Baoying thought of her own past life. How was she any different from old Wang and his wife? Both had wholeheartedly raised ungrateful wretches.
Liu Cui was in her twenties, wearing a floral cotton-padded jacket that made her complexion look quite fair. The jacket looked quite new, but up close, patches could still be seen along the hem.
She had actually wanted to make a new set of clothes, but the family only had so many fabric ration coupons, and her parents-in-law said they still needed to save them for the third son to find a wife.
She had been furious, but there was nothing she could do.
"Auntie, eating?"
As soon as Liu Cui stepped through the door, she looked around, her eyes scanning like a searchlight for something.
"Mhm, just finished," Li Baoying said indifferently.
At this point, everyone else in the family had finished eating, except for Zhang Jinlin, who was still eating at a leisurely pace. He had a habit when eating: he always left the best parts for last so that he could make others look at him with envious eyes.
Liu Cui walked over to Zhang Jinlin and took a peek. In that bowl, besides the vermicelli and meat broth, there were also several pieces of meat!
"Oh my, Auntie, your family is already eating meat?!"
With that, she quietly pinched her son's leg. The little fellow had already been drooling over the meat in Zhang Jinlin's bowl, and being pinched hard by his mother, he let out a "wa" and started crying.
Zhang Jinlin quickly picked up his bowl and moved to the other side, far away from them.
"Isn't it the New Year? Jinlin was crying because he wanted to eat meat, so we bought just a little bit to satisfy his craving," Li Baoying said coolly.
Zhang Jinlin was just lifting a piece of meat to his mouth when he heard her words and froze. When did he ever cry about wanting to eat meat?
Why did his mom pin everything on him?
Earlier, he had been focused on eating and didn't see his mom's expression, so when Liu Cui arrived, he still hadn't finished eating and was now quickly shoving food into his mouth.
"You child, why are you crying? Do you want to eat meat too?" Liu Cui asked while wiping her son's tears.
Wang Yuhang nodded eagerly: "Eat meat, eat meat..."
Liu Cui looked at Zhang Jinlin with a hint of embarrassment and said, "Jinlin, Yuhang wants to eat meat. Can you share a little for him to try?"
Zhang Jinlin didn't even raise his head as he replied, "I don't even have enough for myself! If he wants to eat meat, go buy him some!"Li Baoying sneered inwardly. In her previous life, Wang Yuhang and Zhang Jinlin had eventually become quite close, frequently teaming up for petty mischief. The most infuriating incident had been when the two of them stole the sunflowers from their neighbor Zhang Shun’s garden, only to pin the blame on her own daughter, Zhang Hua.
Poor Zhang Hua had been only eight or nine at the time, and being falsely accused by her own brother, she had no way to clear her name. Back then, Li Baoying had favored her youngest son and failed to defend her daughter, letting her bear the shame of a crime she hadn’t committed. That incident had left a permanent mark on Zhang Hua’s life, making her even more timid and submissive, to the point where, once she married into her in-laws' home, no one held her in any regard.
Now, however, she hoped the two of them would have such a massive falling out that they would never be able to collude in wrongdoing again.
"Wah-wah! Eat meat, meat!" Wang Yuhang clapped his small hands and wailed.
Liu Cui was annoyed. She had expected Li Baoying to intervene and tell Zhang Jinlin to share a little with her son, but to her surprise, Li Baoying didn't say a word, acting as if she hadn't heard a thing. Zhang Jiandan had already finished his meal and walked out with his hands behind his back to stroll around; he couldn't stand Liu Cui and preferred to avoid the sight of her altogether.
"Jinlin, why don't you give Yuhang a little bit? If I make something good in the future, I'll bring some over for you, okay?" Liu Cui forced herself to ask.
"No way. Your house never has anything good to eat. You're even poorer than us," Zhang Jinlin said, popping the last piece of meat into his mouth and finishing the last drop of soup in his bowl.
Seeing there was no hope left, Liu Cui grew embarrassed and angry. "What kind of way is that to talk? If you aren't going to share, fine, but why insult my family by saying we're poor? You’re supposed to be an educated boy—have your books been eaten by dogs? Is this how your parents raised you?"
Li Baoying had been sitting there watching the show, but now that she had been called out, she couldn't stay silent. She stood up abruptly and snapped, "Liu Cui, what kind of language is that? My parenting is none of your business!"
"It’s just a bite of food. If you’re so desperate to feed your son, go home and have your husband buy some. Is there any need to come to my house and yell at my child?"
Liu Cui’s temper flared even higher. "Li Baoying, I call you Aunt out of respect, and my son calls you Grandma, yet you’re this stingy? As soon as I arrived, you hid the good food away, and now you’re teaching your son to look down on us. You... you’re not even human!"
Some people feel that if they can't take advantage of someone, they’ve suffered a loss that must be recouped. Liu Cui was exactly that type of person.
Li Baoying had no desire to waste her breath on someone like her. She grabbed a broom and started shooing her out. "If I’m not human, you’re even less so! Coming over here every single day with your son to freeload—I won't host you anymore. Get out, before I lose my temper and can’t control myself!"
Zhang Jinlin watched in stunned silence. He had always felt his mother picked on him and favored his older brothers; he had been on the verge of tears when Liu Cui was scolding him. But seeing his mother drive Liu Cui away with a broom, leaving her covered in dust and shame, he felt a flicker of warmth—though only a flicker, as it was a fact that his mother favored his brothers. Even knowing that, he wouldn't dare say it out loud now. His mother looked terrifying; what if she used that broom on him? If she told him to get out, where would he go?
Hopping mad, Liu Cui was chased out the door, weeping as she carried her child home.
It was destined to be an extraordinary New Year's Eve, for not long after, the entire Wang family arrived, looking fierce and vengeful. Back home, Liu Cui had exaggerated and embellished the words of Zhang Jinlin and Li Baoying, cutting off the context to spin a story that successfully incited the morale of every member of her family.