Chapter 464: Chapter 457: Reunion in Huang Yuan
January 6, 1985, Yuequan Village
Sisi had just returned from Beijing, she had spent Chinese New Year’s Eve with Tian Xinhua in Huang Yuan before coming back to Yuequan for the new year visits. First, she went to Beijing to pay respects to Mr. Yun and Luo Datou for the new year and also attended the wedding of He Chengsi and Kang Mianhua. Their wedding was relatively simple, attended only by some relatives and friends.
Kang Mianhua’s family had only her grandfather and older brother in attendance; the rest were forbidden by Kang Tudi from coming. Kang Tudi’s health had greatly improved, and so had his authority at home, to the point that Kang Mianhua’s step-grandmother and uncles didn’t dare to stir up trouble.
At the moment, Sisi was chatting with Zhong Juying and Zhong Meiying. Zhong Juying’s daughter, Yaoyao, who was already three years old, looked exactly like her mother except that she was much more lively, and her mouth was so sweet, calling ’Aunt Sisi’ in such a cheerful way.
Zhong Meiying was still single. She wasn’t in a hurry herself, but Zhong Shancai and his wife were anxious to death. Girls in other families her age had been mothers for several years now, but their own daughter hadn’t even caught a glimpse of a potential son-in-law. How could they not be worried?
Moreover, keeping such an old maid single forever, the village was overflowing with gossip, and one could hear all sorts of whispers that were frustrating.
"I really don’t care, but Daddy and Mama can’t stand it. So I’ve already applied to Uncle He, and after the new year, I’ll go manage the workshop on your side. Once I’m gone, people can’t talk about me, right?" Zhong Meiying said, pursing her lips.
"Then do you actually have someone you’re interested in, or are you planning to stay single for life?" Sisi asked, curious.
"I won’t be single for life. I’m not an advocate of celibacy. It’s just that I haven’t found the right person yet."
Zhong Meiying had just finished speaking when Zhong Juying pursed her lips, smiling as if she was teasing a friend for being disingenuous.
"Sisi, don’t listen to her nonsense. It’s not that she hasn’t found someone she’s fond of? She’s chasing someone from miles away!"
Zhong Juying, now a mama herself, was much bolder and would speak tongue-in-cheek. Zhong Meiying was immediately upset, protesting, "Sisi, don’t listen to her nonsense."
"Chasing someone from miles away? Let me think, who’s there on my side? Ma Xiaoliang? No, wrong, Meiying, you don’t even know Ma Xiaoliang. So that leaves only Yuan Jin. Not bad, Meiying, you’ve picked out Daddy’s right-hand man."
Sisi was smiling as she spoke, unexpectedly Zhong Meiying had taken a fancy to Yuan Jin?
One was cheerful and active, the other was somber and reserved - they seemed quite a matching pair. But it was unclear whether the feeling was mutual or just a one-sided crush on Zhong Meiying’s part.
Zhong Meiying, seeing that the secret was out, no longer bothered to hide it from her friends, blushed, and nodded slightly, adding, "It’s just that I have a good feeling about him. Sisi, please don’t go speaking on my behalf. If he is interested, he will naturally come to me."
"What if he’s not interested though?" Sisi couldn’t help asking.
Zhong Meiying’s smile faltered for a moment, but she quickly recovered her spirits, "If he’s not interested, it means I haven’t worked hard enough. As long as he’s not married, I still have a chance."
Sisi was filled with respect. Meiying truly put love above all else!
After laughing and chatting for a while, the conversation turned back to Zhong Juying. Zhong Meiying said indignantly, "Sisi, you don’t know, Jin Duofu’s old mother is really hateful. She quieted down a bit after you disciplined her last time, but it wasn’t long before she started causing trouble again. So, I followed your rule and fired her. Now that’s good, she can’t vent her anger at my place, so she’s picking on Juying all the time - it’s infuriating."
Zhong Juying gave a faint smile, "Anyway, I don’t live at my in-laws’, so it doesn’t really matter how much trouble she tries to stir."
"What does your husband say? He must make a statement, right?" Sisi asked.
"Duofu did speak up a few times about his mama, but, if he said it too much, my mother-in-law would make a fuss, accusing Duofu of forgetting his own mother after getting a wife, which made it really hard for Duofu."
Zhong Juying frowned a little, feeling not as calm as she appeared to be. Ever since giving birth to Yaoyao, her mother-in-law had become even more difficult to deal with, not looking up to Yaoyao at all, and thankfully her father-in-law and grandfather were good people; otherwise, life with Duofu would’ve been impossible.
"What’s so difficult about it? It’s his own fault for having a grass-eating mama," Zhong Meiying said grumpily.
Seeing the worry between Zhong Juying’s brows, Sisi knew that the situation was probably not as simple as described. Jin Duofu ran around all day, and all the worrying at home was faced by Zhong Juying alone. If this went on for too long, it could lead to health problems.
"Juying, I think you and your family of three might as well go like Meiying, to my place. The Emperor won’t be watching you closely, and if your mother-in-law wants to make trouble, she won’t be able to," Sisi suggested.
"Right, why didn’t I think of that? Sisi, that’s a really good idea. We could keep each other company, how nice!" Zhong Meiying clapped her hands in approval.
Zhong Juying was also quite tempted. Moving away from the family troubles to live in a new place was an appealing thought.
"I’ll go back and discuss it with Daddy and Mama and big brother, and also call Duofu to let him know," Zhong Juying said.
"Hurry up and talk to them, give me an answer by tomorrow, then we can all go with Sisi," Zhong Meiying was very excited.
With the troubles seemingly solved, Zhong Juying was quite happy too. The three of them discussed some other rare happenings in the village, and Zhong Meiying began to talk about Zhong Yuying.
"Do you know? Zhong Yuying isn’t having an easy life right now." Zhong Meiying said with schadenfreude.
Zhong Yuying!
It had been a long time since that name had been heard.
Sisi suddenly felt a moment of daze. In her past life around this time, the original host and Zhong Yuying were like sisters and best friends. The original host and Tang Qiubai were newly married and in the most affectionate times. However, within a few years, Zhong Yuying snatched the original host’s company and husband away.
Thinking of this, Sisi asked with a smile, "What happened? She was still looking quite impressive a few years ago when she came back, wasn’t she? How come she’s not doing well now?"
"I heard it from Zhong Shoufu, he said ever since Zhong Liangcai beat her with a financial club last time, Zhong Yuying’s short and plump husband has had her on a tight leash, not willing to loosen the purse strings even a cent, plus Zhong Yuying only gave birth to a daughter, and the short and plump one often abuses her."
All three felt quite pleased hearing what Zhong Meiying said. They could hardly sympathize with a person like Zhong Yuying; the worse her life was, the happier they were.
"Zhong Yuying can’t be that useless, can she? Wasn’t she quite formidable?" Sisi asked.
"Who knows? Anyway, the worse she’s off, the happier I am," Zhong Meiying said dismissively.
Sisi suddenly laughed. In this life, without the original host to be her punching bag and pave the way for her, Zhong Yuying’s popularity had not been as good as it was in the previous life!
You know, in her previous life, Zhong Yuying was the prime choice for the role of daughter-in-law that everyone praised!