Chronicle of the 70s
Chapter 143 - 139 seconds to kill another update

Chapter 143: 139 seconds to kill another update

The next morning, the three closely nestled men of the family got up one after the other, and Qin Zhen felt extremely well-rested from his sleep.

He got up to use the bathroom, then saw deep-fried dough sticks and corn porridge on the dining table, and immediately sat down to gobble up a bowl. When Ma Cui, Qin Xin’s wife, who was serving the meal in the kitchen, saw Qin Zhen eating the food they bought, she screamed, "What are you doing, put that down!"

Qin Zhen hated it most when women screamed for no reason; the women he was closest to, like Xianglu, never did such things. Unapologetically, he grabbed three deep-fried dough sticks and an egg from the plate, licked each of them in front of Ma Cui, and then continued to eat.

Ma Cui covered her mouth in disbelief, "You, how could you do this, that’s not your food!"

Qin Xi came in after doing some boxing exercises outdoors, and as soon as he arrived, he heard Ma Cui’s shrill voice, frowned, sat down, picked up a bowl of porridge, grabbed two dough sticks, and said to his brother, "Since our cousin’s wife doesn’t want us sitting at the dining table, let’s go eat on the couch."

Qin Zhen agreed, surprising himself with his compliance as he grabbed another dough stick and carried the porcelain bowl over.

Ma Cui angrily protested, "No, that’s not right!"

But none paid her any heed. Mr. Qin, old and getting little sleep, had gotten up early to exercise. As soon as he returned, he wanted breakfast and frowned upon seeing the sparse eggs and dough sticks on the table: "Why did you buy so little?"

Ma Cui felt extremely aggrieved and glanced at the brothers who were eating.

Mr. Qin looked at his grandsons eating breakfast, turned his head with a frown, and said, "Didn’t I give you all the food tickets? Knowing Qin Xi and the others were returning last night, why didn’t you buy more?"

He finished speaking, went to wash his hands, and sat down to eat first, ensuring he was full.

Ma Cui was choked up and lost for words.

Soon, the awakened Qin Miao and her mother Wu Xiaolan got up, stunned by the sight of only a dough stick and a bowl of porridge left on the table.

Wu Xiaolan frowned and asked, "Cui Cui, what happened? Why is there no breakfast left?"

At that moment, Mr. Qin was reading a newspaper on the couch while Shouren, who got up late, was just starting to eat.

Seeing her daughter-in-law watching Uncle Qin, Wu Xiaolan paused, confused why he had eaten at home and seeing the brothers cleaning up, suspected they had eaten it, frowned, and said, "Uncle, why didn’t you tell us you were eating breakfast at home? Look at this, there’s nothing left, what are we supposed to eat?"

What Shouren hated most was his self-righteous sister-in-law, who acted as if the world revolved around her and everyone had to cater to her. After finishing the last bite of the dough stick, he coldly said, "Wu Xiaolan, you haven’t even remarried my brother yet, isn’t it inappropriate for you to boldly live at someone else’s home? Don’t you have your own house? I heard that when you divorced my brother, you also got a small courtyard, much more spacious than here. Besides, whether I eat at home or not, what does it have to do with you? I’m eating my father’s food, not yours!"

Wu Xiaolan was stunned, not expecting Uncle to speak so adeptly after not seeing him for years; her face suddenly flushed, "How can you speak like that? When I divorced your brother, it was a temporary measure, for the sake of the child, facing hardship alone is better than the whole family suffering!"

Shouren drank the porridge in his bowl and said, "But in the end, a divorce is a divorce; whether to remarry or not will have to wait for my brother to come back and discuss it. My two sons have returned and don’t even have a place to live!"

Mr. Qin put down the newspaper in his hand, thought for a moment, and frowned, "Xiaolan, you see, you and Shouhan haven’t remarried yet, it’s indeed inconvenient for you to move in, why not move back first? Qin Xin and his wife too— you both have jobs, and living here so far from work isn’t convenient."

Wu Xiaolan never expected her father-in-law to speak like this, demanding that they leave. Her face turned beet red, and her mouth opened and closed without words coming out for a long while.

Beside her, Qin Miao heard her mother was leaving and wondered, what about herself? The house back home had no heating nor hot water for showers. She would have to squeeze in with her mom, all thanks to the troublemaker Qin Xi!

Qin Miao thought for a moment, walked up to Mr. Qin with a smile, and said, "Grandpa, school is starting soon. What’s the point of moving back where there’s no space even to study? I want to stay here."

Mr. Qin, quite pleased with his granddaughter who managed to take exams and move back from the countryside, nodded and said, "Then, stay here. School is starting soon. I’ll give you some cloth tickets in a few days to make some new clothes. You’re a university student now; you need to dress decently."

Qin Miao nodded obediently, turning proudly to the about-to-leave brothers Qin Xi and Qin Zhen with a taunting tilt of her chin.

Qin Zhen glared back with his big eyes, seeming to think the lesson wasn’t enough.

But Qin Xi lazily said, "Cousin sure has a lot of free time. Aren’t you comfortable living in the county anymore?"

Qin Miao’s heart tightened, her heartbeat accelerating. What is Qin Xi going to say! In panic, she asked, "What are you talking about, cousin? I don’t understand what you mean?"

Qin Xi lazily put on his shoes, smiled, and said, "Huishan County Hospital!"

Qin Miao’s face turned shockingly pale, as if she had been terribly frightened, her teeth chattering uncontrollably.

Beside her, Wu Xiaolan noticed her daughter’s odd behavior and quickly held Qin Miao’s shoulder, saying, "Miao Miao, what’s wrong? Don’t scare your mom!"

Qin Xi smiled and, ignoring the questions from the people behind him, left the house with his father and brother.

Qin Zhen, deeply admiring his brother’s swift ability to take down enemies, eagerly asked, "Bro, what did you mean by that? What about Huishan Hospital? How did you scare Qin Miao like that!"

Qin Xi patted his brother’s prickly head and seeing their father also looking puzzled, he lightly smiled, "Nothing much, just happened to know something about her that others don’t."

Qin Zhen became even more interested, hurriedly moving closer to ask, "What is it? Tell me, so I can threaten that evil woman Qin Miao whenever I want!"

Qin Xi looked at his brother, shook his head, and said, "No way, Qin Miao is ruthless and cruel. You’re no match for her. Good thing you went to Shanghai, otherwise, staying in the capital, who knows how she might frame you!"

Qin Zhen, hearing his own brother belittling him while praising someone else, felt embarrassed and annoyed, "Why do you look down on people like that!"

Qin Xi, looking at his brother, couldn’t help but think of his past life where his brother ended up in jail for murder. It felt like an eternity ago. Smiling, he said, "Not at all, you’re so capable. You even got into Fudan University. You didn’t see how Dad couldn’t believe it when he found out." When the acceptance letter came, Qin Xi had called their father in the capital right away, vividly remembering his dad’s incredulous tone.

That indeed shifted Qin Zhen’s focus.

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