I Became a Vicious Supporting Role in the '70s
Chapter 122: I Want to Give It to Jiaojiao to Eat

Chapter 122: Chapter 122: I Want to Give It to Jiaojiao to Eat

Lu Jiaxuan and Zhou Jiaojiao stood at Shen Meng’s courtyard entrance for quite a while before they snapped back to reality, thinking about the words they had just said and the actions they had just taken. Fortunately, they were clear-headed enough to realize that a family connected by marriage to the Textile Factory Director was certainly no ordinary family. Otherwise, any slip in their behavior just now could have inadvertently offended the most important person in the entire county.

Zhou Jiaojiao picked up the notice from the ground, clutching it in her hand. She had secured a spot as a textile worker, yet Shen Meng hadn’t said a word, which was obviously odd. Considering how Mr. Li and her elder brother and sister-in-law had just spoken, their rapport seemed quite warm, and judging by their demeanor, it was almost certain that they had promised him something else.

"Jiaxuan, let’s go back. Mr. Li is such an important figure and he came to our house, but elder brother and sister-in-law didn’t even mention it to us. What does that mean? What if we inadvertently offended him? They’re clearly clinging to Mr. Li and keeping us in the dark. If we’re talking about discovering Li Qianqian, my sister-in-law is just the one who reaps the benefits, yet she gets more credit than I do."

"You’re right, Jiaojiao. I also think what elder brother and sister-in-law did was wrong. Not to mention whether knowing Mr. Li could benefit us, just on the principle of the matter, they’re completely stealing your credit, Jiaojiao. We arrived late; who knows what they could have spoken about us before."

The two had originally been overjoyed about securing a spot for a textile factory worker, but the stark disappointment of not having met Mr. Li left them momentarily unable to think, as anger took hold of their rationality. Together, they stormed into Lu Zhenping’s house.

The onlookers from the village had spoken several sentences to them, but they ignored everyone and marched back into the courtyard with rather unpleasant expressions on their faces.

"Tsk, they’ve become so proud, rubbing shoulders with a big leader and now they look down on us ordinary folks."

"I’ve always felt Zhou Jiaojiao was too fake. She’s always so agreeable, like she has no temper at all, practically becoming Lu Family Village’s Miss Goody Two-Shoes. But how can anyone not have a temper? It’s all an act."

"You said it. Hey, Lai Zi’s wife, don’t you often work in the same group as her? You know her well; come on, tell us about it!"

Lai Zi’s wife rolled her eyes; these people loved to mock her at any other time, but now that they had someone else to gossip about, they came to her for the scoop—what a bunch of busybodies.

"Talk, talk, talk. What do you want to know? Do you want me to spill the beans?"

"Midday and all you have is time to badmouth others. Better hurry home, cook for the kids, and dote on your men. Get lost, all of you."

"What’s with all the envy for Jiaojiao? If you’re jealous, just say it. Why make up stories about her!"

Those who looked down on Zhou Jiaojiao and her supporters immediately started quarreling. Lai Zi’s wife stepped back; she had no interest in getting involved in these matters. She never liked Zhou Jiaojiao to begin with, but back then, if she spoke ill of her, misfortune was sure to follow—there was something sinister about that woman.

"Oh my Lord, Old Feng’s wife, you’ve got a splat of bird droppings on your head."

Lai Zi’s wife snorted with laughter, scooped up Xiao Ya from beside her leg, held her in her arms, and headed back home.

Shen Meng and Lu Zhenping organized all the large and small packages at home, and stored all the valuables in the wall cabinet. Just as they were taking out a tin of biscuits given by Li Chuan, a red envelope unexpectedly fell out. Instantly, she recognized it as the money for the ginseng that was to be given to her before.

"This was given by the County Party Secretary. How come I didn’t see him slip the red envelope inside just now? With so much money, that should be enough to repay any big favor. Besides, the more you take, the more likely you are to fall prey to gossip in the future. What to do?"

Lu Zhenping glanced at the situation and raised an eyebrow, noticing Shen Meng’s cautious demeanor, a stark contrast to her previous eagerness to work at the textile factory.

"It’s fine, just keep it!"

Since he said it was okay, Shen Meng didn’t bother further; she just pocketed the money and then opened the tin of biscuits. She took one look, and the biscuits gave off a milky fragrance, similar to the smell of cookies.

"Mingyang and the younger siblings have come over; take this box of biscuits to tide you over. Mom will go cook right away. You’ll be off to school soon, and we happen to have some meat a guest brought over, so let’s have meat-noodle soup for lunch!"

Mingyang and Mingliang quickly gathered around. They had been eyeing the gifts that today’s visitors had brought: canned foods, biscuits, shortbread, sponge cakes, powdered milk, meat, grains, and a lot of candy boxes, drooling with desire.

"Mom, this looks pretty expensive. Are we really going to eat it?"

"Well, Mom has already opened it. What’s there not to eat? Go ahead and eat. Zhenping, make some orange drink for them. Give each of them a bit to sip on."

Lu Zhenping nodded but first went over to the biscuit tin and took a heart-shaped biscuit, placing it at Shen Meng’s lips. She looked at it, then pursed her lips and took a bite. These goods were brought by Mr. Li and Director Hu. They were good stuff – if not for the children and the wife, then for whom?

Seeing that Mom had already taken a bite, what was Mingliang waiting for? He grabbed one and shoved it into his mouth. The rich milky flavor filled his mouth, delicious beyond words.

Entering the living room, Zhou Jiaojiao and Lu Jiaxuan were astonished to see the children eating the biscuits from the tin. Especially Lu Jiaxuan – currently a temporary worker at the commune – had just been eying the full table of gifts and was thinking of borrowing the biscuit tin to give as a gift. Unexpectedly, in the blink of an eye, his older brother had let the children eat them. Being a man who had spent many years as a soldier, he wasn’t well versed in many social interactions and let out a long sigh.

"Big brother, such nice things, how could you open them so readily? Do you know how much a tin of these mooncakes would cost? They’re even more expensive than meat. If you brought them out as a gift, they would make quite the impression. I was thinking of borrowing yours to use, but didn’t expect you to be so impatient and eat them right away."

"Didn’t they also give a box to your family? You think of borrowing mine, then what about yours? Are you going to let the mice have them?"

Lu Jiaxuan’s face flushed with embarrassment, but he stubbornly retorted, "Mine will definitely be for Jiaojiao to eat, and for Mom too. Jiaojiao is pregnant and Mom is getting on in years, shouldn’t they have something good to eat?"

Lu Zhenping slammed the orange drink onto the table with force, startling Lu Mingkai, who gagged and stretched his neck to cough. He quickly patted Lu Mingkai’s back forcefully. The little one’s eyes were full of tears as he gulped down the orange drink.

"So your family’s child is precious, and ours aren’t? The biscuits are already eaten; no borrowing now."

Lu Jiaxuan wanted to say something else, but Zhou Jiaojiao quickly tugged at him. Although she was moved by her husband always thinking about her, now was clearly not the time to say it.

"Big brother, Jiaxuan and I just came over to ask you and sister-in-law, that Mr. Li... is he the County Party Secretary Li Chuan from our county?"