I Became a Vicious Supporting Role in the '70s
Chapter 144: A Bow Will Do

Chapter 144: Chapter 144: A Bow Will Do

Shirley Yu’s adobe house wasn’t big, with just two rooms and a slightly lower kitchen, and even the courtyard walls weren’t finished yet. The thatch used for constructing the house was millet straw from the village’s autumn harvest, with Lu Debang, Zhang Hongfa, and Guo Xiuxin leading the effort. Many people helped build the house. Everyone had a hard time making ends meet. Those who had given money before did so, and those who didn’t have money gave away some unused items from their own homes.

A bowl with a chipped edge, two pairs of idle chopsticks, a few old luffa scrubs, a pocketful of dried wild vegetables—all these odds and ends pieced together somehow made life manageable.

Half a month later, Shirley Yu was discharged from the hospital and moved into the adobe house, which hadn’t dried yet. In her home were two old quilts with holes and a kang cabinet that Guo Xiuxin had snatched from Lai Zi’s house. Apart from these, there was no other decent piece of furniture.

The village was busy turning manure pits to prepare for spring sowing and fertilizing, and with the New Year approaching, they were preoccupied with their own affairs. No one knew she had been discharged.

When Uncle Guai left, he stealthily stuffed 50 cents into Xiao Ya’s pocket. When they divided the family property, they had given quite a lot to Huang Maochun and Lu Xingchang, and they were quite strapped for cash. Lu Xiangxiang had already given some money, but seeing Shirley Yu with her two children and her injuries, he couldn’t help but feel pity, offering the greatest kindness he was capable of.

Shirley Yu looked at her new home, feeling like she had survived a calamity, tightly holding the hands of her two children.

"Daya, Xiao Ya, this will be our home from now on. Mom will definitely work hard to earn work points and take good care of you. We won’t have to suffer any more abuse. Remember, the folks from Lu Family Village have been our benefactors. Today, I will take you to thank them, going door to door to express our gratitude, alright?"

"Mom, my sister and I will go with you. I will bow to them and thank them, Mom."

Xiao Ya was timid; she was young and didn’t understand much. Plus, having often been beaten and scolded while at the Xu Family’s place, she was clearly not used to the amount of suffering she had endured recently, but still, she was sensible and would do whatever her mother and sister asked of her.

At noon, Lu Zhenping was cooking in the kitchen, while Shen Meng sat at the front door with Lu Mingkai enjoying the sun, squinting her eyes when she spotted Shirley Yu leading a child to her doorstep. The two locked eyes for a moment.

With a "thud," the mother and daughters all knelt down, startling Shen Meng into jumping up.

"Mrs. Daya, what are you doing? How could you bring your children to kneel at my door?"

Shen Meng’s alarmed shout lured Lu Zhenping out of the kitchen, still holding a kitchen knife, startled to see Shen Meng hurriedly rush out.

"What happened?"

After Shen Meng ran out, Lu Mingkai also opened his eyes and scampered out, casually mentioning to his father, "They knelt down."

Shen Meng helped Shirley Yu to stand up and patted the dust off her pants.

"What’s all this about?"

"Mingyang’s mother, Mr. Mingyang, I brought my two children here to thank you for helping us escape from misery. We will remember your great kindness for the rest of our lives."

Lu Zhenping didn’t say a word. Before, Zhao Wei nearly got into a group fight to help clear her name, almost making a big mistake. It was Shirley Yu who had pleaded with him, threatening her own life to make him take the person back to the military. Some things are complicated to explain, especially in the countryside, where the rural people have their own set of rules and no one can escape.

Lu Zhenping felt guilty towards her. The incident back then was so serious that, for Zhao Wei’s future and for the days to come for Shirley Yu, he had no choice but to take the person away.

"From now on, live a good life, and come to us if you encounter any difficulties."

"Ah!"

Shen Meng patted her hand and said, "If you truly want to thank everyone, just bow with the children, no need to kneel down. Daya and Xiao Ya are both girls, although they’re still young, you should consider their dignity. We’re all neighbors here, everyone can understand and show sympathy."

Nobody would lack sympathy for the vulnerable, especially when they are so appreciative. She could already foresee that if Lai Zi’s family ever dared to cause trouble again, the villagers would teach them a lesson.

Shirley’s eyes reddened as she nodded firmly, and took Daya and Xiao Ya to another house. Whether they were giving money, goods, or just speaking up for them, she bowed with the children to each one. By noon, almost no household in the village had been missed.

The next day.

Shen Meng, Xie Jinghao, Wang Lianhua, and Xifeng each brought the things they had prepared for her and came to check on her. Daya was quite sensible and welcomed the guests into the house. Once they were seated on the kang bed, she stood to the side fidgeting with the hem of her clothes awkwardly.

"Aunt, I’m sorry, we don’t have any hot water to offer."

Not to mention hot water—the house didn’t even have a bucket. Yesterday and today, she and her two daughters ate on the kang bed without even a table.

"It’s fine, Daya, I just came to see how your mother is doing. I just had hot water at home before coming over, I’m not thirsty!" Xifeng reassured her, pulling Daya closer and stroking her hair affectionately.

"I’m really sorry. You came all this way and I don’t even have hot water to offer. Oh, Jinghao, since you’re here, could you please tell Jiasheng to make me a kang table, a square table, and four wooden stools? I’ll pay the deposit later."

Xie Jinghao waved her hand, placing the five pounds of cornmeal she had brought on the kang bed.

"That’s not a problem. Don’t worry about the deposit; Jiasheng makes furniture at the work team, and usually, we have to give the money to the team. You can pay when the furniture is ready. We’ve just split our household recently, so we don’t have much grain. I brought you five pounds of cornmeal to tide you over. In half a month or so, we’ll distribute the grain. If that’s not enough, you can borrow some from the work team, and you’ll make do."

"We can’t do that, your family has two kids as well. How can I take so much from you? Everyone has already given our mother and daughters so much support..."

Xie Jinghao pressed her hand to stop her from refusing, while Shen Meng also took out what she had brought.

"These are some old clothes that Ming Fang and Ming Kai used to wear. I’ve cleaned them up for you, don’t mind that they’re used. They are about the same size as Daya and Xiao Ya, so they should fit. I’ve also brought some brown sugar, cured meat, and a little rice. It’s not much, but it should last a while."

Shen Meng’s storage was overflowing with grain, but she couldn’t just give Shirley too much all at once. Life is for living on your own, and relying too much on others can create dependence. She wasn’t about making things too easy for others.

"I’m not picky, not at all, I truly appreciate it. I wouldn’t take it if it were anything else, but since Daya and Xiao Ya came with nothing from Xu Family’s house, not even a sewing needle. But please take the rice back, Jinghao’s cornmeal is already making me uneasy, I absolutely cannot accept this white rice."

"Take it, why wouldn’t you? Her family’s life is good and it’s only going to get better. If you don’t take it, I’ll have to take it back." Xifeng said to Shirley on the side, even making a gesture as if she was really going to take the bag of grain back.

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