The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 177: I must get slim, as slim as Shen Mingzhu!

Chapter 177: Chapter 177: I must get slim, as slim as Shen Mingzhu!

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Liu Cuihua, unable to contain her anger, pointed at Shen Baolan’s forehead and scolded, "I think you’ve been starved to the point of delusion. People are like extinguished lamps once they die; if life is gone, what fortune can you enjoy!"

"Mom, if I really divorce Zhou Shuhuan, wouldn’t you be afraid of Qin Jinlian laughing at you behind your back?"

That remark hit Liu Cuihua right where it hurt.

She had been at odds with Qin Jinlian for the better part of her life, neither outdoing the other nor willing to give in.

But if her daughter really divorced her urban son-in-law, she would spend the rest of her life being pressed down by Qin Jinlian, unable to hold her head high.

"Even if you don’t get a divorce, you can’t just not eat. Look at what you’ve starved yourself into. Do you want your father and me, white-haired, to send off a black-haired person?" Liu Cuihua chastised her, full of concern.

"I have to get back to the way I was before I got married, so that Shuhuan won’t divorce me. I have to lose weight, be as thin as Shen Mingzhu!"

Shen Baolan spoke weakly, but her tone was resolute.

However, she didn’t want to risk her life either, so she had Liu Cuihua make her some rice soup.

In the mindset of rural people, rice soup was a life-saving elixir. Once she drank it, her life would hang on.

...

Although all the factory’s products had been distributed, it didn’t mean that everything was settled and they could just sit back and wait for the money to roll in.

Shen Chaobei still kept watch in the factory, overseeing production.

Shen Mingzhu, along with Du Juan, visited each store one by one to help with the marketing and promotion.

The promotion method was very simple: they hung a circle of colorful balloons in front of the grocery stores, and every little customer who bought "Mingzhu" snacks would get a balloon for free.

For kids from that era, balloons were coveted toys.

At the same time, Shen Mingzhu would also carry around spicy strips and dried tofu, offering free samples for passersby or kids to taste.

This type of promotional activity was very welcome by store owners.

It cost nothing, helped sell their products to make money, and drew people into their stores – every one of them hoped that Shen Mingzhu would stay at their store to do promotions every day.

That day, after Shen Mingzhu and Du Juan finished their promotional activities, as soon as they returned to the factory, they could hear laughter from the workshop.

She passed what she was holding to Du Juan and went to the workshop to investigate.

Looking through the glass window, she could see five female workers chatting and laughing while kneading or washing gluten, with Shen Chaobei beside them, helping with the kneading and grinning as he listened to the workers’ banter.

Seeing her walk into the workshop with a serious face, the workers quickly subdued their laughter.

Shen Mingzhu made a round inside the workshop and then beckoned Shen Chaobei to the office.

"Why is nobody wearing masks or shoe covers? And only two people are wearing hairnets. I spent money to provide these items for everyone, are they just for decoration?"

As soon as they entered the office, Shen Mingzhu questioned Shen Chaobei seriously.

Shen Chaobei hurriedly explained, "It’s not that everyone doesn’t want to wear them, but it’s too hot and stuffy. It’s already tiring to work, and wearing masks and hairnets makes it almost impossible to breathe."

"If it’s hot, why didn’t you say anything earlier? If you don’t tell me about the problems, how can I solve them?"

Du Juan, watching her husband being scolded, didn’t open her mouth to plead for him.

The necessity of wearing masks and hairnets had already been discussed in a staff meeting; if her husband hadn’t supervised the work properly, it was a dereliction of duty and deserved reprimand.

Shen Mingzhu didn’t only severely reprimand Shen Chaobei, she also imposed a fine of twenty and posted the penalty notice on the bulletin board as a warning to others.

Shen Chaobei admitted his guilt and didn’t dare to argue on his own behalf.

Apart from the issues with masks and hairnets, Shen Mingzhu found several other problems, such as the workshop not being cleaned daily as she required, and materials and tools not being stored according to regulations.

That afternoon, Shen Mingzhu called a meeting with all the factory staff to emphasize sanitation standards.

The workers appeared outwardly calm but were inwardly skeptical.

As long as the work was done well, what did it matter if a little saliva or a stray hair got onto the food? Could it really kill anyone?

Shen Mingzhu didn’t have the leisure to persuade and change the mindset of these rural workers one by one; instead, she implemented strict management. From then on, anyone caught working without protective gear would be fined five yuan for each occurrence, and those exceeding three times would be directly dismissed.

The cleanliness of the workshop had to be maintained daily, ensuring no visible dust on desks, windowsills, or floors. She would conduct surprise inspections, and fines would be issued for any that didn’t meet standards.

...

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Evening, in the workers’ dormitory.

Five female workers sat on their own beds, some darning soles, others knitting sweaters, all the while complaining about the employee meeting that afternoon—

"She’s out and about every day, never to be seen; how would she know how hard we work? It’s hot enough to kill you, and yet we have to wrap up tight, suffocating to death!"

"Exactly, let her try doing it for a day! Easy for her to talk standing up without a backache."

There were those who defended Shen Mingzhu, "If the manager doesn’t run around outside every day, how would the goods get sold? If the goods don’t sell, wouldn’t the factory go under?"

"Right, haven’t you noticed how the manager has lost weight? Her face has gotten tanned too."

The small employees’ dormitory was divided into two camps over their different views of Shen Mingzhu.

Those dissatisfied with Shen Mingzhu thought the other group would suck up to anyone who showed them the slightest favor, calling them bootlickers fawning over Shen Mingzhu.

On the other hand, those who agreed with Shen Mingzhu’s management philosophy felt that the complainers were never content; working in a food factory was both easy and profitable, far better than farming with one’s face to the soil and one’s back to the sky, right?

...

After dinner, as usual, Shen Mingzhu soaked hers and Pei Ziheng’s dirty clothes in laundry detergent, preferring to machine wash them after soaking for a cleaner result.

Before soaking, she carefully checked over Pei Ziheng’s clothes and pants.

Pei Ziheng, watching TV on the living room sofa, not only wasn’t annoyed or repulsed by this scene but instead, his little face glowed with happiness.

Because he knew his mother would check his clothes to make sure he hadn’t been bullied at school.

For this reason, his mother had specifically changed all his clothes to light colors.

He relished his mother’s care and affection.

After soaking the dirty clothes, Shen Mingzhu went to the kitchen to heat up bathwater. She turned the stove to the lowest setting so she could rest on the sofa for a bit and take the opportunity to chat with her son.

Going out every day to do promotions was a significant challenge to her stamina, but no matter how tired or hard her day was, she never neglected to spend time with her son in the evening.

"Sweetie, what did you learn at school today?"

"We learned pinyin, addition, and drawing."

"Did you master it all? If there’s anything you don’t understand, you can ask me."

"I learned it all."

Pei Ziheng cozily leaned against Shen Mingzhu, tilting his snow-white, beautiful little face up and reaching out his little paw to touch her face.

"Mommy, you’ve lost weight."

Shen Mingzhu appeared happily surprised, "Really? Then I don’t need to diet anymore."

Pei Ziheng’s little face showed dissatisfaction, "You’re not fat at all!"

Shen Mingzhu affectionately pulled him into her arms and, rocking him gently, laughed and said, "Son, that’s something you don’t understand yet, the persistence women have about maintaining their figure is just like the attachment you kids have for your toys."

"You can never have enough toys, and women can never feel too good about their figure, always hoping to be thinner, and thinner still, ideally slim as a bolt of lightning."

Pei Ziheng didn’t understand but still expressed his respect and well-wishes.

"Mom, you worked hard today, let me give you a massage."

"Oh yes!"

Shen Mingzhu felt incredibly gratified by her son’s considerate and filial actions and immediately lay down on the couch, looking very much forward to it.

Pei Ziheng, not yet six, had pudgy little paws, soft and not very strong, but they felt quite comfortable on her body.

Shen Mingzhu, enjoying it, closed her eyes and unwittingly fell asleep.

Pei Ziheng carefully went to his room to get his thin blanket to cover her, then went to the kitchen to turn off the stove, picked up a book, and continued to read while keeping her company.

The clock on the wall moved slowly, its ticking contributing to the serene and warm atmosphere.

...

The next day, as usual, Pei Ziheng parted ways with Shen Mingzhu in front of the food factory and walked to school on his own.

About 50 meters from the school gate, he was surrounded by a group of little boys.