Chapter 603: Xiao Dang appears at Bai Xu, startling the crowd

Seeing Qin Huairu compare herself to a manure-making machine.

Jia Zhangshi swept away the calm composure she had previously enjoyed while sitting securely on the fishing platform.

People became anxious.

The expression on her face carried a hint of ferocity.

Her gaze turned murderously fierce, landing on Qin Huairu, who had dared to retort, as if she intended to silence Qin Huairu with her eyes alone.

That was a shameful episode Jia Zhangshi could not bear to recall.

Recently, something unknown had changed; those who had previously watched the Jia family's affairs for amusement abandoned their neutral stance and began to favor Qin Huairu.

Regarding Jia Dongxu's death, a new theory emerged: that Yi Zhonghai was simply taking the blame for Jia Zhangshi, willingly bearing the infamy of having murdered Jia Dongxu.

It was said that Jia Dongxu met his demise because Jia Zhangshi could not stand Qin Huairu, viewing her as a country bumpkin who shattered Jia Zhangshi's dream of the Jia family as a dual-income household; caught between his mother and wife, Jia Dongxu found himself in a dilemma, and Jia Zhangshi's laziness and gluttony dragged him down until he died in those impoverished times.

Jia Zhangshi's laziness and gluttony were actually aimed at Qin Huairu, meant to bully her; unexpectedly, it backfired, dragging her own son into the trouble.

The neighbors' view was that if Jia Zhangshi had shown even a little willingness to support the Jia family, Jia Dongxu would not have met a miserable end at the steelworks; they bluntly said the Jia family's current decline was not Qin Huairu's fault but Jia Zhangshi's, for she herself had brought about the family's present situation.

This saying.

It broke Jia Zhangshi out in a cold sweat.

In Jia Zhangshi's mind, she was the Jia family's meritorious contributor; without her shameless troublemaking and her laziness dragging the family down, how could she have kept Qin Huairu in check?

Qin Huairu had long since taken the Jia family's work and remarried; the children—Bangeng, Xiao Dang, and Huaihua—were also destined to be beaten daily by their stepfather.

That the three children grew to adulthood, and the rented house became the Jia family's private property, were all achievements of Jia Zhangshi.

It is something worth boasting about.

After the neighbors said that, her achievements turned into crimes; Bangeng's imprisonment, Xiao Dang's and Huaihua's running away from home were all blamed on Jia Zhangshi.

How could Jia Zhangshi still expect to be cared for by Xiao Dang, Bangeng, and the others?

She imagined she would be slapped in the face every day.

That result.

That was not the result Jia Zhangshi wanted.

She retorted in one sentence.

"Qin Huairu, you're full of shit—who's the manure machine?" Jia Zhangshi, who saw shoe‑making as her lifeline, grabbed the nearby cloth shoe and said, "I make shoes."

"If I remember correctly, you've been making this shoe for almost a month, haven't you?"

"What do you mean a month? It's only been twenty‑eight days, Qin Huairu—can't you stop thinking so badly? I'm an old woman who walks upright and stands straight; I have nothing to fear."

"Xiao Dang, have you seen? This is your grandmother—a stubborn old duck."

"Qin Huairu, you're truly vicious—just to keep from handing over the Jia family's work, you deliberately sow discord between me and Xiao Dang; we Xiao Dang won't fall for your tricks, you bastard, give up that idea."

Jia Zhangshi's head.

She turned her head toward Xiao Dang beside her.

"Xiao Dang, you won't fall for your mother's tricks, right?"

Xiao Dang said nothing.

The argument between Jia Zhangshi and Qin Huairu didn't even reach her ears; returning from You Fengxia's home, Xiao Dang was pondering a question.

How to draw closer the relationship between our family and Shazhu's family?

How to make Shazhu not dislike the troublesome Jia family and give myself a job?

Frowning, Xiao Dang snapped out of her reverie, glanced at Jia Zhangshi and Qin Huairu, and felt inexplicably uneasy.

Children do not despise their mother's ugliness, nor do dogs despise a poor home.

Yet Xiao Dang harbored a strong grudge against the Jia family.

Because of the turmoil caused by Jia Zhangshi and Qin Huairu, the Jia family would never hope to turn things over; she said nothing and simply pushed the door open and walked out.

Greatly vexed, she did not want to face Jia Zhangshi and Qin Huairu, fearing she could not bear it, so she spoke certain words and did certain deeds.

Under the dark night sky, Xiao Dang's heart eased a little; she unconsciously looked around—some neighbors' lights were off, guessing they had asleep, while others' lights were still on, and as she watched TV, laughter occasionally drifted out.

The small courtyard housed about ten families; they owned televisions—nine‑inch and twelve‑inch models, all black‑and‑white. The largest set belonged to Yan Fugui's home, a fourteen‑inch TV. The remaining families had no TVs but did have radios, and every household had a bicycle.

Only the Jia family was an exception.

As of now, the Jia family's household appliances consisted of nothing more than the ceiling light and a flashlight powered by three batteries.

The home was bare walls.

Even so, the widows of the Jia family continued to quarrel among themselves, blaming each other.

If possible, Xiao Dang truly wished to drop the Jia surname.

Seeing a stool not far away, she walked over, plopped down, leaned her back lazily against the pillar, lifted her head, gazed at the pitch‑black sky, imagined the Jia family's future life, and realized that Jia Zhangshi could not stay, Qin Huairu also had to leave, otherwise the Jia family would be dragged down by them.

Her eyes inexplicably flashed with a hint of hatred as she wondered whether to go look for Huaihua.

In the matter of taking revenge on the Jia family, Xiao Dang and Huaihua were allies; Xiao Dang had originally returned to seize the property and work precisely because Huaihua had provoked her.

In the note Huaihua sent Xiao Dang, she wrote: "I am Yi Zhonghai's daughter, but you, Xiao Dang, are of the Jia family's bloodline; why does Bangeng have things that you lack, and why must you also pay for Bangeng's mistakes? If it weren't for Jia Zhangshi and Qin Huairu's indulgence of Bangeng, you would not have fallen to this state."

Those words struck Xiao Dang's heart, prompting her to resolve to return to the courtyard and contend with Jia Zhangshi and Qin Huairu for the family inheritance.

It was hatred.

Strong hatred.

Under the influence of hatred, Xiao Dang turned her head to look toward the Jia family, then shifted her gaze to You Fengxia's home, imagining You Fengxia's lovely figure.

Let alone anything else, just seeing the other person's clothing made Xiao Dang feel a twinge of inferiority, solidifying her desire to work at Bai Xu.

Thinking of daytime, she imagined herself personally going to Bai Xu to look for Shazhu.

Some matters.

They needed a face‑to‑face talk.

Even if she had to kneel before Shazhu, kowtow, and call him grandfather, she would still obtain a job at Bai Xu.

……

Bai Xu.

Hearing You Fengxia's account of Shazhu, Bai Xu almost jumped straight up from his chair.

Bai Xu stared with eyes wide in disbelief, gazing straight at You Fengxia, who was telling him how Xiao Dang had twice obstructed and schemed against her yesterday.

Shazhu knew about Xiao Dang's return to the Siheyuan; he had heard You Fengxia mention it once yesterday at Bai Xu, and at the time he had kindly warned her not to provoke the Jia Family—whether the old widow Jia Zhangshi, the young widow Qin Huairu, or Xiao Dang—better to avoid them if possible.

Having been neighbors with the Jia Family for so many years, and with the experience of his past life backing him up, he knew the Jia Family were like dog‑skin plasters—once they stuck, you couldn't tear them off.

As a result, when You Fengxia returned home that evening, she encountered Xiao Dang showing up at her door directly.

This is intolerable.

It was too frightening.

Shazhu shifted his gaze onto Thus: Thus: Mahua.

Seeing Shazhu looking at him, Thus: Thus: Mahua also understood what Shazhu meant and hastily patted his chest to promise.

"Master."

Besides Shazhu, Yu Li also stood beside him.

Thus: Thus: Mahua also added the title of "master's wife".

"It's true; I just came back from the toilet, and my spouse told me that just now they saw Jia Family's Xiao Dang going to Xiang Hong's room, saying that relatives aren't as good as neighbors, neighbors should help each other, suspecting the Jia Family had ill intentions and were scheming against Xiang Hong. When Bangeng first returned to the Siheyuan, Jia Zhangshi had Huaihua call Xiang Hong to come eat at their house, worried about running into this again; my wife urged me to hurry over and check, so I grabbed a fire stick and ran to Zhong Yuan, where I saw Jia Family's Xiao Dang being driven out of the gate by Xiang Hong again, still standing there unwilling to leave, and I gave Xiang Hong a few words of advice."

Thus: Thus: Mahua was a well‑known honest lad.

His words.

Everyone present believed him.

It's not that they didn't believe You Fengxia's words; after all, You Fengxia is an unmarried pretty girl, and some things are hard to say, some deeds hard to do.

They had to worry about saving face.

Thus: Thus: Mahua is married and has his own children, so he no longer has those reservations.

"Really shameless, what kind of people are these?"

Liu Lan flared up in anger, her dislike of the Jia Family far surpassing that of everyone else present.

It's all the karma Qin Huairu created.

Back then, to indulge in pleasure, she insisted on competing with Liu Lan for the position of Deputy Factory Director Li.

She went ahead and did it.

She insisted on putting on an act of being forced to do it for her child, for the Jia Family, for her mother‑in‑law, making the Deputy Factory Director Li, who had been schemed against and seduced by her, appear as a beast instead.

Liu Lan's anger wasn't about Qin Huairu's scheming and seducing Deputy Factory Director Li; it was about her hypocritical behavior—sometimes even stepping on Liu Lan to lift herself up.

For things outsiders don't know, Liu Lan is aware, so her words aren't very polite.

"Xiang Hong, you must listen to your brother on this matter; the Jia Family are no good people, stay away from them, and if you really can't, move out—otherwise you'll end up in trouble with nowhere to justify yourself."

"The Siheyuan is close to where my significant other works."

"Ay yi yi, you're already a couple—when are you getting married?"

You Fengxia lowered her head, embarrassed.

Shazhu saw this.

He smoothed things over.

"Liu Lan, get the gift money ready, it's soon."

"I knew you'd say that."

"Don't talk about that—talk about the Jia Family, why are they so shameless?"

"What else could it be? Scheming." Liu Lan snorted, "Jia Zhangshi schemes against Qin Huairu, not wanting her to remarry, hoping she'll spend her life as an ox and horse for the Jia Family; Qin Huairu schemes against others, thinking how to squeeze some advantage from them, all while pretending to be a white lotus unstained by mud. Dragons beget dragons, phoenixes beget phoenixes, rats' offspring are born to dig holes—Jia Zhangshi is no good person, Qin Huairu is no pleasant thing; what kind of good thing could come from such a family? They'll surely copy each other; when cornered, there's nothing they won't do—strip off their clothes and falsely accuse you of sleeping with her—what can you do?"

"Liu Lan sis is right; the Jia Family can do anything, living in the Siheyuan there's always something to watch, the Jia Family drama is really good—last night they were still arguing, the cause being Qin Huairu wanting to remarry; Jia Zhangshi said Qin Huairu's job at the Yagangchang was a replacement for Jia Dongxu's job, demanding Qin Huairu return the job before remarrying; Qin Huairu wasn't happy, and the two widows quarrelled."

"Return the job to the Jia Family—what does Jia Zhangshi think? Without a job, how will Qin Huairu make a living? That widow is no good."

"No one says otherwise; by the way, there's also the matter of Bangeng—heard he had someone pass a message to the Jia Family widows, saying he wants to meet them."

"It's all Jia Zhangshi's karma—she literally sent her own grandson Bangeng off to 【some place】; when Bangeng was little and stole things, Jia Zhangshi knew, but instead of educating him she praised his deeds; with anyone else, they'd have strung the kid up and beaten him."

"I heard Jia Zhangshi suspects Bangeng isn't Jia Dongxu's son but the child of Yi Zhonghai and Qin Huairu, and back then she even used a scuffle to make Qin Huairu miscarry once."

"No way, that's too melodramatic."

"You all know Qin Huairu's nature—her heart is black."

While everyone was chatting casually.

A voice trembling slightly flew into their ears.

"Hello, may I ask if He Yuzhu is here?"

Thus: Thus: Mahua and the others, whose interest had been disturbed, impatiently turned their gaze toward the source of the sound, their faces showing a mixed mix of emotions.

Thus: Thus: Mahua indeed had that expression.

You Fengxia had the look of someone who had truly chased after him all the way here.

On Yu Li and Liu Lan's faces was the dilemma of someone else coming to look for Shazhu.

Shazhu's expression, however, was that of being startled and shocked.

Yu Li and Liu Lan didn't recognize the person as Xiao Dang, mistakenly thinking he was either someone seeking work to try his luck or someone peddling his own products.

The booming business at Bai Xu made it a flagship of the Capital City's catering trade; nearby villagers would bring their home‑raised chicken, duck, fish and other meats, vegetables like greens and radishes, to Bai Xu to purchase.

Payment and goods exchanged hand in hand.

No credit allowed.

It turned out to be a lucky break that settled one of Shazhu's worries—he had feared his rival would meddle in Bai Xu's material supply, but now that concern is gone.

Nor did he need to go to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy things.

Others directly shipped goods to Bai Xu.

Thus: Thus: Mahua, You Fengxia and the others recognized Xiao Dang; as a member of Bai Xu and a neighbor of the Siheyuan, they guessed the significance of his appearance here.

Looking for work.

Too many people came to Bai Xu looking for work.

They had seen too many people like Xiao Dang.

Nothing surprising anymore.

Having figured it out yesterday inside the Siheyuan, Xiao Dang had twice blocked You Fengxia's intentions, hoping to use her connections; after realizing his schemes against her wouldn't work, he went straight to the shop to try his luck.

Shazhu's shock wasn't because Xiao Dang had arrived at Bai Xu, but because of Xiao Dang's appearance.

Although he wore the sort of clothing female comrades in the Capital City wear nowadays, it still gave Shazhu a strange sense about Xiao Dang's dress—how to put it? It was like a beggar in a dragon robe, far from princely; he was practically a monkey.

Besides his clothing, what shocked Shazhu most was Xiao Dang's face; Shazhu was frightened.