Chapter 777

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Protagonist:

Li Xiulan

Wang Erhai was burning the stove fire in the firewood room, holding an iron fire poker and fiddling with it boredly.

From the living room not far away, the faint sound of festive discussion could still be heard.

"Once the new house is finished, your grandson should be born too; then it'll truly be double happiness arriving at once!"

Zhou Hongwei said with a laugh.

"That's for sure. This whole life, I've never had much luck; now that I'm old, I should get a taste of double happiness arriving at once!"

Wang Zhanggen's voice sounded much more vigorous than before.

"Right, a person can't be unlucky their whole life; as long as you're willing to endure, there'll always be the day you endure until luck arrives!"

Li Xiulan also said with a laugh.

Wang Erhai listened to these words, and his heart felt very unpleasant.

He was going to disappoint his parents' expectations.

He didn't know how to give them an account/explanation at all.

He knew his parents' thinking was very traditional; once married, they wouldn't allow divorce lightly, let alone aborting the child.

His current behavior, in his parents' eyes, was simply great treason and heresy.

Sigh, just hide it for as long as I can...

Wang Erhai could only comfort himself this way in his heart.

And at this time, in the living room, everyone was still talking one after another.

Liang Xinghua suddenly brought up Liu Xiaoli, who hadn't come to work for a long time:

"Speaking of which, how is Sister Xiao Li doing now?"

Wang Zhanggen had an uninterested expression:

"Who knows? Ever since last time we took her for an inspection and came back, we haven't gone to see her again."

Zhao Shoutian suggested:

"Why don't we find a time to go see her?"

Liu Dahe then said:

"Isn't there no material tomorrow? Let's go see her together tomorrow."

Zhou Zhihao chimed in:

"Right, right, we should go see her; Aunt Xiao Li treated me well before, wonder how she is now."

Wang Zhanggen, however, was a bit unwilling to go:

"Why don't you guys go? I won't go."

Li Xiulan, however, said:

"Just go together for a trip; anyway, we're workmates, and tomorrow there's nothing to do anyway!"

Wang Zhanggen, however, pulled a long face:

"If you want to go, you go; anyway, I won't go. With that time, I might as well go see my second daughter-in-law!"

Li Xiulan had nothing to say, and could only say embarrassedly to everyone:

"Everyone ignore him; he just has that stinky temper. Tomorrow I'll go with you all. Then everyone head to town first, buy some fruit in town, and then go together to Xiao Li's home."

Everyone nodded in agreement, all saying okay.

So this matter was decided just like that.

After finishing this matter, Li Xiulan had also eaten about enough. She said to everyone:

"You all continue eating; I'll go to the chicken coop to catch chickens, and come back later to wash the dishes."

After saying this, Li Xiulan immediately stood up and went to the chicken coop not far outside.

The weather was starting to get a bit hot now; the chicken manure smell in the chicken coop was stifling and wafting out, a bit pungent, but Li Xiulan had long been used to it, and didn't feel the slightest dislike.

She picked the biggest rooster, grabbed its wings and lifted it up, used straw rope to bind its two legs well, placed it outside the chicken coop, then picked an old hen.

The rooster was for worshipping the gods, while the old hen was for Wang Erhai to take down and give to Liu Meiqi to stew soup to supplement her body.

When picking the old hen, she also had to feel the chicken's buttocks to see if there were eggs; ones with eggs were kept to lay eggs, ones without eggs were just right for stewing soup.

Li Xiulan came out of the chicken coop, left hand carrying the rooster, right hand carrying the old hen, and arrived at the firewood room.

Smiling, she asked Wang Erhai:

"Erhai, how's the water boiling?"

Wang Erhai sat on a small stool smoking, left hand holding the iron fire poker, occasionally fiddling with the firewood in the stove; hearing his mother's voice, he hurriedly put down the iron fire poker:

"Mom, it's about done boiling."

Li Xiulan came over to take a look; bursts of hot air came out from the pot lid seam; without even opening the lid, she knew the water had already boiled.

So she busily said:

"It's ready. You go get the big iron basin over, use the ladle to scoop half a basin of hot water; don't scoop it too full, otherwise when scalding the feathers the hot water will easily splash onto your body."

"Okay, Mom."

Wang Erhai hurriedly did as told, scooping half an iron basin of water.

And on Li Xiulan's side, she had already gone to grind the kitchen knife sharp, and used a plate to stir and mix well a large half-plate of salt water.

The salt water was for making chicken blood.

"Erhai, come help grab the chicken's feet!"

Li Xiulan walked out carrying the salt water, holding the kitchen knife.

"Okay, Mom!"

Wang Erhai hurried over to help grab the chicken's feet.

The rooster's strength was remarkably great; Wang Erhai held it with all his might, only then managing to keep it from breaking free.

Li Xiulan plucked a few feathers from the chicken's neck, then wielded the knife with practiced skill, slicing through the blood vessels and trachea of the chicken's neck in one stroke; the rooster struggled violently a few times, fresh blood spurting like a stream into the salt water basin, and with a final mournful gasp, it ceased struggling.

After Li Xiulan finished cutting the rooster's neck, she had Wang Erhai go fetch the old hen.

Wang Erhai hesitated for a moment, then said tactfully:

"Mom, how about we don't kill the old hen, keep her for laying eggs."

Li Xiulan, however, said: "It's fine, eat when you should eat; we have plenty of old hens at home, just recently I went to Town and bought twenty hen chicks back!"

Wang Erhai gave a dry laugh:

"I'm just afraid Mei Qi won't like eating it, this old hen, the meat is very tough."

Li Xiulan, however, said:

"You buy a stewing pot, simmer on low heat for three or four hours, the meat will turn tender, and it'll be fragrant too, very nourishing, most suitable for a pregnant woman to eat."

Wang Erhai didn't know what to say.

Li Xiulan spoke again:

"When I was pregnant with you, I wanted to eat old hen but couldn't get any; back then we were poor, didn't raise many chickens, had to keep them for laying eggs; now I raise so many chickens precisely thinking that when the wives of you three brothers get pregnant, they'll all be able to eat some."

People are like this: the things they couldn't get when young, they'll always try their utmost to make up for their children.

Only pity, this kind of making up for it, the children often don't care too much about.

Because the things parents couldn't get when young, in their generation, are often easily obtainable.

Their lack is no longer a bite of meat, a meal of rice, but education, companionship; so now young people, to keep their own children from becoming left-behind children, no matter how hard or tiring, insist on bringing their kids with them, precisely because they themselves were left-behind children in childhood, knowing the pitiable sorrow of left-behind children.

One generation has one generation's lack, one generation has one generation's unresolved regret.

At this time Li Xiulan spoke again:

"If you and Mei Qi don't know how to stew old hen, how about I stew it done and let you take it down, or else I go down and help you stew it."

Wang Erhai couldn't help but panic, hurriedly saying:

"No need, no need, I know how to stew, once it's killed I'll take it down myself."

If Mother followed them to County Town, then the matter of him and Liu Meiqi's divorce would probably be impossible to keep hidden.

So no matter what, he absolutely could not let his parents go down to County Town now.

Wang Erhai also said:

"Didn't you say tomorrow you're going with them to see workmates? This matter doesn't trouble you, I'll stew it for Mei Qi to drink."

Li Xiulan smiled:

"Alright then, you take good care of Mei Qi."

Then she added a parting instruction:

"Mei Qi has a bad temper, but now she's pregnant, you must yield to her in everything; a woman's pregnancy is equivalent to walking a round through the gates of hell, you mustn't let her down, understand?"

Wang Erhai felt guilt beyond measure in his heart, but verbally agreed:

"Got it, Mom."