Marrying a Cook in the 1960s

Chapter 43

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Li Chunjuan's bag looked big, but in fact there wasn't much of anything of value. This was her third time to look for Wang Lingling, but she hadn't seen her the first two times.

As soon as Wang Lingling opened it, she got angry and kicked it, spilling all the green things inside onto the floor.

"Hey, girl, what are you doing? I finally found this for you..."

Wang Lingling bit her lower lip and said, "I thought you came to see me sincerely, but you came to see me with a bag of wild vegetables! Am I still your biological daughter?"

Wang Lingling herself was not a hard worker. Although she had been a stepmother with the mentality of living a good life, she had also been madly wronged during this period. These grievances had accumulated in her heart for a long time, making her particularly restless and irritable.

When Wang Lingling saw Li Chunjuan coming to surrender with a lot of luggage, she thought Li Chunjuan was really here to make peace.

Although she still hadn't forgotten how Wang Yongshun and Li Chunjuan scolded her for saying she wanted to marry Zhao Jun, after thinking for a while, she felt that she was in need of help and Li Chunjuan came at the right time.

I wanted to take the things Li Chunjuan brought, so I gave her a good face. But when I opened the bag, I found that it was just some worthless wild vegetables.

Wang Lingling was furious: "Go away! Don't come here again. I have a good life and I don't need you to pretend to be nice."

Li Chunjuan paused in picking up vegetables. She turned her head with a look of shock on her face.

Only now did she realize what she had raised. Wang Lingling's previous troubles could be considered as her desire to marry Zhao Jun, so she was just angry. But now that she had brought things to her house and apologized, she actually said such words!

Li Chunjuan was really sad and angry. Although she did not treat her two daughters as obediently as she did her son, she had raised them well over the years.

After all the effort, this is the result

Li Chunjuan: "Okay, okay, you see your mother's family is in such a state of decline, and now you look down on us!"

Li Chunjuan feels uncomfortable when she thinks about the past these days. She had such a good life at this time last year. Wang Ying did the housework, her son was studying in the town, and she had dozens of yuan in her hands. In just over half a year, her family has become a family that no one cares about and everyone avoids.

Li Chunjuan wiped her tears and complained: "Don't mention your elder sister. After you got married, I missed you and always wanted to come and see you. But a series of things happened at home, so I couldn't spare the time."

Li Chunjuan was extremely upset, but she had to go along with her daughter on the surface.

Wang Yongshun told her that his family was being bullied because they had no one to support them, so even if Wang Lingling said something unpleasant, she had to endure it and show weakness.

Sure enough, when Li Chunjuan said this, Wang Lingling frowned.

Wang Lingling really didn't understand what could have happened to her family. In her previous life, she married Xu Shuang. Although their life was not very good, they had never had to worry about food and clothing in the countryside.

The situation on my mother's side is similar. My younger brother Wang Yaozong went to the city to work as a worker after graduating this year. He is a rare young man who has been able to escape from farming.

When Wang Lingling thought about this, she began to doubt what Li Chunjuan said about “life is not easy”.

Life is not easy at all, but you just don’t want to spend money on her!

Thinking back to her past life, after she wanted to divorce Xu Shuang, she wanted to go to the south to find a way and ask her family for money. But Li Chunjuan refused to give her the money, and Wang Lingling couldn't stop her anger.

"Who are you kidding! Last year you were planning to find a job for Wang Yaozong in the city, how could you not have money? Get lost, if you look down on me, don't come here!"

Before Li Chunjuan could finish what Wang Yongshun had taught her before she came, she was driven out by Wang Lingling, and the wild vegetables were thrown out along with the basket.

Wang Lingling was a stubborn person, and she seldom changed her mind. Now she felt that Li Chunjuan came with a basket of wild vegetables to look down on her, so of course she lost her good face.

Who cares!

Wang Lingling's only thought about money now is money. As for her parents from her natal family and her brothers from her husband's family, just get out of here!

No one else can take advantage of Wang Lingling's good life!

Li Chunjuan was driven out by Wang Lingling. She was not very smart to begin with, and she got angry and started a quarrel with Wang Lingling.

Wang Lingling was sharp-tongued: "Didn't you tell me when I got married that I was not allowed to go back, saying that you didn't want a daughter like me? Why are you coming to my house now? You used to say that having a son is the root, so why don't you live with Wang Yaozong? Why are you looking for me? Oh, you know to get rid of me when your snot is running in your mouth. Now you want to come back to find me, you must have bad intentions!"

Li Chunjuan was so angry that if something hadn't happened at home, she would never have visited her second daughter again!

It was because of her that she ruined her marriage with Xu Shuang and ruined her family's reputation in the brigade. If she hadn't made a scene, she and Xu Shuang would have lived a peaceful life together. Her family wouldn't have had to steal chickens in the winter for a few bites of meat, and now they have ended up like this.

All in all, it’s all Wang Lingling’s fault!

Li Chunjuan put her hands on her hips and cursed: "You slut, if I had known you would be like this, I should have drowned you in a piss bucket when you were born. You are such a slut that you want to be a stepmother, and you are still so proud! Wang Lingling, I tell you, you will get your retribution sooner or later!"

Wang Lingling was furious. She didn't care about anything else, but being a stepmother was something she couldn't get over. She would only hold back her anger if Zhao Dong called her a stepmother. She would explode if someone else mentioned it.

Wang Lingling looked left and right, picked up the broom at home and started to chase the people out.

"I'm a nobody, don't come to my house! Who wants a mother like you? Get lost! Don't come here again!"

The quarrel between mother and daughter attracted many members to watch, and they all couldn't help but be amazed.

"My God, the third daughter-in-law of the Zhao family has such a bad temper. She's my own mother, but she's so shameless."

"Yes, she dared to do that. She started a quarrel with Mrs. Zhao and broke off the relationship with her parents. She really wants to live a life of isolation."

"Hey, what do you think this person is thinking? She takes care of two children by herself and doesn't want anyone to take care of them or help her. She's working so hard for the babies, but they're all her own."

"Who would have known that this guy would hug his two children and kiss them everyday... I've never seen such a stupid person."

Everyone in the Fourth Brigade of the Red Star Commune shook their heads in amazement. Although Wang Lingling had only been married for half a year, she had already contributed to a lot of gossip. No one could understand what this new bride was up to. Some said she was after the Zhao family, but she caused a rift as soon as she got married. Some said she was after Zhao Jun, but Zhao Jun was not around. Some said she wanted to have an easier life, but she treated two children who were not her own as treasures. I wonder if this person had some strange ideas in his head.

Li Chunjuan was hit by several brooms and had a falling out with Wang Lingling. When she got home, she took the gourd ladle and gulped down a large bottle of wine. She was still very angry when she put down the gourd ladle.

She complained to Wang Yongshun: "You said we were going to hook up with Wang Lingling, but now this damn girl doesn't want to have anything to do with us. She just separated from the family and is very stubborn."

Li Chunjuan told Wang Lingling how she had been driven out. It was the first time she doubted Wang Yongshun's advice.

"What you said is totally useless. This girl is so cold-hearted. Her mind is full of those two burdens. How can she remember the credit we gave her for raising her?"

Wang Yongshun was also worried. He had rarely done anything that lost money in his life, but he lost money on Wang Lingling.

I originally thought this damn girl was stupid and gullible, but now it seems that she is not only stupid, but also stubborn.

I don’t know who he inherited that stubbornness from, he’ll never come out once he gets in!

Li Chunjuan hesitated: "Dad, tell me, should we still look for a son-in-law..."

Wang Yongshun had told her before to use Zhao Jun's ruined reputation in the army as an excuse to threaten Wang Lingling.

But Wang Lingling is as stubborn as a donkey, how could she listen to her

Li Chunjuan had no hope. She felt that with her daughter's stubborn character, she would most likely make a big fuss when she heard that her parents were going to ruin her husband's future.

Before, when she was not allowed to marry Zhao Jun, she reported him and ran away.

If I did something this time, I really don’t know what Wang Lingling’s crooked brain would do…

Wang Yongshun smacked his pipe and had to admit that he was helpless against Wang Lingling.

I thought Wang Lingling could see clearly. She had separated from her husband's family, and her son-in-law was far away. She had to live alone with her two children in her husband's brigade, and she didn't know where she was coming from. She was still holding the money given by her son-in-law. Wasn't she just waiting for others to come and steal and cheat her

At this time, easing the relationship with her mother's family would at least prevent her from being targeted.

But this person is so stupid that he doesn't consider his own situation at all.

Wang Lingling even refused Li Chunjuan's request for peace.

Wang Yongshun was smoking his pipe, looking very depressed: "Forget it for now."

It has to be counted. Wang Lingling can't stand it anymore. What else can he do

Wang Yongshun lay down on the bed, feeling very worried.

It is spring now. Some time ago, the team cleared out all the manure that had accumulated over the winter. In the past two days, he started working as usual.

Although the team leader still assigns some heavy work to me, it is much better than carrying manure.

Of course, the work of carrying manure did not stop. He would have to do it as long as there was work to do.

Wang Yongshun tossed and turned in bed for a long time, but couldn't fall asleep.

Suddenly he asked, "Where is Yaozong? Why haven't I seen Yaozong today?"

Li Chunjuan: "Yaozong said he went to town and some classmates were looking for him."

Wang Yongshun was silent for a moment. "Let Yaozong go with me to the fields to earn work points tomorrow. Our family is not the same as before. We can't make it by ourselves."

Wang Yongshun and Li Chunjuan were careless in their work, and they used to support Wang Yaozong by withholding the money left by Wang Ying's mother.

Now Wang Yaozong can't go to school, and his family has no money. If he doesn't go to the fields, he will really starve in autumn and winter.

Li Chunjuan felt sorry for her son, but she also knew that Wang Yongshun was right.

If you don’t work in the fields, you won’t get any work points. Without work points, where will food and drink come from

Are you going to steal

After what happened last time, Li Chunjuan no longer dared to do it again.

"Well, I'll tell Yaozong tomorrow."

Wang Ying got the news from Lao Gou, but she did not go directly to the hospital to ask Dr. Wu again.

After what Dr. Wu told her last time, she knew it was inappropriate to ask again and could only check it out privately.

It is spring now, and Wang Ying often goes up the mountain.

The wild pond in the mountains had not been discovered yet, so she could go up there from time to time to catch a fish to eat. But even if she caught fish, Wang Ying didn't have much to eat now.

There are so many things to eat in spring.

All kinds of wild vegetables in the mountains are extremely fresh and tender. Wang Ying has recently become fascinated with shepherd's purse.

People here call shepherd's purse "white flower vegetable" or "ground vegetable". Pick it, wash it, add meat filling and wrap it into wontons. When it's ready, put chopped green onion and sesame oil at the bottom of the bowl, and it tastes especially delicious.

Wang Ying still felt a little regretful: "There is no dried shrimp and seaweed."

In her previous life, her favorite dish in college was wontons.

It is always in the evening. A big pot is placed on a small dining cart. The pink wontons are put into the pot. Chopped green onions, seaweed, dried shrimps, sesame oil and pickled mustard are placed at the bottom of the bowl. The cooked wontons are placed on top and soup is added. Finally, some minced meat is added to the pot and cooked and then covered on the wontons.

Wang Ying could eat two bowls just by smelling the flavor.

In addition to the wontons, there are also shrimp wontons, a wonton with a large shrimp inside. The chewy shrimp and the rich pork filling are delicious.

Wang Ying talked to Xu Shuang about various kinds of wontons and successfully persuaded Xu Shuang to be interested.

Don’t even think about shrimps for now, I’m afraid it’s hard to find even in the county. But you can still try to get dried shrimps.

Xu Shuang got another basket of fish from the mountain and sent it to her master. Two days later, she came back with a large bag of dried shrimps and a small bag of golden hook dried shrimps.

Wang Ying looked so beautiful holding the dried shrimp. Only after traveling through time did she realize how difficult it is for people to eat seafood nowadays.

The operation of marine fish and shrimp is still immature, and aquaculture has just started. Dried goods are only supplied to a few large cities. In small counties like Nanshao, there are only a few families who can eat them.

As Wang Ying wished, shepherd's purse wontons were almost the same as in her previous life, and Xu Shuang even made her a dish of boiled dried shredded vegetables with dried shrimps.

The tofu shreds are cooked in chicken soup, and then the dried shrimps are added. Lard is added to the soup base, and a spoonful of rice wine is added to stew the soup. A handful of pea sprouts are added before serving.

Wang Ying tasted it right away: "Big boiled dried shredded vegetables?"

Xu Shuang nodded. To be precise, this was no longer boiled dried bean curd. It did not have the smell of ham and all the ingredients were complete.

But Wang Ying was still very satisfied with the meal: "It's delicious! The dried shredded vegetables are cooked to the perfect degree, and the taste of the golden hook dried shrimp can also replace the shrimp."

Xu Shuang had learned how to make this dish from her uncle before, and she had also been to the provincial capital to work in the kitchen with her uncle for two months, so she had some experience with Huaiyang cuisine. Although the ingredients for this dish were not complete, the taste was not bad.

Xu Shuang said, "After some time, I'll ask my uncle if he can find me a ham."

Wang Ying has drooled several times while looking at the pickled pork with preserved vegetables on the menu, and Xu Shuang is now trying her best to meet Wang Ying's requirements.

Wang Ying still shook her head: "For now, it's too expensive!"

Wang Ying is now managing the household expenses. She is not short of money, but there are still many places to spend money.

In general, the family now has more than 300 yuan in savings, Xu Shuang also has a salary of 35 yuan per month, Wang Ying has a 2 yuan subsidy from the brigade, and she can earn about 10 yuan from selling medicinal materials every month. In other words, the family's regular income is 47 yuan.

The amount of mountain products Xu Shuang brought to the county town was unstable. Wang Ying roughly calculated that, including money and tickets, she could earn about 20 yuan and some receipts a month.

Wang Ying calculated that the family’s income was about sixty or seventy yuan a month.

This money may seem like a lot, but there are many places to spend money at home.

First, Wang Ying planned to buy a sewing machine and a radio. The sewing machine was for Old Lady Xu. One reason was that Old Lady Xu made all the clothes for the four seasons in the family. Without a machine, she would have to sew by hand, which was very tiring. Another reason was that Wang Ying thought Old Lady Xu liked these sewing and embroidery jobs.

She and Xu Shuang are always busy, and since Old Mrs. Xu has a hobby, Wang Ying wants to make her happy.

As for the radio, Wang Ying discovered that once winter came, the mountains were closed for so long due to heavy snow, and it was really impossible to survive without a hobby.

Forget about reading, which is not a very safe thing to do at this time of year, but you can buy a radio.

These two big items alone would cost nearly three hundred yuan.

The price of a sewing machine is 160 yuan, not including the ticket fee. The ticket for a sewing machine is much more expensive than a bicycle. Even Chen Dong said that he could only ask in the county town, and whether he could meet someone or not depended on fate.

But no matter what, this money must be set aside first.

Wang Ying was worried: "It would be great if I could get the money for the wild ginseng."

Three hundred bucks! All the problems can be solved in one go.

Wang Ying has been going to the back mountain from time to time recently, in order to find wild ginseng as soon as possible. Unfortunately, things did not go as she wished, and she searched several places but could not find it.

Seeing that the three hundred yuan was about to slip away, Wang Ying was not without anxiety.

Xu Shuang comforted her: "At worst, I can just tell Master to sell more fish."

The fish in the wild ponds are all big, weighing more than ten pounds each. Chen Dong sells them for five yuan each, which is quite a high price.

Wang Ying shook her head: "How can you rely on the fish pond for everything? There will be nothing to eat after you fish all the fish out."

She purposely controlled herself from emptying the fish pond. With this fish pond, big and small fish would grow slowly, and she would have an endless supply of fish to eat in the future. But now that it was all drained out, what would she do in the future

Wang Ying: "I'll go look for it again."

Wang Ying asked, "Have you prepared everything for your brother? Do you want any more?"

This is another aspect that Wang Ying is worried about. After the New Year, Wang Ying and Xu Shuang prepared something for Xu Ming.

Although Old Mrs. Xu was afraid that Wang Ying would be unhappy about this, Wang Ying didn't care.

The money in her hand was the savings of Xu Shuang before, and she couldn't spend money just for her own family. Xu Ming was dragged into such an unprovoked disaster by Wang Lingling, and Xu Shuang still owed him. Giving things was what he deserved.

Xu Shuang: "It's almost ready. I won't send too much for the first time. I'll add more later."

Xu Shuang prepared a large bag of fried noodles, which were made by frying white flour, sesame and peanuts, and sealed. You can drink it by just adding water. There was also dried fish and rabbit meat. She prepared ten kilograms of fried noodles, and ten kilograms of fish and meat.

Wang Ying originally wanted to send some candy, but Xu Shuang stopped her: "It would be best if we could send mountain products."

Wang Ying understood immediately that Xu Shuang was still worried that Xu Ming would be watched. If he sent sugar, people would doubt his family's wealth, which would lead to troubles in the future. On the contrary, if he sent mountain products and grain, it would be difficult for people to find any problems.

Wang Ying: "Okay, then we'll send the stuff out tomorrow. I'm going to the commune clinic this afternoon."

The team leader reported her as a barefoot doctor, but she had not been assessed, so this time she went to the health center to participate in the training.

After a month of training, she will take the exam and if she passes, she will receive a subsidy of one yuan from the clinic. The clinic will also give her some medicines on a regular basis.

Wang Ying thought this was a good thing and planned to go there tomorrow.

Xu Shuang: "Then I'll leave the bike to you later."

Two people share one car, and now they can barely replace it. Wang Ying sometimes uses it more than Xu Shuang. Xu Shuang is still thinking that if she can't replace it, she will have to buy another one sooner or later.

The two of them stayed together for a while before Wang Ying quickly stood up and said, "I agreed to go look after the pigs for Qian** today."

Wang Ying had previously given instructions to Qian **, saying that problems were inevitable in raising pigs, and asked her to go check on the pigs every half a month and treat any problems as soon as possible.

Qian** is now fully devoted to the pigpen, so he is naturally very concerned and will come to remind people when the time comes.

Wang Ying no longer needs to bring anything with her when she goes to Qian** and Cheng Shufen's place. Ever since Cheng Yu started herding sheep in the mountains, both families have been enjoying a feast.

Cheng Yu could get some wild rabbits and pheasants from time to time, and he could easily find wild vegetables in the mountains.

Look, the eldest and second daughters of Qian**’s family have become fat because they are so close to Cheng Yu.

Especially Erya, whose oval face has become a round face, she looks beautiful.

Wang Ying checked the pig for Qian** and poured some spiritual spring water into it.

"They are well-fed. I see the pigs are starting to gain weight."

Qian** puffed out her chest proudly. She had been very dedicated to the pig raising and was busy from morning to night every day. Wang Ying told her how to cook pig food and make sure the pigpen was clean, and she did everything as she was told.

Within a few days, the pigs grew extremely fast, as if they were blown up.

Daya also came over to help at the pigpen. The little girl grew fast when she had enough food and drink, and her trouser legs had grown a lot taller in just a few days.

Wang Ying saw that she was no longer as sad and silent as before, and there was a smile on her face. She was very different from the first time she met her.

Daya: "Sister Wang Ying, Sister Cheng Yu said you should not leave for a while. She will bring you some wild berries from the mountain."

Now that Cheng Yu has gone to the mountains, she is more agile than those children who were born and raised there. She brings home any wild fruit that she is sure is edible.

Daya couldn't help swallowing her saliva: "That wild berry is delicious."

Wang Ying smiled and touched her head: "Just divide it among you, you don't have to give it to me."

What these children lack most now is sugar. Qian** has money in her hand, but she dare not spend it carelessly. She doesn't know whether she can raise her own pigs.

If she couldn't support herself, she would have to go back to work in the fields, and then she would have to rely on this little money to make a living.

Not to mention Cheng Shufen, even Cheng Yu was short of candy, and she cherished the candy given by Wang Ying very much.

Wang Ying decided not to do so and left early.

As soon as she left, she ran into several elderly women from the brigade.

Because Wang Ying is a good doctor and she has a good relationship with Old Lady Xu, the older people in the team all have a good impression of her.

Immediately someone called Wang Ying to go together.

"There are new educated youths here. I heard there are quite a few of them this time. Why don't you go and take a look?"