After beating up the bad bamboo, the exhausted Tong Huaqiong returned to the house to continue eating.
Due to the low grain yield of this era, in order to fill their stomachs while saving food, the grains eaten by the farmers mostly retain their husks. Half a bowl of rice made Tong Huaqiong's throat unbearably sore.
So she decisively took Chen Sufen and retrieved the family's fine flour to make eggs pancakes, inviting Chen Sufen and Man Er to have a hearty meal.
Chen Sufen and Man Er dared not eat much, while Tong Huaqiong single-handedly devoured nearly a stack of egg pancakes.
Chen Sufen was so shocked by her mother-in-law's unusual behavior that she didn't sleep well all night.
She feared someone's spirit had taken over her mother-in-law.
If such a spirit did exist, then it was a good one, unable to watch her and Man Er suffer, it had come to rescue her.
"Grandma, you eat the egg."
Tong Huaqiong had been at the Gu family for three days.
Every meal was an ordeal.
For these three days, she was very kind to Chen Sufen and Man Er.
This made Man Er stop trembling when eating next to Tong Huaqiong. Seeing her grandmother unable to swallow her food, Man Er obediently handed her own egg to Tong Huaqiong.
"Sweet granddaughter, you eat."
Tong Huaqiong embraced the grandmother role, lovingly patting Man Er's head.
In the end, it's the little girl who knows how to care for people, unlike the eldest grandson Yaozu, who eats like a starving ghost reborn, piling all the good food into his own bowl.
Tong Huaqiong glanced at the bowl heaped with husked grain and sighed, finding it truly hard to swallow.
The Gu Family was indeed excessively poor; even the half-bag of white flour they had was finished by her.
"Grandma, I want to eat the egg too."
Yaozu stared at the egg in Man Er's hand, almost wanting to grab it.
The egg eaten by the financial drain is his, all his!
"If you want to eat, cook it yourself." Tong Huaqiong flatly refused Yaozu.
"It's already been days without any meat, I can hardly stand it."
Gu Taohua grumbled as she stirred the rice in her bowl unhappily.
Usually, any decent food at home is prioritized for her supply, even if the family is poor, they can't skimp on her.
Now she has to eat communal meals with Chen Sufen, and she can't stand it, feeling she's been starving to lose weight over these three days.
She also wanted to eat eggs, but her mother said the eggs laid by the hens at home were all for the sister-in-law and niece to nourish themselves, no one else should think about touching them.
Gu Taohua looked up at sister-in-law Chen Sufen's bowl, which happened to have an egg in it.
Originally, no hints would be needed; the sister-in-law would swiftly peel the egg and hand it to her, but now with her mother watching, she dared not ask, nor did her sister-in-law dare to give.
"With your muscles, you should go hungry, after all, you won't starve to death." Tong Huaqiong bluntly retorted at Gu Taohua.
Gu Taohua pouted in dissatisfaction.
Mother has really muddled, caring for the sister-in-law rather than her own daughter.
Sitting beside Gu Taohua, Liu Yueer also disapproved of her mother-in-law's recent changes, taking the financial drain seriously while the eldest grandson sat right there.
No wonder they say that after a long widowhood one can become psychologically abnormal, according to her, that's just how her mother-in-law is now.
No matter how dissatisfied everyone was, they dared not voice any complaints.
Over these three days, Tong Huaqiong beat the bad bamboo at home twice, the firewood club had been snapped, finally making these bad bamboo realize Tong Huaqiong had changed.
At least no one dared bully Chen Sufen and Man Er openly like before.
After filling their stomach.
Tong Huaqiong sat in the yard pondering.
Since she had crossed into this heartless widow's body, unable to return for a while, she could only grit her teeth and live here.
But the Gu family's hardware conditions were truly poor, everywhere exuded a decayed atmosphere.
For starters, the family situation, a poverty household, with just a few mud and brick rooms, no silver coins.
Of course, this poverty blame lay on the people, the original Tong Dajiao, is a lazy woman, leading a few bad bamboo to do nothing, all housework fell on stepson's wife Chen Sufen, daily expenses relied on stepson Gu Dahuan hauling sandbags at the dock.
Even so, sending the youngest son to school led Gu Jingzhe to develop an evil intention to sell his niece for tuition money.
Tong Huaqiong decided that if she was to live here, she must find a way to change things, never mind anything else, she couldn't endure the leaky mud house and throat-scratching husked millet.
For three days, she tried to activate all crossing stories' golden fingers, systems, spaces; none of the transmigrators' abilities worked.
Oh, she did enter a space, but she could only stare at the stuff inside without being able to take anything. She had reasons to suspect it was merely a fantasy she dreamed up.
She didn't even have a chance like other transmigrated women to rise through marriage, being a widow, who could she marry? Also, dragging along a pile of freeloaders.
She finally understood, here, she could only rely on herself and this group of bad bamboo.
"Nai, let me give you a back massage."
Man Er stood behind Tong Huaqiong.
In the past, Tong Huaqiong would always order Man Er to massage her back and legs, so as soon as Tong Huaqiong sat on the chair and assumed her position, Man Er reflexively clenched her fists.
"No need." Tong Huaqiong said kindly.
Man Er, with tears in her eyes: "Nai, did I make you angry?"
Tong Huaqiong: "..."
There was no way around it; Man Er's fear of her wouldn't disappear in a short time.
"Man Er, you didn't make me angry. There's no need to be so afraid when you see me in the future." Tong Huaqiong's expression grew increasingly gentle.
Man Er smiled; she liked the way her grandmother was now.
Chen Sufen, who was sweeping the yard, felt her scalp go numb from fear.
When it was time to send Man Er to the Zheng Family, Tong Huaqiong had that same kind look in her eyes.
She always felt like her mother-in-law was hiding something, just waiting for her to let her guard down before making a big move.
During these three days, Chen Sufen worked even harder, even huddling at her mother-in-law's door at night, ready to serve at the slightest movement.
Fetching water, bringing the chamber pot, covering with blankets...
It was all to make her mother-in-law comfortable so she wouldn't change her mind about keeping Man Er at home.
Tong Huaqiong glared and shouted at Gu Dashi, who was sunbathing in the corner of the wall: "Gu Dashi, as a grown man lying around in broad daylight, don't you feel ashamed? Are you blind or something, can't you see your sister-in-law working all day? Get up and sweep the yard for me. After sweeping the yard, split that pile of firewood for me too."
Gu Dashi's butt was still swollen from being beaten; he stood up enduring the pain and took the broom from Chen Sufen's hand.
Chen Sufen silently moved a stool next to the laundry basin, sat down, and began washing the family's clothes.
Tong Huaqiong glanced at Gu Taohua and shouted: "Gu Taohua, you're such a grown person, and you still let your sister-in-law wash your underpants for you. Aren't you embarrassed? With all that fat, do you consider yourself a pig? Get out here and wash these two big basins of clothes; if you don't finish, you won't eat."
Gu Taohua rubbed the red mark on her arm from being hit and reluctantly came out to wash clothes.
Chen Sufen picked up a bucket to fetch water.
Liu Yueer leaned against her door frame eating melon seeds, afraid her mother-in-law's anger would turn on her, quickly ducked to leave.
She was caught and scolded by Tong Huaqiong.
"You're both daughters-in-law of the Gu Family. Look at your sister-in-law, then look at yourself. Are those melon seeds planted in your mouth? Gnawing all day, why don't you break your teeth? Right now, fetch water for me."
Liu Yueer could only put the melon seeds in her pocket and tearfully take the yoke off Chen Sufen's shoulders.
"And you, Yaozu, if you ever dare call Man Er a money-losing good-for-nothing again, you'll see if I don't tear your mouth apart!"
Gu Yaozu looked at the fire poker in his grandmother's hand, covered his butt, and nodded vigorously.
Only then did Tong Huaqiong feel somewhat relieved.
The only good thing about this era is the emphasis on filial piety; even if these bad bamboo are no good, with the weight of filial piety pressed on them, they dare not disobey her, Tong Huaqiong.
As long as they listen to her, she was confident she could straighten them out.
"Mom, give me the inside scoop. Are you, these days, hitting and scolding us to trick my sister-in-law into sending Man Er to the Zheng Family, or have you really changed?"
Gu Dashi finished sweeping the yard and took advantage of Chen Sufen going to the vegetable garden to pick vegetables, to shamelessly ask his own mother.
Man Er, standing beside Tong Huaqiong, turned pale with fear at the mention of the Zheng Family.
Tong Huaqiong gave Gu Dashi a smack on the head.
"Who's performing? I said Man Er isn't going to the Zheng Family, and she won't! You rotten seed with a black heart, still scheming for your niece. If you envy the good life at the Zheng Family, why don't you go be their son?"
Gu Dashi thought, calling me a black-hearted rotten turtle is just insulting yourself.
"But Mom, our family already took two hundred taels of silver from the Zheng Family, can they just let us go?"
"Just return the silver."
"Mom, you're thinking too simply. Do you know what kind of family the Zheng Family is? If they stamp their foot, the whole Pingchuan would tremble. They've already announced the marriage of their eldest son. If we return the silver and don't send anyone, can they just let us go? Will they let third brother go?"
In his opinion, they should just send Man Er over.
Gu Dashi looked worried, anyone who didn't know would think he had good intentions.
Tong Huaqiong frowned.
But, what Gu Dashi said was true.
The Zheng Family was not one to be easily dealt with, and after suffering such a loss, they definitely wouldn't let it rest.
Properly resolving the matter with the Zheng Family was the urgent task at hand.