“Mom, now it's Qin Huai Ru who's working to support Li Wu Wei.
He says Li Wu Wei is sick, but he can go fishing! Does that look like a sick person?
Qin Huai Ru is so innocent, she must have been tricked.
Also, Qin Huai Ru works, and Li Wu Wei takes her monthly salary, only giving her three yuan for food. She can only afford steamed bread in the factory every day.”
Jia Dong Xu felt heartbroken when he spoke of these things. He wished he could take Li Wu Wei's place. After all, Qin Huai Ru had been set up on a blind date with him first, and she even ate the Jia family's blind date meal.
“Aiya, how can someone be so heartless? It’s too immoral.”
Even Jia Zhang Shi couldn't help but scold. She had never worked a day in her life and had relied on Old Jia since she married into the courtyard.
Old Jia was gone, and they relied on their son. It was always the men who were the breadwinners. Even if a woman worked, it was either because they were both working or because the man was seriously ill or had passed away.
But Li Wu Wei, at such a young age, tricked Qin Huai Ru into taking his job. Isn't that bullying a woman?
“Mom, Qin Huai Ru hasn't been married for long. If I try to steal her back, and we say Li Wu Wei hasn't gotten her yet, do you think it'll work?”
Once the thought popped into Jia Dong Xu's head, he couldn't stop it. After all, Qin Huai Ru worked at the factory and was always in his sight. Every time he saw her, it made him miserable.
“Dong Xu, just forget about it. Don’t you hear those squeaking sounds in the backyard at night? They go on for half the night. They’ve gone beyond just touching hands. Forget about Qin Huai Ru. She's no longer a virgin. Our Jia family can't take her, we’d lose face.”
Jia Zhang Shi thought Qin Huai Ru would be a great wife. She could work and earn money, wouldn't Jia Zhang Shi live a comfortable life? But she was already Li Wu Wei's woman, how could they take her?
“Mom, I don't care, I want Qin Huai Ru.”
Jia Zhang Shi pulled the blanket over her head and started to cry.
“Cry, cry it out, it'll make you feel better. Tomorrow, Mom will find a matchmaker to inquire. We'll find you a woman like Qin Huai Ru.”
Jia Zhang Shi felt miserable too. She lifted the curtain and went out into the courtyard. This sensational gossip was definitely worth spreading.
When the workers from the Steel Mill returned to the courtyard and spread the sensational gossip, the residents were shocked.
“Li Wu Wei is ruining the atmosphere in our courtyard. First, he stole the blind date from the courtyard, and then he tricked his wife into taking his job. If this keeps up, someone else will follow suit.”
An auntie started to worry. She didn't want her husband to do the same and send her to the factory. She couldn't handle it.
“Maybe he’s influencing everyone. There’s something I didn't mention before, but now it feels wrong.
Yesterday, didn't Jia Dong Xu go on another blind date? Guang Qi told Xu Da Mao, and I think if Liu Hua Yu hadn't been so fat, Xu Da Mao would have stolen her away.”
Second Aunt directly exposed Xu Da Mao, leaving Jia Zhang Shi, who had just arrived, thunderstruck.
“This can't be! The courtyard can't just target my old Jia family.”
Jia Zhang Shi was scared. If they stole a wife once, Dong Xu would be miserable. If it happened again, her son might lose his mind.
“The root of the problem is Li Wu Wei. Everyone be careful. He might have other tricks up his sleeve.
It's a pity for Qin Huai Ru. I just went to see her, she's still cooking at home.
She works to earn money and does chores after work. It's not fair to her.”
“Look, isn't that Li Wu Wei? He’s back! Oh, he caught a big fish!”
A resident suddenly shouted, and everyone turned to look.
Li Wu Wei was pushing his bicycle, a short fishing rod was tied to the back, and a fish weighing about four or five jin hung from the handlebars.
“Li Wu Wei, where did you catch that fish?”
Yan Bu Gui jumped up and rushed over, his eyes wide with envy. He was making a fortune!
“Just outside the city wall in Dong Zhi Men, by the moat. I also caught a duck.”
Only then did everyone notice a large duck tied to the back of the bicycle.
“Good heavens, your luck is amazing!”
Yan Bu Gui's eyes were red. His salary was low, and it was hard to support his large family. He was always thinking of ways to supplement his income.
But Li Wu Wei had only gone out for a day, and he came back with a fish and a duck! The heavens were unfair!
“It's nothing. I have to go home. I haven't eaten dinner yet.”
Li Wu Wei said this, but he pushed his bicycle slowly. It took him a while to get from the middle courtyard to the back courtyard.
Everyone noticed the big fish but ignored the small fish, two fingers wide and half a liang heavy, hanging from the handlebars. That was his real catch for the day.
He almost had nothing. As for the big fish and the duck, he got them from the reward he got from the market.
There were wild ducks by the moat, but they could fly. He chased them for a while, but he couldn't even touch a feather. He gave up early.
“Brother, you’re back.”
Qin Huai Ru had already prepared dinner and was about to go out to wash clothes with a basin.
“Wow, such a big fish!”
“And a duck too!”
Li Wu Wei boasted. He didn't have luck, so he cheated to make up for it.
“Huai Ru, take the fish and stew it. Keep the duck, it will lay eggs.”
“Okay! I’ll grab some sour cabbage, we can stew fish with sour cabbage and have soup. I’ll also fry some peanuts for you. Have a good drink tonight.”
Qin Huai Ru was happy, but she first took out a chair quickly for her husband to rest.
Then she rolled up her sleeves and took the fish to the sink to process it. She scraped the scales, removed the gills. She hadn't killed fish at home before, but she had seen her father do it.
Many residents in the courtyard followed to watch.
Seeing Li Wu Wei leaning back on the chair, a teacup in his hand, and Qin Huai Ru killing the fish, they shook their heads.
“Why should the bad guy be happy and the good guy be sad?”
“How come Li Wu Wei's luck is so good? Such a big fish! But at least Qin Huai Ru can finally have some meat.”
“You're probably thinking too much. For someone like Li Wu Wei, he’d be lucky if he lets her have some fish soup.”
“When can we go fishing? Also, that duck, it's so tempting. It's still alive, it will lay eggs.”
Xu Da Mao was already eating his meal. He had his old mother who didn’t work to make him meals, but seeing Qin Huai Ru killing the fish made his food suddenly taste bad.
Qin Huai Ru finally finished processing the fish, took it to the kitchen and stewed it. The residents of the courtyard sighed and left, but they still couldn't understand.
Li Wu Wei rested and it was cold outside, so he went inside to find a book to read while waiting for dinner.
As for helping in the kitchen, he didn't even think about it.
Mencius said: “A gentleman is far from the kitchen.”
Confucius said: “That makes sense.”
He married Qin Huai Ru because she was capable and caring. The facts proved him right.
“Brother, the peanuts are ready. Drink them first, the fish needs to stew for a while longer.”
Qin Huai Ru brought the peanuts over, along with a bottle of wine and cups.
“Well, the doctor said I should drink less, it’s good for my stomach.”
Li Wu Wei nodded and said: “Later, heat up more water, we’ll take a bath together. We don’t want to smell fishy.”
“Okay!”
Qin Huai Ru blushed and went back to the kitchen to busy herself.