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Chapter 679: Chapter 669 Admitting Weakness
The room fell silent, and Li Xianghe was sitting dumbfounded on the kang, still in the forward-leaning posture from the argument, with a piece of raw doughy bread lying quietly right beneath her face.
"What are you spacing out for? Hurry up and pick it up." Shen Yunfang, seeing that no one dared to move, guessed they were all waiting to see how things would unfold. She did not want to stand there like a fool holding the plate at the door, so she quickly nudged her older sister in front of her with her elbow.
At this point, Li Xianghe had also come back to her senses. As for being hit by her second brother, she did not dare to get angry but could only vent her frustration on her sister-in-law right in front of her.
"If you want to stay here, then shut your damn mouth; otherwise, get the hell out," Li Hongjun said coldly to his sister as he reached out to take the plate of dishes from his wife’s hand.
He did not feel at all out of place making decisions in someone else’s house, and of course, everyone in the room shared that sentiment.
Li Xianghe was just about to let out a barrage of curses but had to swallow them back down, her eyes reddening with frustration.
Li Hongjun and his wife carried on as if they hadn’t seen anything, doing whatever they needed to do.
"I was saying that Brother-in-law is too polite. It’s so late already, we should just have a quick bite and that’s it. Big sister insisted on stir-frying dishes. You should have a good drink with brother-in-law later." Shen Yunfang felt a bit embarrassed to be troubling them so much.
"What are you talking about, Yunfang? When we visited your place, you prepared much more than this. We just don’t have the same conditions here; otherwise, your big sister wouldn’t be busy until midnight," Liu Jianjun said with a laugh, as if he hadn’t noticed the awkwardness between his father-in-law and younger sister-in-law.
"Nonsense," Li Xianglian said without any good humor, giving her own husband a glare, then placing the plate of dishes she was holding onto the table, "You guys, hurry and serve the rice."
Shitou and Jiajia were behind them holding their bowls and chopsticks.
"Dad, hurry up, we’re going to eat. Whatever it is, let’s talk after we finish eating." Li Xianglian, as if unaffected by the tension in the room, cheerfully urged her father to come and eat.
Old Mister Li hesitated, wanting to stand his ground, but looking at his children on the kang, he lacked the confidence. After sighing, he dropped his head and turned to walk back to his spot on the kang, where he sat down heavily.
"Dad..." Li Xianghe was very unhappy to see her father back down so easily. She was afraid of her second brother and had been hoping for support from her father, but it turned out her father was no better than she.
"Eat, let’s eat." Old Mister Li certainly understood his daughter’s meaning, but he was struggling to protect himself, and it would be better if his daughter just calmed down.
Thus, everyone found a spot at the kang table, ready to eat.
Due to the larger number of people today, counting both adults and kids, there were ten in total, and that was without Pangpang and Manman. The table on the kang was not big, and it was a bit cramped with so many people squeezed together for the meal.
"You three younger kids go down to eat, and Mom will serve you some food." Seeing the kang was too crowded, Li Xianglian decided to send her own children down, hoping to make more room at the table.
Shuanzi, heeding his mother’s words, pouted, "Then why doesn’t she go down to eat?"
By ’she,’ Shuanzi was referring to the little girl sitting next to Li Xianghe, who was about Manman’s age.
Quiet and unassuming, while these people had been talking in the room for so long, she hadn’t made a peep.
Only then did Shen Yunfang shift her gaze in that direction, realizing there was another child there.
"What are you talking about? She is your younger sister, a guest. Have you lost all your manners?" Li Xianglian scolded her son with a fierce look on her face.
"Hmph, someone’s already trying to take over our nest, and she’s still a ’guest.’" Shuanzi muttered his dissatisfaction.
Li Hongjun heard his nephew’s words and ruffled his head smilingly, "Not bad, not bad. Haven’t seen you in a year, and you’ve progressed, already using idioms now."
"Li Hongjun, watch it. Don’t be a bad influence on the kids," Shen Yunfang had to remind her unreliable husband. How could he say such things in front of children?
She then turned to Li’s older sister and said, "Don’t send the kids down, it’s more lively when we’re all squeezed together."
Li Xianglian originally wanted to scold her own child a bit more, but hearing her sister-in-law say that, she couldn’t well continue, she just looked at her youngest son and tapped her finger on him.
It meant "You wait, I’ll deal with you later."
Shuanzi, seeing his uncle and aunt were there, wasn’t at all afraid of his mother. He flashed a big smile at his mom and then picked up his rice bowl, ready to eat.
"We’ve got flatbreads and rice, don’t be shy, just get whatever you like," Li Xianglian was the last to sit down but didn’t forget to invite everyone to help themselves.
"Big sis, there’s no need for you to fuss, we’re all family here, no one needs you to wait on them." Shen Yunfang pulled her elder sister to sit down and stopped her from fussing around, urging her to sit and eat quickly.
"Hmph..."
Everyone pretended not to hear. 𝖓𝖔𝖛𝔭𝖚𝖇.𝔠𝖔𝔪
Slap...
"Doesn’t anyone have any manners," Li Hongjun asked coldly. "Grew so big only to act like a dog."
Li Xianghe rubbed her hands, her face full of defiance.
Everyone glanced at Li Xianghe, then averted their gaze, after all, Liu Jianjun was the host, smiling and inviting old man Li.
"Dad, let’s eat."
"Good, good, let’s eat, let’s eat," old man Li finally found some face, lifted his chopsticks and was the first to snag an egg, then the children below started their meals.
Although Shitou’s three children did not leave the table, they were all very sensible. After starting their meal, they took food in their bowls and moved back as much as they could, making room for the adults.
The three men all poured wine, eating and drinking, mostly Liu Jianjun and Li Hongjun chatted.
"How’s it going for you in Z Province," Liu Jianjun asked.
"It’s alright, being a soldier is the same anywhere," Li Hongjun raised his glass and clinked it with his brother-in-law’s.
"Is it better than your old military region?" Li Xianglian also asked.
Li Hongjun knew his sister was mainly concerned about living conditions, "Of course, it’s better. Over in Z Province, there are apartment buildings, central heating in winter, and we cook with gas cylinders. The military region is right on the edge of the city, it’s only a half-hour bike ride to get downtown, even faster by bus," he explained. Compared to his previous posting, it was indeed much more convenient and far larger. But with a larger place came more people and, inevitably, more gossip.
Those present listened intently as he described life in the military. Li Xianghe’s eyes shone, her face full of longing.
"Yunfang, is your work unit far from the military region, how do you get back to the region every day, and what about the kids, who takes care of them?" The concerns of women were different from those of men; Li Xianglian’s first thought was about children not being taken care of.
"Agricultural University isn’t far from the military region, just a twenty-minute drive. Besides, I don’t have many classes, so I can come back to the region every day. Plus, there’s a kindergarten and elementary school in the military region, I usually just cook for the grandkids," Shen Yunfang briefly explained her life.
"Oh, that’s really nice," Li Xianglian said, happy for her sister-in-law. Being able to manage work and family was the best situation for a woman.
"Heh, don’t just talk about us. How are things with you all at home, how did the harvest go this year?"
A few people around the dinner table clinked glasses and talked animatedly.
However, they all seemed to ignore old man Li and Li Xianghe, mainly hoping to have a peaceful meal without breaking into a fight after just a few words.
Li Xianghe and old man Li might have also realized they weren’t so welcome, so they kept quiet. But midway through, old man Li couldn’t hold back, "Hongjun, your mother... she’s doing well indoors, right?"
