Chapter 29: Learning from My Mother!

Li Xiaojiang and the others were chased out of the chicken coop by their grandmother. They didn’t go far, just waited outside.

Mother Li glanced at Li Xiangdong suspiciously and asked, “Why are you up so early today? What, didn’t you eat enough last night?”

“Look at what you’re saying. I’ve changed for the better.”

To change others’ attitudes towards him, he had to start from the little things. Li Xiangdong decided to start by not sleeping in.

Mother Li didn’t quite believe his words, “I hope you can stick with it for a few more days. If you have nothing to do, just go out. Why are you here with the child? It smells so bad.”

“Your own granddaughter wants to see the old hens. I brought her in to have a look.”

Li Xiangdong held his daughter’s small hand and pointed at the old hens on the ground, “These are old hens. Does Xiaoqi want to eat them? If you want to eat them, ask your grandmother to slaughter one for you and make chicken soup.”

“Jiji…”

Li Xiaozhu looked curiously at the few old hens walking around on the ground, “Eat… jiji…”

Hearing this, Mother Li walked over with a smile and pinched her cheek, “Don’t listen to your dad’s nonsense. We can’t eat our family’s old hens. We have to keep them to lay eggs.”

Li Xiaozhu insisted, “Eat… jiji…”

“You little girl, you’re even greedier than your brothers. They’re after the eggs, but you’re even after Grandma’s old hens.”

Mother Li took an egg from the bowl and let her granddaughter touch it, “This is an egg. If you eat the old hen, you won’t have any eggs to eat, you know?”

Li Xiaozhu nodded and reached for the egg in Mother Li’s hand, “Egg… eat…”

Mother Li dodged her small hand and said with a chuckle, “You can’t eat it now. Grandma will make you egg drop soup later.”

“Eat…”

Li Xiaozhu’s mouth puckered, and she was about to cry.

“Xiaoqi, don’t cry. Daddy will get you an egg to play with, okay?”

Seeing the tears welling up in his daughter’s eyes, Li Xiangdong took the egg from his mother’s hand and held it out for his daughter to touch and play with.

Mother Li stood by and watched. When her granddaughter stopped crying, she wanted to ask for the egg back, but she was afraid she would cry again, so she said, “Laosan, hold the egg tight. Don’t drop it.”

“Don’t worry, Mom.”

He was a grown man. How could he not hold an egg steady?

Seeing his mother cleaning the chicken coop, Li Xiangdong flattered her, “You’ve raised these five old hens so well. Our family can have eggs to eat every day. This is all thanks to you.”

The chicken coop was cleaned every day, so it wasn’t very dirty. Mother Li swept it briefly with a broom, fed the chickens, and then had time to talk to him.

“I got lucky today! I guess your grandmother forgot about her precious grandson, otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to get so many eggs.”

Li Xiangdong was speechless. He had said so many nice things to make his mother happy, but she didn’t give him any face at all, just made sarcastic remarks about him.

“I already talked to Grandma yesterday. She promised not to steal your eggs anymore. From now on, she’ll leave them all for you.”

Mother Li walked out with the bowl of eggs, not showing any gratitude, “Who knows? How many eggs I can get every day is not up to our family’s old hens to decide, but up to you and your grandmother!”

Hearing his mother’s words, Li Xiangdong’s face turned red with shame!

He followed behind Mother Li, holding his daughter, and came out of the chicken coop. He complained, “Mom, can you give me some face in front of my daughter? Can you not say everything that comes to your mind?”

“You still know how to be ashamed? I didn’t see you feeling embarrassed when you were sneaking food.”

Mother Li glanced back at him, her footsteps not stopping as she walked to the stove under the eaves of the main house and placed the bowl in the cupboard next to it.

Li Xiaojiang and his three younger brothers followed like a tail, from the courtyard to the chicken coop, and then from the chicken coop to the stove.

“Grandma, the egg drop soup is too bland. Can you add some sugar?”

“Grandma, I want to eat sweet egg drop soup.”

“Grandma, it tastes better with sugar.”

Mother Li was surrounded by her four grandsons, and their chatter made her head buzz.

“All of you, shut up! Go out and ask, which family’s children can eat eggs every day? You really don’t know what’s good for you. You even want sugar. Doesn’t sugar cost money?”

“Then Grandma, we don’t want sugar anymore. Let’s have boiled eggs today.”

“That’s right, Grandma. There are five eggs today. We all saw them.”

“Grandma, let’s have boiled eggs.”

Mother Li refused directly, “No. There are only five eggs. If we boil them, you’ll fight over them. All of you, get out of the way. If you keep making a fuss, you won’t even have egg drop soup today. I’ll scramble the eggs for your grandfather to have with his wine.”

Seeing their grandmother’s display of authority, Li Xiaojiang and the other three knew that pestering her was useless, so they stopped bothering her.

Mother Li shooed her grandsons away, picked up a water ladle, and scooped a few ladles of water from the water vat next to her, pouring it into the large iron pot on the stove.

“Xiaomei, add some more firewood. When the water in the pot boils later, don’t add so much firewood, you know?”

“I know, Grandma.”

After giving instructions to her eldest granddaughter, Li Xiaomei, who was squatting in front of the stove and feeding the fire, Mother Li turned to look at Li Xiangdong, who was standing under the eaves at the door.

“It’s enough to coax the child. How can you let her play with an egg all the time? Hurry up and put the egg in the cupboard.”

Li Xiangdong thought what his mother said made sense. Eggs were still very precious in this era.

No family would let their children play with eggs as toys. He coaxed his daughter to put the egg in the cupboard.

“Want…”

Li Xiaozhu tugged at his hair and pointed at Li Xiaomei, who was squatting in front of the stove and feeding the fire.

“You want to play with your sister?”

“Play…”

Li Xiaozhu nodded.

But Mother Li, who was beside them, saw him holding his daughter and moving closer to the stove, and she immediately cursed, “Li Laosan, when the doctor cut your umbilical cord when you were born, did they cut out your brain too? How old is your daughter? Why are you holding her so close to the fire!”

What the hell!

Hearing his mother’s flowery language, Li Xiangdong was stunned for a moment.

“Why are you still standing there like a fool? Was the alcohol you drank last night too strong and burned your brain? Are you okay? If you’re fine, stay away. Don’t be an eyesore in front of me!”

Li Xiangdong looked at his mother speechlessly and muttered, “Xiaoqi is learning to talk like an adult. Aren’t you afraid of leading her astray?”

After saying that, he quickly moved away with his daughter.

Li Xiaozhu had already learned to hit people from her mother. He couldn’t let her learn to curse too.

The main thing was that his mother had too many sarcastic words in her mouth. Anyone who stayed with her for a long time would learn a thing or two!

“Li Laosan, what are you muttering about?”

“Mom, you must have misheard. I didn’t say anything.”

Li Xiangdong couldn’t afford to offend her, so he hid. He held his daughter and walked to the side, sat on the stone steps, and watched the four naughty boys playing in the courtyard.

“Xiaolan, go to the small kitchen and see if the steamed corn buns are ready.”

“The eldest and second daughters-in-law are so slow. They have to be urged to do anything!”

“Li Laosan.”

“Sigh! What is it now, Mom?”