When She Stops Being Dramatic novel Chapter 57

Chapter 57: Chapter 40: Forsaken Wife from the 50s (40)

But Dou Ding, at the front of the group, excitedly held out a basket. He acted like a little adult, spouting polite words even as he shoved the basket right in front of her. "Grandma Wang, you’re a truly generous person, so much better than so-and-so from our courtyard who only says nice things but never actually does anything."

Old Mrs. Wang’s heart ached as she shook some of the fried food from her enamel jar into the basket. ’He brought a whole basket, so I can’t just give him one or two.’ She shook out three or five pieces, but against the mouth of the basket, which was even wider than her jar, they looked pathetically few.

She had no choice but to shake out a few more.

Zhu Yun, who had been listening to the commotion, opened her door and peeked her head out, eyeing the jar with a smirk.

Her expression seemed to say it all: ’Oh, come on. Counting out fried meatballs one by one? To bring that level of stinginess to the family courtyard... how embarrassing.’

Old Mrs. Wang had complicated feelings, to say the least, for Zhu Yun. This was the former daughter-in-law she had kept under her thumb for seven years, who had suddenly escaped her control. She felt like she could still boss her around, yet she hadn’t managed to gain the upper hand in their last two encounters.

In front of other people, Old Mrs. Wang could maintain her usual demeanor. In front of city folk, she could even shrink back and act meek for a while.

But in front of Zhu Yun, Old Mrs. Wang refused to be made a laughingstock!

’That little hussy couldn’t even hold on to a man. She doesn’t deserve to laugh at me.’

With a smile on her face and a bleeding heart, Old Mrs. Wang put on a show of generosity, giving each child half a jar’s worth of fried food. "Grandma made plenty. If it’s not enough, just come on back for more, alright?"

"I might not be good at much else, but when it comes to fried meatballs, crispy pork, and sweet rice cakes, I’m the best for miles around!"

The children giggled, nodded, and chimed in with praise. Now that they each had half a jar of treats, they didn’t linger, scampering away in a flash.

With the weather so hot, most food didn’t keep for long. The Lin Family, for instance, had a refrigerator. Old Mrs. Wang, however, figured she would make a large batch of fried food. She could add a few pieces to her stir-fries, which would save oil, taste delicious, and provide some nourishing energy.

And so, she had dug out all the flour in her house and made it into meatballs, crispy pork, and sweet rice cakes. She first boiled them in plain water and let them air-dry before giving them a quick fry in boiling oil and setting them on a rack to drain.

Zhu Yun burst out laughing and pointed to herself. "Aunt Wang, I’m a director too. People can’t eat until I give them the nod."

Old Mrs. Wang’s eyes widened. She looked Zhu Yun up and down, her lips curling in utter contempt. "You? You’ve only been here for two months. You think sticking a chicken feather in your tail makes you a phoenix?"

"You work in the cafeteria, don’t you? Mopping floors or washing vegetables? Your husband looks pretty clean-cut, so his family must have some connections. Has he even passed his probation period yet?"

"Don’t think you’re so special just because you live across the hall from our Xianbing. That Wu fellow lives right above us, and he just got his permanent position. His salary isn’t even half of Xianbing’s, so what’s he got to show off about?"

Zhu Yun froze for a second, then leaned against her doorframe and roared with laughter.

"Aunt Wang, the apartments from the fourth floor up are all three-to-a-floor and not very large. Of course they can’t compare to your Xianbing’s place." She turned sideways and jerked a thumb over her shoulder toward her own apartment. "We may live across the hall, but you have a two-bedroom, one-living-room unit. Ours is a three-bedroom, two-living-room. It’s a full 50% larger than yours."

The old woman choked, speechless. "Impossible!" she sputtered in disbelief. "My son is a college graduate! A Director! The Director of the Logistics Department!"