When she thought the man had been woken up by her kick, Lu Xiaoting rolled over and Susu finally breathed a sigh of relief.
The next day, the Lu siblings both got up early.
Lu Xiaomei cheerfully carried her things to the county high school.
Lu Xiaoting took the earliest bus back to the Provincial City to work.
The Lu Family returned to its usual calm.
After the family finished breakfast, Father Lu rode his bicycle to work at the textile factory as usual, while the mother-in-law and daughters-in-law started preparing the braised dishes once the vegetables arrived.
Susu laughed until her stomach hurt watching the little baldy running around the yard.
No one knew how Lu Xiaoting shaved it, but the little baldy was shining brightly.
Xiao Yu touched his little head in confusion, "Aunt?"
"It's okay, it's okay, let aunt touch it."
Without reservation, Susu rubbed the little baldy, feeling how great it was, and earnestly gave a thumbs-up, "Hmm, not bad, not bad. Xiao Yu, when you wash your face every day, just include the top of your head, you won't even need extra water to wash your hair."
Believing it, Xiao Yu seriously nodded, indicating that he would do just that tonight.
Seeing the pairing of the big and the small, Mrs. Lu laughed until tears welled up in her eyes.
Textile factory
Perhaps witnessing how prosperous their business was, as soon as the mother-in-law and daughters-in-law arrived today, they noticed two more street vendors with stalls at the entrance.
One selling stir-fried buns, and the other selling dumplings.
Mrs. Lu tugged at her daughter-in-law's sleeve, gesturing towards the two with a nudge of her mouth, "Susu, look, they are also selling food. Will it affect our business?"
Susu reassured her anxious mother-in-law and Xiao Yu, "There will be some impact, of course. But as long as our braised dishes taste good, it won't affect us much."
"Then, should we prepare less tomorrow? What if we can't sell everything, won't we be at a loss?" Mrs. Lu was still worried.
"Mom, don't worry, do you still not have faith in our braised dishes?"
Susu smiled and patted her mother-in-law's arm, "Moreover, this county is so big; are we really going to worry about not selling out?"
"Right, right, I'll listen to you."
People started coming out of the textile factory and the other two started shouting their sales pitches, attracting quite a few folks over.
However, there were still plenty of people coming to buy the braised goods.
Due to the other two's food being slightly cheaper than their braised dishes, the usually fast-selling braised goods saw a slower sales pace today.
"Boss, give me one pound of vegetables and one pound of meat."
Regular customer with short hair cheerfully handed over her lunch box, teasing, "It seems like the boss has competitors now."
"Alright, Miss," Susu nimbly packed, "I have confidence in our braised dishes; we're not afraid."
The short-haired lady chuckled.
Even though the sales today were slower than usual, they still managed to sell out.
The trio packed everything up swiftly and went home, reheated the morning's leftovers, cleaned all the pots, bowls, and dishes thoroughly before finally resting indoors.
With two people missing for assistance, the mother-in-law and daughters-in-law were a bit tired today.
In the afternoon, while waiting for the braised goods to cook, Susu rode her bicycle for a trip to town.
She bought a can of malted milk essence, a packet of brown sugar, and about ten eggs, preparing to visit Uncle Su's house after selling the braised goods to see Cousin Su.
Susu rode her bike carrying her mother-in-law and Xiao Yu, and as soon as they entered the Family Court of the machinery factory, they heard noisy quarrels.
If it weren't for the hurry to visit and head home, the two might have joined in the commotion.
The closer they got to Uncle Su's house, the louder the quarrelling became; Susu found the sounds quite familiar.
"Everyone, come judge this situation; how can a family act like this? Out of the blue, they want to ruin a young couple and make their daughter divorce."
Susu remembered, wasn't it Old Mrs. Wang? Her face instantly turned cold, "Mom, it must be the Wang Family causing trouble at uncle's house."
"What? The old hag has the face to cause a scene?"
Sure enough, Uncle Su's courtyard was surrounded three-deep, nearly blocking the trio from getting in.
Susu pushed her bicycle forward and heard Aunt Liu Fen's voice.
"You old hag, really unreasonable; why did we bring our daughter back? Isn't it because your Wang Family doesn't treat my daughter as a human being, always beating her without reason, and your entire family has no good people?"
"Bah, you damned old woman, think the Old Su Family doesn't have anyone? Look at how they beat my sister-in-law! I really want to scratch you to death." It was the spirited voice of sister-in-law He Hong.
"She can't even produce an egg; beating her isn't enough."
Old Mrs. Su didn't hold back either and spat on the ground.
Susu parked her bicycle, holding Xiao Yu, and smirked, "What? Still think you are the Grand Empress Dowager? Want to beat and scold? If I read correctly, our family brought Xian Yue to the hospital for a checkup, and there's no issue with her body."
"Old lady, I give you a suggestion; take Wang Yong for a checkup and early treatment. Who knows, you might still fulfill your wish of having a grandson."
The onlookers exchanged whispers upon hearing this.
"Exactly, the hospital said no problem; maybe it's her son who can't father a child."
"Right, turns out her son's the problem all along."
...
"What are you all babbling about? Careful, or old lady'll tear your filthy mouths apart."
Old Mrs. Wang was hopping mad, pointing at Susu and cursing, spewing foul language.
Watching the furious old woman, Susu was calm as she smiled.
Mrs. Lu, upon hearing the old woman cursing her daughter-in-law, couldn't stand it anymore and joined the shouting match.
Xiao Yu's little face turned red with anger; if not held by Susu, he might have charged straight ahead.
"Bad people, cursing aunt; Xiao Yu will fight you."
Susu felt warmth from the little one and mother-in-law's actions, playfully observing the old woman's nearly fainting rage.
"Oh no, it's not fair; Old Su Family united to bully our orphaned mother and son; I'm not living anymore..."
Wang Yong watched his own mother being driven to the ground, reddening eyes fixed firmly on Su Xianyue, accusingly, "Your whole family bullied my mother like this; are you happy now?"
Su Xianyue, tears streaming, shook her head in disappointment, "All those times you and your mother beat and cursed me, don't you remember?"
Wang Yong frowned, full of disappointment, "Wasn't it because you can't have a child? That's why mom wasn't happy. If you could, there wouldn't be so many issues."
Susu, hands on her hips, wished she could crack open his head to see what color of crap it was filled with.
Seeing her family stepping up for her, Su Xianyue seemed determined, clenching her fists tightly, articulating carefully.
"We are getting a di-vorce."
Aunt Liu Fen hugged her daughter in distress, tear-stricken.
"Divorce! Immediately get divorced!"
The previously feigning weakness Old Mrs. Wang sprang from the ground excitedly, jumping up and shouting, "Divorce, son we are divorcing. Once divorced, mom'll find you an even better wife."
...
On the way home, the trio observed Mrs. Lu constantly sighing, distressed over her niece's ordeal.
Susu comforted her mother-in-law, "Mom, at least now Xian Yue is free from that hell; surely her future will be brighter."
Mrs. Lu sighed, "These days, divorced women have it tough; oh just wait until longer days pass, your sister-in-law and sister-in-law will surely start to resent Xian Yue."