Married to a man in Northwest China, the delicate wife with a soft waist is spoiled rotten by the ro

Chapter 39: Can't you tell this is an attempt to curry favor?

However, this way of expressing gratitude is perhaps a little too simple and unrefined.

Three people kowtowed and knelt before her. Ji Sisi's heart raced and a dull ache arose as she recalled the scene. She clutched her chest and took a deep breath.

The pressure was immense. Ji Sisi felt she was destined never to become emperor, especially with three people kowtowing and kneeling before her. Her heart was pounding with anxiety.

"Sisters, it's too sunny outside, let's go inside and sit down to talk."

Ji Sisi invited them into the living room, gave the two children some fruit candies, and also brought out some fruit and snacks she had bought yesterday to treat Li Hongying and Huang Qiaomei.

This was the first time anyone had come to her door to chat properly. One was the battalion commander's wife, and the other was the platoon leader's wife. She couldn't let them down.

"Sister-in-law, let's not talk about it anymore since it's all in the past. Just be more careful in the future."

Nine out of ten sentences Huang Qiaomei uttered were expressions of gratitude towards her. Ji Sisi was flattered and wanted to change the subject to something else.

"What are your names? How old are you?"

Ji Sisi turned to ask about the two people sitting on the sofa, one older and one younger. The older one was a boy, a head shorter than her, and looked to be around ten years old. The younger one was a girl, about seven or eight years old, and looked somewhat like Huang Qiaomei.

Huang Qiaomei looked at the children, "Aunt Sisi is asking you questions."

The older one answered first, "My name is Fu Weiming, and I am twelve years old. Thank you, Aunt Sisi, for the candy, and thank you for saving my little brother. When I grow up, I will definitely repay Aunt Sisi's kindness. In the future, if Aunt Sisi needs any help, I will definitely help her."

"Although I look small, I'm very strong. If Aunt Sisi has any chores she can't do, just leave them to me!"

Fu Weiming smiled at Ji Sisi, his dark skin radiant, his smile dazzling, his eyes sparkling, and his whole being exuding youthful energy.

"My name is Fu Siya, I am seven years old. Thank you, Aunt Sisi, for the candy... Although I am not strong, I can help Aunt Sisi with housework. Thank you, Aunt, for saving my little brother."

Fu Siya mimicked Fu Weiming's words, her expression timid, her hands nervously clutching the hem of her clothes, not daring to look up at Ji Sisi.

Ji Sisi finally understood: one of the siblings was a social butterfly, and the other was a social phobic.

Huang Qiaomei looked at her two children with satisfaction; it seemed her education had not been in vain.

"If my little rascal were half as good as Weiming, I wouldn't have to worry about him. He's like a wild man, never coming home. I can't even call him back for meals. If he hadn't come out of my belly, I would really suspect that someone has a grudge against me and sent two debt collectors to collect debts."

Li Hongying sighed. "There's no harm in comparison. Look at other people's children—so well-behaved, one's sweet-talking and helpful, another doing chores at such a young age. Then look at my own kids..."
Ji Sisi smiled and agreed, "Kids all go through a mischievous phase; they'll be fine once it's over."

The three chatted until sunset, ending with Li Hongying rushing back to dry the beans and chili peppers.

Huang Qiaomei led the child out of Ji Sisi's house.

"Mom, what are you thinking about? Why do you look so unhappy since we left Aunt Sisi's house?"

Fu Weiming tilted his head and asked, "Don't you like Aunt Sisi?"

"You brat, where did you get the idea that I don't like Sisi? I absolutely adore her, okay?" Huang Qiaomei raised her hand to hit Fu Weiming. "I was just thinking about what I could do for your Aunt Sisi, or give her something."

Fu Siya didn't understand. She looked up and asked, "But Aunt Sisi's family doesn't seem to lack anything."

Huang Qiaomei was amused by her daughter's remarks.

"That's true. Your Uncle Qi's family is a hundred times better off than your father's." "But Siya, didn't your mother teach you the principle of repaying kindness tenfold? When you grow up, you must repay Aunt Sisi, okay?"

Fu Siya nodded earnestly. "Okay!"

Fu Weiming pouted, unconvinced, "Mom, I heard that one of my classmates from Sichuan Province said that there's a magic trick in my dad's hometown called Sichuan Opera face-changing. Did you secretly learn it behind our backs?"

Huang Qiaomei slapped Fu Weiming on the back of the head.

"You dare say your mother is an opera singer?"

Fu Weiming covered his head and yelled, "It's not entirely opera; the key is the face-changing magic trick."

"You dare to say that? I bet you're itching for a beating after not being hit for a few days, huh?"

Before Fu Weiming could apologize, Wang Cuicui appeared holding a can of fruit. When she saw Huang Qiaomei, her eyes lit up.

Fu Weiming was taken aback and asked in confusion, "Mom, why is Aunt Wang looking at you like she's looking at meat? You don't look as appetizing as meat."

Huang Qiaomei took a deep breath.

She's her own child, she can't hit her, it would break her heart if she hurt her.

Wang Cuicui jogged up to the three of them, her face full of eagerness.

"Sister Qiaomei, I've been waiting for you to come back. I heard from Director Fu that Yangyang had a fever and they took him to the county town to see a doctor. Is the child feeling better now? This is a can of yellow peaches that I brought from my hometown. Please take it back for the child to eat. He'll feel better after eating it."

Huang Qiaomei naturally knew Wang Cuicui's purpose. Half a month ago, Wang Cuicui had been frequently visiting her home, her aim being to obtain the recommendation quota she possessed.

She couldn't understand where Wang Cuicui got the information. Even the members of Huaihua Commune didn't know about it, so how could someone who was completely unrelated to her know?
The secretary of Huaihua Commune had been looking to recruit another liaison officer for half a month, but his preferred candidate was not from Huaihua Commune, but from the research institute's family compound.

Considering that the institute's staff are all top students from major universities of science and technology, their spouses are generally more educated than the members, and secondly, since she is not a member of the Huaihua Commune, her access to the commune's confidential materials can be guaranteed, the recommendation quota was given to her.

Through the afternoon's conversation, she learned that Ji Sisi had graduated from high school, and she intended to give the spot to Ji Sisi.

On one hand, it was to repay a debt of gratitude; on the other hand, she was confident in Ji Sisi's character, and only someone like that could be recommended with peace of mind.

Fu Weiming pointed at the canned peaches and asked, "Aunt Wang, did you put something poisoned in these canned peaches?"

“What nonsense are you talking about? Why would I put medicine in a can? You can eat whatever you want, but you can’t say whatever you want. I’m just trying to help you. I’m just worried about your mother. She has to go to work and take Yangyang to the doctor. When she comes home, she still has to take care of you two children. You’re all grown up now, so you should help your mother a bit more.”

Wang Cuicui was startled by Fu Weiming's words and hurriedly explained, fearing that Huang Qiaomei would misunderstand.

"Then why does your canned food cure my brother's cold, which the town hospital can't cure?"

Fu Weiming was puzzled. Could this canned food really cure diseases?
He was so eager to figure it out. If it could really cure diseases, then he should catch a cold more often so that he could eat delicious canned food too.

Wang Cuicui grew impatient with the questions. Why was this brat so stubborn? Couldn't she tell that she was trying to please someone?
They have absolutely no sense of propriety!
Wang Cuicui suppressed her urge to curse and ignored Fu Weiming's question.

"Sister Qiaomei, please keep it. It's just a small thing and it's not worth much. We've lived together for so long, and we usually rely on helping each other to get by."

I'll try to keep updates around 10 PM from now on! And could you please give me some positive reviews?
(End of this chapter)