Years: Return to the Leisurely Fishing Village

Chapter 99: I regret hiding!

Tan Shaobei watched his wife come back without a tail following her, and asked, "Where's Fatty? Didn't you find him?"

Mrs. Tan shook her head and answered in a dull tone, "We ate at the old house. The third brother stewed the meat."

Tan Shaobei's eyes lit up when he heard this, and his appetite was immediately aroused. He was about to go out with a bowl of rice in his hand, "I'll go take a look. If you haven't finished eating, I'll go get a couple of pieces."

"Eating bland food every day really leaves no taste in my mouth."

Mrs. Tan Er: “…” She is not that shameless.

"You're going to go even if no one invites you? Aren't you afraid that others will laugh at you?"

Tan Shaobei shrugged and answered shamelessly, "I'm thick-skinned, I'm just trying to make a living, and with the way you're doing, no one will call me."

"Tomorrow you can kill the chicken and have a meal of meat! I haven't tasted meat for a long time, I'm really craving for it."

Tan's mother was very fair. She divided the chickens at home into four parts equally. After eating them, the chickens could be raised by themselves next year if they wanted to. If they couldn't raise any more, they could only watch them.

Mrs. Tan stamped her feet as she watched her husband leave. Fortunately, the eldest brother and his wife next door were not called away, otherwise they would have been embarrassed.

After thinking about it this way, I felt balanced.

Tan Shaobei went over shamelessly, but she could only sit at the table and eat without any taste. She found the food extremely bland and the more she ate, the less interested she became.

You can't not eat, you still need to feed the baby, if you don't eat there will be no milk.

But now that the family has split up, it’s normal that people don’t call them!
Tan Shaobei was unaware of his wife's dilemma and hurried over. However, when he got there, they were already full and there were only some leftovers on the table.

Tan Shaobei didn't mind. He scooped the soup into the bowl, stirred it, and started to eat it.

While eating, he sighed, "You still have to follow the third brother to enjoy the good life! Your second sister-in-law is really out of her mind. She doesn't enjoy the good life and makes trouble instead."

"If I eat from the same pot every day, how can I be so greedy? I really married a stupid woman, and I have to suffer with her."

Tan Shaoyang's mouth twitched when he saw him like that, and he said with disgust, "You are the reincarnation of a starving ghost! It's like you haven't eaten for ten days or half a month."

"You stay at the beach every day, so how can there not be food on the table? Are you too lazy?"

Although I can’t find any valuable goods, it’s always possible to find something to eat!

Tan Shaobei sighed, "You don't know, I have a pot of seafood porridge every day, which makes me want to vomit. There are only two bland dishes on the table, and I don't even want to pick up my chopsticks just by looking at them."

"Your second sister-in-law is very stingy. How could she afford to use oil? She only steamed the food in a pot with a bowl of soy sauce. If you were to eat this every day, would you be able to bear it?"

"I'm missing the fried cuttlefish with bamboo shoots you cooked. It's so fragrant and spicy. Just thinking about it makes my mouth water."

"I'll go prepare food for the whole day tomorrow, and you can cook it when I come back. If I don't have any food, I won't be able to sleep at night."

Tan Shaoyang shrugged, looking nonchalant, "If you're not afraid of the cold, go ahead and do it. If you want to bring it back, I'll fry it for you."

"Only if my second sister-in-law doesn't come to cause trouble. It's almost the New Year, and I don't want to quarrel with her. It's pointless to make trouble and let others laugh at her."

"You still have to be happy when you celebrate the New Year, so that you can have a good time next year."

Tan Shaobei assured him directly, "Don't worry, she won't dare to cause trouble. If she dares to cause trouble again, I will let her go back to her parents' home."

"She doesn't enjoy her good life, and keeps making trouble. I feel annoyed just by looking at her."

"Even if the incident really goes to my father-in-law's house, I have the confidence. She will be the one who gets scolded anyway. It's her fault for not wanting to live. It would be even better if my mother-in-law helps scold her!"

"Don't think that you are living a good life and your eyes are on the top of your head, and don't think about how you get your good life. You really don't know how to be grateful at all."

Tan Shaoyang did not comment. He just talked about it but he did not dare to do it, at least not yet. Who said he had no confidence because he owed money?

Since he is taking money from his father-in-law, he has to be nice to his wife.

Tan Shaobei saw through the third brother's thoughts at a glance, and said with a frustrated look, "Don't think I don't know what you are thinking. I will work hard to make money next year and will definitely pay you back."

"Or do you have it? Lend it to me first and pay the money back."

If he doesn't owe any money, he can feel justified and then he won't be intimidated by anyone.

Tan Shaoyang was too lazy to pay attention to him, "Do you think I'm stupid? You should continue to owe your father-in-law! As for how you two are doing, don't involve me."

He saw that his second sister-in-law was unhappy and didn't want to lend it for the time being.

He really lent the money out, but people still thought he was a fool.

He didn't want to do anything that was thankless.

Tan Shaobei was choked by him and secretly revealed, "In fact, your second sister-in-law is regretting it at home! She is such a confused person, always afraid that others will take advantage of her."

"Who is actually taking advantage of whom?"

"I usually eat more from you. You are really out of your mind."

"She looked depressed when she returned just now. It was obvious that she was unhappy. I was too lazy to persuade her to face some facts clearly."

Tan Shaoyang's expression was still nonchalant, without the slightest ripple, "Second sister-in-law is not depressed at all, I'm afraid she is blaming me."

"You know the women in our village. When they have free time, they like to say some sarcastic words and poke at someone's feelings."

"How could I not take advantage of the delicious smell of meat coming from my house?"

"People will always talk about the division of the family. It's not a big deal, so just listen to them and don't take it to heart."

After listening to the explanation, Tan Shaobei understood. No wonder his wife looked unhappy. She must have heard something unpleasant.

But I don't care about her, she just needs to be taught a lesson.

"I'll go pack some goods tomorrow and have dinner at home. Your second sister-in-law is a neurotic person. I apologize to you on her behalf. Don't bother with her."

"We as a family should still live in harmony. We are brothers after all, and we can't hold grudges overnight."

"You can cook a meal tomorrow! Your second brother has no taste in his mouth after eating bland food. It depends on you whether he can improve it."

Tan Shaoyang waved his hands, his tone nonchalant, "It's up to you, just pretend first, as long as the second sister-in-law doesn't make trouble, you can eat as much as you like."

Tan Shaobei was so arrogant, "Does that mean we can all eat from the same pot in the future?"

Tan Shaoyang rolled his eyes and said, "Get lost now. We are going to split up, but you still want me to get away with it!"

"Do you see the word fool written on my face?"

"It's good enough that I let you have a meal. Don't try to take advantage of me. I don't want you two to get into bed together and laugh at me for being a fool."

Tan Shaobei's face was full of indescribable expression, "Who has time to talk about you when they are in bed! You don't have a wife, if you have a wife, you will know what to do when you are in bed."

Tan Shaoyang got up and left. He didn't want to know what happened in his brother's room. There was no need to tell him about these trivial matters. He didn't want to know anything about them.

Tan Shaobei acted quickly and brought the cuttlefish to Tan Shaoyang the next day, saying majestically, "See? Although it's hard to load in winter, they knew I was greedy and took the bait automatically."

Tan Shaoyang took a look and thought it was pretty good stuff. "Please clean it up and I'll fry it later."

Tan Shaobei waved his hand and said, "You handle it. I have other things to do when I get back!"

Then he turned and left.

As soon as I got home, I saw Mrs. Tan slaughtering chickens. The egg-laying chickens were not very fat, so they were slaughtered only because they had no eggs left. The fragrant chicken soup made me hungry just thinking about it.

I just said it yesterday, but I didn't expect he would really be willing to kill him. I thought his wife was being stingy and would continue to keep him!
Later I thought about it and understood. The child needs milk, but her stomach is empty. After the child takes a few sips, her stomach must be uncomfortable.

No wonder they were willing to slaughter the chicken!
Another reason was that she was stimulated. Yesterday, when Tan Shaoyang and his friends were stewing meat, she was teased by the villagers. In order not to fall behind, she had to bite the bullet and take the lead.

After Tan Shaobei figured it out, he squatted aside and watched, glancing at her from time to time. He found that she kept one side of the chicken and chopped the other side. He knew without asking that the one she kept would be for the next meal!
When the chicken soup was cooked, Tan Shaobei filled it in a porcelain bowl, leaving half for his mother and daughter, then he took Fatty out.

"I'll take Fatty downstairs to eat. Lao San is going to fry some squid. I've been missing that spicy taste. After you're full, clean up and go to sleep."

Mrs. Tan's face froze as she watched her husband and son walk away. She was speechless. The happiest thing was for a family of four to have a delicious dinner together.

Now only the two of them are left, and suddenly a sour feeling welled up in her heart, the uncomfortable feeling was about to overwhelm her.

Wouldn’t her husband’s behavior make people laugh at her?

For a moment, the food tasted like chewing wax and had no aroma.

The grown man didn't have so many worries and went back to the old house happily. Although his wife despised him, he felt that the happiest thing was to have the whole family lively and lively.

After eating, Mrs. Tan II secretly went to take a look with her child on her back. When she saw her eldest sister-in-law was also there, her eyes immediately became red.

The feeling of anger made her chest heave.

The whole family is together, except for her, a stranger!

Thinking that it was her fault, he walked away in a hurry.

No one noticed her arrival, so naturally they didn't know about her. They ate happily and gobbled up everything in no time. At the end, everyone held their stomachs with joy on their faces.

Tan Shaobei was the most satisfied, and asked tentatively, "For 30 nights, the whole family should eat together, right?"

"The elders are still here! It's too rude to eat separately."

"We can't let the villagers laugh at us, right?"

In fact, he secretly thought that he could not wait to eat together! The food was delicious.

Tan Shaoyang glanced at him, and it was clear what he was thinking. "Let's take turns! Each family cooks for a year, and whoever's turn it is will cook."

"As for the food, everyone is preparing it."

No one objected to Tan Shaoyang's suggestion, and everyone agreed readily.

When Mrs. Tan learned of her husband's decision, she didn't dare to say a word. She didn't want her and her daughter to be blocked out. There were so many rumors that they would drown her.

Especially the feeling of being blocked out, it feels even more uncomfortable when you experience it yourself!
In the blink of an eye, 30 nights have passed.

I got busy early in the morning and cleaned the house.

Then he slaughtered chickens and fish, and fried Dongpo, fried taro, and fried bean curd sheets. These were delicious side dishes for hot pot. In previous years, they were not so extravagant, but Tan Shaoyang went through so much, so he naturally wanted to have a happy New Year.

The children gathered around the pot and couldn't stop eating.

Daya was grinning as she chewed on Dongpo, her eyes narrowed into slits as she smiled, "Uncle San, this is the best year we've ever had."

Erya said with reverence and anticipation, "It would be great if we could celebrate New Year's Day every day."

San Ya watched her sisters speak fluently and rushed to speak, her tone childish, "We can celebrate the New Year tomorrow and get lucky money."

Fatty looked at Tan Shaoyang eagerly and asked what he was most curious about, "Uncle San, do you have any New Year's money?"

There was so much chattering that every word made my ears buzz.

Tan Shaoyang responded while busying himself, trying to appease the group of curious kids, "Then go learn a few auspicious phrases. If your uncle feels comfortable listening to them, he will give you lucky money."

"Then I'll let you save it and buy popsicles."

They all jumped up and down with joy.

"Uncle San is the best. I like him the most."

"Uncle San is mine."

"It's mine too..."

As they were talking, they started chattering again.

Seeing that they had almost finished eating, Tan Shaoyang sent them away. There was no peace in his ears from the shouting, "Go away, go and have fun! It's not good to stay near the frying pan. It hurts if you get splashed by the oil!"

What they prepared were food for the New Year, and as for the New Year gift, it was the bacon, which had been hung up in advance, so they could just take it with them when they returned to their grandmother's house on the second day of the New Year.

Tan Shaoyang deliberately hung a few more, so he could eat the rest himself, and it was also delicious when fried.

The two sisters-in-law also came over and looked at the full loads of bacon hanging under the eaves. They glanced at it from time to time, their expressions indescribable.

If the family had not split up, they would definitely have a share of the hunted meat, and they would not have to prepare any New Year gifts, as Mother Tan would have prepared them all.

Now in the blink of an eye, I really forgot to prepare.

Mrs. Tan pulled her husband aside and whispered, "We don't even have any bacon, so how can we visit relatives? There won't be any meat stalls on the second day of the New Year, right?"

You can't use seafood to deal with it, it will cause people to gossip.

Moreover, when she returns to her parents' home, she also hopes to prepare more so that she can save face and avoid being bullied by her brother and sister-in-law.

Tan Shaobei waved his hand, "If you want Lao San's bacon, you can only pay for it. One stick of raw game meat should weigh more than two kilograms. Give me four dollars and I'll give you two sticks."

No matter how much Mrs. Tan felt sorry for the money, she had to pay it, otherwise she wouldn't be able to go back to her parents' home.

Only when you manage a household do you know how expensive firewood, rice, oil and salt are. Only when you manage a household yourself will you know how much they cost.

I spent a lot of money just to prepare the miscellaneous New Year's goods, and I also have to prepare gifts for my parents. After doing the math, I found that the money in my pocket has shrunk.

If she had known this would be the case, she would not have done it. This is typical of someone who is asking for trouble!

How can people who have not experienced it know that throughout the year, just celebrating the New Year is enough to cause a headache, and it is also the most worrying thing for those who are in charge of the household.

Mother Tan has to take care of everything every year, including her own food, visiting relatives, and how much her daughter-in-law has to eat each year. Everything has to be arranged every year and no one can be left out.

These things may seem trivial, but they are all worth worrying about.

None of them can be missed.

(End of this chapter)