Transmigration: Flirted with My Childhood Sweetheart-Chapter 72 - 71 Recently Good at Sabotaging Oneself
72: Chapter 71: Recently Good at Sabotaging Oneself
72 -71: Recently Good at Sabotaging Oneself
In the front courtyard where communal cooking was taking place, the grain usage was scrupulously metered out—each person contributed grain according to what they needed to eat, and consumption was similarly regulated.
There were times when extra dishes were prepared, but rice was never in surplus.
Suddenly up for a meal, the crowd exchanged glances, nearly thrown off by her abrupt change of heart.
Miao Yulan wiped away her tears, her voice trembling as she said, “Mom, wait a moment, I’ll make some for you right away…”
“What’s there to make?
Isn’t there food already?” Taking advantage of Wen Lan and Yu Xiangqin’s bewilderment, the matriarch wriggled free from their grasp and plopped down at the dining table.
“It’s not…
That’s everyone’s…” Miao Yulan initially wanted to explain, but then thought better of it, “I’ll give you my share.”
“Eh,” the matriarch snorted, before glaring daggers at Miao Yulan, “You sure live comfortably these days, don’t you?
Your father and I don’t even dare to eat three meals a day, yet you’re so full every single meal!”
Miao Yulan bowed her head so low, her chin nearly poked into her collarbone.
Her face was extremely red, though whether it was from the slap or embarrassment was uncertain.
She dared not meet anyone’s gaze, her eyes void of spirit.
The corn mush and a mantou reserved for Miao Yulan had already been dished out.
She handed them over to her mother and stood aside.
“What’s this, that’s it?
Are you trying to starve me to death?” the matriarch’s eyebrows shot up in indignation as she gulped down more than half the bowl of corn mush in one go.
Wang Shumei patted Lin Nianhe on the hand, stepped forward, and took a seat.
She bit into a mantou before saying, “What are you all standing around for?
Eat up, we still have work this afternoon.”
Finished speaking, she shot a glance at the matriarch: “Here, we dole out food based on the amount of grain each person contributes.
Your daughter doesn’t have much grain, so she gets less food.
It’s not like she knew you were coming to bring food for you, isn’t that normal?”
While Wang Shumei spoke, she had already swallowed half a mantou.
Others finally snapped back to their senses and sat down to eat.
“Right, matriarch, Yulan only gets this bit for a meal.
You think you’ll starve to death?
Exactly, eating so little, anyone would nearly starve,” Wang Xue said as she grabbed two mantous—one for herself, and she secreted the other away.
“Haven’t you seen?
Your daughter is so thin she barely looks human anymore.”
Yu Xiangqin returned with a flick of the hand and a roll of her eyes, huffing, “Didn’t Yulan send most of her grain home to her family after last autumn’s harvest?
Since spring planting started, she’s been eating only once a day through winter, drinking cold water when hungry.”
To their words, the matriarch pretended not to hear, muttering curses under her breath while eating, in her native dialect, which they could barely comprehend but from the tone, sensed the tranquility was only because of the available food, and who knew what commotion would ensue later.
Wen Lan sat next to Wang Shumei, glancing here and there, wanting to speak yet not knowing what to say.
She eventually chose silence, planning to wait for Lin Nianhe to speak, or for the matriarch to lash out again so she could feign a hand tremor and sling her chopsticks at her.
Having made up her mind, Wen Lan mulled over the angle and force of projectile chopsticks while waiting for Lin Nianhe to speak.
Lin Nianhe didn’t say a word; she was instead inching towards the back courtyard in the most inconspicuous manner possible.
She really didn’t want the matriarch to notice her, as their last separation was anything but pleasant.
A tirade from her might provoke Nianhe to the point of throwing an electric baton, just to shut her up.
Just as Nianhe made it behind the eastern wall, a head suddenly peeked inside the gate.
Wang Xixi entered, carrying a small bamboo basket, not spotting Lin Nianhe, and cheerfully said to Wang Shumei and Wen Lan, “Hello, I’m looking for Nianhe, is she here?”
“Eh?
Hezi was just…”
“She’s in the back courtyard, just go straight there!”
Wang Shumei pulled at Wen Lan to stop her mid-sentence. novelbuddy.cσ๓
She had just caught sight of Lin Nianhe slipping away, probably due to seeing Wang Xixi, right?
Wang Shumei felt Wang Xixi’s arrival was quite timely, saving them the hassle of scaling fences.
“Okay,” Wang Xixi smiled and nodded, heading for the back courtyard with her basket.
She had only rounded the east wall when she saw Lin Nianhe desperately waving at her, signaling for her not to speak.
Wang Xixi’s steps paused briefly, then she walked past the east wall as if nothing was wrong and disappeared from everyone’s sight.
Lin Nianhe dragged Wang Xixi to the back courtyard and only stopped walking once they were far enough away.
Wang Xixi didn’t know what had happened and handed a bamboo basket to Lin Nianhe: “Nianhe, my second sister and I picked cherries on the mountain, try them, this should be the last batch for the year, they’re sweet.”
“Thank you.”
Lin Nianhe had no intention of refusing and took it, then whispered to Wang Xixi: “Daxi, you hurry back home, and help us tell Aunt Wang—just say that Miao Yulan’s mother is here, Aunt Wang will understand.”
“Ah?”
Wang Xixi frowned, only then remembering that there seemed to have been an older lady in the front courtyard earlier.
Her expression fell as she whispered softly: “My mom went to the commune before dinner time, made a phone call to the Ten Miles Team headquarters, it seemed like some emergency; she left even without eating…
Oh right, Uncle Li also went with her.”
Lin Nianhe: “…”
Could it be that Principal Wu couldn’t contain his excitement and went to the commune to talk to the leaders about building the school?
Based on the timing, it was indeed possible.
Lin Nianhe was somewhat baffled.
Recently, she seemed to have become quite adept at trapping herself.
With Aunt Wang and Uncle Team Leader both not around, Lin Nianhe felt a bit at a loss, unsure who to turn to.
Aside from these two, the only other person in the Ten Miles Team with any authority was Accountant Zhao, but Lin Nianhe had never seen him before and didn’t know him at all.
Wang Xixi tugged at Lin Nianhe’s sleeve and said softly, “Or should I go…
go find Aunt Li?”
Her cheeks were blushing; clearly, the prospect of seeking out her future mother-in-law was making her shy.
Lin Nianhe licked her lips, thinking that if this were just a simple fight, Aunt Li would be an option, but for something like this…
As Lin Nianhe hesitated, the front courtyard erupted into commotion again.
The old lady, having eaten her fill and re-energized, sprang into action.
Before anyone else could react, she grabbed the small wooden stool she’d been sitting on, and with a pounce, charged towards Miao Yulan who was standing at the back.
The hard wooden stool was swung onto Miao Yulan’s back.
The blow was both swift and sudden; the Educated youth eating their meals hadn’t reacted at all and by the time they turned around, Miao Yulan had staggered and fallen to the ground.
“Damn girl, dare to deceive your mother!
Speak!
What’s the deal with that letter?
Your own brother is getting married and you, as the elder sister, contribute not a penny, what are you thinking?”
“If not for your brother, why would I even bother with you?
You ungrateful wolf cub…”
She kept hitting as she spoke, showing no mercy as if she weren’t beating her own daughter.
Miao Yulan curled up into a ball, shielding her head and face with her arms, assuming a posture that was heartbreakingly practiced.
In the back courtyard, Lin Nianhe had no time to think anymore, she pushed Wang Xixi and said: “Just find someone, anyone, if Uncle Jih or some other elder can come, that would be best.”
Wang Xixi replied with an “okay” and dashed towards the back wall, jumping over the courtyard’s pride with agility.
Lin Nianhe listened to the pitiful howls in the front courtyard, her mind racing through some of the darkest memories.
Those curses and howls made her feel for an instant as if she had returned to the apocalypse.
Violence spread in her eyes, Lin Nianhe picked up a kitchen knife and headed to the front courtyard.
