I Became a Vicious Supporting Role in the '70s-Chapter 149: I’m Feeling a Bit Uncomfortable

Lu Xiangxiang snickered, her laughter crystal clear, sparking a gleam in the rheumy eyes of the leper squatting by the fire, his shifty eyes rolling around.

Shen Meng brought Lu Mingkai back home, where Lu Zhenping was sharpening a knife in the courtyard.

"Sharpening for what? Is that, a chopper?"

"Mhm, I’ve asked someone to tell Xiao Bin, we’ll head to the mountains tomorrow afternoon to hunt game. Just by looking at the grain distribution, you can tell our family won’t get much meat. If we don’t hunt for some, we won’t have any meat to eat this year."

Shen Meng: "...."

Nonsense, she had already taken two leg portions of meat from her space earlier, she would cook them for dinner tonight, hmph!!!

"Sleepy!"

"My son’s sleepy, I’ll catch a nap with him, too. There’s meat and cabbage in the kitchen, can you chop it up for the filling? I’m going to make buns, dumplings, and wontons tonight. Chop up all that meat. Instead of complaining about me, better do more work. You’ve got so much unused energy every day."

Lu Zhenping: "..."

The afternoon they slaughtered the pig, Mingyang, Ming Liang, and Ming Fang were squatting to the side, waiting for unwanted parts like the pluck or bones to be discarded so they could swoop in and grab them. Then, by roasting them according to their mother’s method, they could eat them and that way, all the village kids would have to acknowledge them as the boss.

"Brother, are they going to throw away those intestines?"

"Don’t rush, this year we’re killing two pigs. The village chief said this year is a bountiful harvest, and every family will get a good share of meat. Didn’t you see just now? Daya and her mother and sisters got over three pounds of streaky pork, with more fat than lean. Not to mention other families."

Ming Fang pouted, "That doesn’t include our family. We only got a little over a pound of meat, and mom will surely cook it up in one evening."

As soon as these words were spoken, both Mingyang and Ming Liang nodded in agreement, deeply resonating with the sentiment.

The butcher had piled the offal to one side, and during the meat cutting, he carelessly pushed and didn’t notice, when a large intestine slid off the table.

The three kids’ eyes lit up, and before they could reach for it, a pair of small hands swiftly, accurately, and ruthlessly snatched the intestine up and pocketed it, then coolly scampered away with little steps.

"Who was that?"

"A person!"

"It’s Daya, she grabbed those intestines, surely thinking about adding to her family’s meal. They’re so pitiful."

Ming Fang felt blissful nowadays, but she hadn’t completely forgotten the hard times she once endured. She pursed her lips and pulled out 50 cents from her pocket — the spending money her mother had rewarded her with. She had intended to save it to buy a hair accessory during the New Year. Teacher Zheng had said that money can be spent to satisfy one’s own needs, and the excess could be used to do meaningful things.

"Big Brother, Second Brother, I want to buy some meat, even meat with bones is fine, to send to Daya and Xiao Ya’s family. This is more meaningful than being the king of the village kids."

Upon hearing their sister’s words, Mingyang and Ming Liang also took out their money, but Ming Fang could tell her brothers were reluctant to part with it.

"It’s okay, I want to buy it myself. You guys keep your money to spend."

After saying this, she took her money and went to find the Secretary. Mingyang and Ming Liang, clutching their own spending money, suddenly felt it burn in their hands.

"Should we buy meat too? Let’s buy meat. Yeah, I’ll buy some for our own family, and Ming Liang, you buy some for our Fourth Uncle. Let Fourth Aunt cook it for Xiao Gang and Ni, okay?"

"Okay, how about we split it after we’ve sorted it out? With cheaper meat, we can buy more, right, big brother?"

Upon hearing this, Mingyang felt it was doable and immediately heeded his brother’s call, both boys energetically heading towards the meat stall.

Zhang Hongfa had been waiting for an opportunity to have a meal with Lu Zhenping. Ever since he found out that two cars from the county had gone to the Lu Family’s place, and after the incidents of Shen Meng and Zhou Jiaojiao securing jobs, he had been discreetly inquiring for a long time. It was only through someone from the commune who was well-acquainted, who found out when Lu Jiaxuan was drunk, that the son of the County Party Secretary was serving under Lu Zhenping in the army, and the Textile Factory Director’s daughter-in-law was saved by Shen Meng and Zhou Jiaojiao together.

After learning about it, he immediately looked for Lu Debang. The two of them discussed and decided to wait for an opportunity to invite Lu Zhenping for a meal together, as some things can be said over drinks, but the timing had to be right.

"Ming Fang, your uncle here will take the initiative to cut some pork for you. Remember to tell your dad on my behalf, since he’s been back for a while, he should find some time to gather with us old buddies and have a little drink!"

"Okay, uncle, I’ll make sure to tell my dad when I get home, to take some time out to hang with you!"

"Good, good, good!"

Ming Fang received more than a pound of streaky pork and ran off towards Daya’s house. The piece of pork she had wasn’t of the best quality, being more lean than fat, but she could tell that the Secretary had deliberately cut a little extra for her.

Yu Xueli was at home peeling radishes when she heard the door open. She glanced outside and saw Daya running over with a pig intestine in her arms.

"Mom, look what I found at the pig-slaughtering stall! The uncle didn’t see, so I took it. Mom, Ming Fang’s mom has made this before, and it smelled delicious. We should try making it too!"

Yu Xueli, looking at her bright-eyed daughter, felt as if someone had gripped her throat, rendering her speechless. Her face turned ashen, and she felt her strength fading in an instant.

Lai Zi had always liked to take advantage of others, and she never expected that Daya would learn to do the same, to take advantage of others’ surplus. During the time when Daya was at the Xu Family, she had a very hard life, and Yu Xueli never relaxed her education for her daughters, fearing they would pick up the Xu Family’s bad habits. Despite all her precautions, Daya still ended up being influenced.

"Daya, take this thing back where it came from, do you hear me?"

"Mom!" Daya trembled in fear, gazing at Yu Xueli apprehensively.

"Daya, we are living a stable life now, thanks to the kindness of the folks from Lu Family Village. Even if this intestine was found, let alone thrown away by someone, we can’t take it. Do you understand?"

Tears welled up in Daya’s eyes, and her hands shook.

"Mom, I’m sorry, don’t be angry with me, I’ll return it right away, I will return it now."

Daya wiped her tears and was about to leave when she saw Ming Fang coming with a piece of pork in hand.

"Aunt, I’ve brought some pork for Daya. The Secretary said that since you’ve just started settling down, the village is worried about you suffering, and asked me to bring some meat over for you. Oh, and the intestine that Daya has, the Secretary saw it and even asked if it was enough!"

It had been a long time since she lied, her lie coming out abruptly, making her too guilty to look at the arguing mother and daughter.

"Ming Fang, did the Secretary really allow you to bring this over?"

"Yes, aunt, if you don’t believe me, you can go ask the Secretary. She told me to help deliver it on my way home. I have to get back now. After delivering meat to Grandma Chang’s house, we have to go home and help my mom cook. Aunt, don’t be harsh on Daya, she didn’t mean it. That intestine was unwanted, and the Secretary said if Daya still wants, she can go and get it."

With Ming Fang saying this, Yu Xueli’s eyes turned red, touched by how much the villagers cared for them.

"Thank you, Ming Fang, thank you, Secretary. I’ll be sure to thank them properly. I got a bit anxious today. Daya, don’t be upset with Mom, okay? I don’t want you to become like your dad, that scoundrel. If you want something, just tell me, and I’ll buy it for you. Don’t be greedy for small gains."

"Okay!"

Daya’s face flushed red, and her little eyes stealthily glanced at Ming Fang, knowing that Ming Fang was speaking up for her.

"Aunt, why not let Daya go to school? Teacher Zheng said, girls should study too. Studying helps one understand things better, be more sensible, and have a brighter future." frёeweɓηovel.coɱ

Upon hearing her suggestion, both Yu Xueli and Daya were stunned.

Shen Meng was at a loss for words, truly at a loss. Last time her younger son had jumped into a manure pit, and now, her two older sons had sneakily spent money on two swim fins, walking around as if covered in pig feces. She felt like crying.

"I... I’m feeling a bit unwell. I need to find something to do; otherwise, I’m afraid I might do something dreadful and frighten the kids. You take care of it, just take care of it!"