Chapter 240
Su Xiaoxiao returned to her room and casually wiped the hair on her head. As she threw the towel aside, she was still thinking about Jiang Yexun tonight. How could she have let herself come back alone?
But she only thought about it casually and soon nestled into the blanket and fell asleep. How would she know that Jiang Yexun couldn’t stand it anymore?
Afraid that he would lose control if he didn’t calm down, Jiang Yexun spent half an hour in the water, settling himself. When he returned to Su Xiaoxiao’s room with a hint of heat, the little girl had already entered a deep sleep.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, he reached out and poked the pink cheeks of the little girl. The fleshy feeling was obviously a bit plumper than before, and he chuckled with pleasure.
Having raised her so fair and tender, when they met their future in-laws, they probably wouldn’t think that little educated youth had suffered in the countryside, right?
But thinking about how he looked dark and rough, like a typical rustic in the village, he pursed his lips. His gaze fell on the Whitening Pill placed on the table nearby.
After struggling for a moment, he still reached out his hand. After he finished applying it to his face and returned to the bed, Su Xiaoxiao immediately wrapped around him like an octopus.
Resting her head on Jiang Yexun’s chest, she murmured softly, “What took you so long?”
Thinking about what he had done, Jiang Yexun’s face immediately burned. Fortunately, Su Xiaoxiao was just casually complaining and soon fell deeply asleep again.
Jiang Yexun adjusted his position slightly more gently, settled into position, and tightly embraced her. This time when he went to Shanghai, he would definitely find a way to get their future in-laws to agree to their marriage.
He really couldn’t hold it in any longer, otherwise, he might really lose control.
The next day was still dark when Su Xiaoxiao woke up. As usual, there was no sign of Jiang Yexun on the bed.
She was curious about what time this person returned every day. It seemed that no matter how early she woke up, Jiang Yexun was never on her bed.
Could it be that every day he waited for her to fall asleep deeply, and then he went back to his own room?
Su Xiaoxiao sat up in bed, feeling a bit confused.
But then she heard a familiar yet unfamiliar voice outside the door. She dressed quickly and went out, only to find Zhang Tiewa already in the yard, helping to chop firewood.
Seeing her come out, Zhang Tiewa immediately stood up straight and smiled foolishly, “Good morning, Sister-in-law.”
“Good morning,” Su Xiaoxiao smiled back.
Jiang Yexun came out from the kitchen carrying a tray with breakfast. “Get ready and have breakfast. We’re going to the market with Mom later,” he greeted her.
Seeing everything arranged so early in the morning, Su Xiaoxiao understood that today’s schedule was tight.
After she finished breakfast, Aunt Guo came in carrying a basket of eggs and a hen tied up.
Obviously, she had gone out in the morning to exchange these things with the villagers. Next door had chickens, but the Old Jiang family had never been good to Aunt Guo and her two children, so how could they let her take eggs and hens?
Moreover, these days each household could only raise two poultry, and the baby chicks were prone to die in winter. Aunt Guo must have spent a lot of effort and money to exchange these things.
“Tiewa, I’ll trouble you today,” Aunt Guo smiled and looked at Zhang Tiewa, who was still chopping firewood.
Zhang Tiewa quickly waved his hand, “Brother Ye asked me to help out. That’s trusting me, there’s nothing hard about it. And you’ve prepared so much food for me, I’m feeling embarrassed.”
There were sunflower seeds, peanuts, grains, and stir-fried ribs with string beans and scrambled eggs, all of which he wouldn’t easily eat at home.
“You are so polite,” Aunt Guo replied as she tidied up some things in the room, and the three of them then left the house.
Uncle Wang happened to be driving the ox cart over, with three other aunties sitting on top, obviously hearing that they were going to the city today and came along.
“Hongxiang, why do you keep running to the city from time to time?” one of the aunties asked, feigning curiosity.
But her eyes were fixed on the pile of things placed on the ox cart.
Guo Hongxiang didn’t hide anything, “I’m going to see my daughter. She’s pregnant, and her mother-in-law at home really can’t leave, so I have to take care of her.”
“So many good things, are you taking them all to your daughter?” someone asked persistently.
Even after asking, they deliberately looked at Su Xiaoxiao, wanting to see her reaction.
Normally, when they wanted to support their married-off daughters, the daughter-in-law’s face could be sour for days. If the temper was tougher, they could even argue directly with them.
They felt that their own son’s things were taken to their daughter, taking advantage of them, without considering the family’s livelihood.
Aunt Guo also noticed their gaze and immediately straightened her back, “Of course, my daughter is pregnant, and now is the time when she needs nutrition the most. Of course, I have to supplement her.”
“They say a daughter married out is like water poured out, but she is still your daughter-in-law’s family, shouldn’t it be your son-in-law’s responsibility to provide for her?”
Su Xiaoxiao frowned instinctively at those words. “So a married daughter is no longer considered her parents’ flesh and blood? Does she stop being their child? If the parents fall ill, is the daughter no longer expected to care for them?”
“Of course not! A daughter is raised for over a decade; how could she not care for her parents after marriage?” the aunt immediately retorted.
Su Xiaoxiao rolled her eyes dramatically. “Did anyone ask you to give birth to her? It was your choice, wasn’t it? Since you insisted on having children, you should take responsibility for raising them. No one asked to be born just to suffer. Don’t complain about raising a daughter while treating her like a tool for household chores. And when it’s time for her to marry, you only care about who offers the highest bride price, using her to trade for her brothers’ dowry.
Then, after she’s married, you shamelessly expect her to return and fulfill her duties. If you want filial piety, it starts with how the mother treats her children. Only then will the children respond accordingly.”
“Educated Youth Su… how could you think that way?” The aunt’s face turned pale from Su Xiaoxiao’s sharp words.
However, Jiang Yexun gave her a cold glare, “What’s wrong with these thoughts? I think these thoughts are correct! Even if my sister is married, she is still my sister. As long as I have a mouthful to eat, my sister will never go without her share of rice.”
“That’s right! Xinyue and we are family. Whatever good things there are, we share them. And as a man, Yexun is Xinyue’s reliance. They often say they have sons to be the pillar of the family, and when there is trouble, the brothers in the family can help. Why wait until something goes wrong to step up? Why not take better care of them normally?”
Su Xiaoxiao immediately nodded in agreement.
The three aunties fell silent and didn’t speak again.
The auntie who had spoken first had a conflicted expression on her face.