Tan Zhenghong could only muster a bitter smile because he had no way to refute.
Qiao Duo'er didn't mention that person who upset her; she simply silently gnawed on the hard-to-swallow bun.
Alas, such terrible buns, perfectly good flour completely wasted!
In fact, this bun was the same as the one at noon, but it tasted bad now because she had eaten two fish in the afternoon. When one is not hungry, they become picky about food.
Making buns is a delicate task that tests one's skill.
How well the dough rises and how much alkali is added directly affects the taste of the bun.
And the bun in Qiao Duo'er's hand lacked skill; one look and you could tell it wasn't made properly—the dough hadn't risen well, and there was too little alkali, making the bun both hard and sour.
If it were up to her, she could make one a thousand times tastier even with her eyes closed!
It's a pity that she didn't have even one tael of flour.
The Wang Clan tightly controlled the food and silver coins at home, counting every single penny, and their sons' rooms were even cleaner than their faces.
If it hadn't been for Tan Zhenghong luring Bear Blind Man with wine, they wouldn't have had that jar of strong liquor.
"You eat some fish."
Tan Zhenghong handed Qiao Duo'er the fish he had just put aside, which he had specifically saved for her.
Now virtually powerless, the only thing he could do was save his own portion for Qiao Duo'er.
She had married him—if he couldn't even satisfy the basic need of keeping her well-fed, how could he call himself a man?
Qiao Duo'er couldn't help but be silently moved, feeling a warm current slowly flowing through her heart.
What a shame that Tan Zhenghong had such an unreasonable mother; otherwise, he would definitely be a perfect man.
However, she had no interest in something that someone else's mouth had been on.
So Qiao Duo shook her head: "I don't eat cold fish; it's too fishy. You eat it. If I want some, I'll catch more in the mountains tomorrow."
Seeing the look of disgust on Qiao Duo'er's face, Tan Zhenghong immediately understood.
Being disdained by his little wife made him a bit sad.
Tan Zhenghong ate the fish with a bit of dejection, silently thinking that in the future, he would definitely leave it untouched for his wife.
Qiao Duo'er took out a few wild berries and ate them with the bun.
Although dinner was a bit unsatisfactory, it was enough to fill her stomach halfway. Qiao Duo'er expressed her satisfaction.
The original person lived for fifteen years without ever being satiated, a truly pitiful thought.
Qiao Duo'er swallowed the last bite of bun, and Tan Yuancheng, along with Wang Clan and their other three sons and daughters-in-law, came over.
Tan Zhenghong's room was already small, and suddenly eight people crowded in, immediately filling the space.
There were only two stools in the room, which Tan Yuancheng and Wang Clan took.
Tan Zhenghong's brothers found places to sit at the edge of the bed, and their wives could only stand to the side.
Qiao Duo'er stood to the side with her head down, reverting to the original person's foolish demeanor.
She had no desire to get involved in this family's affairs.
Because she disliked it, even an extra glance felt like a burden.
"Fourth Boss, how is your leg?"
Tan Yuancheng looked at Tan Zhenghong with an uncertain expression, his eyes seemingly filled with guilt.
While the others were preoccupied with their thoughts, only Hu's Clan's gaze filled with sympathy when looking at the couple.
Tan Zhenghong didn't want to give them false hope, so he said, "Nothing special, it just hurts a lot."
He always thought of others, but nobody seemed to have considered his situation.
In the eyes of others, Tan Zhenghong was seen as a burden to the family.
In the future, without the ability to hunt, Tan Zhenghong and his simple-minded wife would still need to eat and have medical expenses—not to mention how much more troublesome it would be if they had a child.