Yang Hongxing was truly furious; she loved Tang Ying even more than her only precious son, Tang Zhixuan.
Tang Ying was beautiful, tall, and well-developed, easily one of the top beauties in the village.
To make her more beautiful, no matter how tired or difficult it was, Yang Hongxing would not allow her to work in the fields.
If she became tan and her hands roughened, would she still be beautiful?
To the villagers, Tang Ying was seen as a sweet and sensible girl, polite and well-mannered. Even though she didn't work in the fields, she kept the house spotless, and she had excellent grades at school.
What made her even more endearing was that she was truly beautiful, with an oval-shaped face, almond eyes, and long, curly eyelashes. Her skin wasn't dark like the other young girls; it was soft and fair.
Yang Hongxing had always had her eye on the village chief's three sons. She really liked Jing Xuan and kept thinking that once Tang Ying graduated from high school, she would marry her off to Jing Xuan.
Jing Xuan was very handsome, with a cool personality; he never flirted around.
Yang Hongxing also thought that even if Jing Xuan didn't like Tang Ying, it didn't matter because there was Jing Hua, who was also a coach like Jing Xuan, and if Jing Hua wasn't interested, there was still Jing Peng, who was in high school.
Any of the village chief's three sons were outstanding; marrying any one of them would bring prestige in the village.
Now, what a fool Tang Ying had been! In front of Jing Xuan, she had confessed without being coerced, admitting that she stole money. Yang Hongxing was so angry she felt her liver and lungs ache.
What if Jing Xuan went home and told his mother and grandmother about Tang Ying stealing money? What would become of them then?
The Jing family's matriarch was the most formidable and picky, and her husband and sons and grandsons were all very filial to her.
Upon hearing that the Jing family did not like girls who were not clean-handed, Tang Ying panicked. With tearful eyes, she looked at Yang Hongxing, "Anguish grips me, what should I do? I really like Brother Jing Peng. If he finds out I stole money, he definitely won't like me."
Yang Hongxing glared fiercely at Tang Ying, "If you steal money again, I'll chop off your hands!"
After scolding her, Yang Hongxing then processed what Tang Ying had said. She looked at Tang Ying, this girl liked Jing Peng?
Crying, Tang Ying said, "I won't dare again, Anguish. I was momentarily possessed to steal your money. For my birthday, my deskmate took me out to eat and even gave me a dress. Today is her birthday, and I... I was just reciprocating..."
"What kind of reciprocation!" Yang Hongxing would never let anyone take advantage of her; she berated Tang Ying fiercely, "Your classmate gave you something and you just take it. Now you're giving something back, are you stupid?"
"..." Tang Ying's tears fell in big drops as Yang Hongxing watched, feeling a twinge of heartache.
"Fifty yuan, you might as well have cut the flesh from my body to give to your classmate!"
"..." What would your classmate want with your flesh?
Yang Hongxing took a deep breath, holding back the pain to say, "Anyhow, since the money has been spent, you must insist in front of the villagers that you didn't steal my money. If they ask where you got the money to treat your classmate, just say you found it."
Tang Ying gazed at Yang Hongxing with teary eyes, "But... will Brother Jing Xuan and Jing Min believe it?"
"As long as you insist that you didn't steal the money, they'll believe it. Do you really want them to think you're a thief?" Yang Hongxing's rage surged once more as she pointed at Tang Ying's nose and scolded, "If you hadn't been so stupid as to admit to stealing, Tang Huai would be the one being laughed at now!"
Upon hearing this, Tang Ying sobbed, "It's all Tang Huai's fault..."
Yang Hongxing also felt that Tang Ying losing face in front of Jing Xuan was Tang Huai's fault.
If it weren't for that wretched girl setting a trap, would her Tang Ying have fallen into it?
A fierce look appeared in Yang Hongxing's eyes, "One of these days, I'll teach that fatherless hussy a good lesson!"
——
Peng Jiayao sneaked into Liu Xiaoyu's kitchen.
Liu Xiaoyu was resting in the house, hugging a little girl on the bed.
Tang Li sat asleep at the doorway, leaning against the door frame.
She went into the kitchen, picked up the pot of pig's feet, and took it away without anyone noticing.
After arguing with Tang Huai, she didn't go home at all but squatted nearby, keeping watch over Tang Huai.
Seeing Tang Huai heading out to feed the pigs with swill, she smiled.
Feeling that the pig trotters had been stewing long enough, she came over and carried the pot back.
When she got home, Yang Hongxing had just finished scolding Tang Ying.
Yang Hongxing came out of the house and was startled to see Peng Jiayao returning with a pot of pig trotters, "Mom, what is this..."
Putting on the airs of a harsh mother-in-law, Peng Jiayao glared sternly at Yang Hongxing, "What are you standing there for? Hurry up and get the bowls and chopsticks to eat. If you wait for that loss-making Tang Huai to come back, there won't be any left!"
Upon hearing this, Yang Hongxing knew what was going on. The meat in this pot was stolen!
Yang Hongxing quickly fetched the bowls, calling her husband, her young daughter Tang Fei, her precious son Tang Zhixuan, and Tang Peijun to come and eat.
The family gathered around the dining table like starving ghosts, slurping and chomping.
Tang Huai first blanched the pig trotters in boiling water, then soaked them in cold water for a few minutes, and added slices of ginger, wine, dried orange peel, green onions, and soy sauce to stew them.
The heat was well controlled, the peanuts were cooked through, the pig trotters were soft, creating a taste that was unfamiliar and unappetizing to both Yang Hongxing and Peng Jiayao.
As she ate, Peng Jiayao couldn't help but curse, "I never expected that little bitch's stewed pig trotters to be so tasty."
As she cursed, she didn't forget to pick the meat for Tang Peijun and Tang Zhixuan.
Peng Jiayao was mean, but she doted on her grandson Tang Zhixuan.
Before Tang Zhixuan was born, she had suffered a serious illness, and seeing numerous doctors had not brought her any improvement.
After Tang Zhixuan was born, her illness mysteriously vanished.
One day while holding Tang Zhixuan at the village chief's house, she encountered a fortune-teller passing by. She asked for a reading, and the fortune-teller told her that her blessings came from her grandson.
Reflecting on this afterward, she was convinced that the fortune-teller was correct. If it wasn't for the coming of her grandson Tang Zhixuan, bringing her good luck, she would have already died of her illness.
Ever since her recovery from that illness and up to present day, she rarely suffered from colds or fevers. She attributed all her good health to Tang Zhixuan; he was her lifeline.
——
When Tang Huai returned home, he immediately went to the kitchen to check on the pig trotters.
The moment he entered the kitchen and saw the pot missing, his expression changed drastically!
He then turned and rushed to Yang Hongxing's house!
Tang Huai charged in to find Peng Jiayao and her family thoroughly enjoying their meal.
Tang Huai grabbed the plate with the few remaining pig trotters and hugged it to his chest; none of them had grasped what was happening.
The meat plate on the table had suddenly disappeared?
"Tang Huai, have you gone mad?!" Peng Jiayao was the first to react, glaring at Tang Huai as she yelled: "I haven't even had my fill yet!"
Tang Huai's eyes blazed as he stared at the bones on the table, trembling with anger.
It had all been eaten up!
Only a few pieces of bone and sauce remained on the plate.
All of them were greasy from mouth to hand after eating, while grandma and sister were still starving.
Tang Huai's eyes reddened with rage as he glared at Peng Jiayao, as if he wished to devour her.
Meanwhile, Yang Hongxing and the others bore a look of hatred toward Tang Huai for taking away the pig trotters, showing no guilt for being caught eating stolen food.
"Grandma, I still want to eat pig trotters," said Tang Zhixuan, who was in his growing period with a particularly large appetite. He stared intently at the dish in Tang Huai's arms.
Peng Jiayao cherished Tang Zhixuan as her life and upon hearing his want, she shouted at Tang Huai, "You dead girl, Tang Zhixuan wants to eat, so bring it here quickly!"