CHAPTER 97: CHAPTER 97: THE ULTIMATE CHUMP

"Old Third, why’d you buy so much stuff? Are we not celebrating the holidays?"

Smelling the aroma of meat wafting from the lunchboxes, Liu Cuilan was so pained she could cry, thinking of how much all this must have cost!

Even during the New Year, no one would be so lavish with food!

Su Xiaoxiao ignored her mother’s pained look and directly opened one of the lunchboxes, handing it over: "Mom, try it. I brought these dishes back from the state-run restaurant; they’re really delicious."

Liu Cuilan looked at the oily braised ribs inside the box and couldn’t help but swallow a gulp of saliva.

But she couldn’t help but complain, "How much money did you spend on all this?"

Su Xiaoxiao smiled mysteriously at her: "Mom, don’t worry. I didn’t spend my money. Someone insisted on treating us."

Even if someone wanted to treat you to dinner, who would let their daughter bring home so much food at once?

Liu Cuilan was skeptical.

Meanwhile, Su Xiaoxiao had already opened all the aluminum lunchboxes and laid them out on the table.

Six servings of meat dishes: braised fish, braised ribs, sauced beef...

All were substantial dishes.

In addition, there were six full boxes of dumplings.

Su Jianwen and Su Jianwu had just returned home from school and could smell the aroma coming from the room from afar.

They hurriedly ran into the house.

Seeing all the delicious food on the table, their eyes almost popped out of their heads: "Mom, Third Sister, are we planning on not celebrating anymore?"

Even when Father Su was around, they’d never had such a feast even during the New Year.

Su Xiaoxiao waved generously: "Today, just eat to your heart’s content. If someone’s treating, it’s a waste not to eat."

Liu Cuilan couldn’t help but glance at her again: "Xiaoxiao, be honest with mom. Are you dating someone?" The more she thought about it, the more it seemed like it; who else would be so generous to spend this much money on them at once?

Seeing her mother’s expression becoming increasingly suspicious, Su Xiaoxiao coughed lightly: "Mom, you’re overthinking it. It’s just a regular colleague."

Liu Cuilan couldn’t help but mutter to herself that if that were true, it’s not just any colleague, but a total fool.

She wanted to ask more, but saw the younger brothers staring eagerly at the food on the table, almost drooling into the boxes.

Forget it, if her daughter says there’s no problem, there must not be any. She knew her own daughter’s character well; timid as she is, she’d never do anything outrageous.

With this in mind, she sighed and told the little brothers, "Quick, go call your two brothers and Sister Zhaodi to come out for dinner."

Tomorrow was the weekend, and both brothers were back now.

The two little brothers, hearing it was time to eat, immediately sprinted off in different directions to call everyone.

Not long after, the older brothers and Xu Zhaodi sat down at the table together, with Xu Zhaodi holding a little baby.

The baby had just eaten and was looking around with big, curious eyes.

Su Xiaoxiao, finding it amusing, couldn’t help but feel the urge: "Sister Zhaodi, let me hold him for a bit."

Xu Zhaodi laughed and handed the little one to Su Xiaoxiao.

The infant was soft as if it had no bones.

Su Xiaoxiao held him stiffly, the tiny and tender body in her arms making her afraid to breathe, lest she scare the little one.

But the little guy showed no fear, grinning widely at Su Xiaoxiao, revealing his soft gums, clearly in a good mood.

Seeing the baby like this, Liu Cuilan couldn’t help but spit lightly: "This little rascal knows to like the young and pretty ones; when the neighbor lady holds him, he just keeps crying. But now, in Old Third’s arms, he’s being so well-behaved."

While Su Xiaoxiao cautiously held the baby, Liu Cuilan quickly divided the dumplings.

"Old Third, you and I will share one box. Your eldest brother and second brother get one each. The two younger ones will share one box. Zhaodi gets her own; she’s eating for two right now, so one might not be enough."

Xu Zhaodi quickly waved her hand: "No need, no need, just a few for me."

"No need to be polite; there’s still so much food,"

said Liu Cuilan, pushing a box of dumplings in front of Xu Zhaodi.

Su Xiaoxiao thought about it and agreed the distribution was quite reasonable.

Lately, she’d been eating well at the department store, so her appetite had shrunk a bit.

These days, dumplings were made with hearty ingredients, each one with a thin skin and lots of filling. Sharing a box with Liu Cuilan would be just right.

With the dumplings already divided, the whole family sat happily around the table, enjoying the feast.

The younger brothers clumsily tried to pick at the meats on the table, gobbling them down as if they hadn’t seen meat in ages.

Su Xiaoxiao could barely watch, resolving internally to earn more to improve the household’s life; seeing them devour food just like hungry wolves was hard to bear.

As the family was merrily eating, suddenly there was a loud banging on the courtyard door.

Su Xiaoxiao frowned as she heard a rough voice shout from outside the courtyard.

"You damn woman, I know you’re in there. Get out here and give me back my son."

Xu Zhaodi, hearing the voice, shuddered, and her chopsticks fell to the ground with a clatter, her whole body trembling uncontrollably.

All those terrifying memories surged back, almost suffocating her.

Liu Cuilan, seeing Xu Zhaodi’s condition, quickly asked with concern, "Zhaodi, what’s wrong?"

Xu Zhaodi bit her lower lip hard, her face pale: "It’s... it’s Wang the Crip. He must’ve heard I gave birth to a son and has come for the child."

"What should I do? What should I do?"

Xu Zhaodi chewed her lip desperately, her eyes full of terror.

Su Fusheng slammed his chopsticks on the table and stood up: "I’ll beat that bastard to death, see if he dares to bother you again."

He spoke as if about to head outside but was quickly stopped by Liu Cuilan, who grabbed his arm: "What are you going to do? It’s against the law to hit people."

"Then what? We can’t just let Zhaodi get bullied by that bastard again."

As they were all exchanging glances, Su Xiaoxiao picked up a basin of dirty water nearby and stepped out. Liu Cuilan tried to stop her, but it was already too late.

"Damn it, you whore, get out here now. Just because you’ve latched onto another man doesn’t mean you can shake me off. You’ll die under me if that’s the case."

Wang the Crip was cursing when suddenly there was a splash, and a basin of filthy water drenched him, leaving him soaked and cold.

He looked up to see a pretty young girl perched on the wall, her beautiful eyes glaring down at him: "If you’re looking for your wife, do it at home. She’s not here. Keep that foul mouth running, and it won’t just be dirty water next time."

After finishing, Su Xiaoxiao turned and went back inside.

Wang the Crip was momentarily stunned, then reacted: "Goddamn, where’d that brat come from!"

The young man behind him, observing from the wall where the figure had disappeared, narrowed his eyes: "Uncle, since our main goal is the child, we could leave that woman behind. But as for that young girl we saw... well, we’ll handle it like this..."