The survival rations in the Underground City came in egg flavor, but she had never expected a real egg to taste this good!
Chomp, chomp.
Right in front of Xiaohu, Zhuo Ling swallowed the entire egg. It caught in her throat, making her crane her neck.
“Not bad.”
The truth was…
It was absolutely delicious!
“W-What are you doing?!”
Xiaohu froze in shock. Pointing at her nose, he shouted, “Foolish Girl! That was my egg! Give it back! Give my egg back!”
What else could she have been doing?
She was eating the egg on Heaven’s behalf.
Smacking her lips, Zhuo Ling gave him an innocent little hum.
Give it back?
Should she… poop it out for him?
“That egg was from my dad! Give it back! Give it back!”
Xiaohu’s face twisted in distress. He plopped onto the ground, kicking his legs as he burst into loud sobs.
“Foolish Girl, pay me back my egg! Waaah… I’m going home to tell my mom!”
Slurp…
Zhuo Ling wiped the drool from the corner of her mouth and continued acting like the village fool.
“Ah… ah-ba, ah-ba? What are you saying, frien’? I don’t understand.”
Xiaohu’s earth-shaking cries reached the house.
Fenniang hurried out, wiping her hands on her apron.
“Xiaohu, what happened?”
Zhuo Changfu looked around in confusion.
“What egg? Where’s the egg?”
“Auntie! Your Foolish Girl ate the egg my dad gave me! Waaah… It was boiled in meat broth!”
Tears and snot streamed down Xiaohu’s face as he rolled around on the ground.
“My dad gave it to me! I won’t accept this! You have to pay me back my egg!”
Fenniang quickly pulled Zhuo Ling over.
“Ling’er, did you eat Brother Xiaohu’s egg?”
Truthfully, there was no need to ask.
Egg crumbs were still all over the little girl’s mouth.
Xiaohu’s mother was the children’s Second Aunt. Fenniang’s sister-in-law had always been notoriously sharp-tongued and difficult. Everyone in the village knew she was a fierce, unreasonable woman.
During this famine, eggs in town sold for as much as ten copper coins each.
If her own child had eaten someone else’s precious egg, paying for it wasn’t the problem. The problem was that Second Aunt would never let it go with just money.
Fenniang’s head throbbed.
She hurriedly tried to soothe him.
“Xiaohu, don’t cry. Auntie will—”
“Xiaohu, come here! Your mother will stand up for you!”
Before she could finish, Second Aunt, Fan Cuihua, arrived like a raging storm.
From a distance, she was already pointing at Fenniang’s nose and cursing.
“So now you’ve started bullying me, have you? You people from the eldest branch think I’m dead or something?”
Fenniang quickly shielded Zhuo Ling behind her.
“Second Sister-in-law, Ling’er is still little. She doesn’t understand. Please don’t be angry…”
Before she could finish, Fan Cuihua planted one hand on her hip and launched into another torrent of abuse.
“Little? She’s not little—she’s stupid! Eldest Sister-in-law, she’s stupid, and apparently so are you!
“You picked up some idiot off the roadside and don’t even keep an eye on her. Instead you let her run around causing trouble!
“Now she’s bullying my son!
“I’m telling you, if you don’t pay for that egg today, this isn’t over!”
“We’ll compensate you. We will.”
Fenniang pursed her lips and said softly,
“It’s just that it’s too late to buy eggs now. I don’t know how much eggs cost in town today, but we’ll compensate you with money…”
“What? Money? Did I hear that right?”
Fan Cuihua looked as though she’d just heard the funniest joke in the world.
She slapped her thigh and laughed loudly.
“Everyone, come take a look! The eldest branch has gotten rich!
“They let their idiot girl eat my son’s egg, and now they think they can wave a little money around to settle it! Hah! You’ve got quite the nerve!”
The neighbors, who had been quietly eating their gruel outside their homes, hadn’t wanted to get involved.
But seeing Fan Cuihua getting more and more outrageous, they couldn’t help walking over with their bowls to mediate.
“The poor Foolish Girl is pitiful enough. What does she know? Second Sister-in-law, you’ve already scolded them. Don’t make things uglier.”
“So what if a child ate it? When times get better, the eldest branch can repay you with several eggs.”
“You’re her second aunt, after all. Are you really going to demand repayment from a little girl? If this weren’t a famine year, what family couldn’t spare a single egg?”
…
Public opinion overwhelmingly favored the eldest branch.
Fan Cuihua immediately flew into a rage.
“What? That stupid girl stole my son’s egg and somehow she’s the one in the right?
“Eggs are scarce everywhere these days! You can’t even buy one for ten copper coins!
“If you’re all so eager to defend them, then who’s going to pay for my son’s egg?”
Debts had to be repaid—that was only natural.
But somehow, coming from Fan Cuihua’s mouth, those words sounded especially unpleasant.
The crowd clicked their tongues and quietly dispersed.
Fenniang pressed her lips together.
“Second Sister-in-law, don’t be angry. Whether it’s an egg or money, we never said we wouldn’t compensate you.”
“Then pay up already!”
Fan Cuihua thrust out her hand, mocking her in a sneering tone.
“You always act so delicate and pitiful. It’s bad enough you gave Old Zhuo a whole litter of bastards, but now you’ve gone and treasure some idiot you picked up off the street!
“Your whole family is going to be ruined by that fool sooner or later!
“Come on then, pay me! I’d love to see where you’re going to get the money!”
Fenniang wasn’t originally from this village.
When Zhuo Dawu returned from military service, he brought her back from the county.
She was fair-skinned, graceful, and exceptionally beautiful. Her temperament was gentle, her voice soft, and she was skillful with her hands. She often helped the village women with sewing and mending, and everyone got along well with her.
Rumor had it that when Zhuo Dawu brought her home, she had already been pregnant.
Fan Cuihua, on the other hand, was short and stocky, with dark, rough skin—not to mention her plain looks.
She was nearly eighteen before anyone dared to propose.
Even her parents knew exactly what kind of daughter they had. They lowered the bride price by one dou of millet before they finally managed to find her a husband.
In every way, she felt inferior to Fenniang and envied her deeply.
Ever since marrying into the village, she had constantly been jealous.
They quarreled for two years straight. After the elderly parents passed away, she insisted on splitting the family from the eldest branch.
Thinking her own household lived better than theirs, she would come over every now and then just to show off.
“Fan Cuihua! What nonsense are you spouting?! Who are you calling bastards? Explain yourself!”
A furious roar came from inside the house.
With a loud bang, Zhuo Dawu shoved open the window.
“You dare slander my wife and call my daughter stupid? Just you wait! Even if I have to crawl over there, I’ll tear your filthy mouth apart!”
“Fan Cuihua! Why are you bullying my mother again?”
Just then, Zhuo Chang’an returned carrying buckets of water.
He grabbed the shoulder pole and rushed to stand protectively in front of Fenniang and Zhuo Ling. Anger blazed across his handsome face.
“Try bullying my mother or my little sister again!”
“Dawu! Don’t move!”
Fenniang cried out and quickly turned to push her son.
“Go watch your father. Don’t let him get worked up. Mother can handle this.”
“Mother, call me if anything happens!”
Gritting his teeth, Zhuo Chang’an hurried back inside.
Fenniang might have been gentle by nature, but she had a husband who cherished her and sons who protected her.
Zhuo Ling was so envious her eyes nearly popped out.
In the resource-starved Underground City after the apocalypse, human relationships were cold and indifferent.
Forget taking care of others—being able to survive on your own was already considered fortunate.
Emptiness and restlessness filled people’s hearts. Genuine affection was even rarer than supplies.
Many young people didn’t even bother falling in love anymore. They simply drifted through life, one day at a time.