Chen Family.
Chen Jianye naturally heard Jia Zhangshi's words outside.
He didn't care.
In his eyes, Jia Zhangshi was a dead person.
The exact timing of the action depended on the opportunity; he couldn't get himself trapped.
Inside the Chen Family house, dishes were being stir-fried, the aroma of oil and cooking wafting out through the windows.
“Oh my, where is that delicious smell coming from? Sha Zhu, what good dishes are you secretly hiding?”
At a table in the Middle Courtyard, a man eating suddenly called out.
Soon, everyone smelled the aroma in the air.
It was definitely the smell of stir-fried meat.
It was truly tempting.
Then they looked at the potatoes, cabbage, and mixed grain rice on their own tables.
What kind of stuff was this?
“I didn't hide anything. Today, Old Woman Jia only asked me to buy two liang of meat, and I used all of it.”
Sha Zhu loudly replied, proving his innocence.
Qin Huairu gave Sha Zhu an annoyed look.
Now it was clear; everyone knew that the Jia Family was hosting eight tables but only bought two liang of meat.
Sha Zhu chuckled.
He thought Qin Jie's eyes were truly beautiful.
“It's coming from the Chen Family house.”
“Chen Jianye is eating big meat dishes inside.”
“No wonder he's not attending the Jia Family's banquet.”
Everyone quickly discovered the source of the aroma and began discussing animatedly.
Smelling the aroma of the big meat dishes, the plain vegetables in their mouths suddenly tasted like chewing wax.
“If you ask me, the Jia Family only buying two liang of meat is really too little.”
“Exactly, for eight tables!”
“For us to come and attend the Jia Family's banquet is giving the Jia Family face, seeing Jia Dongxu off on his last journey. Is this how the Jia Family treats us?”
Someone whispered to the person at the same table.
The voices weren't loud, but they converged. Jia Zhangshi heard them, her temper flared, and she stood up and shouted, “Besides the two liang of meat, I also had Sha Zhu buy eight eggs!”
“I did indeed buy eight eggs.”
Sha Zhu shouted loudly, “They were all used for the banquet; I didn't keep a single one.”
“Eight tables, and you only prepared eight eggs? Who's that enough for?”
“Exactly! When the Chen Family hosted a banquet, there were at least six eggs per table!”
“Everyone came to see Jia Dongxu off on his last journey, and look at what you've done, it's really improper.”
Several men grumbled unhappily.
“Eat, eat, eat, all you know is to eat! Are you here to see my Dongxu off, or are you here to eat?”
“I haven't even mentioned that your monetary gifts were too little! For eight tables, you only gave a little over ten yuan in gifts. Whoever gave too little, I'll check one by one later.”
“I don't even know how you have the nerve to sit here and eat!”
Jia Zhangshi roared with her loud voice, overpowering the sounds of everyone's dissatisfaction.
Clang!
Someone threw their chopsticks on the table and angrily left the seat: “I'm not eating this damn food.”
Clang!
Where there's one, there's two.
The second person to throw down their chopsticks and leave stood up.
Jia Zhangshi's attitude made many people extremely angry.
Although most thought that the deceased should be respected and to endure if possible.
But there were always those with bad tempers who wouldn't tolerate the Jia Family.
“Oh, everyone, don't be like that! First Master, please quickly say a few words to help.”
Qin Huairu quickly stood up to appease everyone.
“Everyone, please sit down and finish your meal peacefully.”
“We are attending the Jia Family's banquet mainly to see Jia Dongxu off on his last journey; other matters are secondary.”
“Jia Family Sister-in-law, you should also say less. If everyone leaves, will you keep all these dishes for yourself to eat?”
Yi Zhonghai stood up and shouted.
Everyone sat down, even if they were unhappy, they only grumbled a few words.
Jia Zhangshi sat on the long bench with a displeased expression.
She truly thought that way.
Those who gave only a few dimes as gifts should just get out.
The uneaten banquet food, the Jia Family could take it home and eat it slowly.
Smelling the aroma of meat dishes from the Chen Family, and eating their own bland, tasteless food.
This meal was very difficult for everyone to eat.
Jia Zhangshi was also extremely craving, and she cursed Chen Jianye's ancestors eighteen generations over in her heart.
After Chen Jianye finished his meal, he came out with an enamel basin to wash dishes.
“Chen Jianye, you heartless thing!”
“You don't attend our family's banquet, nor do you help us, and I won't say anything about that.”
“But you even deliberately made big meat dishes, affecting our family's banquet! Why don't you just die?!”
Jia Zhangshi seized the opportunity and jumped up, cursing him out.
“Heh heh, I eat like this every day; everyone in the Courtyard knows.”
“You yourself are stingy with money, unwilling to give your son a grand funeral, and you're blaming me now?”
Chen Jianye said with a mocking laugh.
“That's your problem too! You knew my Jia Family was hosting a banquet, couldn't you have been more restrained?”
Jia Zhangshi argued unreasonably.
“Hey, Granny Jia, haven't you considered that your own problem is bigger?”
“You bring bad luck to husbands and sons, sending off two generations of able-bodied men from the Jia Family. Others are too embarrassed to say it, but I'll point you in the right direction.”
“If you want the Jia Family to be well, you might as well commit suicide and go accompany your son. As long as you are in the Jia Family for one day, the Jia Family will not get better.”
Chen Jianye didn't even bother to defend; he went straight on the offensive.
“Chen Jianye, I'll fight you to the death!”
Jia Zhangshi completely lost it and got off the table to fight Chen Jianye desperately.
“Ho, come on then.”
Chen Jianye placed the enamel basin in his hand on the ground and beckoned to Jia Zhangshi.
The many guests who came to the banquet quickly got off their tables and pulled Jia Zhangshi back.
“Chen Jianye, go wash the dishes.”
Yi Zhonghai said with a dark face.
“Jianye, today is, after all, the day to see Jia Dongxu off. Bear with it.”
Liu Haizhong also advised.
“It wasn't Granny Jia who cursed me first; I wouldn't even bother with her.”
“Granny Jia, remember, you still have one male heir in your family. As long as you live for one day, you will hinder him for one day.”
Chen Jianye's words were cutting.
He picked up the enamel basin and left.
With his outburst, everyone quickly started eating.
After finishing their meal, everyone left their seats.
Jia Zhangshi called Qin Huairu and Bang梗 to clean up the uneaten food on the tables.
By this time, Chen Jianye had already finished washing the dishes and gone back to the Rolling Mill for work.
“Jia Family Sister-in-law, can you save me the leftovers from two tables?”
Yan Fugui couldn't sit still and quickly called out.
Jia Zhangshi completely ignored him.
Save what? Nothing to save.
Yan Fugui also felt too embarrassed to keep shouting.
If the host wasn't willing to give, he, as the ledger keeper, couldn't force it.
After the meal, Yan Fugui found Jia Zhangshi and handed over the ledger and the collected gift money: “Jia Family Sister-in-law, the gift money and records for your family's banquet are all here.”
“Alright.”
Jia Zhangshi took it, quickly found a table, and opened the ledger to calculate the accounts.
Yan Fugui pursed his lips and coughed twice.
Jia Zhangshi didn't react.
Yan Fugui helplessly coughed loudly twice more.
“What's wrong, are you not feeling well? If you're not well, go somewhere else, don't cough in front of me, what if you infect me?”
Jia Zhangshi looked disgusted.
“No, Jia Family Sister-in-law, shouldn't you show some appreciation?”
Yan Fugui was very helpless.
After hosting a banquet and handing over the gift money, the host was supposed to give the ledger keeper two packs of cigarettes.
This was to show appreciation for the ledger keeper's hard work, a small token of gratitude.
It was an unwritten rule.
But Jia Zhangshi didn't mention it at all, so Yan Fugui had to bring it up himself.
Originally, the Jia Family hadn't saved any leftover dishes for him when clearing the tables.
If she didn't even give him two packs of cigarettes, wouldn't he have worked for free?