Reborn in the 1970s — Married a Proud Rough Man

”Thank you.” Jie Jingling was very grateful to her. It was Aunt Qiao who had given them warmth and a comfortable life, although it had all been bought with her mother’s life.

Sometimes, Jie Jingling had a selfish thought. ’Mother saving Aunt Qiao’s life was the best thing she ever did. With Granny’s overbearing nature and Father’s blind filial piety, Mother couldn’t protect us.’

Her father’s change after her mother died was meaningless. To say she didn’t hate him would be a lie; she just suppressed that hatred in the deepest corner of her heart.

”Mom,” Sun Dexiang whined, unable to stand the sight of Sun Tong gnawing on a chicken leg. Was Sun Tong just eating a chicken leg? No, it was clearly *her* flesh she was tearing into, and defiantly at that.

But Sun Dexiang had completely misjudged Sun Tong. Jing Qi had placed the chicken leg on her plate, so she ate it. She hadn’t even glanced at Sun Dexiang, so where was the defiance? The truth was, Sun Dexiang was hostile because Sun Tong had a chicken leg and hadn’t offered it to her out of respect.

”Shut up.” Sun’s mother shot Sun Dexiang a warning glare. Her younger daughter was so clueless. Sun Tong was the Jie family’s granddaughter. And Ah Xiang? She was just Sun Tong’s paternal aunt.

’This is the Jie residence, not the Sun’s. She can’t even get her own status straight. Squabbling with her niece over a chicken leg... What will the Jie Family think of her? Does she even want to stay here anymore?’

She could tell that the stepmother was the one who ran the Jie household. Jing Ling’s father didn’t dare breathe a word in front of his new wife, which was why she was trying so hard to suck up to her.

”Mom...” Sun Dexiang looked at her mother, her expression full of grievance.

”Eat a rib.” Sun’s mother picked up a pork rib and dropped it into Sun Dexiang’s bowl. Sun Dexiang looked at it with disdain. She just wanted the chicken leg.

Sun’s mother ignored her and went back to eating on her own. There was pork, chicken, duck, and fish, and she was going to eat her fill.

Mrs. Xie only ate the seasonal vegetables, and Mr. Xie wasn’t eating much either. Watching Sun’s mother wolf down her food, the couple were secretly dumbfounded.

”Sister Qiao, why are you only eating vegetables? Here, have some meat.” Sun’s mother picked up a piece of braised pork and put it in Mrs. Xie’s bowl.

Mrs. Xie jumped. Staring at the greasy piece of braised pork and recalling the sight of Sun’s mother sucking on her chopsticks, her stomach churned. Mrs. Xie dropped her bowl and chopsticks, covered her mouth, and ran out.

”Yan Qiu!” Mr. Xie put down his bowl and chopsticks and chased after her.

Qin Mei looked on in confusion as the two of them ran out. Jie Jingchen placed a pork rib in her bowl. ”Don’t mind them. Eat.”

Qin Mei glanced askance at him and pursed her red lips, but said nothing.

Sun’s mother was dumbfounded. She looked at Jie Jingling and asked, ”What’s wrong with your stepmom?”

Jie Jingling met her questioning gaze, at a loss for words. ”It’s nothing.”

Sun’s mother didn’t believe her and fell into deep thought.

”Mom, Aunt Qiao is a Buddhist; she doesn’t eat meat.” Jie Jingling picked the braised pork out of Mrs. Xie’s bowl. She had intended to eat it herself, but one look at the greasy meat made her feel queasy. She silently placed it in her mother-in-law’s bowl instead. ”Mom, you eat it.”

Jie Jinghun, who was sitting behind Jie Jingling, whispered a reminder, ”Big Sister, that’s feudal superstition. Be careful what you say, or you’ll bring trouble upon yourself.”

”It was a slip of the tongue,” Jie Jingling said, annoyed with herself.

Sun’s mother couldn’t be bothered with any of that. If burning incense would guarantee her a full stomach, she would absolutely sneak off to do it.

Sun’s mother picked up the braised pork and popped it into her mouth. As she bit down, her mouth filled with grease. ”Delicious, truly delicious,” she said with satisfaction.

Back in the village, her family was considered well-off, but even so, they only had meat or anything greasy once every ten days or half a month.

She had thought lunch was a feast, but she never imagined dinner would be even more sumptuous. She knew the Jie family was well-off, but she didn’t realize they ate this well. ’What luxury!’

”Mom, if you like it, have some more.” Jie Jingling rearranged the dishes, moving the meat platters in front of her mother-in-law and the vegetable dishes closer to Mrs. Xie’s empty seat.

Seeing this, Sun’s mother was delighted. ’This daughter-in-law is pretty useful when it counts. She thinks of her mother-in-law for the meat dishes and her stepmother for the vegetable dishes.’

Happy at heart, she ate with even more gusto. Noticing that Mrs. Xie and Mr. Xie still hadn’t returned, she looked at Jie Jingling and asked, ”Jing Ling, is your Aunt Qiao pregnant?”

”Huh?” Jie Jingling was utterly stunned.

”COUGH, COUGH, COUGH.” Qin Mei choked on her food.

Shen Qing was also taken aback. Jie Jingchen and Jie Jinghun exchanged glances, while Jie Jingwei paused mid-bite. Only Jing Qi, Sun Tong, and Sun Dexiang were unfazed by Sun’s mother’s words.

Jie Jingchen stood up, poured a bowl of water, and handed it to Qin Mei.

Qin Mei took it, drank a sip, and set the bowl on the table. The look she gave Jie Jingchen was a little strange.

’Her mother-in-law suspects Jie Jingchen is infertile. Has she given up on him and decided to have another baby herself?’

’Mrs. Xie is forty-six. That’s considered a geriatric pregnancy, but it’s still possible to conceive.’

Qin Mei leaned close to Jie Jingchen’s ear, stifling a laugh as she whispered, ”Are they planning on giving Jing Qi a little brother or sister?”

”I’ll go ask.” Jie Jingchen also wanted to find out. If his parents really wanted another child, he wouldn’t object. It was just... ’Dad already has six kids. Doesn’t he think that’s enough?’

”I’ll be waiting for your report.” Qin Mei glanced at Jing Qi, who was happily devouring his chicken leg while whispering back and forth with Sun’s mother. With Jing Wu absent, it was most appropriate for Jie Jingchen to be the one to ask.

”What’s with all your expressions? Having a baby is a good thing,” Sun’s mother said. People of her generation believed that more children brought more blessings. You should have as many as you could. In their eyes, no matter how poor you were, one more person just meant adding another pair of chopsticks to the table.

Jie Jingling pressed a hand to her forehead. ’Aunt Qiao was just grossed out by Mom, it’s not morning sickness.’

Sun’s mother then turned to Jie Jingwei. ”I hear your new wife is pregnant, too?”

Jie Jingwei froze for a second. ”Yes, she’s pregnant.”

”Getting pregnant before you’re even married, you two are...”

”Mom!” Seeing things were about to get ugly, Jie Jingling immediately cut her mother-in-law off. ”Jing Er and Yaru got their marriage certificate first.”

”When did they get it?” Sun’s mother pressed, determined to get to the bottom of it.

Jie Jingwei was mortified. If he admitted they had only just gotten their certificate, there was no telling what his big sister’s mother-in-law would say.

A premarital pregnancy would reflect poorly on both Lin Yaru and himself.

Qin Mei, enjoying the show and not minding stirring up trouble, chimed in. ”Aunt Sun, I seem to recall Second Brother and Second Sister-in-law got their certificate at the beginning of this month.”

’They say you shouldn’t air your dirty laundry in public, but under Jie Jingchen’s influence, I’ve come to enjoy it too.’

”Qin Mei!” Jie Jingwei snapped, furious. He was already fuming, and Qin Mei’s prodding was the last straw.

”Jing Er!” Jie Jingling shot her agitated brother a look, trying to warn him.

Qin Mei’s almond-shaped eyes darkened as she stared at Jie Jingwei, her face a mask of innocence. ”Second Brother, could I have remembered it wrong?”

”Amie,” Jie Jingling said, turning to Qin Mei with a pleading look in her eyes.

Qin Mei smiled faintly, but her voice was laced with sarcasm as she said, ”I must have remembered it wrong.”

’Big Sister wants to save face for Jie Jingwei, so I’ll do her this favor. They’re the real siblings, after all. And me?’

’If it weren’t for Jie Jingchen, she and Jie Jingling would have absolutely nothing to do with each other.’

’A secret! There’s definitely a secret here!’ Sun’s mother was bursting with curiosity and wanted to get to the bottom of it, but she saw Qin Mei had already backed down. She was too embarrassed to stir the pot again herself. Once her curiosity was piqued, it was torture not to have it satisfied.

Sun’s mother cursed Qin Mei in her heart for being so spineless. Sisters-in-law rarely got along. The Jie family had four sons, and with Jing Wu still unmarried, that meant three sisters-in-law. ’Three women make a drama,’ as they say. The Jie family was going to have plenty of good shows to watch.

Jie Jingchen found Mr. and Mrs. Xie in a small private dining room. The couple was eating noodles. Hearing the door being pushed open, they both jumped and looked up at the entrance in unison.

”What are you two doing here?” Jie Jingchen asked, looking at them in surprise.

With a noodle dangling from his mouth, Mr. Xie glanced at Mrs. Xie beside him.

Mrs. Xie averted her gaze and calmly went back to eating her noodles.

Mr. Xie swallowed the noodles in his mouth and said to Jie Jingchen awkwardly, ”Close the door.”

For once, Jie Jingchen didn’t argue with him. He obediently shut the door and sat down across from them, teasing, ”Tired of all the rich, greasy food, so you wanted some plain noodle soup? If you want to eat, just eat. Why be so secretive about it?”

”What rich and greasy food? You weren’t sitting at the same table with your big sister’s mother-in-law. You didn’t see her...” Mrs. Xie shot him a look, and Mr. Xie’s voice died in his throat. He couldn’t go on; if he did, his wife would start feeling sick again.

”It’s just her sucking on the chopsticks. You’ll get used to it,” Jie Jingchen said, his deep voice laced with a gloating laugh.