“Mom, Dad.” Xu Ying’s voice was a shaky whisper when she arrived her home in the viallage , her lips tinged purple from the biting cold of the bicycle ride.
Mother Xu, just about to step out, saw her daughter’s shivering figure and her heart ached. She practically threw the bicycle to Big Brother Xu and swept her daughter into the warmth of the house. By the stove, she tenderly clasped Xu Ying’s hands, trying to impart her own warmth. “Why are you back at this hour? Don’t you have to go to work tomorrow? Don’t come back so often for no reason. You’ll freeze to death riding back and forth,” Mother Xu fretted, her voice laced with distress.
Xu Ying’s hands thawed in her mother’s embrace, and a warmth spread through her heart. “Mom, I’m resting for a week this time.”
Mother Xu’s eyes widened in surprise. “What’s going on? Why such a long rest?”
“Our restaurant director rewarded me with a holiday,” Xu Ying said, a smile blooming on her face as she snuggled into her mother’s arms.
Mother Xu hugged her daughter tighter, her curiosity piqued. “Is it because of that duck product? What exactly is it? How did it make your director so happy?”
“It’s just a dish. I’ll cook it for you tomorrow, Mom. This dish sells incredibly well in our county and has earned a lot of money for our store. When my boss was happy, he rewarded me with a week’s rest.”
“What about your work?” Mother Xu continued, her brow furrowed with concern. “Your third uncle told me you have two jobs now, and you’re even working in a food factory. Are you tired from so much work in one day?” The thought of her young daughter being overworked pained her.
Xu Ying shook her head. “Actually, the working hours are still the same. I can research food while cooking, and then I can research and give it to the food factory. There’s not much work burden, and I’m not tired at all.”
Mother Xu breathed a sigh of relief. As long as her daughter wasn’t exhausted. Her daughter was so young; she shouldn’t be worn out just for the sake of making money. Besides, earning money was mostly a man’s domain, yet her daughter was so capable, she could do it better than most men.
After sharing a few more tender words with her daughter, Mother Xu couldn’t resist. She had to go out. Such a huge piece of news demanded to be shared. She would finally have another thing to boast about to all those people who used to call her daughter lazy and greedy every single day. Now, her daughter was incredibly powerful, something truly unheard of. Whose child could have two jobs at once? Only hers.
Mother Xu, her heart swelling with pride, strode along the path leading to the village entrance, heading straight for the to the biggest tree in the , where the villagers gathered to chat. She hadn’t frequented this spot much before, but this year, she was practically a regular.
The villagers looked at Mother Xu with newfound respect, not just because she was the captain’s wife, but because her daughter had brought them profitable work. “Sister-in-law, have you eaten?” they greeted her.
Mother Xu shook her head. “I ate early. I just had a few words with my daughter at home and then came out!”
“Yingying is back? Isn’t she renting a house in the county?” Sun Dacao boomed, his voice grating on Mother Xu’s ears. What are you doing, yelling so loudly? It’s not like I can’t hear you, she thought, but her good mood prevailed, and she didn’t bother to argue with Sun Dacao. “She’s resting for a week and then coming back.”
“Why does she get one week’s break?” Many began to speculate, implying Xu Ying couldn’t handle the work anymore. Sun Dacao, seizing the opportunity, secretly gloated. While Xu Ying had brought them benefits, it didn’t change human nature; jealousy lingered, and a chance to mock was always welcome. “Why did she have to rest for so long? Maybe Yingying is too tired.”
Mother Xu remained silent, waiting for them to finish their hushed discussions, ready to deliver her triumphant blow.
“That’s right. Yingying has never done any heavy work since she was a child. She definitely won’t be able to bear the exhaustion of cooking in the kitchen of a state-owned restaurant. It’s fine to take a break, since our family isn’t short of money anyway,” Wang Lanhua, Xu Ying’s cousin, offered, her words seemingly sincere. But the others didn’t quite see it that way.
Seeing them quiet, their gazes fixed on her, Mother Xu finally spoke. “Oh, my daughter isn’t that delicate. She’s achieved great things at the restaurant, so the leader rewarded her with seven days off! Not only that, my daughter now works two jobs—one as a cook in a state-owned restaurant, and the other in the R&D department of a food factory. They say she gets two salaries a month, but she’s still doing the same job! My daughter is also an excellent cook, so she casually made a duck dish, and people immediately noticed her!”
As these words tumbled out, those who had been secretly laughing at Mother Xu suddenly stared, their eyes wide with disbelief. “Sister-in-law, are you kidding me?”
“Yes, Captain’s wife!”
Mother Xu raised her eyebrows, her neck stiff with pride. “How dare I joke about such a thing? If you don’t believe me, go to the food factory and ask their director! My third brother-in-law told me about that , he also said the director of their restaurant, and the director of the food factory all liked my daughter, and they all praised her for her abilities!”
The words landed like a bombshell, leaving everyone feeling more uncomfortable than if they had eaten dirt. However, there were also those who were genuinely grateful to Xu Ying for bringing them profitable work, and these individuals offered their heartfelt blessings. “Congratulations, Auntie! Yingying’s salary won’t be low from now on! From now on, Uncle and Aunt, , will be waiting to enjoy the blessings!”
Mother Xu, swelling with pride, feigned a sorrowful expression. “What blessings? I feel sorry for my daughter; she’s exhausted from doing so much work. Last month, she paid her salary to me and her dad, five yuan each, and said she would give us filial piety money every month in the future. There’s food and drink all over the place, and everything is fine at home. Why do you give us so much money? Also, the clothes I’m wearing were bought for me by my daughter, the same ones I wore a few days ago, and she always buys things for the family. That girl spends money too lavishly. She doesn’t even know how much money she has. She wants to spend it all on me and her dad.”
The others listened, their hearts turning sour. Look, they thought, people worry their children spend too much money on their parents. When would they ever receive such treatment? Everyone felt a mix of sadness and jealousy.
Mother Xu, still not finished showing off, was about to continue when Wang Lanhua, her own heart aching with envy, couldn’t bear to hear any more. She pulled Mother Xu and gently nudged her away. “Sister-in-law, Yingying has gone back now; why don’t you hurry up and chat with her for a while? This girl finally came back. She hasn’t seen you for such a long time. She must be thinking bad things if you don’t go back quickly.”
Mother Xu’s eyes lit up. She’s right, my daughter! She hasn’t seen me for so long. She must be missing me. Mother Xu trotted all the way back home. Wang Lanhua breathed a sigh of relief as Mother Xu departed.
After Mother Xu left, despite their lingering resentment, the villagers had to admit that Xu Ying was truly exceptional. Jobs were incredibly hard to come by these days. Ordinary people couldn’t find a single one, yet she held two jobs. It truly spoke to her abilities.
“Xu Ying is so powerful,” one villager mused. “You know, Dong Zhiqing is truly blind. If he had married Xu Ying and had the captain’s help, how wonderful his life would have been! Xu Ying was still so kind to him, wishing to give him all her belongings every day. Why was he so dissatisfied?”
“Isn’t that right?” another chimed in. “Tell me, which girl in our village is prettier than Xu Ying? Even many girls in the city can’t compare to her. I don’t know how high Dong Zhiqing’s standards were. He still looked down on Xu Ying. Now it’s better. People don’t want him anymore, so he just has to endure hardship.”