Hurling Insults
Gu Zi understood that she needed to involve Su Bing to feel more at ease. This would make everything less surreal for him.
She pointed to the dishes on the stove and told him, "Bring these dishes to the dining table. The soup is very hot. Bring the soup last. Be careful when you carry it."
"Yes," Su Bing agreed and entered the kitchen to start serving the dishes.
He began with the cabbage, followed by the sweet and sour pork, and then the roast duck.
Su Li carried Se Lu and they both skipped around the dining table a few times.
Upon seeing the roast duck, Su Li didn't know what it was, but he found the scent incredibly enticing.
"What's this?" Su Li inquired, eagerly wanting to taste it.
Su Li was truly enjoying his current life. There was delicious food every day, and he hoped that their stepmother would remain this kind and caring, sparing them from the hardships of their past.
"I don't know," Su Bing responded. "Take care of Lele. I'll get the soup." Su Li had never tried roast duck before, and neither had Su Bing.
Su Bing went into the kitchen, where he found Gu Zi slicing cucumbers. It seemed she was preparing a cold dish.
This brought back memories of their father making cold cucumbers to enjoy with white rice porridge.
Su Bing hadn't tasted it in a while, as their father had been too busy with work.
"Is there anything you need?" Gu Zi noticed Su Bing's gaze and asked when their eyes met.
When their gazes met, Su Bing's face turned red, and he stammered, "I'm fine." He grabbed the soup and left the kitchen.
Su Bing couldn't pinpoint the reason, but even though he was less fearful of his stepmother now, he still felt embarrassed when she looked at him.
Just then, Aunt Chu's voice came from outside, and it was quite noisy.
Su Bing placed the soup on the dining table, and Aunt Chu happened to spot it.
Su Shen observed Su Bing and told him, "Take your brother to the living room and watch TV for a while."
Su Bing followed Su Shen's instructions and led his brother out without asking questions.
Aunt Chu wanted to say something, but Gu Zi walked out of the kitchen and placed a plate of cold cucumber on the table. Seeing the food on the table, including meat, vegetables, and roast duck, Aunt Chu was overwhelmed with jealousy.
Her only chance for a better life was to drive this woman away.
Gu Zi couldn't help but feel a sense of disdain for Aunt Chu's jealousy.
She walked over to Su Shen and asked, "Mr. Su, I asked the children to help with tasks suitable for their abilities. Family members should support each other in their daily activities."
She didn't want to engage further in this conversation.
If Su Shen chose to believe baseless accusations rather than her own words, then there was no reason for her to stay.
"Little Su, I suspect she has ulterior motives. She went to the city for a day, and now she's making the children do chores," Aunt Chu said, trying to influence Su Shen's opinion of Gu Zi.
Su Shen frowned slightly and glanced at Chu Xi.
She had followed him back from the pig farm, and all she said on the way was bad things about Gu Zi.
She claimed that Gu Zi was extravagant, didn't know how to live, and even mistreated the children behind her back.
Chu Xi had also insinuated that Gu Zi was acting strangely and dressing up beautifully, suggesting that she had gone to the city to meet an old lover.
Moreover, she had implied that Gu Zi was hiding something shameful. And that what was even more outrageous was that Gu Zi came to look for him just to cheat him of his money.
"What am I hiding?" Gu Zi asked, looking at Aunt Chu with a cold tone.
Aunt Chu saw that Su Shen did not speak and thought that he was angry at Gu Zi, so she spoke even more bluntly.
"You brought back an exquisite small box from the city. Someone saw it, but you still refuse to admit it. Who knows which old lover gave it to you? If you have nothing to hide, take it out and let's have a look. Otherwise, I'm sure you're hiding something shameful."
When Gu Zi heard her say this, she knew what she was talking about.
There were too many things on the way back. She was afraid that she would lose her watch and money, so she was extra careful.
She did not expect that Aunt Chu would accuse her of hiding something shameful when she was just protecting her belongings. Aunt Chu even insinuated that it was a gift from an old lover.
Gu Zi said, "I do have an exquisite little box. Su Shen, would you like to check?"
Aunt Chu looked at Su Shen with anticipation and encouraged him, "Little Su, of course, we have to check. There must be something shameful in her box.."