Hello, Comrade. I'm Here to Marry You!

Chapter 20: Chapter 20: No Freeloading

She could tell what kind of person someone was by their behavior.

Su Zhaozhao had absolutely no desire to interact with people like Zhang Jufang.

Soon, she arrived at Zhou Xiaoyun’s home.

Liu Guosheng hadn’t returned yet, so the house was quiet.

Zhou Xiaoyun arranged the apples Su Zhaozhao had given her in a fruit bowl on the table. Instantly, the fresh scent of apples filled the air.

Zhou Xiaoyun said to Su Zhaozhao, "Zhaozhao, these apples are amazing. Even the ones I’ve picked right off the tree aren’t this fresh."

Apples were a common fruit in West State, but Zhou Xiaoyun had never seen any so plump and fragrant.

"I guess I just got lucky and bought a good batch," Su Zhaozhao explained.

Zhou Xiaoyun didn’t dwell on it. She carried the groceries into the kitchen to start prepping, telling Su Zhaozhao to wait for her in the living room.

But Su Zhaozhao followed her into the kitchen anyway. "Let me help,"

she said with a smile.

"Oh, Zhaozhao, no, don’t worry about it! Your hand is so badly injured. You shouldn’t be helping."

Zhou Xiaoyun ushered Su Zhaozhao back into the living room to sit down.

Resigned, Su Zhaozhao had no choice but to sit on the wooden sofa in the living room.

She glanced down at the wound on her hand. It did look a bit frightening. For the past few days, she had been doing her best to keep it from getting wet.

Su Zhaozhao felt a surge of frustration. ’It was bad enough being transported to this world, but now I have to face all these dangers, too. Is this really the life of a side character?’

Soon, the aroma of cooking wafted from the kitchen. Su Zhaozhao took a deep breath. ’It smells amazing!’

Su Zhaozhao had never doubted Zhou Xiaoyun’s cooking skills.

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

Thinking it was Liu Guosheng, Su Zhaozhao went to open the door.

But it wasn’t Liu Guosheng. It was Zhang Jufang, holding her child.

The moment she saw Su Zhaozhao, Zhang Jufang’s face broke into a wide smile. "Hey there! Have you all started eating?"

She had smelled the aroma drifting from the kitchen and couldn’t resist taking a deep breath.

"Wow, that smells delicious."

"Not yet. Aunt Yun is still cooking," Su Zhaozhao said.

"Oh, dear, I just forgot to buy scallions and ginger. I’ll just borrow a little from you," Zhang Jufang said, pushing past Su Zhaozhao and heading straight for the kitchen.

Su Zhaozhao froze, stunned that someone could be so discourteous in another person’s home.

But she was familiar with the personality of people like Zhang Jufang, who treated others’ belongings as their own. They never caused themselves any internal strife, but they were experts at making others agonize.

They were far more shameless than she could ever be.

After entering, Zhang Jufang spotted the fruit on the table. She casually grabbed an apple and shoved it into her child’s hands.

"Here, Erhu, take it," she said. "This is a gift from your Aunt Zhou."

Su Zhaozhao: "???"

’Zhou Xiaoyun doesn’t even know they’re here, how could she have already given him a gift?’

Next, she waltzed into the kitchen. "Sister Xiao Yun," she said to Zhou Xiaoyun, "I came to borrow some scallions and ginger. Oh, are you making chicken soup? It smells divine!"

"Mama, I want some..." the child in Zhang Jufang’s arms whined, his eyes glued to the pot of chicken soup, full of longing.

"You want some? Well, you’ll have to ask your Aunt Zhou to give you some. Go on, call her Aunt Zhou."

Zhou Xiaoyun wasn’t a stingy person, but she had little patience for freeloaders like Zhang Jufang and didn’t bother to hide her displeasure.

’This Zhang Jufang is unbelievably shameless,’ Zhou Xiaoyun fumed internally. ’She never visits, and we don’t even live on the same floor. She could have borrowed those things from anyone, so why did she have to come to me?’

’It’s obvious she saw me bring that chicken home today and came here specifically for a piece of it.’

’But how can I say no?’

’The poor kid is hungry. As hateful as Zhang Jufang is, the child is innocent.’

With this thought, Zhou Xiaoyun couldn’t help but sigh. "Well, if the child wants to eat, then..."

"The child can’t eat this. He’ll die if he does," Su Zhaozhao interjected coldly.

Zhang Jufang was stunned by Su Zhaozhao’s words. "What did you just say? Why are you cursing my child?"

"I’m telling the truth. This soup was made specially for me by Aunt Yun. I was injured and lost a lot of blood, so Aunt Yun added a lot of traditional herbs to enrich the blood. Can a child drink that? These herbs are hard on the kidneys; a child can’t have them."

Hearing Su Zhaozhao, Zhou Xiaoyun immediately nodded in agreement. "That’s right. I made this soup specially for Zhaozhao."

Zhang Jufang looked disappointed. But the aroma of the chicken soup was just too rich, and seeing the layer of fat glistening on top, she couldn’t help but swallow. "Well, if a child can’t have it, an adult can, right?"

"And you’d have the heart to drink it yourself, but not give any to your son? If he sees you eating something so delicious without sharing, he’s bound to cry." Su Zhaozhao said with a grin, her eyes landing on the child in Zhang Jufang’s arms. "Isn’t that right, Erhu?"

Erhu’s lower lip began to tremble, and he looked like he was about to cry.

"How can a young lady like you say such things?" Zhang Jufang scowled, her voice booming. "It’s just a sip of soup! Are you trying to drive a wedge between me and my son?"

"I’m just telling it like it is."

"Such a pretty face, but such an ugly personality. No man would ever want a woman like you," Zhang Jufang huffed, giving Su Zhaozhao a disdainful look.

She had originally thought Su Zhaozhao was quite pretty, maybe pretty enough to introduce to her younger brother. He worked at the village supply and marketing co-op and earned a steady wage.

But now, seeing this petty personality, she decided to forget it.

She wasn’t good enough for her outstanding brother.

In this era, as old ways of thinking were just beginning to change, being told that no man would want you was a terrifying prospect for a young woman.

But Su Zhaozhao remained perfectly calm.

"Why, thank you for the compliment," Su Zhaozhao said. "Being wanted by a man isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Anyway, here’s your ginger and scallion."

Su Zhaozhao handed Zhang Jufang a small piece of ginger and a single scallion. "Here you go. Consider it a gift!"

She said it with an air of someone shooing away a beggar.

Zhou Xiaoyun was amazed. Su Zhaozhao looked so gentle and frail, yet her personality was so formidable.

Then again, she had heard the rumors about that incident in the mess hall and couldn’t help but admire how tough Su Zhaozhao was.

"Who wants this junk?" Zhang Jufang scowled. She didn’t actually need them; she had just wanted to snag some good food!

She couldn’t believe they wouldn’t give her any.

’How could they be so stingy!’ she thought. ’We’re all military families here, neighbors who see each other every day. How can they act like this?’

Zhou Xiaoyun, feigning anger, stepped forward. "Zhaozhao is my guest! How dare you humiliate her like that! Zhang Jufang, don’t you ever come to my house again."

With that, Zhou Xiaoyun pushed Zhang Jufang out the door.