Chapter 70: Chapter 70 What a Blast
“Grandmother, don’t worry, I won’t eat it, I’m just looking,” Xuexue said with a smile on her face.
“Look at what? Even if you keep looking, there’s nothing for you. Get out of here and stop being an eyesore,” Old Lady Mo scolded fiercely.
Suddenly, the smile vanished from Xuexue’s face, and she said icily, “If I can’t eat, then none of you will.”
“You little wretch, what are you planning to do?”
“Nothing much, this rice might smell good, but it’s too bland. I’m just adding some seasoning.” As soon as Xuexue finished speaking, she poured from the can she was holding straight into the pot—swish—one can of sand went all into it.
Xuexue, seemingly not satisfied, casually picked up the large spoon usually used for scooping pig feed and stirred vigorously in the rice a few times. Now, the pot of rice was utterly ruined.
...
Her actions were so swift, done in one go.
Old Lady Mo was dumbfounded, and by the time she recovered, a large pot of rice was completely destroyed.
“Ah! You cursed girl, you’re wasting food, the heavens will strike you with thunder for this!” Old Lady Mo cried out in heart-wrenching pain.
“Strike what, I don’t even have rice to eat, thunder be damned,” Xuexue couldn’t help but curse, and turning around, she ignored Old Lady Mo’s wails. She still had to take Chuner to the old residence with the wheelbarrow, cook rice, and all that—she was close to starving to death, her stomach practically stuck to her back.
Just then, Madam Xie carried Chuner out and placed her on the wheelbarrow.
Thankfully, there was already a layer of straw on the cart, which made it quite soft to lie on.
“Xuexue, let’s go. Chuner is hungry, we should hurry back and cook,” Madam Xie said, distressed by her daughter’s hunger, thinking of quickly returning to the old residence to boil a pot of porridge for Chuner.
Madam Xie had no idea that the Mo family had no rice left for them.
“Eh! Alright! Mother, just wait a moment, I’ll be right there.” Madam Xie’s call reminded Xuexue that their home was completely out of rice, and she quickly turned back to the kitchen.
Old Lady Mo was still lamenting over the pot of rice Xuexue had destroyed.
Just now, Old Lady Mo had unlocked the cupboard to prepare to steam some cured meat and had not locked it yet; now, she didn’t even trust Madam Xie and wanted to steam the meat herself to feel at ease.
Seeing a bag of rice, about ten or fifteen pounds, tucked in a corner of the cupboard, Xuexue didn’t say a word and just hoisted it onto her shoulder and left.
Having slaved away for the Mo family for more than a decade, taking a bag of rice was hardly excessive—in Xuexue’s view, there was no feeling of guilt attached.
“Hey! You thieving girl, what are you doing with my rice?” the moment Old Lady Mo saw Xuexue with a bag of rice on her shoulder, she immediately stepped forward to block her.
“Grandmother, with Chuner in her current state, if you don’t give us even a grain of rice, are you trying to starve my mother and me to death?”
“Whether you live or die has nothing to do with me! Put my rice down this instant.”
“Chuner ended up like this because of you; if she doesn’t survive, don’t you think you will either.”
“You….”
Facing Xuexue’s relentless expression, Old Lady Mo’s heart wavered, and her confidence faltered.
“If you don’t want to end up in jail, step aside.” Xuexue said impatiently, “Don’t force me to really file a complaint at the Yamen.”
The moment Old Lady Mo heard these words, she involuntarily stepped back a few paces.
And just like that, Xuexue walked away with a bag of rice, right under Old Lady Mo’s watchful eye, without a care in the world.
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Not far from the Mo family’s exit, Madam Xie, who was helping push the cart behind, couldn’t help but ask, “Xuexue, what was your grandmother howling about just now?”
“Who knows, maybe she’s got nothing better to do after having her fill. Unlike us, we don’t even have the energy to howl,” Xuexue replied while pulling the cart.
While Madam Xie was naive and excessively filial, Xuexue didn’t want to tell her about the rice she’d just taken, to spare her mother from distress.