Back to the 60s: The Struggle Career of a Charmed Wife
Chapter 1496 Old Agreement 1

Chapter 1496: Chapter 1496 Old Agreement 1

The middle-aged woman kept repeating the phrase "eating out every day" over and over, and most people started to feel disgusted with the man.

Feng Qingxue, however, didn’t jump to conclusions. Instead, she listened carefully to the discussions among the men, women, young, and old standing in line around her.

Since they were all buying grain from the same store, they must belong to the same neighborhood, which naturally meant they would know each other.

Soon, Feng Qingxue heard someone ahead speak in a voice that wasn’t too loud or too soft: "Isn’t that Shi Guantao? He’s arguing with his sister-in-law again. Every ten days or so, they have to fight once—so annoying."

"You know them?"

"Of course I know them! Their house is right next door to our courtyard."

"Why are they always fighting? A sister-in-law and a younger brother-in-law fighting—now that’s something you don’t hear every day!"

"If you ask me, Shi Guantao should just toughen up and kick his brother’s whole family out of his house. That would put an end to all the constant arguments."

"What’s the story here?"

"His sister-in-law, Liu Guixiang, is just too greedy! Sure, none of us are fans of Shi Guantao eating out every day, but he’s an old bachelor with no family of his own. If his stove and kitchen at home are cold, where else would he eat but the restaurants? He has the money and the grain tickets, doesn’t he? The problem is, his sister-in-law keeps trying to get hold of Shi Guantao’s salary and grain tickets for the family’s communal use. No wonder there’s bad blood between them."

"But why doesn’t the family eat together? Why split things up?"

The middle-aged woman who clearly knew Shi Guantao’s family situation shook her head and said softly, "Eat together? That’s easy to say but hard to do. Allowing his brother’s entire family to live in his house is already generous enough of Shi Guantao. We’re talking about a family of twelve, all different ages! And you still want to eat off him and spend his money? That’s just wishful thinking. What’s Shi Guantao supposed to do, stay single forever?"

Hearing this, the person asking questions became even more intrigued and couldn’t help but continue asking. Feng Qingxue herself was able to piece together the general situation from the conversation.

Apparently, Shi Guantao was a soldier-turned-civilian who now worked at the local police station, holding the position of deputy director. He had returned after his transfer from the military several years ago and had a decent salary and benefits. Many had tried to match him with prospective brides, but none of the arrangements worked out, all because of his obsession with eating out every day.

Some people had advised him to break this habit of greedy eating and drinking, find a good wife, and settle down properly, but he simply refused to change.

"It doesn’t look like he can change. He’s probably been starved badly before, and now his mind’s constantly on food and drink. Because of this issue, the police station has reprimanded him multiple times, but he just keeps doing it," the middle-aged woman telling the story sighed. "Fortunately, besides his gluttony, Shi Guantao doesn’t have other faults. He’s politically reliable and ideologically sound, so people overlook this problem. Still, any chance of a promotion is out of the question for him."

By the time Shi Guantao had snatched back his grain ticket and left, and his sister-in-law, embarrassed, had also left the line, Feng Qingxue remained utterly absorbed in the drama.

Whether in the military compound or in a bustling city or countryside, gossip seemed to be second nature to women. From such casual chatter, one could always uncover the hidden stories within families.

At that moment, Lu Tianzhi and Guan Yu pushed a single-wheeled cart over, amused when they saw their aunt leaning in to eavesdrop so intently.

On the cart, besides bags of grain and an oil can, there was also a little boy bundled up to look like a little Xiaoxiong.

"Erxiong? How did you end up here?" Feng Qingxue asked in surprise.

"Mom!" Lu Erxiong jumped off the cart, grabbed his mother’s sleeve, pouted, and said in a very aggrieved tone, "Grandpa and my brothers took Dundun and Zhuangzhuang out to play, but they wouldn’t bring me along! They don’t love me at all!"