Chef Hua
Chapter 474 - 259

Chapter 474: 259

At that time, Hua Xiaomai was clutching a bone cutting knife, chopping the two large marrow bones on the table so forcefully they made a resounding thud.

Her mother-in-law, Meng, had forbidden her from handling knives and scissors, and of course, she remembered that, but after all, it was merely an old-fashioned notion. Usually, she was willing to obey to avoid unnecessary disputes, but today she couldn’t care less, considering Meng probably was in no mood to quarrel with her over such trivial matters.

Meng Yuhuai, standing behind her, watched in alarm and couldn’t endure it. Stepping forward, he snatched the knife from her hand, let out a sigh, and said, "Alright, you tell me how to do it, and I’ll chop. But you should talk to me about what happened with your uncle’s family, how did things reach such a state?"

Hua Xiaomai’s complexion wasn’t looking great, and without insisting, she passed the knife to him. She instructed him just to chop the bones horizontally and then into small pieces, while bowing her head and muttering softly, "They’re still outside the door, aren’t they? Didn’t they just grab hold of you and complain? Why bother asking me now?"

"He did ramble to me for a bit," replied Meng Yuhuai, who was adept with swords and knives but was somewhat uncertain as to how to begin cutting with the bone cutting knife, making clumsy gestures, "but I want to hear it from you."

"Whatever he told you, just think the opposite, and that’s the truth," Hua Xiaomai stepped back a bit, leaning against the stove edge, and her mouth turned downwards.

"Talk properly," Meng Yuhuai turned to look at her, his tone sounding more like he was dealing with a petulant child.

With no choice, Hua Xiaomai relayed step by step what had unfolded that afternoon, and in the end, with a taste of spite in her voice, she said, "Today I took a stand and made a decision. If you blame me, I have nothing to say, but you must not recklessly involve others—Mother never said a word about kicking them out."

Meng Yuhuai nodded but did not reply, efficiently finished chopping the bones, and wiped his hands, "Given the current situation, it really isn’t appropriate for them to stay in our home anymore. But after all, your uncle’s family came to escape disaster, and now they probably don’t have two copper coins to rub together. I was thinking of giving them some money, at least enough for them to get by for the next half a year."

Really, quite the big spender!

Hua Xiaomai secretly rolled her eyes, and with a cold snort, she said scornfully, "You’re the only man in our family, whatever you decide to do is your business, why bother discussing it with me?"

She wasn’t normally one to unreasonably vent her frustrations on others, yet now she didn’t even grant him a courteous face, which greatly puzzled Meng Yuhuai, causing his brows to furrow even more, "What act are you putting on now? Even if you’re upset, I haven’t offended you, and I’ve never said that what you did was wrong. Why insist on..."

However, no matter how he asked, Hua Xiaomai hung her head and did not speak.

Having no other choice, he could only shake his head, put away the bone cutting knife properly, and walked out.

Tang Maolin’s family of three indeed didn’t dare to come in lightly, and they lingered at the courtyard entrance. Seeing him come out, they hastily tried to look amiable and spoke cautiously, "Has Big Sister and your wife calmed down? About today, I know I went too far, but I didn’t have any ulterior motives. In a quarrel, everyone has a moment when they talk nonsense, you..."

"Uncle, Aunt, I truly am very sorry," Meng Yuhuai cut off his speech, and said gravely, "Things have escalated to this point, it won’t do to continue living together reluctantly. It will be uncomfortable for everyone. You’ve only been staying at our house for a few days and we haven’t treated you well, so my apologies."

"You... you are also asking us to leave?" Tang Maolin was slightly startled, "Yuhuai, you can’t just do things like this. Our hometown has been hit by locusts, where do you expect us to go all of a sudden? After all, I am your blood uncle, you..."

Wailing to heaven and earth, he slapped his thighs, crying without shedding tears.

Midway through his bawling, he suddenly stopped because he saw Meng Yuhuai pulling out some money from within his chest pocket.

"Uncle, you do excellent carpentry, and as long as you have your craft, and if you earnestly look for work, you’ll get by.," he said with a smile on his face, but his tone was devoid of any warmth, "Take this money, use it sparingly, and you should be able to make it through the next half year. It’s only the beginning of the evening now, and it’s far from curfew. If you hurry to the County, you’ll still be able to find a guesthouse to settle down in. I won’t see you off."

Tang Maolin felt a lump in his throat, staring at the money with a glint in his eyes, hastily taking and tucking it away, he sighed, "How did things get to this point? Can’t even stay at my own sister’s house... Yuhuai, don’t think I am complaining in front of you, your wife, she’s a formidable one, she’s unreasonable..."