Daily Life in the 70s
Chapter 314: Idle Chat

Chapter 314: Chapter 314: Idle Chat

Yang PeiMin felt overwhelmed by all the busybodies in the neighborhood.

She found an excuse to go help out in the kitchen with the cooking fire.

Right then, Shen Yiguang came in carrying firewood, and seeing her, he arched an eyebrow, "Why’d you come out?"

Yang PeiMin mumbled, "The neighbors are inside. I just woke up and my mind’s still a blur. Can’t handle it."

Shen Yiguang chuckled and reached up to tousle her hair, "I’ll fetch another load of firewood, we’ll boil water early, and you can take a bath soon."

Yang PeiMin smiled and nodded, "Now that’s truly something to look forward to."

Shen Yiguang smiled as well.

Meanwhile, Third Aunt from the neighborhood, who had been gossiping with Chen Guizhi in the house, eventually came out beaming as if she’d won the lottery.

"It’s getting late; we should be heading home too. Don’t want to keep you from your business."

The others didn’t pay much attention.

As they were leaving, Huang Tao came out with a smile, "Third Aunt, you’re leaving?"

"I need to go back and boil water for dinner. It gets dark early and cold makes you hungry fast. Can’t stay over at someone else’s place for too long. Their son and daughter-in-law have returned, they’re over the moon! Right now, they’re busy cooking chicken for dinner." Although Third Aunt said she needed to get home, she wasn’t moving an inch, and she couldn’t stop talking.

Huang Tao had no idea about her chatterbox nature, and replied, "My place is bustling too; couldn’t sit in with you all. Speaking of which, Aunt Shen from Shen family was ill for a while, and I haven’t visited in several days. I have no idea how she’s doing now. Has she been able to get out of bed and do anything? Earlier when I went out to gather firewood, I glanced into their yard; they were all busy at work. But I didn’t see Mrs. Shen, which was odd. Maybe she got tired from the car ride?"

As she spoke, her eyes flickered towards Third Aunt, waiting for her to spill the beans.

Third Aunt indeed didn’t disappoint her, "You got it right. Isn’t she tired? After several days in the carriage, her mother-in-law is kind-hearted, how could she let her do any work?"

Huang Tao laughed, shaking her head, "That’s true; she does seem frailer than most. Such a journey would tire anyone out. Aunt Shen is so kind-hearted. Not to mention getting tired from a trip; she spoils her even on regular days. She never lets her do any hard work at home. I’ve never seen her in the fields, not even watering the vegetable plots next door. Aunt Shen is known to be a great mother-in-law. But now that Aunt Shen is ill and can’t do these chores, they have young sisters-in-law at home, but she can’t let them do everything, right? Even if her in-laws treat her well, she shouldn’t just sit back and enjoy herself like this. What would outsiders think, after all?"

Third Aunt shook her head mysteriously, "It seems not, we’ve only heard about the past from you all, and we’re not too clear on it either, but whenever Sister-in-law Shen mentions Ah Guang’s wife, she can’t help but sing her praises, saying she’s filial and capable."

Huang Tao automatically discarded the latter part of her speech and seized on the earlier phrase, asking eagerly, "Third Aunt, what do you mean ’it seems not’? Could it be that she’s sick?"

Third Aunt chuckled softly, "It seems like she’s pregnant."

"What?" Huang Tao’s voice rose several notches, her face incredulous, "Third Aunt, what did you say?"

Third Aunt, startled by her sudden high pitch, was a bit displeased but still said, "I said that Ah Guang’s wife is pregnant."

Huang Tao shook her head, "Is it confirmed? There had been no sign before, so how come it’s so sudden..."

Third Aunt watched her with amusement, "They’ve been living with the army, haven’t they? It’s only normal for her to be pregnant, it would be abnormal if she wasn’t."

"But hasn’t she always been frail? She looks like someone who would have a hard time bearing children. Did you see her yourself? Did you see her belly?" How could Yang PeiMin be pregnant? Isn’t she supposed to be frail and delicate? To think that someone with a body as frail as a chick could get pregnant, isn’t that just laughable?

"Just because someone looks thin doesn’t mean they can’t get pregnant, there are plenty of such cases. I have seen her, but it’s still early stages and with winter clothes, you can’t really tell. But, this is another matter entirely, not something to joke about. Although Sister-in-law Shen hasn’t explicitly said so, I’m almost certain it’s true. You should’ve seen how cautious she is, extremely reluctant to let her daughter-in-law lift a finger, just having her sit on the kang bed and wait for meals. But to be honest, I think Sister-in-law Shen is too easygoing. Even though a pregnant daughter-in-law should indeed do less work, it shouldn’t be none at all. This way, won’t she spoil her into laziness?"

Huang Tao was still trying to process the news and had no mind to listen to further details; she managed a weak smile, "I just remembered, the steamed buns I have in the pot should be ready. I’ll go and take a look. Let’s chat more another time."

With that, she turned and went into the Li Family’s house.

Third Aunt called out to her from behind and flicked her sleeve, "How can she just leave like that, after she was the one who started this topic, leaving me hanging in the middle of the conversation, what’s the meaning of this?"

The woman standing next to her pulled at her sleeve and smirked knowingly, "You forgot again, Third Aunt. Huang Tao’s past issues, I bet she’s not feeling too good right now."

Third Aunt slapped her forehead and laughed along, "Look at me, I did forget about that. The Mrs. Li is a restless one, how long ago was that, and she still always comes to join in the fuss. No wonder her mother-in-law doesn’t favor her anymore."

"Exactly. She thinks she’s the only one who can have kids? It’s Shen family’s loss for not marrying her, after all. Now that she heard Mrs. Shen is pregnant, it must be leaving a bad taste in her mouth... You know, some people really can’t see what’s clear. Even though Mrs. Shen might not be as capable as her, in other aspects she’s streets ahead. Never mind the rest, just based on looks alone, if I were a man, I’d have also chosen the current Mrs. Shen. And now it’s even more impressive; she’s a university graduate, an educated person who won’t be working in the fields like us. When she comes back, a good job will simply be laid out in front of her to choose from. Does she really need to toil in the vegetable fields every day like Huang Tao?"

This woman had looked down on Huang Tao for a long time; these young daughters-in-law should have had more to say, but Huang Tao always compared herself to others, stepping on everyone else to elevate herself. She had long been annoyed by this and couldn’t understand why Huang Tao even thought she could compete with Shen family’s university-educated daughter-in-law. She was delusional.

"That’s true." Third Aunt nodded in agreement, "I wonder what goes through her head? Her mother-in-law wasn’t always like this; after she had given birth to three boys, I remember she was quite pleasant and affectionate with her. But now, she can barely look at her without disgust. I bet it’s because she can’t stand her self-pitying attitude." It must be said that Third Aunt, the veteran gossip expert, really hit the nail on the head.