Fortunate Eighties: The Bewitching Female Rival Who Tamed Her Husband with Skill
Chapter 157 Laid-off

Chapter 157: Chapter 157 Laid-off

"Second sister-in-law, Second Aunt."

Su Xianyue’s eyes sparkled as she quickly went over to her eldest son lying on the kang, "Xiao Tian, hurry up and greet everyone."

"Aunt, Second Aunt," the little fellow obediently called out.

"Come here, Xiao Tian, let Second Aunt give you a hug."

Susu, holding the burly little guy, "Would you like to come and play with your brothers and sister next time?"

"Sure."

"Xian Yue, here’s some milk powder and malted milk essence, make sure to drink it."

Su Xianyue, caught between laughter and tears, "Second Aunt, I haven’t even finished the ones you and Second Sister-in-law gave me last time."

"That’s alright, just keep it and drink it slowly."

...

It was summer vacation, and Susu went back to the county with her in-laws and six siblings.

Of course, she didn’t miss Lu Xiaoting’s wistful little look before he went to work in the morning.

Lu Xiaoting kissed his dear daughter and son reluctantly.

The triplets, giggling, didn’t seem sad about not seeing their dad at all, waving their little hands at dad with bright smiles.

"Bye-bye, Daddy."

"Bye-bye, Daddy, Lele will miss you."

Lu Xiaoting shook his head helplessly. Daughters are the best, the little rascal is so heartless.

Once they got off the car, Susu asked her in-laws to take the kids back to the Family Court first, and she went straight to the cured goods shop to check the accounts.

The shop girl turned around and jumped with fright, clutching her chest, "Sister Su is back."

Susu nodded, "Mm, bring me the ledger to review."

The shop girl quickly brought the shop’s ledger over.

"Alright, you go about your business; don’t mind me," Susu said, immersed in the accounts without lifting her head.

Because the boss was there, the shop girl didn’t dare to sit sloppily and straightened up her body.

Susu, engrossed in the finances, didn’t notice, her focus entirely on the accounts.

On the other side at the Textile Factory Family Courtyard,

Father Lu and Mrs. Lu, leading six grandkids, entered the alley smilingly, meeting many old acquaintances along the way,

"Old Lu, are you bringing the grandkids back for summer vacation?"

"Mm, what’s up, Old Liu?"

"My goodness, from afar I saw your big family. Look at these kids, each one more handsome than the last."

"Not bad, not bad. My daughter-in-law is very filial; everything from top to bottom was prepared by her," Old Lu said, waving his hand modestly.

The other old men were both envious and sorrowful. Look at Old Lu’s life - so sweet with his grandchildren.

"Old Lu, you and your wife are really blessed. Who in the Family Court wouldn’t be envious?"

Mrs. Lu rolled her eyes at her husband who only knew how to show off day in and day out.

"Oh, isn’t this Aunt Lu coming back? These must be your triplets, look how chubby and well-nourished they are."

"Oh my, if I had three grandsons like these, I’d wake up from sleep laughing."

"Oh, Aunt Lu, the clothes you’re wearing look really nice. Did you make them yourself?"

Mrs. Lu finally got the question she had been waiting for and hurriedly fidgeted with the immaculate clothes on her body.

"Not at all. These were all brought back from the Southern city of Yangcheng by my Susu specially for me, her dad, and Aunt. I told her not to bring anything, but she wouldn’t listen."

The other old ladies were so envious, their eyes practically turning sour.

You see, it’s really a matter of different fates!

Their daughter-in-laws think all day about how to squeeze money out of an old lady like me, I’d be lucky if I get a needle and thread from them in a lifetime.

The old couple, having shown off around the Family Courtyard, finally walked back towards their own home with a sense of achievement, hands clasped behind their backs.

Tianyu and his sister watched their grandparents’ proficient routine, smirking at each other with a shared smile.

"Wow~ we’re home~"

As soon as the triplets entered the courtyard, they began to run around chaotically, in and out, overwhelmed by curiosity.

Looking at their dust-covered home, Father Lu and Mrs. Lu quickly started cleaning and heating the kang.

"Grandma and grandpa, let me help you," Tianyu said, fetching a basin of water and a rag.

"Me too, I’ll help Grandma and Grandpa with my brother."

"Me too, me too..."

Seeing this, the younger ones clamored to help out.

Mrs. Lu found the sight both amusing and touching; even the little ones, not much bigger than a broom, knew to care for their grandparents and help with chores.

"Xiao Xue, take your younger brothers and sisters to play in the courtyard for a while; it’s dusty in here, and your clothes will get dirty."

Xiao Xue looked at her three younger siblings, not even as tall as the kang, and obediently led them to play in the courtyard.

Inside the house, two adults and two children were busy sweating profusely, and with the dust in the air, they nearly looked like mud figures.

"Brother."

Tianyu had barely spoken when he made his younger siblings burst into laughter, leaving him completely baffled.

An’an pointed with her little hand, "Hahaha, big brother’s teeth are black."

Pingping clutched his stomach, "Hehe, big brother, how did your teeth become black?"

Xiao Lele covered his mouth and giggled uncontrollably.

Xiao Xue frowned, "Brother, what happened to your teeth?"

Tianyu wiped his hand across his mouth, and a smear of black mud appeared on his hand.

Remembering that he had been working with his mouth open, he felt both ashamed and embarrassed and quickly went to rinse his mouth with water.

Mrs. Lu had all the kang in the house heated up, and the fire under the pot was burning briskly, just right for wiping down their bodies and giving the kids a bath that evening.

The house hadn’t been lived in for quite some time, so the family would probably have to make do tonight.

Pickle Stall Courtyard

After checking the accounts, Susu noticed her Aunt deep in thought with a worried look on her face and asked, "Aunt, why the long face?"

Aunt Su sighed, "Cheng Ming’s factory isn’t doing well, and he’s among the workers who are being laid off this time."

Su Nian suddenly remembered that various factories were gradually declining in performance due to various factors.

After the ’90s, employees of state-owned enterprises would face mass unemployment—the so-called "layoff wave."

However, he hadn’t expected it to have already begun.

Aunt Liu Fen sighed, "Originally, my eldest’s salary was getting better and better, and together with selling pickles, our family’s life was becoming more and more prosperous.

Who would’ve thought... sigh~ It’s worrying to death."

Susu sighed, only able to offer words of comfort, "Aunt, you and my uncle shouldn’t worry too much. Nowadays, with private enterprises on the rise, you can work for yourselves or find something else to do. There should be plenty of shops in need of staff."

...

At this point, Su Chengming and his wife were sighing and moaning.

He Hong cried with swollen eyes, "What are we going to do if you’re out of work? If you lose your job, how will we provide for our three children?"

Su Chengming frowned, "Stop crying, or your eyes will suffer. We’ll think of something slowly; there’s always a way."

He Hong looked down at the family passbook and suddenly said, "What if we sold pickles?"

Su Chengming was stunned, and the couple earnestly discussed the matter with the passbook in hand.

In the span of two quick years, Su Chengming had earned a decent amount of money from selling pickles part-time, and that was only in his spare time.

The couple looked at each other, and for a while, neither dared to speak.

After much hesitation, Su Chengming said, "Maybe I should call your sister-in-law and ask her? She’s so good at doing business, very experienced and knowledgeable. Maybe she could give us some ideas that we hadn’t thought of."