Year 1979: Eating meat with my wife and children

Li's mother was so angry that she slapped Li Xiaotao on the back after being fooled by her own grandson.

"Are you smart or stupid? Do you think I'm blind? Didn't you drink that yourself? You only got two spoonfuls, no more!"

Li Xiaotao didn't cry out in pain after being slapped. He stared wide-eyed at the small iron basin filled with water for making egg drop soup. "Grandma, why is there nothing left?"

"There's never any left over!"

Li's mother knew exactly how much water to use each day to make the egg drop soup, and it was always exactly the right amount: two spoonfuls for older children and one spoonful for younger ones.

Having failed to achieve his goal, Li Xiaotao scratched his head and sat down, then fixed his gaze on his elder brother, Li Xiaojiang.

Li Xiaojiang directly refused, saying, "Don't look at me, I don't even have enough to drink myself."

Li Xiaotao dared not provoke his two younger sisters, as he would be beaten if he made them cry. Because of his third uncle, he skipped over Li Xiaohai and instead put his head next to Li Xiaobo.

"Hey, Little Wu, can't you finish your drink? Let your second brother drink a couple of sips for you, okay?"

'Pooh'

Li Xiaobo spat into his bowl.

He was bullied by his two older brothers when he was young, so he didn't dare to refuse directly, fearing that he would be beaten later.

He pretended not to hear and asked with a blank look, "Brother Xiaotao, what did you say?"

Li Xiangdong was amused by his two nephews and laughed heartily.

Li's mother picked up her chopsticks and went over, tapping Li Xiaobo on the head. "Aren't you disgusting? If you dare spit in the bowl again, I'll have your mother slap you across the face!"

She looked at her four grandsons sitting at the small dining table one by one, and said, "All four of you better eat your food properly. If any of you dare to misbehave again, starting tomorrow, you won't get any more boiled eggs!"

"Grandma, I'm being very good."

Li Xiaohai tilted his head back and acted ingratiatingly.

"Ah."

Li's mother nodded perfunctorily. Although her youngest grandson had only recently returned to the city, he was the youngest among her grandsons.

But she knew that Li Xiaohai was no well-behaved child either; he was just like her third son, full of cunning and wicked schemes.

Li Xiangdong sat at the large dining table, watching the children's pre-meal performance, and happily drank his corn porridge.

The family members are used to it. If these kids don't cause a ruckus during meals, they can't eat in peace.

In other words, Li Xiaobo spitting into the bowl was a very unruly thing to do, otherwise Li's mother wouldn't have bothered to go and teach them a lesson.

"Third brother, I remember you had your photo taken when you returned to the city to transfer your household registration. Remember to bring the photo, your work introduction letter, and your household registration book when you go to report for duty."

Mr. Li spoke up to remind his son that he was worried his third son might be unreliable and mess things up again, given how good the job was.

If he didn't have to go to work in the morning, he would have liked to accompany his third brother to complete the onboarding procedures!

Li Xiangdong put down his bowl and replied, "I know, Dad. I've prepared the photos and letters of introduction; they're in my room. I'll have my mother give me the household registration book after we finish eating."

Old Li chimed in, "Dongzi, eat quickly. After you're done, tidy yourself up. It's your first day on the job, so don't be late."

When Mrs. Li heard what her husband said, she immediately became unhappy.

"What's the rush? Dongzi's eating, why are you rushing him? It's only a few o'clock now, how could Dongzi be late?"

Li Xiangdong watched his grandparents bickering with a smile, and ate his meal at a leisurely pace.

"Mom, don't cook for me at noon today. I don't know anything about the situation since it's my first day there. There are also a lot of procedures to go through when I register. I probably won't be able to get back by noon."

“Why would you come back for dinner? Do you still think this is your dad’s coal shop? There are less than ten people in total. The company you’re going to work for is a proper state-owned enterprise, it definitely has a canteen.”

Suddenly, Li's mother slapped her thigh, stood up, and said, "I almost forgot to prepare a lunchbox for you, otherwise you wouldn't even have anything to eat with."

She didn't even bother to eat her meal. She went inside, found an aluminum lunchbox, and took it to the yard to wash it.

Grandma Li reminded her mother, "Remember to bring chopsticks."

Li's mother replied loudly from the yard, "I'm preparing it. How could I forget that? You're too old for that, don't worry about it."

"My own grandson, Dongzi, why would I worry about outsiders?"

Old Mrs. Li felt uncomfortable listening to her daughter-in-law's words.

Normally, Li's mother would pretend not to know what she said or did, and would not interfere. But when it came to Li Xiangdong, she would keep everything to herself.

The family members were used to it and all pretended not to hear what Grandma Li said.

Li Erge swallowed the cornbread in his mouth and said, "Dongzi, remember to keep two packs of good cigarettes in your pocket. You'll need them when you're out on business. Do you have any? If not, Erge will get you two packs."

"Do you need to remind me, Third Brother? He already took all my good cigarettes! And I must say, Second Brother, you're quite generous this time. I, as your father, have never even smoked any of your good cigarettes."

Mr. Li still harbors resentment towards his third son for packing up his belongings.

"Hehe, Dad, I'll get you two packs in a bit."

Li Erge smiled awkwardly. It wasn't that he wouldn't let his father smoke the good cigarettes; rather, it was that his father usually looked down on the cigarettes he smoked.

Little did he know, his father now only had eight cents left in his drawer!

“Dongzi, you can’t wear this. Your older brother has a white shirt. I’ll get it for you in a bit. Try it on and see if it fits. If it does, you can wear it to report for duty today.”

"That's right, Dongzi. Your sister-in-law is right. I haven't even worn that white shirt more than a few times, and it looks brand new."

Brother Li and his wife weren't stingy either. They knew their third son was going to work in the railway system, a job that would bring honor to the whole family.

It was just a white shirt they were giving up; the couple wouldn't feel bad about it.

Li Xiangdong politely declined the offer, saying, "No need, brother and sister-in-law, I already prepared the clothes yesterday."

Li Ersao laughed and said, "Third brother, the clothes are ready, but remember to carry some money and coupons with you. Don't go to the canteen all dressed up and carrying your lunchbox, only to find that you have no money or coupons in your pocket after you've gotten your food. That would be a laughing stock. If you don't have any money, just ask Dad for some. You can always pay him back when you get your salary."

Li Xiangdong felt that what his second sister-in-law said made perfect sense!

He was penniless and just wondering how to ask his parents for some money when his second sister-in-law set up the ladder for him.

He suddenly felt his leg under the table being touched by Zhou Yuqin, who was sitting next to him.

Li Xiangdong knew his wife was reminding him not to ask for money; the two of them weren't so poor that they couldn't even afford a meal.

He spent one yuan of the thirty yuan his grandparents gave him yesterday, and the rest is still with his wife.

However, he didn't plan to spend the money; he had a very important use for it.

He reached under the table, pressed down on his wife's leg, then looked at Li's father and rubbed his other hand together.

"Father, you can give me whatever you think is appropriate; I don't mind if it's not enough."