Chapter 58 - 40: The Jilted Wife of the 1950s

Chapter 58: Chapter 40: The Jilted Wife of the 1950s

"My husband has a master’s degree and is an engineer. His salary crushes your son’s!" Zhu Yun said with a smirk, crossing her arms. "Aunt Wang, there are always bigger fish in the sea. No matter how outstanding your son is, he doesn’t exactly stand out at the factory. How many people there even know who he is?"

"I’d say that once you leave this housing complex, nobody has even heard of your son’s name. But as for my husband and me, you can just grab a random person and ask. See if they know who we are."

Old Mrs. Wang ground her teeth in rage.

For miles around their hometown, her son was in a class of his own.

But the way Zhu Yun told it, her son was just a backdrop to make someone else shine.

The worst part was, she knew Zhu Yun wasn’t lying. It was the kind of thing anyone could easily verify just by asking around.

It was precisely because it was almost certainly true that Old Mrs. Wang felt her skin crawl.

A maid who had served their Wang Family for seven years had turned the tables and was now walking all over her. The feeling made her want to vomit blood. After all, she had been the one to drive her out...

Seeing the old woman’s look of utter disbelief, Zhu Yun felt a deep sense of satisfaction as she shut the door.

Chu Shenyu poured her a cup of tea. "That should keep people from bothering us now, right?"

Zhu Yun raised an eyebrow at him, a faint smile playing on her lips. "You’re seriously underestimating Old Mrs. Wang’s tenacity."

"After getting scammed out of all that fried food, she’s only going to try harder!"

Sure enough, about twenty minutes later, Old Mrs. Wang was knocking on the door again.

Chu Shenyu’s face darkened, and he had no intention of opening the door.

"Little Chu, Third Girl, what are you two doing with the door shut in broad daylight? Why won’t you open up?" the old woman squawked at the door, her voice like a rooster’s crow, so jarring it sounded like she might cough up blood.

"Are you sleeping that soundly? We’re out of cooking oil, can I borrow a little?"

’Third Girl?’

Zhu Yun and Chu Shenyu exchanged an appalled look. The next moment, Zhu Yun yanked the door open, a bright smile spreading across her face. "Oh, Aunt Wang, you know how it is. The days are long in the summer, and we’ve been up since three or four in the morning. Can’t a person take a little break?"

"But you’re the one who doesn’t need much sleep, so go bother your own son and daughter-in-law. If you’re out of oil, take your bottle and go buy some. We haven’t even started cooking today. Are you just trying to make trouble for us?"

"Back in our hometown, only a mortal enemy would dare ask a newlywed couple for oil. And don’t pretend you don’t know the custom. Back when I was married to that turkey Wang Xianbing, Third Uncle came over to borrow oil, and didn’t you slip him some laxatives that made him soil his pants?"

Old Mrs. Wang was so stunned she couldn’t get a word in, her face flushing red, then turning pale.

’She used to be such a thin-skinned, mealy-mouthed little wife. When did she get so sharp-tongued?’

"And another thing. If you ever call me ’Third Girl’ again, I’ll start calling your son ’Wang Goudan,’ and you ’Goudan’s Ma.’ I’ll even grab a red banner and shout it all over the administration building."

"Step right up, step right up and listen! Wang Xianbing’s real name is Wang Goudan! He was a naughty kid who fell in a latrine pit and ate sheep droppings..."

The old woman was so furious she was gasping for breath. With a wail, she scrambled back to her apartment. "Thir... Zhu Yun, you’re forbidden to say that!"

Zhu Yun pursed her lips. "What a lightweight. I can’t believe she had the nerve to come here and pick a fight."

The corner of Chu Shenyu’s mouth twitched. He asked curiously, "So, Wang Xianbing’s name is Wang Goudan? And he... he really fell into a latr—"

Zhu Yun closed the door, grinning mischievously. "I know you’re an educated man. To put it in your terms, Wang Xianbing fell into the latrine pit."

She eagerly shared all the embarrassing stories she had heard back in the village about Wang Goudan.

"His whole family is obsessed with saving face. Just mention ’Goudan,’ ’latrine pit,’ and ’sheep droppings,’ and I guarantee they’ll take a wide berth whenever they see you."

Chu Shenyu nodded thoughtfully.

"I don’t like being so crass, but when you’re dealing with people like that, you have to use tactics they’re afraid of," Zhu Yun said with a shrug.

A mischievous glint appeared in her eyes, and she couldn’t help but giggle. "Lin Jin had better not cross me. If she makes me angry, I’ll be sure to tell her that her man fell in a latrine pit and ate sheep droppings..."

In the countryside, kids were raised without much fuss. Adults would often just set their children down at the edge of the fields while they went to work. It wasn’t uncommon for a kid to pick up sheep droppings off the ground and pop them in their mouth.

It was a normal enough thing, but saying it to Wang Xianbing and Lin Jin’s faces would be like twisting a knife in their guts.

"Haha, I wonder if they’ll be psychologically scarred whenever they kiss," she said, finding the thought so hilarious that she eventually collapsed on the floor, convulsed with laughter.

It was Chu Shenyu who, with a resigned sigh, pulled her into his arms. "Well, this certainly proves you have no lingering attachments to the people across the hall."

Zhu Yun shot him a glare.

"Why don’t we go to your place? We can’t let our wedding night be ruined by our neighbors, can we?" Chu Shenyu said, inhaling her scent. His fingertips traced the delicate skin of her arm, and his mind began to wander.