Siheyuan, I want to lie down but I become a tool

After dinner, while the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were washing the dishes, the old lady looked at Wang Xiulan with a look of disappointment, and earnestly advised her on how to be frugal and manage the household:

"Xiu Lan, Xingwang is a boy, and you have to be careful with him because he spends money lavishly, lest he do something dangerous when the family is empty, which is always bad..."

"Mom, didn't you tell me not to take care of him? Besides, Xingwang brings things back every now and then, and I still don't know what he's doing outside.

Every day he either goes to work or lies at home, and occasionally goes out at night, and comes back drunk, and there is nothing we can do about it..."

"Why are you so stubborn? You can't take care of the family even if they don't care about it outside. Hide the meat and oil he brings back, eat sparingly, and ask him for more living expenses..."

Wang Xiulan had been listening attentively, but she couldn't listen any more and said in a wronged tone:

"Mom, I've tried hiding it too. I've even hidden oil before, but Xingwang thought I was using too much oil when cooking, so he brought back half a pound the next day and complained that my cooking skills were not good enough and that the food would not taste good if I used too much oil..."

The old lady felt a little uncomfortable after hearing this, but she still straightened her messy expression and said:

"As for the meat, you stay in the kitchen and watch over it. If he brings back a lot, you can marinate it. Find a lock and lock any delicious food in the cupboard. This is what I used to do..."

"Mom, you don't know, let alone locking it in the cabinet, I am always the last one to see it. Even though Xingwang is a boy, he is very smart and is better at hiding things than a mouse.

He took the meat home secretly. With so many people at home, I guess only Xiaoya knew where he put the meat...

How many times have I not been able to find even a scrap of meat at home, but he would secretly take out meat when he was cooking...

And I cooked as much as I could. The little girl was still guarding the door, and she put all the ingredients into the pot before I noticed. There was nothing left. The only time there was some pork offal left, but I couldn’t pickle that either…”

The old grandmother's eyes twitched when she listened. She thought to herself how come you are not even as good as my little granddaughter, and you are better at hiding than a mouse. It would be strange if you could find you.

But he still covered his heart and signaled the fool in front of him to continue talking...

Wang Xiulan became more and more excited as she spoke:

"Not to mention snacks and desserts. Just look at your little granddaughter and you'll see. She eats different kinds of food all day long. Xingwang has spoiled her so much that he buys her whatever she wants.

Take the grapes this time for example. Grapes from the south are so precious. I wanted to taste them all at home and save some for you two elders. But Xingwang ate them all for the little girl. I searched Xingwang's room so many times that I almost asked the eldest brother to dismantle the bed, but I couldn't find where he hid his things...

I don't know how they got back such a large amount of food before the New Year that it filled up under the bed. Although it was a good thing, it scared us so much that we couldn't sleep all night and had to lock the door before going to the toilet.

I finally dug a hole with my eldest and second son for more than a week to store the money, but he stole it away after just a few days. I was so scared that I couldn't sleep for several nights. But I listened to you and didn't ask too many questions...

A few days ago, when there was no movement, my eldest brother and I took great pains to seal up the pit. But seeing that he sent you so much food this time, I have to go back and dig more with my eldest brother to prepare. What kind of life have I been living..."

When the old lady heard this, she completely failed to control her expression. She frowned and said to Wang Xiulan:

"Okay, stop talking. Um... you're doing pretty well. Keep it up. Just make sure you've done your best..."

Wang Xiulan had a lot to say, so she kept asking the old lady:

"Mom, what do you think I should do from now on? What if Xingwang doesn't do well in the moral, intellectual and physical aspects that he mentioned, and he can't be a leader and blames me?

You don’t know, according to what Xingwang said, the leader of their unit is simply lacking in virtue, not caring whether he goes to work or not, how his work is going, and all he does all day is think about asking about him…”

After talking for a long time and looking at the indifferent old lady, Wang Xiulan, at a loss, started to circle around again...

The old lady listened for a long time but didn't understand what the relationship was. Looking at her bewildered daughter-in-law, she could only comfort her insincerely:

"Your son is already this old, you should be more steady, don't rush and act like a millstone, just listen to Xingwang...

Besides, why are you asking me about this? How can I understand the affairs of a public institution? I guess his leader used to work in espionage. Don't make a fuss like your father-in-law..."

"You have to be surprised. Mom, you don't know, Xingwang has become more and more unruly. He even cares about what clothes we wear. A few days ago, I went to the department store and bought several sets of clothes for the whole family. He also bought me some leather shoes. I estimate that it cost more than 100 yuan.

He also said that he would take me there in half a month. Now my legs tremble when I hear the word department store. What should I do? No, I'd better not be a leader. What if someone reports me?

I have been wearing new clothes inside my home these days, thinking that if someone comes to ask about me, I will take off my old clothes outside. It is so hot every day, what should I do..."

After hearing this, the old lady felt that there was a reason why Wang Xiulan often suffered from headaches. Suddenly, she felt that her daughter-in-law's tone had a hint of pain and happiness.

Feeling a little uncomfortable, I said casually:

"Okay, you can tell your son whether he wants to be a leader or not. Anyway, I have never heard of a mother who doesn't want her son to be a leader. I am too old to care about these things. I am sleepy and need to lie down for a while..."

.........

After resting for a while, the family of four set off back to the city. Wang Xiulan had been asking Zhang Xingwang since yesterday why he always took leave from work.

Today, I was so anxious that I kept jumping up and down. I kept mumbling a lot while riding my bike. To sum it up, it was definitely not her fault that I couldn’t become a leader by the end of the year. As a mother, I had done my best. It was probably because he always asked for leave, and it had nothing to do with her at all…

She spoke eloquently, even more eloquently than Director Wang, and didn't notice that the little girl sitting behind her was almost driven crazy by her...

Zhang Xingwang did not refute. He felt that my mother's words were so well-reasoned and clearly meant what she said. In order to relieve her pressure, he casually replied:

"Mom, just do your best. I think my failure to become a leader has nothing to do with my work ability. Anyway, my boss has praised me several times at work..."

"Xingwang, you only go to work when you're in a good mood, and your boss always praises you. Is he really stupid?"

"If you don't believe me, go ask your boss. My boss's surname is Qi. He's a very nice person, not to mention he's cunning..."

.........