I Overhear Animals' Thoughts to Feed My Family

After returning from the cemetery, Zhao Wendong’s grandparents took Pandi and Laidi home. They wouldn’t be coming over for dumplings that night. As much as the grandparents disliked Zhao Dahai and his family, he was still their youngest son. They had to eat this meal together, since they all still lived together and hadn’t formally split the households.

Third Master Zhao, Grandmaster Ai, and Granny Liu had also gone home long ago. The elderly needed more sleep when hunkering down for the winter to conserve energy and reduce physical exertion. It was much like hibernation in the animal kingdom.

Zhang Yufen and Zhao Damei had also gone home, with Song Xiaoyu accompanying them. Song Xiaoyu was still helping Zhao Damei nurse her children. Although Zhao Damei’s health had improved a lot, she was still very weak and didn’t have enough milk. Fortunately, Song Xiaoyu had been eating well lately and even looked a little rounder. Plus, with Yadan recently starting on congee and nursing less, Song Xiaoyu had an abundant milk supply, which was perfect for helping Zhao Damei feed her two daughters.

Also nursing another’s young was the old sow in the outer room. The sow now had to raise not only her own eight piglets, but also a tiger cub and two bear cubs. Perhaps because Zhuangzhuang had paved the way, the old sow quickly accepted two more adopted children. Or maybe it was for the leftovers she now got every day. The Zhao Family knew she was a hard worker, so the soupy leftovers usually went to her. Especially today, for the New Year, all kinds of delicious scraps had the old sow feasting like a queen.

It wasn’t just the old sow who ate her fill. The three dogs, plus Xiaojin, Xiaobai, and Little Xiaobai, all ate until their bellies were taut and round. In short, this New Year, not only did the family eat splendidly, but so did the animals. Watching all of this, Zhao Wendong instantly felt that all his hard work recently had been worth it.

When it came to making dumplings that evening, there weren’t many options for the filling. Zhao Wendong had originally wanted to make them with celery, but after asking around, he realized it was impossible to get celery in this era. They didn’t even have plastic sheeting, let alone plastic wrap for greenhouses. So he had to settle for the next best thing, choosing between pickled cabbage with pork and Chinese cabbage with pork. In the end, everyone voted unanimously for Chinese cabbage and pork dumplings.

The white flour that Wang Defa had procured at the last minute before the New Year fulfilled Zhao Wendong’s wish for a dumpling feast. Chen Yanmei had prepared the dough early on, and just as dusk fell, the family started mixing the filling and wrapping the dumplings. Men from the Northeast rarely helped with cooking, but under Zhao Wendong’s influence, the Zhao Family men were all willing to lend a hand. The whole family gathered, talking and laughing as they enjoyed the simple joy of being together. In that moment, the act of making dumplings made their happiness tangible.

Being able to eat dumplings with his family during a year of disaster meant that Zhao Wendong’s first month back home had been, without a doubt, a great success. They had been wrapping for a little while when Pandi and Laidi came over to help. Zhao Wendong took a careful look at their faces and frowned.

"What’s wrong, Pandi?"

"Nothing."

"Laidi, you tell me."

Seeing that Zhao Pandi didn’t want to talk, Zhao Wendong turned to the other sister. Zhao Laidi would tell Brother San anything he asked, and she immediately pouted and spoke angrily.

"My parents are at home, just nagging on and on. It’s so annoying."

"What were they nagging about?"

Zhao Laidi glanced at the large family gathered around them, then looked hesitantly at Zhao Wendong. If they were in private, she wouldn’t have hesitated for a second, but with so many people here, she felt it might not be appropriate to air her family’s dirty laundry during the New Year celebration.

"It’s okay. Just tell me what happened."

Hearing Zhao Wendong’s words, Zhao Laidi relaxed. Zhao Pandi tugged on her sister’s arm, trying to stop her, but Zhao Laidi just shook her off. She had been unhappy with Zhao Dahai and Wang Jinzhi for a long time. Ever since they were little, her parents had favored their son over their daughters, letting Zhao Wenhua bully and take advantage of them. And since she had a stronger personality than Zhao Pandi, she’d been punished more than her fair share of times growing up.

"My brother said we came here for a feast at noon and didn’t care about the three of them. My dad said we weren’t home helping with chores and cooking. My mom... my mom said we were a worthless drain on the family, that we weren’t even married yet and our loyalties were already with another family. And my mom also said..."

Many of the Zhao Family members paused what they were doing. Some frowned, while others just shook their heads and continued wrapping dumplings. On the kang, Zhao Dashan sighed. That couple, Zhao Dahai and his wife, were truly becoming more and more shameless.

Zhao Wendong, however, was the calmest person there. He knew Zhao Dahai’s family all too well. Seeing Zhao Laidi trail off, he smiled and asked, "What else did your mom say?"

"She... she said you’re siding with outsiders too, Brother San. That it was bad enough you didn’t give the job opening to my older sister, but you gave it to Zhao Baolian instead. She even said that since she doesn’t have a job, why not give it to her, so she can go be a worker at the textile factory."

"PFFT!"

Zhao Wendong couldn’t help but laugh out loud. ’Wang Jinzhi sure knows how to dream,’ he thought. ’When the old Party Secretary was arranging for female workers, why would he pick some old broad to go there and coast until retirement instead of a young, quick, and capable girl?’

"Brother San, ever since my sister didn’t take the job at the textile factory, my dad, my mom, and my brother have been making snide remarks about her every single day. We know you were looking out for us, and that you wanted us to stay with Grandma and Grandpa to give you peace of mind, but they’re constantly nagging in our ears. I’m so sick of hearing it! You have to help us."

Zhao Wendong stopped rolling out the dumpling wrapper in his hands. He tilted his head, thinking for a moment without a word.

Zhao Wenjun snorted heavily. "What a bunch of ungrateful wretches. They’ve completely forgotten how we went to the Wang Family’s Hut to sort out their mess. They were all nice and thankful then, but as soon as it was over, they forgot all about it. They only come to you when they need something and toss you aside when they’re done. What a piece of work."