Chapter 31
Frightened, Xu Man opened his eyes with a jolt
The room was pitch black, nothing could be seen
When she closed her eyes again, she saw a mirror the size of her palm, with its own luminescent effect
“Hello new stepmother, please allow me to introduce myself” The small mirror also made a gentlemanly bow, “My name is Magic Mirror, but I’m not the magic mirror in Snow White’s stepmother’s hands I exist to help you raise your children better
You can ask me about all the difficulties you encounter in parenting Of course, I don’t always know”
Xu asked: “”
Then what’s the point of having you?
Xu Wen slandered in his heart, but the Magic Mirror was anxious, “Of course I’m useful, I’m useful in a lot of ways!”
“Such as?”
The mirror suddenly doubled in size, about the size of a flat panel, the mirror surface was replaced by a screen, displaying a bunch of dense text, telling her, “This is my instruction manual”
Xu Man was busy all day, tired and sleepy, barely read two lines before completely losing consciousness
She only remembered the magic phrase: “Magic mirror, magic mirror ”
Xu Man just woke up, heard an accusation: “You are too much!”
Xu Man looked around in a daze, the unfamiliar surroundings made her react for a while before she remembered that she had gotten married, and that she was in her new home
Beside her, Dongsheng was like a little frog, sleeping soundly on his back with his buttocks puckered out and drooling in the corner of his mouth
Xu Man also finally remembered that the voice seems to be a magic mirror, just do not know whether it is a dream
She tried to discard the distractions and closed her eyes again
Sure enough, she saw the Magic Mirror aggressively biting her fingers handle
“What the hell are you doing?” Xu asked
The magic mirror once again showed the instructions
Xu asked after reading it, “I don’t quite understand”
The magic mirror arrogantly raised his neck, “I understand it”
After thinking about it, Xu Man tried to follow the instructions and asked, “Magic Mirror Magic Mirror, what are the breakfasts suitable for three-year-olds?”
Only a drop was heard, and a bunch of recipes appeared on the mirror
Xu Wen cut out, “These recipes of yours aren’t even from this era”
What with milk and the like, who could afford to drink it in an unusual household nowadays?
The Magic Mirror retorted unconvincingly, “All of these ingredients are available in this era, it’s just that your family doesn’t have them”
“Are you mocking me for being poor and unable to afford it?”
Seeing that Xu Man was a little upset, the Magic Mirror avoided the important points and hinted, “You can also choose to make it with the ingredients you have For example, this egg soft cake with millet porridge”
It said as a detailed recipe for the egg softcake appeared on the mirror Not only was there a breakdown of ingredients, such as sixty grams of flour and two eggs It was also accompanied by vivid step-by-step diagrams, afraid that people wouldn’t understand
Xu Man tsked and praised it, “I didn’t expect you to be somewhat useful”
The magic mirror proudly raised its mirror, “That’s right!”
Xu Man opened her eyes to look at Dongsheng, who was still asleep, and lightly left the bedroom
This was the most solid sleep she had gotten in the past one or two years
There was no family and no roommates, and although there was a little Dongsheng, the fact that he slept heavily and didn’t talk in his sleep or snore was basically negligible
Xu Wen is no longer afraid that talking in his sleep will reveal anything
There is also a water well in the yard of the home, Xu Man hit the water from the bathroom to take a brand new toothpaste toothbrush to brush his teeth and wash his face
Lu Yuanzheng is really a particularly careful person, even the snowflake cream is ready for Xu Man
Thinking of Lu Yuanzheng, Xu Man’s nose was a little sour again, and she quickly shook off her head to work on something else
Thinking about it won’t help, so why make yourself sad
Xu Man first cleaned up the yard, from the water well water splashed wet stone brick floor, so as to prevent the dust can also cool down
He also tried to make a plate of egg pancakes according to the recipe given by the magic mirror
Not to mention, the broken mirror is quite useful
Xu Man, who was using the magic mirror for the first time, said that he could barely give a five-star review
While waiting for the millet porridge to be ready, Xu Man sat by the stove and counted her money and reconciled her accounts while burning the fire
The money that Lu Yuanzheng had left her before he left totaled two hundred and twenty dollars and twenty-two cents
Xu Wen secretly smacked her lips, so Lu Yuanzheng is still a big spender?
He married his daughter-in-law and has no external debt, but he still has money left over
Lu Yuanzheng spent a lot of money on marrying her and gave the Xu family a dowry of one hundred and ninety-nine dollars
The bride price for the Xu family was one hundred and ninety-nine dollars He also prepared three rounds of food and seventy-two legs in accordance with the popularity of the time
The banquet is also quite sumptuous
Although the account book is written clearly still owe the supply and marketing society and part of the members of a part of the money, but the collection of the gift money even after paying off the debt is still remaining a lot
Xu asked to count, gift money received a total of five hundred and sixty-seven dollars, owed one hundred and forty-eight dollars and seventy-seven cents
Part of it is the money for cigarettes and alcohol in the supply and marketing center, and some of it is the money for buying chickens, ducks, fish, and meat from the members of the society
Although individual economy is not allowed, occasionally special things can be done
For example, marriages
For example, when Lu Yuanzheng and Xu Wen got married, there were 20 to 30 tables at a time, so how could they have so many meat and food stamps at once?
So for weddings, they were allowed to borrow money from the members of the community from their own plots of land
This kind of borrowing is usually to return the money but not the goods
If you’ve eaten all the food, where can you return it?
Xu Man’s hand now has a total of seven hundred and eighty-seven dollars, minus the debt of one hundred and forty-eight dollars and seventy cents also left six hundred and thirty-eight dollars and fifty cents
Xu Wen tsked, “I thought I’d picked a poor boy, but I didn’t realize I’d married an invisible tycoon”
Six hundred dollars was a huge sum of money in seventy-seven years!
Xu Man had once read a statistic that a dollar now was equivalent to two hundred and twenty dollars forty to fifty years later
According to this algorithm, the six hundred dollars in her hand was equivalent to more than one hundred and forty thousand dollars
“So getting married can still make you rich!” Xu Wen hooked her lips in self-deprecation
This money in her hand was the real hard-earned money
It was what Lu Yuanzheng had been born into and died for
According to Lu Yuanzheng, his monthly allowance was forty to fifty dollars
But the allowance also rises from less to more
On average, if you count forty dollars a month, it’s not quite five hundred dollars a year
Dongsheng was over three years old, which meant that Lu Yuanzheng had been saving for about three years
After subtracting the necessary expenses, the 1,500 yuan would be about 1,200 yuan
However, Lu Yuanzheng said that they would pay thirteen months of salary a year, and there would be rewards for meritorious service
Based on the 1,500 dollars, it is estimated that all of them will be taken out to marry her
Xu Man’s heart is a little bit unfavorable, Lu Yuanzheng is too good to her She was ashamed of it
Xu Man extinguished the fire and found a new notebook to write down her accounts
Thinking that she had to keep a clear record of every penny spent
“Ma Ma!”
Xu Man heard Dongsheng call out and answered by walking into the inner room
Dongsheng rubbed his eyes and sat on the bed, originally unhappy, but turned sad to happy when he saw her, “Ma Ma, I thought you had left”
Xu Wen touched his head, “Won’t leave, we’ll all be living together from now on”
Dongsheng nodded vigorously
“Can you dress yourself?”
“Will”
“Then you dress yourself, I’ll go serve dinner”
The weather wasn’t too hot in the morning, so Xu Wen moved a small table and placed it on the patio, sitting face to face with Dongsheng, who had just finished washing his face
A bowl of millet porridge for one person, a plate of egg cakes on the table, and a plate of cold cucumber
Dongsheng wolfed down his food
“Eat slowly! No one is stealing from you It’s not enough I can make it again” Seeing Dongsheng about to choke, Xu Wen poured a bowl of cold white water for him
Dongsheng used water to smooth it down before speaking, “Ma Ma’s cooking is so delicious! It’s good to have Ma Ma”
“Then I’ll make it for you every day”
“Not every day Dad said you have to go to school If you go to school, you won’t be able to make it, so you can make it for me when you’re on vacation”
“Okay” Xu Man answered, but in his heart, he was thinking, Dongsheng is already three and a half years old, according to his age, he should go to kindergarten
But the production team didn’t have a kindergarten, so he had to go to the commune
This matter will have to be discussed with the eldest uncle and the youngest uncle’s family
After a slow breakfast, Dongsheng grabbed the dishes, Xu Wen first went to clean the pot, and taught Dongsheng to wash the dishes again
He is small, not clean, the outside of the bowl is still stained with small grains of rice
After cleaning up the house, Dongsheng took Xu Man to pay the bill
Xu Man reported to his family, “Liu San Dog”
Dongsheng led her to Liu Sanguo’s house and owed Liu Sanguo five dollars and eight dollars
After paying back the money, Xu Man crossed out Liu San Dog in the account book to go to the next family
All are a production team, borrowing money is not much, so there is no note, all based on credit borrowing and repayment
Dongsheng led Xu Man through all the homes that owed money, leaving only the last big debtor – the production team’s supply and marketing center
“Dongsheng, you are so smart! You’ve only been back with your father for a month and you’ve managed to memorize so many people’s homes?” Xu Wen praised from the bottom of his heart, almost like a little native
“Dad taught me Every time you change environments, you have to recognize people first, so you can tell the good guys from the bad guys”
“You guys change places a lot?”
“Uh-huh Spent a lot of time at the compound, and would often follow Dad out Would pitch a tent on the beach and swim in the sea ”
A large and a small, while chatting while walking, with the supply and marketing agency after clearing the accounts, Xu Man finally debt-free
Not only debt-free, but also a little rich woman
The little rich woman holding the little rich second generation to the door of the house saw Xu Wen waiting outside the door
“Second brother? Why did you come so early?”
“Our mom was afraid that you and the child would go hungry, so she asked me to come early to pick you up and take you home for breakfast”
A warm current surged through Xu Wen’s heart
Before he could say thank you, he heard Dongsheng argue defiantly, “Second uncle, I’m not hungry, we’ve already had breakfast Ma Ma’s cooking is delicious”
Xu Wen had eaten Xu Man’s cooking before and rolled his eyes, “Yes, your mom’s cooking is delicious, but it costs oil!”
Xu Man: “”
Although Xu Wen came to pick up Xu Man, Xu Man still rode his own bicycle He couldn’t come back and bother Xu Wen to give him a ride
From afar, he saw Zhu Meizhen and the others waiting at the intersection
This formation made Xu Man very uncomfortable, and she grumbled, “Making such a big deal out of it, it’s like treating a guest”
She was clearly returning home and had only gotten married yesterday
“It’s the son-in-law who’s returning to serve, not you! Lu Yuanzheng isn’t here you’re taking advantage of him” Xu Wen glanced at Xu Man and teased her, “A married daughter is supposed to be a guest Of course I have to be polite to you!”
Xu Wen was so angry that she reached out to hit him, “You’re the guest! I’m mom and dad’s little princess”
“Don’t you fall!” Xu Wen tried to reach out to help Xu Man’s handlebars, fearing that she was afraid she’d give herself a fall, “You’re not a bad driver with a bad temper!”
Not far away, Xu Qiushi said, “I told you that ask isn’t the kind that only cries to the sky and touches the ground, right? You still don’t believe me Look at her smile!”
Zhu Meizhen retorted, “Ask is not heartless This girl has a heavy heart and prefers to keep things bottled up in her heart and not say anything! Don’t keep mentioning Xiaozheng later”
“Grandma and Grandpa!” Dongsheng poked his head out from behind Xu Wen, waving at Xu Qiushi and Zhu Meizhen
“Hey!”
Xu Qiushi and Zhu Meizhen answered at the same time
Zhu Meizhen really liked Dongsheng, the child was good looking and sweet-talking, “Come, grandma hug!” She quickly walked a few steps and carried Dongsheng from the back seat of Xu Wen’s bicycle
“You guys go home first, I’ll return the bike” Xu Wen patted the handlebars
The bike was borrowed, and Xu Wen didn’t need him to deliver it in the afternoon, so it was better to return it to the person early
At lunch, Xu Wen took out five hundred dollars and put it on the table, “Mom, dad, second brother, sister-in-law, you can use this money to build your house first”
Xu Qiushi was the first to refuse: “No way! Xiaozheng isn’t even at home, you’re taking the family’s money and sending it to your mother’s house, if people find out about it, they’ll still poke you in the back!”
“Lu Yuanzheng let me”
“That won’t work either” Xu Wen also disagreed, “You can’t earn work credits now, and you still have to go to school Dongsheng is usually sent to someone else’s house, so you have to pay for his living expenses, right? Five hundred dollars looks like a lot, but it’s not enough to live on”
“Wenzi is right” Zhu Meizhen said, “Ask, leading a family is not the same as living on your own Before you got married, you had us for everything Once you’re married, you have to rely on yourself When you got married, Xiaozheng gave you two hundred dollars for the dowry, so we can’t even empty your family’s pockets
Besides, you’ve just received this money, haven’t you? This money is equivalent to borrowed money, and you have to return it to anyone’s family in the future You’ve given it to us, but if there are more relatives this year, what will you use for gifts?”
Sang Xiaoqing moved her mouth and didn’t make a sound
She actually wanted this money, not greedy, she wanted to borrow it
Which woman doesn’t desire to have her own house?
It was just that Xu asked for this money and she really didn’t have the face to ask for it
If it were not for her whining words, Xu would not have gotten married so early
Even the groom left before the wedding was over
Her in-laws didn’t say anything, but in their hearts they might have complained about her
Once you hear your mother-in-law say that this is a debt of gratitude, you don’t dare to speak up
“It’s not important what other people say Dongsheng and I have already set aside our living expenses” Xu asked, “Our family really should build two more rooms We’ll talk about the future later, but let’s get through the immediate difficulties first”
“I agree with Xu” Grandma spoke, “Let’s be united as a family If she has money in her hand, let’s use it first and pay her back when we have it”
“Mother!” Xu Qiushi sighed softly, “Let’s not talk about anything else, where can we build a house with this much space? The team doesn’t have any extra land to build a house There are plenty of people who want to build houses waiting in line!”
Xu Wen suggested, “Then why don’t my brother and sister-in-law move in with me?”
There were still many empty rooms in her house