Chapter 295: Don’t Make Me Slap You – Daily Melon Eating in the Courtyard of the Sickly Young Lady

Chapter 295: Don’t Make Me Slap You—The Sickly Young Aunt’s Compound Drama & Gossip

"Let’s play it cool when we go back later, so no one suspects anything," said Mother Li.

Mother Lin had snapped out of it a little by now but still felt uneasy. "Nope, this still won’t work. Each of us should take out one rabbit and tuck them near the top of the baskets. If someone tries to search them later, it’s best if they find it right away."

Mother Sui frowned. "Why?"

Mother Li stroked her chin, thinking.

Mother Lin explained her reasoning, "We’re gonna cook this meat back home, right?"

"Mm," Mother Li and Mother Sui nodded.

"Then can you guarantee no one will smell even a hint of it?" Mother Lin pressed.

Both shook their heads.

"Exactly. We can’t hide the fact that we caught rabbits, but we can’t let others know how many we got. If they find out we caught a lot, some moochers’ll come begging," Mother Lin said meaningfully.

Mother Li and Mother Sui immediately understood. Of course—given the kind of people in their compound, such behavior was entirely possible.

"Alright, let’s do as Mother Lin says."

They each pulled out a rabbit from the bags at the bottom and tucked them near the top of their baskets.

"If anyone comes over later and tries to check our baskets, we must block them and act like we’ve got something good and don’t want them to see."

Mother Li and Mother Sui snickered. They were pros at this game.

Once they had their plan settled, the three prepared to head back.

They entered the compound cheerfully, only to see their usual rivals sitting under the eaves, staring them down like hawks.

Mother Gu was the first to speak. "Where’ve y’all been?"

Mother Li replied, "Oh, just grabbed some greens out in the fields."

"Greens?"

The group then turned their attention to the baskets on their backs, their eyes practically glowing before they rushed over.

"Lemme see what you scored!" Mother Jiang made a grab for the baskets.

Mother Lin blocked her, pushing her bicycle forward a few steps. "None of your business! If you want some, go pick your own!"

Mother Jiang was annoyed. "What’s the harm in looking? We’re like family! Shouldn’t you share with family?"

"Back off! I’ll slap the greed outta you! No matter what, I’m still your elder. Since when do elders have to offer things to their juniors?"

Mother Jiang shrunk back, shut right up, and could only turn to inspect Mother Li and Mother Sui’s baskets instead.

The two dodged, not giving an inch.

Mother Su’s eyes lit up, scheming. "Oh? You’re hiding them so fiercely—did you find something really good?"

Mother Li flinched like a kid with stolen candy. "Nope, nothin’!"

Then, while Mother Li was distracted, Mother Zhou made a grab for the basket. "Aha!"

Mother Jiang and the other women quickly turned to look at Auntie Zhou. Mother Li, who’d just realized someone had peeked into her basket, quickly backed off.

"What a fat rabbit!" Auntie Zhou exclaimed in shock.

"A rabbit?" Mother Jiang, Mother Gu, and Mother Su also gaped at them in shock.

"Really, a rabbit?" Their eyes lit up.

Mother Li, like she’d been caught in the act, turned red with anger and snapped, "So what if it's a rabbit? We got lucky—we each bagged one."

"One each?" Their eyes practically sparkled.

Mother Su immediately changed her expression, putting on a helpless act as she addressed Mother Sui, "Mother Sui, can I discuss something with you?"

Mother Sui shook her head, horrified. "No, nothing to discuss."

The moment she saw Mother Su's change in demeanor, she knew nothing good would come of it. Without waiting for her to finish, she darted past them and bolted.

After all, what they needed to do was already done—the rabbits were now out in the open, so they no longer had to worry about being caught eating meat later.

Mother Li suddenly realized her two comrades-in-arms had already fled, leaving her alone to deal with these sharks.

"If you want some, go catch them yourselves! It’s been forever since our families had meat—we can’t just give ours away," Mother Li said before hightailing it out of there.

Left behind, the other women fumed and stomped their feet.

Mother Gu jumped in, "Why’d they bolt like that? It’s not like we were going to snatch theirs."

Mother Jiang added, "Exactly!"

Only after speaking did Mother Jiang realize she had just agreed with her old nemesis. Displeased, she snorted and turned to go home.

Mother Gu, having been given the cold shoulder by her old foe, was also in a foul mood. She snorted as well and marched off in a huff.

Left behind, Auntie Zhou and Mother Su glared at each other before parting ways.

Once back home, each of them began plotting a trip to the woods.

The haul of Mother Lin, Mother Li, and Mother Sui was way too tempting.

"No way, I have to go too. Why should they get all the luck? I can do the same," they each thought silently.

Last night, the entire courtyard smelled of stewed rabbit. Kids all over the courtyard started whining.

"Meat! I want meat! I want meat too!"

"Eat, eat, eat—all you know is eating! Where do you think we’d get meat?"

"Be good, I’ll buy you some tomorrow. Just hold on for now, okay?"

"No! No! I want it now!"

The children wailed and rolled around while their parents alternated between scolding and coaxing.

Jiang Da Sao had gone out in the afternoon and had no idea about Mother Lin, Mother Li, and Mother Sui’s return.

When the mouthwatering smell spread, her mouth watered.

As soon as Jiang Hai came back, she looked at him and said, "I want some too."

Mother Jiang was standing nearby and scolded Jiang Da Sao for being so thoughtless, "What are you thinking? That's rabbit they're eating—do you want some too?" There’s a folk belief that eating rabbit during pregnancy will cause the baby to have a cleft lip, so pregnant women are generally forbidden from eating rabbit. [Note: This is a traditional Chinese superstition.]

Jiang Da Sao immediately clammed up after hearing it was rabbit and didn’t dare say she wanted any anymore.

But while Jiang Da Sao didn’t dare eat, others were still craving it!

Jiang Yang asked, "Mom, who cooked the rabbit?"

Mother Jiang didn’t answer right away, first glaring at Lin Shu.

Lin Shu’s mouth was watering too, and she was confused by the glare. "Mom, why are you glaring at me?"

Mother Jiang replied to Jiang Yang, "It’s from your grandparents' place!"

Lin Shu understood, and so did Jiang Yang!

"I want meat! I want meat!" Jiang Dahu and Jiang Erhu threw a fit.

"Eat, eat, eat—if you really want some, tell your stepmother to ask her grandparents for some!" Mother Jiang said while looking at Lin Shu.