Chapter 30: Registration
Chapter 30: Registration
With her household registration book and property deed in hand, Lu Jiaxin approached the local police station and explained her situation to an officer there. With a sympathetic look in his eyes, the officer helped her successfully register her residence in Guangming Road's neighborhood committee.
Having accomplished this important task, Lu Jiaxin was in a cheerful mood. "Xue Mao, to celebrate my new beginning, let's treat ourselves to a nice meal today."
Hearing that they would be dining out again, Xue Mao felt his scalp go numb. "Sister Jiaxin, let's not eat out. I'll go to the market and buy some good ingredients so we can cook at home instead."
He had been idle for so long that he was afraid to spend money so freely anymore.
Lu Jiaxin could cook. In fact, before university, she had never cooked a meal in her life. But during her university days, when she started living alone, she learned to cook. Later, when she studied abroad in Romance Country, her culinary skills improved significantly out of necessity—either she cooked or survived on bread alone.
"Alright then, buy more meat," Lu Jiaxin said.
Xue Mao went to the market and bought a chicken and three pounds of meat. When he returned home, instead of starting to cook right away, he first prepared a herbal concoction for Lu Jiaxin.
The smell of the medicine was so strong that Lu Jiaxin couldn't focus on her studies. After the concoction was ready, she pinched her nose and drank it down.
The first time was a bitter experience, leaving a foul taste in her mouth long after. She had to rinse her mouth with water repeatedly before the taste finally faded. But with time, she learned to rinse her mouth immediately after drinking the medicine and then pop a milk candy to neutralize the taste. This made the medicine more bearable.
Lu Jiaxin looked at the plump chicken that Xue Mao had bought and said, "Xue Mao, let's stew half of the chicken for soup, and braise the other half with potatoes."
"Okay," Xue Mao replied.
Just as they were about to start cooking, they heard Lu Jiajie's voice outside, "Jiaxin, Jiaxin, open the door. It's me."
Xue Mao hurried to open the door and let him in, then whispered, "Fifth Brother, Sister Jiaxin is studying inside."
"Jiaxin, Jiaxin, come out quickly. I've brought delicious treats!" Lu Jiajie called out.
Lu Jiaxin, hearing his voice, wondered why he was delivering things at this hour. When she came out, she asked, "Fifth Brother, don't you have to work?"
"It's fine. I took half a day off," he replied.
Lu Jiaxin thought he was being rather irresponsible with his job, taking time off at the slightest whim. But as his sister, and considering all that he had done for her lately, she couldn't bring herself to scold him for it.
"Jiaxin, each of the crabs in this basket weighs over half a pound," Lu Jiajie said. "Let's have steamed crab for lunch and spicy crab for dinner. We can use the leftover crab roe to make crab roe buns for breakfast tomorrow."
Xue Mao, ever the killjoy, interjected, "Fifth Brother, Sister Jiaxin is taking medicine. Crabs are cold and she can't eat them."
Lu Jiaxin's cheerful mood instantly evaporated, and she shot Xue Mao a reproachful look. If he hadn't said anything, she would have happily indulged. But now, no matter how much she craved the crabs, she knew she shouldn't touch them.
Lu Jiajie slapped his forehead. "Oh dear, I forgot about that. Xue Mao, let's steam six of them now, and we'll make spicy crab with the rest this evening."
Both men had hearty appetites, and three crabs each seemed just right.
Lu Jiaxin smiled and said, "Let's steam four for lunch, and you can take the rest back for Fifth Sister-in-law and Qiangqiang to enjoy. I've already made chicken stew, so I'll send some of that over to them as well."
Lu Jiajie waved his hands. "No, no, there's no need. If they want to eat crabs, I'll buy some for them."
Lu Jiaxin found this amusing. "Fifth Sister-in-law is frugal with money. She wouldn't spend it on crabs for the kids. You might as well keep your pocket money; otherwise, Fifth Sister-in-law will just argue with you about it again."
Lu Jiajie was left speechless, muttering something about how a penny can stump a hero.
Lu Jiaxin knew he was proud and wouldn't usually accept her help, but she also knew that he wouldn't refuse her this time. "Qiangqiang and Xiaofeng have lost a lot of weight lately. They need to eat more nutritious food.
Lu Jiaxin suggested, "Since it's inconvenient to give them extra meals at Ma's house, I can bring them over to my place to eat on the weekends."
Lu Jiaxin was aware of his situation. Due to the family planning policy, Mali had been sterilized after giving birth to Xiaofeng, rendering the previous agreement useless.
This was a national policy, and it wasn't a case of Lu's family going back on their word. Ma's father felt upset about it but could only accept it. However, he hadn't anticipated that Ma's eldest daughter would become discontent. While Mali lived comfortably in her parents' spacious home with over 50 square meters, her parents took care of her child, and she still looked like a young girl, her sister had to endure her mother-in-law's difficult behavior and her sister-in-law's exclusion, as her family of five squeezed into a tiny 20-square-meter home. Feeling aggrieved, she had started bringing her children to her parents' home frequently since last year and often made passive-aggressive comments about Lu Jiajie and Mali.
Ma's eldest daughter used to make snide remarks occasionally, but as she only came back twice a month, Mali, being the beneficiary of the current arrangement, tolerated it. However, after the spring, Ma's eldest daughter suddenly proposed to adopt her youngest son into her parents' home to carry on the Ma family lineage.
No male heir to carry on the family name had always been a concern for Ma's parents, and upon hearing her suggestion, their attitude changed immediately. However, Ma's eldest daughter's in-laws disagreed, and the matter came to a standstill.
Since Ma's eldest daughter brought up the idea of adoption, she not only left her youngest son in the care of her parents but also brought her other two children back to her parents' home for meals every few days.
Mali contributed a monthly food allowance, but Ma's eldest daughter never pitched in. The food allowance remained the same, but with more people eating, the quality of the meals declined. Qiangqiang and Xiaofeng were sometimes left hungry, which pained Lu Jiajie and Mali greatly.
Yet, Ma's eldest daughter was still not satisfied. She demanded that Mali and Lu Jiajie move out. Mali didn't refuse, but she had a condition: they must change Xiaopan's surname to Ma and register his household under her parents' names before she would agree to move out with her husband and children. Until then, she wouldn't leave.
This matter also caused a significant rift in the sisters' relationship. In this matter, Ma's parents were relatively rational, stating that they would only allow them to move back with the children if the children were registered under their names. However, Ma's eldest daughter's in-laws refused to agree, and the matter couldn't be resolved.
Lu Jiajie was reluctant to bring anything back: "If we take things back, your fifth sister-in-law and Qiangqiang won't get to eat much anyway."
He wasn't someone who didn't care about his wife and children, but the current problem was that his in-laws favored Xiaopan and always gave him priority.
Lu Jiaxin was taken aback, realizing that the conflict had escalated to such an extent. She said, "How about this, bring your fifth sister-in-law and the two children to my place to eat. I was just thinking that it's a bit quiet with just the two of us, Xue Mao. It'll be livelier with them here."
Seeing her suggestion, Lu Jiajie didn't decline further and replied, "Alright, then I'll pick them up after work."
Lu Jiajie finished his meal and returned to work.
Xue Mao asked curiously, "Sister Jiaxin, with twelve crabs, we ate four for lunch, so there are still eight left. There are only six people in Ma's family, so there are two extra. Why did Jiajie say that his fifth sister-in-law and the children wouldn't get to eat any?"
Lu Jiaxin briefly explained the situation in the Ma family. Every family had its own troubles, and with her own life in disarray, she wouldn't interfere in the Ma family's affairs.
Xue Mao couldn't help but think of his situation and said sadly, "Sister, why do blood-related family members calculate and scheme against each other over money?"
"Because of selfishness and greed," Lu Jiaxin replied.
(End of Chapter)
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