Chapter 9 - 009 Idle Talk at the Dinner Table

Words : 1370 Updated : Sep 10th, 2025

Chapter 9: 009 Idle Talk at the Dinner TableThe two houses were just next door to each other, the distance between their main gates only about seven or eight meters. In no time at all, they had entered Big Brother’s courtyard. Just inside, they saw a middle-aged woman holding a colander, directing a man working in the yard. "Sister-in-law." "Xiao Heng, you’re back! I heard your gate just now and figured it was you. Hurry inside, the dumplings are almost ready." Du Heng smiled but, instead of going into the house as his sister-in-law suggested, walked over to the man, intending to help carry the coal bags. "Big Brother, let me." "Get inside. What can you do with your meager strength?" Du Ping looked at Du Heng with disdain. "Don’t bother with it. It’s just one bag of coal. Let your brother handle it. Hurry inside, I’ll get you some dumplings," his sister-in-law said, also taking Du Heng by the arm and pulling him towards the house. Hearing there was only one bag of coal, Du Heng didn’t insist and obediently followed her inside. These two were Du Heng’s older brother and sister-in-law. It’s often said that an elder brother is like a father and an elder sister-in-law like a mother, and these two truly embodied that saying. His sister-in-law, Zhang Sumei, had been Du Ping’s elementary school classmate. Their families lived near each other, though not in the same village. When she married Du Ping, Du Heng was just starting elementary school, and their family home consisted of only three old rooms. Yet, she hadn’t looked down on their situation. Defying her parents’ pressure, she asked for no betrothal gifts and married into this utterly poor family. She even helped Du Ping support Du Heng all the way through college. S~eaʀᴄh the Nôvel(F)ire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The two brothers, in turn, had made them proud. Du Ping learned the trade of a bricklayer, just as rural development was taking off. He not only became a renowned artisan in the surrounding villages but also managed to fund his younger brother’s college education. Moreover, he built himself a five-room house and helped Du Heng build a small two-story house. Du Heng had also done well. He was admitted to Jinzhou Traditional Chinese Medicine College and later secured an authorized job at the Health Clinic. Though it was a grassroots workplace, it was a stable profession, and as a doctor, he was respected. The family atmosphere was joyful and harmonious. Du Yi had already grabbed his chopsticks, eagerly waiting for his mother to bring the dumplings to the table. Even under his sister’s stern gaze, he held his chopsticks unflinchingly, waiting. Eating dumplings wasn’t just his little uncle’s favorite; it was his favorite too. Du Heng smiled and prepared a dipping sauce bowl for his little nephew, telling him not to be anxious. Without any aversion, he once again wiped clean the boy’s persistently runny nose. When the dumplings were served, Du Ping also washed his hands and came in. Seeing Du Yi being firmly held back by Du Xuejing, and Du Heng waiting nearby, he pursed his lips and said, "What’s all the fuss? Hurry up and eat." Despite his words, Zhang Sumei still placed the first dumpling into Du Ping’s bowl, and only then did everyone else begin to eat. It was a bit old-fashioned, but this was the discipline Zhang Sumei had instilled in the family. There was no way around it; everyone had grown accustomed to and accepted this approach. "Xiao Heng, Old Secretary Liang from the Liang family isn’t doing well. Go check on him tomorrow," Du Ping said while eating, already arranging his brother’s work. The Old Secretary he was referring to was the person who had helped the two brothers the most during their most difficult times. Du Heng swallowed a dumpling, then picked up another as he asked, "Wasn’t he quite robust last week? I saw him sitting by his door sunbathing last Sunday. How did he suddenly decline so quickly?" "Well, people get old," Du Ping replied nonchalantly. "Hasn’t he been to the hospital?" "He has. The hospital said his body was just a bit weak, that he was old and his organs were failing, and there wasn’t much they could do." "Alright, I’ll go first thing in the morning." His sister-in-law brought another plate of dumplings from the pot. "I bought some eggs and milk; they’re by the door. Take them with you when you leave, so you can bring them when you go tomorrow." Du Heng nodded, took the dumplings, and placed them on the table. "Sister-in-law, you come eat too. They won’t be as tasty if they get cold and stick together." "Okay, you all eat first. I’ll cook the last few." Seeing his wife about to cook more dumplings, Du Ping took several from the freshly served hot plate and put them into the bowl beside him, which was already piled high. "Actually, if the Old Secretary really passes away like this, it might be a good thing," Du Ping remarked with a sigh. Du Heng agreed with this sentiment. The Old Secretary was eighty-one. To pass away without illness or suffering was, indeed, a relatively good way to go. In contrast, his wife, seventy-eight this year, had undergone ostomy surgery for rectal cancer. Since then, she had been bedridden, and her pain, when it came, was expressed in heart-wrenching cries. Initially, she took painkillers once a day, which increased to three times, and now five times a day. Such suffering was truly unbearable. Their children, out of filial piety, had the surgery performed on their mother, and it did prolong her life. But now, listening to their mother’s agonizing screams every day, it was probably not the outcome the children, or the old woman herself, had wanted. The old woman and her children were probably all on the verge of breaking down. Extending life like this was truly agonizing. "Big Brother has a point. Passing away like this is better for everyone. But I wonder what Madam Liang will do afterward?" "She’ll just go on living as she is now, what else can be done? Taking painkillers every day, with her sons, grandsons, and great-grandsons looking after her." His sister-in-law finished cooking the dumplings and brought over the bowl Du Ping had filled for her. "Alright, you two, that’s enough. Change the subject." Du Heng chuckled. He had eaten his fill and, seeing his niece had also put down her chopsticks, asked, "Xuejing, have you decided which school you want to apply to?" Du Xuejing squirmed a little and didn’t speak. Her mother, Zhang Sumei, glared at her. "She’s only been in senior third grade for two weeks, just finished her tests, and we already had to go to the school because of this girl! College? She wouldn’t even be wanted for roasting sweet potatoes." Du Xuejing retorted, unconvinced, "I just didn’t perform well! The day of the math test, I don’t know why, but I was especially sleepy." Du Heng waved his hand. "It’s alright. Your previous grades were pretty good. One bad test isn’t a big deal. First, tell me, what kind of school do you really want to go to?" Du Xuejing was still hesitant to speak, her eyes darting towards her mother. Zhang Sumei glared at her daughter again. "Just say it. Why are you looking at me?" "I want to apply to medical colleges and universities," Du Xuejing finally said, mustering her courage. "That’s great," Du Heng said, looking at Du Xuejing with puzzlement. "But Mom wants me to go to a normal university," Du Xuejing looked at Du Heng, aggrieved. "Little Uncle, can you try to persuade Mom?" Zhang Sumei had her own considerations. "You’re a girl; being a doctor is such exhausting work, you wouldn’t be able to handle it. Being a teacher is so much better—nine to five, plus summer and winter vacations. And besides..." As Zhang Sumei spoke, her gaze shifted to Du Ping beside her. Du Ping sighed helplessly but said nothing.

Chapter 9 - 009 Idle Talk at the Dinner Table

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