Upon seeing Jiang Xiaoyue, Feng Qingxue was not surprised at all. However, Bai Xue’s presence particularly took her off guard.
Due to Lu Jiang, there was no friendship between her and Bai Xue.
"If Jiang Xiaoyue can come, why can’t I?" Bai Xue said while putting down the bamboo basket she carried on her arm, casually sitting on the kange edge, "I’d rather use up my coupons to buy things for you than for them."
She said the latter sentence through gritted teeth, eyes filled with resentment, which somewhat damaged her charming beauty.
Feng Qingxue and Jiang Xiaoyue exchanged glances. It was clear who the "them" Bai Xue referred to. It must be the parents and children of Su Junlin. The relationship between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law has always been tricky, especially the relationship between a stepmother and her husband’s children from a previous marriage was not without gaps. Children weren’t easy to raise, especially since Su Junlin was always away with the army, and the children were basically raised by his deceased wife and parents. The children, naturally wary of outsiders only saw Bai Xue, a woman significantly younger than them, as their stepmother.
Jiang Xiaoyue chuckled, "Bai Xue, being in the compound isn’t treating you well, is it?"
"What a load of crap!" Gone was Bai Xue’s past elegance and pride, she let out a curse then no longer tried to hide her feelings, "Comrade Su Junlin has four sons and two daughters, six children! The eldest and second sons, and the eldest daughter, are older than me. They’re married, but not settled, and they constantly look to their elderly father for financial support. They demand money and coupons, claiming that as their mother, I should take care of their lives. Then there’s the younger two sons and a daughter. The older one among them is the daughter who’s already discussing marriage. The youngest two sons are twins, only seven years old, who are honestly a nightmare! You tell me, how can I be satisfied?"
Feng Qingxue found the situation quite amusing, but she made sure not to show it. If Bai Xue noticed, it would have seemed unkind.
"If that’s the case, you should move out and live in the army. Keeping a family of strangers together is bound to cause various conflicts. You, as part of the entertainment troupe, should be living with the army in the first place. No one can critique that. On the contrary, having you stay at home is disrespectful to your work and disregards state law."
Bai Xue’s face darkened, "You think I have not considered living with the army? But after my in-laws and Su gave the word, the army readily facilitated my stay at home. The excuse? Oh, they said there was not enough space in the army, that it would ease the army’s burden, which drove me crazy. No, I have to find a way to move out. It’s great to live in the compound, with all the leaders around, and being able to chat and greet them. But regarding Su Junlin’s parents and his children, I just can’t handle them anymore."
Regarding this issue, it was not up to Feng Qingxue and Jiang Xiaoyue to comment.
With Bai Xue’s agreement, Jiang Xiaoyue promptly lifted the blue wool cover from the basket, her eyes instantly widening, "Wow, Bai Xue, you must’ve struck gold? You’ve brought so many things for Sister Xue."
Saying this, she immediately became suspicious, "Wait a minute, Bai Xue. Although your rank is higher than mine because you’ve been in the army for several more years than me, according to the salary and supply quota, even if it is just after the first pay check and coupons of the month have been issued, you should not have able to collect so many good things. Some of the things are only available in the Friendship Store and only available for the supply department."