Chapter 43: Chapter 43: Second Brother is the Real Big Shot

Dinner was lavish once again. Felix Thorne had worked three events that day, earning six yuan, plus three packs of Peony cigarettes. They cost fifty cents a pack and required ration coupons to purchase.

Normally, the villagers smoked the eight-cent Economy brand or the thirteen-cent Warrior brand. These didn’t require coupons and were cheap, so they were popular. People only splurged on Peony cigarettes for special occasions like wedding banquets. Felix Thorne himself didn’t smoke but enjoyed a little drink, so he usually gave away the cigarettes he brought home. The recipient was most often his brother, Goldie Thorne.

He also brought back three bags of sugar, three towels, and a pile of well-marbled meat. In the courtyard sat three sets of large intestines and three pig bladders. Felix Thorne loved eating the intestines, but most people couldn’t be bothered with them; they were too much trouble to clean. Everyone was more than happy to let him take them.

The bladders were for Byron Thorne. Pig bladders had medicinal uses, and when dried, they could serve as bags. They were both waterproof and durable, so Byron Thorne often used them to store his valuable medicinal herbs.

That evening, without any prompting from Tang Xiaonan, Phoebe Huxley took the initiative and chopped off a slab of meat weighing about two pounds.

’So Iris said I never give meat to my in-laws, did she? Hmph, I’ll let that stinking bitch see for herself just how dutiful Phoebe Huxley is.’

“Howard, take this meat to your grandma. Hold it steady, and don’t let any good-for-nothing mutt snatch it!”

Phoebe Huxley stood in the courtyard, bellowing at the top of her lungs for practically the whole village to hear. The door to the neighboring house creaked open. Phoebe Huxley sneered, then bellowed again, “Howard, tell your grandma not to be stingy with it! Once she’s finished this, we’ll send more. Our family can afford meat, unlike some households that are dirt-poor and have to make a single pound of meat last for a whole month!”

CRASH!

It sounded like something had been smashed in the neighboring yard. Phoebe Huxley’s mood instantly brightened. ’That ought to piss that old bitch off.’

Howard Thorne, knowing just how to stir the pot, roared even louder, “What good-for-nothing mutt would dare try to snatch our meat? I’d beat it to death and cook it in a stew!”

“That’s right! If a dog dares bite our little Nan, I’ll chop its head right off!” Jim Thorne had also come out, and he yelled this toward the neighboring house.

Crouched by the courtyard wall and eavesdropping, Iris’s face turned purple with rage. ’I must have had terrible luck for eighteen generations to end up with this family of bandits as my neighbors! Hmph, what’s so great about being a butcher? All that sin from the slaughter… he’ll definitely face retribution!’

Patrick Thorne emerged silently. He wasn’t a man of many words, but despite being the second brother, he was the true backbone of the trio.

He walked over to the courtyard wall and stood there for a moment. With a scornful smile, he shoveled up a pile of chicken shit and flung it over the wall.

“AGH! PTUI! PTUI! PTUI! You good-for-nothing devil! I hope you die a miserable death!”

Iris had been completely engrossed in her eavesdropping when she was showered with chicken shit, some of which even landed in her mouth. The foul stench was sickening. She spat out a few more curses before scrambling back inside to wash up.

Patrick Thorne dusted off his hands, tilted his head back, and calmly walked back into the house with the air of a seasoned gangster.

Tang Xiaonan watched, dumbfounded. ’So that’s what Second Brother is like,’ she realized. ’He’s the kind of dog that doesn’t bark, but takes a chunk of flesh when it bites. Truly vicious!’

’On top of that, his grades are the best of the three of them. Even though he studies so lackadaisically, he still maintains above-average scores. His IQ is definitely high!’

When Howard Thorne came back, he was carrying a pack of cookies. “Grandma said these are for little Nan to eat.”

Raina had left them out in the sun all day, so the cookies were perfectly crisp again. They had a milky aroma, and their texture was much better than it had been earlier.

“Well, look at that. Your mother’s being generous for once.”

Phoebe Huxley was genuinely surprised. She never expected her mother-in-law to send cookies, let alone a whole pack. In the nearly twenty years since she had married into the family, it was the first time she had ever seen her mother-in-law act so generously.

Felix Thorne snorted. “It’s not like you’ve ever been generous to my mother.”

Phoebe Huxley was struck speechless, unable to argue.

She was usually too busy arguing with her mother-in-law to ever think about giving her gifts.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep