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墨書 Inktalez
At this time, there was about a month left until the wheat harvest. The wheat was at its golden stage, and the vast expanse of land, spanning dozens of acres, looked like a large piece of silk, creating a very attractive landscape.
Xiao Lihua stood by the wheat field, thinking of her hometown from her previous life. Back then, her parents worked in the fields, and now the man working in the field and the two children beside him were her family. She felt as if she had completely integrated into this time and space and no longer wanted to leave.
"Youshun, your wife is here! She's carrying a basket; could it be that she's bringing you lunch?"
"Probably. I heard your wife has changed her ways; her cooking is said to be delicious. If she brought a lot, save some for me!"
"Why would you take food brought by someone else's wife? If you want to eat, ask your wife to cook!"
"I just want to taste it; I'm not going to eat it all..."
People working nearby saw Xie Youshun walking back along the ridge and spoke to him.
Xie Youshun smiled and replied a few words before quickly reaching the edge of the field. He asked, "What brings you here? What's in that basket?" He noticed that the basket was covered with a lid and had a cloth on top, so he assumed it contained food but wasn't entirely sure and needed to ask. After all, Xiao Lihua had never brought him lunch before; even though he knew she had improved, he still found it hard to believe.
Xiao Lihua said, "I brought you lunch; let's go eat over there. Why didn't you wake me up this morning? I made enough for both of us; didn't we agree on that yesterday?"
"You were sleeping so soundly that I didn't want to wake you. Besides, it's just this one acre; we'll finish up soon."
Xie Youshun and Xiao Lihua went under a tree where there were some stones for resting. When he opened the basket, he found a small clay pot and a bowl, both covered with plates. Upon lifting them off, he saw soup in the pot and dumplings in the bowl, clearly still warm. His empty stomach immediately felt hungrier. As soon as Xiao Lihua handed him chopsticks, he started eating and found it truly delicious.
Seeing him enjoy his meal so much made Xiao Lihua think that he really cared for her. Watching him eat heartily, she passed him the soup.
Stone and Wood sat nearby watching their father eat; in the end, each of them got a dumpling too and enjoyed it greatly.
Nearby workers who had come over to rest observed this family of four and thought that Xie Youshun had truly turned his fortunes around. Seeing Xiao Lihua smile so brightly made it hard to believe that not long ago she was a cold and rough woman who never smiled. Looking at the beautifully shaped dumplings she made, it was clear she was capable—exactly the kind of qualified daughter-in-law everyone wished to marry.
The people sitting nearby started chatting with Xie Youshun, while Xiao Lihua occasionally chimed in, mostly speaking to the women. She was unaware of how much this era emphasized the separation between men and women, so she decided to speak less. She had a pleasant voice and a fitting smile, which made her likable. The women noticed her demeanor and responded positively.
Xiao Lihua thought that not all rural people were difficult; most were quite simple and honest. Since she would be living in this village, she didn't want to make enemies with everyone, especially not with the women from the Xie Family or Zhang Shuitao and Sister Zhu. The fewer such women around, the better.
Once Xie Youshun finished eating, he was ready to head back to work in the fields. However, he insisted that Xiao Lihua stay behind, saying her head injury hadn't healed completely and that there wasn't much left to do; he would finish up soon. Xiao Lihua didn't insist on going but wondered if Xie Youshun really intended for her to work in the fields after she had expressed her desire to join him yesterday.
Xiao Lihua went foraging for wild vegetables with two children. There were plenty of wild vegetables at this time, but they couldn't withstand too much picking. Even if they picked everything today, new shoots would sprout in a few days, only to be harvested again quickly.
Shitou and Muto took Xiao Lihua to their known spots for gathering wild vegetables, and they managed to fill a basket. Inside were ferns, shepherd's purse, and some wild vegetables that Xiao Lihua remembered but hadn't seen in a long time. Thinking of the taste of those cold dishes made from wild vegetables made her mouth water; it was even more tempting than seeing meat.
After gathering enough wild vegetables, they returned to the edge of the field and saw that Xie Youshun was almost done with his work.
Xie Youshun took Xiao Lihua to see the fields they had divided among themselves. The three plots were not located together, requiring quite a bit of walking between them. The sandy plot was the farthest from home and yielded the least each year; currently, it was planted with sweet potatoes, which would provide food for half a year. The paddy field was already filled with green seedlings that looked very appealing.
"Aside from harvesting wheat in a month, is there anything else to do in the fields right now?" Xiao Lihua asked Xie Youshun. He nodded, thinking that now that they had separated their household, he could no longer take on outside work and leave his wife and children at home; it would be disastrous if something happened. However, relying solely on their small piece of land for survival seemed too tight; it was uncertain whether they could even have enough to eat. Moreover, they still owed debts; although Wang Dashan and others weren't pressing them for repayment, it wouldn't be right to avoid paying forever—after all, other people's money didn't come easily. But what could he do at home? Xie Youshun thought that if worse came to worst, he might have to go into the mountains.
Hearing Xie Youshun say there wasn't much work to do, Xiao Lihua began thinking about ways to earn money when she heard him mention wanting to go hunting in the mountains.
"Going into the mountains? Take me with you."
Xiao Lihua looked at the distant mountains, observing their dark green color. She thought that as long as it wasn't a desolate area, there might be some gains from those mountains.
Xie Youshun immediately shook his head and said, "No way. I need to go deep into the mountains; you should stay home and take care of the children."
"Deep mountains?" Xiao Lihua thought that there seemed to be wild beasts in those deep mountains. The people in the nearby village dared not venture too deep; only the bravest would go as far as halfway up the mountain. Xie Youshun knew that going into the deep mountains could lead to encountering prey, but it was too dangerous. "No, you can't go into the deep mountains. It's too dangerous. I don't want to become a widow. Don't think I'm being harsh; I'm worried about you. Anyway, you are not allowed to go. We owe money at home, and we should think of ways to earn it back together instead of risking your life."
Xie Youshun looked at Xiao Lihua and realized that she cared about him.
"Then I'll just go to the halfway point. There aren't many ferocious beasts there, and I can catch some rabbits or wild chickens to improve our living conditions."
Xie Youshun said, unable to think of any other faster way to make money. He thought his archery skills were decent, and if he brought a knife along, it should be fine.
Xiao Lihua glared at him and said, "If you're going, take me with you. I don't believe you can still go to dangerous places if I'm with you."
Xie Youshun had nothing more to say. He thought that when Xiao Lihua glared like that, she resembled her old self quite a bit. However, he found it pleasing because he knew she was looking out for him. He thought about what would happen to her and the children if something happened to him. Xie Youshun could only think of other quicker ways to make money.
He gave up on the idea of hunting in the deep mountains, but Xiao Lihua looked at the big mountain and thought that she must visit it someday. However, she decided to wait; now was springtime when wild beasts were particularly fierce, so it was better not to go. She would wait until summer or autumn when the plants in the mountains were abundant before going then. By that time, her health would also be better.
At noon, when they returned home, Xiao Lihua cooked the pig heart and made sorghum rice. It had been many years since they had eaten sorghum rice; it didn't taste bad, but she still thought white rice was better. Looking at her two children, she wanted to earn more money so she could prepare delicious food for them and raise them plump; that would make them cuter since they were too thin now.
"Mom, Mom! The hen laid eggs! There are four!"
Shitou ran over, holding an egg in one hand while Muzi followed behind him with another egg in his small hand. However, his hands were too small and unstable; as he ran, he almost dropped it. In his fright, he fell down, landing on the ground but still tightly gripping the egg in his hand. He winced in pain, tears welling up in his eyes as he called out for Xiao Lihua.
Xiao Lihua rushed over with a pained heart and picked him up, saying, "Don't cry, my dear! Come here; let me blow on it; it'll feel better."
She placed him on a chair and lifted his pants and sleeves to check for injuries. She noticed some bruising and saw that he was still holding onto the egg tightly. She felt both heartbroken and amused at the same time. Taking the egg from his hand, she said, "You silly child! If the egg drops, it drops! You shouldn't hurt yourself over two eggs. Don't do this again in the future."
"Mom, eggs can be sold for money; they're delicious."
The wooden figure spoke quite fluently, although sometimes it was a bit short, but it was understandable. The voice was soft, making one’s heart feel tender.
Xiao Lihua poked his little nose and said, "If you get hurt, it will cost more money. Mother is still worried. If you break a hundred eggs, as long as you’re not hurt, I wouldn’t mind. Next time, if you do this again, I’ll throw the eggs away to make sure you don’t get hurt, understand? You are much more precious than an egg."
"Mother—you're better than Aunt San. She said I'm not as good as an egg and won’t let me eat."
The wooden figure elongated his tone a bit, acting a little spoiled. Mother was really good to him; Aunt San used to scold him, so he always thought eggs were very precious, even more so than himself.
Xiao Lihua felt unhappy upon hearing this. She thought the Li Family was truly despicable; how could they speak to a child like that? Looking at her two children who were so robust and chubby, it was clear they had eaten well, yet they came to belittle her nephew—how cruel!
"Don't listen to your Aunt San. Our wooden and stone children are treasures; how can they be compared to an egg? We can eat as many eggs as we want! Mother will make you boiled eggs, fried eggs, scrambled eggs, and even pickled eggs! Hmm, and tea eggs! Mother will make sure you have plenty of eggs to eat! From now on, we won’t sell our eggs; they’re just for you."
Xiao Lihua thought about how the people at home were not well, especially the two children; she needed to make them more delicious food.
"Mother, what are tea eggs?"
The two children blinked their big eyes and asked. Hearing their mother mention so many tasty dishes made their mouths water. Although they had never eaten them before, it didn’t stop them from wanting to try.
Xiao Lihua thought to herself that the two children had never eaten tea eggs; she would make some for them.
At that moment, Xie Youshun also asked, "What are tea eggs?"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Lihua realized that Xie Youshun hadn’t heard of them either. Could it be? Had he never heard of this? However, she suddenly thought of a possibility: perhaps this world really didn’t have tea eggs.
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