Chapter 1286 Fifth Brother

Fourth Sister knew that Song Chunxue would be going home that evening, so she decided not to herd the sheep that afternoon.

She threw several bundles of sorghum and corn stalks into the sheepfold, then took Song Chunxue to Song Zhizhu's house.

"Fourth Sister, slow down, what's the rush? The scenery here is nice, why are you walking so fast?"

“If you dawdle any longer, your second brother and sister-in-law will go to work on the mountain. They are older and their legs are weaker now. They can’t stay idle even more than I do. Go early so they can rest for the afternoon.”

Song Chunxue walked slowly behind, while Song Chunlian, despite her bad legs, moved quickly, eager to get to her second brother's house immediately.

Song Chunxue thought the scenery here was beautiful and missed it more and more the more she looked at it, but Song Chunlian saw it every day and even thought that this girl was so talkative now that she would probably find even sheep droppings on the ground beautiful.

Song Chunxue was carrying a pork knuckle, some lean meat, and a box of pastries. She caught up with her fourth sister in just a few steps.

"Oh my, you look even better now than you did ten years ago! Your posture is so straight, raising your child will be so much less of a worry." Fourth Sister walked behind her and poked her waist. "Your flesh is so firm, Master Xie will definitely like it."

"..." Song Chunxue glanced at her fourth sister, "Why are you saying all this out of the blue?"

"It's not that you're acting strangely right now. It's not very obvious, but I'm your sister after all. I can see right through you the moment you open your mouth. How could I not know what you're thinking?"

"I don't even know myself, how do you know?"

"Yes, you don't even dare to think about it. I know you have the strongest sense of self-esteem. Even though he doesn't remember you, you're still angry. If he doesn't remember you, he doesn't remember you. You stay far away and think that you're doing better than him."

"..." Fourth Sister is really good at making things up; she has just accepted the facts.

Are you suggesting I stay in the capital like a lovesick young girl, sneaking off to check on Xie Zheng's situation every now and then?

She wouldn't do that kind of thing if she was constantly stressed and worried.

It's not too late to look at it when you remember.

They talked about it every day, and she really...missed him a little.

As people grow older, they become more afraid of being alone. When we were children, we were least afraid of not having playmates. It was hard at first, but we got used to it over time.

But after being with Xie Zheng, they were inseparable. After meals, they would lean on each other and talk. Even when they went to the outhouse, they would want to talk to each other and enjoy the autumn scenery.

The apricot trees covering the mountains have turned yellow, their leaves shining brightly in the sunlight, yet they also evoke a sense of melancholy.

It would be a lie to say I didn't want to, especially after being reminded by others time and time again.

It reminds her that there used to be two people, but now she has been abandoned.

"What's wrong? What are you standing there daydreaming about?" Song Chunlian turned around and stamped her foot. "Hurry up, I saw Second Brother carrying a hoe to dig potatoes."

Song Chunxue quickened her pace, "I'll pick two leaves."

"..." Song Chunlian rolled her eyes, wanting to curse her ancestors, "How could you be so old?"

But then I thought, so what if I'm old? I may look old, but I feel much the same as when I was a child.

Now, if she sees a big clod of dirt on the road, she has to kick it. When she sees an apricot tree that's easy to climb, she'll climb up and sit for a while when no one's around, swinging her legs and looking at the scenery that's pretty much the same as when she was a child. She laughs and cries alone, which is nice.

"Second Brother! Second Brother, don't go yet!" Song Chunlian shouted from the hillside to Song Zhizhu, who was about to walk down the slope, "Fifth Brother has come to see you!"

Song Zhizhu turned his head, put down the hoe on his shoulder, said something to his wife who was locking the door, smiled and propped the hoe against the wall, then stepped back to the spacious area outside the courtyard gate and asked loudly, "Why did you come at this time? Why didn't you come earlier?"

Song Chunxue ran quickly down the mountain path and came to her second brother.

“I’m not going back tonight, what’s the rush? Did you have anything good for lunch?” As she spoke, she handed him the meat in her hand. “I’ll just have some sour rice for dinner. We had noodles with minced meat sauce for lunch.”

“Then let’s eat millet rice. Have your sister-in-law cook some dishes. I remember you love potato strips.” Song Zhizhu said, mentioning the braised pork knuckle. “You bought so much again. We haven’t finished the last batch you bought.”

Anyway, farmers can eat meat, and those who do manual labor need oil and fat the most, but those who do manual labor can't afford oil and fat.

Those idlers who plunder the people's wealth, the meat they throw away after a meal is enough for a whole village to have a good meal.

Behind the red gates, meat and wine go to waste, while on the streets, frozen corpses lie—this world is cruel indeed.

She could only do what she could to make sure her loved ones ate well.

"Fifth brother, you're here!" Second sister-in-law walked over with a smile. "Oh my, your figure and your spirit are truly enviable, just like our younger generation."

“Yes,” Song Zhizhu looked him up and down, “Do you cultivators often take those pills that promise eternal youth?”

“I have some here, do you want some?” With that, Song Chunxue handed the remaining two bottles to her second sister-in-law. “These are pills that my apprentice refined himself. You shouldn’t take too many. I gave one jar to my fourth sister, and these two jars are for you two.”

"What about your third sister?" Song Zhizhu laughed. "Why would a grown man like me eat this? I'll give the other can to your third sister."

Song Chunxue frankly admitted, "Actually, if you don't cultivate, the effects of taking it won't be obvious, but it's still a tonic, so there's no harm in taking it."

“That’s right. I used to try meditating and standing in the air like you do in the morning, but I’ve gotten lazy now.” Song Zhizhu raised his hand. “Let’s go inside, or someone will come and bother us later.”

As Song Chunxue walked into the house, she asked curiously, "What are you disturbing?"

"Seeing how you've cultivated yourself, they want to send their own children over for you to teach," Song Zhizhu said irritably. "How can you cultivate if you're not pure of the six senses? They only look at the benefits and don't think about how much effort it is for you to take care of other people's children when you finally have some free time. The eldest and fourth sons definitely won't be happy about it."

"Second Brother is the most thoughtful."

“That’s right.” Song Zhizhu took off the thick coat draped over his shoulders. “You three chat first, I’ll go start a fire and we’ll have tea.”

"I'll go, you guys sit down and chat first." Second Sister-in-law said, turning around and going outside to pick up firewood from the woodshed with a small basket.

"It's alright, let her go, she'll be here in a bit," Song Zhizhu said softly. "She might have had some complaints when we were poor, but now that you've taken so much stuff, your sister-in-law is so happy she doesn't know what to cook for you to make you feel better."

The main thing is to make myself feel comfortable, to feel warmly treated, and to offer my best so that I can overcome the feelings of helplessness in my heart.

True friends and family members don't think about taking advantage of others; instead, they're afraid that if they do, they won't be able to repay the favor.

“Then tell your second sister-in-law not to think too much about it. Anyway, it’s not like she’s a stranger. Fifth brother doesn’t lack anything right now.” Song Chunlian stood up. “I’m going to go with my sister-in-law to prepare some tea. You two chat for a while.”

“Very well,” Song Zhizhu looked at Song Chunxue and asked bluntly, “Fifth brother, has Lord Xie, whom we had in our grasp, really just flown away like that?”

"..." She knew it.