Chapter 178 Sell It All

The fourth child was the first to be frightened when he saw his mother, who did not seem to be faking it.

He stood blankly outside the kitchen door, watching his older brother being kicked to the ground, as if he were seeing his own mother for the first time.

"Mother, it can't be that bad, my eldest brother..."

“If he had done anything decent, I wouldn’t have gone to such lengths. Fourth brother, I’ll settle accounts with you after your classmate is gone.”

Song Chunxue carried the bowl out of the kitchen. "You guys cook the mutton yourselves. I'm tired. I'm going to sleep in the north room for a while. Don't call me when it's time to eat."

The fourth son stared blankly at his mother's retreating figure, his heart filled with indescribable fear and panic.

But he gritted his teeth and insisted on treating his classmates well, determined to get them some meat.

Otherwise, if they don't take him with them in the future, he will be unable to get around on his own when he goes out.

Soon, the six young men chopped the mutton into large chunks and cooked half of it in the pot.

They went to the east room to eat mutton, and laughter could be heard from time to time.

Listening to them, I realized they already knew how to drink, and they were loudly proclaiming their grand ambitions.

Song Chunxue lay on the kang (a heated brick bed) in the north room, her mood relatively calm, yet filled with sorrow.

Ah, his blind son.

There will come a day when they regret begging her.

In the past, she would have been so angry that she would have kicked the fourth brother's classmate out, but now, she wouldn't do that.

If she did it, it means she doesn't know how to be a parent.

She didn't want her to be blamed for her fourth son's mistake of not wanting to come home to fulfill his filial duties.

If you're unfilial, then be unfilial; don't make so many excuses.

The mistake wasn't made by his classmate, but by the fourth brother, who was clearly afraid of her yet still took it upon himself to kill the sheep.

Their family has always been frugal; even if distinguished guests come to their home during the Chinese New Year, they won't slaughter a sheep.

If the fourth son had discussed it with her, she wouldn't be so petty now.

But he even gave her food to the eldest brother for a small benefit.

He was not only audacious, but also greedy and unprincipled.

Thinking of her fate in her previous life, she didn't want to waste her energy.

She had been traveling for the past few days without a break, and she was really exhausted. Amidst the noise, she actually fell into a deep sleep.

When I woke up again, it was already dusk.

The orange-red sunset shone on the eaves of the eastern house, a blood-red glow that reflected in her heart, filling her with utter desolation.

The courtyard was very quiet, which meant that Lao Si's classmate had probably already left.

Song Chunxue sat cross-legged on the kang (a heated brick bed) and began to meditate.

Half an hour later, Sanwa returned.

He walked into the courtyard and pushed open the door to the north room.

"Mother, you're back?"

Sanwa put down his book bag and asked in a low voice, "What happened? Why is Fourth Brother sitting outside and afraid to come inside?"

Song Chunxue asked him, "What has Lao Si been doing these past few days?"

Sanwa said that Lao Si went to herd sheep a couple of days ago, and went to the village yesterday, saying that his classmates would be coming today.

Did he discuss the slaughtering of the sheep with you?

Sanwa pursed his lips. "I told him that a sheep costs several hundred coins, and I asked him to kill a chicken, but he killed a sheep instead. I could smell it as soon as I walked in."

Do you check on the livestock every night when you come home?

Sanwa nodded, "I counted all the sheep, added hay and water, and I cooked all the meals."

"Oh right, I haven't heated the kang (heated brick bed) for Mother these past two days. She probably hasn't had time to heat it since she got back. I'll go heat it up now."

"Wait, no rush," Song Chunxue said gently. "I want to discuss something with you. Are you off tomorrow?"

"Yes, tomorrow is a day off. What does Mother want to do?"

"Add more hay tonight and pour out all the feed we've saved up. Let them have their last full meal at our house. Tomorrow we'll take them all to the market to sell. The price of sheep is alright lately."

Sanwa was shocked. "Mother, sell them all? There are still lambs in the pen that haven't been born yet. At least five or six lambs will be born in the next few days, you..."

"Find them a good home. If someone is willing to raise them, let them buy them and take them home. If we can't sell them all by tomorrow, we'll stay in the village for the night and come back after we've sold them all."

Sanwa was extremely anxious. Those little lambs were so cute, how could he sell them all?

At that moment, the fourth brother rushed in from outside.

"Mom, why are we selling them all? Aren't we going to raise them anymore?"

He looked somewhat flustered, "I can still herd sheep at home, at least I will before the New Year..."

“No need. Herding sheep is too hard work. There’s no need to raise them anymore.” Song Chunxue looked at Sanwa. “I can afford to send Sanwa to school, and I don’t want to keep this flock of sheep to worry him.”

Sanwa cried anxiously, "Mother, I really enjoy herding sheep. Please don't sell them. At least keep the lambs. They're too young. If you sell them, they'll definitely be slaughtered and made into lamb meat..."

Song Chunxue's eyes welled up with tears as she looked tenderly at Sanwa. "A soft-hearted person is a person without blessings, Sanwa. I know you are kind-hearted, but didn't I say that those lambs will be sold to people who take them home to raise, instead of being killed immediately?"

The fourth son looked at Song Chunxue with a wistful expression, "Mother, are you not going to take care of me anymore?"

“I can’t control you anymore. Only Sanwa is the most obedient. You can do whatever you want. I won’t interfere anymore. How you live from now on is your own business. If I interfere, it will only annoy people. It’s a thankless task, and I don’t want to do it anymore.”

As she spoke, Song Chunxue got off the kang (a heated brick bed). "I'll go add more kang to the bed. You two can do whatever you want. I'll make lazy dumplings tonight. You can eat them or not, it's up to you."

Sanwa stood there, staring blankly at the mottled wall, and sniffed.

He looked at the fourth son and said, "It's all because of you and the eldest son, killing sheep and stealing grain. Did your mother raise you all to be deliberately making things difficult for them?"

Enraged, he flung open the curtain, grabbed his book bag, and went to his west room, slamming the door shut with a deafening roar.

The fourth brother was lost in thought, staring blankly at the thick, old door curtain, his mind a complete blank.

He knew his mother would be angry to see him bringing his classmates behind her back, but he never expected her to sell all the sheep.

Now that it's the breeding season for ewes, if we wait until all the lambs are born, we can sell at least a dozen lambs by early summer next year.

If they were sold now, at least seven or eight lambs would still be inside them.

My mother would never have done this before; she would never have made such an unprofitable deal.

Has something happened to Mother at Aunt's house these past few days?

After much hesitation, the fourth brother still went to the kitchen to help start the fire.

"Get up, you don't need to light the fire. Just fill the sheep with hay, and wash the dishes after you finish eating. I don't need your help here."

Song Chunxue didn't appreciate it. "Don't get in my way. Go feed the sheep. I originally planned to sell all the sheep after the New Year, but it seems you've had enough. I won't force you."

"I mean what I say, don't think I'm joking."

The fourth brother was pushed aside and stood there helplessly.

Before long, Sanwa came to the door. "Let's go and add hay together. Mother is right. The sheep have gotten thinner these past few days. If we wait until next year, they might starve to death."

The fourth brother bit his lip and left the hospital.

Sanwa carried four baskets of grass, mixed them with coarse cornmeal as feed, and chopped a large basin of potatoes.

As dusk fell, Sanwa stood in the sheepfold, watching the sheep, who hadn't eaten well for several days, enjoying their meal. Some of the sheep were so greedy that they almost choked on the potatoes.

He was very reluctant to leave the sheep, but after reading books, he really didn't want to go back to being a shepherd boy.

He wanted to be selfish for once.