Chapter 86 Ancient World: Stepmother (3)

The forest is dense, blocking out the sun.

Changqing didn't plan to venture deep into the forest; after all, in this day and age, the mountains had everything.

However, this body is still too weak.

After chopping a bundle of firewood, he was sweating profusely and felt dizzy.

"Without some oil or fat, you really won't have any energy."

Shaking his head vigorously, Changqing hoisted the firewood onto his shoulder and returned to the previous crossroads.

His younger sister, Li Huanxi, was already waiting. When she saw him arrive, she jumped up with a big smile.

"Brother, look what I found!"

She held out a handful of bright red wild berries, presenting them to me like a precious treasure.

My younger sister always manages to find something to eat in the mountains to fill her stomach. It's always been like this. We only eat two meals a day at home, and we get really hungry after noon.

"What a coincidence, I have something here too."

Changqing pulled several eggs out of his pocket, startling Li Huanxi into screaming.

"Wild eggs! And such big wild eggs at that! Put them in my basket, but don't let them fall."

The basket full of green grass can serve as a cushion and protect the animals. Li Huanxi put the wild fruits into her pocket and carefully took the wild eggs and put them into the basket.

"Anything else?"

Changqing then pulled out several more.

Li Huanxi's face flushed with excitement. After she had put all the wild eggs into her basket, she solemnly emphasized.

"Brother, I'm going to hide these wild eggs when we get back. Tomorrow, we'll eat them secretly. Don't tell Mom, or Li Xiangling will eat them all!"

The family has hens, but the number of eggs they lay is limited, so the siblings don't get to eat them. Li Huanxi figured that since she was the one who cooked at home, it wouldn't be a problem to fry a couple of wild eggs in advance.

Changqing nodded with a smile.

The young girl has the shrewdness of a housekeeper, which is a good thing. Perfect timing, once we inherit our father's estate, we can hand it over to her to manage.

"Hey, bring out the fruit so I can have a taste."

He reached out his hand.

Li Huanxi quickly took out the fruit she had picked earlier from her pocket, and Changqing took a few and stuffed them into his mouth.

Instantly, his face scrunched up.

It's so sour!

It was both sour and astringent, and could not compare with the fruit varieties that have been improved over countless generations.

Hahahaha.

Li Huanxi was amused by her brother's expression.

"Brother, this isn't the first time you've eaten this kind of thing, so why are you making that face? Here, I have some more. It's not very tasty, but it'll fill you up."

Changqing waved his hand.

"No, no, from now on we'll eat eggs and meat every day."

"If you don't want to eat, I'll eat it myself." Li Huanxi didn't take her brother's words to heart. Eating eggs and meat every day was something she wouldn't even dare to dream of.

Along the way, Li Huanxi kept thinking about where to hide these wild eggs. In the end, he led Changqing to the old house and hid most of the eggs in the cupboard, leaving only two.

This is the house left by the original owner's father.

Originally, it was a three-room mud-brick house. Zhao Lianhua remarried with her child, so one room was demolished and used by Li Fusheng to expand his own house.

In the story, after the original owner died, the remaining two rooms were also demolished. On the other hand, Li Fusheng's original three main rooms had additional side rooms added to both sides, almost doubling the area.

Changqing read it over from beginning to end.

The two mud-brick houses were fairly spacious, surrounded by a dilapidated fence. There were many weeds in front of and behind the houses, and no one had cleaned them up. The furniture and small items in the rooms had been moved away piece by piece, but the large cabinets and other things that were too conspicuous were left behind.

"It's usable, albeit barely."

Changqing nodded. In those days, conditions were what they were, especially in the village, having enough to eat was the most important thing.

After returning home, the brother and sister boiled eggs.

"Mmm, it smells delicious."

Li Huanxi peeled the eggshell, took a bite of the milky white egg white, and squinted her eyes.

Changqing finished his meal in a few bites and stood up.

"Hey, don't throw the eggshells away. Give them to me, I'll take care of them."

Li Huanxi, ever observant, added a reminder: "Don't leave it in the yard; it'll be hard to explain if it's discovered when we get back."

Changqing readily accepts good advice.

He was going to continue chopping wood in the afternoon, while his sister had to stay home to do laundry and cook dinner.

Li Fusheng and Zhao Lianhua naturally went to the fields.

Li Qingyue only comes back to the town school once every two weeks, while Li Xiangling also studies embroidery in the town and comes back in the afternoon.

Changqing went into the mountains again.

When he returned, he stopped at the old house and used a knife to clear away the weeds around it.

As dusk approached, villagers passing by on their way home from work jokingly asked:

"Changqing, are you tidying up the yard because you're getting married and starting a family?"

Changqing went outside and saw five or six men and women, all of whom were elders in the village. He smiled shyly and shook his head.

"It's still early. Qingyue is still studying, and Xiangling is learning embroidery. How can the family afford to get a wife? As for me, I was just thinking that I'll be leaving home for a few months tomorrow, and there's no one to take care of the old house, so I came to check on things."

He spoke casually, as if it were nothing out of the ordinary, but passersby stared wide-eyed.

"You've been away from home for several months, what are you going to do?"

"Corvée labor? This year, not everyone in our village has to go."

Changqing acted as if it were the most natural thing in the world, which made everyone's expression change. One of the older women even shouted exaggeratedly.

"Changqing, you're not even sixteen yet, are you? How can you send a child to do corvée labor!"

Changqing recognized the speaker as Aunt Dongzhi from the same clan. He immediately changed his usual quiet demeanor and, in a few words, spilled out all the arrangements for the household.

Everyone was surprised again after hearing this.

"Your mother even made you deliberately give an older age? Isn't that lying to the officials? It's one thing for her to be ignorant, but what about Li Fusheng? Doesn't he say anything either?" someone said angrily.

Changqing, of course, wouldn't explain for Li Fusheng.

He simply shook his head, his expression somber.

"Qingyue is studying in town, and Xiangling is learning embroidery there. If I don't do the corvée labor, who will? Should I send my mother? Or my younger sister?"

He mentioned Li Qingyue and Li Xiangling again, and everyone finally understood the helplessness in his tone, which made them feel more sympathetic.

"Hey, never mind, I'm going back to help my little sister cook."

Changqing didn't wait for everyone's comfort. He shouldered a large bundle of firewood and walked home with some difficulty. His thin back looked frail and helpless in everyone's eyes.

Every family in the village has its own problems. I had heard about Li Fusheng's family situation before, but I hadn't thought about it deeply. Now, under Changqing's deliberate guidance, I naturally thought about it more. It turns out that she was a good stepmother, but not a good biological mother.

"Tsk, I never noticed before, but it turns out that Fusheng's two children were sent to town, while Lianhua's two children were left at home to do chores. Isn't that too obvious?"

"Hehe, this Changqing kid didn't talk much before, and we never asked him. It seems that the two siblings are not having a good time in their stepfather's house."

"Does Zhao Lianhua not care about her own children at all? What kind of mother is that?"

As everyone chimed in with their own comments, piecing together details they hadn't noticed before, they began to look at Li Fusheng and Zhao Lianhua with newfound respect.

It's worth noting that although both of them were remarried, they usually behaved very well in public, appearing as loving and caring parents. The stepmother was kind, and the stepfather was generous. Who would have thought that their home life was like this?

"In my opinion, it's Zhao Lianhua who's confused."

Someone summarized it like this:

The others nodded silently and turned to leave.

Most people were just watching the show, after all, it's not good to interfere in other people's business. But among this group, Aunt Dongzhi was at odds with Li Fusheng's family. In the past, her husband had fought with Li Fusheng over land boundaries, and Li Fusheng had even mocked her for not having a son.

"Heh heh, I'll make sure to spread the word about your wicked stepfather's reputation!"

Aunt Dongzhi gritted her teeth. She decided that when the officials came tomorrow, she would really bring a group of people to Fusheng's house to see what was going on and whether he could save face.