Aunt Liu liked He Tiantian's diligence and sweet talk, and gave her advice along the way, which benefited He Tiantian a lot.
“Sweet girl, if you have time in the future, cook something for Uncle Qi. I was busy before and didn’t have time, so I only cooked for him occasionally,” Aunt Liu said. “He’s a pitiful old man all alone. He has no wife or children, and he’s missing an arm, so it’s inconvenient for him to do things. Help him out whenever you can.”
He Tiantian nodded and said, "Okay, I'll make it for Grandpa Qi often when I have time."
These are all minor matters, which He Tiantian is very good at and doesn't take much effort at all.
Looking around to make sure no one was watching, Aunt Liu whispered, "Uncle Qi isn't an ordinary person. Not only does he have work points in the village and get a share of grain, but he also receives a lot of good stuff from the commune every month. If you cook for him, you'll definitely get some benefits. And that's not all. Because Uncle Qi is so respected, even the village secretary, Qi Dazhu, treats him with great deference, and everyone in the village respects him. As long as he treats you well, no one will dare to bully you, a young girl, in Qi Family Village."
He Tiantian was happy; her hard work that morning hadn't been in vain, thanks to Aunt Liu's helpful advice. Although she knew she needed to curry favor with Old Man Qi, she was also grateful for Aunt Liu's kind reminders.
"Thank you, Aunt Liu," He Tiantian said sincerely, adding that she would give Aunt Liu something in return if she ever had any good opportunities in the future.
She wanted to take revenge on Qi Jianguo's family, but she couldn't do it alone, so she needed help. However, being new to the area, she couldn't rush things; she needed to first establish good relationships with the people in Qi Family Village before gradually seeking opportunities.
"No need to thank me. You're only two years older than our girl. It's not easy for you to be away from home. I'll say a few more words to you, but please don't mind." Aunt Liu felt a sense of accomplishment seeing that He Tiantian was sensible and listened to her, so she couldn't help but say a few more words.
"You're doing this for my own good, how could I possibly dislike you!" He Tiantian said, chatting and laughing with Aunt Liu all the way back to the village.
In just one morning, I've already built good relationships with two "colleagues" and made a good start. I believe my work will go smoothly from here on out.
He Tiantian went to pick up Grandma Qi, who was peeling cotton husks, and helped her home.
Yes, in just two short days, He Tiantian has already made Grandma Qi's place her home.
She's old and hopes He Tiantian can keep her company and take care of her.
I hope to have a place to stay with Grandma Qi San, so that I can help her make a name for herself in Qijia Village.
The two complement each other perfectly.
"Grandma Qi, sit for a while, I'll go cook." He Tiantian helped Grandma Qi into the house, brought water and a towel, and wiped Grandma Qi down to cool her off.
"No rush, just eat whatever you like," Grandma Qi said, feeling sweeter than if she had eaten honey. Now that the two of them were eating together and there was no one else around, Grandma Qi wasn't worried about He Tiantian stealing any food.
He Tiantian made dumplings, added greens, a little oil, a little salt, and broth, and had them for lunch.
Grandma Qi's teeth weren't good, so this kind of food was perfect for her. She was very satisfied and decided to let He Tiantian cook from now on. Right now, she couldn't give He Tiantian anything nice. If He Tiantian continued to treat her this well, she would give her the box of gold and silver jewelry she had secretly hidden before she died.
Now that we're destroying the Four Olds, bringing out those good things would only cause trouble. Otherwise, she would have given He Tiantian a silver hairpin long ago.
After lunch, Grandma Qi and He Tiantian took a nap at home.
As long as it's not the busy farming season, when it's hot, you can get up early in the morning to work, rest more at noon, and then go back to work at 2:30 pm.
He Tiantian poured hot water into her army green water bottle, slung it across her body, carried a bamboo basket, took Grandma Qi to the place where she was peeling cotton husks, and then hurried to the back of the house.
When Old Man Qi saw He Tiantian coming over, he smiled, a rare occurrence for him: "You're here!"
"I'm here," He Tiantian said, putting her bamboo basket aside and picking up the big basket that Aunt Liu had carried that morning. "Grandpa Qi, I'm going to cut grass. Aunt Liu will watch over things here this afternoon."
Don't be lazy, and know when to advance and when to retreat.
This kid is good!
“Go ahead,” Old Qi nodded, pointing to the west. “Go that way, there’s plenty of grass. Your Aunt Liu already cut quite a bit this morning, so it won’t matter if you cut less this afternoon.”
"Thank you, Grandpa Qi." He Tiantian replied and carried the large bamboo basket up the mountain.
Although Old Qi said that, He Tiantian couldn't slack off on her first day of work. Being diligent now would leave a good impression, and if she slacked off later, no one would say anything. It's a large collective now, and everyone works like this, just slacking off.
Everyone knew that she was just slacking off, but if she gained a reputation for laziness, she would become the object of gossip and contempt. In her previous life, He Tiantian wasn't lazy, but she was young and weak, unable to do the work and always failing to complete her tasks, which led to constant gossip from the villagers.
They were good-looking and literate, qualities that the young women and wives in the countryside couldn't match. But they were bad at housework, something He Tiantian couldn't do as well as them. To prove that they were better and more capable than He Tiantian, they often talked about He Tiantian and the other educated youth, seeking a sense of pride.
Seeing that no one was around, He Tiantian quickened her pace and arrived at the patch of green grass that Old Man Qi had mentioned.
He Tiantian wasn't tired at all. She thanked Grandpa Snake more than once in her heart for improving her health. If it were before, it would probably take an hour just to walk here, but now it only takes half an hour.
The terrain here is relatively flat, and there's a lot of mud underfoot, so the trees and grass are very lush. This one big patch is enough for He Tiantian to harvest for a week.
Old Qi is a good person too!
He Tiantian focused intently on cutting the grass. Even though the sickle wasn't very sharp, it didn't affect her speed. If the sickle were sharper, she might have been able to cut even faster. In less than an hour, He Tiantian had already cut several large piles of grass, filling her basket to the brim.
Seeing that it was still early, He Tiantian picked some fresh wild vegetables nearby, blanched them, and made a cold dish for Old Man Qi. After finishing these tasks, He Tiantian rested on the mountain for a while before carrying her bamboo basket down the mountain.
Going up the mountain is easy, but coming down is hard.
It took He Tiantian half an hour to go up the mountain and about forty-five minutes to go down.
When Aunt Liu saw He Tiantian carrying back even more grass than she had that morning, she beamed with joy. "Oh my, this girl is quite capable and strong. She'll have an easier time from now on."
"Put it down quickly," Aunt Liu said. "It's much bigger than mine this morning. You're too honest, girl."
Aunt Liu said this, but she was very happy inside!
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