"Hey, those bandits raid the mountains all day long, and you still managed to find so many jujubes?"
Aunt Wang held the chrysanthemum greens in both hands, afraid that the jujubes wrapped in the middle would fall. She pulled them closer to her chest before looking at Fang Yan, winking and excitedly saying, "The two men from the Zhang family went to the county town today and were ambushed. They're lying at home now."
Oh, so it was the man in the family who had an accident.
No wonder she heard Zhang's wife crying so bitterly before she and Zhang Jizhou went up the mountain.
"I heard she even went to look for you, but your mother and Aunt De scolded her and drove her away," Aunt Wang added.
Fang Yan prepared another jujube and fed it to the little guy, who was so happy that he became much more obedient, lying quietly on Aunt Wang's back, his little mouth moving as he sucked on the fruit.
The little one quieted down, and Fang Yan then looked at Aunt Wang with a puzzled expression, "What does she want from me?"
"Neither Old Zhang nor his son knew who had beaten them up. They guessed it must have been Mr. Wu, the guy who came to you to buy the braising sauce recipe last time. They figured it was because of you that they got into this mess, probably because they wanted some kind of benefit from you."
Aunt Wang said with a look of disgust, "Old Zhang is really shameless."
Fang Yan: ...
Some people are so bizarre that you just want to kick them into the Pacific Ocean!
"You know what's good for you. If that shameless woman comes looking for you again, just let Qibei go and kick her out!"
Qibei's reputation spread far and wide, and no one in the village dared to bully Fang Yan and Xiaoyuzai.
Well, if you just bully Uncle Bei, he probably won't do anything to you.
But if anyone dares to bully Fang Yan and Xiao Yuzai, Uncle Bei will definitely lose his temper on the spot!
"Third brother, you should keep an eye on things later. Your wife has had a tough time. Now that you've recovered, you should help and take care of her more. You must have accumulated a lot of good karma to have married such a wonderful wife."
"I will," Zhang Ji replied modestly, nodding in response.
Zhang Jizhou knew that Fang Yan was doing quite well in the village, but he didn't expect her to be doing this well.
This is already the...
He couldn't even remember how many women had been with him since he came back. Marrying Fang Yan was a blessing he had accumulated over eight lifetimes.
In the past, whether it was people from this village or those from nearby villages, when it came to his marriage, everyone said in unison that Fang Yanyan must have accumulated eight lifetimes of good fortune to be able to marry such a good man.
Zhang Jizhou never felt superior to Fang Yanyan.
However, before he learned about Fang Yan's views on marriage, Zhang Jizhou somewhat agreed with them. He earned money to support the family and had a stable income. If Fang Yan followed him, she would indeed have no worries about her future.
He just didn't expect that only half a year had passed, and in the eyes of the villagers, he and Fang Yan had already changed.
The family is waiting for the chrysanthemum greens that Aunt Wang has to cook.
They didn't chat for long before going their separate ways.
On her way home, Fang Yan caught Zhang Jizhou glancing at her several times.
Don't you recognize me?
After the Nth time, Fang Yan asked impatiently, "Why do you keep peeking at me?"
"you're good!"
Zhang Jizhou looked proud, his smile impossible to hide. "When I came back this time, all the aunties and grandmothers in the village told me that marrying such a capable wife like you is the greatest blessing I've ever had."
He agreed wholeheartedly, saying, "They're right. I think if I hadn't accumulated a lot of good karma over many lifetimes, I definitely wouldn't have had the good fortune to meet you."
One aspect of Fang Yan's views on marriage surprised Zhang Jizhou greatly.
She said that a good marriage is about helping each other succeed and growing together.
In this era where men are generally the breadwinners and women are the homemakers, people usually believe that men earn money to support the family, while women are responsible for housework and everything they can do, including giving birth and raising children.
Thus, women were still treated as appendages of men, believed to be able only live by depending on men.
Under such a mindset, domestic violence is rampant, and women are shown absolutely no respect.
In many places, women are not even allowed to sit at the table to eat.
Zhang Jizhou grew up with such ideas, so he was inevitably influenced to some extent.
When he first heard Fang Yan say that a good marriage is about mutual success and growth, he was very surprised and even asked her, "Men earn money to support the family and make sure their wives are well-fed and clothed. What can women contribute to a man's success?"
"According to your logic, if a man earns money to support the family, it is an achievement for a woman. Then, isn't it also an achievement for a woman to take care of a man's elderly parents, or even his grandparents?"
It's important to understand that before a woman marries into her husband's family, she has never eaten a single grain of rice from them, and therefore has no obligation to support her husband's elders.
"Women give birth to children, take care of all the housework, raise pigs, chickens and ducks, and help with light work in the fields. Isn't that an achievement?"
Zhang Jizhou: ? ? ?
Is this not something a woman should do?
He ultimately didn't dare to ask the question aloud.
However, Fang Yan could tell what he was thinking from his expression.
He immediately retorted coolly, "Isn't earning money to support the family what men should do? How can you have the nerve to talk about it all the time, as if you've accomplished some great feat?"
Even if the man is the breadwinner and the woman is the homemaker, if we really want to analyze it, it's really just a kind of equal exchange.
I'll stay home and take care of the home front, so you can go out and make your way in the world with peace of mind.
This is clearly an equal exchange, but the man insists on portraying the woman as utterly worthless.
Fang Yan couldn't stand such remarks.
Furthermore, a good marriage is about mutual growth and achievement, which includes not only living conditions but also career and spiritual aspects.
However, in this era when everyone is still working hard to have enough to eat and wear, it's too far-fetched to talk about such things.
So Fang Yan didn't say anything.
Initially, Zhang Jizhou thought that Fang Yan's explanation was somewhat far-fetched.
But later, after repeatedly considering many real-life examples, he gradually realized that what she said made a lot of sense.
Therefore, he did not dare to use the same attitude he had towards marriage to treat Fang Yan.
After realizing that my perspective has changed, I often have more positive thoughts and a more open mind.
He knew that Fang Yan was the one who made him who he was today.
It was only after thoroughly understanding Fang Yan's words that Zhang Jizhou realized how fortunate he was to have met her.
He heard his neighbors saying that he must have accumulated a lot of good karma to marry such a good wife, and that he should cherish her.
He strongly agrees with this statement.
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