Chapter 74 The Key to Finding Water
Shen Shaojing said: "Is my elder brother and sister-in-law okay?"
"Anyway, my eldest brother is capable. He can do the work of two people in the fields by himself, and my eldest sister-in-law is also diligent and efficient."
"But after the family split up, I always feel like we're two different families. But I can understand that my eldest brother and his wife are doing this for Songcai. Songcai is ten years old, and my eldest sister-in-law has always wanted him to go to school."
Shen Yueyao asked, "Isn't it a bit late to start enlightenment at the age of ten?"
Shen Shaojing said, "It's good enough for country people to be able to study, but my parents don't like us studying for the imperial examinations. Besides, the sisters from my eldest sister-in-law's family look down on her. She probably wants Songcai to stand out. Anyway, I don't understand what they are thinking."
"If you put it that way, it's understandable. She looks much better than my second sister-in-law."
Shen Shaojing said: "Even my eldest brother and his wife were so silent, and suddenly they said they wanted to split up the family. My parents couldn't stand it. They didn't understand why they had to split up the family for no reason. Besides, my eldest brother is a bit harsh in his words, which would make my parents angry."
"Actually, if they had spoken nicely, Mom and Dad would have given them a share of the family property, but they insisted on ruining the reputations of my third brother, his wife, me, and my younger sister, using us as a pretext. That's why Mom and Dad are so angry."
"In fact, they use us as a scapegoat. They think that dividing the family is natural. When we go out in the village, the villagers won't say that we are unfilial. They will only say that our parents are partial, that my third brother and his wife don't work hard to farm and insist on opening a noodle shop, and that I am against my sister..."
Thinking of what the villagers said, Shen Shaojing became a little angry. He didn't care about himself, but he felt uncomfortable listening to the things they made up about his sister.
So he didn't like going back to the village and would rather find something to do outside during the day.
Shen Yueyao probably understood what was going on. "Okay, it's like this now. Don't be angry. As long as we live a good life, be filial to our parents, and let them live a good life, our eldest brother and his wife will not dare to look down on our parents."
In fact, Shen Yueyao understood that the eldest and second brothers were actually selfish and felt that it was not cost-effective to accommodate the whole family.
If my parents were rich and capable, they would not be happy even if my third and fourth brothers held me back and asked my eldest brother and his wife and my second brother and his wife to separate from the family business.
Shen Yueyao remembered that when she was a child, her parents loved her elder and second brothers very much.
Shen Yueyao didn't say anything about marrying off a daughter and letting her go.
Her parents have loved her since she was a child, and as a daughter, she can still be filial to them.
She will help as much as she can.
Shen Shaojing nodded, his eyes firm as he said, "Yes, so I want to behave like a human being and not let others say that about my parents."
As the brother and sister talked, Shen Shaojing helped Shen Yueyao carry her things and entered Liuhe Village.
Shen Shaojing looked at the remote appearance of Liuhe Village and said, "Sister, Liuhe Village is so far away from the town and a bit remote. It would be better for you and your brother-in-law and his family to move to Xinghua Village."
"Our Xinghua Village is large, with lots of good land, and it only takes a quarter of an hour to walk to town, so it's very convenient..."
Shen Shaojing said a lot, all he said was that he wanted to live closer to his sister so that he, as her brother, could protect her and help her with things.
Xinghua Village is quite far from Liuhe Village, separated by two big towns, and it takes a whole day to go back and forth.
He couldn't find out what happened to his sister in time and couldn't help.
Shen Yueyao could feel the love that her fourth brother showed for her. She smiled and explained, "You also have to understand your brother-in-law and his family. He's also proud inside. You said that if you move to Xinghua Village with us, wouldn't that make you a live-in son-in-law? What if others gossip about you?"
"Besides, the Su family's household registration was originally here, and they also bought land, so it wouldn't be that easy to move."
When walking towards the village, Shen Yueyao saw from afar a group of people in the village gathered by the river, doing something unknown.
Some people went down to the river.
Shen Shaojing asked curiously, "What are they doing? Isn't this the busy farming season? Why don't they go to the fields to farm?"
It's March now and the weather has become much warmer. This is the time to plant vegetables and crops.
For farmers, the most important times of the year are the planting season and the harvest season.
Everyone depends on the harvest for their livelihood, so naturally they regard growing crops as more important than anything else.
Logically speaking, they should be in the field by now, so why are they gathered by the river?
Besides, it’s not even lunch time yet.
Shen Yueyao's expression changed and she asked, "Could it be that the river has dried up?"
I remember that in early February, she and Su Erya went to the river to pick willow buds.
The river water level was very shallow at that time. Su Erya said that it had not rained for almost a year.
There was only a little snow last winter.
Won't it be drought?
The sun has been quite strong over the past month, and people have been carrying a lot of water, so the riverbed may really dry up.
Shen Yueyao looked a little solemn and said, "Let's go and take a look."
When they went over, they saw many people fishing in the river.
The main reason is that the river is almost drying up, and the fish under the water have jumped out. Some people can catch a big fish by just grabbing along the mud in the river.
“I didn’t expect there were still so many fish in the river.”
"This fish is quite big. We can catch a few to satisfy our hunger."
"It's just that the fish is too fishy, and some people can't get used to it."
No one thought of taking the fish to the town to sell it because the price of fish was quite low, and mainly because people didn't know how to cook fish or remove the fishy smell.
Others expressed their worry: "The river has dried up. What should we do? If it doesn't rain again this year, the crops won't survive."
"There are three wells in the village. Please don't drain them. Everyone still needs water to drink."
"I hope it will rain heavily. Last year, we had a spring rain at the beginning of spring, but it hasn't rained since then."
Many villagers looked at the sky, hoping for a heavy rain.
Farmers rely on the weather for their crops. If the weather is good and the crops grow well, the harvest will be good and everyone's life will be better.
If there is drought or flood, farmers will have a hard time.
Shen Yueyao looked at it, and her brows furrowed tightly.
Shen Shaojing's expression also changed, and he said anxiously: "Sister, this weather won't really dry up, right?"
"Let's wait and see. If it doesn't rain, we'll have to go far away to fetch water for the fields. The key is to find a water source."
However, Shen Yueyao also hoped that it would rain and flood the river.
I heard that when it rains heavily in the village, the river floods and it is very spectacular. At that time, all the villagers will come to the river to watch the water.
There are few entertainment programs for the villagers, so they will watch anything that is a little bit unusual.
Shen Yueyao's family's land is not cultivated either.
During this period, she gave Madam Meng acupuncture and adjusted her prescriptions and medicines every day. The bandage on Madam Meng's eyes can be removed in the next few days and she should be healed.
At that time, it will be faster if the whole family works together to farm.
But now it seems that we may have to carry water to irrigate the fields and farm.
Shen Shaojing said: "I hope it rains heavily. If it rains heavily, everyone will feel relaxed."
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