Chapter 101 Aunt Fugui Asks for Advice
The sun hadn't risen yet after breakfast.
Zhao Ergou and Zhao Sanniu went to town to deliver goods. Because the volume of deliveries increased dramatically and they went to more places, the price for hiring Zhao Da rose to eighteen coins.
Zhao Dashan went to the fields to fertilize and weed. This period is the final grain-filling stage of rice growth. The fields do not need too much water. We should irrigate alternately with dry and wet conditions to keep the soil moist. The most important thing is to observe the leaves and ears of the plants. If a field is not growing well, additional fertilizer should be applied, otherwise the grains will not be plump and firm enough.
Furthermore, the rice harvest season is also the time when there are the most pests in the fields, requiring us to go to the fields every day to remove pests and weeds.
Zhao Dashan was working hard in the field, while Zhao Sidan herded ducks beside him and dug up wild vegetables from the field ridges. If he saw locusts, he would grab a few and put them in his basket to take back to feed the chickens.
Cheng Wanwan wasn't idle at home either. The vegetable seedlings in the fields in front of and behind the house had all sprouted, so she had to water them repeatedly. She also had to clean and disinfect the chicken coop and duck shed, as well as feed the two puppies.
Cheng Zhao wanted to help, so she asked Cheng Zhao to go and study for lessons.
Cheng Zhao sat in the main room. He wasn't reading; instead, he was making a sand table. Just recognizing characters wasn't enough; he had to learn to write. Since he couldn't afford brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones, he would practice with a sand table first. His second aunt had four younger cousins, so he needed to make four sand tables for them. After finishing the sand tables, he would have to figure out how to make an abacus so that each of them could have one to practice with, which would allow them to learn quickly and well.
While no one was paying attention, Cheng Wanwan went to the doghouse and fed Xiao Hei milk and Da Hei ham sausage. The two dogs ate heartily until their bellies were round.
When you get busy like this, time flies by.
"Grandma, are you home?"
Several women walked over to the gate of the courtyard, but they didn't go in even though the gate was open.
Cheng Wanwan came out of the house and said with a smile, "I'm here. What can I do for you ladies?"
"We went to town early this morning to buy ducks, but we couldn't find any for sale after walking around for a while."
"We just wanted to ask where Da Shan's family bought their ducks and give us directions."
Cheng Wanwan said, "I bought it in Hekou Town, but the person who sells ducks doesn't come every day, so you have to try your luck."
The women were all very busy. They had to work in the fields and do chores at home. Some of them even had two or three babies who were still nursing. They simply couldn't get away from their jobs. They were already lucky to be able to spare even half a day this morning.
“How about this…” Cheng Wanwan said, “My family’s small business requires me to go to town every day, and I have to go to several nearby towns. I’m bound to run into someone selling ducks eventually. If you sisters trust me, then leave the matter of buying ducks to me.”
She paused for a moment, then continued, "A duck costs about six to eight coins, depending on how much each of you ladies wants."
A duck costs six to eight coins, which is a bit pricey. A few years ago, when they bought ducks, they only cost four or five coins. But it's normal for ducks to be more expensive this year, the women nodded in agreement.
"My family needs twenty."
“My family will take forty.”
“We haven’t separated yet. We have thirty mu of paddy fields, so we need seventy ducks.”
"..."
Four or five women ordered nearly two hundred ducks in total.
Cheng Wanwan remained silent.
Even if you met a man selling ducks, you couldn't possibly buy so many; that man only seemed to sell around fifty at a time.
I almost forgot, she has a shop. The ducks she buys from the shop are stronger and have a lower mortality rate.
She smiled and agreed, "It's settled then."
The women left satisfied.
As Cheng Wanwan was preparing to make lunch, a figure walked over from the side of the courtyard wall.
She looked up and saw Aunt Fugui.
Aunt Fugui's face was ashen, and she looked listless, having lost her usual flamboyance and shrewishness.
She walked up to Cheng Wanwan and said in a slightly hoarse voice, "Auntie Dashan, lately I've been asking you for advice on everything. I know you're very capable and smart, so I'd like to ask you for some ideas."
Cheng Wanwan was somewhat surprised: "What idea?"
"I...I don't want to live with Zhao Fugui anymore."
Aunt Fugui gritted her teeth.
As the saying goes, "A night of marriage brings a hundred days of kindness." That day, she went to take care of Zhao Fugui under the big locust tree because she wanted to fulfill the bond of their many years of marriage.
She has done what she needed to do, so it's time to end things.
She didn't want to be pointed at and gossiped about every day, nor did she want the women in the village to look at her with pity...
Cheng Wanwan laughed, almost wanting to clap her hands in delight. She pulled Aunt Fugui to sit down and said, "A man like that is definitely not worth having. It's a good thing that you think that way. If you can't have him, then you can't. It's not like a woman can't live alone. She can still live a prosperous life."
Aunt Fugui gave a bitter smile: "Whether it's a divorce or I'm left behind, I have to go back to my parents' home. The children I bore for the Zhao family will have nothing to do with me anymore, and I'll hardly be able to see them again..."
Cheng Wanwan pursed her lips.
The ancient rule seemed to be like this: after a divorce, a woman had to return to her parents' home and have no further connection with the children she had with her former husband.
After returning to her parents' home, a woman belongs to her father, and if her father remarries her, she cannot resist.
Cheng Wanwan frowned in thought.
She asked carefully, "Is your husband sixteen or seventeen this year? Is he engaged yet?"
Aunt Fugui nodded: "She's almost seventeen. The marriage was arranged last year. She's my sister's eldest daughter, and the wedding is planned for the end of the year."
“Find an auspicious day for the wedding, and after Da Tou gets married, let him move out of the family.” Cheng Wanwan found it increasingly feasible. “Then you can live with Da Tou and his wife. Later, we’ll find a way to bring Xiao Tou and the girls over, so you won’t have to live with Zhao Fugui anymore, and you won’t have to be separated from the children. As for Zhao Fugui, let him do whatever he wants. Just pretend he’s dead…”
Aunt Fugui grabbed Cheng Wanwan's hand: "Aunt Dashan, thank you for giving me this idea. I'm so grateful to you. I misunderstood you so much before. I was such a bad person..."
"These things are in the past, we should look forward."
Cheng Wanwan smiled broadly.
In a woman's life, who won't encounter one or two scumbags? Getting entangled with a scumbag will keep you stuck in the mud forever. Be brave enough to let go of the past, look forward, and a better life awaits you in the future.
The next day, Cheng Wanwan told Zhao Sanniu to stay at home while she and Zhao Ergou went to deliver goods.
After wandering around several towns, Cheng Wanwan only found one place selling ducks. They were seven coins each, no bargaining, and she bought all fifty of them.
She sent Zhao Ergou away and bought 150 ducklings from the mall for five coins each. The ducklings she bought were the older ones.
Two hundred ducks were placed on the oxcart, quacking incessantly.
Zhao Da slapped his thigh: "Auntie Dashan, my wife told me to buy ducks, but I was so busy I forgot. Where can I buy ducks? I need to go and buy a few right away."
Cheng Wanwan hurriedly said, "I'll go buy it for you, I'll be back soon."
She jumped out of the car, ran into the alley, and bought fifty more ducks. Twenty were for Zhao Da, and the remaining thirty were to be delivered to the Zhao family's old house later.
She bought too many ducks at once, and the online store gave her five goslings as a gift.
She was most afraid of large white geese. When she was a child in an orphanage, she was chased by a large white goose, and it gave her a psychological trauma.
However, these five goslings are yellow and fluffy, and look similar to ducklings. They pose no threat whatsoever.
When these five little guys grow up, they'll be excellent at guarding the house.
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