Zhang Ruifeng and Xie Shen were waiting for her at the door.
As soon as Zhang Ruifeng returned home, she saw the clothes hanging in the yard and the water tank was full. She began to complain to Xie Shen, "Why is your sister so restless? She fetches water as soon as the weather gets better."
Xie Shen said to her, "My sister loves you. If she doesn't choose, then you can choose. You don't let me choose."
Zhang Ruifeng looked at her son's small stature and said, "Wait a little longer, don't let yourself get stagnant. When your sister was your age, your father and I never let her carry water. Besides, with your small stature, you can't even lift the bucket off the ground with a shoulder pole."
Xie Shen was so angry at his mother's teasing look that he yelled, "Mom!"
Zhang Ruifeng laughed and said, "What are you yelling about? I can't stand the truth!"
Xie Shen stiffened his neck and said, "I can carry water without a shoulder pole. I can carry half a bucket at a time. I can make more trips."
Zhang Ruifeng thought for a moment and said, "Then you can try it tomorrow. Be careful with your little arm, don't dislocate it. You're a man, you have to support your family, and you'll have to support your sister in the future, so there's no harm in doing more work."
Xie Shen smiled and said, "I know. I'm being careful."
"What is your sister doing again?"
Xie Shen ran to Zhang Ruifeng's room and looked. Neither the winnowing basket nor the sieve was there. "She should be grinding flour. I'll go meet her."
As soon as the two of them reached the door, Xie Yun came back.
As soon as she saw her, Zhang Ruifeng came forward, took the dustpan from her hand, and said angrily, "If you don't feel well, just lie down at home. I'll do these things when I get back. Your brother can do it, too."
"I was fine not long after you left. When Mumu came back to see me, I had already washed my hair and body and was doing laundry."
Just like her name is Binbin, her brother's name also has an uncommon character, so his nickname is Mumu.
It is said that their names were given by her father Xie Tan who went to the town and found an old scholar who was a teacher in a private school before the founding of the People's Republic of China. The old scholar wanted them to have good meanings, so he gave him three characters, Yun, Shen, and Xuan. However, his life was short and he only had two children, so the last character was not used.
When she was in modern times, her name was given by the director's mother. She had a large dictionary at hand and gave each child a name with a beautiful meaning, hoping that these children who were abandoned for various reasons at birth would have a bright future.
"You even washed your hair!"
Zhang Ruifeng was shocked.
She looked at Xie Yun's completely dry hair. Although it had been braided, it looked distinct, clean and fresh, and it was indeed washed.
She raised her hand and gently slapped Xie Yun. "Your fever just subsided, why are you washing your hair? What if you catch a cold and then get a fever again?"
"I worked up a sweat yesterday, and when I got home last night, I got caught in the rain. I felt sick right away, but I didn't wash. Today, my fever has subsided, and I'm sweating again. My whole body is sticky and uncomfortable. My hair is almost smelly, and my scalp is itchy. How can I not wash it?"
Zhang Ruifeng curled her lips, thinking, "It's okay if it's a little rotten. If it itches, just scratch it. It's better than washing it and then getting itchy again." Besides, the autumn harvest had begun these days, and everyone was so tired they went home, ate, and fell asleep immediately. They had no time to wash their hair or bathe. Everyone was covered in dirt. At most, they washed their faces and wiped their bodies. No one was much better than anyone else; everyone was equally dirty.
But she looked at her daughter and found that she was in a good mood and in good condition, so she thought it was unlikely to relapse. She pursed her lips but didn't say anything to spoil the mood. The key was that her daughter looked clean and refreshed, and she felt happy looking at her.
After letting Xie Yun go, Zhang Ruifeng said to Xie Shen, "Hurry up and light a fire. I'll make some pancakes. We have some millet at home. I'll make some millet soup for your sister."
"Why."
Xie Shen agreed and ran away.
Zhang Ruifeng said to Xie Yun, "Go drink some water and rest for a while. Even though your fever has gone down, you're still weak. Rest as much as you can. Don't go to work this afternoon. We'll talk about it tomorrow. If you're really bored, why not clean up the little plot of land behind the house and harvest the corn we planted. I think it's ripe."
"OK."
Xie Yun did not refuse and accepted his mother's kindness.
Her family had a front yard and a backyard. The backyard was about one mu (approximately 60 square meters) and had always been used for growing crops, such as wheat and corn. In the front yard, besides raising pigs, chickens, and rabbits, they also grew sweet potatoes in the corners, which were all sufficient to provide a good living. After the sweet potatoes were harvested, they could plant radishes, so they would have vegetables to eat in the winter.
Xie Yun returned to his room and sat on the edge of the bed to rest.
Xie Shen came to the kitchen shed and first stuffed the leftover pancakes into his mouth. They were reserved for Xie Yun, but she didn't eat them, so Xie Shen ate them instead. Afraid that Zhang Ruifeng would scold him, he explained, "I ate the leftovers and gave my sister a new one."
Zhang Ruifeng laughed and said, "Eat your food, how can I say anything to you?"
She knew very well that her son was not the kind of ungrateful child and was not trying to take his sister's things.
Xie Shen, holding a pancake in his mouth, lit the stove. Zhang Ruifeng was in charge of making the pancakes, praising him as she worked: "Your sister ground the flour very finely today, and the pancakes are very warm. I'll make some dough tonight, and you can steam some pumpkin-filled buns tomorrow morning."
"Okay. Mix the stuffing for my sister and add an egg."
Zhang Ruifeng smiled, touched her son's head with the back of her hand, sighed inwardly, and said, "We all eat the same thing. Mom puts an extra egg in. It's the autumn harvest, and we're tired. Let's all replenish ourselves."
In recent years, in order to pay off the overspending, the family lived frugally and hardly ate any eggs. They were all sold for money, and the two children suffered with her.
Zhang Ruifeng looked at her son and felt a pang in her heart. He ate so little but still grew up so well. It had to be said that it was all thanks to the children themselves.
Oh my god, she is a hypocrite and a real villain. She says that we should not take advantage of the group and ask the children to behave well, but she turns a blind eye to their behavior of taking advantage of the group and does not really pursue it.
She despised herself in her heart.
Xie Shen had no idea what his mother was thinking. His face was full of smiles, and he almost drooled when thinking about the big buns stuffed with pumpkin and egg tomorrow.
He added some firewood to the big stove, lit the small clay stove, and prepared to cook millet porridge for Xie Yun in a small clay pot.
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