Upon seeing that Qin San Niang's family had acquired another horse-drawn carriage, the villagers of Lujia Village had various thoughts.
Some people are envious and jealous, like Zhao Juhua. Some are simply envious, knowing it's someone else's skill, and since it doesn't concern them, they don't care. Others are genuinely happy for them, like Old Lady Chen.
"Oh my, sister-in-law, your carriage looks really impressive!"
Both Liu and Granny Chen were straightforward people, and they had interacted quite a bit before.
Knowing that Granny Chen was genuinely congratulating her, Madam Liu also began to praise her daughter to the skies. She said that her daughter cared about her bad legs and had taken out all the money she had saved to buy this carriage, saying that it would also keep her warm in cold weather.
Old Mrs. Chen knew about Liu's previous leg injury, and she immediately praised Si Tan San Niang for her filial piety.
So, Qin San Niang and the others listened as the two old women complimented each other on how filial their children were, while humbly admitting that their own children weren't quite as good...
Regardless, the group set off on time.
"Mother, is it going to rain?" Da Wa asked worriedly.
This child is precocious; he started working in the fields with his elders at the age of eight and has some awareness of the weather.
Qin San Niang looked up at the weather; it was a bit gloomy, unlike the clear, crisp autumn days of the past.
Mrs. Liu nodded, "It's bound to rain these next few days, and my legs are starting to hurt."
"Mother, I boiled water at noon and filled the hand warmer with hot water for you. It will become a hot water bottle. Put it on your legs and it won't hurt so much."
Qin San Niang quickly explained that Liu Shi had a leg injury that hadn't fully healed after the escape from the war. Although she no longer needed to walk, being curled up in the carriage every day was still tiring.
Wu Chunhua quickly nodded, "Auntie, you must be careful about this. My mother used to make a living in the south. The south is humid, and if she has a leg ailment, it will be very difficult for her!"
Liu was a good person, as kind as her own mother. Thinking of her own mother, a wave of melancholy washed over her. At the beginning of their escape, her mother-in-law refused to let her return to her parents' home to inform her family. For Fatty's sake, Wu had no choice but to go with them. However, she had asked an aunt from the same village to send a message to her mother and the others, wondering if they had managed to escape and where they were.
"Yes, Mother, there is a rainy season in the South, and it is said that it rains every day. If that's the case, your legs will be in pain all the time, and that would be terrible!"
"Grandma, quickly apply a hot compress, I don't want you to be in pain!" Upon hearing this, Anan, who was playing nearby, became extremely anxious. At such a young age, she had already experienced the passing of her loved ones one by one, and she truly had a deep affection for her grandmother, Liu.
The other two boys were not good with words, but they also expressed their reluctance to cause their grandmother's legs pain.
Liu was overjoyed, a warm feeling washing over her. She quickly said she would listen to them, and once her leg was healed, she would go with the children to cut grass and feed the horses.
The chubby girl driving was dressed warmly, with cotton shoes on her feet; she was really cozy.
They were called cotton shoes, but they were actually old-fashioned shoes that Qin San Niang had taken from the supermarket. The shoes looked like they were from that era, but they were much more refined in every way. It was already quite cold outside, and Fatty was always outside in the car, so she needed to dress warmly.
Last night, when Mrs. Wu saw the new shoes, she was so happy that she cried. These shoes were obviously not cheap; the soles must be made of soft leather, but even leather couldn't be made this well.
“Fatty, you must treat your Third Aunt and her family well. Along the way, Third Aunt and Granny Liu have been very good to you and to your mother. If it weren’t for them, we would have starved to death on this journey. We wouldn’t be able to live like this now, with no worries about food or clothing.”
If it weren't for the fact that Fatty's feet were naturally large and no one else could wear them, Wu Chunhua really wouldn't have dared to keep them. These shoes would be fine for Liu Shi, so why would they be for her Fatty?
“Mother, don’t cry. I’ve already forgotten all these things. I promise I’ll drive carefully and make sure you don’t get bumped around. I’ll also take good care of my younger brother and sister.”
Seeing Wu crying so hard, Fatty was a little anxious and kept wiping her tears with her chubby little hands. "Mother's crying, does she think I haven't done enough work?" Indeed, she hadn't done anything besides driving the carriage. Even tasks like cutting grass and feeding the cattle and horses were taken care of by Da Wa and the others. It seemed she would have to work harder from now on, otherwise her mother would be sad.
Wu didn't dare to stop either, and busied herself making quilts and cotton shoes on the train. There was no harm in making more of these things, as they would be useful if it got really cold.
Although Qin San Niang had advised her several times not to work so hard, Wu Shi just smiled, rested for a while, and then got back to work.
Later, Qin San Niang simply stopped talking about it. She understood Wu Shi's unease, and giving her some work would save her from worrying that she and her daughter owed too much. Otherwise, they would have already grabbed some blankets from the supermarket and used them. Anyway, they were in the carriage now, and no one would easily see what they were using.
At midday, when it was time to cook, the village headman did not call a halt, and no one dared to rest, knowing that the weather was bad and they were afraid of rain.
Lu Dingtian really thought so. He was an experienced farmer, and his ability to read the weather was innate.
"Father, should we stop and rest?" asked the eldest son of the Lu family, who was pushing a cart beside him.
Although they bought a donkey cart, only the mother, father, and a few children could ride on it. The sons and daughters-in-law still pushed carts behind them.
The cart is much lighter and easier to push.
Even so, the thought that their children would be protected from the sun, rain, and cold made the daughters-in-law of Old Mrs. Chen feel as sweet as if they had eaten honey.
The Lu family has three sons, and five grandsons and granddaughters. The eldest son's family has one boy and one girl, as does the second son's family. The third son's family has only one boy. The oldest child is thirteen years old, already a young man, and can ride the cart with his grandfather.
"It looks like it's going to rain. This isn't a good place to stop and make some changes. Let's walk a little further and go to flat ground first."
Old Lu looked at both sides of the road, which were all mountain slopes. After last year's severe drought, the soil and sand had become loose. If there was heavy rain, there was a high possibility of landslides or mudslides, and their lives would be in danger!
Looking ahead, the carriage belonging to Madam Qin's family hadn't stopped either, so they must have the same idea.
Gu Qingshan drove the mule cart ahead, while Azhi was still asleep in the cart. The child hadn't slept well last night; perhaps the weather had turned a bit chilly again, as she had been coughing all night, and they hadn't had a chance to have Madam Qin check on her yet.
Based on his experience in marching, he knew there would definitely be a heavy rain, and this place was not suitable for resting; he could only continue onward.
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