She realized that her granddaughter's things didn't appear out of thin air; they must have been secretly taken from some magical place!
The whole family ate and drank, and they even found some seeds for their granddaughter to return. That way, at least they couldn't make things difficult for her in front of the gods…
Jiayin didn't know that her grandmother's guess was pretty accurate, but she was very happy that the old lady was so kind and had solved her big problem.
While her family was busy with spring plowing, she also had a hard time.
We need to grow grain in the fields, vegetables in the garden, and feed pigs, chickens, ducks, geese, and rabbits.
All these tasks combined are quite numerous.
It's so hard on her, a baby who's just learned to crawl...
Inevitably, she was busy day and night, and most of the time she was so tired that she just slept.
This made Grandma Li praise her to everyone she met, saying that her granddaughter was so easy to take care of, knew how to care for her family, never made a fuss, and slept soundly every day...
They work at sunrise and rest at sunset.
The whole family worked for half a month and finally planted all thirty acres of land.
Twenty mu of sorghum, ten mu of millet, and some beans and other crops planted along the edges of the fields.
In the autumn, a few sacks of grain can be harvested, enough to satisfy Daqing's cravings. At least we won't have to trade with the villagers for fermented bean curd anymore.
Speaking of fermented bean curd, when the weather gets hot, Aunt Wu and Sister Zhang and a few others come over and take away their own fermented bean curd.
In each family's vegetable garden, choose a spot that receives sunlight all day long.
Buy a small earthenware jar, break the soy sauce blocks into pieces, and add plenty of salt.
The mouth of the jar is covered with white burlap to keep out dust. Small stones are also hung at the four corners of the burlap, and red ribbons are tied to it. This is to ensure that the fermented soybean paste tastes good.
After that, you need to rake it twice a day. This means gathering the mold that's fermenting at the bottom of the vat together and scooping it out completely.
Of course, a broken basin is also needed as a lid.
In case it rains, cover it with the soybean paste to prevent it from getting wet and going bad.
Jiayin was carried on her grandmother's back and learned the whole process.
Finally, he stubbornly held onto the rake and wouldn't let go, using all his strength to rake it a few times before stopping.
The Li family finally got some rest and slept soundly until the sun was high in the sky.
Grandma Li pulled a piece of meat from the well and took two cabbages, intending to make cabbage and pork dumplings.
While the others were fine, Jiaxi and Jia'an, tanned like black mudfish, jumped up happily.
Tao Hongying and Zhao Yuru helped chop the filling and knead the dough, while Li Laosi asked for a few cabbage stalks to feed Daqing.
Li Lao Er tidied up the house. In a couple of days, after the spring plowing season, the village children would be coming to school again.
Jiaren is returning to the college tomorrow and is packing his luggage.
Jiayi was eager to try it out and planned to go to the escort agency to ask his master after finishing the dumplings when he could go out to escort goods again. He was already very ambitious.
When you're out, you want to go home; when you're home, you want to go out again…
While the whole family was busy, Guo arrived at the door again.
She forced a smile, but her face was full of fat, making the smile awkward and embarrassing; it would have been better if she hadn't smiled at all.
The Li family all saw it, but no one said a word, treating her as if she were invisible.
Guo cursed inwardly, but she still had to shamelessly say it.
"Big sister, you're busy. Have you finished planting your fields? Do you need our help?"
Grandma Li didn't even lift her eyelids, and simply said, "No need."
Guo was speechless with embarrassment and really wanted to turn around and leave. But thinking about the five acres of land that were still empty at home, she continued to try to please them.
"Big sister... well, it's so convenient for you to do chores when you have a lot of people in your family. Unlike our family, we only have two sons."
Dazhu's health isn't good, but Laifu has some work in the city. My two daughters-in-law are useless; all I can do is suffer like this old man."
"Since none of your family members can work, why are you offering to help my family?"
Old Mrs. Li swept the yard with a broom in her hand, and immediately started to criticize without any mercy, which made Guo Shi secretly grit her teeth in anger.
Grandma Li wouldn't even glance at her. Now that her granddaughter can crawl, she always sneaks out.
There can't be any pebbles in the yard, in case my granddaughter gets one in her mouth.
Also, it's not good to put it on the knees, the child's skin is so delicate...
Guo was left feeling cold for a long time, and the dust kicked up by the broom was even more pungent. She finally lost her temper.
"Big sister, you've finished planting your fields, so you don't need any livestock anymore. Give us your mule to plow the fields tomorrow!"
Dazhu didn't know how to lead livestock, so he sent Lao Si to help. The five mu of land were planted in one day.
"No, our mule has been working hard for half a month and needs to rest for a few days."
If you need livestock, buy them yourself. If you can't afford them, just pull the plow on your shoulders like the other villagers do. Other families don't have mules, but they still managed to cultivate their land.”
What Old Lady Li disliked most was the Liu family's laziness.
There were a dozen or so families in the village, and the Liu family, with its two sons, had the largest number of members. Yet, the Liu family managed to live the poorest life.
The dilapidated thatched house is about to collapse, the autumn harvest will rot in the ground, and the spring planting will be delayed until the very last minute.
Such families, even setting aside past grievances, are not to be visited.
Otherwise, if they help once, the Li family will become dependent on them in the future.
They get the benefits, the Li family puts in the effort, and in the end they may still be left with a lot of complaints.
So, it's better to refuse outright from the start.
Ultimately, Liu's only family member was her younger brother, who has now also passed away.
The remaining group has absolutely no family ties whatsoever.
Guo was thoroughly angered by being rejected time and time again.
"Big sister, you have no conscience! Even if you don't like me, I'm still an outsider."
But Dazhu and Laifu are your own nephews! Are you really willing to let your own nephews suffer?
The old woman rolled her eyes, looking at Guo as if she were a fool.
"Liu Gen'er is dead, and our two families are no longer related. You don't even cultivate your own land. What kind of logic is it to expect us to take it from you?"
My fourth son is still my own son, isn't a son closer than a nephew? How can I let my own son suffer while my nephew is idle! Get out of here!
She plucked at the dust a few times and then went back to the yard.
An old quilt was laid out under the eaves, and Jiayin sat on it, munching on fruit and watching the excitement. At this moment, she wished she could applaud and cheer for her grandmother.
Seeing that she couldn't gain any advantage, Guo completely lost her temper and started cursing loudly.
"You whole family are heartless bastards, aren't you afraid that Liu Gen'er will come back and settle accounts with you!"
Instead of protecting her nephew, this aunt bullies our family of orphans and widows! Waaah, I can't live like this anymore! Liu Gen'er, please come back and see us!"
Some villagers heard the commotion and came over to see what was going on. They listened to what was happening and then joined in with laughter.
"Aunt Liu is really something! She has two sons and two daughters-in-law, and they're all lazy and don't do anything. But when it comes to chores, she suddenly thinks of distant relatives! It really shows that she's closer to her sons and doesn't want them to work."
Guo became even more agitated, "What do you know! Dazhu is in poor health, and Laifu is making a fortune in the city..."
"Get rich? Then hire people with silver! Not many, just one hundred coins a day, and I'll help you with the planting!"
Why don't you just rob it?
Guo was about to start cursing again when Li Laosi had already found a wood-chopping knife and was about to open the courtyard gate.
She screamed in fright and turned to run away.
The soft fear the hard, the hard fear the ruthless, and the ruthless fear the reckless!
She wanted to rely on the Li family for work, not to risk her life here!
Grandma Li held her granddaughter, pretending not to have seen her son scare Guo. But she couldn't help but sigh softly...
If Guo were to act like a decent person and raise her nephew well, how could her aunt not help?
But this family is utterly hopeless!
Guo ran home, so angry that she slammed the door and smashed the basin.
Liu Tiezhu was sleeping soundly on the kang (heated brick bed), snoring away, and paid no attention to anything.
Su Niang and Chun Hong could only ask a few questions after hearing this.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com