Chapter 37 - A Duo of Men, Women, and Children Singing and Dancing...
At this moment, in the Lin family's courtyard.
After carrying Miao Feng back, Lin Changfu didn't carry her into the house; he simply placed her on the pile of straw in the yard.
Lin Changfu ordered the child, "Go boil some hot water for your mother to wash her face and hair."
At the time of the incident, Lin Changfu, Lin Changhe, and Old Master Lin were all together, not with the women. They were unaware when Miao Shi attacked Lin Chuntao. By the time they heard the commotion and went over, Miao Feng had already gone to bed.
Most importantly, he saw his three sisters-in-law watch helplessly as Lin Chuntao poured the basin of dishwater on Miao Feng.
We're all family, and they usually get along quite well, right? Why don't they help each other when it really matters?
Lin Changfu grew angrier the more he thought about it, and directly said to Zhang, Feng, and Yang: "Eldest sister-in-law, second sister-in-law, third sister-in-law, are you just going to stand by and watch Feng'er be bullied by that little slut!"
Feng thought of the words that said she and her second son were greedy, lazy, scoundrels, and shameless, and that their children would not amount to anything in the future. It was one thing to scold her and her second son, but to curse their children as well made her furious.
Miao is feigning death, so she can't make a move now, and Lin Changfu is even blaming her. It's like someone handing you a pillow when you're sleepy.
"Oh, Fifth Brother, that's a nice thing to say. Your Second Brother and I are both greedy and lazy. How could a lazy person like me lend a hand when someone deserves it?"
Lin Changfu frowned and looked at Zhang and Yang. Zhang said sarcastically, "Your wife is amazing. She's the old lady's darling. Even I, her mother-in-law's niece, am not as good as her. Why would she need my help? Fifth brother, don't overestimate us!"
Yang, standing nearby, scoffed, "Fifth brother, don't look at me like that. If it weren't for your fourth brother taking a liking to me, I would never have been able to get married. Now that I'm married to your fourth brother, how dare I cause trouble? Don't blame me for not being able to help your wife."
Lin Changfu's face darkened as he listened to his three sisters-in-law's sarcastic remarks.
Miao could no longer lie down. She sat up abruptly, her face contorted with embarrassment, and cried as she looked at Zhang and the others, “We’ve been sisters-in-law for so many years. Even if we’re not blood sisters, I’ve treated you all no worse than any other woman. Eldest sister-in-law, second sister-in-law, and fourth sister-in-law, how could you listen to that little bitch Chun Tao like that? It’s truly heartbreaking.”
Miao Feng looked at Zhang Shi first and said, "Eldest sister-in-law, second sister-in-law and fourth sister-in-law don't believe me, and you don't believe me either. Have you forgotten how Jia Bao was harmed by that wretched girl Chun Tao? With just a few words from her, she made Jia Bao bear such a bad reputation. Now that she's going after me, do you still believe her or me?"
Zhang's eyebrows twitched slightly, and she was about to speak when Yang interrupted her.
“You said Chun Tao’s words were all fabricated, but we all know about what happened to Xu Xiu. It’s true that you caused her to go hungry. We’ve heard about the women in the village. You don’t need to compare yourself to Jia Bao. Jia Bao is a child, and are you one too?”
Why did that bitch Lin Chuntao target you? It's because you tried to steal a chicken but ended up losing the bait!
“Miao, I’d like to ask you something. I’m a shrewish woman who can’t get married anywhere in the surrounding villages. It’s beneath me to be with your fourth brother-in-law. If you think your fourth brother-in-law is being wronged, then from today onwards, you can marry two husbands. I’ll give you my place. You’re the one who deserves them the most!”
Those were truly harsh words. Lin Changhong, the fourth son, tugged at Yang's sleeve. Yang glared at him fiercely and snapped, "What? You can't wait any longer?"
Lin Changhong looked at Yang Shi and said in a low voice, "What are you saying? Have you forgotten that I won't marry anyone but you?"
Lin Changfu's face turned ashen. He glared angrily at Yang and said, "Third sister-in-law, don't speak so harshly! When has Feng'er ever said anything like that?"
Yang chuckled dismissively and looked at Miao Feng.
"Miao, if you didn't tell, do you dare swear to God? If there's even a single lie, may all three of your children not live past eighteen!"
Miao's face turned pale. When Lin Changfu heard that the child would not live past eighteen, he clenched his fist in anger and swung it directly at Yang.
When Lin Changhong saw Lin Changfu about to hit Yang Shi, he quickly intervened and stopped him. After being punched by Lin Changfu, he wondered how much pain it would have hurt if that punch had landed on Yang Shi. They were arguing, but it was clearly Lin Changfu's wife who started the trouble, and she still dared to hit him.
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. He shoved Lin Changfu next to the straw, and Lin Changfu tripped and fell on Miao Feng. Both of them were then beaten by Lin Changhong.
When Miao saw Lin Changfu being beaten, she got up and tried to scratch Lin Changhong. Yang was not to be outdone and rushed over to push Miao down, who was still unable to get up. The four of them started fighting.
Looking at the mess in the yard, Old Man Lin glared at Lin Changhe and Lin Changhai, who were still standing to the side, and yelled, "Are you two dead? Why aren't you pulling them apart?"
Lin Changhe and Lin Changhai rushed forward to pull him up.
When Lin Changfu saw Lin Changhe's face, he realized that today's events were related to Lin Chuntao. Enraged, he punched Lin Changhe, causing Lin Changhe's nose to bleed.
Lin Changhe was stunned by the beating. He shouted, "Lin Changfu, are you crazy? What did I do to you?"
Lin Changfu cursed, "You didn't provoke me. If it weren't for your few wretched girls, would things be like this today?"
Lin Changhe felt resentful thinking about how Lin Chunxing and the others ignored him today.
"I've already kicked that wretched girl out, and that's still not what you want? What? Does this family have to revolve around you two? Why should we? You should just die!"
Lin Changhe cursed and joined the fight. He and Lin Changhong beat up Lin Changfu and his wife. Lin Changhai tried to break up the fight but failed and was pushed and fell down.
He got up and muttered, "If they're going to kill us, they won't stop until they're dead! Go ahead and fight!"
As he spoke, he left the courtyard and ran to call the village head and his sons to his house. With so many people, it took them a while to separate the group.
Lin Cun looked at the family, their faces bruised and swollen, and sighed deeply.
"How old are you? Still fighting?"
Lin Changhong angrily shouted, "Lin Changfu started it! He was the one who tried to hit my wife first!"
"She cursed me so that my child wouldn't live past twenty!"
"Was that a curse? I made your wife swear! Didn't she say she didn't say it? What's wrong with swearing? Or do you know in your heart that your wife is gossiping behind your back, and you're afraid of retribution if you say it?"
"Say it again!" Lin Changfu pointed at Yang Shi and got angry again. Yang Shi was not satisfied at all and retorted, "Say it a hundred times, it's the same. She has the ability to gossip but not the ability to admit it?"
Lin Cunzheng looked at them and said in a deep voice, "Say less, whatever misunderstandings you have, just talk them out. Do you have to fight until you're bleeding?"
Lin Changfu looked indignant. He knew Miao Feng's personality best. He knew she liked to gossip with the old lady, but what she said was all true. Why couldn't she say it?
"I don't have a brother like that!"
Lin Changhe and Lin Changhong retorted in deep voices, "You make it sound like we have brothers like you!"
Everyone was arguing and fighting fiercely, their faces bruised and swollen. Qian Shi peeled a radish and sat quietly in the corner of the courtyard, eating it.
I even found the scene somewhat funny.
Lin Cunzheng sat down and scolded his brothers, but in the end, they were all very dissatisfied, but they just didn't want to talk back to Lin Cunzheng.
At this moment, Lin Chuntao was busy cooking clay pot noodles.
Lin Chunxing and the others had eaten mutton rice noodles, but they had never made or eaten them at home.
Although the sisters had already eaten, they still wanted to eat some when they saw Lin Chuntao chopping minced meat. Lin Duo'er wandered around Lin Chuntao with her hands behind her back.
"Sis, can I have some more?"
Lin Chuntao glanced at her and said in a deep voice, "If you want to eat, just say you want to eat. Why do you have to ask me if you can have some? Don't I usually give you any?"
Lin Duo'er giggled, "Then I'd like to eat a small bowl."
Upon hearing this, Lin Chuntao looked at Lin Chunxing and Lin Chunhe, "Do you two want some?"
Lin Chunhe turned around and asked, "If we eat, will you and your brother-in-law have enough to eat?"
"That's enough, I bought more than two jin." As soon as Lin Chuntao finished speaking, Lin Chunhe also happily said with a silly smile, "Then I'll eat half a bowl too."
Lin Chunxing chimed in, "Me too!"
Lin Chuntao laughed and said, "I knew you gluttons would want to eat this when we were in town, so I bought a lot more."
The earthenware pot and the casserole dish are made of similar materials, but the earthenware pot is larger, which is just right for a group of people like them to eat in.
Lin Chuntao cut off some of the meat she bought that morning, with a mix of lean and fat, and minced it. She also chopped some garlic and put lard directly into the earthenware pot to fry the garlic until it was fragrant. Then she added the minced meat and fried it until the meat pieces were distinct. Only then did she scoop in some chili oil and fry it until it turned red. Next, she added some chopped pickled cabbage and stir-fried it. When it was almost done, she added water to the earthenware pot.
Then he added the chopped tomatoes.
Lin Chuntao put the shredded cabbage and chives she had just cut into a bamboo basket and carried it out, saying that she had to wait for the water to boil before adding the noodles.
Seeing this pot of vegetables and meat, with its bright red broth, Pei Ying felt a little hungry as her sisters drooled.
While waiting for the water to boil, Lin Chuntao added the rice noodles. Once the water boiled again, she added shredded cabbage and chives, followed by an appropriate amount of salt.
"You can get your bowls and chopsticks and start eating now," Lin Chuntao called out.
As soon as she finished speaking, Lin Duo'er and the others ran to get the bowls and chopsticks.
Lin Chuntao watched as the soup in the earthenware pot boiled and the chives and cabbage were cooked. She then had Pei Ying take it down and place it aside, and casually removed the firewood.
The soup in the earthenware pot was still bubbling away when Lin Chuntao suddenly thought of Crossing-the-Bridge Rice Noodles. She would buy a brood of chicks in a while and then kill them to cook rice noodles.
The aroma filled the courtyard, and the sisters drooled. Afraid of burning them, Lin Chuntao served them the food herself.
"How much do you want? Is half a bowl enough?" she asked Duo'er as she picked up some food.
Lin Duo'er nodded, "That's enough, that's enough, sister, get me some soup."
After serving Lin Duo'er, Chunxing and Chunhe said they only wanted a small half bowl, as they were already full and couldn't eat much more. However, seeing the food Lin Chuntao had cooked, they really wanted to eat it, so they ate some as well.
After serving them, she and Pei Yingcai each took a bowl and sat down to eat.
Lin Duo'er, who was served first, started eating. After taking a bite, she was overjoyed and exclaimed with wide, round eyes, "Sister! I want to eat this again tonight!"
Lin Chuntao: "...That's all, I cooked it all, I can buy more tomorrow."
Lin Chunxing was afraid of getting burned, so she blew on it for a while before taking her first bite. After slurping it in, she quickly widened her eyes. She had eaten a lot of delicious food these past few days and knew that Lin Chuntao was a good cook, but she didn't expect her to be this good. They had never bought and cooked this kind of rice noodle before. The only time they had it was when they ate mutton rice noodles in the county town, which she thought was the best.
Unexpectedly, there was something even tastier!
"Sis, how much can we sell one bowl of these for?"
Lin Chuntao slowly turned around to look at her, and estimated in her mind, "It's slightly cheaper than mutton rice noodles."
"Sister, teach me, and I'll cook and sell them in the county town once I learn."
Hearing Chunxing's words, Lin Chuntao readily agreed, "Okay, I'll teach you how to make it, but cooking this requires fire and is quite troublesome. In a couple of days, I'll teach you how to make a cold dish. Try it and see which one you want to sell then."
Lin Chunxing nodded vigorously, and Lin Duo'er beside her also said eagerly, "I want to learn too! I want to go with my second sister."
Lin Chunhe glanced at Lin Duo'er, then at Lin Chunxing, before burying her head in slurping the bowl of noodles in front of her.
Seeing this, Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "When I teach you, the three of you can learn together. Even if you don't go into business, you can still learn to cook for yourselves."
Lin Chunhe looked up at Lin Chuntao and nodded with a smile.
Pei Ying was engrossed in slurping noodles nearby. Lately, while working at the butcher shop, Zhang Dayong, Lao Zhao, and the other workers all seemed to prefer mutton noodles, having eaten them several times.
Although he thought the taste was good, he got a little tired of it after eating too much and no longer wanted to eat noodles.
At this point, he realized that he didn't not want to eat rice noodles, but rather he didn't want to eat mutton-flavored ones.
The earthenware pot that Lin Chuntao cooked contained only a little bit of minced pork, a little bit of chili, tomatoes, cabbage, and chives—all things she usually ate—cooked together, yet it tasted and had such a wonderful texture.
Chinese cabbage usually becomes soft and mushy when boiled, but when it's shredded and blanched, it becomes crisp and crunchy.
The acidity of the tomatoes and the chili oil combined to create an extremely appetizing flavor. He sipped the soup and noodles with gusto, thoroughly enjoying his meal.
He overheard Lin Chunxing saying she wanted to learn how to sell breakfast in the county town, and after thinking about it, he felt it was a good idea.
Lin Chuntao tasted the noodles she had cooked. They were alright, but compared to her previous ones, they had less filling and the flavor wasn't as strong, making them a bit bland. She preferred strong flavors, and between the two, she preferred the one with the stir-fried minced meat and sauce.
So if you're going to do business, you have to make sauces, and if you're going to sell food, you have to have your own unique flavor.
Otherwise, once business gets better, this kind of stir-fried minced meat with some chili oil and vegetables is so simple that many food vendors can figure it out after just a glance. Then, the streets will be full of similar dishes, and business will definitely be affected.
Lin Chunxing was very happy to have this idea. She had limited energy and couldn't do everything by herself. If Chunxing helped, their little family would have an extra source of income, and building a house would be just around the corner.
Making sauce requires a recipe, but the recipe section isn't open yet. She's accumulated over 1,600 points these past few days, which isn't nearly enough; she still needs to accumulate more points.
"Let's go to the field later and check if the corn and beans have sprouted."
As soon as Lin Chuntao finished speaking, Lin Duo'er, holding her round belly, got up from the chair and said, "Let's go now."
Looking at her bulging belly, Lin Chuntao felt a little helpless. After eating half a bowl, she said she was full but still wanted to eat more. Lin Chuntao told her not to overeat and upset her stomach, and she agreed with a smile and drank some more soup.
While serving the soup, I also casually picked up two more pieces of noodles, and after eating them, my stomach looked like this.
Fortunately, the little girl isn't too young anymore, and she runs and jumps around outside every day, so she's not prone to indigestion; otherwise, I would have been worried.
Seeing how happy she was and how eager she was to go out for a stroll, Lin Chuntao stood up and said, "Let's go then."
The group locked the house door and closed the courtyard gate, then slowly headed towards the fields.
Before they even reached the fields, they encountered many villagers.
"Chuntao, where are you all going?"
"Auntie, let's just stroll around."
Lin Chuntao gave a casual reply and walked forward. The woman laughed and said, "Your uncle and your fourth uncle got into a fight, did you know?"
Lin Changfu and the others went back and got into a fight? Lin Chuntao was a little surprised. She thought it would just be Yang Shi and Feng Shi arguing, but she didn't expect the brothers to fight. She pursed her lips, wanting to laugh, but she also wanted to ask if they had gotten bloodied.
But such words would seem too gloating.
She could only frown and reply indifferently, "Who is Aunt talking about? Our father is gone, there is no such thing as a younger or fourth uncle."
Upon hearing this, the woman waved her hand, giving an expression that said, "I understand," but she didn't stop talking.
"I heard that the fourth son's wife made the fifth son's wife swear a poisonous oath, and the fifth son rushed over to hit the fourth son's wife. The fourth son refused, and they started fighting. And you... Lin Laosan, you went to break up the fight but got hit too, and then you joined in. So it became the third son and the fourth son fighting the fifth son together. The village chief is still in their yard mediating. I just came from there, you can go and listen."
The woman described it in great detail, and Lin Chuntao found the image quite amusing just thinking about it.
She waved her hand at the woman and said, "Never mind, Auntie, it's better if we stay away."
The sisters quickly walked away and left the village.
Lin Chuntao and the others went into the cornfield.
The two plots of land at the village entrance were the first to be planted. Standing in the fields, you can see many small green seedlings, with a few leaves just emerging from the soil. They sway gently in the breeze, which is quite lovely.
She looked around and saw some seeds that hadn't sprouted yet. She gently dug away the soil to check and found that the seeds had already germinated. She estimated that they would grow in two or three days. She gently covered the soil back up and checked several places in this way, finding that they were all about the same.
Lin Duo'er and Lin Chunhe had already gone to the vegetable garden, and after a short while, their joyful shouts could be heard.
"Sister, our vegetables have sprouted!"
Lin Chunxing walked over with a smile and saw that many small green shoots had indeed sprouted on the soil.
"In another ten or twenty days, we will have vegetables to eat."
Hearing Lin Chuntao's words, the three younger sisters looked over together, their eyes filled with disbelief, and then asked in unison, "Really? We can pick them and eat them in twenty days?"
Seeing that they didn't believe her, Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "It's true, would I lie to you? I planted bamboo leaf vegetables."
"Bamboo leaf vegetables don't taste good; they're like eating pig feed," Lin Duo'er said.
Lin Chuntao thought of what the original owner of this body had said, and shut her mouth.
"If we don't have any vegetables, we'll have to buy some from Aunt Guizhi. We'll just have to make do with what we grow ourselves. I'll try to cook something delicious. We need to save money to build a new house."
Upon hearing about the new house, Lin Duo'er's attention was quickly diverted.
"Sister, when are we going to build a new house?"
"Save enough money."
How much money do I need to save?
"I don't know, we haven't started calculating yet."
"Can we save enough in three years?"
Upon hearing this, Lin Chuntao slowly looked at Lin Duo'er and smiled, "Definitely." After a pause, she added, "Maybe we can save enough this year."
"Really?"
Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "Maybe, you little rascal."
Lin Duo'er didn't listen to what she had said before. She only remembered that she had saved enough money this year, so she immediately asked, "If we save enough this year, will we be able to move into a new house next year?"
Lin Chunxing, who was standing next to her, replied, "Yes, we'll slaughter that piglet for the New Year, and we'll have plenty of meat to eat. We'll also be living in a new house. Aren't we happy?"
Lin Duo'er nodded repeatedly.
Lin Chunxing smiled slightly and patted her head: "Then hurry up and cut pig feed in a bit."
"good!"
Lin Chuntao and Pei Ying exchanged a glance and pursed their lips to keep from laughing out loud.
After inspecting all the plots of land, the riverside plots were the last to be planted, and fewer seedlings had sprouted yet. It would probably take a few more days. Most of the seedlings on the back hill had sprouted. Lin Chuntao estimated that she would come back to check again in four or five days. She would also plant corn there, and check if any of the seedlings had sprouted. If not, she would replant the seeds.
Just as I was about to go home, the sound of gongs and drums rang out again in the village.
People who had been loitering outside started heading into the village. Lin Duo'er grabbed Lin Chuntao's hand and said, "Sister, the dancing must have started. Let's go too."
Some images flashed through Lin Chuntao's mind. In the original owner's memories, weddings in the village would be held in the threshing ground. If it was still early after the feast, the villagers, young and old, would dance in the threshing ground. Everyone would wear their best clothes. The sisters in her memory were introverted and self-conscious, and could only watch others play happily with envy.
Seeing the expectant look in Lin Duo'er's eyes, Lin Chuntao nodded.
"Go."
Pei Ying also went along. When they arrived at the drying ground, there were already two or three circles of people jumping around.
Lin Qingqing and Lin Jiaye were in the innermost circle. When they hopped over, they saw Lin Chuntao and the others. They quickly adjusted their formation and moved to the back. Lin Qingqing came to find Lin Chuntao and the others to play. Lin Jiaye was still hopping. He quickly pulled Pei Ying into the group. Pei Ying didn't know how to hop at all and looked at Lin Chuntao in a panic, but he was soon pushed forward.
Lin Chuntao watched as Lin Jiaye talked to Pei Ying, glancing at her feet as he spoke. Lin Chuntao could imagine that Lin Jiaye was probably teaching Pei Ying how to dance. Lin Chuntao was caught up in the atmosphere and felt great.
Lin Qingqing said from the side, "We'll join in once Jia Ye gets here."
Lin Chuntao smiled and nodded. Lin Qingqing held her hand, Chunxing held Qingqing's hand, and Chunhe and Duo'er also held hands. After they turned around, Lin Qingqing shouted, "Jialiang, save a few seats."
After she finished speaking, the little boy who was holding Pei Ying's other hand let go of her hand, and Lin Qingqing said with a smile, "Sister Chuntao, come in quickly."
Lin Chuntao quickly picked up the dance, the simple steps and familiar rhythm were something adults and children could learn without a teacher.
Pei Ying's hand was being held by Lin Chuntao, and he said helplessly, "I don't know how to do this."
Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "It's very simple. First, you have to jump up. You can jump however you like."
Pei Ying didn't quite understand, but it was the first time he had ever seen anything like it. He watched as the original three circles turned into five or six, and even the old men and women joined in. It seemed like there was only one thing happening on the threshing ground: dancing. Immersed in this environment, Pei Ying seemed to suddenly know how to dance and was able to keep up with Lin Chuntao and the others.
Like Pei Ying, several other outsiders were also embarrassed when they were first pulled in, but after a few turns, they all got the hang of it.
Lin Chuntao, who originally planned to dig for wild vegetables to earn points, ended up having a happy afternoon on the drying ground.
Everyone dispersed just as the appointed time approached and it was time to set a table for the wedding party and the wedding procession to eat.
After watching Lin Qiao'er being taken away by the groom, Lin Chuntao and the others leisurely returned home. The sun was already setting in the west, and the afterglow enveloped the entire village. Smoke rose from the rooftops of many houses in the village.
"Sister, what are we having for dinner tonight?"
Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "Stir-fried pork with chili peppers, please."
Lin Duo'er tilted her head back and giggled foolishly, her rosy cheeks truly resembling a red apple.
After returning home and washing her hands, Pei Ying went to fetch water while Lin Chuntao cooked.
While waiting for Pei Ying to return with water, Lin Chuntao asked Pei Ying to help cut the linen she had bought that day, and said to Lin Chunxing and Duo'er, "I've bought the linen. Brother-in-law, cut the linen and we'll sew our own clothes later."
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