In the autumn of the fourth year of the reign of Emperor Fuxi of the Qian Dynasty.
At 3:45 AM, the morning light was faint, and a thin mist, like gauze, gently enveloped the threshing ground of Stone Village.
The distant mountains are faintly visible in the mist, like a traditional Chinese ink painting.
A few wisps of smoke rose from the rooftops, mingling with the morning mist.
In the Wang family's kitchen, Wang Xiuxiu was squatting in front of the stove, adding firewood to the fire pit with one hand and covering her mouth and nose with the other, trying her best to suppress the cough in her throat.
Her face was somewhat pale, clearly indicating that she had not fully recovered from her illness.
The kitchen was filled with the smell of burning firewood, which made her cough a few more times.
"Cough, cough!" Her coughing sounded particularly jarring in the quiet of the early morning.
From the next room came the rustling sound of someone turning over, followed by a few grumbling complaints: "What's all the noise so early in the morning? Can't a person get any sleep?!"
Hearing this complaint, Wang Xiuxiu rolled her eyes in annoyance, thinking to herself, "The sun's already high in the sky and you're still not up!"
But she dared not utter a sound, only quickened her pace, stuffing firewood into the stove pit, and the flames gradually grew stronger.
Most of the houses in Stone Village are built with thatched roofs and mud blocks, resulting in extremely poor sound insulation. The walls are dark and grimy, and the houses look very simple inside and out.
The Wang family's house was one of the few brick houses in the village. Although it wasn't luxurious, it was still considered a respectable family in the village.
Before long, Chen Chunhua from the main house also came to the kitchen.
She was dressed in a plain cotton dress, her hair was neatly combed, and she was holding a wooden basin, clearly there to fetch water.
"Xiuyatou, you're still sick, why are you up so early?" Chen Chunhua asked with feigned concern as soon as she entered the room.
With her back to her, Wang Xiuxiu first pursed her lips, then pretended to get up in a hurry and respectfully replied, "Mother, I can't sleep. I was thinking of boiling some hot water so that you and Father will have water to wash up when you get up."
Upon hearing this, Chen Chunhua smiled with satisfaction, but still scolded, "You child, what can I say about you! You don't take care of yourself at all. We're family, what does it matter if your father and I don't have water?"
Wang Xiuxiu listened to the reprimand with her head down, secretly thinking to herself: "This person is two-faced. Although she said such nice things, it seems I will have to get up early tomorrow to boil water for this stepmother, otherwise she will cause trouble for me openly and secretly again."
“Mother’s words of admonition are correct. I want to be filial, but I have forgotten your loving motherly heart. It is Xiuxiu’s fault.”
Hearing her say this, Chen Chunhua was surprised that the gourd with the sawed mouth had suddenly become clever.
He nodded in satisfaction, then turned around and picked up a gourd ladle to scoop water.
After Chen Chunhua fetched the water, Wang Xiuxiu immediately began preparing breakfast.
The steamer basket contains steamed buns and dumplings that have been fermented since early morning; they can simply be placed on the pot.
Stone Village is located in the southern part of Gan Guo, and originally, rice was the main food source.
But Chen Chunhua was a native of the North, so to accommodate her tastes, the Wang family ate noodles nine out of ten days a week.
After washing up, Chen Chunhua didn't offer to help; she just stood aside and watched Wang Xiuxiu work.
Wang Xiuxiu was already used to this. Although she was annoyed, she didn't dare to say a word and pretended that it didn't exist. She quickly scooped some pickled vegetables out of the jar and started chopping them.
After finishing chopping the pickled vegetables, he squatted down in front of the stove to tend the fire.
Seeing that she was still working, Chen Chunhua picked up the basin of water and turned back into the house.
In the Wang family, only Wang's father and Chen Chunhua were entitled to use hot water.
These are rules that Chen Chunhua subtly instilled in her.
When Wang Xiuxiu first arrived at the Wang family, she didn't understand either. Later, after being teased by Chen Chunhua for a long time, she gradually came to her senses.
Wang Xiuxiu scoffed at this. "A small farming family with only a few people, yet they act like such a bureaucrat. How ridiculous!"
---
Chen Chunhua was originally a maid in charge of a large family in the north.
Her parents died early, but later Chen Chunhua was granted a free status and came to live with her aunt who was still alive.
Because she was older when she returned home and could not find a suitable man, she was arranged to marry a widower named Wang Degui, who was also Wang's father, through her aunt's matchmaking efforts.
Compared to the women who were born and raised in the village, Chen Chunhua was much more knowledgeable, and her marriage made Wang's father very proud.
Chen Chunhua, relying on her past experience working for a large family, often looked down on these "country women" in the village.
Wang Xiuxiu extracted several keywords and felt that there was something seriously wrong with this.
First of all, the identity of Chen Chunhua, the maid in charge, is questionable.
Although she has some particularities, judging from her actions and behavior, she doesn't seem like someone who would manage things in a large family.
Furthermore, even though they are old, they have seen the extravagant feasts of wealthy families.
Others might not care, but given Chen Chunhua's personality, Wang Xiuxiu didn't think she would willingly marry a peasant.
There must be something fishy going on here!
But this left Wang Xiuxiu no time to think further.
Because Wang's father was already sitting at the table, looking like an old man waiting to eat.
Upon seeing this, Wang Xiuxiu quickly wrapped the steamer in a damp cloth and carried it down.
Inside is a plump, round steamed bun.
The steamed buns were quite large, so Wang Xiuxiu had to cut them open with a knife before serving them.
The moment it's cut open, a wonderful aroma fills the air.
The filling for the steamed cakes was made with lard mixed with bok choy and pickled cucumbers. It wasn't fancy, but it showed her considerable thought and effort.
Wang Xiuxiu had already finely chopped the pickled cucumber, replacing the salt; the lard added aroma, and the bok choy was tender…
After serving the steamed buns and pickled vegetables, Wang Xiuxiu placed them one by one on the table. Only after her father said "Sit down" did she dare to sit down and eat with him.
"Tsk tsk!" Wang Xiuxiu cursed him inwardly for his arrogance.
"Honey, the eldest son and his wife haven't arrived yet. Shall we wait a bit?" Chen Chunhua asked, feigning concern.
"No way! You two lazybones, the elders are already at the table and you still won't get up. You deserve to go hungry!" Father Wang waved his hand impatiently.
After listening to her father's words, Wang Xiuxiu swallowed a mouthful of steamed bun, silently calculated the time in her mind, and then quickened her pace of eating.
Sure enough, just as she was finishing her meal, Wang Xiuxiu's older brother and sister-in-law lazily arrived at the canteen.
Wang Xiuxiu pricked up her ears and heard the sound from afar. She said a moment earlier that she was full and needed to clean the kitchen.
Wang's father didn't see her touch her chopsticks much, but thinking that a girl like her shouldn't be able to eat too much, he allowed her to leave.
“You’ve just recovered from your illness, go back to your room and rest. Leave the kitchen cleaning to your sister-in-law!” Father Wang’s tone left no room for argument.
Wang Xiuxiu glanced at Chen Chunhua with a troubled expression.
Chen Chunhua immediately adopted a loving mother's demeanor and said, "Good child, listen to your father, go and rest!"
Only then did Wang Xiuxiu dare to go back into the house.
She was resting in bed with her eyes closed, intending to take a nap, but the noise from outside kept her awake.
Outside the door, Chen Chunhua was locked in a tense standoff with Hong Xiaodong.
Chen Chunhua is a kind-hearted person with a bitter heart. She always says one thing and does another, and she usually likes to say things that are sweet but contain hidden barbs.
But Wang Xiuxiu's sister-in-law, Hong Xiaodong, was no pushover either.
Holding herself to the high status of a scholar's daughter, she refused to give way to Chen Chunhua in the slightest.
The two exchanged words back and forth, which eventually ended with the father saying, "Shut up, both of you."
Chen Chunhua fell silent, and even Hong Xiaodong awkwardly shut his mouth.
Hong Xiaodong was not afraid of her husband, and she didn't even take her stepmother-in-law Chen Chunhua seriously. The only person she was truly afraid of was her father-in-law.
However, since she was the daughter of a scholar, her father-in-law held her in high regard and would not easily embarrass her, which was why she dared to argue and challenge Chen Chunhua.
Mr. Wang left the table first, followed a few steps by Chen Chunhua.
Once her father-in-law had walked away, Hong Xiaodong called out in a voice she could hear, "Husband."
Just two words, but they went through so many twists and turns, and the way they were shouted was so affected and nauseating.
Upon hearing this, Chen Chunhua froze and fled a few steps as if escaping.
Wang Chengwu rubbed his goosebumps and muttered, "What are you yelling about? It's disgusting!"
"What are you complaining about! I just want to annoy that old hag!" Hong Xiaodong said triumphantly.
---
Chen Chunhua's strong reaction stemmed from an old incident that occurred shortly after her marriage to Wang's father.
At that time, she had just entered the family as a new bride. To show her virtue, she deliberately chose to deliver meals to the fields when there were many people around.
She called out to her father from afar, "My lord."
In Stone Village, women usually refer to their husbands as the heads of the household.
Those who were called "Xianggong" were all teachers in the city who taught children to read and write.
The father was just a simple villager who couldn't read many characters. The fact that he was associated with the title "Master" was truly hilarious.
At home, Wang's father didn't find anything wrong with calling Chen Chunhua that.
But now that these people are all cheering him on, Wang's father is also furious and immediately scolds Chen Chunhua for embarrassing herself here.
At that time, Chen Chunhua was a newlywed, enjoying the height of her happiness. However, she was scolded by her husband in public for the first time, which made her feel extremely embarrassed.
Chen Chunhua is very concerned about her image, and this became an embarrassing incident that she was ashamed to mention.
After angering Chen Chunhua, Wang Chengwu finished his meal, dusted himself off, and left.
Hong Xiaodong was left all alone.
As Hong Xiaodong tidied up, he cursed, "You shameless slut! Taking advantage of your illness, all you do all day is shirk your responsibilities..."
Hong Xiaodong still had some reservations about Chen Chunhua, her stepmother-in-law, but she always beat and scolded Wang Xiuxiu as she pleased.
Even though it was her father-in-law who told her to be punished by packing her things, Hong Xiaodong still had to vent her anger by cursing a few times.
She swore, but Wang Xiuxiu didn't hear a word; she had already fallen asleep during their truce.
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