Chapter 4: Feeling Sorry for My Cousin

Jiang Wan was ready to make a move, but her cousin was as still as a mountain. She seemed to be immersed in her own world, and it took several times for her to respond to any question.

This is not right.

"cousin?"

"cousin?"

"Hmm? Wanwan, lean on me and sleep for a while."

Yin Ning looked gloomy. He hugged his cousin and let her lean on him. Then he continued to be in a daze and stopped talking.

I don't know why, but there's an inexplicable sad feeling about her. Jiang Wan pursed her lips, suppressed her desire to go out, and stayed at home to accompany her cousin.

The two sisters stayed at home obediently, while the aunt and sister-in-law who had gone out cleaned up the house and went to their neighbor's house together.

"Little sister, how about we go to each of them?"

If you ask each other and then summarize, you will always get more information. Yin Huaixi was much braver than the original owner and nodded immediately.

She went to the one that was closer. This house was a mud house that looked quite new. There was no wall outside, only a simple fence. Sitting on the earthen embankment at the door were two women who were mending their fishing nets and a child who was playing in the mud.

Yin Huaixi scratched her hair subconsciously and tugged at the hem of her clothes, put on an official smile on her face, and then walked outside the fence to speak.

"Excuse me, ladies. Can I come in?"

The two women and the child who were mending their fishing nets all looked up at her. Everyone knew that a new exile was coming to the village, so the two women guessed Yin Huaixi's identity at a glance.

The older woman hesitated for a moment and nodded, "Come in and tell me what you want to say."

Seeing that their attitude was not bad, and there was no disgust or rejection in their eyes, Yin Huaixi felt relieved, pushed aside the fence, picked up a small stool, sat down next to the two women, and introduced himself first.

Of course, I didn’t introduce my past identities, I just introduced my name and briefly introduced how many people there are in my family and where I live now.

When they heard that she lived in a stone house, the two women showed a hint of envy in their eyes. That house was really good, but it was too small. There was no room for seven or eight people in the family, and the old village chief would not let them change.

"The Jiabao brothers who brought us here earlier said that if we don't understand something, we can ask the neighbors, so I shamelessly came over to disturb them. I wonder what the two sisters are called?"

"Everyone in the village calls me Auntie Cow. This is my eldest daughter-in-law Cuifang."

"What?! Auntie, you are actually the mother-in-law. I really didn't realize that. When I first came in, I thought you two were sisters-in-law."

Yin Huaixi's shocked expression made Aunt Niu unable to suppress the smile on her face, and she straightened her back for some reason.

Who doesn't like being told they are young?

"Girl Yin, you really know how to joke."

The person who was so polite just now suddenly became a little enthusiastic, which surprised Mao Cuifang who was standing beside him.

Things went much more smoothly afterwards. The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law mended the fishing nets while telling Yin Huaixi about some people and things in the village. When Yin Huaixi had asked almost everything and was about to leave, the kid playing in the mud beside him suddenly covered his throat and struggled.

"What's wrong with you, Xiaoniu?!"

"Xiao Niu! Don't scare grandma!"

The kid couldn't utter a word because his throat was choked. Only his increasingly red face showed that he was in great danger at the moment.

Yin Huaixi knew at a glance that he must have choked on something, so she immediately squeezed past the two people who were holding the baby and shaking and taking pictures of him and snatched the child away.

"I know medical skills, let me do it!"

The word "know a doctor" calmed the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, who were about to lose their temper, a little. They nervously watched Yin Huaixi put the baby on the ground and stood behind him, with her fists on the baby's belly. Somehow, after a few lifts, a small lump of stuff came out of the baby's mouth.

The little baby who had survived the disaster burst into tears of fear. Mao Cuihua quickly picked up her son and comforted him.

"Don't cry, don't cry, it's okay."

"It's a clam a little too big for him."

Yin Huaixi frowned and looked at the kid. The kid was only about two years old, and he had to be extra careful with food as small as a peanut, let alone such a big piece of clam meat.

Auntie Niu swallowed her saliva and explained, "There's nothing good in the village. We usually boil the clam meat, dry it, and give it to the kids as a snack. Everyone does that."

How come something happened to my grandson?

"It's better to be safe than sorry. The calf is still too young after all. It's better not to feed him such large and hard-to-chew food. Also, make sure he washes his hands before eating."

Yin Huaixi is a doctor by profession. As her professional habits came into play, she talked for a long time before letting the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law go.

There is a lack of medical care and medicine in the countryside, and there is no knowledge about some pediatric diseases and health knowledge. The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law listened very carefully, and after Yin Huaixi finished speaking, they admired her so much that their favorability towards her increased rapidly.

"Thank you so much, Miss Yin, for saving my calf today. Take these duck eggs back."

Auntie Niu stuffed duck eggs into Yin Huaixi's food while giving her a handful of vegetable leaves. Mao Cuifang, who was standing by, looked at her with gratitude and even said that she would send her some fish when her husband came back home.

The two were so passionate that Yin Huaixi was a little overwhelmed. She was worried that the duck egg would be broken during the pushing and jostle, so she simply accepted it.

"Auntie, I accept your kindness. These are all good things. Thank you so much. I will go back home to pack up. If you have any headaches or fevers, you can come to me."

The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were naturally very happy to hear this. There had never been a doctor in the village, and the medicine that a traveling doctor occasionally came to give was not very effective. If they wanted to see a doctor properly, they had to walk a long way to the neighboring Huaihua Township to see a doctor, or else they had to go to the county town.

The family would have to spend all their savings to see a doctor. So how could the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law not be happy when they heard Yin Huaixi's words? They looked at Yin Huaixi eagerly and waited for her to turn the path before going home.

"Mom, a few duck eggs and a handful of vegetables is still a little too little. Our calf was so dangerous just now."

Mao Cuifang wanted to be on good terms with Yin Huaixi, thinking that if she had a good relationship with her, she could come to her house if her son got sick again.

Auntie Niu also thought so and nodded, "When Daniu and his father come back later, you can send some fish over. Besides, they are new here and they must be without many things. You can give them one of our wooden barrels and tell them the time of low tide tomorrow. Then you can take them to catch fish."

The village was poor but never hungry. The sea was rich in resources. Every time the tide receded, there would be a lot of seafood left on the beach. If you were diligent, you would have food at home. If you were even more diligent, you could get more seafood to sell and add some money for oil and meat.

Yin Huaixi had lived in a seaside fishing village since she was a child, so of course she knew the convenience of living by the sea. Although her son's insight into the sea was not as good as her daughter's, he was much better than the original owner's family.

But how can I explain this skill of chasing the sea to my family?

Jiang Wan was also worried about this.

The sea was right before their eyes, and for them who were short of food, the sea was a huge granary.

The granary was within reach, but she had to hide the fact that she would catch up with the sea because she couldn't show her stuff. The thought made her feel suffocated. But people can come up with solutions, and Jiang Wan had already found an excuse for herself in the afternoon.

Just say that I once found a miscellaneous book about marine life and learned it from reading it.

Now that the mother and daughter had left the Jiang family, no one could verify it. The mother and daughter took the excuse of going to the toilet to relieve themselves, and then picked up some firewood before returning.

At this time, the wooden boards were being dried in the open space in front of the house, hot water was boiling in the stove, and the two bedrooms had been cleaned thoroughly. When the window was opened, the moldy smell in the room also dissipated a lot, and I could finally sit for a while.

Song Wenhui first told the news she had heard.

"Some of us exiled people are not welcomed by the villagers, so it is best not to go to the village on weekdays. In addition, firewood can only be collected outside the back mountain, or some drifting wood can be collected and dried at the seaside. I heard from Mrs. Zhou that there are very fierce Li people living in the deep mountains. They have a very bad relationship with the people living down there. If you encounter them in the mountains, you will be attacked."

This news is very important. After all, they live at the foot of the mountain. If they go up the mountain to get firewood, wild vegetables and fruits, they might end up walking too far.

"There are no oxcarts in the village that can go to the county town. If you want to go to the county town, you either have to walk by yourself or follow the fishing boats in the village. There is very little arable land in this village, and the grain production is also low. Almost all of it has been changed to growing beans and vegetables. Therefore, the village does not produce food. If you want to earn food, you have to spend your own money to buy it from the county town."

The family: “…”

They didn't have even five cents on their bodies, and at most they could buy a pound of grain.

Yin Huaixi thought about what Auntie Niu had said to her and added a few more words. They were mostly information about the neighbors, how many families there were, their backgrounds, and whether they were easy to get along with.

"Also, today I helped Auntie Niu a little. She told us that if we wanted to buy anything, she could bring us along when she went into town, or she could buy it for us."

It's obvious that Auntie Lao Niu's family has a fishing boat, so making friends with her will be very beneficial to our family.

Yin Huaishan summarized the information, and the heavy feeling in his heart became a little relieved. It was a good start to settle down in the village. As long as his family worked together, they would be able to live a good life.

The afternoon passed quickly, and after being exposed to the wind and sun, the bed boards had dried out and were put back on the stones.

The weather was not cold at all, and the whole family could just lie down and sleep. Yin Ning seemed to be very tired, and she lay down on the bed as soon as it was made and did not move. Jiang Wan was a little worried about her, so she turned around and went to the kitchen to whisper to her aunt.

"Aunt, my cousin has been in a bad mood and doesn't talk. If she keeps it to herself, it will cause problems."

Speaking of this, Song Wenhui was also worried. But she tried to persuade her daughter but she still couldn't figure it out.

"It's all about the broken engagement. Damn the Meng family. They broke the engagement quietly and gave the engagement letter to your uncle and me, but they had to do it in a big way in front of your cousin."

And said so many nasty things.

Song Wenhui got furious whenever she thought about it.

"Wan Wan, An Ning has always been good to you. Please help your aunt persuade her to be more positive. Or take her to the beach. I think the scenery is pretty good and suitable for relaxing."

Jiang Wan nodded. Even if her aunt didn't say anything, she would still try to make her cousin happy. But she felt that just breaking off the engagement wouldn't make her cousin like this.

The Yin family was exiled because my grandfather's third brother embezzled a huge amount of military funds. The mastermind had been executed and the three clans were sentenced to exile.

In fact, it was not a problem for the Meng family to cancel the engagement at this time. After all, the Yin family had been exiled, and there was no benefit at all for the two families to marry each other, and they would be implicated. Who would take this risk to marry? She felt that her cousin should have been mentally prepared.

"Wanwan, I've got the water for you. I'll bring it into the room for you, close the door and wipe it thoroughly."

"Okay, okay!"

It was so hot and I had to rely on the water from the sky to take a shower. I was already smelly. Jiang Wan even felt a little itchy on her head and prayed hard not to get lice.

She waited for her aunt to bring the water into the house, then quickly closed the doors and windows and called her cousin.

"Cousin, auntie has brought us some water, get up and wipe yourself."

After hearing this, Yin Ning, who had been dazed, suddenly became energetic as if he had been recharged. He got out of bed and went to the water bucket.

There was a splash of water, and Jiang Wan stared in amazement at her cousin who was rubbing her body vigorously, as if she wanted to rub the skin off her body.

This feeling...

Jiang Wan felt upset and had some bad guesses, but she didn't dare to say a word, for fear of upsetting her cousin.

"Cousin, let me help you rub it. You can't rub your back. I'll help you clean it better."

"Okay, wash it clean."

Yin Ning finally smiled at her little cousin, which made Jiang Wan feel so sad that she couldn't control her tears.

While she was rubbing her cousin's back carefully, she was thinking about how to help her. Her cousin looked like someone had taken advantage of her. Chastity was more important than life to women in this era. No wonder her cousin's eyes were dull.

But after being arrested, my cousin has been with my aunt and her family all the time, and they have never been separated during the exile. When and by whom did she get bullied? Why didn't my uncle and aunt notice anything?

Jiang Wan had read a lot of books, and they all said that girls would feel uncomfortable and walk abnormally after their first time. It was impossible for a smart person like my aunt not to notice it. How could she think that my cousin was angry because of the broken engagement...