"Bao'er's mother, don't, don't worry about me, you go first..." Ding Youtian said as he put the two cloth bags on the grass at his feet. He needed to rest for a while, they were too heavy.
Jane Ning didn't want to care about him at all. If he wanted to show off, she had to let him do it to the end. After rolling her eyes at him, she walked forward quickly. When she was within an arrow's reach of the old house, she heard a woman's laughter coming from the yard. When she got closer, she heard the big girl talking to a boy.
When I went in, I recognized the woman as Tian. When the Ding family was still living in the old house, Tian married into the Ma family in the back mountain and lived on the hillside that she had crossed over from.
Tian was a cheerful person, eight years older than her original self. Her eldest son was already thirteen years old, and her youngest son, Ma Xiaodou, was the same age as Dabao and was seven years old this year. He was currently teaching the eldest girl how to fight with others by dancing and gesturing.
"Sister Tian, you're here." Jian Ning greeted her with a smile.
"Oh, sister, I heard about what happened today as soon as I came back from my mother's house. You are so lucky. If you had let go, these kids would have suffered a lot."
As Tian was talking, she helped her carry the things into the house. Ma Xiaodou followed her in, staring at Jian Ning.
"What are you looking at? Call me Aunt Jian." Tian slapped him on the head.
"Aunt Jian." Ma Xiaodou called out with a smile. He had gone to his grandmother's house with Tian two days ago. His two brothers had been watching Jian Ning in the morning, but he was not there, so he was surprised to see the extra marks on her face.
"Don't worry about it, brat. Xiaodou's father said that these marks will disappear over time."
Jian Ning smiled and said, "I know. It can be considered a blessing in disguise. I am now sober."
Tian also smiled and said, "It would be great if you could wake up sooner. Kind people are often bullied. I just heard about the fight and the division of the family from Blind Liu. That family should be severely punished. As for the days ahead, don't worry too much. God will not let a blind sparrow starve to death. I don't have anything good to give you. My mother gave me a bag of sweet potatoes when I came back from her house today. I'll bring you half a bag."
"This thing can be eaten raw or cooked. It's a rare treasure. My second brother brought it from Ji Country. I have work to do at home, so I have to go back. You take your time to clean up. I'll ask Xiaodou's father to bring some hay. If the roof is not properly covered, it will be uninhabitable if it rains at night."
"No need to call Brother Ma, Bao'er's father and I can handle it."
"Why are you being so polite to me? He's off today and is drinking with Blind Liu at home. I'll let him come over after they're done. You go ahead and do your thing. If you need anything at home, send the girl over to my house and let me know, okay?"
She called Ma Xiaodou and left.
Jian Ning looked at the sweet potatoes she had brought. They were actually rare in the Dayan Kingdom she had come from. She picked a few and planted them among the herbs.
Although they are not big, they are fresh. They need to be watered with spiritual spring water in the morning and evening. If they can grow into seedlings, they can be transplanted to the acres of dry slopes. Not only can they be used as food for the whole family, but they can also be dried and used as snacks for the four little ones and the three brothers of the Ma family.
The Tian family did not have an easy life. Her husband worked as a constable in the town government office. He did not have a fixed monthly salary, only a food allowance of about ten taels of silver every year, which was barely enough to support the family.
In the first few years after she married into Dingjia Village, the old Ding family house didn't have a well yet, so washing clothes and fetching water had to be done by going to the stream in the back mountains. Her original self had to wash clothes for the entire Ding family, often carrying her sixth son to the stream on her back. Whenever Tian saw them, she would lend a hand.
Now there was a bag of sweet potatoes in total, and Tian sent her half a bag. This was because she thought that their family was having a harder time, and the gift was less important than the friendship!
Jane Ning felt warm in her heart. She looked up at the apple tree full of fruits, some of which had turned slightly red. Two chickens that had drunk spiritual spring water were leisurely walking under the tree. The rooster held his head high and chest puffed out as proudly as a king, but the next second she grabbed his neck and threw him out of the herb garden.
Ding Youtian only arrived home after Jian Ning had taken out all the things that had been put in the Baicao Room, cleaned the main house, and made the bed. He was so tired that he was out of breath and sat down on the floor as soon as he entered the house.
"Daddy, don't sit on the floor. It's cold." The eldest girl brought a small stool. Dabao blew on it a few times and pointed at it, "Daddy, sit down."
Jian Ning rolled her eyes at him and took Sanniu off the big girl's back. "Are you exhausted?"
The big girl shook her head: "I'm not tired, the third sister is very light."
"Dad!" Dabao pointed at the sweet potato and looked at Ding Youtian, "Eat!"
Ding Youtian recovered, dragged the bag over, took a look, and didn't recognize what it was. He took one out and asked, "What is this? Where did you get it?"
Jian Ning tucked Sanniu in, saying without turning her head, "Sweet potatoes, also called red potatoes, were brought here by Sister Tian. Go light a fire and cook them first..." Then, remembering that the well in the yard needed to be cleaned before it could be used, she changed her words and said, "Forget it, no need to cook them. Go light a fire in the kitchen, bury the sweet potatoes in the ashes, and cook them until they're cooked. Then peel them and you can eat them. Cook a few for the children first."
"But it's Constable Ma's wife, Mrs. Tian?" Ding Youtian knew that Mrs. Ma had some dealings with his wife in the past. "If it was Mrs. Ma's gift, her family's financial situation isn't good, and our eldest son, Mai Ge'er, is at the age of being able to eat. We can't accept her kindness for nothing. How about giving her a few eggs in return?"
"Let's talk about it later." Jian Ning tucked the quilt for Sanniu. She turned around and didn't see Erniu. Everyone else was there. She asked Daniu, "Where's Ermei?"
The eldest girl was stunned for a moment, then ran to the yard to look, but there was no one there. She stamped her feet and was about to cry, "Mom, could it be that my second sister ran back to my grandparents' house alone?
Dabao waved his hands, and seeing how anxious she was, he became anxious too. The more anxious he became, the less he could speak.
Jian Ning hugged Dabao and asked him, "Do you know where my second sister is?"
Dabao nodded and pointed behind the house. Jian Ning shouted twice, then stood up and blocked Erniu behind the house.
When she saw Jian Ning, Erniu hurriedly put her hands behind her back and kept her mouth shut.
"Second sister, did you hear mother calling you?"
Seeing Jian Ning's gloomy face, she shook her head, then nodded, her eyes suddenly filled with tears, and she took out the half-eaten sweet potato that she had hidden behind her back.
Jian Ning sighed, "You dare to eat it raw without even knowing what it is? What if you get sick? If you want to eat it, you can tell mom, but you have to ask mom first if you can eat it. You can't take it secretly and eat it alone. That's not good, do you understand?"
"Mom, I was wrong, wuwu..."
"Don't cry. Mom doesn't like people who cry easily. What if I make a mistake?"
A voice floated over, "Tell your mother quickly and change your ways."
Jian Ning turned his head, and Ding Youtian immediately stepped back. However, Jian Ning did not say anything to him in front of the child. Instead, she continued, "Daddy is right. If you are wrong, you must correct your mistakes. Tell Mom that you will never do this again, okay?"
"Well, mother, I was wrong. I won't do it again."
Erniu's eyes were filled with tears, but someone's heart was filled with joy.
My wife just praised him. Does that mean she didn’t dislike him after she regained her memory?
Just as he was about to smile, a cold look came over him.
"Go and make a fire!" Jian Ning took Erniu's hand, turned around and saw Ding Youtian smiling, and glared at him unhappily.
When the child made a mistake, the father secretly rejoiced. If the children were not around, she would have wanted to slap him to death.
Ding Youtian went to the kitchen dejectedly.
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