Chapter 342 This courtyard is particularly nice
Song Chunxue found mattresses, blankets, and pillows, and let Hongying's family squeeze into Lao Si's room.
Fortunately, there was a heated brick bed underneath, which was big and spacious enough for five people to make do for one night.
Hongying said she wanted to sleep with Song Chunxue and talk about her feelings.
But Song Chunxue felt that since it was their first time visiting, she and her husband had a lot to say to Hongying, both about their child and He Chuan.
She was happy to have some peace and quiet.
Children and grandchildren have their own destinies; for now, she didn't want to listen to what Hongying had to say, nor did she want to rack her brains.
She went to Sanwa's room and saw him washing his feet while reading a book.
Did you pass your college entrance exam?
Sanwa placed the book beside the bed, looked down at his feet, and said dejectedly, "No."
Song Chunxue comforted him, "If you pass the exam, that would be amazing. Your eldest, second eldest, and fourth eldest sons would be so ashamed that they would want to bang their heads against the wall. After all, you've only studied for a few years, while they've studied for ten years and still haven't made a name for themselves."
“Let’s study for another three years and then try again. Anyway, you don’t have to herd sheep now.”
Sanwa pondered for a moment, "But if I get married, what about the chores at home..."
Song Chunxue laughed, "What work? You say there's so much work to do around the house, are you afraid of tiring Mulan out? Don't worry, when Mulan gets married and is pregnant, I won't let her do any work."
"Even if I'm not home, I'll find a kind old woman to take care of her. You just focus on your studies, what are you afraid of?"
Sanwa nodded, "That's true. I was just afraid that the younger siblings would complain in the future, but I found that the younger sibling is much more sensible than before, and he also made me continue studying."
Song Chunxue asked curiously, "He wrote a letter?"
"Yes, he said he'd be back in a little over a month, guessing that I should be getting married soon." Sanwa lifted his feet out of the basin, dried them, and poured the foot-washing water into the garden.
"So, do you have any objections if I bring your sister's family back?"
Sanwa was silent for a moment, then said, "There was a little bit at first, but not anymore. When you're poor, you should take care of yourself; when you're rich, you should help others. Besides, she's my own sister. Now that we're living a good life, we can't just stand by and watch her be bullied."
"Okay, that's good." Song Chunxue nodded with relief. "I'm going to sleep now, as long as you have no objections."
“I’m afraid my older brother will come to see Mom if he hears about this.” Sanwa lowered his voice. “I heard that Chen Feng’s father is paralyzed in bed and can’t even control his own bodily functions. Chen Feng’s brother has come to see my older brother a few times, but I don’t know the specifics. I’m worried that Chen Feng will make a scene.”
Song Chunxue chuckled, "I'm quite curious to see how she'll cause trouble. She can make as much of a fuss as she wants, but she's pregnant, so we can't hit her. So she'll hit your older brother instead."
“The eldest brother can control Chen Feng now. If Chen Feng throws a tantrum, I’ll take it out on your brother.” She sighed. “If he were smarter, he would be nice to me and try to please me instead of making a scene. If I were to give in and slip a little money through my fingers, it would be enough for them to live comfortably.”
“That makes sense,” Sanwa thought to himself. He was actually quite looking forward to seeing what kind of trouble his older brother would cause.
*
The next morning, Song Chunxue got up and steamed buns.
Just as the steamed buns were placed on the steamer, Ren Haitang arrived with her child.
As soon as the gate was opened, the two wolfhounds in the yard rushed over and wagged their tails affectionately.
“I saw you were back yesterday, but I was thinking of coming today in case you were too tired from your journey to cook for Sanwa.” Ren Haitang’s smiling face came into view. “I didn’t expect Sister Song to get up so early.”
"Come in quickly, my dogs have become familiar with you, and they like children too." Song Chunxue pulled her into the kitchen. "You two sit down first, I'll order some stew."
"Let me help you," Ren Haitang added water to the pot. "Are you cooking more today? A lot of people are coming over, aren't they?"
"Yes, my daughter and her family of five came. They're doing well now, and I was thinking of having her come over to keep me company so she wouldn't have to suffer."
Ren Haitang nodded, "It's a blessing that you can help the child now."
Hongying yawned as she entered the kitchen. "Mom, I overslept. Are you already steaming buns?"
Seeing that there were still strangers around, Hongying couldn't help but ask with a smile, "Is this the aunt that your mother said was close to you and would take care of Sanwa for you when your mother wasn't home?"
"Calling you 'Auntie' makes me sound old, but I hear you addressing each other as sisters, so I'll just call you 'Little Auntie' instead."
Ren Haitang smiled and said, "Oh, it's fine to call me Auntie, just call me that."
She couldn't help but look at Song Chunxue, "You two look so alike, especially your lips."
As she spoke, she stood up and said, "Sister Song, I should go now. We've already had breakfast; we just stopped by to drop by."
Just as Song Chunxue was about to stop her, Ren Haitang patted her arm, saying, "There are too many people in the family, it's too crowded for the three of us."
"Okay, I'll come find you when I'm done with my work."
Ren Haitang knew that since Sister Song was such a generous person, she would definitely thank her with something nice again.
"No need, we're already so familiar with each other, we can chat whenever we bump into each other. You go ahead with your work." As she spoke, she led the children down the steps. "By the way, I've watered your garden and vegetable patch, you don't need to water them for now."
"Thanks to you, you've been a great help to me." Song Chunxue gratefully saw her to the courtyard gate.
He Chuan also got up quickly, feeling a little awkward, and looked for work to do in the yard.
Seeing that the water tank wasn't full, they filled it with two buckets.
Seeing that the firewood in the yard needed to be chopped, he picked up a large axe and chopped some, waking up all three children.
"Brother-in-law, come and eat!" Sanwa said with a smile. "Brother-in-law is so diligent."
He Chuan scratched his head sheepishly, "Okay, I'm coming right now."
Sanwa hurriedly drank the soup and ate a steamed bun before heading to the school.
Looking at his tall and slender back, Jiang Hongying couldn't help but sigh, "No wonder rich young ladies love scholars. Since our Sanwa started studying, he has become the most handsome, the most good-looking, and the most sensible in the family."
Song Chunxue nodded, "As long as he doesn't grow crops or herd sheep, Sanwa is the best-looking one. Unlike the eldest, second, and fourth sons, he only thinks about himself."
Jiang Hongying didn't respond, quietly drinking her soup and eating her steamed bun.
"Freshly steamed white flour buns are still the best, Mom. Our family is eating so well." She looked around and said with emotion, "I never thought that at this age, Mom could still become rich and pull me out of my misery."
Song Chunxue smiled and said, "After we finish eating, I'll take you to that courtyard over there to tidy it up and buy all the bedding, tables, and chairs we need. We'll be offering sacrifices to the stove tomorrow."
"So eager?" Jiang Hongying glanced at He Chuan. "Is Mother worried that we'll feel uncomfortable?"
"We'll have to move there eventually anyway, so the sooner the better, it'll make things easier for everyone."
"Yes, I'll listen to Mother." Jiang Hongying was actually quite curious to see what the courtyard her mother had given her was like.
They had planned that when He Chuan's parents got old and couldn't manage things anymore, they could go out and build a house.
Unexpectedly, her mother gave her the ready-made gift.
She was content even with a small, dilapidated courtyard.
Moreover, the five of them lived together, and no one bothered them or commented on their lives.
I can hardly imagine how free that would be.
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