Chapter 60 You only realize how precious something is when you lose it
The awl used for sewing shoe soles was very heavy, and its handle was specially made at the blacksmith's shop.
Enraged, Chen Feng didn't care what was in front of her; she picked it up and threw it.
Actually, she regretted it the moment she threw it; if it had poked someone in the eye, that would have been terrible.
She covered her eyes in fright and looked at Jiang Yeming in panic.
Caught off guard, Jiang Yeming was suddenly struck on the forehead by a long, sharp awl.
The awl was too heavy; it pierced his flesh and then fell off, causing blood to stream down his forehead.
Jiang Yeming was stunned by the blow. He saw the awl lying beside him and reached up to touch the dampness on his forehead.
Lots of blood.
He was instantly furious, looking at Chen Feng with a mixture of shock and fear.
"Have I been good to you? Why did you hit me with an awl? Were you trying to kill me?"
Enraged, he threw away his crutch and, ignoring the pain in his legs, rushed over, intending to slap Chen Feng twice.
Chen Feng naturally saw through his intention and quickly covered her cheeks, screaming, "I didn't mean to! If you dare hit me, I'll never forgive you!"
"snort!"
Jiang Yeming snorted coldly. He had nowhere to vent the frustration he had accumulated over the past few days. Because Chen Feng was heavily pregnant, he could only argue with her for a few words. He tried to avoid her as much as possible, but she would always scold him mercilessly.
Seeing her throw the awl without hesitation chilled Jiang Yeming's heart.
This woman has absolutely no sense of decency.
He kept a straight face, ignoring her arguments, and stepped forward to pry open her arms that were protecting her cheeks.
"Slap! Slap!"
With two crisp slaps, Jiang Yeming released him and quickly got to the ground.
The pent-up frustration in his chest had mostly dissipated, but he was still seething with anger and didn't want to stay in the room for another second.
He didn't even pick up his cane, and despite the pain, he walked out of the room, heading straight out no matter how heavy the rain was.
He arrived at the apricot tree, the entrance to the donkey pen, and finally opened the sheep pen door, squeezing in with the sheep to take shelter from the rain.
Normally, he rarely went into the sheep pen because he disliked the sheep droppings all over the ground. His mother knew he was a clean person and didn't like the smell of the sheep pen, so she wouldn't let him clean it.
But today, when he came out of the thatched hut, he found himself too ashamed to go into the yard to take shelter from the rain.
Neither the north room nor the west room where he had lived were places for him to stay.
The thatched cottage that once made him feel free now feels like a prison to him.
After marrying Chen Fengcheng, she kept talking about separating the family property as soon as possible, saying how wonderful it would be if the family property were separated. He also looked forward to separating the family property as soon as possible.
But he didn't expect that after the family split up, he was happy for only a few days before he felt like he had been thrown into hell. He lay in the thatched hut all day, crying out to heaven and earth in vain.
Everyone used to say that his mother favored him, but he never felt that way because he was the eldest son in the family, and everyone had to listen to him.
But now, his mother ignores him, the second son has joined the army, and the third son, who used to herd sheep, has gone to school.
In those short two months, it felt like the world had turned upside down, and he suddenly became the most miserable member of the Jiang family.
How did it turn out like this?
He knelt down on the ground, feeling incredibly sad, but unable to cry.
He's in so much pain.
If I had known, we wouldn't have separated our families, and he shouldn't have gotten married so early.
Ah Feng was such a good person when she first got married, why has she become like this now?
He hid in the sheepfold, watching the rain fall harder and harder, covered his face, and was overwhelmed with regret.
*
After her clothes were soaked, Song Chunxue boiled a pot of water, took a nice bath, and then climbed onto the warm kang (heated brick bed) to have a good sleep.
Because water was extremely precious at home, and because farmers rolled around in the yellow earth every day and didn't bathe often.
Things are alright now; as long as you're diligent, you can still get bath water.
Previously, the family only had one water cellar, and water was extremely scarce. Every day, they had to spend half an hour fetching two buckets of water from the river.
Because of the long-term drought, there was no water in the river, and the spring water that was dug out was bitter.
People who have drunk from the spring water have half of their teeth yellow. Song Chunxue is very proud that none of her children have yellow teeth.
A few years after marrying Jiang Shuming, the couple started raising sheep and spent three months painstakingly digging a water cellar outside their courtyard.
After that, they never went to the river to fetch water again.
For farmers, rainy days are days of rest.
Song Chunxue had many thoughts on her mind, and drifted off to sleep in a daze.
She wasn't in a hurry to wake up, nor did she care about the fourth son; she slept very soundly.
When she woke up, she felt disoriented and almost thought she had returned to the time when she was paralyzed on the kang (a heated brick bed) and unable to move.
She quickly moved her legs and broke out in a cold sweat.
Seeing that her legs and feet were flexible and free, she breathed a long sigh of relief.
“Mother,” Jiang Hongying lifted the curtain and entered the room, placing Xiujuan on the kang (a heated brick bed). “The rice is ready. You watch over Xiujuan while I go get more rice.”
It was dark outside. Song Chunxue got off the kang (a heated brick bed) carrying the child. "Has Sanwa come back yet?"
"He's back, on an IV drip," Jiang Hongying said in a low voice. "The fourth one is still sleeping."
"Never mind him, I need to go add more food to the kang (heated brick bed), it's still cold at night." Song Chunxue walked out of the house. "You serve the rice first, I'll be there in a bit."
Xiujuan loved being held by Song Chunxue, even though Song Chunxue didn't pamper her like before.
The air after the rain carries the scent of earth, mixed with the dry aroma of grass and bean stalks, cool and refreshing as it enters the throat, soothing the soul.
After filling the kang (a heated brick bed), she took Xiujuan's hand and watched her happily jump up after splashing in the water, without stopping her.
"What are you doing!" Jiang Hongying shouted as she ran over when she saw Xiujuan's cloth shoes step into a puddle.
"Don't step in the water, it's filthy." Jiang Hongying lifted Xiujuan out of the puddle and looked up at Song Chunxue. "Mother, how could you let the child step in the water? Her shoes are dirty, and I have to wash them. Her socks are soaked, and I didn't bring any extra shoes..."
“I’ll wash it if it gets dirty. She’s already stepped on it anyway,” Song Chunxue interrupted her. “From now on, I’ll wash all your clothes, mother and daughter. It’s inconvenient for you now that you’re pregnant.”
“You…” Jiang Hongying looked at her with some reproach, “Back then, when we stepped in the water, you wanted to stomp on us, but now that we’re in the grandchildren’s generation, you’re so forgiving.”
Jiang Hongying took Xiujuan from her, and watched as she took off the child's shoes. She said casually, "This is called grandparental affection. When we were raising you, we had no experience and no one helped take care of the child, so of course we were angry. Now we're more open-minded. Anyway, the child likes it, the weather is warm, and she's less likely to get sick, so what's there to be afraid of?"
Lying on the thatched kang (heated brick bed), Jiang Yeming recalled how his mother took care of them when they were young.
He was already five years old when his fourth child was born, and he could already remember things.
At that time, my mother was holding one child in her arms and leading the other by the hand, so she couldn't take care of the other one and often got angry.
But his mother never yelled at him, and she rarely yelled at the fourth son either.
But now, he and the fourth son have become the ones their mother dislikes the most.
They had a fight in the afternoon, and Chen Feng didn't want to cook. She lay on the kang (a heated brick bed) pretending to be asleep. He didn't know how to cook either, so he could only endure it.
In the past, his mother would ask him what he wanted to eat every day and then make it for him.
Now, his mother doesn't even want to look at him.
"Sanwa, close the door and eat." His mother's voice came with a smile. "Was it slippery on the way back? Take an umbrella tomorrow. Your older brother still has the one he used before. You can leave it at the school."
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