Chapter 23 Chapter 23 Going to the city to find work
When Xu Tianlin said this, Lin Changhe was stunned.
Tian snorted coldly and said unhappily, "Boss of the Xu family, Xu Xiu has been married into our family for more than ten years. You don't think the dowry is still there, do you? Doesn't she eat or drink and not use it?"
Aunt Sun looked at the old lady and smiled. "Auntie, I've been married for twenty years. Are the tables, chairs, and cabinets I brought with me when I got married still in good condition? Even if they're old, they're still usable! When my sister-in-law Xu Xiu got married, we had an eight-immortal table made for her, four stools, eight chairs, two large grain cabinets, and two suitcases. We hired a carpenter from the county town to make them, and each one was engraved with her name."
Tian's expression changed slightly. How come she hadn't noticed that those objects were engraved with words?
The sisters-in-law of the Lin family looked at each other.
In fact, the dowries of girls in this village and outside the village when they get married are all the things that Sun mentioned. Almost everyone has them. A family has several sons, and they live together without separating. Except for the boxes for clothes, everything else is put together and shared. With so many daughters-in-law, not many tables and chairs are used, and many of them are still new.
The things Xu Xiu brought with her were indeed of very good workmanship. She was reluctant to use them in the early years, but later when she had Lin Xian'er, she wanted to keep them for her daughter. The grain cabinet, tables and chairs were still brand new and placed upstairs in the room where the old lady lived. However, the two suitcases were exchanged for the two old suitcases by the old lady as soon as Xu Xiu got married because the carvings on them were very beautiful, and they have been used by the old lady ever since.
Xu Xiu had a good temper, and she didn't say anything even when her mother-in-law switched places with her.
I never expected that even after Xu Xiu died, the Xu family would still come to look for these things.
Sun could imagine that once something fell into Tian's hands, how could she willingly give it away?
She looked at the Lin family and said quietly, "A Xiu is gone now. Where her children are, her things should be there too. Is that right?"
"In this area, every household has several daughters-in-law. There's no way these things can be used up. Who doesn't have a place to store them? Whether they're old or new, they're kept there. Aunt Tian, I'll have to trouble you to find these things I just mentioned."
Tian was unmoved. Sun said, "The child's mother is gone. Even if the thing is broken into a rotten piece of wood, it should be given to the child as a memory."
Sun's words can easily arouse the sympathy of kind-hearted people.
The women who were watching couldn't help but join in the discussion when they thought of Xu Xiu's good temper and her personality, and they were all whispering beside her.
Tian glanced at the onlookers and was about to open her mouth to refute when Lin Cunzheng looked at Old Man Lin and said, "Old Five, what do you think?"
Lin Cun was about to speak when Tian looked at Old Man Lin. Old Man Lin's face was gloomy. After a while, he looked at Xu Tianlin and the others and said, "If you have any other requests, please tell me all at once."
The eldest aunt said, "The year Xiuniang passed away, I gave her a piglet and two old hens. I think Xiuniang didn't get to eat them, and neither did her children. Since the children were driven out and cut off from their relationship, these should be given to them."
Old Man Lin took a deep breath and said in a deep voice, "Okay, give them all to them."
Tian refused and angrily scolded, "They didn't eat? They grew up starving?"
My aunt smiled and said, "Don't they just eat and do nothing?"
Tian was about to argue with her aunt, but she heard Old Man Lin yelling, "Go find her! Find out everything she said!"
Seeing Old Man Lin angry, Tian stiffened her neck and left angrily. The eldest aunt-in-law gave her sisters-in-law a look, and they shouted at Tian: "Auntie, we will go with you to get it."
After saying that, several people ran over, and Zhang and the others hurriedly followed, and a group of people squeezed into the house.
After a while, all the tables, chairs, stools and cabinets were moved out.
The tables and chairs were originally painted dark red, but over time, the paint became a little darker, and in the sunlight, it looked even warmer.
Sun counted her things and looked at Tian: "Auntie, we are still short of two suitcases."
Tian gritted her teeth and walked into the house. She took out the two suitcases she was using. Just as they were about to drop them on the ground, Sun hurriedly caught them. Their purpose was to give the things Xu Xiu brought in to the children, so even though the old lady was unhappy, she didn't say much.
All these things are here, and there is still the little piglet and two hens left.
The Lin family bought the piglets after they finished planting crops after the New Year. They were still very small, about the same size as the ones Sun gave to Xu Xiu at that time.
But it’s the same with everything. If you get something for free, you don’t feel anything. But if you have to give it back to someone else, you will feel very bad.
Several aunts followed and drove out a piglet and two hens from the backyard.
Lin Cunzheng once again signed a document, and both families confirmed it with their fingerprints.
There was no cursing or bleeding. The Xu family just put their fingerprints on the documents and left with their belongings.
With the guidance of the villagers, they carried their belongings towards the old house where Lin Chuntao and her family lived.
Lin Chuntao and her friends had just returned, put down their things and were about to go look for their uncles. As soon as they put down their things and before the sisters even left the house, a group of people from the Xu family arrived in a mighty procession, carrying their things.
Xu Tianlin looked at the four sisters, who were so thin that their bones were visible, and their trouser legs and sleeves were mostly short. Sun took a closer look and saw that the clothes the sisters were wearing seemed to be from a few years ago. A trace of pity flashed in her eyes.
"Chuntao." Sun was the first to call her. Lin Chuntao looked at the people who came. Xu Tianzhu and Zhou were sitting at the back. She thought that they must have gone back and talked to their uncles, so they came together.
Even though she had no expectations, she felt a little touched at this moment.
"Uncle, aunt." She called out, her eyes feeling a little sore.
Sun patted her shoulder gently, and then asked everyone to move their things in and put them down. In addition to tables, chairs and utensils, there were also two chickens and a piglet.
"Aunt, what are these things?"
Sun said, "Since you are living alone, you should take your mother's dowry with you. This piglet and these two chickens were given to your mother by me. Since you didn't get to eat the meat, you can raise them yourselves in the future."
Looking at these brand new tables, chairs, cabinets, and the two running piglets, Lin Chuntao was still a little bit incredulous.
But she didn't think much about it and was busy bringing the chairs for the elders to sit on. She was now married, but none of her uncles knew Pei Ying. Taking this opportunity, Lin Chuntao introduced several uncles to Pei Ying, and everyone got to know each other.
The aunts looked at their house and saw their food and vegetables, and felt a little relieved.
Xu Tianlin said, "Although I've rarely been here in the past few years since your mother left, I'm still your uncle. How could you not tell me about something so serious? What were you thinking, kid?"
Lin Chuntao pursed her lips and listened quietly. After a long while, she said softly, "Uncle, don't be angry. I just think it's okay. I have a place to live and food for the time being."
"What about the future? You have no food this year. You didn't plant anything on the land you were allocated."
Lin Chuntao said, "I plan to see if I can buy some vegetable seeds in a couple of days. I'll plant some vegetables first, and then plant some buckwheat when the autumn harvest comes. I'll be able to eat the buckwheat when the harvest comes."
After hearing what she said, Xu Tianlin nodded slightly.
"When you're going to plant, just tell us in advance and we'll come over to plant it for you." Xu Tianlin's words didn't seem to be a negotiation, but rather a notification. After a pause, he added, "Farming is busy lately, and farm tools are a bit tight. I only brought you a hoe and a sickle. Use them for now."
"Uncle, there's no need to give us farm tools. We don't need them now. I'll come back to you when we need them."
Xu Tianlin frowned slightly: "Don't you need to cut some grass to feed this little piglet?"
Lin Chuntao: “…”
"That's it, use it for now."
As dinner approached, Lin Chuntao prepared to cook. It didn’t matter whether the food was good or not, but she had to keep everyone entertained.
Sun said, "We haven't fed the chickens, ducks, and pigs yet. We have to go back quickly. Sisters, please be well. Come to our house and play when you have time. If you have any problems, please come and talk to us. Even if we can't solve them, we can help you find a solution. Do you understand?"
Lin Chuntao nodded slightly, "Aunt, I'll remember this, don't worry."
There was nothing much at home, so Lin Chuntao asked Sun to take the mushrooms she had picked up during the day back home, but Sun didn't want them.
"We also picked up some mushrooms. You can keep them for yourself. We're leaving now."
A group of people rushed out of the yard. Lin Chuntao stood at the intersection and watched them go away before coming back.
Looking at the things in the yard, Lin Chuntao called Pei Ying and her sisters to move the cabinets, tables and chairs into the house.
There is only one lock at the moment, so all the tables, chairs, and cabinets have been moved into the room they live in.
The space inside the house is not big. Two grain cabinets, a table and chairs, and two bamboo shelves made by Pei Ying today fill the house.
Lin Chuntao thought about it and simply placed the two grain cabinets horizontally so that their beds were at the back and provided some shelter.
After cleaning the house, Lin Chuntao came out and saw the 40-pound piglet and the two chickens. She felt a little worried because she had no place to keep them.
The house with the crack was empty, but it was where people lived after all, and the piglets couldn't be locked in there. She thought about it and went to Muramasa's house, taking a bamboo basket of mushrooms she had picked that day with her.
The old lady looked at her carrying mushrooms and kept refusing to eat them. She asked her to take them home to eat. Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "There are more at home. I picked up quite a few this afternoon."
The old lady accepted the mushrooms. Lin Chuntao told her about the pen for the piglets. Sun smiled and said, "The wall of the room next door is cracked and cannot be lived in. You can go to the mountain to get some dead leaves, pour them in as padding, and then put the piglets in directly.
Lin Chuntao frowned slightly, "Grandma, this is not good, right?"
Sun waved her hand, unconcerned: "That old house has been abandoned for many years. You cleaned it up, so use it as you please. Don't worry about these details."
After hearing what Sun said, Lin Chuntao came back and locked the piglets and chickens in that room.
Pei Ying said, "I'll make a chicken coop tomorrow. If the hen lays eggs in the pen, the piglets will eat them."
Lin Chuntao nodded. Lin Chunhe and Lin Duoer were still leaning against the window looking at the piglet, their eyes sparkling with joy.
"Sister, I'm going to get up early tomorrow morning to cut grass for the pigs." After Lin Chunhe said that, Lin Duoer also rushed to say, "I'm going too."
Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "Okay, you guys go together."
After the pigpen was settled, the sisters were busy preparing dinner. There was still some chicken and chicken soup from lunch, so Pei Ying went to fetch some water. The sisters washed the mushrooms from the day and continued to stew the mushrooms in chicken soup. Lin Chuntao washed the melon tips and flowers and stir-fried the melon tips. The rice was still the buckwheat dumplings from the morning.
The sisters stood around the table as they watched the dishes being served on the brand new table.
Lin Chuntao came over with her own bowl, looked at them and raised an eyebrow: "Why are you still standing? Sit down and eat quickly."
Lin Chunhe looked up at her with a smile: "Waiting for you."
Lin Chuntao smiled helplessly and said, "Hurry up and sit down and eat."
It was dark after dinner and the moon had not yet risen. Pei Ying lit a fire in the yard to provide some light. After everyone had cleaned up, they sat in the yard to enjoy the cool air. Occasionally, the grunting of piglets could be heard from the house.
Pei Ying turned around and asked Lin Chuntao, "Are you going to pick mushrooms tomorrow morning?"
Lin Chuntao nodded and said, "Yes."
"Then I'll come with you. I have nothing else to do at home, and I want to go to the city to find a job."
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