Chapter 145
The snow covering the small earthen slope at the entrance of Mujia Village was compacted by the village children's footsteps, and Zhou Yaoyao finally managed to climb up it.
Sitting on a small earthen mound, her colorful headband fluttered in the wind, dazzling the eyes of onlookers.
The young men and women below couldn't help but feel envious.
"Peach, your hairband is so pretty!"
“I went to town with my mother the other day, and the hairband shop there didn’t have such a nice hairband.”
"Peach, may I touch it?"
The boys and girls in the village have loved to dress up since they were little. In spring, they wear flowers in the hair, and in summer, they wear matching skirts.
Upon seeing the brocade headband on Zhou Yaoyao's head, everyone was captivated and could hardly move.
Zhou Yaoyao looked slightly disgusted and said, "This was a gift from my uncle. It's silk. What if you guys ruin it by touching it?"
"Let's be quiet, okay?"
Zhou Yaoyao gave a soft snort, her face showing reluctance as she said, "Fine."
The children immediately started working on it. "It's so smooth, Peach, your uncle is so good to you."
Zhou Yaoyao had a hint of pride in her expression. "That's right, my uncle has always doted on me since I was little."
The envy in the eyes of the brothers and sisters was impossible to hide. Even the three-year-old children in the village knew that Zhou Yaoyao's uncle was extremely handsome and had plenty of money.
"I wish I had an uncle like that."
“When I visited my uncle’s family, he didn’t even let me eat a bite of meat.”
"Then you're quite pitiful. My uncle gives me pastries to eat."
Little Stone said, "I don't have an uncle, but my aunt is very good to me. She makes sweet dumplings for my brother and me."
The headband couldn't compare to Zhou Yaoyao's anymore, and the brothers and sisters started comparing their uncles and aunts again.
Zhou Yaoyao had shown off enough and happily slid down the hillside.
He said to his friends, "It's time for lunch, I'm going home."
After saying that, he went home with his head held high and chest puffed out, like a victorious rooster.
It was cold outside, and after Zhou Yaoyao left, the boys and girls stamped their feet and went home.
As soon as Zhou Yaoyao reached her doorstep, she smelled the enticing aroma of meat. Her legs moved quickly, and she ran into the kitchen.
"Daddy, it smells so good!"
Bai Qiqiu chuckled and poked Zhou Yaoyao's little nose, "A puppy's nose, so sensitive."
Zhou Yaoyao sniffed, "Uncle Qiu, your hands are so cold."
Mu Jin pulled him over and slapped him a few times on the buttocks, flicking the snow off his body.
"Look at you, where have you been playing? You've made your clothes so dirty."
Zhou Yaoyao, who was dodging Mu Jin's slap, suddenly perked up upon hearing this.
She puffed out her little chest and said happily, "I went to the little hill. My hairband is the prettiest, and my uncle is the best too."
Wen Zhaoran, holding the little papaya, listened with a smile that made her eyes crinkle.
Bai Qiqiu chuckled. Life is peaceful nowadays, and children are carefree all day long. They love to compare clothes and toys with other children their own age.
Feigning anger, she said, "Is it only good to be an uncle and not a brother?"
Zhou Yaoyao immediately hugged Bai Qiqiu's arm and said sweetly and coquettishly, "Uncle is the best too!"
Mu Jin wiped the snow off her hands with a cloth and said reproachfully, "You said that Xiao Suo'er and Xiao Shitou were showing off to you, but I think you're the one who loves to show off the most in the whole village."
As he spoke, he gently poked Zhou Yaoyao's forehead.
Steam rose from the pot, and mutton dumplings floated to the surface. Mu Jin picked up a strainer from the side, and Bai Qiqiu helped him place the bowls on the stove.
"Peach, go call your dad for dinner."
Zhou Yaoyao took the steaming dumplings that Wen Zhaoran handed to her and went out of the kitchen.
She toddled to the back room and said, "Dad, the dumplings are ready, come and eat."
As he spoke, he held the dumpling in his hand to Zhou Lin's mouth.
Zhou Lin stopped what she was doing, her eyes gentle and her brows smiling. Seeing a few wood chips on the dumplings, she gently brushed them away.
While eating the dumplings fed to him by his own son, he patted the wood chips off his clothes, bent down to pick up Zhou Yaoyao, and went to the kitchen.
The mutton dumplings didn't have much of a gamey smell; Mujin was generous with the oil, making them incredibly fragrant.
Just as Bai Qiqiu had said, the dumplings had just been cooked when Mu Zhaoye arrived at the house carrying a jar of wine and some cold dishes he had prepared himself.
"Brother Lin, let's have a couple of drinks today."
Zhou Lin readily agreed, while Mu Jin helped pour the wine into a bowl and placed it in the still-steaming pot to warm it up for the two of them.
"Cold wine is bad for your health; warm it up before drinking."
The group sat around the dining table. Zhou Lin held his little son, Mugua, and fed him first before starting his own meal.
Dipping the dumplings in minced garlic, each one a mouthful, the aroma of meat filling the air, the group thoroughly satisfied.
Zhou Lin suddenly remembered that Zhou Yaoyao wanted to buy a hairband. Holding Xiao Mugua, he said gently, "Taozi, your uncle said you want to buy a hairband like Xiao Shitou's. What does it look like? Dad will go to town to buy it for you tomorrow."
Zhou Yaoyao swallowed a mouthful of dumplings. "Dad, I already have them, I don't want them anymore, look."
As she spoke, she turned her little head, revealing a head full of shimmering, colorful hair ribbons.
Mu Jin chuckled and said, "Zhao Ran gave it to him, and he was overjoyed."
Zhou Lin smiled and said, "Zhaoran has gone to great lengths."
Wen Zhaoran waved her hand, picked up a dumpling, and said, "We're all family, there's no need to spend money."
Zhou Lin smiled and didn't say anything more.
Bai Qiqiu held the little watermelon and mashed up the dumplings to feed him.
The children ate with their mouths full of oil.
Mu Zhaoye and Zhou Lin clinked glasses from time to time. After a hearty meal and drinks, Zhou Lin felt that this life was truly like that of a god.
Before we knew it, it was the 26th day of the twelfth lunar month. The family's pig was taken out of its pen, and about ten catties of meat were given to a few close relatives. The rest was kept for the New Year.
Mu Jin put the pork in the cupboard. Zhou Lin went to town today, and Bai Qiqiu was busy with family matters and didn't come home.
Zhou Yaoyao and Xiaomugua were playing in Wen Zhaoran's room, and Mujin finally had some free time to clean the house inside and out.
"Is Jin-ge'er home?"
Just as Mu Jin put the broom down in the woodshed, he heard a woman calling him from the courtyard gate.
"Aunt Mu, what's wrong?"
Upon opening the door, he was met with Mu Liang's mother, and his expression immediately turned sour.
Aunt Mu rubbed her hands together. "Well, Jin-ge'er, a few days ago, my family sent some persimmons. I dried some of them and brought them here for you and Lin-xiaozi to try."
As he spoke, he handed over a basket of dried persimmons.
Mu Jin didn't take it. "What are you doing, Auntie? We have enough to eat, we won't be short of food."
Seeing that Mu Jin wouldn't even let her in, Aunt Mu knew that Zhou Si and Mu Liang were still angry about what happened a few years ago.
He chuckled awkwardly. "That's true. In our Mu Family Village these days, who's doing as well as you and Lin? I ran into your mother yesterday, and judging from her expression, she's probably kicking herself for how she treated you before."
Mu Jin frowned. "If Auntie has nothing else to say, I won't entertain you any longer. It's almost the New Year, and there's a lot to do at home."
Seeing that Mu Jin was about to leave, Aunt Mu quickly stopped him.
Mu Jin looked impatient and pulled her sleeve away from Aunt Mu's hand.
"Auntie, please tell me quickly if you need anything, I'm busy."
Aunt Mu dared not beat around the bush any longer. "Alas, Brother Jin, I know that what your brother Liang did a few years ago was not right. Now he has realized his mistake. He has three children at home. My little grandson has been in poor health since birth. He needs to be fed medicine every day. The money is flowing out like water. We are almost starving."
Hibiscus looked at her quietly, without saying a word.
Aunt Mu, shameless, continued, "Your brother Liang went to town last year to look for short-term work, but he injured his leg and developed a chronic illness that prevents him from doing heavy work. He has three children at home waiting to be fed. I've come here today for no particular reason, just to ask if your pepper garden is still hiring short-term workers now that it's summer?"
Mu Jin said with a forced smile, "We don't need anyone, Auntie, you should go back."
Aunt Mu said anxiously, "Jin-ge'er, Si-ge'er is married now. Can we put aside these old grievances? Back then, my family paid all the compensation we were owed and didn't even ask for a dowry. We've already moved on from that."
Mu Jin was too lazy to pay any more attention to her and quickly closed the courtyard gate.
If Zhou Si hadn't been lucky enough to have Mu Lingyun's interest in him, how good a husband could this boy who had broken off his engagement have found?
Aunt Mu looked at the closed courtyard gate and spat fiercely towards the entrance.
"Pah! You think you can burn your money? Humph, my son wouldn't even look at your family's pepper garden with its measly few fruits!"
Aunt Mu was seething with anger. Seeing that she couldn't get along with Zhou Lin Mu Jin, she went back and started talking about Mu Jin.
One minute they were saying the couple was unfilial, the next they were saying Mu Jin was petty, and then they even started talking about how Mu Jin had an affair with the Qian family man in the village, and that Zhou Zhuohua didn't look like Zhou Lin at all.
Mu Jin was far away and unaware of the matter, but it reached Zhou Si's ears.
Knowing that his elder brother was standing up for him, he followed Mu Lingyun to do butcher business, and his temper was also tempered.
Carrying the butcher knife that Mu Lingyun used to slaughter pigs, he went to Aunt Mu's house.
He slashed the door of Aunt Mu's house with a knife, leaving a deep gash. The whole family was so frightened that they hid inside and didn't dare to make a sound.
Zhou Si shouted from the doorway, "Listen up, all of you! Everyone in the village can see what kind of people my brother and his sister are. If I keep listening to you talking badly about my brother and his sister behind their backs and spreading rumors about them, then this knife won't be so sharp! Don't hide in the house and be afraid to come out. You'd better make yourselves clear today!"
The commotion drew the attention of the villagers, who craned their necks to watch the spectacle. Several people working in Zhou Lin's pepper garden couldn't stand it and joined in the discussion.
"That Aunt Mu never tells the truth. She's always gossiping about this family today and that family tomorrow. She's so talkative and spouts nonsense. Si-ge'er, don't be angry. We all know Jin-ge'er's character. She won't believe what she says."
"That's right, Si-ge'er, put down the knife, it wouldn't be good if someone got hurt."
Zhou Si's eyes were red with indignation. "Uncles and aunts, listen to yourselves! Is Mu Liang's mother even speaking human language? She just started spreading rumors that my brother cheated on me. If this gets out, it will become a myth. If they don't give me an explanation today, I'm not leaving!"
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