She stepped into the courtyard, and everyone turned to look at her.
Ah Mian felt strange, but still greeted everyone politely.
She poured the water from the bucket into the water tank and fed the baby a bowl of pumpkin and lean pork porridge that was warming in the kitchen.
Meng Chijian only glanced at her twice at first, and then never looked at her again.
He was like a piece of cold iron; anyone who got close to him felt frozen to the bone and found it difficult to approach.
“I’ve been so busy these past few days that I haven’t paid attention to these things,” Meng Erge said with a wry smile. “We didn’t even notice. She did all the work without making a sound… You don’t need to give us the money this time.”
It seemed to be a matter between brothers, so Lu Amian didn't inquire about it.
She ran to the backyard to see Adou. He hadn't lost weight in eight days, and his fur was still shiny; he was humming proudly. She looked into the bag again; all the ironware was gone—it must have all been sold.
So why are you in a bad mood?
Lu Amian filled Adou's water trough with water, and then took the half-full pot of small shrimp and crabs she had scooped out of the earthenware jar. She wouldn't take the fine rice and flour without permission, but she picked out four or five eggs-sized potatoes, put them all in her basket, and then went out excitedly.
She had barely left when Meng Chijian's face darkened further. "How many days has she been skipping dinner at home like this?"
He claimed that he had no ulterior motives towards A-Mian, but was simply possessive – after all, he had painstakingly raised her for a month or so, and had finally managed to raise this wild little thing to almost domestication, so he wished he could lock her in a bamboo cage like a cricket cage.
Before he left, he gave half a tael of silver to his second brother's family, asking them to take good care of A-Mian.
As soon as he returned, he heard people talking about Ah Mian at the village entrance.
That's not all; the moment they met, Ah Mian's expression was so offensive it hurt his eyes.
It was thin and dirty, looking as gray as a little mouse.
However, her face had been washed and wiped clean, revealing a pair of crescent-shaped eyes with a small mole at the corner of her right eye, exuding an air of innocent charm upon closer inspection.
He looks exactly like a little wild man.
Meng Chijian caught a glimpse of her back, and an overwhelming surge of malice welled up within him.
So, seeing her so heartless, he simply ignored her and never paid her any attention again.
The two brothers looked at each other in silence, but the second sister-in-law stretched and directed her husband to pack his things and go home.
The second brother whispered to her, "It's been a long time since I've seen the third brother so angry. Ever since he came back from the barracks, he's been acting like he's about to die. Who knew he'd care so much about these trivial things..."
Second sister-in-law mocked, "He's taking his anger out on you, let him be!"
She laughed again, thinking of something, "He'll have a lot of trouble to suffer in the future."
Meanwhile, Ah Mian hurriedly headed towards the pear orchard at the foot of the mountain.
As the sun set, there were no other passersby. A-Mian first lit a fire, cooking the fish and crabs in the pot into a seafood soup while throwing potatoes into the fire to roast.
Ah Mian cooks like she's playing house; while waiting for the fire to start burning, she picks pears.
She washed one first and wolfed it down. The pear juice was sweet and sour, very refreshing.
She rolled up her sleeves and soon picked more than half a basketful. Then, she happily took out a handful of salt wrapped in a handkerchief from her sleeve and sprinkled it into the soup.
"Hot hot hot hot..."
Lu Amian took a twig, pulled the potatoes out, washed them in the stream, and then couldn't wait to eat them.
There wasn't much meat on the shrimp and crab, but it tasted very fresh. Ah Mian's face was covered with several streaks of black ash left from eating potatoes. She managed to eat half of it by swallowing it whole.
In the past, she would have felt very full.
But in the month before, he had been eating like a glutton at the Meng family's house and had unknowingly developed a much larger appetite.
After she had eaten and drunk her fill, she was thinking of picking another basket of pears when she suddenly heard a loud barking behind her.
"Who goes there! How dare you steal our pears!"
The owner of that pear, I don't know, actually released two or three dogs to chase and bite the thief!
Amian was startled. In her haste, without thinking, she picked up her basket and ran forward like a madwoman.
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