After finishing his egg drop soup, Chen Kai asked in a coquettish tone, "Fourth Brother~, where did you get those eggs from?"
They had five hens and one rooster, but for some reason, the hens were quite fat but didn't lay eggs, and they wouldn't lay more than ten eggs a month. Zhou sometimes thought about killing them, but she couldn't bear to.
The family usually sets aside half of the eggs for the children and takes the other half to town to sell. So, apart from Chen Kai, who eats more eggs, the other children eat less than a handful of eggs.
Chen Laosi said guiltily, "Oh, little brother, you don't need to worry about this."
Then Chen Laosi patted Chen Kai's head, carried him to bed, and then carried Xiao Tian to bed as well, coaxing the two of them to sleep. As soon as they touched the bed, the two of them felt sleepy. Seeing that Chen Kai and Xiao Tian were about to fall asleep, Laosi also went to bed to prepare for sleep.
The children in the Zhou family all have the habit of taking a nap. They also get tired quickly and need to rest for a while.
Just as Chen Kai was drifting off to sleep, he heard Aunt Niu from the village yelling outside, "Chen Laosi, you heartless bastard! Did you steal my eggs? You're always stealing chickens and dogs and never learn anything good!"
Chen Laosi was a notorious idler in the village, always getting into fights and brawls. In the eyes of the villagers, he was a hooligan and a scoundrel.
However, Chen Laosi was good to his family, especially to Chen Kai and Xiao Tian. He would always save some of the good food for them, and he would never talk back to his elders.
Although Zhou thought Chen Laosi was a bit of a troublemaker, he would still help the family with chores and sometimes bring back some food. Since he hadn't broken any laws, Zhou didn't pay much attention to him.
Old Man Chen thought so too, and since no one else in the family could control him, they just let him be.
The children in the Chen family all have the habit of taking a nap. They also get tired quickly and need to rest for a while.
Upon hearing the cursing, Zhou immediately ran out and retorted to Aunt Niu, "Your son is the one who steals chickens and dogs! Your eggs are all kept inside the house, who would go to your house to take them? Maybe your child stole them. Have you ever heard anyone say that my fourth son took anything from someone else? Don't make false accusations and try to extort money from us. If you keep cursing my fourth son, I'll have him go to your house and steal all the eggs."
Aunt Niu was furious but helpless, and said, "You just wait!" Then she went home.
When I got back, I fenced off the chicken coop tightly and never let them out again. Let's see how Chen Laosi can take them now.
Looking at my grandmother, who was standing arrogantly in the yard, I could just spout lies without thinking.
Thinking of the guilty look on the fourth brother's face just now, and looking at the fourth brother who was fast asleep, she knew that the fourth brother must have taken the eggs from Aunt Niu's house. Zhou Shi was really impressed that he could still be so self-righteous.
Aunt Niu's family raised ten hens and one rooster. Aunt Niu often boasted that her chickens laid a lot of eggs, with each hen laying at least five eggs a month, which made everyone in the village envious.
However, Aunt Niu's chickens often lay eggs outside, so all the boys in the village would keep an eye on them all day, hoping to find some. After all, eggs laid in the wild, who knew whose they were? Once you ate them, they were yours.
I don't know why the hens here don't lay many eggs.
In the afternoon, the adults of the Chen family went to work in the fields, while the eldest daughter-in-law led the older children to the vegetable garden to plant vegetables, weeding, turning the soil, watering, and also to cultivate a new vegetable plot.
The eldest son's wife grows some of the best vegetables in the village. The vegetables look very appealing, and besides what the family eats, the rest are sold in town, making it a significant source of income for the family.
Chen Kai and Xiao Tian originally wanted to help and then go up the mountain to see what they could eat. But when they thought about Zhou Shi having to carry them while working in the fields, they gave up the idea and told Zhou Shi that they wanted to stay home and play.
After thinking for a moment, Zhou left Xiaotian to play with Chen Kai and then went to work in the fields. Once everyone had left, the two huddled together and whispered to each other.
Chen Kai looked at Xiao Tian and said, "Do you think there are any precious medicinal herbs on this mountain? Can we eat pheasants?"
Xiao Tian sneered and said sarcastically, "I asked around. The children here recognize the common herbs and pick them when they see them. Besides, the pharmacies in town keep the prices very low, so they can't make much money at all."
After resting for a while, Xiao Tian continued, "Chen Laosi takes his gang of brothers to the mountains to look for wild game all day long, but they never come back with anything to eat. The dangerous places in the mountains are extremely dangerous; once someone goes in, they can't come out. The safe places are extremely safe; even if children go there to play, the adults won't worry."
Hearing this, Chen Kai said painfully, "Back when there was a famine, the mountains were practically skinned alive. The old folks knew exactly what was edible and what wasn't. Basically, anything that was palatable was served on the table, and anything that didn't taste good was fed to the pigs."
Chen Kai sighed and said, "Let's not talk about that for now. The characters here are different from the ones I learned before. Xiao Tian, do you recognize them?"
Both of them had seen the stone tablet at the entrance of the village and still remembered it.
Xiao Tian knew what Chen Kai was thinking. "He doesn't know how to read. Apart from the village chief's family, the whole village is illiterate. It's really difficult for him to learn to read!"
Only the village chief in the village knows a few words and his family can afford to send his children to school. The village chief's eldest grandson, Bai Yu, studies in the town. They haven't had much contact with Bai Yu. Bai Yu usually goes to school in the town, and when he's off work, the village keeps him at home and doesn't let him play with us.
Neither Chen Kai nor Xiao Tian had the ability to contact Bai Yu, so they still needed to find a way to make money.
Chen Kai and Xiao Tian stared at each other, unsure of what else they could do to improve their family's living conditions and get more meat.
As I watched Chen Lao Er making wooden boxes, I marveled at the incredible craftsmanship of the ancients, wondering what I could make that wasn't too complicated, but could sell well and that I could actually produce.
Although Chen Lao Er looks fierce, the kind of person who could scare children to tears, he is actually very gentle and considerate.
Chen Lao Er had studied carpentry for several years. Although he hadn't become a master craftsman, his skills were quite good, and most of the wooden furniture in the house was made by him.
People in the nearby villages would usually ask Chen Lao Er to make any wooden furniture or small items they needed. However, most of the villagers were quite poor, so they usually bartered with their own belongings.
Few people would give money directly. Although Chen Lao Er's income from carpentry was only a small amount, it was still a relatively important source of income for the family.
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