"Alright, brother-in-law, you should rest for a bit. I'll dig for another half an hour or so, then we'll head back."
Wei Yuyan glanced at the sky. She figured it would take about half an hour to dig down the mountain, and she'd still have time to wash up when she got home.
"I'm not tired, I'll rest for a bit and then we can dig together."
Chen Yu sat on the ground to stretch his muscles and bones. His neck was a little sore from digging for herbs with his head down the whole time.
Around 3 PM, both baskets were filled with herbs.
"Let's go back."
Wei Yuyan picked up the basket and, thankfully, the herbs weren't too heavy.
"You're busy, so walk behind me, otherwise you won't be able to find your way."
Chen Yu walked up to Wei Yuyan with a basket on his back.
"Yes, it does need to be a bit slower. Brother-in-law, you don't know, there was a time when I was digging for herbs and I forgot about the time."
I was rushing home after dark, and because I was walking too fast, I tripped and fell on the mountain, twisting my ankle. It took me almost a month to recover.
Wei Yuyan thought back to how she had disregarded her safety in order to earn some money. Fortunately, her hardship had finally come to an end.
"Really, girl? Since your man isn't home, you should do less work. It's better to save some money and not do those strenuous tasks."
Chen Yu didn't know what to say, so he could only tell Wei Yuyan not to push herself too hard, that women don't need to work so hard.
"Yeah, you're right, I should take a break too."
Wei Yuyan thought about it and realized that she had been slacking off lately; she hadn't gone to the steamed bun shop or picked any herbs.
The two were in a good mood as they descended the mountain, chatting about this and that, and soon they reached the foot of the mountain.
"Hey girl, want to take a break?"
Chen Yu noticed that Wei Yuyan looked tired.
"Okay, I'll sit for a while."
Wei Yuyan put down her basket; it was still early, so there was no rush.
"I'll go back first and come pick you up later. Take your time to rest. This little bit of stuff is nothing to me."
Chen Yu planned to carry her home and then come back to pick up Wei Yuyan.
"No need, brother-in-law."
Wei Yuyan wanted to say that she could do it, but her brother-in-law had already walked away.
"Who are you? Aren't you from Pear Blossom Village?"
An older woman from the village walked over, looking Wei Yuyan up and down. She was carrying a machete and a basket, presumably on her way to chop firewood.
"Yes, I'm not. I'm just visiting relatives."
Wei Yuyan didn't know whether the other party was friend or foe, so she replied in a nonchalant tone.
The other person glanced at Wei Yuyan but said nothing before going up the mountain.
"They don't suspect me of stealing, do they?"
Wei Yuyan thought that the other party probably saw that she was carrying a basket of things and suspected that she had picked all the mountain products of their Pear Blossom Village.
Fortunately, they didn't recognize the herbs either; they probably thought it was just a basket of weeds.
"Yu Yan, I'm here."
Upon hearing her sister's voice, Wei Yuyan quickly looked up and saw that it really was her sister coming over.
"Sis, I already told my brother-in-law that I don't need to come pick me up. I'm just going to hang out here."
Wei Yuyan felt a warm glow in her heart as she watched her older sister carry the basket on her back.
"I know you well enough. You haven't done much work since you were little, so you don't have much strength."
Besides, you've had a long day, helping my family pick medicinal herbs.
Your brother-in-law said he would come to pick you up, but I saw he was sweating profusely, so I told him to stay home and rest instead.
Wei Yuhan took out a handkerchief and handed it to her younger sister to wipe her sweat.
"My sister and brother-in-law are so loving~".
Wei Yuyan secretly covered her mouth and chuckled.
"Hey, what's with all this talk about being in love? People are all about reciprocity."
Sister, I'm so sorry. You haven't had a moment's rest these past two days, you've been running around on the mountain every day.
As Wei Yuhan spoke, she felt a pang of guilt towards her younger sister.
She used to take care of her younger sister, but now her sister has to take care of her instead.
"Sister-in-law~"
"Sister-in-law".
Before she even got home, the two mischievous kids ran over, and Wei Yuyan patted their heads.
"Xiao Lei, Qian Qian, what are you doing at your older sister's house today? Aren't you bored?"
Wei Yuyan thought the children must be bored these past two days, since their best friend wasn't there, and neither were their two puppies.
"It's alright, we're playing with Xiaoyue."
Qianqian really enjoys playing with Yueyue.
"Okay, let's go back tomorrow."
When Wei Yuyan returned to her sister's house, she saw that her brother-in-law was already washing the medicinal herbs.
"Is Yueyue asleep?"
Wei Yuyan did not see Yueyue.
"Hmm, I've been sleeping for a while, I think I'll wake up soon."
Wei Yuhan put down her basket and went inside to see Yueyue.
"Sister-in-law, we'll help you."
Xiao Lei and Qian Qian also brought their stools, and the two adults and two children diligently washed the medicinal herbs.
“Sister-in-law, brother-in-law has so many medicinal herbs here. We’ve never picked so many herbs before.”
Xiao Lei was surprised to see the two baskets of medicinal herbs. He and his sister-in-law had never picked so many herbs before.
“Yes, brother-in-law’s mountain is bigger than the one in our village, so of course there are more medicinal herbs there.”
Wei Yuyan explained.
"Hey girls, who's going to watch the kids? I'm going to go cook."
Wei Yuhan came out carrying Yueyue, who had just woken up.
"I'll do it."
Wei Yuyan took Yueyue from her, and the eldest sister turned around to cook.
"Yuhan, are we out of vegetables at home? Go buy some tofu."
Chen Yu remembered that there wasn't much food at home, and he didn't have time to go buy any today.
"I bought the tofu a long time ago."
For lunch, Wei Yuhan steamed egg custard for the children, and for dinner, she stir-fried snails and pan-fried tofu.
"My sister's cooking skills are getting better and better."
Wei Yuyan had long forgotten her elder sister's cooking skills, but she still couldn't help but praise her.
"No, I got pregnant not long after I got married, and I can't stand the smell of cooking oil. In fact, I rarely cook."
Wei Yuhan said shyly.
"Yes, brother-in-law's skills are indeed quite good. Brother-in-law, so many medicinal herbs have already been dried at home."
Don't go picking any more this month. Just stay home and rest, and dry these properly.
Wei Yuyan was worried that her brother-in-law would go up the mountain to pick more in a couple of days, damaging the vegetation and causing problems with over-picking.
"Okay, I understand, I won't pick too many."
Chen Yu nodded. The girl must have her reasons for saying that, and he should listen to her advice.
"Sister, you too. Sometimes when your husband can't resist going up the mountain, you must persuade him to only go a few days a month to pick crops."
Wei Yuyan also gave special instructions to her eldest sister.
"Okay, don't worry, come and eat more."
The eldest sister put a large mouthful of food on Wei Yuyan's plate.
"I don't know when Brother Licai will come to pick us up tomorrow."
Wei Yuyan still wanted to go home as soon as possible; she was still a little worried about the chickens and dogs at home.
“If you come tomorrow morning, you should eat before you go. We can’t let that guy travel for so long.”
Chen Yu thought for a moment and then spoke.
"Yes, traveling continuously is too tiring."
Wei Yuyan suddenly realized that she could only go back tomorrow afternoon.
The next morning, Chen Yu went to town to buy meat early in the morning, and Wei Yuyan couldn't persuade him otherwise.
She knew her sister and brother-in-law didn't have much money, so why did they keep buying meat?
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