Chapter 18 Envious
Back in Chenjia Village, Chen Ziyi was already waiting at the door, along with Chen Yu.
Chen Yu snorted coldly upon seeing Xiao Yu, her gaze passing over her and landing on Song Luoning behind her: "You're my cousin-in-law?"
Song Luo smiled gently and nodded.
“My name is Chen Yu, and I am…” Chen Yu glanced at Xiao Yu with dissatisfaction, reluctant to acknowledge her identity. After hesitating for a while, she reluctantly pointed at Xiao Yu and said, “She is my cousin.”
Chen Yu was still a little nervous when talking to Song Luoning. After all, she had already heard about Song Luoning's identity from her aunt. A daughter of an official or a rich young lady was not someone that ordinary people could come into contact with.
If it weren't for her aunt saying that Xiao Yu was slowly getting better after the marriage, and that he even went to the fields to turn the soil yesterday, she wouldn't have come over, worried that Xiao Yu was lying to her aunt again.
Seeing the young lady so gentle and kind, he didn't know how to react.
He was initially a little angry, but now, in his nervousness, especially when he saw Song Luoning smiling at him, he couldn't stay angry at all.
Chen Ziyi and I had arrived early, but Xiao Yu was not only not at home, but we also couldn't find her anywhere in the fields. It was already past dusk, and we had no idea what she was doing.
And why is this new cousin-in-law also fooling around with her?
She said that Xiao Yu could change so easily, and that people like them could not possibly marry a daughter of an official.
I wonder if Xiao Yu can tolerate Miss Guan's temper?
She looked down on Xiao Yugui, and although she didn't want to admit it, she was still secretly worried about her.
To her surprise, the meeting was completely different from what she had imagined, leaving her somewhat at a loss.
"So it's my cousin." Song Luoning glanced at Xiao Yu, smiled slightly, and stepped forward to affectionately take Chen Yu's hand: "Let's go inside and talk." As she spoke, she pulled Chen Yu towards the courtyard.
Chen Yu was somewhat flattered. She had originally thought that the daughter of an official would be arrogant and look down on them, the country folk. Unexpectedly, the other party not only did not look down on her, but also held her hand affectionately and wanted to chat with her.
Those awkward moments disappeared.
This scene was quite jarring to Xiao Yu's eyes. The young lady was being too biased. No matter how hard she worked and how much she obeyed her orders, she had never seen her treated her with such affection.
On the contrary...
I felt a pang of sadness.
Only after the two entered the house did they reluctantly drive the carriage into the yard, unload the horse from the carriage, tie it to the wall, and throw it a handful of hay.
Then he said to Chen Ziyi, who was standing next to him, "I had something to do this afternoon and haven't had time to cut the bamboo yet. I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you to wait for me for a while."
If you're fast enough, a round trip into the mountains shouldn't be a problem.
Chen Ziyi glanced at the time and sighed, "I'll go with you; it'll be faster."
Xiao Yu went to the kitchen to get a machete, and the two of them each carried a bamboo basket and headed towards the back mountain.
The ground was just sprouting green grass in spring, slippery underfoot, making walking a bit slow: "Wait a minute." Chen Ziyi suddenly squatted down, his eyes fixed on the ground.
A few tender yellow umbrella tips were hidden in the grass.
Xiao Yu's eyes lit up; it was a mushroom.
I had seen it at the market before. She even asked the old lady selling mushrooms how to tell if they were poisonous. This was clearly the kind she was selling.
Mushrooms are a great thing, highly nutritious. Taking them back to make soup for the young lady would be perfect for nourishing her body.
Chen Ziyi carefully parted the grass. Xiao Yu was somewhat unwilling to let Chen Ziyi take such a good thing, but since he had found it first, she couldn't say anything and could only watch helplessly as Chen Ziyi picked the mushrooms.
There are about ten in total. If you're making soup, adding an egg and some diced meat should be enough.
Xiao Yu pondered, silently following behind Chen Ziyi, her eyes constantly scanning her surroundings. She didn't see a single mushroom even after they reached the bamboo forest.
He started eyeing the mushrooms in Chen Ziyi's hands again.
What are the chances that he will give it to me if I ask him for it?
If all else fails, you can buy it.
"These bamboos are quite good; they're the perfect thickness and flexibility for weaving baskets." Chen Ziyi stopped in front of several bamboos that were about five centimeters in diameter.
New branches are growing from the nodes of the bamboo, the leaves are lush and green, and the bamboo stalk is upright. It looks like the bamboo is four or five years old.
Chen Ziyi pulled out a machete from his waist and started chopping. Seeing this, Xiao Yu also chose a tree of similar size and started chopping.
In no time, the two of them had cut down about ten vines, tied them together with rattan, and carried them back home.
On the way back, Xiao Yu's mind was still on those mushrooms, and she looked at Chen Ziyi, hesitant to speak.
"My dad has already found a few people for you to build the fence. They're all good workers, and they won't charge you. They'll just provide lunch. Just let me know in advance what kind of fence you want to build," Chen Ziyi said as he walked. Before he came, his father had specifically told him not to forget to tell Xiao Yu.
After hearing Chen Ziyi's words, Xiao Yu was stunned for a moment.
She originally had six hundred taels of silver, and building a courtyard wall wouldn't cost much. But now, the young lady's illness requires three hundred taels just for one dose of medicine, leaving her with only three hundred taels. If she were to spend any more...
There's no money left for the next round of medicine.
We can't leave the courtyard wall unfinished; it seems we'll have to reconsider this when we get back.
"Okay, please thank the village head for me. I'll let you know in advance when I'm going to put it on," Xiao Yu said.
"Now that you're married, live a good life and don't hang out with those people all the time." Chen Ziyi's voice sounded a little awkward as he spoke. He shouldn't have said these words. They had grown up together, and he really didn't want to see her hanging out with those good-for-nothings all the time.
It would be good if she could improve.
Xiao Yu understood what Chen Ziyi meant. The original owner's actions had indeed hurt her friend's feelings. The fact that Chen Ziyi was able to say these things to her today showed that he still valued the original owner as a friend.
so......
Xiao Yu suddenly felt more confident: "Ziyi, could you give me those mushrooms you picked today?"
Talking about money between friends can damage relationships.
"......"
Chen Ziyi was taken aback; the topic had jumped too far. After a while, he came to his senses and nodded: "If you like it, you can have it."
"Thank you. Do you know where I can still find this kind of mushroom?" Xiao Yu asked.
Chen Ziyi frowned. He and Xiao Yu had gone to the mountains to pick them up before, but she had forgotten about this one?
That makes sense, they haven't hung out together for years, so it's normal that she forgot.
Chen Ziyi said, "If you want to pick them up, I'll take you there when I have time."
Xiao Yu's eyes lit up: "Really?" That's great! I can make soup for the young lady more often now.
Unable to figure out why she was suddenly so happy, Chen Ziyi nodded hesitantly.
Just picking some mushrooms.
Before they could finish speaking, the two had already carried the bamboo back to Xiao Yu's courtyard.
The noise startled the two people inside the house, and Chen Yu and Song Luoning came out of the house.
Chen Yu had previously helped Chen Ziyi weave bamboo baskets. Upon seeing them return, she skillfully took the machete from Xiao Yu's hand and, together with Chen Yi, cut off the branches around the bamboo, then used the machete to cut the bamboo into equal-sized strips.
Xiao Yu felt bad about being idle, so she took the mushrooms Chen Ziyi had given her into the kitchen, boiled a kettle of water, and brought it out.
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