When the two returned home, the sky was just beginning to turn red with sunset. Grandma Xie was not at home, the chickens in the yard were clucking, and the food bowls were empty.
"Where is grandma? She didn't even feed the chickens." Cheng Yaoyao scooped a ladle of bean dregs from the bag on the firewood pile and started mixing it with the chicken feed.
Dried green vegetables were chopped up, mixed with grasshoppers and bean dregs, and some spiritual spring water was added. The Xie family's chickens were well fed, the chicken coops were clean, and each chicken was energetic, with shiny fur, and could lay more than twenty eggs every day.
These eggs were too much for her family to eat, and Cheng Yaoyao was reluctant to sell them, so she saved more than a hundred eggs. Cheng Yaoyao was thinking about pickling a batch of salted eggs and making a batch of cakes. She had been lazy these days, so it was time to make some snacks for the monkeys.
These are all eggs from Lingquan, they have excellent efficacy, and the price cannot be too cheap, it has to be high-end. Cheng Yaoyao pondered while adding another spoonful of bean dregs to the chicken feed.
She was absent-minded and immediately scattered bean dregs all over the floor. The little rooster flew out of the chicken coop and came to Cheng Yaoyao's feet to peck at the food. The little hens in the chicken coop were crowded together again, cackling anxiously.
"Oh, go back!" Cheng Yaoyao waved the gourd to scare the little rooster.
Xie Zhao put his things away, walked over, took the chicken food bowl from Cheng Yaoyao's hand and said, "I'll do it."
Cheng Yaoyao's daily job at home is to feed the chickens and Jianjian. But Xie Zhao will help her whenever he has time, and he is not willing to let the spoiled child suffer.
Cheng Yaoyao washed his hands and went to the kitchen. The tender brined chicken he brought back from the city was cold and covered with a layer of shiny jelly. Cheng Yaoyao found a large bowl to put the chicken in and steamed it with rice. When Grandma Xie came back, he would stir-fry some vegetables and eat.
After Cheng Yaoyao finished his work, he suddenly realized that something was missing: "Xie Zhao, where is Jianjian?"
After Xie Zhao finished feeding the chickens, he went to Jianjian's nest and took a look: "He's not in the nest. Go out."
Cheng Yaoyao curled his lips and said, "After getting a wife, he forgot his mother."
Xie Zhao smiled and whispered, "Who is the father?"
Cheng Yaoyao squinted his eyes, his peach blossom eyes showing infinite charm under his densely intertwined eyelashes: "Do you think Jianjian treats you as his father?"
Xie Zhao's heart suddenly felt a little cold.
A few drops of cold rain fell on my face. The rosy glow in the sky was obscured by dark clouds. The rolling dark clouds were still advancing towards us at a speed visible to the naked eye. Cheng Yaoyao exclaimed in surprise: "My grandma just washed the quilt!"
Xie Zhao said: "I'll go get it!"
"I'm going too!" Cheng Yaoyao hurriedly followed him, and the two of them went up to the second floor together.
The roof of the Xie family's old house is very high, but few people go up to the second floor. There are seven or eight granaries and boxes of medicinal herbs on the second floor, which shows how wealthy the Xie family was. The east side of the second floor is surrounded by a row of railings, with sheets and quilts hanging on it like flags of all nations.
Xie Zhao quickly took down the thick quilt and placed it on a clean mat beside him. Cheng Yaoyao was also busy taking off the pillowcase and bed sheet. The cool breeze brought a few drops of rain and hit the bed sheet, quickly leaving a few dark spots.
Before the rustling sound of rain became one, the two finally took down the sheets. The sheets and quilts were scattered all over the mat, and Xie Zhao half-knelt on the mat to stack them one by one. He was very manly when doing housework, and his movements were quick and decisive. The quilts he stacked were square, horizontal and vertical, like a soldier.
Cheng Yaoyao was sitting on the swing next to him. It was a simple swing that every household had. It was a small bench turned upside down, with a thick hemp rope hung from the beam, tied to the legs of the bench at both ends and tied into a knot, and then it could be used as a swing.
Xie's house had a high roof and a spacious second floor, so Cheng Yaoyao was having a great time. She deliberately stepped back a long way, then kicked the ground and suddenly swung up and down, floating around Xie Zhao.
She called Xie Zhao in a coquettish voice: "Look at me!"
Xie Zhao looked up.
Cheng Yaoyao's dark, soft hair fluttered in the wind, and her skirt fluttered. She was like a bright and flamboyant flower with thorns, and one glance at her would make anyone surrender to her overwhelming beauty.
Cheng Yaoyao's skirt brushed against Xie Zhao's shoulders, softly, bringing a sweet scent. The man's shoulders were thick and warm, but he was as indifferent as a block of wood, and he lowered his head to tidy up carefully.
The sweetness on Cheng Yaoyao's lips disappeared. He kicked off his shoes with the force of the swing, and when he came back, he kicked Xie Zhao's shoulders with his bare feet.
Xie Zhao didn't even stagger, he was as steady as a mountain. Cheng Yaoyao pushed him again and again, and the swing swung higher and higher. Her little bit of energy also disappeared in the ups and downs of weightlessness, she raised her head and enjoyed the wind brushing her cheeks.
The swing flew to the highest point, and Cheng Yaoyao's heart also rose to the highest point. When the swing swung back again, a pair of arms suddenly hugged her and threw her onto the bedding like a bandit.
Cheng Yaoyao fell headfirst onto the quilts, knocking the neatly stacked quilts over. She struggled to turn over slowly, stretched her back, and messed up the quilts even more.
She had no psychological burden at all and said, "Fortunately I'm here, otherwise grandma would have worked in vain today."
Xie Zhao repeated a syllable: "You?"
Cheng Yaoyao raised his chin: "Why not me?"
Her eyes were full of pride and pride from under her long eyelashes, and she was wrapped in soft blankets like a proud little cat. Xie Zhao liked this look of hers the most, which made him want to hold her in his hands and love her well, or to hold her in his arms and bully her until she cried.
Cheng Yaoyao was suddenly pressed down and fell into the quilt. The thick winter quilt was washed, beaten, and exposed to the sun for three full days. Cheng Yaoyao felt like he was trapped in a fluffy cloud. The bedsheets exuded a scent of soap and sunlight mixed with the scent of medicinal herbs that had lingered on the second floor for years, giving him a drowsy and chaotic feeling.
Xie Zhao's nose was against hers, and their eyes met. Cheng Yaoyao's heart suddenly started beating in a disorderly rhythm, which turned into a dense drumbeat, chasing after the heavy rain on the roof, and it was about to jump out of her mouth.
This spring rain came suddenly, breaking the tender buds of the delicate flowers on the branches and soaking the farmers returning home late.
Grandma Xie called from the bottom of the stairs: "Yaoyao, Zhao'er, are you collecting the quilts?"
"Hey!" Cheng Yaoyao ducked out from under Xie Zhao's arm and ran downstairs. The old staircase had been in disrepair for a long time and was filled with dust.
Cheng Yaoyao went downstairs. Grandma Xie was fiddling with a basket in the living room. She took out two bundles of pickled mustard greens from the basket and asked, "Have you taken down the quilts? What are you doing upstairs?"
"I received it." Cheng Yaoyao was embarrassed by Grandma Xie's question and quickly interrupted, "Grandma, where have you been? Where's Jianjian?"
Grandma Xie pointed to the cat's den and said, "I took Jianjian to Lin Gui's house. This is the pickled mustard greens that Lin Gui gave me. Tomorrow, ask Zhao Ge'er to cut two pounds of pork belly and stew it."
Cheng Yaoyao smiled and said, "Great, this pickled mustard greens smells so good, it's perfect for making pork with preserved vegetables."
Cheng Yaoyao then called out to Jianjian: "I bought a piece of pork liver and will steam it for you tonight."
The little fat cat didn't run out like usual. Cheng Yaoyao walked to the cat den and called out again, then the cat stubbornly pointed its head into the den, with its round orange-white butt facing Cheng Yaoyao.
Cheng Yaoyao asked Grandma Xie: "What happened to it?"
Grandma Xie's eyes were dodging, and she could not stand Cheng Yaoyao's repeated questioning before she said, "Well, doesn't Lin Gui's family have a female cat? I took Qiangqiang to the fortune teller, but as soon as Qiangqiang walked in, the female cat beat him up..."
Cheng Yaoyao said: "What are you thinking about!"
Grandma Xie coughed and said, "Isn't that a cat too?"
Xie Zhao came down with a pile of bedding in his arms. Hearing Cheng Yaoyao yelling, he asked, "Sister, what's wrong?"
Cheng Yaoyao hurriedly complained to Xie Zhao: "My grandma took Jianjian to mate with Lin Gui's cat, and Jianjian got beaten."
Xie Zhaozhen's expression also showed a bit of strangeness: "Grandma, how can you arrange a blind date for a cat?"
Cheng Yaoyao shared the same hatred and said, "That's right, Lin Gui's cat is already four years old!"
Xie Zhao: “…” That’s not the point.
Cheng Yaoyao pulled Jianjian out of the cat den and found that his grandmother had put a new collar on him. He looked like a spirited little cat dressed up for a blind date. But his orange-white fur was tangled again after washing, and there was a tuft of hair missing from his ears. His head was almost like a pig's.
The worst thing happened that night. The little white cat came to eat as usual, and I stubbornly approached to lick my fur. As a result, the little white cat, either because it smelled the smell of another cat or because it was dirty, scratched me and ran away.
She buried herself in Cheng Yaoyao's arms, whimpering and stubbornly, feeling so aggrieved!
Cheng Yaoyao also felt that being stubborn was miserable. He failed to get a girlfriend, and was forced by his grandmother to go on a blind date. As a result, as soon as he entered the house, he was beaten from the east end of the village to the west end. Now the goddess has abandoned him again.
Cheng Yaoyao held up his two stubborn front paws and said earnestly: "Stop licking. There is no good result from licking a cat!"
The cat looked so depressed that he couldn't even enjoy his meal! He usually ate two bowls of rice, but now he only ate one and a half bowls. It seemed as if there was a little black cloud floating over his head.
Cheng Yaoyao said to Xie Zhao worriedly, "If you keep being stubborn like this, you'll lose weight."
Xie Zhao glanced at the round back of Jianjian and said nothing. He directly took away the two small bowls beside the cat's nest and replaced them with a large shallow basin.
Cheng Yaoyao didn't understand at first, but a few nights later, he found that the two kittens were eating together in the same food bowl. Jianjian would occasionally lick the kitten's ears, and the kitten would just pat him with its paw, which was less forceful than before, as if it was just being coquettish.
Gradually, the little white cat appeared in the Xie family's yard during the day. But it was still very afraid of people. It would run away when Cheng Yaoyao approached it, but it would not run far away. It would look at her from the door with half of its head exposed.
The whole family pretended not to see it, and let the little white cat hide in the dark and watch. Jianjian lay beside the little white cat, guarding it closely.
In the blink of an eye, it was March. Finally, one day, Cheng Yaoyao squatted in the yard to water the strawberries. A dozen strawberries hung down from the vines, cushioned by leaves to prevent them from getting dirty. They were hanging down like rubies, so lovely.
This was the first time she had seen strawberries since she came to this world. Cheng Yaoyao counted them every day. These strawberries had been planted for more than two months before they matured, and they could be picked as soon as Xie Fei came back.
After counting the strawberries, Cheng Yaoyao put the bamboo cover back on them to prevent the stubborn cat from stealing them. When she turned around, she saw the little white cat squatting not far from her, with curiosity flashing in its green eyes.
Cheng Yaoyao let out a low cry and tentatively reached out his hand to it. The little white cat tilted its head as Cheng Yaoyao's hand moved, and its ears pressed down to avoid Cheng Yaoyao's fingers. Cheng Yaoyao laughed, put his hand on its ears, and pinched them downwards, and then pinched its delicate pointed chin.
"Meow~" The little white cat narrowed its eyes and made a coquettish gurgling sound. At this point, Cheng Yaoyao finally got to pet the little white cat as he wished.
While having dinner that day, Cheng Yaoyao stared at Xie Zhao with a look of deep thought on his face.
Xie Zhao said, "Sister, why are you looking at me?"
Cheng Yaoyao patted Xie Zhao on the shoulder and said, "If you have this skill, why don't you teach it to Jianjian earlier? We would have a lot of kittens in our house by now."
Grandma Xie said cheerfully, "Jianjian is finally happy, and his appetite has improved! He ate two egg yolks this morning."
"That's not what it ate." Cheng Yaoyao said, "Xiaobai ate it all."
"How can a little female cat have such a good appetite!" Grandma Xie suddenly said, "Could it be that she is pregnant..."
Cheng Yaoyao choked on his rice and said, "Ahem...you..."
Xie Zhao extended his hand to stroke her back and said helplessly, "Grandma, Jianjian and Xiaobai have only been together for a few days, you are too impatient."
Grandma Xie muttered, "I just mentioned it once! Besides, as a grandmother, there is no one who is not eager to have a grandson."
Grandma Xie's words were full of meaning. Cheng Yaoyao coughed again, and his cheeks turned red. Xie Zhao's face was also pale, but fortunately he was tanned so it couldn't be seen.
Xie Zhao finished his meal in a few mouthfuls, put down his chopsticks and said, "I'm busy in the fields today, so I won't be back for lunch."
"Hey." Cheng Yaoyao said, "I'll bring you food."
Xie Zhao rubbed her hair and said, "No need. I'll bring some steamed buns."
Ever since the incident with Cheng Nuonuo, Xie Zhao no longer allowed Cheng Yaoyao to go to the fields to bring him food.
The first batch of vegetables in the greenhouse are about to mature these days. Xie Zhao is very concerned about it. He is either watching over them in the fields or contacting the canteens of various units in the city. He is too busy to spare any time.
Cheng Yaoyao was also busy. This year, Taoan Village had a good harvest of tea leaves. The first batch of spring tea came down, but there was a shortage of manpower, so half of it was distributed to Tianshui Village. The female educated youth were assigned to pick tea leaves. This job was easy, and Cheng Yaoyao had no reason to slack off.
The village warehouse was half the size of a basketball court, with a high roof and rows of windows for ventilation. Sunlight streamed in through the windows, shining on the sieves of tea leaves.
After being withered and roasted, these tea leaves are now sorted manually, picking out the coarse tea stems and old leaves, and dividing them into first-grade tea and coarse tea. A pound of tea leaves is five centimeters, and half of it has to be handed over to the team. Even if half is deducted, a woman with good eyesight and quick work can earn 50 or 60 cents a day.
This job is not something that everyone can do, only girls are allowed to do it. Women with rough hands and feet or old women who look dirty are not allowed to touch it. The tea leaves are roasted dry and crisp, and if the hands are rough and the strength is too strong, the tea leaves will be crushed.
Therefore, the people sitting in the warehouse were all unmarried girls and female educated youth in the village.
Cheng Yaoyao, Zhang Xiaofeng, Han Yin and others sat together, Liu Minxia sat with the newly arrived educated youth with her back to them, and Cheng Nonuo sat with two girls about thirteen or fourteen years old, talking and laughing.
Cheng Yaoyao took a closer look. The two girls were wearing new cotton blouses, their braids were slicked back and their faces were fair. They were pretty girls in the village. They obviously knew that they were proud of themselves and laughed shrilly from time to time, causing others to look at them with dissatisfaction. They also proudly shook their braids.
Han Yin said, "Those are the two granddaughters of Mrs. Lin, Lin Dandan and Lin Pingping, from the second and third wives."
Cheng Yaoyao understood. Cheng Nonuo bullied Lin Ranran's siblings on one hand, and at the same time, he took advantage of the second and third wives' daughters who had parents. This was Cheng Nonuo's old trick of pulling one and stepping on the other.
The three of them chatted while picking out a sieve of tea leaves. Cheng Yaoyao stretched his back and saw the accountant coming over happily: "Cheng Zhiqing, have you finished picking? You're really fast. Let me weigh it for you!"
Cheng Yaoyao picked up the kettle and drank water, but Han Yin smiled and said, "Then I'll trouble you!"
The accountant walked away with the tea, turning back and smiling: "No trouble, no trouble!"
There were all grown-up girls here, so no one teased the accountant for being so attentive to Cheng Yaoyao. All the men in the village saw that Cheng Yaoyao was very attentive, but they just didn't have the chance.
Zhang Xiaofeng went to fetch another basket of tea leaves and poured them onto the sieve. With a swish, the tea leaves were evenly spread. Cheng Yaoyao used his delicate fingertips to pick out the tea stems and threw them into the box.
But someone over there was unhappy.
Lin Pingping threw the tea leaves onto the sieve. She usually boasted about her beauty, but when Cheng Yaoyao showed up, she was dwarfed. This overwhelming beauty made it impossible for her to deceive herself, so she could only curse angrily: "Fox spirit!"
Lin Dandan also said: "No wonder grandma always calls her a foxy girl, relying on her beauty to act coquettishly!"
Cheng Nonuo picked up the tea leaves with a mocking smile on her lips. She admired her fingers which had turned a little whiter. Who wouldn't want to be a vixen?
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