The Chika sisters and the bodyguards were busy preparing dinner.
"Hu Shao, come with me for a walk in the village."
Lin Yinan wanted to see how the villagers in this remote village were living.
Hu Shao tore off the water pouch, took a big gulp, wiped his mouth casually, and tied the water pouch back around his waist.
"Come on! Sis, I'll take you there."
Yun Shiyi was worried and followed closely behind.
When Qianwu returned from gathering firewood, she saw this and wanted to follow, but Qianxia stopped her.
"With Eleven Lords with you, you shouldn't go and cause trouble."
Qianwu pouted and, dissatisfied, carried the firewood into the kitchen.
The village was very well-maintained, with three rows of newly built thatched houses.
Walking along the wide and flat village road, villagers returning from the fields came one after another, and they greeted Hu Shao warmly.
"Young Master Hu, I caught quite a few loaches in the field. Come to my house for dinner tonight!"
"No, you guys eat, I have something to do tonight," Hu Shao repeatedly refused.
The villagers lived a hard life, and it was not easy for them to get any meat in their meals.
An older woman carrying a basket walked towards him and smiled kindly at Hu Shao.
"Young Master Hu, look at these fresh wild vegetables. I'll make your favorite soup dumplings tonight. Would you like to come over and have a bite?"
Hu Shao glanced at Lin Yinan, who had a half-smile on her face, and said with a troubled expression, "Auntie, my sister is here. My family is already cooking. Let's do it another day. I'll definitely go another day."
"Oh! You're Lord Hu's older sister? You look like an angel!"
Facing the friendly aunt, Lin Yinan smiled slightly and greeted her politely, "When Hu Shao was in the village, I was grateful for your care, Auntie."
"Not at all, it's just a bite to eat. Compared to the help that Master Hu has given us, it's nothing," the aunt said with a smile. "I'm going home now. Remember to come back for soup noodles tonight."
As the auntie walked away with her basket, Lin Yinan teased Hu Shao.
"I never imagined that Lord Hu would be so beloved wherever he goes."
Hu Shao puffed out his thin chest, a proud look on his face, and said, "Of course!"
Lin Yinan smiled and continued walking forward.
Yun Shiyi glanced at his thin frame from behind, her disdain impossible to conceal.
He could knock this weakling over with just one finger.
Hu Shao, adept at reading people's expressions, noticed the disdain in his eyes and said with dissatisfaction, "Eleventh Brother, do you look down on me?"
"Too thin!"
"What?" Hu Shao picked at his ear, not understanding what he meant.
Yun Shiyi stopped and looked at him, saying each word clearly, "I'm saying you're too skinny, you can't take a beating."
"You...you're going to hit me?"
Yun Shiyi shook her head, not wanting to waste words with him. Who would bother hitting him for no reason?
Lin Yinan turned to look at Hu Shao and explained on behalf of Yun Shiyi, "Yun Shiyi is saying that you are too thin. If something happens, you will be taken down in no time."
Hu Shao immediately looked miserable; he didn't want to be this thin either.
It's all because I starved myself too much before; no matter how much I eat now, I can't gain the weight back.
He clenched his fist and decided that starting today, he would eat two more bowls of rice at each meal, increasing from three bowls to five.
At this moment, Lin Yinan stopped in front of a family's yard and looked at the woman who was squatting on the ground in the yard, using a wooden stick to thresh rapeseed.
The woman held a wooden stick that was thick at one end and thin at the other. The thicker end was used for striking, and she had to exert all her strength with each swing.
"Aunt Huang, are you harvesting rapeseed?" Hu Shao greeted Aunt Huang with a smile from outside the fence.
Aunt Huang looked up and saw several people standing outside her fence. One of them was a tall man dressed in black with a black cloth covering his face. If Hu Shao hadn't been there, she would have been startled at first glance.
"Young Master Hu, the door isn't locked, please come in and have a seat."
"Sister, shall we go in?" Hu Shao asked Lin Yinan.
Lin Yinan: "Let's go in and take a look."
Hu Shao pushed open the gate of the fence and led the way inside.
"Young Master Hu, who are these two gentlemen?"
"Aunt Huang, this is my sister. She is passing through the village and is asking to stay the night."
Aunt Huang smiled and got up to walk into the house, calling out as she went, "Nizi, bring out two chairs, someone's here."
A five- or six-year-old girl appeared before the crowd carrying a chair, and Hu Shao quickly went to help her.
Lin Yinan sat on a low stool, and Aunt Huang brought out several bowls of water.
She glanced at Lin Yinan's neatly combed hair and smiled, "Madam, have some water. This was boiled this afternoon."
Lin Yinan picked up the bowl and took a sip; the water in the bowl was still a little warm.
The girl, wearing a patched-up short-sleeved jacket, stood close to Aunt Huang, looking somewhat timid and avoiding eye contact with the crowd.
Lin Yinan's gaze lingered on the child's arms, which were covered with red rashes of various sizes. Some of the rashes had been scratched until they bled, making it look quite alarming.
Aunt Huang noticed her gaze and, fearing the child would frighten the guests, quickly hid her behind her.
After becoming a mother and seeing her child, Lin Yinan's heart softened considerably.
"What happened to the child's hand?" she asked gently.
Aunt Huang's smile immediately turned bitter. "When the weather gets hot, the child's skin is delicate, and this is from mosquito bites."
"Didn't you burn some mosquito repellent herbs?"
"I tried it, but it still didn't work," Aunt Huang said helplessly.
It's impossible for it to be completely useless. The herbs at that time were all natural, and their medicinal effects were naturally better than those grown in greenhouses in later generations.
"Can I see that mosquito-repellent plant?"
Aunt Huang nodded, got up and went inside to get the mosquito-repelling grass that was half-burned.
Lin Yinan put down the bowl, picked up the mosquito repellent plant, and smelled it. "This mosquito repellent plant doesn't smell right. Something is missing."
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