"Zhao San, what do you mean? Why did you only come now? Are you disgusted with me?" Inside the house, it was Widow Zhang's indignant, low voice.
It's been a quarter of an hour since she gave Zhao San the signal, and he's only just arrived after all this time. Before, no matter what Zhao San was doing, he was always there whenever she called.
Zhao San swept away the gloom in his eyes, put his arm around Widow Zhang, and coaxed, "It was all because of that woman's fuss that we were delayed. How could I possibly dislike you? You're my darling~"
Widow Zhang's body went limp from being touched, and she playfully pushed Zhao San away.
He Tiantian leaned against the window and overheard every word of their conversation. Even with her open-mindedness, she couldn't help but blush with embarrassment when faced with such a situation.
Thinking of Liu, He Tiantian suddenly felt a little sorry for her.
A woman whose husband cheats on her and who lives a life of self-pity is quite unhappy.
The two inside the house had already started fighting, and He Tiantian was just about to leave. Suddenly, with a "crack," the wooden stick she was standing on broke.
Startled, He Tiantian quickly pressed herself against the mud wall.
"Who is it? Could someone be coming?" Zhao San stopped and looked warily toward the door.
“Suspicious and paranoid, the gate to the yard is locked tight, and the doors to the house are locked too. Who could possibly get in?” Widow Zhang said nonchalantly.
She relied on Zhao San to come and visit her every month so she could earn a few coins; she couldn't afford to miss it.
He Tiantian left looking dejected. They say there's always trouble around a widow's door, and it seems that's really true.
When she lived in the Zhao family, her awful mother-in-law almost never let her leave the house. So she didn't know much about what was going on in the village.
Nowadays, it seems like every family has its share of unsavory stories.
"Mother, where did you go? Why are you only coming back now?" Zhao Denglong and Zhao Wanzi looked anxious, afraid that their mother would abandon them.
Children this age are at a time when they lack a sense of security. Seeing her two daughters looking worried, He Tiantian felt guilty again.
"Lantern, Meatball, let's go gather firewood. Let's collect more this time so we won't be cold at night." He Tiantian led the two children up the mountain.
This was He Tiantian's first time collecting firewood with Zhao Denglong. It was also today that she learned that Denglong had to cross a mountain every time he collected firewood, and had to turn over the thick snow to pick up the branches buried under the snow one by one.
Sometimes, even after spending most of the day, you still can't find a single dead branch.
He Tiantian looked at Zhao Denglong, who was busy and working with practiced ease, and her eyes immediately reddened with heartache.
Oh dear, what a tragedy! When she was only as big as a lantern, all she did was play in the mud.
He Tiantian wasn't very skilled at gathering firewood in the snow, and after a long time she only managed to collect seven or eight thin pieces, not even enough for a meal. So she settled for breaking off pine branches, since those could also be used for firewood.
After gathering firewood for most of the day, Zhao Denglong and Zhao Wanzi had collected a considerable amount. She tied all the collected firewood together with straw rope and carried it on her back, her small body bearing firewood twice the weight of herself.
He Tiantian had fallen quite far, and she had broken off quite a few pine branches.
"Lantern, meatballs, let's go back. This firewood will last us a long time." He Tiantian called out to the distance. She looked around and felt that the weather was getting colder and colder.
The winter wind was so cold it chilled her to the bone, making her limbs almost stiff.
He Tiantian frowned, her face grave. If the snow continued to fall like this, the village would be desperately short of firewood. Without firewood, they couldn't cook, and even keeping warm was out of the question.
Moreover, the more snow accumulates, the more likely an avalanche will occur. Changfeng Village is located at the foot of the mountain, and an avalanche from the two mountains would be enough to bury the entire village.
"Mother, I saw you break off pine needles last time. How did you know they could be used for firewood?" Zhao Denglong was very curious. She had never discovered that pine needles could be used for firewood since she was a child.
He Tiantian also saw it by chance in a book, but since the original owner was an illiterate village woman, she naturally couldn't show it too obviously.
"Ah... your dad told me this. He also said that pine needles can be used to make tea, which is good for your health," He Tiantian said earnestly, trying to cover it up.
Zhao Denglong nodded. Her father had studied at the town's academy when he was young and knew many things that they didn't.
Back then, her father would tell her and Wanzi many stories that they had never heard before.
Zhao Denglong also longed to study, wanting to know as much as her father. It was just a pity that she was a girl, and girls were not allowed to study.
Thinking of this, Zhao Denglong's mood became depressed again.
He Tiantian didn't understand why this little kid was so happy one moment and so sad the next. She had never interacted with a child this big in her previous life.
However, she will start learning slowly from today. She will learn how to get along with her children, not just as a mother and child, but as good friends.
This allows us to understand the little girl's thoughts in a timely manner and provide her with proper guidance.
They gathered firewood and laid it out in rows on the ground inside the dilapidated temple so it would dry faster.
In the evening, He Tiantian used the ingredients she had at home to make a pot of fish porridge. She simply cut some fish into the cooked millet porridge, which made the whole porridge incredibly delicious.
Zhao Denglong secretly swallowed her saliva as she smelled the fragrant fish porridge, even though she had told her mother many times that they could skip dinner.
Because there used to be no dinner at home, ever since her mother changed, she has been cooking three meals a day for her and her sister.
Zhao Wanzi blinked her big, bright eyes at He Tiantian and said, "Mother, you are so kind."
He Tiantian was serving fish porridge to the two children when she was suddenly taken aback by Zhao Wanzi's words. Her eyes were filled with affection as she looked at Zhao Denglong and Zhao Wanzi, and her heart felt as if it had been moistened by something.
She's been in this world for so long, and the people who have spent the most time with her are her two daughters. Zhao Denglong and Zhao Wanzi have allowed her to rediscover the warmth of family.
He Tiantian secretly vowed in her heart that she must earn more money to give her two daughters a better life.
The next day, the mine's oxcarts were going to town to make purchases.
Before leaving, He Tiantian specifically told Lantern and Maruko three times to stay inside the house and not come out.
She thought to herself that when she met Director Song today, she would see if she could apply to have both children with her, otherwise she wouldn't feel at ease.
When we arrived at the foot of Changfeng Mine, an oxcart was already waiting there.
He Tiantian saw that Erhua's mother had already gotten into the car, and there were several unfamiliar women next to her.
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