Xu Qinghe lightly carried the specially woven bamboo basket on her back, her heart full of gratitude for the gift of nature. She then thought, how wonderful it would be if she could share this rich harvest with her friends.
So she warmly invited Zhang Xiaocui, Qin Lili and Lin Xiuxiu to go together.
Unfortunately, Qin Lili and Lin Xiuxiu were each entangled in trivial matters, and only Zhang Xiaocui readily agreed to accompany her and embark on this mushroom picking trip together.
The mountain road is winding, and raindrops are dripping from the leaves.
Walking in such an environment, the two of them felt relaxed and naturally talked about the trivial matters in the village.
"Qinghe, you haven't been out of the house for a while. Did you know that there is some trouble between Sun Youfang and Su Qifen?" Zhang Xiaocui said excitedly as she walked.
Xu Qinghe looked bewildered. She hadn't heard anything at all. She quickly asked, "Oh? What exactly happened?"
Zhang Xiaocui pretended to be mysterious, with a playful smile on her face. "Ah, it's really a matter of time, and retribution is inevitable..."
The story begins when Sun Youfang had to stay in bed to recuperate due to a leg injury.
She had not stepped out of the house for a long time and knew nothing about what was happening in the outside world, including the many contributions Xu Qinghe had made to the village.
Out of good intentions, Su Qifen wanted to tell her about these positive changes, but unexpectedly, she inadvertently touched Sun Youfang's sensitive nerves during the conversation.
Sun Youfang lost control of his emotions in an instant. He suddenly stood up from the sickbed and slapped Su Qifen, leaving several deep claw marks on her face. He also cursed loudly, accusing Su Qifen of being shameless, and made public the secret that Su Qifen had once tried to get close to Yin Yunjie.
The dispute quickly fermented in the closed mountain village, and every detail was spread with exaggeration.
Sun Youfang's actions were extremely violent, and Su Qifen was almost unable to resist. In the end, thanks to the help of the neighbors, everyone worked together to separate the two.
The news soon reached the Yin family. When Xie Di heard about it, she was furious. She denounced Su Qifen's misconduct, thinking that she was trying to influence her son while having improper thoughts about Yin Yunjie.
Xie Di, still furious, even went to Su Qifen's house in person to teach her a lesson.
This beating left Su Qifen completely bedridden, and she had to recuperate at home for several days.
The Tian family knew very well that what their daughter had done was indeed disgraceful. Faced with such a situation, even though they were unwilling, they did not dare to openly come forward to defend her.
What was even more unfavorable was that the village's cooperation project with the supply and marketing cooperative happened to be reported, which attracted the attention of higher-level leaders.
During the review, Su Qifen's incident undoubtedly became an ignominious focus.
People began to question that Su Laosi, as the village party secretary, not only failed to play his due role in the cooperation, but even his own daughter was educated so improperly, and he was indeed to blame.
Therefore, the change of the position of village party secretary was undoubtedly a bolt from the blue for the Tian family.
This not only deepened Xie Yun's dissatisfaction with Su Qifen, but even Su Laosi and his wife began to feel alienated and disgusted with their daughter.
During Su Qifen's long recovery period, no one in the family was willing to step into her room. The tightly closed door silently told Su Qifen that her future was gradually drifting away from the fate of her family.
Xie Di took the opportunity to vent all her anger and dissatisfaction on Su Qifen. Whenever she was in a bad mood, Su Qifen became the most convenient punching bag.
"Hey, isn't Su Qifen asking for trouble? How can she feel good after making herself so embarrassed?" After hearing this, Xu Qinghe felt mixed emotions. She secretly wondered if Su Qifen's behavior was too inconsiderate.
In terms of ability, Su Qifen is not outstanding, but her courage is astonishingly great, and she even dares to provoke Sun Youfang.
Perhaps she misjudged the situation, thinking that she could take advantage of the opponent's leg injury. However, she didn't know that Sun Youfang at this moment was like a barefoot warrior, without any scruples, and was eager for someone to come forward and challenge her so that she would have the opportunity to vent her anger.
Su Qifen's proactive provocation this time is tantamount to putting herself under the gun.
"That's right. Even my mother said Su Qifen was stupid. She said that in the past, behavior like Su Qifen's would be severely punished, such as being drowned in a pig cage." Zhang Xiaocui's words revealed her emotion about the old customs.
Although Xu Qinghe received a modern education and did not agree with Su Qifen's approach, she felt that it was not necessary for one person to bear all the blame and contempt.
In this era, individual mistakes should not be magnified infinitely, and everyone has the opportunity to be understood and corrected.
So, she didn't argue too much, but just silently hoped in her heart that Su Qifen could truly grow from this lesson.
The rain yesterday evening left a layer of wet traces.
Today, the winding mountain road seems to be covered with a thin layer of ointment, making every step slippery and unpredictable.
Zhang Xiaocui and Xu Qinghe walked hand in hand in the fresh air after the rain, chatting and laughing while carefully searching for the gifts of nature - fresh and delicious wild mushrooms - near the tree roots and among the grass.
The sun occasionally penetrated the clouds and shone dappled light into their baskets, where the colorful mushrooms gradually piled up into small hills.
However, the way down the mountain was not so pleasant.
The rain made the soil between the stone steps soft and slippery, so the two had to move their feet carefully. Even so, they couldn't avoid stumbling a few times. Fortunately, they stabilized their bodies in time, supported each other, and finally arrived home safely with a few laughs.
After entering the house, the two smiled at each other.
"Qinghe, look at our spoils today! We have quite a lot! But even if my family eats this for several meals in a row, we still won't be able to digest it all. You can use the extra ones to make your signature mushroom sauce. I believe the taste of your sauce will fill the whole house with fragrance."
As Zhang Xiaocui spoke, her fingers lightly brushed across the two large baskets of mushrooms. In the end, she only took out a small pot, enough for her family to share once, and generously handed the rest to Xu Qinghe.
In the countryside, refrigerators are a luxury. Without modern refrigeration equipment, preserving fresh ingredients becomes a problem.
Zhang Xiaocui knew this very well, and also knew that the Xu family's financial situation did not allow them to make complicated mushroom sauce.
Her gift was not just an exchange of food, but also an expression of gratitude for the Xu family's long-term help.
Xu Qinghe gladly accepted this kindness and secretly planned in his heart that once the fragrant mushroom sauce was ready, he would definitely send some to the Zhang family to taste.
Changing the subject, Xu Qinghe's eyes flashed with anticipation: "By the way, Xiao Cui, those puppies of yours should be weaned, right? If possible, can I go and take them home tomorrow?"
Hearing this, Zhang Xiaocui smiled gently, "Well, actually, I started weaning them two days ago.
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