Time hadn't gone far when he found a stool made from a tree stump under the eaves. He lifted his robe and sat down. The spot was neither too far nor too close; if his wife called out from inside, he would hear her.
The Cai family's courtyard was not large, with three main rooms and two side rooms on each side. The kitchen was a small thatched hut built next to the east side room, and at this moment, wisps of smoke were rising from the chimney on the roof.
Next to the kitchen was a small vegetable garden, where some common vegetables such as green beans, eggplants, and chives were grown. Due to the drought and lack of timely irrigation, the vegetables looked rather unappetizing, and the leaves were somewhat withered and yellow.
The courtyard was deserted, and Cai Erlang was nowhere to be found. However, faint whispers could be heard coming from the kitchen.
Shi Guang observed the courtyard for a moment, then closed his eyes to rest.
Inside the west wing next to the woodshed.
With no outsiders around, all the grievances and sorrows that had been building up in Lin Daya's heart for days surged up at once. Her nose stung, her eyes welled up with tears, and large tears rolled down her cheeks instantly.
Despite suffering such a great injustice, Lin Daya could only endure it, even if she wanted to cry, she had to do it in secret.
She dared not cry in front of her in-laws. If she cried, not only would no one feel sorry for her, but she would also be scolded for being a jinx who cried all day. She could not cry in front of her husband, because if she did, it would mean that she, as the eldest sister-in-law, was being unreasonable and arguing with her family over trivial matters.
Only now, in front of her younger sister Er Ya, can she finally cry her heart out.
Lin Momo held her trembling and frail body tightly, gently stroking her back, and softly comforted her, "If you want to cry, then cry. You'll feel better after you cry. If you have any grievances, tell me, and I'll get justice for you from the Cai family."
Lin Daya was only a twenty-year-old girl. She had never had a good day in her parents' home, and she was bullied even after marrying into her husband's family. Just thinking about this hopeless life was despairing, and it was hard for her to endure it.
This time, she almost lost the baby in her womb, which became the last straw that broke her back.
Keeping things bottled up can easily lead to illness, so it's good for her to vent appropriately.
As Lin Daya's emotions gradually calmed down and she stopped crying, Lin Momo wiped her face with a wet wipe while saying some things to make her happy, "When I went back to Linjia Village during the last spring plowing season, I heard that my eldest sister was pregnant. After I got back, I made a few little clothes for my nephew. My eldest sister knows that I have never done any needlework. If you think they are not good, please don't be disgusted."
"I also bought a few feet of cotton cloth; my older sister will make a few nicer clothes for her nephew when she has some free time."
Although she desperately wanted to know who had almost caused her older sister's miscarriage, she could only suppress her anxiety to avoid upsetting her further. After all, her sister was pregnant, and crying for too long would be bad for the baby. She wanted to let her older sister calm down first.
Sister Lin burst into laughter through her tears, poked her head with her finger, and said reproachfully, "You're being naughty again! I was worried about not having enough fabric to make clothes for the child, and I was even thinking of altering two of my own clothes for him."
"Children are lucky to have clothes, so why would they complain about whether they're good or bad? But you've gotten married, and now you know how to sew."
......
The two sisters hadn't seen each other for a long time, and they both had a lot to say to each other.
The atmosphere in the room became lighter as a result.
Lin Momo took out the items from the bamboo cage one by one and showed them to Sister Lin.
She made two baby clothes herself as practice, and the rest were baby clothes she had bought online: onesies, kimono-style clothes, and swaddle blankets, all of which were simple styles without any patterns.
It looks good, but it's not outrageous when it comes to current trends.
When others see it, they might think the fabric is rare, but the person who made the clothes is clever and skillful.
She knew the Cai family was poor, and the adults didn't even have decent clothes to wear. They certainly wouldn't prepare special clothes for the newborn baby; it would be good enough if the baby had a rag to wrap around its body.
Since no one was going to fight over baby clothes anyway, Lin Momo prepared several sets for her nephew or niece, including both summer and winter ones, which could be worn until they were two years old.
I also made two sets of summer clothes for Lin Daya from fine linen. Knowing she was pregnant, I made the sizes a bit larger so that the fabric wouldn't end up in someone else's hands and make her suffer for nothing.
There is also a piece of fine cotton cloth for the baby, about three feet long, which has been washed with water and rubbed soft by hand beforehand. It can be used as a diaper or an undergarment that will not hurt the baby's skin.
Lin Daya stroked the soft, beautiful clothes, and the tears that had just stopped fell again. However, this time they were tears of emotion, tears mixed with laughter.
Besides clothes, Lin Momo brought food to nourish her eldest sister: brown sugar, milk powder, and dried meat.
In hot weather, many things don't keep well, so I can only pick a few things that last a long time. I'm also afraid that giving too many things will make others envious.
Remembering the rice dumplings she brought today, she first picked out a salted egg yolk and pork rice dumpling, peeled off the bamboo leaves, and stuffed it into Lin Daya's hand. "These are rice dumplings I made myself. Big sister, please try them for my nephew. Are they delicious?"
"Alright, then I, as your mother, will try it on behalf of your nephew." Lin Daya smiled and supported her sister, taking the zongzi. Seeing the piece of meat wrapped in the glutinous rice, she couldn't help but ask in surprise, "Why is there meat inside?"
Back when she was at her parents' home, before the family separated, they would make zongzi (sticky rice dumplings) every year for the Dragon Boat Festival. They were either filled with red dates or red bean paste. Lin Daya had never seen a meat zongzi before, let alone eaten one.
After I married into the Cai family, there was never enough food at home, so there was no rice to make zongzi (sticky rice dumplings). On the Dragon Boat Festival, my father-in-law would just cut a few handfuls of mugwort outside, bring them back, hang them on the door to mark the occasion, and that would be considered the festival.
Lin Daya took a bite with curiosity and immediately praised it, "Mmm, delicious, even better than sweet rice dumplings! You're so clever, how did you come up with the idea of making meat rice dumplings?"
Glutinous rice is hard to digest, so Lin Momo only gave her one. She then took out a clay pot, and before she even lifted the lid, she could smell the delicious aroma of stewed chicken.
Lin Daya opened her mouth in surprise, and after a long while, she said, "Er Ya, why did you bring this along?"
"Of course it's to nourish your body. Only when you eat well can my little nephew grow up healthy and chubby."
Lin Momo added the chicken soup to the pot at the last minute. Seeing her older sister so weak, she couldn't help but feel sorry for her and wanted to help her recover.
However, even though she, as the younger sister, wanted to help her older sister improve her health and give birth to a healthy child, she had no way to do so. She couldn't possibly visit her older sister every day to bring her food and drink; that was too unrealistic.
She didn't mind the trouble, but doing so would undoubtedly be a slap in the face to the Cai family.
Furthermore, the Cai family must be unhappy seeing their daughter-in-law eating alone every day. If they are unhappy, they will naturally cause trouble, and in the end, the eldest sister will have to bear all the consequences.
Sigh, if only I could take my older sister to live with me for a while.
Thinking of this, Lin Momo suddenly had a flash of inspiration and came up with an idea. She wondered if her older sister would cooperate.
She tore off a still-warm chicken leg and handed it to Lin Daya, saying with a smile, "Sister, have a chicken leg first, then have a bowl of soup later. I guarantee you'll raise your little nephew to be plump and healthy."
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