CHAPTER 259: CHAPTER 258 SI NIANG’S KINDNESS (FIRST UPDATE)

Mr. Mu watched reluctantly as Mu Dade boarded the carriage and rode off into the distance, eventually disappearing in the direction of the village entrance.

At this moment, Mr. Mu felt both emotional and gratified, his back bent from years of labor, with a deep yearning in his eyes for his son to succeed.

Old Mrs. Mu felt similarly; it was her favorite son going off to take the exams, such an important matter that she had to watch to ensure he left safely.

"Dad, Mom, elder brother has disappeared from sight. Can we go back now? This heat is killing me. If we don’t go back, I’ll be roasted," Mu Danian complained loudly beside them, looking very displeased.

"Fifth, why so impatient? Is the field work done? If you’re in such a hurry to go back, quickly finish the rice transplanting for this old woman. Don’t always think about slacking off; your elder brother is about to become a scholar, so the family has to set a good example for me."

Old Mrs. Mu scolded Mu Danian loudly, and indeed, her words now carried a slight air of an official’s wife.

But Mu Danian wasn’t buying it at all.

"Mom, let Fourth Brother do this work; he’s free. I still have to find my friends. We’ve been at this double-harvest effort for so long, if we don’t meet soon, we’ll lose touch."

Mu Danian had always been lazy, and the friend he mentioned was none other than Chen Hong from Tie Dao Village. The two hadn’t been close for a while, and Mu Danian couldn’t hold back any longer.

After saying this, Mu Danian slipped away, leaving Old Mrs. Mu there cursing and swearing.

Seeing this, Mu Dazhong quickly said, "Dad, Mom, I promised to help Uncle Chen fix his roof yesterday, so I can’t do the house chores. Let Fourth Brother’s family handle it!"

"Mom, I promised Zhang Huolang to embroider two handkerchiefs by tomorrow, I can’t delay any longer, I have to go and work now!"

In no time, the people under the old locust tree scattered, leaving only the fourth branch, Yu Si Niang, and the two elderly Mu family members along with a few kids.

Mr. Mu looked at Mu Dajiang with difficulty and then said, "Fourth, your second brother and fifth brother are both inherently lazy, this family relies on your hard work."

Mu Dajiang chuckled twice and immediately agreed to the task.

"Dad, Mom, it’s hot. You should go back and rest! I can finish that plot in two more days."

Beside him, Mrs. Liu felt her eyes prick with tears; that rice field was the largest plot of land the Old Mu Family had. Although they called it an acre, it was much more than that. But what could she do? Her parents-in-law were biased.

When Old Mrs. Mu and Mr. Mu returned home, Mrs. Liu hugged Mu Xiaxia and began sobbing.

Next to her, Xiao Chu also began to cry, clinging to Mrs. Liu’s leg and calling "Mommy" incessantly.

Mu Dajiang was at a loss, standing there stunned, and could only look at Yu Si Niang for help.

Yu Si Niang comforted Mrs. Liu earnestly. She understood Liu’s suffering. Before splitting the family, all the work was left to the third branch.

Everyone else rested while the third branch worked.

Everyone else ate good food while the third branch could only watch longingly.

But now it’s different, their third branch had separated.

"Jinhua, don’t cry. It’s a good thing my family’s fieldwork is done. I’ll come and help you transplant rice later."

Yesterday, thanks to Fengzi’s help, Yu Si Niang’s double-harvest work finished earlier than many in the village, and she finally felt at ease.

"Third Sister-in-law, that’s not right. How can we let you help with the work? The third branch has branched out and doesn’t need to do much for the family anymore."

Mu Dajiang hurriedly waved his hand but couldn’t reject Yu Si Niang’s persistent offer.

She said, "It’s still early. Fourth, go prepare the field. Later, let someone coming back from the village latrine take a message for me and Jinhua."

Mu Dajiang sighed, feeling warmth in his heart. After bidding goodbye to Yu Si Niang, he hurriedly went to work in the field.

...

...

Shuangshuang delivered cold noodles in town and then started setting up a stall to sell fans.

Perhaps because of the increasingly hot weather, today’s fans were more popular than usual, with a long line forming in no time.

Supply and demand drove the value up, so Mu Shuangshuang quickly raised the price, selling each fan for six coins.

Out of forty fans, more than half were sold in no time, and those who bought fans left satisfied.

Lu Yuanfeng held a fan, occasionally fanning the sweating Mu Shuangshuang. His own clothes were soaked, but he didn’t mind.

While Mu Shuangshuang worked, she felt a cool breeze behind her, knowing it was Fengzi helping to fan her. When she finally had a moment to breathe, Mu Shuangshuang stopped him.

"Fengzi, you fan yourself as well. Don’t just think about me. You can drink the water I brought."

Lu Yuanfeng didn’t have a water bottle, so he never brought water when coming to town. Mu Shuangshuang was different, using bamboo cylinders to make water bottles for each family member, always carrying water in them when going out.

Lu Yuanfeng licked his dry, cracked lips and shook his head to refuse. "No, I’m not thirsty."

"You say you’re not thirsty, but your lips are cracked." Mu Shuangshuang handed her water bottle to Lu Yuanfeng, fearing he wouldn’t drink, she added, "It’s alright, we’ll fill it up at a nearby house later, no need to worry."

Most of the time, good people are still around, so Mu Shuangshuang believed she could still ask for some tea.

If it didn’t work out, they could just buy a pot of iced tea, it was only a coin anyway.

Unable to resist Shuangshuang’s urging, Lu Yuanfeng picked up the kettle. It wasn’t his first time drinking from Shuangshuang’s bottle; the last time was during rice harvesting when he helped her carry rice stalks, and she feared he was too tired, so she gave him her water bottle.

Grasping the same water bottle for a second time, Lu Yuanfeng felt a bit nervous, his hands trembling slightly. What was more important was that knowing Shuangshuang had used the bottle made him so nervous his breathing became uneven.

He held the bottle, watching Shuangshuang bargaining with others and doing business.

She was very capable, whether it was farm work or cooking, or doing business, it seemed that as long as she was there, she could finish all the work on her own.

Lu Yuanfeng himself was not good with words. When he first started doing business, he always got cheated and had no idea how to reclaim his losses, but Shuangshuang was different. She had been in business for so long and never miscalculated a single copper coin. Everything was neatly organized.

Such a girl, probably every man in the world likes her!

Suddenly, Lu Yuanfeng felt a bit uneasy. He often thought he had nothing, and he had no right to express his affections in front of Shuangshuang.

With a sudden twinge of sadness, Lu Yuanfeng opened the cap and took a small sip of the tea from Shuangshuang’s kettle.

The fishy taste of Houttuynia cordata spread instantly on his taste buds!

Suddenly, Mu Shuangshuang said curiously, "Fengzi, look over there!"