CHAPTER 332: CHAPTER 330: THE SCHEMING PLOT (SECOND UPDATE)

When Yu Si Niang was carrying her own bowl back, Mu Shuangshuang had already delivered the peaches from Zhao Yun and Zhao Gouzi’s family, and she was chopping pigweed with Lu Yuanfeng in the courtyard.

One cleaver, one small knife, the two of them stood front and back, chopping pigweed in a large wooden basin, making a "thud thud" sound.

The pigweed was found by Yu Liulang early in the morning from wasteland and field ridges. It’s said to be exceptionally good for feeding pigs, making them gain weight, and when dried, it’s rich in protein, improving the effect even more.

Mu Shuangshuang often saw this pigweed at the foot of Niuwei Mountain and along the field ridges. She didn’t know it was so good for feeding pigs. As she chopped, she discussed with Lu Yuanfeng about going to the mountain in the afternoon to pick some gold and silver flowers and to gather more pigweed since the family pig needed it.

These days had been very busy, and there hadn’t been time to sun-dry the gold and silver flowers. Fortunately, she had dried some last time, which was originally for their own consumption, but now they could take those to the town to make up the number.

Noticing Yu Si Niang coming back, Mu Shuangshuang paused her action of chopping pigweed and, with a smile, said to Yu Si Niang, "Mom, I’ve chopped the pigweed my uncle brought. In the afternoon, Fengzi and I plan to go to the mountain to pick gold and silver flowers and get some pigweed."

"I’ll go with you. Just as your uncle is busy with things in the fields these days, I don’t have anything to do." Yu Si Niang forced a smile, refraining from mentioning the annoying things she encountered at the Old Mu Family’s place, for fear of worrying her daughter.

But such an obvious emotional oddity, if Mu Shuangshuang couldn’t see it, it would be hard to say she had any sense.

With just one look at Yu Si Niang’s face, she knew Yu Si Niang had suffered a considerable amount of grievance.

"Mom, did grandma scold you?"

"No... no, your grandma was nice. She quite enjoyed the peaches." Yu Si Niang waved her hand, unwilling to admit to the grievances she suffered.

Mu Shuangshuang’s mood instantly worsened, and she resumed chopping pigweed with the cleaver, but this time with more force than ever. The urgent "thud thud" sound was somewhat intimidating.

Seeing her chopping pigweed with such intensity, Lu Yuanfeng suddenly placed his hand on Mu Shuangshuang’s wrist and said, "Didn’t you say your wrist hurts? Take a break, don’t chop anymore!"

His broad palm resting on Mu Shuangshuang’s slender wrist carried his unique warmth. She looked up to see the young man in front of her gazing at her with a worried look.

Lu Yuanfeng had a relatively rugged appearance, yet it didn’t seem coarse; instead, he had a youthful, tender look. His eyelashes were long, and his eyes were bright and full of spirit. Just by looking at his facial features, you could tell he was good-looking.

Aside from being a bit tanned, there was no other issue.

Realizing she had been staring at Lu Yuanfeng for a while, Mu Shuangshuang awkwardly turned her head and said to Yu Si Niang.

"Mom, you go rest for a while. Don’t get angry over unimportant people. I’ll handle lunch. When uncle comes back, make sure to let him... forget it, I’ll talk about it at the table later!"

Mu Shuangshuang didn’t dwell too much on Yu Si Niang. The people of Old Mu Family were inherently ungrateful wolves. Even if you fed them, they were ungrateful and treacherous, always plotting against the third branch.

She thought instead of constantly telling Yu Si Niang and Mu Dashan that the Old Mu Family wasn’t good, it was better to let them experience it themselves.

If you suffer enough losses, wouldn’t you learn to be smarter?

About Yu Liulang and Feng Xiaohua’s matter, she still felt it shouldn’t be formally mentioned. After all, his love for Feng Xiaohua wasn’t shown deeply yet. If she acted deliberately, it might backfire.

Anyway, she and Feng Xiaohua agreed on a three-day period. After three days, Feng Xiaohua would send a matchmaker to propose at home, and Yu Liulang should stop it.

After chopping a large basin of pigweed, Mu Shuangshuang put it into a large pot to cook. Although there were two stoves at home, there was only one pot, and cooking pigweed could only be done in the pot used for their meals.

Lu Yuanfeng helped with tending the fire, thinking of carrying a pot back from the town for Shuangshuang tomorrow. His action of tending the fire became more vigorous.

The beehive they gathered in the morning was now being handled by Mu Shuangshuang. She peeled out the bee larvae from the hive, placing them in a small bowl. The yellow wasp larvae looked extremely adorable in the bowl.

Thinking of Shuangshuang’s recipe, Lu Yuanfeng had a bit of a mouth-watering feeling.

"Fengzi, wasp larvae fried with wine is really good, want to try it later?"

Lu Yuanfeng smiled and nodded, showing a row of bright white teeth.

Mu Shuangshuang particularly liked his silly-looking, clean smile.

The pigweed was cooked, and Mu Shuangshuang had already prepared the ingredients. She cracked four wild chicken eggs and mixed them with a bunch of chives, planning to make a chive omelet.

"Shuangshuang, where should I put these cooked pigweeds?"

In the large iron pot, wilted wild greens filled it to the brim. Despite their unattractive color, thinking of their high nutrition filled Mu Shuangshuang with energy.

"You take a rest, the rest is my job now."

Mu Shuangshuang found a clean bucket and slowly scooped out the pigweed. Finally, she left some in the pot, scooping them into the pig feed bucket, adding some rice bran, and a bit of swill to stir it up, turning it into the pig’s noon meal.

It must be said, Mu Shuangshuang was already proficient at these tasks, raising pigs, chickens, cleaning every day, never feeling it was a hard job.

Lu Yuanfeng didn’t really rest; he couldn’t help much with cooking, but could chop and tidy up the large firewood piles in the courtyard.

Finally cleaning up the large iron pot, Mu Shuangshuang breathed a sigh of relief and began to prepare for frying the wasp larvae.

The larvae, which hadn’t developed wings, weren’t very challenging to fry.

Mu Shuangshuang added some firewood and waited for the iron pot to heat up before adding oil.

The scent of rapeseed oil gradually dispersed, and Mu Shuangshuang threw the larvae into it, constantly stirring with a spatula.

Perhaps it was due to their rich protein content, but after a few turns, a strong aroma spread out, slowing Lu Yuanfeng’s action of chopping wood in the courtyard.

Mrs. Lin, following the aroma from the latrine, slowly made her way over.

Now having a child, Mrs. Lin wasn’t afraid of the rude girl making trouble. As soon as she arrived at the third branch’s courtyard, she saw Lu Yuanfeng working in the yard and felt intense jealousy in her heart.

"Well, Fengzi, are you helping Shuangshuang with chores? Tell me, you as a grown man always hanging around the third branch, what does it mean? Have you taken a liking to that rude girl?"

Mrs. Lin looked into the kitchen while speaking to Lu Yuanfeng.

Lu Yuanfeng frowned, displeased as he said, "Aunt Lin, can you not bring Shuangshuang into this? I came on my own, it’s nothing to do with others."

"Fengzi, don’t pretend in front of me. The whole village knows you’ve been infatuated with that rude girl."