CHAPTER 11: CHAPTER 11: SIS-IN-LAW, I’M A MAN

Song Tingfan nodded obediently, picking at his palm nervously and whispered, "Sister-in-law, I’m not afraid, I’m afraid of your reputation... being tarnished."

He had overheard villagers often speaking ill of his sister-in-law.

Several men even knocked on their door late at night.

Lin Qiao, adopting a mature demeanor, said earnestly, "I’m not afraid, as long as our little brother grows up well, I’m not afraid of anything."

Seeing the young man’s touched and guilty expression, she felt that she was performing exceptionally well this time.

Song Tingfan’s eyes reddened, he lowered his head and said resolutely, "Sister-in-law, I will take care of you."

Lin Qiao was very pleased with his reaction, half-jokingly said, "Alright, in the future, I’ll just depend on you."

Song Tingfan’s eyes crinkled with a smile, "Sister-in-law, I’m not lying to you, I really want to take care of you."

"I know, I trust you, little brother."

Lin Qiao glanced at the sky, the sun was already up high, and it would likely get hot soon. She continued, "Little brother, let’s get going."

By the time they returned home, it was already past noon. Lin Qiao, feeling hot, drank more than half a ladle of water, and only after resting a while did some of the heat dissipate.

By now, Song Tingfan had rolled up his sleeves and was busy cooking, his actions swift and skilled, clearly accustomed to it.

But Lin Qiao knew before anything unfortunate happened to the Song Family, he wouldn’t have done these chores, and the Song Family intended to send him to the village school to study.

She remembered a dream that described a scene of Song Tingfan playing with the village children.

Thinking it over now, could this be a hint at the desires in the heart of the antagonist?

Thinking of this, she rolled up her sleeves, "Little brother, you go out and play, I’ll cook, and call you when it’s done."

"Just now, I saw Li Erwa and others catching crabs in the stream when we came back, you should go play too."

Song Tingfan paused his fire-tending for a moment, then hurriedly said, "Sister-in-law, I can manage the fire."

His sister-in-law often said he knew nothing and constantly caused trouble at home.

He also didn’t want to cause trouble for the family or his sister-in-law.

His sensitivity made Lin Qiao feel a bit heartache; he was only twelve, yet lived so cautiously.

At this moment, she saw a reflection of herself.

Her expression was more genuine than before, "I know you’re very capable, little brother."

"But I want you to go out and play, and, well, I also want to eat some crabs."

Receiving praise, Song Tingfan’s eyes lit up, "Sister-in-law, you want to eat crabs? I’ll go catch some."

This was the first time the sister-in-law had asked him for something.

"Be careful," Lin Qiao watched him run out happily before starting to cook.

After she had set the rice to steam, she realized there weren’t any vegetables.

She suddenly thought of seeing some houttuynia by the field edge on the mountain, which is known as fish mint here.

She added more water to the pot, glanced at the stove to make sure nothing would go wrong, then took a hoe and a basket and headed out.

It wasn’t a famine period; even though Xingyu Village was relatively poor, it wasn’t to the point of digging up fish mint to eat, only occasionally eating it for a change.

A lot of people saw Lin Qiao digging up fish mint and gathered around to watch. In the countryside, there wasn’t much entertainment, so they liked to watch lively events.

Suddenly, a family passed by carrying hoes, and the crowd’s interest intensified. A woman took the initiative to greet them, "Old Man Zhang, going home for a meal?"

"What else to do at this time but eat," he replied.

Old Man Zhang cast a disdainful glance at Lin Qiao, having heard about what happened with his grandson.

Shameless.

Zhang Dong’s eyes lit up when he saw Lin Qiao, but before he could say anything, his mother pinched him hard, signaling him to behave.

Lin Qiao was not familiar with the Zhang Family and didn’t look at them, bending down to collect fish mint.

The soil here was likely fertile. Despite the heat, the fish mint was growing well, though the leaves were wilted.

Seeing she didn’t engage with the Zhang Family, the crowd lost interest and soon saw her leave with her basket.

On her departure, the crowd dispersed having nothing more to see, while the Zhang Family walked in the back, Zhang Dong’s mother, Mrs. Zhang Qin, warned him, "I’ll make it clear, our family will never allow her in, she’s a disgrace, only you can look up to her."

"Mom, she’s still a virgin, though," Zhang Dong argued.

His mother slapped him, muttering quietly, "What do you know? Are your eyes smeared with filth? Huh? Haven’t you seen the men of the village gather at her door every few days?"

"A widow and a young brother-in-law living together, no one would believe nothing is happening at night."

"Your thoughts better be restrained, if you catch some disease, don’t come crying to the family."

Not waiting for Zhang Dong to reply, she added, "After the busy farming period, I’ll help you find a family to match."

Zhang Dong wanted to retort but didn’t dare to argue back.

Meanwhile, the Lin Qiao they were talking about had just returned home. As soon as she entered, she heard a voice, "Sister-in-law."

Immediately, she saw Song Tingfan standing barefoot in the courtyard, looking at her with slightly red eyes.

"What’s wrong? Were you bullied?" Lin Qiao put down the basket and walked over, continuing to ask, "Who bullied you?"

Song Tingfan had only forgotten to bring a wooden bucket, and returning to find her not at home, he immediately thought of the recent odd behaviors and instinctively feared the sister-in-law might have left him.

He shook his head, "No, I just came back for the bucket."

He glanced at the basket and asked, "Sister-in-law, you went to dig fish mint?"

"Yes, there are no vegetables at home. Little brother, the day after tomorrow, let’s open up the wasteland behind the house to plant some vegetables." For the past few days, Lin Qiao had been pondering how to make a living, and in rural areas, farming was indispensable.

Fortunately, in Xingyu Village, opening up wasteland didn’t cost silver; it only required half a tael of silver when processing land deeds.

Upon hearing about land reclamation, Song Tingfan was stunned for a moment, then quickly nodded, "Okay."

"Sister-in-law, I’m off to the stream."

"Okay."

After he left, Lin Qiao went into the kitchen, checked the pot, and then sat on the stool to sort the fish mint; the roots were hard to clean, and a small handful took a quarter of an hour.

After preparing the cold salad, she chopped up some rabbit meat, stir-fried it with dried chili, and by the time these were done, two hours had already passed.

As soon as the food was set on the table, Song Tingfan came back with a bucket, sweating profusely, and said excitedly, "Sister-in-law, I caught a lot of crabs." Holding the bucket at an angle for her to see.

About a dozen or so.

"Little brother, you are very capable." Lin Qiao’s compliment wasn’t merely to coax him; Song Tingfan indeed showed great capability.

Being praised, Song Tingfan scratched his head bashfully, "Sister-in-law, I’ll take them out. Grandpa Wei said they’re best fried crisp."

"Little brother, don’t worry about it now, we’ll save them for dinner." Lin Qiao wiped his forehead, went into the kitchen to grab a towel, and said, "Wipe up and let’s eat."

This meal was probably the most satisfying they had in a while.

Song Tingfan voluntarily washed the dishes, and then he took a bow and arrow, preparing to head to the mountains. Seeing this, Lin Qiao quickly called out, "Little brother, I’ll go with you."

Given the current situation at home, securing a livelihood was paramount. Otherwise, relying on their meager savings, they might starve over the winter.

Song Tingfan going hunting could also add a bit of income for the family.

"Sister-in-law, the mountain is dangerous." Song Tingfan’s handsome face was stern as he refused.

Lin Qiao slung the basket over her shoulder and said without hesitation, "A child like you is what’s dangerous, I’ll go with you for company."

Hearing the words "child," Song Tingfan gave her a look, "Sister-in-law, I’m not a child."

He bit his lip, "I’m a man."