Chapter 29

“Ten wen a day? Who wouldn’t want that? Just look at Da Ya’s family. He has five strong brothers, and they all must want to go. But from the looks of it, I think you don’t want your man to go, right?”

Tao Hua slightly lowered her head. “I’m just worried about the danger.”

Sun Xiaolan laughed. “I think you’re worrying for nothing. Your man is the kind of person who can hunt wild boars alone in the mountains—do you think he’ll be afraid of digging a little riverbank? Besides, this is the county magistrate’s order; he can’t refuse.”

“But…” Tao Hua hesitated. “Isn’t there a widow in our village? She doesn’t have any men in her family. Are they really going to make her do all that heavy work by herself at the riverbank?”

“She’ll be cooking! With so many people, someone has to do it. If she really doesn’t want to go, she can pay for a substitute. But who would turn down ten wen a day and instead pay from their own pocket? If she’s just cooking, though, she won’t get the full ten wen.”

“Oh…” Tao Hua nodded, then asked, “How long will it take to fix the riverbank?”

“At least ten days or half a month. But there will be so many people, so they might finish before the New Year. If it stretches into the new year, people won’t be happy! If we calculate, ten days means a hundred wen—quite a lot!”

“My man said that once the money is in hand, he’ll take me to the town to buy flowers for me. I’ve already picked them out. I’m just waiting for him to go earn the money.”

Sun Xiaolan smiled brightly as she spoke.

Tao Hua was happy for her friend, seeing how harmonious their married life seemed.

In the past, when she heard Sun Xiaolan talk about these things, Tao Hua had felt a bit envious.

But now, she didn’t need to be envious, because she had her Qin Big Brother!

And her Qin Big Brother treated her so well!

After discussing the riverbank project, the two friends moved on to talking about embroidery.

It was hard to say how much time had passed, but eventually, the group outside began to disperse.

Hearing the commotion, Tao Hua couldn’t help but get up and peek out the window.

Sun Xiaolan followed closely behind. “I haven’t finished chatting with you yet. You’re leaving already?”

Tao Hua kept her eyes on the outside, not turning around as she spoke to Sun Xiaolan.

“I’ll leave later, after everyone has gone. I told Qin Big Brother to wait for me.”

Sun Xiaolan nodded. “Good idea, better than running into Chen Dashan. Seeing him just makes me angry.”

“Yeah, but it seems like he’s already gone. I didn’t see him.”

“Who cares? If he comes, he comes. If he doesn’t, he doesn’t!”

“Wait a minute,” Tao Hua suddenly exclaimed. “Where did Qin Big Brother go?”

“Huh?” Sun Xiaolan leaned closer. “Didn’t he say he’d wait for you? Let me go see. Huh? He really isn’t here!”

“Yeah,” Tao Hua furrowed her brow. “If he was going to leave, he should’ve at least told me. How could he just leave without a word?”

“Don’t worry, maybe he’s caught up with something else. I noticed my grandfather isn’t around either. Maybe they’re talking privately. Let’s wait a bit longer.”

Meanwhile, in the corner of the yard, Qin Feng was speaking with the village chief.

“Grandfather Sun, why didn’t I see Chen Dashan today? Is he not coming with us?”

When the village chief heard Chen Dashan’s name, he couldn’t help but shake his head. “That guy… He heard about it yesterday in the town. When I went to the east side of the village this morning to call him, he said his stomach hurt and he didn’t want to come. He told me to just sign him up.

This task is being overseen by officials sent by the county magistrate. If Chen Dashan dares to slack off and disgrace our Baiyun village, I’ll definitely report him.

Didn’t your wife cut ties with him? Why are you so concerned about him?”

Qin Feng replied indifferently, “It’s not really concern, I just worry that he might come looking for trouble with Tao Hua when I’m not around. Since he’s not coming, I don’t have that worry anymore.”

Of course, this was just a polite excuse. Qin Feng had his own plans in mind.

…

The construction work started that afternoon.

Nothing happened during the first half of the day, and no one was in danger.

Seeing Qin Feng come back safe and sound, Tao Hua finally let out a sigh of relief.

That night, as they rested, Tao Hua kept asking her husband if his waist or arms hurt, insisting on massaging him.

But her little strength was hardly noticeable to Qin Feng—like a tickle.

However, seeing how eager his little wife was, Qin Feng didn’t want to dampen her spirits.

Though her touch was light, it was like a gentle reminder that touched his heart.

He closed his eyes and chuckled softly. “It’s good to have a wife.”

Tao Hua paused in her movements, her eyes suddenly shining even brighter. “As long as you come home safely before dark every day, money doesn’t matter. Can you promise me that, Qin Big Brother?”

“Mm, I promise you.”

The next day, Qin Feng came home safe and sound. All the men from the village returned safely except for Chen Dashan.

It was said that during his lunch break, he sneaked into the mountains to drink and slack off. He didn’t show up in the afternoon. When the villagers found him, they discovered he was hanging upside down from a big tree. It seemed he had accidentally stepped on a trap set by a hunter.