Chapter 14: Dealing with Such a Lazy Daughter-in-Law

“She probably didn’t even come; she’s probably still sleeping in the house,” Zhou Yun scoffed.

When she left this morning, she saw everyone from the Fu family except Jiang Yuman.

“What?” The others’ jaws dropped in shock. “She can really not go?”

Being absent from work meant losing out on labor points, which were tied to food rations. How big of a heart must one have to sleep through something so important?

“Why can’t she?” Zhou Yun replied dismissively. “She’s clearly not someone who knows how to live.”

The older women sitting together widened their eyes. “This is too irresponsible! If she doesn’t go to work to earn labor points, how will the family manage during the summer harvest? Are they supposed to live on air?”

“Exactly! You wouldn’t believe it; when they arrived yesterday, the whole family was busy cleaning the house, and she didn’t lift a finger!”

Seeing that everyone shared her sentiments, Zhou Yun became more animated. “So I guessed yesterday that she definitely wouldn’t work.”

Upon hearing this, the young women’s expressions turned indignant.

They had all seen Fu Jingchen working hard; he was no less capable than the best laborers. What’s more is, he was tall, handsome, and exuded confidence—who wouldn’t be charmed by him?

Wasn’t he far superior to those smelly men in the brigade who only knew how to burrow into their blankets?

It was truly unfair that such a great man ended up with such a lazy wife!

The married ladies exchanged glances, puzzled over how a woman could be so lazy and yet not take care of household chores.

They were used to working in the fields and still had to cook and do housework when they returned home; this had become a deeply ingrained belief for them.

“Is his wife pretty?” someone asked out of curiosity.

If she didn’t do anything, how could Fu Jingchen tolerate it? The only reason they could think of was that she must be beautiful.

Zhou Yun snorted, “Can a pretty face fill up your stomach?” Her tone was laced with jealousy.

Even though she didn’t like Jiang Yuman, she couldn’t deny that the woman was at least decent-looking.

But that was about it.

The others nodded in agreement.

“True, there are many pretty girls in our brigade. Who is like his wife, just lounging around?”

“It’s a pity for the Fu family. They already have so few labor points, and now they have to support a slacker.”

As they spoke, everyone’s gaze inevitably turned toward Fu Jingchen, who was sitting a distance away, resting.

Fu Jingchen sat far off, oblivious to the group’s stares. He was gazing at the sun rising high in the sky, quietly wondering whether Jiang Yuman had gotten up for breakfast.

…

While being discussed by so many, Jiang Yuman, sitting on the donkey cart, sneezed several times in a row.

She quickly grabbed the side of the cart to keep from falling off.

She hadn’t slept long today, as she needed to go to the commune and prepare meals, so she had to get up early.

After the others left, she got ready to head out.

As fate would have it, just as she reached the village entrance, she encountered an uncle driving a donkey cart.

When she approached him to inquire, she learned that his surname was Li. The cart was different from the one that picked them up yesterday; that one was for public use while this one belonged to Uncle Li.

Uncle Li was a retired soldier who couldn’t work in the fields due to an injury and had no children, so the brigade allowed him to do small errands.

This arrangement helped him sustain himself while also assisting others in the brigade.

Usually, Uncle Li would transport people to the commune, and folks from the nearby brigades who would wait for donkey carts here at the Shi Nuanzi Brigade.

During busy farming seasons like this, there weren’t many people waiting for carts, and today, Jiang Yuman was the only one.

Upon learning this, Jiang Yuman quickly discussed with Uncle Li, asking him to take her to the commune and help load a cart of goods back.

She promised to pay him the full fare as if the cart were full.

Uncle Li was pleasantly surprised by the arrangement and readily agreed.

After they had been on the road for a while, Jiang Yuman asked, “Uncle, are we about to reach the Hongqi Commune?”

“Yes, just around this bend!” Uncle Li replied enthusiastically.

He was very familiar with this route, having traveled it numerous times. Sure enough, after turning the corner, they soon came to a stop.

“Uncle, just wait for me here, I’ll be back in half an hour.”

“Alright!”

After giving the uncle instructions and confirming the location of the general store, Jiang Yuman rushed off with her bag.

It was such a hassle to come to the commune, so she wouldn’t be able to do it often. Before leaving, she had intentionally brought the bag she used for luggage, planning to use it for carrying things back.

Following the uncle’s directions, Jiang Yuman soon reached the town’s general store.

It couldn’t compare to the general store in the provincial capital, but it had all the essential daily necessities.

Jiang Yuman used her ration coupons and money to buy a pound of dried wood ear mushrooms. These were all wild-harvested from the mountains, beautiful and large.

She also bought several rolls of seaweed; this stuff was delicious whether added to braised pork ribs or pig trotters.

She also bought a few sheets of nori, which could be used to make seaweed egg soup.

She didn’t bought any seasonings; she had stocked up on various spices in her space when she was in the provincial capital.

There was enough for their family for a whole year.

Looking further, she saw eggs.

Jiang Yuman couldn’t resist buying three pounds.

Every cook knows that eggs are a consumable item; they can get used up quickly.

They weren’t going to spoil, so she might as well buy them.

After carrying those items, she looked around again but didn’t find anything else she needed, so she didn’t buy anything further.

To be honest, her whole trip was an elaborate scheme to get items out of her space, and she was doing it in a plausible way.

She would buy things as needed; the rest could wait.

After all, she had already bought a lot of stuff back in the provincial capital.

To be frank, if she were to take everything out of her space, she could open up a general store here.

After paying with money and coupons, she glanced at the watch in her space and realized it was already 10:30 AM.

She quickly grabbed her purchases and left the general store, heading towards where the uncle had parked his cart.

She found a secluded alleyway, away from prying eyes, and moved some supplies from her space.

The previously empty luggage bag was now full!

It was filled with rice, white flour, pork, fruits and vegetables, and various other daily necessities.

She had enough to get through for a while. After all, the autumn harvest was so demanding; she had to make sure her family had good food.

But it was really heavy! Carrying so many things, even for just a few hundred meters, left Jiang Yuman gasping for breath.

This was despite her improved physical condition thanks to the spiritual spring water.

If she hadn’t drunk it, she probably wouldn’t even be able to lift the bag!

“Girl, you bought so many things!”

The uncle was shocked to see the overflowing bag. “You should have called me to help carry them.”

Jiang Yuman smiled, “It’s okay, I can handle it. Uncle, let’s head back.”

“Alright, hold on tight!”

Seeing Jiang Yuman settled, Uncle Li patted the donkey’s back.

The donkey cart moved slowly.

After half an hour, they arrived at the Shi Nuanzi Brigade.

Uncle Li was a kindhearted man; seeing Jiang Yuman with her large belly and so many things, he felt it was inconvenient.

So, he wanted to take her directly to the educated youth point.

If she walked, she could take the shortcut and come back from the rear, avoiding being seen by the villagers in the fields. That’s what she had done this morning.

But the donkey cart had to take the main road, and it would be seen by the villagers, just like yesterday.

Jiang Yuman couldn’t refuse the uncle’s kindness. She thought that if she had to carry everything back herself, her body wouldn’t be able to handle it, so she stopped arguing.

As they passed by the fields, she simply pulled her straw hat down a bit.

The villagers were busy working, grunting with effort, when they suddenly heard the sound of the donkey cart.

Many of them looked up, turning their gazes towards Jiang Yuman—