Chapter 35: How Many Eggs Can a Hen Lay

The chicken cage was still sitting in the living room.

Untouched.

Inside, the chickens looked utterly baffled.

They had no idea where they were.

【Cluck cluck, where is this? How did I end up here?】

【No idea, cluck cluck… hungry, so hungry!】

【Want worms, want bran, want grass seeds—hungry, hungry!】

Jiang Fubao lifted the mental shield, and the chickens’ voices instantly filled her ears.

Hearing their cries of hunger, she scooped some rice from the jar and fed them.

But she knew this wasn’t a long-term solution.

She needed a way to bring the chickens out into the open and raise them at the Jiang household, without raising suspicion.

After feeding them, she left the space, climbed back onto her wooden bed, then quietly slipped out to the backyard.

Since she couldn’t explain the chickens’ origin, she decided simply not to explain at all.

She pulled the cage out from the space and released the chickens into the yard. The cage itself was stored back inside. As for the ninety quail eggs and one hundred twenty chicken eggs, she divided them into two basins and shoved them under her bed.

But then she noticed—
the egg she’d left on the table had disappeared.

It seemed that no matter the amount, once items from the space were put back, they would refresh automatically at six o’clock.

She had to avoid that time window.

Otherwise, all her effort would be wasted.

After finishing her work, Jiang Fubao snuggled into her blanket.

Exhaustion hit instantly.

Her breathing grew heavy after just a few seconds.

---

The next morning.

Before dawn fully broke, she was startled awake by cries from the backyard.

“Heavens, where did these chickens come from? And there’s even an egg in the vegetable plot—did the hen lay it? Mother, come quick! Chickens just fell from the sky!”

It was her second aunt’s voice.

Fubao listened briefly, then rolled over and went back to sleep.

She was simply too tired.

Her three-year-old body had walked far too much yesterday—she couldn’t bear it.

And so, lulled by the chatter of her family, she drifted off again.

---

When she woke, everyone was gone except her two elder brothers.

Her oldest brother explained:

Grandmother and eldest aunt had gone to Zhou Village to find a matchmaker, and on their way out had taken five eggs from the kitchen.

Her second aunt and mother had gone to the mountain to dig Artemisia.

Everyone else was working in the fields.

After washing up, Fubao skipped breakfast and went straight to the backyard—

and saw that the hens and roosters had been locked in the pigsty.

Not a single one missing.

“Little sister, come eat breakfast. Grandma said a hen laid an egg, so Auntie fried it with yesterday’s leftover pickled vegetables. She only used two eggs, just enough for everyone to get one bite. Since you woke late, Grandma saved you a bowl of coarse rice porridge on the stove. I’ll bring it.”

Six-year-old Jiang Tongji didn’t need a stool like Fubao did.

He easily lifted the pot lid and brought out the bowl.

The porridge had been sitting for an hour—
no longer hot, but still warm.

With a little stir-fried egg and pickled greens on top, Fubao ate it without complaint.

“Big brother, where did those chickens in the yard come from? Grandma didn’t buy them.”

Fubao feigned ignorance.

“I don’t know. They were already there when I woke. Grandma said only a few families in the village raise chickens, and even then no more than three each. Maybe these wandered in from another village, through the mountain. Grandma told Father and Second Uncle to build a chicken coop this afternoon. Eight chickens in total! From now on we’ll have eggs every day. She said half will be sold, and the rest we’ll get to eat. Isn’t that great?”

For once, Jiang Tongji dropped his “older brother” composure.

When it came to food, his childish glee burst out—
his big teeth showing in a grin he couldn’t contain.

---

After breakfast, Fubao sat on a little stool in the courtyard, basking in the sun.

By midday, grandmother and eldest aunt returned, smiles on their faces.

Looked like the matchmaking trip had gone well.

If things moved quickly, she might have a sister-in-law by next month.

---

Another quiet night.

Once her brothers were asleep, Fubao slipped out of bed and crept to the yard.

She placed eleven eggs inside the pigsty.

She had heard in her past life that special egg-laying hens could produce two or even three eggs a day if well-fed.

She had never seen one herself and didn’t know if it was true—

but since her space produced endless eggs, she didn’t care. Let grandma and the others puzzle over it.

Each hen got two eggs.

Except one, because she had overheard its thoughts.

That hen was planning to lay tonight.

Satisfied after washing her hands, she returned to bed.

Now there were three basins full of eggs under the bed.

But space was limited, and soon she wouldn’t be able to hide them all. She needed a way to use them up.

And so, she fell into a deep sleep.

---

“Cock-a-doodle-doo—!”

“Cock-a-doodle-doo—!”

“Cluck cluck cluck—!”

At dawn, the rooster’s crow woke her.

She regretted stealing those roosters.

What if she just threw them away?

They were no different from alarm clocks!

The Jiang house was built of mud and wood, with no soundproofing.

When the roosters crowed, the sound pierced straight through—

just like the deafening noise of a power drill from upstairs in a modern apartment.

Fubao was furious enough to curse her father.

But… he was too handsome.

She couldn’t bring herself to.

So instead, she stomped into the yard, still brimming with resentment.

Without hesitation, she kicked one rooster square on the backside.

“Damn you!”

“Cock-a-doodle-doo—!”

“Cluck cluck cluck—!”

The rooster squawked, the hens huddled in fright.

Just as Fubao felt satisfied, the rooster darted at her with lightning speed.

“Ahhh—!”

“Grandma, help me!”

She had forgotten she was no longer a grown woman in her twenties—
but a frail three-year-old girl.

The rooster flapped its wings and pecked her right on the butt.

Pain!

So painful!

She tried to run, but her short legs were no match.

As it lunged again, all she could do was scream.

Zhang Jinlan rushed out at the sound and scooped up her terrified granddaughter.

“Shoo, shoo! Hurt my Fubao again and I’ll stew you!”

The rooster seemed to understand. It cried out twice more, then bolted away.

“You child, why on earth did you provoke the chickens? Let Grandma see if you’re hurt.” Zhang Jinlan’s heart ached.

Ignoring Fubao’s protests, she turned her over, lifted her shirt, and pulled down her pants.

There, on her plump little backside, was a red patch.

“Thank heavens it didn’t break the skin. Otherwise I’d stew that rooster this instant to avenge you!” Relieved, Zhang Jinlan dressed her again.

But in her arms, Jiang Fubao covered her face, tears streaming in her heart.

Her reputation!

Her dignity!

Wuwuwu… so humiliating.

She should have kept the mental shield up.

That stupid rooster was definitely mocking her inside its head right now.