Chapter 27: What Happened?

After picking all the mushrooms and wild vegetables in the area, the two adults and three children found an open space to sit down, rest, and drink some water.

They took the two little ones, An An and Lele, out of the baskets to let them stretch and rehydrate. The boys had been sitting in the back baskets for a long time.

Finally out of the baskets, they were so happy that they stood on their mother and aunt’s legs, doing little stretches.

“Oh my, look at these two kids, so happy they’re dancing on my thighs!”

“Hahaha… Right? They’ve been stuck in the basket for so long, must’ve been uncomfortable. Any other child would’ve been bawling.”

“Exactly, our kids are really good. That old man Wang’s grandson throws a tantrum if anything isn’t to his liking. He’s a handful.”

“Isn’t that right, An An? Aren’t you especially well-behaved?”

An An responded with a wide grin: “Ah… oh…”

“An An’s so obedient and quiet. If he weren’t our kid, I’d think he was a little girl.”

“Yeah, An An is gentle, and Lele is lively. Two kids with different personalities—this is a good thing. In the future, An An can look after his younger brother and stop him from getting into trouble.”

“Right, An An? We’ve got a lot ahead of us. You might be cleaning up after your brother every day.”

“Ai~ don’t say that. Our Lele is a good kid too. I think his liveliness is great—it means he won’t be easily bullied.”

“An An is the one who worries me. What if he gets bullied outside and doesn’t dare to tell us?”

Si Yueyue shook her head and smiled, not entirely agreeing with her sister-in-law’s words. An An getting bullied? She didn’t think so.

“The sun’s high now. Should we head back? We can still make it in time to cook.”

“Alright, let’s go.”

The two women secured An An and Lele, then held Lei Qingyun’s hand as they started down the mountain. The descent was steep, and everyone tread carefully. One misstep could send someone sliding down, so they walked with great caution.

After passing the steep slope, the flatter path helped them make up time, and they quickened their pace toward home.

They finally arrived back at the Lei Family household just before the rest of the family returned from work. The two women quickly settled the children and asked Lei Qingyun to watch his younger brothers.

One of them went to cook while the other washed the mushrooms and wild vegetables they brought back, spread them out in a sieve, and laid them in the courtyard to dry.

When the Lei Family members returned and saw the mushrooms laid out in the courtyard, they were delighted. These could be stored for food in the winter.

But at the same time, they were a bit worried. After all, two women had taken three children up the mountain—that wasn’t exactly safe.

Those concerns eased a little once they saw that both the women and the children were safe and sound.

Even though their worry lessened, there were still things that needed to be said. Grandma Zhao cornered her two daughters-in-law in the kitchen and began lecturing them.

“You two are really bold. Do you think the mountain is so easy to stroll into?”

“Mom, we didn’t go deep, just stayed near the foot of the mountain.”

“Even close by isn’t safe. Think about it—you had kids with you. If something happened, would you be able to run in time?”

“Don’t assume there aren’t wild animals just because you’re near the base. What if one just happened to come down the mountain?”

“Mooom~”

“Sigh, I’m not saying you can’t go to the mountain at all. Just make sure someone from the family goes with you—or at least go in a group. If something happens, someone needs to be able to get help, right?”

“We understand, Mom. Next time we’ll bring more people. We made you worry this time—it’s our fault.”

“Mm, as long as you understand.”

Seeing that her sister-in-law had appeased their mother-in-law, Zhang Guihua quickly stepped forward: “Mom, shall we eat now? The food’s all ready.”

Grandma Zhao nodded and waved her hand: “Alright, let’s eat.”

The three women brought the dishes out to the yard while the others were inside the main room playing with the kids.

With a lioness-like roar from Grandma Zhao, everyone came over at once—still holding the two little boys.

Si Yueyue had already taken some time earlier to prepare An An and Lele’s complementary food, but it wasn’t finished yet. So she took the two boys back to the mat, letting the others eat first. Once the kids’ food was done, she could switch out.

Grandma Zhao was concerned about her grandsons. After hurriedly eating just a few spoonfuls of thin porridge, she got up to take over from Si Yueyue.

“Mom? You’re done eating?”

“Mm, I’m full. How long do you think I could keep eating that watery porridge?”

“…”

“You go eat now.”

Si Yueyue nodded. “I’ll check on the kids’ food first. It should be done—I’ll set it out to cool. Once it’s not hot, I’ll feed An An and Lele.”

“Alright, go ahead.”

Zhang Guihua had originally intended to come over and help watch the children so that her sister-in-law could eat properly. When she arrived, she just happened to hear Si Yueyue speaking and quickly responded.

“Yueyue, I’ll go get it. You go eat first.”

Si Yueyue looked at Zhang Guihua, who was already heading toward the kitchen, and nodded helplessly.

Then she walked over to the dining table. At that moment, Lei Yu was clearing the cleaned dishes.

Si Yueyue quickly said: “Xiaoyu, leave those. Second Sister-in-law will help carry them over later to wash.”

“No need, Second Sister-in-law. It’s just a few bowls. I’ll finish washing them in a bit. Just bring yours to the kitchen when you’re done, and I’ll do them all together.”

“…Alright.”

After nodding in agreement, Si Yueyue quietly ate the porridge in her bowl, paired with some pickled vegetables on the table—it was actually quite good.

She ate at a steady pace, not rushing her lunch. By the time she was full and brought her bowl to the kitchen, Lei Yu—who had been waiting—immediately took it from her hands.

“Second Sister-in-law, I got this. Go take a rest.”

Si Yueyue looked at Lei Yu, slightly puzzled, then turned and walked out of the kitchen, thinking she might go feed the two children.

To her surprise, the two little ones were already eating.

“……”

What was going on with everyone today? They were being unusually proactive. Of course, she wasn’t saying that the family was lazy on a normal day.

It’s just that today… something felt a bit off.

After the two boys were full and content, Si Yueyue couldn’t help herself. She looked at Grandma Zhao and asked:

“Mom, is something going on at home today?”

“Huh? What kind of question is that? What could be going on?”

“Then why is everyone acting weird? I’m not used to it.”

“What do you mean weird? Aren’t we always like this? Whoever’s supposed to look after the kids does that, whoever should do housework does that. What’s so strange?”

Si Yueyue thought about it. It did seem like everything was normal… but something still felt different.

“What are you thinking so hard about? We just see how you’re looking after the kids day and night and wanted to help out a bit. Don’t overthink it.”

“Mom, Sister-in-law gave birth to three kids too. Isn’t it the same?”

“How can it be the same, Yueyue? You had two at once. That’s way harder in the middle of the night than one at a time.”

“I had your Big Brother helping me back then, and I still ended up with back pain. You’re looking after two by yourself—that’s even tougher.”

Si Yueyue felt a wave of warmth in her heart after hearing her sister-in-law’s words.

“Mom, Sister-in-law, don’t worry. I’m not tired.”

“If I say you’re tired, then you are. Now go rest. We’ll watch the kids. Once they’re asleep, we’ll bring them into your room.”

“Mom…”

“Hurry up. Are my words useless now?”

“…They’re not.”

“Then go rest.”

“Okay, Mom.”

The mother-in-law and sister-in-law watched Si Yueyue’s retreating figure with a touch of heartache. They had given birth themselves, so they knew how hard this stage with children was—how exhausting it could be.

Unlike some other families who worked their daughters-in-law to the bone, their family didn’t do that. If you’re tired, you rest. What was the point in running yourself into the ground?

If Lei Qingyun hadn’t secretly told them before lunch that he saw Si Yueyue massaging her lower back, who knows how long she would’ve kept pushing herself?

She really was not someone they could relax about.

“Mom, don’t worry. I’ll do more around the house these next few days and help Yueyue with An An and Lele when I’m free. She’ll feel better in a few days.”

Grandma Zhao shot her a glance. “And then what? You get worn out instead?”

“Honestly, none of you know how to take care of yourselves. If you keep this up, you’ll suffer when you’re older.”

“Mom, I’ll be careful. I’ll rest when I get tired.”

“As long as you know. I won’t be working long hours in the fields these next few days either. I’ll come back early to help out. That way Yueyue can rest more, and you won’t have to do so much.”

“Okay, Mom.”

Back in the room, Si Yueyue had no idea her mother-in-law had already planned out her tasks for the coming days. She was probably about to start her period—her lower back was aching terribly.

After lying on the bed for a while, Si Yueyue still didn’t feel right. So she entered her space, found her massager, and began using it on herself.

The moment the massager hit her lower back—

Ahhh… bliss!