Chapter 34

The news that the Shen family’s main house was going to build a kitchen, courtyard, and wall spread vaguely from the riverside, where the village women washed clothes the next day.

Mrs. Li went to wash clothes and was asked by a fellow villager, which left her dumbfounded. Some people with malicious intent smiled and asked if the third house had helped by contributing money; otherwise, how could they afford to build a house by selling a few vegetables?

Help? What help? She hadn’t heard anything about building a house.

Mrs. Li’s face turned green. she roughly scrubbed the clothes a few times in the water, then threw them back into the basket, picked up the basket, and went straight home without drying them. She just threw the basket under the eaves and went straight into the house.

“Do you know that Sang is going to build a house?”

 Uncle Shen, who had just gotten up and was still putting on his shoes and socks, was stunned for a moment, then chuckled, “She’s building a house? What does she have to build a house with? Is she going to build it with mud by herself?”

He continued to put on his shoes and socks at his own pace, saying, “Without materials and wages, people who help build houses don’t have to provide meals? Are they going to serve wild vegetable soup? Who would go help her? Are you going?”

Chun Chun, who brought Mrs. Li back with this news, found it amusing to listen to.

Mrs. Li narrowed her eyes and said, “I’m not joking. Several people were talking by the riverside where I was washing clothes. They said Sang made some money selling vegetables, and the Chen family next door helped by calling people.”

Uncle Shen found it even harder to believe now, and he laughed so much that the corners of his eyes creased, “Selling a few vegetables can build a house? Look, can we still find wild vegetables in the mountains on our side?”

At the door, Shen Jin poked his head out and said, “Dad, Sang sells vegetables—not just a few, but several baskets.”

The couple turned their heads to look, not knowing when their son had come over. Li waved her hand and said, “Come in and tell us what vegetables Sang sells in baskets.”

Uncle Shen also looked at him.

Shen Jin was still thinking about going to work the land for oil residue, so he didn’t come in. He just stood at the door and casually replied, “Just bracken, I saw her pick up three big back baskets yesterday.”

Mrs. Li wanted to ask more, but when she saw Shen Jin’s sideways glance, she knew Shen Yin and Shen Tie had already run out. She knew they must have gone to work the land for oil residue.

Shen Jin couldn’t stay any longer and turned around to run. As he ran, he shouted to Mrs. Li, “I just came to say that Tianya wet the bed again, and the quilt is all wet.”

By the time Mrs. Li chased after him, she couldn’t see a trace of him. She wanted to ask a few more questions, but it was too late.

She turned and went to the rooms where the three boys lived. When she found that none of the three were there, she saw the youngest, Tianya, sleeping soundly on his side in bed. When Mrs. Li touched the quilt, she found it was completely soaked.

Annoyed, she gave her daughter’s bottom a couple of slaps to wake her up, scolding her while changing her clothes. She didn’t care about her crying as she picked her up and put her in a small bamboo bed with a railing at the entrance of the main hall.

As she took the quilt and mat out to wash and dry, she couldn’t help but think about why the main house suddenly wanted to build a house without saying a word. She said to Uncle Shen, who was washing up, “You’d better go out and find out what’s going on. Sang isn’t a good person. If the main house suddenly wants to build a house, we’re afraid we’re not one of the last few people in the village to know about it. They sincerely want us to be laughed at by the villagers.”

Uncle Shen’s face didn’t look good either, and he had lost the amused expression he had at the beginning when he heard the news. He scrubbed his teeth and washed his face with a willow branch, not saying a word.

Mrs. Li tossed the wet bedsheet into the wooden tub, glared in the direction of the Chen family’s house over the wall, and spat, “That family doesn’t know what they’re up to lately. They stretch their hands out eight feet long, showing off their abilities.”

…

Behind the grass hut of the Shen family, Shen Jin saw Chen Ershan and Chen Erya using a hoe to turn over the soil and scraping the dirt with bamboo strips, both looking very annoyed.

“Are you guys here to work on oil residue too?”

His demeanor was cautious, his voice tense, and he was ready to jump up the moment Chen Ershan said yes.

Shen An had already said that there weren’t many oil residues left, so why did Chen Ershan bring Chen Erya to snatch them? Was this snatching his job?

This was stealing his life!

He had only found out yesterday evening that Shen An and Shen Ning were coming to help, and Chen Ershan looked puzzled. He looked at Shen An beside him and asked, “What oil residue?”

Shen An was speechless and explained the matter of Shen Jin coming to his place to exchange oil residue.

Chen Ershan: “…”

He didn’t bother to deal with Shen Jin and turned around to continue working.

Shen Jin:??? 

What’s the meaning of that? What did his look just now mean?

Chen Erya, beside him, looked at him, her little eyes resembling Chen Ershan’s just now, showing seven points of similarity. She sneered, “You’re helping your brother and sister-in-law with the farm work, and you still want oil residue?”

Shen Jin finally understood the meaning of Chen Ershan’s look just now and instantly became furious.

“Why can’t I have it? I’m trading my labor for food. Why can’t I have it?” Then he remembered the oil residue Shen Ning gave to the Chen siblings that day, several pieces in total. His face swelled up like a pufferfish. “Of course, you don’t want it. You’ve already eaten some and even had several pieces. It’s enough for you to scrape for several days!”

Shen An couldn’t stand it anymore and glared at Shen Jin. “Are you still working or not?”

“I am!”

Shen Jin roared angrily; his voice was unusually loud!

This was the only way to express his frustration and anger!

Looking resentfully at Shen Ning, his face clearly showed his dissatisfaction with her.

Shen Ning ignored him.

Shen Jin didn’t want to talk to Shen Ning either, snorted, turned his head to find Shen An, and said stiffly, “Mark it, where should I work today?”

Get the work done early, get the oil residue into his mouth sooner, and he won’t come back again.

He thought fiercely in his heart. When the time came for his family to cook the oil residue, he would grab a handful—no, two handfuls—and stand in front of Shen Ning and eat!

One in his left hand, one in his right hand—he’d take a bite of one, then a bite of the other, forcing her to drool with envy!

…

Shen Jin, with a spoon in his hand, fantasized about the day when he could sing triumphantly. In the village, Uncle Shen went out for a half-circle walk and came back with a long face.

Why only a half-circle? Because, like Mr. Li, he was stimulated by the looks, either overt or ambiguous, he received.

It was impossible to go out. If he did, he would be seen as a laughingstock by the villagers. Uncle Shen felt like he had a lump in his throat, wanting to find his son and ask him what he knew. But looking around, he realized that none of the three kids were at home.

“Where’s Shen Jin? Where did he run off to so early in the morning?”

Mrs. Li was also annoyed. Looking around, she noticed that one of the hoes left outside was missing, and she knew it must have been taken by Shen Jin.

“He’s been wandering around these past few days. He probably won’t be back until noon. But you don’t need to look for him. What does a little kid like him know? He’s probably just playing around and saw Sang picking wild vegetables on the mountain.”

After pondering for a moment, Mr. Li asked Uncle Shen, “So, did you find out which families Chen went to ask for help?”

Uncle Shen’s face darkened another shade. “No, I didn’t ask. If Chen’s family is the one asking for help, then it’s probably only Shi’s family, Lu’s family, and the father and son from our village who helped build houses for others before.”

As for other families in the village, he didn’t bother. Who would help Sang with two little kids?

The neighbors were simple-minded, but they weren’t fools. How come no one brought her two liters of grain when she was eating wild vegetables? If selling wild vegetables could make money, then every household in the countryside would be prosperous.

If you don’t return the favor, then you have to rely on good food. But if you can’t repay the favor and can’t provide enough food, who would spend their energy doing good deeds?

In recent years, the corvée has been heavy. Out of the twenty-two families in the village, four have lost their able-bodied men during corvée in just three years.

Exerting effort without sufficient food to replenish it will only damage your body. This was common knowledge, and everyone wanted to live a few more years.

Mrs. Li tentatively asked, “Do we still have to help with building the house over there?”

“No!” Uncle Shen said without hesitation. “If she doesn’t come to ask, then don’t expect me to help. I won’t help with the arrangements.”

After saying that, he remembered that Sang Luo hadn’t asked him at all and added, “She didn’t ask this time, and don’t expect me to help with anything in the future. Just ask Chen’s family.”

Mrs. Li breathed a sigh of relief and was even more pleased to hear the latter sentence. She thought to herself that Sang should be more stubborn and not come.

She had been afraid that her husband would still take care of the long house because of Shen Lie’s death, and building a house was not a simple matter. There wasn’t even a stove in the grass hut, let alone cooking expenses. She was afraid that her husband would want to save face and then take over the cooking duties.

Selling wild vegetables can earn how much money? Without others asking for help and being unable to provide food and meals, she would end up losing money.

Mr. Li wouldn’t engage in such a losing business.

As for the villagers gossiping, let them talk.

Ever since the last two encounters outside the gate with Sang Luo, Li has toughened up. She didn’t care about their gossip. As long as she didn’t lose a piece of meat, saving food and vegetables was the real benefit.

She added fuel to the fire: “Indeed, I can see that Sang is quite capable. She didn’t even treat us as family. Otherwise, she wouldn’t let Chen’s family take the lead in humiliating us like this. Why should we suffer humiliation for her sake? Let her do whatever she wants. The family is already divided. Whether they live well or poorly has nothing to do with us.”

Shen San remained silent with a dark expression on his face.

Mrs. Li knew she had struck a nerve, and she continued to stoke the fire. She smiled and said, “If you don’t want to go out, just take a break. There’s not much work in the fields these days. It’s a good opportunity to watch over Sweetie. I’ll go to the fields for a while. Those vegetables need to be harvested. It’s a good day to dry some vegetables. Otherwise, there won’t be many vegetables to eat in winter.”

Shen San agreed with a grunt, and Mrs. Li picked up two dustpans and left.

As for the dirty sheets in the basin, Mrs. Li planned to wash them later in the day. Not only was her husband unwilling to face the nosy neighbors, but she also didn’t want to go to the stream and listen to the idle gossip of those women, who would ask all sorts of questions while maintaining a facade of innocence, their voices loud enough for everyone to hear.

It wasn’t worth the trouble.

She wanted to see how many people Sang could gather this time and how many would be willing to work for her.

If food couldn’t be provided, who would do such strenuous work?

Would Chen’s family still provide compensation?

These days, not to mention grains, even vegetables, were precious. People were reluctant to eat too much. They would dry the surplus vegetables for the winter. Was Chen’s family a saint?

Mrs. Li was just waiting to see the drama unfold.