Chapter 19: Hello

Chapter 19: Hello

"Coo-coo-coo~~" Before dawn broke, the village rooster started crowing.

One by one, all the roosters in the village joined in.

Tang Yuan turned over and pulled her quilt over her head.

Ah, she didn’t want to get up.

During this time of year when it’s still chilly in the morning, nothing beats a little extra sleep.

Living here, she couldn’t afford to oversleep; soon the rich peasant would come to work, and the team leader would come to lead the livestock away.

Last night, there had been a moderate spring rain, making the early morning air fresh and invigorating.

Her fish basket would surely be bountiful today!

After breakfast, she tidied herself up, said goodbye to her parents, and set off with her basket and tools.

Dad Tang: "Yuan Yuan, don’t go too deep into the mountains."

Tang Yuan turned back and smiled, "Dad, don’t worry. I’m not those crazy or foolish people."

Then she left with her basket.

Mother Tang: "..."

This girl is getting more and more mischievous.

Dad Tang felt heartbroken; he blamed himself for being useless, causing his daughter to suffer.

White mist enveloped the houses, trees, and hills. As the sun rose, a gentle breeze blew over the hills and the village.

The fog slowly receded, and everything came to life. The landscape was filled with new greenery, and dewdrops adorned the willows and tender grass, making the view exceptionally clear and bright.

Tang Yuan walked briskly, feeling cheerful.

Today, she took a different route to the east.

Passing by the big locust tree at the eastern end of the village, several elderly men and women who didn’t need to work were shelling peas, watching children, and chatting.

A few days ago, they were talking about Tang Yuan’s madness and the division of the household between Dad Tang and Uncle Tang.

Today, they had a new topic.

"The old woman Feng is trying to arrange a marriage for her grandson. She’s found quite a few matchmakers, but has she found a suitable match yet?"

"Forget it. He’s tall but doesn’t work, just loafs around all day. Which family’s daughter would want to marry him?"

"That good-for-nothing is beyond saving. Lazy and stingy, with a bad temper to boot. He won't find a decent wife in this life. When he's old, he might end up with a dumb or mentally challenged partner."

"Poor old thing, his grandmother must be heartbroken."

"What's there to pity about Feng Lao Po? She brought it upon herself."

Tang Yuan silently rolled her eyes. All they know is gossip.

She was destined to be a powerful figure, indifferent to women and devoted only to farming. Her agricultural products would one day conquer the world!

In the future, all the land here will be under her control.

Because these people loved to gossip, Tang Yuan couldn't be bothered to engage with them. She walked past them with her head held high.

She was crazy, and she would interact with whoever she wanted, or not at all.

She wouldn't compromise herself!

If it were the original Tang Yuan, who had grown up in Tangjia Village, no matter how rebellious she was, she could never escape the scrutiny and verbal bullying of those around her. Any out-of-the-ordinary behavior required her to be ready to put up her defenses, prepared for people to label her as strange, abnormal, and hard to get along with. Even if she said she didn't care, it still hurt deep down.

She was different.

She wasn't from this world and carried no burden from her original environment. She felt like a tourist among NPCs.

Who cares about the opinions of NPCs?

Watching Tang Yuan walk away without a glance, the old men and women who used to criticize her for being disrespectful and having a bad temper now showed some sympathy.

"Poor girl, why did she have to go mad?"

"Indeed, she used to be so energetic and lively, but now seeing her so pitiful, it's truly sad."

Tang Yuan wanted to roll her eyes even more.

See, when you pretend to be crazy, they only scold and judge you.

But when you're actually crazy, they start to fear and sympathize, acknowledging your plight.

Ha.

"Hey, Feng Lao Po, are you being reasonable? These are wild vegetables, anyone can dig them. Why are you so selfish?" a shrill voice called out.

Tang Yuan looked over and saw two old women arguing.

One was Feng Lao Po, and the other was Liu Dabi's mother.

Don't underestimate the countryside folks; they're quite skilled at giving nicknames.

There are few people in the village without nicknames.

Liu Dahbizhi is a nickname; he also has a derogatory one called Lai Zi because this person always has a shameless face and acts in an annoying way, which irritates many people.

But when Lai Zi encounters Grandma Feng, the other old women target her even more.

After all, some of the old women find Lai Zi's lewd remarks somewhat tolerable, but Grandma Feng is petty and stingy, and she clashes with them, which they can't stand.

The two old women started fighting, while the other two old women helped Liu Laopo to blame Grandma Feng.

Grandma Feng didn't argue with them; she just glared, frowned, and bared her teeth as she cursed back at them.

"Can't you think about accumulating virtue for your descendants?" Liu Laopo said angrily.

Grandma Feng instantly got furious, threw down the basket of wild vegetables, and came forward to pull Liu Laopo's hair.

Liu Laopo wasn't going to back down either and retaliated.

Tang Yuan watched for two minutes and saw the other two old women taking sides, so she went over and shouted, "Are you all crazy? Fighting over a few wild vegetables? I'm going to the mountains to dig wild vegetables. Who wants to come?"

With her shout, the old women stopped and looked at her.

A crazy person calling others crazy?

Now everyone in the village knew about her going mad after falling into the river, and they were a bit wary of her.

People are like that: they're not afraid of or even willing to bully those who are clear-headed and reasonable, but they fear those who are mad or dead, as both are inexplicable and evoke fear.

Liu Laopo snorted, "We still have work to do; we don't have time to go into the mountains."

Grandma Feng said, "These are my wild vegetables."

Tang Yuan looked around and asked, "Grandma Feng, is this your family's plot of land? Did you plant these wild vegetables last year?"

Grandma Feng was about to say that wild vegetables grow on their own, who would plant them?

But then she thought quickly and immediately understood, shouting, "Yes, this is my plot of land, and I planted them. What else could we eat this season besides wild vegetables? Last year, I sowed a lot of wild vegetable seeds here, waiting to eat them now."

Hearing this, Liu Laopo couldn't persist anymore.

The other two old women hurriedly withdrew, "Let's go look elsewhere."

They had come out early to dig wild vegetables, which they would eat for the day, and couldn't waste time.

Liu Laopo glared at Tang Yuan, huffing, "Just a crazy girl."

Tang Yuan glared back without hesitation.

Just for your son baring his yellow teeth, shamelessly asking a nursing woman, "Give me some," he deserves to have his yellow teeth slapped out.

After the three old women left, Grandma Feng looked at Tang Yuan and waved her over with a smile, "Yuan Yuan, come here. There are still plenty of tender wild vegetables here. You can dig them up."

Tang Yuan shook her head, "Grandma Feng, I'll go check the mountains."

She then bid farewell and left.

Grandma Feng wanted to talk to her more, but seeing her leave quickly, she gave up.

She watched Tang Yuan's back and sighed, "What a good girl."

Initially, when looking for a match for her grandson, she had her eyes on the village girls.

She liked Tang Yuan very much. Although this girl had a temper, she was capable and suited her taste.

Even though people outside said Tang Yuan was rebellious, independent, didn't get along well with her sisters, and argued with her grandmother, Grandma Feng didn't care.

She herself had been criticized by others, so finding a granddaughter-in-law with a similar temperament wouldn't be bad.

Unfortunately, before she could propose it, Tang Yuan "went mad."

Of course, even if she had proposed it, Grandma Tang wouldn't have agreed.

Grandma Tang despised Grandma Feng and Feng Chen, and being in-laws would only bring disdain from others.

Tang Yuan walked into the mountains with her stick.

Today, she wrapped her hand in a rag to avoid getting scratched again.

Compared to yesterday, she was now familiar with the route and went directly to where the fish traps were without any detours.

As usual, she first patrolled the area to ensure there was no danger before checking the fish traps.

She first pulled out the largest fish trap.

With a splash, the fish trap emerged from the water, and the trapped fish suddenly found themselves out of water, flailing desperately.

She counted five fish inside, the largest as long as her forearm, and the smaller ones about the size of her palm.

"Hahaha, we have meat to eat!"

How wonderful!

She then checked the other fish traps, where the smaller ones were caught. There were about a dozen fish in total.

She picked out the larger ones and threw the smaller ones back into the water.

During the dry season, the pond was small, and there weren't many fish. These smaller ones could serve as fingerlings.

It's no wonder the villagers don't often come here. Apart from a stream, there are various trees, making it inconvenient for cutting wood or digging wild vegetables. Even if there were fish, they wouldn't catch enough for everyone, so there's little reason to come.

Fortunately, no one was competing with her now, and catching a few fish for herself was quite nice.

She hadn't brought a bucket, so she placed all the fish in a basket. There were two large fish and seven or eight smaller ones, about the size of her palm, with the small ones weighing over two pounds.

She placed the basket with the fish in a small puddle nearby, planning to pick it up on her way back home. She then refilled the other baskets with fish food and returned them to their spots.

After finishing this, she went nearby to dig for wild vegetables.

On a small hill, she spotted a plant of Polygonum multiflorum that had been growing for many years.

The old vines, as thick as her thumb, wound around the pine tree, adorned with new green leaves. She walked through fallen leaves and weeds, carefully digging with her shovel.

It took considerable effort to finally pull out the root of the Polygonum multiflorum.

The black-brown root was swollen and plump, looking excellent!

Tang Yuan's eyes curved into a smile, "Not bad!"

This was good Chinese medicine, which could be sold for money if she had the chance.

She dug around the area and found six sizable roots of Polygonum multiflorum.

She buried the rest back and added some decomposing leaves as fertilizer, so they could grow larger and be harvested again later.

She continued digging for wild vegetables and herbs nearby, finding one Rhizoma Heterophylli and several good Rehmannia roots.

Rehmannia was quite common locally, often seen along riverbanks and fields, but finding such large ones wasn't easy.

When her basket was nearly three-quarters full, she returned to the pond.

In the small valley, the dense tree shade made the light less clear. She walked to an open spot and looked up at the towering rock mountain to the north. The bare mountain was frighteningly high, and she knew she couldn't climb it.

However, the more unclimbable it seemed, the more curious she became about what lay beyond. Was Feng Chen clearing land there?

Envy filled her heart.

"Gurgle" her stomach rumbled.

Tang Yuan: "..."

She had eaten her dry rations while digging for vegetables, but she didn't expect to feel hungry again.

She estimated the time; it was already past noon.

Forget it, she'd go home and stew some fish.

She stuffed some wild grass into the basket and carried it, dripping wet.

Just as she was about to leave, a deep male voice came from behind, "Hello, did you make this basket?"