Chapter 26 Mountain Home Hearth 26

Chapter 26: Mountain Family’s Hearth and Home 26

In ancient times, harvests were generally average, with one mu of land yielding only about two hundred to two hundred and fifty catties of grain, less than half of modern grain production.

This was something Cui Lanfang had told Liu Guyu a few days ago during a meal, and Liu Guyu had immediately got an idea—he wanted to keep these two mu of land to cultivate himself.

However, this idea was only a fleeting thought for the moment; the pressing matter at hand was the market day stall.

Liu Guyu woke up early to prepare breakfast. He kneaded dough to make savory and spicy scallion rolls and cooked a pot of multigrain porridge. On the small stove nearby, Cui Lanfang's medicine was simmering.

He lifted the lid, and the rich aroma of scallions and steamed buns wafted out. The wheat-flour rolls were soft and plump, each as big as an adult man's fist, generously stuffed with scallions—utterly fragrant.

"Come and eat, it's ready!"

Liu Guyu ladled out four bowls of porridge and walked to the kitchen door, craning his neck to look outside while calling out loudly.

He happened to see Cui Lanfang and Qin Banban drying grain in the yard. The village had several large drying grounds where many families went to dry their grain—the space was ample, and the sunlight was strong.

But their family didn't have much grain, so their own yard was sufficient.

While the mother and daughter were drying the grain, Qin Rongshi carried water to the vegetable garden to water the plants. Each family member had their own tasks.

At Liu Guyu's call, the other three gradually came inside to set the table and eat.

Liu Guyu said, "After breakfast, let's all go to town. Mother should visit the clinic for a follow-up."

Naturally, this couldn't be delayed. The family finished their meal and set out.

As luck would have it, they ran into Zhou Qiaozhi and Qiao Huilan at the village entrance.

It was unclear how these two had ended up together, but they were chatting and laughing. Tian Hexiang, who only came up to Zhou Qiaozhi's chest, was carrying a basket on her back alone, while her mother, Zhou Qiaozhi, walked empty-handed.

When they saw Liu Guyu and the others, Zhou Qiaozhi seemed to point subtly, and the two immediately fell silent.

After the group passed by, Zhou Qiaozhi said sarcastically, "Some people are just black-hearted and rotten to the core, willing to do anything for money, caring nothing for others' suffering... Oh my, my family lives next to the Chen family, and I hear them crying every night. So pitiful."

Qiao Huilan didn't speak but furrowed her delicate brows, sighing and gasping along with Zhou Qiaozhi's words, as if deeply sympathetic and sharing in the sentiment.

Then Qiao Huilan let out another "Ah."

Liu Guyu secretly rolled his eyes. He didn't look at Zhou Qiaozhi but instead turned to Qin Rongshi and the others with a puzzled expression. "Listen—why do I keep hearing a dog barking?"

Qin Rongshi smiled faintly at the corners of his mouth, while Cui Lanfang frowned and glared at Zhou Qiaozhi, seeming eager to argue right and wrong with her. But she was not quick with words, and after all these years of disputes with Zhou Qiaozhi, she had never won a single argument.

Only Qin Banban stared blankly at Liu Guyu, then shook her head honestly. "I didn't hear anything, Brother Liu. You must have misheard."

Liu Guyu: "...Alright, go play."

Liu Guyu poked Qin Banban's forehead. Meanwhile, Zhou Qiaozhi, standing to the side, was fuming with rage. She planted her hands on her hips and shouted, "Liu Guyu! You rotten-hearted little wretch! How dare you call me a dog!"

Hearing this, Cui Lanfang grew upset too, but her verbal skills were lacking. In the end, she could only glare coldly at Zhou Qiaozhi and say sharply, "Zhou Qiaozhi! How can you speak like that!"

Only then did Qin Banban belatedly understand. She covered her mouth and nodded slightly, her eyes wide.

She whispered, "There's a dog, there's a dog."

Liu Guyu still didn't look at Zhou Qiaozhi. He poked Qin Banban's forehead again and pulled the others aside, saying, "If you know there's a dog, stand farther away. Mad dogs bite!"

Zhou Qiaozhi: "...Liu Guyu!"

Zhou Qiaozhi was so angry she stomped her feet, her face flushed red. Tian Hexiang, frightened, hid behind her without making a sound.

It was Qiao Huilan who let out another "Ah," then patted Zhou Qiaozhi's back and said softly, "Ah, why bother getting angry with him! This child has been unruly since he was young. I couldn't teach him properly—it's all my fault as his mother. Don't take it to heart."

Liu Guyu didn't speak but shot a sidelong glance at Qiao Huilan and let out a cold scoff.

Amid the commotion, the sound of wheels rolling came from the village road above. Looking up, they saw the ox cart from Xiahe Village arriving to pick up passengers.

Liu Guyu and the others had discussed it at home: if they were lucky enough to catch the ox cart, they would ride; if not, they would walk.

It seemed luck was on their side.

As the ox cart pulled up, Liu Guyu steadied Cui Lanfang, then bumped into Zhou Qiaozhi, who was holding onto the cart board preparing to climb aboard.

Though Liu Guyu was a *ge'er* (a term for a young man in this context), he was stronger than most women. The bump sent Zhou Qiaozhi stumbling, nearly falling to the ground.

It was only her daughter, Tian Hexiang, who hurried forward to support her that kept her from falling.

But Zhou Qiaozhi immediately shook off Tian Hexiang's hand and screeched at Liu Guyu, "Heaven-cursed thief! Are you rushing to be reborn?"

Liu Guyu acted as though he had just noticed her. He quickly turned around and nodded apologetically. "Oh! It's Auntie Zhou! Ah, my eyes must be failing me—I didn't see anyone there!"

Zhou Qiaozhi: "Are you blind?! How could you miss someone this big?!"

Liu Guyu nodded dismissively. "Next time, next time. Next time I'll be sure to treat you like a person."

Zhou Qiaozhi: "Liu Guyu!!!"

The woman's voice was shrill, and her shouting was truly grating.

The cart driver was a middle-aged man who had been doing this job for over a decade. Everyone in the village knew him and called him "Second Uncle Zhang."

Second Uncle Zhang rubbed his ears, pursed his lips, and looked at Zhou Qiaozhi. "Are you getting on or not?"

It was the busy farming season, so few people were heading to town. Aside from Liu Guyu's group, there were only Second Uncle Zhang and a young man on the cart.

There were still seats available. Zhou Qiaozhi quickly nodded and scrambled aboard, followed by Qiao Huilan and Tian Hexiang.

No sooner had she sat down than Zhou Qiaozhi started talking again.

"Ah, let me tell you... some families are rotten to the core! The adults are bad, and the children follow their example. I'm a blunt person—I'll tell you this story, and you judge whether I'm right!"

She was addressing Second Uncle Zhang and the young man. Second Uncle Zhang disliked gossip and frowned as soon as Zhou Qiaozhi started. The young man was too inexperienced—he had never been part of such idle chatter about others' faults and felt uneasy, smiling awkwardly.

Liu Guyu tilted his head and said to Second Uncle Zhang earnestly, "Uncle, let's kick her off. I've heard that people who are too blunt can't control their bowels—who knows if she'll relieve herself on your cart later."

The moment he said this, everyone on the cart burst into laughter.

Qiao Huilan was more restrained. She barely curved her lips before quickly covering her mouth with a handkerchief, pretending to cough.

She was a refined woman who saw herself as the mother of a scholar, above these vulgar village women.

She dressed elegantly, always carried a handkerchief, and carried herself like a wealthy town madam.

Even Zhou Qiaozhi's daughter, Tian Hexiang, couldn't help but snicker, but the next moment Zhou Qiaozhi pinched her ear and scolded harshly, "You wretched girl! How dare you laugh! Someone is insulting your mother, and you have the nerve to laugh!"

Tian Hexiang immediately pouted and whimpered, pleading, "Mom, it hurts! Stop pinching, my ear will fall off!"

She hadn't really been paying attention to what the adults were arguing about.

She had been watching Qin Banban just now. Though this poor girl was still wearing her old clothes from before, she had a pair of exquisite and beautiful sweet osmanthus hair ornaments in her hair.

Qin Banban had seen these hairpins at the temple fair and liked them a lot. She begged her mother for a long time, but her mother said the family's money had to be saved for her younger brother's schooling and refused to buy them for her no matter what.

In the end, it was Qiao Huilan who spoke up again. She held Zhou Qiaozhi's arm and offered a few words of advice, then turned to Liu Guyu with a look as if scolding a misbehaving child, saying reproachfully, "Gu Yu, mind your words! Auntie Zhou is your elder. How can you speak to an elder like that? Your father didn’t teach you to behave this way when he was alive."

Liu Guyu looked at her, his eyes drooping at the corners, pretending to be pitiful and scared, even stammering as he spoke.

"Stepmom... my, my father said before he passed that you should take good care of me. But you... didn’t listen, did you?"

"He treated Qiao Niudan, the son you brought into the family, as his own, even gave him a new name, taught him to read and write, and left his school to him—all in the hope that you would sincerely care for me."

That much was true.

Scholar Liu had been genuine toward the original person, but this old scholar was stubborn and old-fashioned. He never thought to teach the original person self-reliance, believing that as long as she married into a good family, she could live a stable life.

So he arranged this favorable marriage with the Qin family for the original person and extended kindness to Qiao Huilan and her son, thinking that by treating others with virtue, they would reciprocate. He hoped that after his death, his only Xiao Geer would still have her maternal family’s support.

But this old scholar underestimated human nature. While he was alive, Qiao Huilan was a virtuous wife and mother, but after his death, her true colors showed.

This was quite a shock, making Second Uncle Zhang and the young man look at Qiao Huilan curiously.

As soon as Qiao Huilan heard this, she began wiping her tears, crying right back at Liu Guyu.

"This child still holds a grudge against me! But what kid hasn’t gotten a spanking? Even your brother had his palms slapped when he was studying... They say there are no lasting grudges between mother and child, but after all, you’re not my biological child. How could you ever really get me?"

She cried pitifully, tears soon streaming down her face, her eyes red and puffy. She pulled out a handkerchief to wipe her tears, looking utterly heartbroken.

Liu Guyu: Heh! I've met my match!

Had to admit, this acting was much better than Zhou Qiaozhi and Yu Chunhong’s!

Liu Guyu stopped pretending to be pitiful. He pointed at Qiao Huilan’s handkerchief and cautiously said, "Stepmom, you were just covering your mouth with that handkerchief when you coughed. There might be saliva on it, and now you’re wiping your eyes with it... Ew, that's gross. Have some hygiene."

Qiao Huilan: "..."

Qiao Huilan froze mid-cry, the handkerchief hovering in front of her face. She didn’t know whether to keep wiping or put it away, holding it awkwardly in her hand.

Qiao Huilan covered her face, secretly gritting her teeth, and unconsciously lowered her head, a glint of hatred flashed in her eyes.

The next moment, she tucked the handkerchief into her sleeve and said with a laugh, "This child... just loves to joke."

"Ah, yes, yes, I was joking again. I’m the reincarnation of ten thousand cold jokes."

Liu Guyu nodded and muttered.

Qiao Huilan didn’t understand, but she felt sure this Xiao Geer never had a kind word to say. And this wretched Xiao Geer had somehow changed suddenly, becoming sharp-tongued and quick-witted. Every time she crossed words with him, she ended up on the losing end.

Qiao Huilan’s thoughts shifted, and she simply stopped talking to Liu Guyu. Instead, she began complaining to Zhou Qiaozhi about how difficult it was to be a stepmother and how hard it was to raise two children alone.

Zhou Qiaozhi, having already suffered several losses at Liu Guyu’s hands, nodded in agreement as Qiao Huilan spoke. The two of them whispered back and forth, seeming to hit it off quite well.

Still, the ox-cart eventually continued on its way toward Fushui Town.