Chapter 107

Chapter 107

Huh? A chick pecking at rice?

Zhao Xiaobao tugged on her sister-in-law's clothes, looking up at her, all confused: "Sister-in-law, what chicken feet? Zhou Dakang is a person, not a chicken."

Zhu Shi quickly crouched down and clamped a hand over her mouth, glancing around like she was scared someone might hear, whispering: "Ptoo, ptoo, ptoo, the kid didn't hear a thing, don't mind it, don't mind it."

Wang Shi was spooked too and kept spitting. She didn't just spit herself; she made Zhao Xiaobao do it too. Zhao Xiaobao obediently spat twice, and only then did her sister-in-law stop covering her mouth.

She was sharp, knowing kids shouldn't blab about stuff like that, so she curled up in her mom's lap and listened to her and her sister-in-law talk.

"Could it be the yard chickens stepped in it?" Wang Shi was half-convinced. Having lived half her life and been to plenty of feasts, she knew the hottest topic after a burial was this. Folks loved to gossip, especially about spooky stuff like that, and couldn't help but wonder what they'd come back as.

Nobody wanted to come back as an animal, especially chickens, ducks, or pigs, which'd end up butchered and eaten—a crappy fate.

"Aunt Zhou said her chickens've been cooped up for days, and her kids said the chickens never even got in the yard, let alone the main hall." Zhu Shi rubbed her arms and went on, "If you say it's hard to believe, that it was just a chicken stepping in the ash when no one was looking, then what about the other two? One had a hoof print. How do you figure that? There's no one raising pigs in our village right now. Could it be our donkey that trotted into someone's hall and stepped in the ash?"

Wang Shi jumped: "Really? You sure it wasn't a mistake? A real hoof?"

"Everyone says so, how could they be wrong!" Truth is, she hadn't seen it herself, just heard it from others, and the story spread with all kinds of details. Chicken feet were common, but hooves were not. Word was they all came back to a hard life. "And there was one family where the ash wasn't disturbed at all. The villagers said the deceased didn't want to come home. Mother, you know that family. The mom played favorites, doting on the oldest and youngest sons. The middle son, stuck in between, was never liked much."

That was true. Of the three who died, two were Zhous and one was a Wang. The middle one was called Wang Erchu. He had an older brother and a younger brother. The emperor loves the oldest, and folks love the youngest. The middle kid always got the short end of the stick, not favored by either side. His wife and children were often looked down on at home, and the villagers had all seen it.

Playing favorites was common in every house, even theirs. They doted on their daughter, and Zhu Shi knew it. But besides favoring the girl, the folks treated their three sons the same, like the palm and back of a hand. That's why there weren't any big fights at home. Otherwise, if the folks were as biased as Wang Erchu's, their roof would've been blown off ages ago.

"I heard when they went to Yujiawan, Wang Dafu and Wang Sanlian hid and didn't wanna show. That's when the Wang old folks pushed Wang Erchu forward." Zhu Shi said, "Er Tian said Wang Erchu took his last breath right in front of him. Before he died, he promised the village would look after his family... On the funeral day, he didn't wanna come home and step in the ash to tell his family. Seems he held a grudge. The village women said they'd quietly ask Wang Erchu's wife if she wanted to split from the family. If she did, they'd get the village elders to step in and make the old folks let her and her kids live apart, without losing the fields, house, or savings. Then we'll chip in a bit. Once the kids grow up and can fend for themselves, life'll get better."

Wang Shi nodded and let out a sigh: "Since Er Tian said so, no matter what the village does, you sisters-in-law should hang out more with Erchu's wife from now on. Your dad's got some pull in the village now. Use that pull to boost Erchu's wife's standing, show the Wang old folks that even though their son's dead, his wife and kids are under the village's protection. It's best to split off and live in peace. If they don't split, we can't let her and her kids get bullied like before."

Erchu died for the village, so the village oughta look after his family. Even if the Wang old folks tried to make a fuss about family matters, they'd have words to shut them up.

But it also depended on whether Erchu's wife could stand on her own. If she had a tough and resilient personality like Luo Bo Niang, she could raise her children even if she lived alone. But if she was weak and couldn't handle things, well, it might be better not to split and just muddle through.

A widow's life is hard!

After the funeral, life seemed to return to normal. The extra hoes were distributed by drawing lots. Those who drew one got one; those who didn't had to accept it. The atmosphere was lively, which was the only happy event in the village recently.

For country peasants, getting a hoe or sickle wasn't easy. Many families passed down a single hoe for three generations. Anything made of iron was expensive, so they were constantly sharpened until they shone, and the men cherished them like treasures.

Picking up the hoes during the chaos—even Old Man Zhao hadn't expected that. When he realized what had happened, he slapped Zhao Sanwang on the shoulder and exclaimed, "Good lad, you've got brains! Truly, you've learned from your childhood of stealing chickens and dogs. Well picked!"

No amount of good words could compare to real benefits. After being jointly ostracized, fighting, and losing people, many men were still lying in bed. Their village had suffered a great loss, but they couldn't really go and burn the crops of the other villages to vent their anger. However, the dozen or so hoes left on the ground without names helped ease some of the pent-up frustration.

"They don't have the guts to come. Even if they do, we won't admit it. As long as we don't admit it, they can't do anything to us."

That day, a group of men crowded into the Zhao family home to eat fruit. Zhao Xiaowu and the others had picked a lot in the mountains and invited them over.

Zhao Sanwang crossed his legs and said nonchalantly, "Besides, there are several villages. Who knows if they got them mixed up? Let them count their own. If they don't match, it's none of our business. They must have hidden them themselves."

Such rogue talk would have been infuriating in the past, but now it felt strangely satisfying. Indeed, when it's not your own stuff being stolen, the pain doesn't fall on you, and it even feels good.

"They'll have to swallow this bitter loss, whether they like it or not." Zhao Quan said fiercely. His wounds were still hurting. His wife, despite her small size, had been forcing him to rest at home while she went to the river to carry water for the fields. He felt terrible about it and hated those villages to the core. "It's best if they don't come. If they dare, I'll make sure they come in upright and leave horizontal!"

Zhao Yong nodded vigorously, his anger flaring up. He had been close to Zhou Dakang, and losing his brother in this fight had made him lose his appetite for days, his mind full of the image of Dakang covered in blood.

If he ever got the chance to meet people from those villages outside, he would definitely ambush them and beat them to death!

"Dad, should we go and find out what's happening? See if the village head has come back and what his attitude is?" Zhao Dashan suddenly spoke up. "It's hot and people are irritable. I'm worried that with so many deaths, things might get out of control. If they disregard everything and come to our village to cause trouble, we need to think of a countermeasure in advance."

"How do you plan to find out? Which village can you sneak into?" Old Man Zhao shot him a glance. Forget sneaking in; if he even appeared at the village entrance, he'd be chased out with an axe. They and those villages were now mortal enemies who would see red at the sight of each other.

Zhao Dashan scratched his head: "I can't sneak into the village, but I can go to the back mountain. Just find a hidden spot, squat down, and listen for a while."

"Dashan is right. Those shameless old bastards are all secretly malicious. If they really want to come and cause trouble or demand an explanation, we'll block the road in advance." Li Mancang said fiercely. "Don't let them in. From now on, we won't interact with the outside world. Our sons won't marry outside women, and our daughters won't marry outside men. We'll live our own lives. We've never gained any advantage from them anyway, and any benefits never come our way. Whether we interact or not makes no difference."

"Every year, we have corvée labor. No matter how many eggs we send to the village head's house, he still cuts off our water. It shows that flattery is useless!"

Old Man Zhao glanced at Mancang. Being able to say such things showed that the stream water from the immortal land was indeed effective; it had sharpened their minds. These country peasants always begged for help when in trouble, and begging meant giving gifts. They usually treated the village head like a Buddha, afraid to offend him, hoping he would lend a hand when needed.

Especially during corvée labor, which came every year. Everyone was afraid of being given a hard time. During those days, the threshold of the village head's house would be worn down by visitors, all hoping he would put in a good word with the officials.

But was it actually useful? Not at all! They still had to go repair river dams and dig sand, exhausting themselves and dragging themselves back half-dead. And the village head would say, "Oh, I've already spoken to the officials. They took good care of you, didn't they? They gave you an extra half a pancake per meal!"

Damn it, half a pancake! Since when did you have that much face!

In the past, Old Man Zhao wouldn't have understood these things. He might even have been grateful for the extra half pancake. But now, he saw through it all. He also appreciated the change in Mancang and the others. What Mancang meant was that from now on, he would rather be given a hard time and not eat that half pancake than flatter the village head.

He wouldn't flatter him anymore!

Old Man Zhao smiled. There wasn't much work at home anyway, so he decided to let the eldest son take Xiaobao to the mountains for a stroll. It was a good opportunity to find more varieties of wild fruit. Today, red ground fruit; tomorrow, raspberries; the day after, wild pears. No matter how rare, having only these few types day in and day out would get boring. It was only during a drought that one realized the value of water, and the same went for wild fruit. If it weren't for the daily snacks to keep his spirits up, he would be full of pent-up anger with nowhere to vent.

So he nodded: "Alright, go and find out. Be careful not to be discovered. If you're caught at a time like this, I'm afraid you won't come back."

"How could I get caught?" Zhao Dashan said confidently. "In the mountains, even wild boars have to step aside when they see me."

"I also..." Zhao Sanwang wanted to go and find out too, but before he could finish, Old Man Zhao shot him a look that silenced him. No more words were needed; the message was clear: stay home and carry water for the fields. While there was still water in the river, he shouldn't slack off.

Old Man Zhao knew that eventually, the river would dry up completely. By then, whether the water was cut off or not wouldn't matter. For now, they just had to make the most of the remaining water, carrying as many buckets as possible to irrigate the fields, trying to snatch a few more bushels of grain from the heavens.

Their family didn't lack manpower, nor did they lack water. During the day, they would even deliberately slack off, avoiding competition with the villagers. At night, when no one was around, they would take Xiaobao to the fields for a quick round. He didn't care about others, but he kept a close eye on Zhao Sanwang and his family. They didn't need to be scouts; they should focus on tending to their fields, lest the whole family go hungry next year.

The main hall was crowded and stuffy. The remaining red ground fruit in the basket was distributed among the Zhao family and some guests. Then Old Man Zhao unceremoniously kicked them out: "Go home and work. Even if the Heavenly King himself comes, the fields come first. Food is the most important thing."

There weren't enough baskets, so everyone used their clothes to carry the fruit. The others were a bit embarrassed, taking both food and gifts. But Zhao Sanwang had no such qualms. He was delighted and asked, "Where did Xiaowu and the others find so many red ground fruit? They're so lucky! I went to that ravine earlier and didn't see any. In previous years, they grew all over the slopes. But this year, probably because of the heat, I couldn't find a single one. I was craving them so badly."

Red ground fruit were in season, covering the hillsides. They grew in the same spots every year. But this year, there was nothing. It was infuriating and tantalizing.

"Eating isn't enough to shut you up!" Old Man Zhao pretended to snatch back his share, cursing, "If you found something good in the mountains, would you tell me where? Asking, asking, I'll give you something to ask about!"

Everyone laughed heartily. This guy was really annoying; he couldn't go a single sentence without provoking someone.

Zhao Xiaobao grinned, showing her little white teeth. She peeked at the big basket of red ground fruit. Most of it had been distributed. As a child, she could secretly give some to Xiaohua and the others, but if she gave too much, their families would start asking questions, and they might even bring the kids over to apologize.

Earlier, she had told her mother that the fruit in the small orchard was rotting on the ground. Her mother had then taken her to pick several baskets full, simply calling the adults over to eat. After they finished, they each took some home. Since her father had told them to take it, they wouldn't refuse, and the whole family could share.

"Take it home, share it all." She said happily, swinging her little feet.

Zhao Sanwang felt even more embarrassed, realizing he couldn't even compare to a little girl. He couldn't help but joke, "It's no wonder Uncle Da Gen raised such a generous daughter. Look at our Aunt Xiaobao, so magnanimous!"

Old Man Zhao simply distributed the remaining fruit in the basket evenly among the families, then threw down the basket and slapped Zhao Sanwang on the back: "How dare you tease my daughter! You've got some nerve!"

Everyone laughed even louder.