Mrs. Yang saw his expression and smiled. "Separating the family just ans living in different households. Does that an I’m no longer your mother? You have to understand, the more people living together, the more easily conflicts arise. Once we’ve separated, you’ll be a guest when you visit, so you’ll have to be a bit more mindful of what you say."
There was sothing else she left unsaid. ’For Juhua’s sake, this separation is a must. Who knows what the new daughter-in-law will be thinking? No matter what kind of person she is, it’s better to live separately. Not eating from the sa pot will bring so peace of mind.’
Juhua also smiled. "We should separate. It’s natural for a family to grow and branch out. Besides, we’re building our houses right next to each other. Even if our households are separate, we’ll still be neighbors. If anything happens, we’ll just be a shout away."
Qingmu glanced at Juhua but said nothing. He was beginning to understand his mother’s reasoning, so he didn’t argue. ’Whether we separate the households isn’t what’s most important. The real issue is making sure my future wife gets along with my parents and sister. I’m an educated man; I can’t be like Liu Dashun and make a ss of things.’
’Besides,’ he thought, ’once I get married, my sister won’t be living at ho for much longer anyway. Is Huai Zi really going to wait? I bet he’ll marry her and take her ho right after my own wedding.’ So, he wasn’t worried about it.
Since his wife had already discussed the matter with him, Zheng Changhe wasn’t surprised by the idea of splitting the household. He smiled and said, "Most families separate households after the sons get married. Even for those who don’t right away, once the family gets large, don’t they end up splitting anyway? And who knows how much conflict brews in the anti. We only have one son, so normally we wouldn’t need to separate. But Qingmu, you only have one sister. For her to live more comfortably, it’s better this way. It’s not that we think your future wife will be a bad person, we’re just handling things proactively so no one has anything to complain about later."
Seeing his father speak so openly, Qingmu nodded. "I understand, Dad. There’s nothing wrong with separating the households. We’ll still be together and can look out for each other."
Mrs. Yang said with delight, "That’s exactly it. So families act like splitting the household is the sa as severing family ties. I just don’t get it. It’s not like they’re any closer by staying together. In fact, they’re always guarded around each other. The sisters-in-law are constantly competing when they work, terrified of being taken advantage of in the slightest, and they even secretly hoard their own money on the side!"
Qingmu and Juhua couldn’t help but laugh when they heard that.
Mrs. Yang chuckled. "Don’t you laugh. You two have never seen what it’s like for one of those huge families to live together. Before I was married, back in my village, in the families with lots of brothers all eating from one pot, their lives were nothing but constant scheming. If one of the wives got sothing nice from her own family and was reluctant to share it with everyone—not because she was stingy, but because she wanted to save it for her children—she’d have to cook it for them in secret at night, like a thief. And if she got caught, it would cause a huge spat."
Juhua and Qingmu had never experienced life in a large, extended family, so they found the stories amusing. But they figured if they were actually in such a situation, they probably wouldn’t be laughing.
After they chatted and laughed for a bit, Zheng Changhe urged, "Let’s wash up and get so rest. We have to be up early tomorrow to transplant seedlings." With that, they all went to bed.
After the major task of transplanting the rice was finished, everyone’s attention turned to the wheat and rapeseed fields, anxious that sothing might go wrong with the crops before the final harvest.
After so ti, the transplanted rice seedlings had grown strong and sturdy. Their color deepened from a light, vibrant green to a dark, inky shade as they took firm root in the paddies, no longer as fragile as they were at first. The once shimring white water of the fields had transford into a continuous sea of green, which made for a beautiful contrast with the golden wheat fields near the mountains.
Families that had planted rapeseed were already starting to harvest it. Juhua’s family had little land last year and hadn’t planted much—just one small plot. Zheng Changhe and Mrs. Yang cut it all down in a single morning and piled it in the courtyard to dry. Without even spreading it out, they threshed it with wooden clubs and collected about half a sack of rapeseed. It was just enough to trade for the family’s cooking oil, with none left over to sell.
Next ca weeding and watering the Shanyu, corn, and Huangdou, which kept them so busy they could barely catch their breath. Mrs. Yang spent fewer days at ho, working alongside Zheng Changhe in the fields.
Juhua, however, didn’t find the work tiring. ’Taking care of just a few family mbers is completely different from cooking for a dozen or even two dozen people.’ With careful planning, she kept everything running in perfect order.
A warm breeze brushed her face as Juhua, wearing a straw hat and carrying a bamboo basket, headed to the edge of the fields to bring her parents so food. Qingmu was on a break today and was also helping out in the fields.
When Mrs. Yang saw her coming, she happily straightened up, went to the small creek to wash her hands, and then walked over to a large locust tree at the edge of the field. Zheng Changhe and Qingmu also put down their hoes, grinning as they went to wash their hands and join them for a bite to eat.
Juhua took out large bowls, letting her parents and brother drink the chrysanthemum tea and eat so flatbread. She sat to one side, looking out over the once-barren land. ’To think that in just a few months, it’s gone from desolate to so full of life!’ The thought filled her heart with joy.
The Shanyu were incredibly resilient and wild; after just one rainfall, they grew like crazy. Every ti she ca, she noticed they had changed. The vines crept everywhere, and the joints of the Shanyu vines were covered in tiny white and red root buds that burrowed into the earth wherever they touched the soil.
The Huangdou were also flourishing, with each plant growing thick and strong.
Qingmu started telling Juhua about the Ni Qiu in the ditch. "I blocked off both ends with nets woven from bamboo strips, and I even added so small fish fry I caught. There were already quite a few small fish in there to begin with, and now is their spawning season."
Juhua laughed. "This ditch is still too narrow. We’re just raising them for fun. Who really expects to catch a lot of fish from it?"
Hearing this, Zheng Changhe chid in, "When I have so free ti, I’ll dig it wider and deeper. It’s fine if it takes up a bit of land. Then we can throw in so lotus root and water bamboo shoots. If we make it bigger, we can definitely raise a decent amount of fish."(To be continued. If you like this work, you are welco to co to Qidian to leave a recomndation vote or a monthly ticket. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
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