The air was filled with the fragrant scent of chestnuts.
Ni Qiu swallowed his saliva and followed behind Zhao Sidan, "Sidan, just one more chestnut for me..."
Zhao Sidan had two chestnuts left in his hand. He hesitated for a moment, took one chestnut, bit into it, and then handed over more than half of the remainder. After that, he turned and ran home, afraid of being asked for the last one.
Ni Qiu held the half chestnut, reluctant to eat it, and brought it home to his mother, Aunt Wang. "This is a chestnut Aunt Sidan made, Mother, can you make it like this?"
Aunt Wang took a sniff and immediately caught the sweet fragrance. She picked up the chestnut, tasted a small piece, and then cursed, "What a wasteful woman! Frying chestnuts with oil, and sugar too! The few silver coins in that house won't be enough for her to squander! She only cares about eating well today and doesn't think about what to eat tomorrow! Bah, no wonder Old Lady Zhao looks down on this daughter-in-law..."
The scolding reached Cheng Loanloan's ears next door.
She was chopping small nga vegetables, planning to make a mixed cucumber salad later. Hearing Aunt Wang scolding her, her hands continued to work quickly without stopping.
The original owner had a bad reputation in the village; there were truly too many people who spoke ill of her behind her back. If she wanted to scold them all back, she truly wouldn't be able to.
She showed no expression, but Zhao Sanniu became enraged. He grabbed the wood-chopping axe in his hand and rushed out. "Aunt Wang, what did you just say?"
Aunt Wang was startled. "What's wrong with you, you brat? Your aunt has treated you well, but your mother, she only cares about satisfying her own mouth, when has she ever cared about you kids..."
She truly hadn't treated these four Zhao family children badly. A few years ago, during good harvests, she often secretly gave them buckwheat steamed buns. In recent years, when the crops in the fields weren't good, she would secretly give them wild vegetable corn cakes or something. Otherwise, Zhao Sanniu's axe wouldn't have landed on the firewood by Aunt Wang's feet.
He carried the axe and said, "My mother treats me very well. The chestnuts were fried for us to eat. Otherwise, how would Sidan have extra chestnuts for your Ni Qiu!"
"Sanniu, bring some firewood into the kitchen!"
Cheng Loanloan called out, and Zhao Sanniu immediately ran back to get the chopped firewood and brought it into the kitchen.
Aunt Wang stood at the door, her face full of doubt. In the past, these children had a very bad relationship with Sister-in-law Zhao. She would scold that woman in front of them, but those children never reacted. Today, this Zhao Sanniu even wanted to chop her with an axe!
Ni Qiu said from the side, "Sidan had more than a dozen chestnuts in his clothes pocket, even more than me..."
Aunt Wang slapped him on the back of the head. "It's already good enough that you got to eat some, and you're complaining it's too little? Go chop firewood!"
She looked at the neighbor's yard with a hint of disbelief. Cheng Loanloan was squatting on the ground washing small nga vegetables, while Dashan's wife sat on a stool mending clothes... Ever since Dashan's wife entered the household, this Zhao Chengshi had never lifted a finger to work. This was truly the sun rising in the west.
Wu Huiniang quickly mended Zhao Sidan's torn clothes, bit off the thread, and then went into the kitchen to make dinner.
She felt that eating a few chestnuts in the evening could count as a meal, but her mother-in-law said that they needed to eat a proper meal, that only by eating enough could they have the strength to work.
For dinner, they ate white noodles. Wu Huiniang cooked the noodles, and Cheng Loanloan cooked the dishes: a plate of mixed bitter lettuce and a plate of mixed mushrooms.
Ordinary rural families would eat buckwheat noodles, which would turn black, mixed with various grains, and made into noodles that would scratch your throat when eaten. But white noodles were not like that. Not only were they beautiful in color, but they were also soft and fragrant when eaten. Taking a slurp, your mouth would be filled with a refreshing taste. Eaten with a salad, it was a delicious treat, and even the soup would be drunk clean.