Spring scenery in the fields

"I agreed to her doing this business. She is happy if she makes money, but it doesn't matter if she loses money."

He can make the money back by going into the mountains two more times.

"Your sister-in-law sometimes thinks differently from us and thinks longer-term than us."

Shen Yuanshan teased, "When did big brother know his sister-in-law so well?"

Shen Rongshan patted him on the head with a little force and said, "Let's go home."

She was not afraid of him and would often talk to him. After a long time, they would get to know each other better.

Ji Wenhe heard the noise and turned around to see that they had cut four or five bamboos, one of them was dragging them while the other was carrying them on his shoulder.

"Give me one and I'll drag it."

Shen Rongshan handed her the machete in his hand: "Hold the knife carefully and don't swing it around."

The bamboo is very heavy and has to be some distance from home.

"You go ahead."

Seeing this, Ji Wenhe nodded and walked in front.

"Brother Shen, I'll pick a bamboo stick when we get back. It should be about as tall as you are."

Shen Rongshan's eyes fell on her unconsciously: "Okay."

She was very happy and her steps were brisk. Was it because she had cut some bamboo?

Shen Yuanshan followed silently behind him without saying a word.

His elder brother and sister-in-law were getting along better and better, but he didn't know when his elder brother would go back to his room to sleep.

The bed in their room is a bit crowded for three people. It's okay in winter because they can huddle together and keep warm, but not in summer because it's too hot.

I have to find a chance to ask.

When the three returned to the village, they met Shen Anguo who was returning home from the fields.

"sister in law."

Ji Wenhe replied with a smile.

He looked behind her and said, "Brother Rongshan, Yuanshan, why are you cutting so many bamboos?"

Shen Yuanshan took over the conversation: "It worked. All the weeds in the field have been removed."

They are about the same age and have a great time.

"Well, go back and rest for a while."

Shen Rongshan walked up to him and asked, "Is there something wrong at home? You don't look very energetic."

Shen Anguo sighed: "My mother and my father had an argument last night because of my marriage."

I am worried at home, but worrying won’t solve the problem.

"Blame me. If I had the ability, my parents wouldn't worry about me all day long."

Shen Rongshan didn't know how to persuade him, so he frowned and tried to choose words in his mind.

Ji Wenhe, who was walking in front, heard the conversation between the two, slowed down his pace and waited for them to come up.

He glanced at Shen Anguo on the right: "Anguo, some things can't be rushed. Talk to Aunt Lan and ask her to work harder in the next two years and find more work."

"Life will get better. If you worry all day, you will get sick. Yuanshan and Wenshan are at home. If you are free, come and talk to them."

Shen Anguo nodded politely: "Well, I will talk to my parents. Thank you, sister-in-law, I will come to your house another day."

"That's right, don't stay at home all day." Shen Yuanshan walked to his side and put a hand on his shoulder. "My sister-in-law has a good temper and is easy to get along with. Come to my house when you are free."

He was worried that his sister-in-law was difficult to get along with and didn't like others visiting her home, so he hadn't spoken to them for a long time.

"I understand."

Shen Anguo nudged him lightly with his elbow and the two of them started playing around.

Shen Rongshan and Ji Wenhe walked side by side.

Looking at the slope going up the mountain, she murmured, "Is it easy to go up? Otherwise, you can pull them up one by one."

"It's okay. If you can carry it, you go first."

This weight is completely incomparable to that during military training.

The slope becomes difficult to walk on after it rains, the soil will be washed down and there will be a lot of small stones.

Only in this section, after climbing up, the road will be easier to walk on.

The bamboo was too long to fit in the yard, so Shen Rongshan placed it outside the yard.

"Take which bamboo you want and tell me how to make it."

He took the machete from her hand and waited aside.

Ji Wenhe looked at them and picked one that looked relatively straight: "This one, from here to here."

She gestured to indicate the desired length and bamboo joints.

"Then split the bamboo body diagonally, trim it, and use it to hang the bracelet, is that okay?"

Shen Rongshan understood what to do after she showed him how to do it. It was simple and not difficult. "Yes, it's OK."

Shen Yuanshan broke off the remaining bamboo leaves and placed them in the yard to dry, which could be used to start a fire.

There are no tools for splitting bamboo at home, so I have to go to the village to borrow them.

Ji Wenhe was helping out and carried Zhuye to the yard. Seeing that Shen Wenshan had braided quite a few bracelets, he stepped forward and took out a bracelet of another color.

"Wenshan, this style is enough. I'm teaching you another one."

One is made for each color combination, and there are about four or five of each style.

"Sister-in-law, there are many villages around the mountain. Why don't we go around the villages and see if someone will buy it."

"I've thought about it, but now every household has no surplus food, and I guess no one is willing to buy it."

Shen Wenshan followed suit and said, "That's not necessarily true. There are many families in the village who have surplus food and are rich, like the head of our village."

"As long as they are officials, there are few who don't have money at home. They appear to be poor on weekdays, but in fact they are just pretending to be poor."

This is the case with the headman's family. He talks about being poor and hungry all the time. But looking at his rosy face, it is not just the hunger he talks about. He is so hungry that he feels anxious and can't sleep in the middle of the night.

"That's true."

Ji Wenhe thought about it and felt that it made sense. Although there were many poor people in the village, there were also rich people, they just didn't show it.

"Why don't we wait for your elder brother to repair the bamboo and then go to the village outside the mountain."

Shen Wenshan nodded: "Let Yuanshan go. He will say that it's not okay for my brother to go. It will scare people."

He himself is even worse, as he has no younger brother who can speak.

Ji Wenhe smiled cheerfully: "If your elder brother heard him say that, he would be sad."

Shen Rongshan is indeed not suitable to go there. If he goes there, probably no one who wants to buy anything would dare to talk to him.

When we go to the market, you can't let him sell it, you have to go yourself.

After dinner in the evening, Ji Wenhe soaked his feet in hot water in the house.

I sighed with satisfaction. After soaking my feet, my whole body felt relaxed and comfortable.

At this time, footsteps were heard outside. It was Shen Rongshan.

He went to the next door room, and soon came to the cave entrance and whispered, "I'm going in."

"Well, come in."

Farmers don't have any tradition of marrying someone just by looking at their feet, so they go barefoot in the fields when transplanting rice.

The fields were next to each other, and sometimes neighbors would go to other people's fields to help plant rice. If one had to marry the other just by looking at the other's feet, the whole thing would be a mess.

There are many sayings that in Kyoto or Oshima Prefecture, rich families are strict, while farmers are not particular.

For example, seven-year-olds do not sit or sleep on the same seats.

If the family is poor and has only one room, the whole family will sleep on one kang.

When having banquets in rural areas, children of all genders sit together freely without so many rules.

So Ji Wenhe was not worried about him seeing her feet. Even if he did, so what? They were husband and wife now, albeit in name only.

"Brother Shen, what do you want to talk to me about?"