The little Fubao in the deserted village made all the dignitaries in the court go crazy with envy

Da Rui, the eleventh year of Hongjing, mid-winter.

In the small valley where Yuanzhou meets the Mobei wilderness, the entire Yuxi Village is covered in snow and is utterly silent.

It was the winter season for farmers, and it was afternoon. The women who had some free time after lunch gathered together with their sewing baskets, warming themselves by the fire to ward off the cold while chatting about family matters. The thick smoke from the fire could not dampen the women's enthusiasm for gossip.

The most talked about thing in the village these two days is the Lin family at the end of the village.

"It was a baby that fell from the sky and landed on the haystack next to the Lin family's kitchen. It was a girl, about three or four years old, with a very delicate appearance."

Mrs. Li’s house was next door to the Lin family. She was the first to know about this. When she heard the noise, she rushed over to take a look. She described the scene vividly, spitting excitedly, "You don’t know how pitiful the child looked at the time. She didn’t have a single piece of cloth to keep warm. Her whole body was frozen purple. The Lin family lit a brazier and rubbed her body. It took a long time for the child to catch her breath…"

This matter has actually been circulating in the village for two days, and the women are still excited when they talk about it.

They lived in a remote and poor village, and had no other entertainment in their spare time. When they visited each other and chatted, there was really nothing to talk about. They would talk for a long time about someone's dog barking a few more times in the morning or someone's chicken flying into another house's cage, let alone such a big event as the Lin family picking up a person.

Aunt Zhang twisted the embroidery needle and wiped it on her scalp, lowering her head to sew skillfully, "Erhe and Linjiang from their family took a few men from the village to visit all the surrounding villages, and even asked in the town, and no family had lost a baby. Last night, my man came back from the Lin family and said that Aunt Lin had made the decision to adopt the baby. Early this morning, Dahe went to the town government office in person to register the baby. The baby is hanging in his room, and she will be his and Sulan's daughter in the future."

"That's good. Da He and Su Lan have been married for seven years but have no children. Now they have found one for free. Maybe it's fate."

"The whole family is soft-hearted. They picked up Sulan before, and now they picked up a little girl... Alas, they have good intentions, but how can raising a capable adult be the same as raising a little kid? What is their family situation now? Old Man Lin has been paralyzed in bed for three years. He is a sickly man who only takes in and doesn't give out. Dashan is disfigured and half blind. The most unfortunate one is Lin Jiang. His hand was broken by his ruthless ex-in-laws and he became a cripple. He even lost his job as an accountant in the town... Now the only one who can be said to have good hands and feet is the second branch of the Lin family. There is an extra child to raise in the family for no reason. Just wait and see, Erhe's wife will definitely make a fuss."

"What are you fussing about? If Dashan hadn't saved her man, would she have been disfigured and nearly blinded in one eye?"

"Before Old Man Lin got into trouble, the Lin family lived a good life. They had money in savings, land and fields, and their three sons were filial and capable. The family lived in harmony. Who in the village didn't envy them at that time? How did it become like this? It's really..."

When talking about the past, all the women could do was sigh.

……

The Lin family's home is at the end of the village. The spacious fenced courtyard is kept clean and tidy. There are three mud-brick houses with a spacious main room in the middle, separating the two rooms on the left and right.

On the left side of the yard there is a kitchen and a woodshed.

These were all the assets that the Lin family had accumulated in the past. Excluding this place to live, the most valuable things the Lin family has now are only three acres of paddy fields and two acres of dry land. The family needs to tighten their belts to make ends meet with the food they earn in a year.

There have been two heavy snowfalls since the beginning of winter, and the weather is so cold that the dogs are unwilling to move.

A fire was also lit in the main hall of the Lin family. They chose dry firewood, so the smoke was not that thick.

There is no way to save on firewood. Without something to keep warm, not only the adults but also the kids in the family will not be able to survive.

"Jiang'er, it's too cold. Come into the house and warm yourself by the fire, or your hands will hurt again." Mrs. Lin came out of the kitchen holding a bowl of red eggs. She was thin and short, but her back was straight. She was wearing a gray-blue coarse cloth jacket that was starched white. Her hair was tied into a bun at the back of her head, and she wore a hairpin, looking clean and neat.

"Mom, I'll go in after I finish sweeping this little bit of snow, it's okay." Lin Jiang raised his head and smiled, and put his right hand, which was stinging, into his sleeve without leaving a trace. The young man, who had just turned 20, had a tall and slightly thin figure, a gentle and handsome face, and a clear and gentle smile.

The yard that had just been cleaned in the morning was covered with a layer of fine snow by noon. If it was not cleaned up, it would be easy to slip when stepping on it.

"Okay, hurry up. Your elder brother and second brother should be back from town soon. Let them do the heavy work of clearing snow and chopping firewood later." While she was talking, Mrs. Lin stepped onto the eaves of the main hall, patted the ashes on the corners of her clothes that were stuck to the stove, and then walked back into the main hall.

The fire in the main room was burning brightly. The dry firewood was stacked together with a hollow hole at the bottom for ventilation. The orange flames leaped up, and the green smoke from the burning firewood was like a naughty child, chasing after the two five or six-year-old boys of the Lin family, making them cry.

"Mom, mom! Why does this smoke always chase after my brother and me?"

"Why am I chasing you? It must be because you two didn't wipe your butts clean after going to the toilet. The smoke is stinking and will make you feel uncomfortable."

"No, I wiped it clean! It's my brother who stinks!"

"It's obviously you who stink, I didn't even go to the toilet today!"

In a blink of an eye, the two brothers started arguing with red faces and thick necks.

"Hehehe!" The little girl sitting on the mat giggled at the scene.

The little guy had a head of uneven hair that was neatly combed, with two little sheep horns tied on both sides of his head. His facial features were as delicate as a piece of jade. He was wrapped in an old jacket of the Lin family boys, with his sleeves and trouser legs rolled up to reveal his little hands and feet. At first glance, he looked more like a little snowball stuck in the jacket, and his little appearance was so adorable.

Li Sulan was sitting next to her daughter, sewing a new dress with her hands. When she heard her daughter's laughter, she couldn't help but pinch her daughter's little face with her free hand. She was worried that her cold fingertips would chill the little baby, so she let go as soon as she touched.

The little kid immediately turned his head and looked up at her with his eyes curved like half moons. He called her in a sweet voice, "Mom!"

Li Sulan also turned her head to look at her, with a smile on her lips and soft eyes, and answered seriously, "Hey, mom is here."

Zhang Cui'e, the second wife, was watching this scene. When the little girl's attention turned elsewhere, she quietly nudged her eldest sister-in-law and whispered in her ear, "Sister-in-law, do you really want to adopt him? Don't blame me for speaking harshly. This child is not yours after all. What if you raise an ungrateful person——"

"Cui'e!" Li Sulan interrupted her immediately. She looked at her daughter and saw that she didn't notice anything. She breathed a sigh of relief and turned to her sister-in-law. "Cui'e, your elder brother should have settled Bai Xiang by now. Bai Xiang will be our child from now on. Mother has also made the final decision on this matter."

Speaking of her mother-in-law, Zhang Cui'e retreated unhappily and picked up the scissors to remove the stitches of the old clothes that needed to be dismantled and altered. "Sister-in-law, you know I have a straightforward temper. I didn't say these words with any malicious intent..."

It’s not that she doesn’t like Bai Xiang.

It was such a cold day, and such a small baby fell into the yard of her house. She really wanted to throw the baby out and let her freeze or starve to death... She was not that cruel.

But the family is already in a difficult situation now, and raising a little baby will make it even more difficult. Let's not talk about all these. Just say that the eldest brother and sister-in-law have spent a lot of effort to raise the baby. If the child is grateful and filial, it will be fine. But if they raise an ungrateful person who will never come back after getting married, or if the child is found by blood relatives and then turns around and leaves with others, then the eldest brother and sister-in-law will be heartbroken.

She really cared about her elder brother and sister-in-law, but after she said it, she seemed like a bad person.