My humble days in ancient times

The weather gradually became colder, and the vegetable patch in the yard was organized in an orderly manner under Xu Ruyi's command.

Xu Ruyi first had the accumulated manure evenly spread on the fields to increase soil fertility. He then had people carefully plow the fields before planting juicy cabbages and plump radishes.

The small vegetable patch was also busy, filled with garlic, onions, cilantro, spinach and other vegetables. Xu Ruyi often went to the vegetable patch herself to tend to the seedlings, carefully caring for them as if they were her most precious treasures.

After finishing her work in the vegetable garden, she immediately went to the peach orchard, bending down to clear the weeds, her eyes full of anticipation, waiting for the peaches to be full on the branches next year, presenting a scene of a bumper harvest.

Xu Ruyi also meticulously arranged for people to fertilize the peach trees using fermented manure and chicken, duck, and goose droppings. This series of labor kept her incredibly busy, and only when it all stopped did Xu Ruyi finally breathe a sigh of relief.

As the weather got colder, Xu Ruyuan and Xu Qingyan became less diligent in going to the village school. Often, they would be so tightly bound by their warm quilts that they couldn't get out of bed in the morning.

That day, Xu Qingyan started to stay in bed again and was woken up by Xu Ruyuan over and over again.

"It will be too late if we don't leave now. Get up quickly, have something to eat and go!" Xu Ruyuan urged anxiously.

Xu Qingyan turned over, wrapped the quilt tighter around him, and continued to sleep soundly.

In desperation, Xu Ruyuan struck the gong hard. The loud sound of the gong instantly broke the tranquility of the yard and woke up everyone in the yard from their sleep.

Soon, the maids and servants in the courtyard all ran over in a panic and quickly gathered in the backyard. Xu Ruyi hurried downstairs and came to the outside of Wutong Courtyard, where she saw a yard full of people with nervous expressions.

Feng Wuduo asked doubtfully, "Miss, do you have something to say?"

Xu Ruyi nodded.

Originally, there wasn't one, but the rule of beating the gong in an emergency was made by ourselves, so even if there was nothing wrong, we couldn't say it.

Xu Ruyi glanced at the crowd, then cleared his throat and said, "The weather is getting colder, and everyone is inevitably becoming a little lazy. But the more we are at this time, the more we can't let our guard down. This year's rice harvest is very good, so everyone should take good care of it. And everyone should always pay attention to the safety of the yard."

Everyone said in unison, "I understand, Miss."

Xu Ruyi nodded with satisfaction and said, "Everyone performed very well today. In the future, if the gong sounds, everyone should do the same as today."

"I understand, Miss." Everyone said in unison, their voices loud and uniform.

Xu Ruyi nodded and said, "Alright, let's all go! Go and do your own things!"

Guo Huai was about to turn around and leave when Xu Ruyi stopped him.

Xu Ruyi said to Guo Huai, "Buy a few more dogs! One for Wutong Courtyard, two for the other courtyard to guard the granary. One for your gate. One for the horse ranch, two for the chicken coop. And two or three more for Taoyuan next year."

Guo Huai listened and nodded solemnly: "Okay, I will do it tomorrow."

After Guo Huai left, Xu Ruyi walked into Xu Qingyan's room with a gloomy face. Only then did Xu Qingyan slowly get up from the bed with sleepy eyes.

Xu Ruyuan and Xu Qingyan saw Xu Ruyi's gloomy face. That serious expression seemed to freeze the air around them. They were suddenly frightened and didn't dare to breathe.

"Who struck the gong just now?" Xu Ruyi asked in a cold voice with unquestionable majesty.

Xu Ruyuan was so frightened that he trembled all over and replied tremblingly: "It's me."

Xu Ruyi glanced at him with a sharp eye like an arrow and said, "Don't you know that this gong can only be struck when something important happens? Why should it be struck?"

"Sister, I was wrong. I won't dare to do it again next time." Xu Ruyuan lowered her head, her voice filled with tears.

Xu Ruyi looked at her, silent for a moment, and then slowly said, "Don't touch the gong again. Xiaohua, put the gong away and take it to my room."

You know, there are four gongs in total, one for each of the four brothers and sisters, just in case.

Xu Ruyuan asked timidly, "How long do you plan to collect it, big sister?"

"Since it's your first time, just half a year!" Xu Ruyi's tone left no room for negotiation.

Xu Ruyi looked at Xu Qingyan again. At this time, Xu Qingyan had already brushed his teeth and was sitting in the main room outside, wolfing down his breakfast!

After Xu Qingyan finally finished eating, Xu Ruyi slowly said, "Get up on time from now on. Don't tell me over and over again. After you finish eating, go to school with your second sister!"

"I understand, big sister." Xu Qingyan didn't dare to delay, so she quickened her eating pace, packed up in a hurry, and went to school with Xu Ruyuan.

After leaving the courtyard, Xu Ruyuan angrily said, "It's all your fault. If you hadn't gotten up so late, how could I have struck the gong?"

"Then you can pull my ears, why do you have to ring the gong?" Xu Qingyan retorted unconvinced.

"I was afraid you couldn't hear me, so I wanted to shout as loudly as I could to wake you up." Xu Ruyuan's voice was full of resentment.

Xu Qingyan recalled Xu Ruyi's gloomy and terrifying expression, and said with lingering fear: "I won't do it again next time, or Big Sister will eat me."

Xu Ruyuan was still angry, so he said, "If you get up late again next time, I won't call you or wait for you. I will leave alone."

"No, I still want to go with you, second sister?" Xu Qingyan anxiously grabbed the corner of Xu Ruyuan's clothes.

Xu Ruyuan's mouth was puffed up with anger, like a bloated pufferfish. "I won't be going to school next year anyway, so you still have to get used to going to school alone."

Because he was still attending school in the village, Du Xiaoyue and Du Xiaoxing did not accompany him. Xu Ruyi did not want the villagers to talk too much.

Xu Qingyan thought for a moment and said, "Next year I'll ask my elder sister to hire a teacher to teach me at home."

"I won't agree to this. Who do you think you are?" Xu Ruyuan rolled her eyes at Xu Qingyan.

In this way, the two of them quarreled all the way to the school, each arguing with the other, neither willing to give in. Their voices echoed along the path, startling a few birds in the trees.

By the time school was over at noon, the two were back to normal, as if the quarrel in the morning had never happened.

Xu Qingyan said cheerfully, "Second sister, I really like salted duck eggs. Duck eggs are delicious when I have millet porridge or noodles in the morning."

"Really? Then you'd better eat more." Xu Ruyuan responded with a smile.

"Don't eat too much, it's too salty. Half of it is okay, but you can't finish the whole one." Xu Qingyan shook his head.

Xu Ruyuan nodded: "Me too, but I only like to eat egg yolks, not the egg whites."

Xu Qingyan nodded repeatedly: "I like to eat egg yolks too. I won't eat the egg whites anymore. Eating the egg yolk is just right."

Xu Ruyi stood in the corridor on the second floor, holding the railing, watching the two of them jumping and talking and laughing along the way. The corners of her mouth couldn't help but rise slightly, and her eyes were full of relief.

The next morning, when Xu Ruyuan and Xu Qingyan were having dinner, they only ate the duck egg yolk, leaving the duck egg white in the bowl.

Xu Ruyi frowned and asked, "Why are you wasting it?"

Xu Qingyan replied in a low voice: "Because I can't finish it."

Xu Ruyuan also said: "I don't like it."

"When the sun is at its highest point in the sky, I am hoeing the field, and my sweat drips down to the soil. Who knows that every grain of rice on the table is the result of hard work?" Xu Ruyi recited the poem slowly.

Xu Ruyuan asked curiously, "Sister, is this a poem?"

Xu Ruyi nodded solemnly: "In the height of summer, under the scorching sun, the farmers still toil hard, sweat dripping down their faces. Every grain of rice we eat is the product of their hard work."

After hearing this, Xu Ruyuan and Xu Qingyan lowered their heads in shame, their faces flushed.