My humble days in ancient times

The sun was warm on my body, and many people were sitting under the big locust tree at the entrance of the village, chatting.

Tian Yuhe was hoping for as many people as possible. He went over to listen to the others' conversation and laughter. Huang Guiyun, Widow Wang, Zhang San, and Old Li were all there, along with several other villagers.

Huang Guiyun asked, "What are you busy with at home every day? Now that the weather is warmer, why don't you go out for a walk?"

"I'm busy making clothes at home every day. Besides, I've been feeling really down these past two days."

Huang Guiyun pressed on: "What's going on? Tell me about it."

Seeing this, everyone pricked up their ears and listened carefully.

Tian Yuhe sighed, "Since we got married, Dachuan often asked them to call me mother at the dinner table, but these children are so stubborn that they never called me that. A few days ago, Qinghe and Ruyi went to sell medicinal herbs and earned some change. Dachuan asked me to keep it, but they refused to accept it and started arguing with Dachuan. Ruyi was too powerful. In a fit of rage, she actually... actually used scissors to destroy the mandarin duck pattern on our wedding quilt and cut off one of the mandarin duck heads. Dachuan was furious, and I couldn't figure it out. Was the one that was cut off referring to me? Or his father? I am a farmer and I feel sorry for the quilt. I said a few words to Ruyi, and she put salt in my bowl, which made it so salty that I died. When I was eating, I said that Dachuan didn’t believe it, but as soon as she ate the food in my bowl, she was so angry that the table was about to fall apart. I said a few more words to Ruyi, and she said that if I criticized her again, she would spit in my bowl every day. Do you think I would dare to say anything? Qinghe came up and pushed me to the ground. It hurt, and I cried just now. Qinghe also said that I was not allowed to bully them, otherwise he would beat me. ... "Tian Yuhe was crying as she spoke, and patted her chest with her hand: "I am so choked up!"

Widow Wang asked, "Are you telling the truth? Ruyi is only ten years old."

Tian Yuhe nodded: "If you tell a lie, you will be struck by lightning."

Huang Guiyun was convinced: "I couldn't win an argument with that little girl before. She's really smart. I'm impressed."

Huang Guiyun took Tian Yuhe's hand and said, "That little girl used to be so weak and timid, but she's become a different person ever since she fell down by the river. She's like a demon possessed by a demon, and she's really cunning. You should just consider yourself unlucky. Don't argue with her, you won't win an argument."

Tian Yuhe wiped her tears with a handkerchief and said, "It's hard to be a stepmother, and I can't argue too much with the child."

"That's right." Huang Guiyun hinted, "I'm a little thirsty now. I want to go back and drink some water. Do you want to go out and play?" Then he looked at the others and said, "Do you want to come to our house and chat about family matters?"

The others just smiled, knowing that she was just being polite. There was no need to respond. If they wanted to go, they could go. If they didn't want to go, they could just not go.

Huang Guiyun took Tian Yuhe away.

Widow Wang sighed, "I don't know whether the water in Huang Guiyun's house is good or bad."

Zhang San smiled and said, "Whether the water is good or bad, we won't drink it anyway."

Everyone laughed.

After a while, Xu Ruyi came here to relax. Xu Ruyi had been feeling a bit tired these past few days, so today she wanted to rest. If she couldn't work five days and rest two days, she should at least work six and rest one day. She needed to rest when she was tired.

Xu Ruyi was about to leave, but Widow Wang asked her to come over and play for a while, so Xu Ruyi had no choice but to go.

Widow Wang asked, "Your Aunt Tian just said that you cut the quilt and put salt in the rice. What's the matter with your brother pushing her?"

After Xu Ruyi heard what Widow Wang said, she realized that Tian had been here just now, so she said, "My brother and I didn't have much silver after selling medicinal herbs, so Aunt Tian wanted to keep it for us and buy us clothes. We said we didn't need it, so we bought clothes and shoes ourselves. The wind blew my underwear onto her towel, and then she burned a hole in my underwear with fire. She wanted me to wash her clothes, but I didn't agree. My brother and I do all the work inside and outside the house, and she is not satisfied with just washing her and father's clothes. She also said that if she doesn't wash hers, she can wash my father's, but I ignored her. Just now, she threatened me with a wooden stick and told me to listen to her. I told her that if she dared to hit me, I would spit in her bowl. My brother happened to see it and pushed her, and she started crying. That's it, if my brother really hit her, wouldn't she resist or run away? Besides, my brother doesn't have the courage to do that."

Everyone heard the truth. It seems he was thinking about the child's money!

Sometimes you can't just listen to one person's words; people tend to flatter themselves and say things that benefit them. But by combining the accounts of two parties involved, you can unravel the truth. At least 80 to 90 percent of the story, and understand the cause and general process of the incident.

Xu Ruyi said this calmly and frankly and left.

Then Tian Yuhe followed Huang Guiyun back. They drank some water to moisten their throats. They both knew that the other hated Xu Ruyi.

Huang Guiyun asked, "Xu Ruyi is just a child. No matter how smart he is, how could he be so clever? How could you be manipulated by a child?"

Tian Yuhe was helpless: "I don't have a mother's family. Besides, Dachuan and my parents-in-law are good to me. I can't be too harsh on the child."

Huang Guiyun smiled and said, "You're overthinking it. We won't commit murder or arson, but we also want to live a comfortable life, right?"

Tian Yuhe nodded and said, "That's right. It would be better if we separated them, but as for Grandma and Dachuan...I'm afraid it won't be easy."

Huang Guiyun said, "Force them to separate. They don't want to live with you anyway. Let me tell you, there's a woman named Tian in my hometown village who wants to raise a child bride."

"Is selling children illegal?"

"This kind of thing is very common in the village. Several families have filed a complaint. What if they don't want money?"

Tian Yuhe thought about it and agreed. It would be best to send Ruyi away, as she had too many evil intentions.

Huang Guiyun took Tian Yuhe's hand and said, "Come to think of it, you and Aunt Tian have the same last name. I'll go back to my parents' home tomorrow. You wait for good news."

The next night, Huang Guiyun came to see Tian Yuhe, and Xu Ruyi was still wondering how they ended up together. They really were birds of a feather.

Huang Guiyun came out looking very proud. Xu Ruyi had a bad feeling that they were secretly planning something.

Xu Ruyi wandered the mountains, hoping to find some medicinal herbs. He used a stick to knock at snakes and headed deeper into the mountains. He observed his surroundings carefully, but the distance between them grew longer and longer. He spotted a stream flowing from the mountains, the water clear. He placed his backpack in a low spot, weighing it down with rocks. Then he wandered around. The birdsong made the mountains seem even more tranquil, and Xu Ruyi worried about wild animals.

I found a cave nearby, its front obscured by grass and trees. It was hard to spot, and I couldn't see it. While the entrance wasn't large, the interior was quite spacious. The light inside was dim, so Xu Ruyi didn't linger for long before turning around and leaving.

Finding nothing around, Xu Ruyi went back to the creek. There were two large crucian carp in her backpack, and she put the smaller ones back into the water. She picked up the backpack and hurried back, thinking she'd have to go somewhere else next time.

After returning home, Xu Ruyi took out the fish. Xu Qinghe's eyes lit up when he saw it: "Oh, I'm in for a treat tonight. I can eat fish. But..."

"But what?" Xu Ruyi asked.

Xu Qinghe smiled and said, "Fish is very fishy. It's okay if it's cooked well. If it's not cooked well, it's a waste."

Xu Ruyi smiled and said, "Don't worry, I promise you'll have two big bowls of rice tonight."

Xu Ruyi cleaned the fish and then made braised fish. The whole family enjoyed it with gusto.

Xu Qinghe kept praising it: "It's really well made, tastes great, it's really delicious."

Xu Ruyi was not modest: "Of course, don't you see who did it?"

Xu Ruyuan and Xu Qingyan kept nodding and saying it was delicious.

Xu Dachuan also said: "Not bad."

Tian Yuhe took a look and said: Oh, I really feel like an outsider.