Ugly girl only wants to farm

Meng Jiu was carrying two long benches. After Xu Chaoyan carefully inspected them and saw that he had not upset her, she finally felt relieved.

Watching the man's hurried back, he complained, "This guy really has nothing better to do. Why is he walking so fast in this desolate December? Is he rushing to be reincarnated? He's being chased like a rabbit."

Meng Jiuhe suddenly noticed a book lying on the ground. The person who had left in such a hurry probably hadn't noticed it. He put down the bench he was holding, picked up the book, and saw that it was a copy of "The Doctrine of the Mean." He gently brushed off the dust and carefully held it in his hands. The person must have been in a hurry to leave.

Seeing him holding a book and staring blankly in the direction the person had left, Xu Chaoyan gently asked, "Husband, do you know this person?"

Meng Jiuhe pulled himself together and explained, "I wouldn't say we know each other. I bumped into him once before, but it was just a fleeting glance. Judging from his attire, he must have been a student. He left in such a hurry that he didn't even notice he had dropped his books."

Meng Jiuxia also looked at her with concern: "Big brother, sister-in-law, are you alright? That guy was really something, walking around without looking where he was going and just bumping into people. Luckily he ran fast and I didn't catch him, otherwise I would have definitely made him regret it."

Meng Jiu comforted her for a few words, and then the group walked home.

As the saying goes, once the Little New Year is over, the New Year is just around the corner. On the day of worshipping the Kitchen God on the Little New Year, Xu Chaoyan's family is always busy.

With only a few days left until the Lunar New Year, they didn't go out to set up stalls. After the Little New Year, they can start preparing for the New Year and welcoming the new year. This year, there is only the 29th of the lunar calendar and no Lunar New Year's Eve.

When they first moved into this courtyard, they had already cleaned it. Now, all they need to do is remove some dust, tidy up the house, and wash the bedding. The sausages, cured meats, and braised meats that she had cured in town are almost dried. For poor families, it's good enough if they can have a full meal during the New Year.

So they didn't have many special customs. This year, the two families moved from the town to the county seat and went through a lot, which was really not easy. So the two families planned to have a reunion dinner on the 29th day of the Lunar New Year.

Xu Chaoyan didn't know the specific rules, nor did she bring them up herself. She simply followed her older sister's example and did what she could.

On the 28th, Shen Siheng suddenly knocked on the door outside with a joyful expression, and his shouts could be heard in several neighboring courtyards.

Shen Siheng hasn't come over these past few days. I heard that his mother and sister-in-law are fighting again, and he's forced to stay home and act as a peacemaker. His father and older brother are extremely busy with the restaurant business as the year draws to a close, and they still have some outstanding debts to collect, so they've dumped this mess on him and his younger sister.

One day, Shen Siheng suddenly came over looking dejected. As soon as he sat down, he started babbling on and on.

Finally, he asked Xu Chaoyan if she had any hot food for him to eat, or if that wasn't possible, a bowl of hot soup would be fine too. His mother and sister-in-law had started a cold war and neither of them would cook, while his older brother and father were eating at restaurants every day.

His and his younger sister's stomachs were growling with hunger, and the two of them were sulking and neither of them would light a fire. But they were the ones who suffered, because neither of them knew how to start a fire or cook, so they had to go outside and buy some snacks to fill their stomachs.

He was so full of the pastries and cakes that he could barely stand them, and he finally managed to find an excuse to slip away.

Seeing his pitiful appearance, Xu Chaoyan asked Meng Jiuxia to make him a bowl of hand-pulled noodles with the bone broth that was being made at home.

Holding the steaming bowl of hand-pulled noodles, Shen Siheng choked with tears, saying, "Sister-in-law, your family is so warm and happy. Look how good the relationship is between my sister-in-law and her husband. Unlike those tigresses in my family, they can do whatever they want, but don't let me go hungry! Haven't you seen how thin I've gotten these past few days?" He pointed to his face as he spoke.

Xu Chaoyan suppressed a laugh, thinking to herself, "You think your face looks thinner from hunger? I think it's actually gotten rounder."

Zhang Xuyang happened to come in from outside. He was planning to discuss the article he had just written with Meng Jiuhe, but as luck would have it, he heard Shen Siheng complaining as soon as he entered.

He looked at Shen Siheng with disdain: "Young Master Shen, you don't need to play the victim here. Your family owns a restaurant, do you think we need your food? Why would you care about our meager rations? Go to your restaurant and enjoy the good food and drink. Don't be an eyesore here. A grown man crying like a sissy."

Shen Siheng slammed her chopsticks on the table and glared at him fiercely: "Zhang Xuyang, who are you calling sissy? Don't you have any conscience? Can't you see how thin I've gotten from starvation? I haven't been here for the past few days, and you haven't even bothered to check on me. I've seen through you now, you despicable, shameless, and vile man."

Zhang Xuyang stepped over the threshold and looked at him with a look of astonishment: "Shen Siheng said you're illiterate, right? You're at least literate, so you're supposed to be educated, right? But you're using words wrongly, despicable, shameless, and vulgar. That's not how you use words. Besides, Brother Meng and I have been so busy these past few days, we haven't had time to care about you. Go somewhere cool."

Inevitably, the two engaged in another argument, and in the end, neither gained the upper hand.

Shen Siheng came to deliver New Year's gifts. Xu Chaoyan looked at him with a surprised expression as she saw the large and small bags behind him.

Just a few days ago, this person looked listless, but now, in just a few days, he is not only radiant but also full of energy.

She asked somewhat uncertainly, "Young Master Shen, have you settled your family matters?"

While instructing people to move things inside, Shen Siheng waved his hand and said, "Don't even mention it. Neither of them would give in. My mother complained to my older brother and father, and my sister-in-law, in a fit of anger, took her maid and went back to her parents' home, saying, 'Since you love to complain, then complain to your heart's content. I can't stay here anymore. My mother forced her to leave. But it's also my mother's fault for being so unfair. When my older brother came back that day, she took the opportunity to complain again and even threatened my sister-in-law in the middle of the night, saying she would run away from home. Before my mother could take any action, my sister-in-law left first. Now the house is finally quiet. My older brother and father have been busy these past few days and haven't had time to deal with her. Now that my sister-in-law is back at her parents' home, my mother can't make a fuss by herself. She finally remembered that she had a son and a daughter who hadn't eaten, so she's been feeding us well these past few days. Now my little sister and I can finally have a full meal."

As he explained, he had the gifts brought in: "Sister-in-law, please don't be offended. These are just some cheap things, nothing special to eat. Please don't return them. Since Brother Meng has accepted me as a friend, please don't stand on ceremony with me. I've had so many meals at your house. If you really feel bad about it, please let me have a few more meals in the future."

Although Shen Siheng always liked to bicker with Zhang Xuyang whenever they met, and found fault with everything about him, he still prepared a gift for the Zhang family this time.

But this person is arrogant and has a particularly sharp tongue. He had just told the servant to handle the things gently and not to break them, but when he saw Zhang Xuyang, he became very hostile.

He pointed at the gifts from the New Year with an arrogant air: "These are the ones my family broke and picked out that we don't need, so I'm giving them to you. No need to thank me."

Before Zhang Xuyang could retort, Xu Chaoyan gave him a look to keep quiet. This guy clearly meant well, but he just had to make a fool of himself and only felt comfortable after being scolded a few times.

Before the 29th day of the twelfth lunar month, when she was in the countryside, she would usually get up early to steam rice, cook pork, and take incense, candles, and paper money to the mountain to worship her ancestors. But after arriving in the county, Xu Chaoyan didn't know what to do.

As for Meng's father and his family, Meng Jiuhe firmly believed that they were still waiting for them somewhere. She didn't know what to say, but having something to look forward to was good. She simply prepared some things and, like the Zhang family, offered sacrifices to their ancestors in the direction of their hometown.

At midday, the women were busy in the kitchen, while the men sat around two tables in the yard, brewing hot tea and roasting sweet potatoes. It was a rare sunny and clear day on the 29th of this year.

Xu Chaoyan washed all the previously prepared braised pork and sausages, added the dried bamboo shoots and some dried mountain mushrooms picked from the mountain, stewed a large pot with white radish, then cut up dried tofu, stir-fried blood tofu, and arranged some cakes and pastries, fried crispy pork and fried peanuts, warmed a pot of wine, and set off a string of firecrackers. The two families then sat down together to eat their reunion dinner.