Divorced woman with child travels through time

Chen Wenfang and Aunt Liu brought the children to Wangjiazhuang. Just after crossing the bridge, they saw a group of people at the village intelligence station.

Chen Wenfang felt a little embarrassed, so she asked Aunt Liu in a low voice, "Why are there so many people? Don't they have any work to do?"

Aunt Liu whispered back, "It's probably because it's been raining lately, and it's not the busy farming season. Let's get together and chat, don't be afraid."

The two women, leading their child, greeted the crowd with smiles and went straight to Wang the carpenter's house. Chen Wenfang took a liking to a double-door cabinet; the top two shelves were quite wide, suitable for storing clothes and baskets, while the bottom shelf could hold odds and ends. It was also raised off the ground, preventing dampness. They paid a deposit and also bought a rolling pin.

After finishing her business, Chen Wenfang went with Aunt Liu to the village intelligence station to buy some things. As they got closer, they heard a crowd discussing...

Because of the rising river, the villagers were worried that the water would overflow the bridge and flood the rice paddies on both banks. If the rain continued, each household would have to send one person to patrol. Fortunately, the rain stopped today. When Chen Wenfang came over, strange looks lingered on her.

Chen Wenfang didn't take it seriously and called out, "Aunt Chuntao, buy me a pound of soy sauce, and if you have a jar, bring the jar along."

Aunt Chuntao was around forty years old, plump and dressed in a light blue cotton wide-sleeved shirt. She looked quite well-off, but her smile was a bit fake. She looked at Chen Wenfang with a forced smile and said, "Madam Chen is here. A jar of soy sauce costs twelve coins. Would you like anything else?"

Chen Wenfang laughed and said, "Do you have any scissors? Something bigger. We have a thread trimmer at home, but these are too small."

"Of course we have some. Would Madam Chen like to buy some eggs?" Aunt Chuntao asked again.

“We don’t need the eggs anymore. Do you have a large rice container? I’ve been wanting to buy two,” Chen Wenfang replied.

"How big of a rice container do you need? How many kilograms of rice does Madam Chen want?" Aunt Chuntao asked again. "You two don't eat much, buying a rice container would be a waste. A rice bag will do." Her tone was rather sarcastic.

Chen Wenfang smiled and said, "It has to be a jar that can hold fifty pounds. I have no choice; I'm afraid of being hungry again."

Aunt Chuntao twitched the corner of her mouth and sneered, "Tsk tsk..." without saying a word.

A gasp rippled through the crowd: "Fifty pounds! How long would it take to eat that?"

"There are two, not one." "Oh my, that must weigh at least a hundred pounds!! Goodness..."

"Madam Chen is really making money! Could you teach me how?"

"Has Madam Chen's family already bought so much grain?"

A few discordant sounds drifted over from below.

"Hmph, who knows how she got that food..."

"It's definitely not clean or hygienic..."

Chen Wenfang suppressed her anger and said, "Aunt Chuntao, how much is the deposit for the rice jar? I'll pay it all together."

Aunt Chuntao raised an eyebrow and said expressionlessly, "Those rice jars are fifty coins each. I'll tell the shopkeeper later. I don't have the size of the scissors you want either, they'll probably cost ten coins. So, it'll be one hundred and twenty-two coins in total. I'll give you one hundred and twenty coins for all of these. We're all from the countryside, so you can pay seventy coins first. It should arrive in about half a month. You can come and pick it up yourself then."

"You're quick with the bill," Chen Wenfang said, somewhat speechless. "I'll buy five more of those small jars. I'll pay you eighty-five coins."

When Aunt Chuntao saw that she had actually paid for it, she immediately beamed with joy, took the money and said, "I'll have someone deliver the jars to you when they arrive, Madam Chen. Please take care of me next time you have business."

Chen Wenfang smiled and nodded, then asked if they had any raincoats or seasonings.

Aunt Chuntao actually took out a small packet of Sichuan peppercorns, saying that a peddler had left them there, and she would give it to her at a discount, charging her fifteen coins. Aunt Liu complained under her breath, "Fifteen coins can buy so many things."

After buying the Sichuan peppercorns, Chen Wenfang took her things and went home with Aunt Liu.

Having bought some things, and being a big customer at that, Aunt Chuntao found Madam Chen much more pleasing to the eye. She didn't seem as arrogant as the rumors suggested, wanting to marry some top scholar. Seeing the crowd still gossiping noisily, she called out to them, "What are you saying? If you're so idle, go chop some firewood."

"You don't buy anything, you just talk nonsense all day long, you've worn the ground down to the bone."

"Go away, go away, don't delay my business."

The crowd dispersed and went home.

Only two or three idle men remained, eating sunflower seeds.

Watching Chen Wenfang's departing figure, Wang Ximao casually remarked to Wang Laizi, "That Mrs. Chen is quite beautiful."

The youngest of the three idle men standing nearby, Wang Liutiao, replied, "Who says otherwise? Hehe, her little boy was quite lucky when he was young."

The three burst into laughter.

Wang Ximao whispered, "If only I had that kind of luck, I would die in bed and it would be worth it."

Wang Laizi laughed and said, "Who isn't? This Madam Chen has a great figure, knows how to make money, and has a big bottom. She must be a good mother."

Wang Liutiao laughed and said, "She must be pretty good in bed too, haha."

Wang Laizi laughed and said, "How do you know it's not bad? Have you slept with it?"

Wang Liutiao squinted as he savored the memory, "I've done it in my dreams, that feeling, I wouldn't trade it for anything, not even from a god."

"Haha, with your build, I'm afraid you can't do it," Wang Ximao mocked.

Wang Liutiao retorted, "Why can't I? I made her scream and cry..."

The three of them kept indulging in their fantasies, spewing one vulgar word after another, which was simply unbearable to watch. Even Aunt Chuntao couldn't stand it anymore. "Go away, go away! What kind of trash are you? You're rotten to the core! Instead of thinking about working hard and getting married, what are you thinking about?"

The three idle brothers, still feeling unsatisfied, patted their behinds and went home, unconcerned about Aunt Chuntao's curses; they'd heard them so many times they didn't care anymore.