Transmigrated Leftover Woman in Rural Style

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Thinking of how Wang Huangshi looked after entering the yamen, Xiao Yang couldn't help but chuckle. He replied with a smile, "With the village head and the other two there, no one made things difficult for us. That woman was quite amusing; she was so scared that her legs went weak as soon as she arrived at the yamen gate. Once inside, she trembled like a leaf and couldn't even speak properly."

Hearing Xiao Yang's words, the Su mother and daughter's anger immediately dissipated by half. Li Xiaonuan asked with amusement, "Then Wang Huangshi was tortured, wasn't she screaming and howling like a ghost? It must have been terrifying!"

This time, Li Xiaogang had something to say. He hurriedly interjected, "That's right, the screams could be heard three streets away. When we went shopping, everyone was talking about it. Didn't you see? The blood had soaked through her clothes."

After hearing Xiaogang's words, the Su mother and daughter couldn't help but gasp. How badly he must have been beaten? It must have been a bloody mess. It was truly horrific; hopefully, it would leave some lasting damage.

At that moment, the mother and daughter completely forgot about Wang Huangshi's framing of the Li family. Only one thought occupied their minds: "So much blood and gore, it's so pitiful." They felt immense sympathy for Wang's mother and secretly reminded themselves never to break the law.

Mrs. Su then said, "I hope she can learn from this experience and be more considerate of others in the future."

Having asked all the questions he needed to, and seeing that both his sons were still in wet clothes, Father Li said, "Alright, let's consider this matter over. Xiao Yang, quickly take your brother downstairs to change his clothes."

Xiao Yang nodded in agreement and called Xiao Gang to go out together. Li Xiaonuan then instructed, "I've boiled some water in the pot, so you should all wash yourselves thoroughly."

After the two brothers left, Madam Su sighed. She said to Li Xiaonuan with some sadness, "Xiaonuan, your engagement is off. Although it was the man's fault, a woman who breaks off an engagement will find it harder to find a husband than other girls. Besides, you're already nineteen; it's even harder for you than for others. What are you going to do in the future?"

As she spoke, Madam Su began to wipe away her tears. Helpless, Li Xiaonuan sat down next to Madam Su, hugged her, and said, "Father, Mother, don't worry. Your daughter is so good, someone will come and carry her back in a grand sedan chair. Besides, if everyone really cares about breaking off an engagement, then I'd rather not marry at all."

When Su heard Li Xiaonuan say she didn't want to get married, she panicked and forgot to cry. She took Li Xiaonuan's hand and said, "How can you not get married? There will definitely be someone good who will marry you. Let's not rush it, we can look slowly."

Li Xiaonuan stroked Su's hand. It was a typical working woman's hand: calloused, cracked, and with prominent veins. Even though the Cold Food Festival was over, the cracks were still bleeding. There was dirt and grime everywhere, some from grass and tree sap, and some from the muddy gray residue left on the wounds.

She pressed her hands to her face and gently rubbed them, saying, "Mother, you and Father can rest assured, Xiao Nuan will get married. With Xiao Nuan around, you will definitely be able to live a good life."

Madam Su reached out a hand and gently patted Li Xiaonuan's back, scolding, "This girl, what nonsense are you talking about? Just take care of yourself. Your parents don't need you to worry about them, and you still have your brother."

Father Li nodded and said, "That's right. Once you're married, you're someone else's wife, and you can't just think about your own family."

Seeing that the couple had misunderstood her words, Li Xiaonuan didn't explain. She felt a warm glow inside, her happiness overflowing. She smiled and said, "Okay, Xiaonuan understands."

After speaking, she sat up straight and carefully examined her parents in this life by the dim light. In her memory, her father was only thirty-eight or thirty-nine years old, which should have been his prime. Unfortunately, due to years of hard work, Su Shi looked like a woman nearing fifty, with wrinkles all over her face and gray hair at her temples.

Father Li looked even older. He used to be a tall and strong man, but now he was thin as a rake and hunched over. His pale face had sunken cheeks and eye sockets. His hair was mostly white, sparse and dry.

According to the original owner's memories, four years ago, Father Li was still as strong as an ox. He often overexerted himself by doing a lot of work, both for his own family and for helping his brothers. In his spare time, he even worked for landlords.

Back then, Li's father was always full of energy. Even though he had very little rest time each day, he would still work hard. He did this for the sake of his family, so that his relatives could have food to eat. It was precisely because of his unrestrained overexertion that his body was damaged, and he became deficient in both qi and blood.

After their aging father, Li, fell ill, his brothers initially came to help. However, they soon realized his health was severely compromised and couldn't be restored quickly enough. At that time, everyone was barely able to afford a proper meal, let alone any supplements. Of course, none of them were willing to spend money on them.

Seeing his brothers make excuses to leave, even taking their elderly mother with them, Father Li was so angry that he coughed up blood, which further damaged his liver. From that moment on, Father Li's spirits deteriorated day by day. Fortunately, he had the encouragement of his three children and his devoted wife, which kept him going until today.

Li Xiaonuan sighed inwardly and secretly vowed to restore her parents' health. She stood up, told her parents to rest in the room for a while, and went out to cook. Before leaving, she looked at her parents' stiff and worn-out bedding, and her heart ached slightly.

Watching Li Xiaonuan's figure disappear by the door, Madam Su turned around and asked Li's father, "Father, don't you think our daughter has changed? She's not quite the same as before?"

Father Li shifted his legs to make himself more comfortable before replying, "I think she's doing quite well, more radiant than before. Besides, it's normal for her temperament to change after what happened."

Mrs. Su nodded, agreeing with the assessment. Seeing that her father seemed unsteady on his feet, she went to help him remove his coat and lay him down. She thought to herself: I'm not worried about my daughter's change; I just want you to get better as soon as possible.

That evening, Li Xiaonuan made crucian carp and tofu soup. She also cooked two large bowls of thick egg porridge with millet and rice for her parents. They, on the other hand, ate dried vegetable porridge. As for the meat and snacks for the village head and his family, Xiao Yang and his brother had already delivered them before taking a bath and changing clothes.

During the meal, Li Xiaonuan mentioned that she was going into the mountains the next day and asked the two brothers if they wanted to come along. Su Shi had only fainted due to a rush of blood to her head; after a day's rest, she would be able to take care of the family. The two brothers didn't ask any further questions and both nodded in agreement.

Mrs. Su asked them why they were going into the mountains on a rainy day. Li Xiaonuan said they were going to pick mushrooms and some honeysuckle. Mrs. Su knew that her daughter went up the mountain every year to collect mountain products to exchange for money, so she didn't object. Besides, it wasn't the busy farming season yet, so it was good for them to go up the mountain and relax.

The next day, the rain continued to drizzle. The three siblings all went out wearing only large straw hats. In Li Xiaoyang's basket were six pancakes and a pot of thin rice porridge. On the way, Xiaoyang told Li Xiaonuan that once the rain stopped, they would have to plow the fields, as it was time to transplant the rice seedlings.

Li Xiaogang told Li Xiaonuan that while she was unconscious, the family sold another acre of good land. Now, they only have 2.3 acres left. However, for the past three years, Su and her two brothers have been clearing wasteland. Nearly three acres are currently planted with wheat. Those acres will also be subject to taxes in two years.

As Li Xiaonuan passed through her own land, she noticed that among the weeds were quite a few purslane, lamb's quarters, and shepherd's purse. These could at least stave off some hunger and fill her stomach. A quarter of an hour's walk south from her own field led to a patch of wasteland.

The wasteland that the Li family had cleared was right there. At this moment, the wheat in the field had already sprouted ears. The three siblings went over to take a look. Li Xiaoyang said, "Because it's new land, Xiaogang and I burned a lot of wood ash and fermented a lot of manure, which is why the wheat has grown like this."

Li Xiaonuan noticed that the wheat seedlings weren't growing strong, and the ears weren't tall. The yield was far lower than in her previous life. But in an era of low productivity and without improved varieties, it was still quite good that the wheat could be grown like this in uncultivated land.

Therefore, she suggested, "After the wheat harvest, let's plant mung beans and broad beans in the field to fertilize the soil, so that the wheat will grow better next year. At that time, we also need to carefully select some wheat seeds so that the wheat will grow evenly."

Xiao Yang looked at the unevenly growing wheat and nodded solemnly. He explained, "Last year, we didn't choose any wheat seeds because we were afraid of missing the sowing season."

Xiao Gang, who was standing next to him, added, "The wheat we borrowed from the clan chief's house was just enough for the hour, so we can't choose the wheat variety."

Li Xiaonuan understood and comforted the two of them, "It's okay, we can choose wheat seeds starting this year. In short, if we choose every year, the wheat will grow better and better."

The two brothers both nodded and said in unison, "That's how we'll do it from now on."

After inspecting the wheat, the three siblings headed towards the mountains. The drizzle had thinned a bit, and Li Xiaonuan thought the rain would stop today. After walking for about half an hour, the three finally arrived at the foot of the green mountain.

This mountain wasn't particularly large, nor was it particularly small. While its peaks weren't towering into the clouds, some were around a thousand meters high. One peak even reached a height of 1,500 meters. Li Xiaonuan wasn't a hunter; her usual activity was limited to the two lower, solitary peaks on the outer edge and the surrounding foothills.

This time, following the original owner's memories, she went to the place where she gathered honeysuckle. Because it was raining, it wasn't good to pick the flowers. So, the three siblings looked for mushrooms in the woods. While looking for mushrooms, Li Xiaonuan also kept an eye out for any valuable medicinal herbs she might have missed.

Sure enough, she found quite a few chicken blood vines, fragrant herbs, and chrysanthemum ginseng. Unfortunately, it wasn't the best time to harvest them, so Li Xiaonuan didn't touch them. Fortunately, it had been raining a lot lately, so there were plenty of mushrooms in the forest. Before long, the three of them had filled their baskets quite a bit.

Although there were many mushrooms, they only picked two or three kinds: shiitake, white mushrooms, and termite mushrooms. When their baskets were nearly half full, they sat down on a dry, rotten tree trunk to rest and eat something.

Li Xiaonuan patted the somewhat hollow poplar trunk beneath her, feeling a little regretful. Such a large tree, if she could bring it home, could probably burn for a long time. Hearing Li Xiaonuan's words, Xiao Gang circled the trunk, considering the possibility of taking it back.

He kicked the tree trunk from time to time, testing its sturdiness. When he reached the fork, he suddenly stopped, pointed to something, and called Li Xiaonuan and the others over to see. Li Xiaonuan and Li Xiaoyang went over, curious about what Xiaogang had seen.

When they saw what was growing on the rotten wood, they all gaped in astonishment. Li Xiaonuan blurted out, "This is Ganoderma lucidum, a tree tongue Ganoderma. It's so big, it should fetch some money. We'll keep the two smaller ones for our parents to nourish them."

[May 15th is almost here! I hope to continue my efforts to climb the 515 Red Envelope Ranking, and on May 15th, I can give back to readers with a red envelope rain and promote my work. Every little bit helps, and I'll definitely update harder!]