Daily life of farming and supporting a family on the ancient Loess Plateau

The classmate immediately agreed and even offered to let his son marry Liu Xiucai's daughter, Liu Taohua, to repay Liu Xiucai's life-saving grace years ago, and left a token as a token.

When Feng heard about the marriage arranged by Liu Xiucai for her daughter, she was both surprised and delighted, and her previous dissatisfaction with Liu Xiucai lessened somewhat.

Not long after, Liu Xiucai passed away.

The death of Liu Xiucai immediately cut off Feng's source of income. The family's money had long been spent, and the pressure of life forced her to find another way out. However, after several years of pampered life, it was absolutely impossible for her to go back to washing clothes.

In order for her and her daughter to survive, Feng Shi could only think of remarrying. Although Feng Shi never intended to remain a chaste woman, she herself was not particularly beautiful and had a daughter, so she was stuck in a limbo, unable to find a suitable husband.

She couldn't get into wealthy households, and she didn't want to go to humble homes. No matter how hard she searched, Feng couldn't find a suitable man to remarry.

Originally, Yang Laosan was absolutely not on Feng's radar, but then Liu Taohua mentioned that the Yang family had an older sister. Feng then thought that marrying Yang Laosan wasn't a bad idea. At least the daughter of the woman Liu Xiucai had once loved would have to work for her in the future, and just that thought made Feng feel happy.

And so, Feng married Yang Laosan.

Yang Laosan also felt that he was very lucky to have married a scholar's wife. So after the marriage, he listened to Feng Shi's every word and obeyed her every whim.

Yang Laosan's mother originally intended to treat Feng Shi the same way she had treated Maihua's mother, but after hearing from Feng Shi that several of Liu Xiucai's classmates had passed the imperial examinations and become officials, she shrank back like a quail and stopped showing herself.

Later, seeing that Feng was tormenting Maihua, Yang Laosan's mother, who already disliked this granddaughter, turned a blind eye. In addition, Liu Taohua mentioned that her deceased scholar father had arranged a good marriage for her, and that the young man had already passed the imperial examination. Yang Laosan's mother was even more happy to have some peace and quiet and stopped caring about Maihua.

Every time Feng saw Maihua's face, she seemed to see Liu Xiucai and Maihua's childhood sweetheart past. She couldn't understand why Liu Xiucai would be so attached to Maihua's mother, a woman who was poor and shabby. Her resentment and confusion did not ease with Liu Xiucai's death. On the contrary, seeing Maihua being tortured miserably gave her a sense of satisfaction.

Originally, Feng thought that the village girls were of lowly fate, and she could torture them for a few years as long as they lived to a certain age. As long as she didn't die right after getting married, no one would say anything. But she didn't expect that Maihua would be so lucky and actually grow up alive.

Later, Madam Feng thought that since Liu Taohua was going to marry a high-ranking official in the city, and her family couldn't afford a maid, she would have Maihua accompany Liu Taohua to her new home as a maid. However, last year, someone actually came to propose marriage and was willing to give three taels of silver, so she decided to agree. She felt that it would be more prestigious for her daughter to bring silver to her husband's family than to bring a maid.

Unexpectedly, Maihua was divorced and sent home not long after her marriage. Madam Feng was even angrier. She was not so kind as to let such a grown woman continue to live a life of leisure, and she was really worried that having a divorced daughter in the family would affect Liu Taohua's marriage prospects later.

Fortunately, Liu Taohua said that Maihua could remarry. That way, she could receive another dowry and still have Maihua under her thumb. Thinking this way, Feng Shi wasn't so angry anymore.

Feng Shi calmed down, but Liu Taohua clenched her handkerchief tightly. She walked out of the cave where Feng Shi was, stood in the courtyard, and stared at the tree branches swaying in the wind at the gate, her eyes chillingly cold.

Back then, everyone said she was intelligent. Every time her father finished teaching her to read, he would say, "If our Peach Blossom were a son, he would definitely be able to become the top scholar in the imperial examination."

But her father died early.

Although he arranged a seemingly good marriage for her before his death, she knew at a young age that no matter how good the marriage was, it was not as reliable as having her own father.

When Liu Xiucai passed away, his classmate brought his son to offer incense. She only remembered that the boy's surname was Lu and that he was a handsome young man; she had no other recollection. Over the years, there has been no news of the boy's family. She only learned that the boy had passed the imperial examination and become a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial-level imperial examinations) by paying someone in the county to inquire about him.

Thinking of this, Liu Taohua turned and went to her cave dwelling. From a locked cabinet by the kang (heated brick bed), she took out a worn and yellowed piece of paper and gently opened it. Although she had memorized the contents completely, she couldn't help but read it again.

The words on the paper were written by Liu Xiucai's classmate. It stated that his son was named Lu Qingwen, who was three years older than Liu Taohua. The two families agreed to a marriage alliance, and the paper also contained the other party's handwritten signature and bright red fingerprint.

Liu Taohua clutched the paper tightly, her heart filled with anticipation and anxiety. She knew that this letter was her hope for the future, and her only way out of Niujiazhuang, this muddy village.

Although she knew in her heart that Lu Qingwen might have forgotten about the childhood betrothal, or that he might have his own thoughts and plans, she still chose to believe in Liu Xiucai's promise and in the importance that scholars placed on their reputation.

Liu Taohua took a deep breath, put the letter back in the cabinet, and locked it. She turned and walked into the courtyard, looking at the few cave dwellings there, a cold smile appearing on her lips. She would never be like the characters in the opera, enduring eighteen years of hardship in a cold cave.

……

Hu Xirong, carrying Maihua like a victorious general, strode through the village and returned to Old Ji's house. As soon as she entered, she called out, "Mother, Ling'er, I brought Maihua!"

As Yang was sweeping the chicken coop, she heard the noise and looked towards the door, saying, "Maihua's here! Have you eaten yet? If not, I'll make you something."

Maihua smiled at Madam Yang, her eyes crinkling, and said, "Second Madam, I've already eaten. Thank you and Auntie." As she spoke, she turned to look at Hu Xirong.

Hu Xirong smiled brightly and said, "Hey, don't thank me like that. Hurry up and get to work and earn money. Earning money is the most important thing. We farmers have planted a lot of land, but we still don't have any money. Let me tell you, this is the first time I've earned money with my own abilities. I can't describe the feeling. Let me put it this way, I feel more useful than when I gave birth to my son. Anyway, I feel so good!"

Yang continued cleaning the chicken coop without turning her head, saying, "Stop yelling and shouting here. Hurry up and go to your third sister-in-law's place and finish cutting the rest of the cloth. Otherwise, I'll deduct half of your money for cutting this piece of cloth."

Upon hearing this, Hu Xirong hurriedly stepped forward and grabbed Yang's arm: "Mother, I'm just taking care of some important business. We agreed to split the money for this piece of cutting three times over, so we can't go back on our word. Also, I've been cooking and doing laundry these past few days while collecting medicinal herbs, so my wages can't be less than what I promised."

Yang ignored her and continued, "It's no use telling me this. Ling'er said it's called something like 'the father-in-law enforces the law'."

Hearing this, Ji Yongning, who had already gone to the pigpen to feed the pigs, shouted, "Grandma, it's about enforcing the law impartially."