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

Hu Xirong released Yang's hand and said, "No, I need to talk to Ling'er. Oh, where is she?"

"She and her second uncle and a few others went to the county to deliver medicinal herbs."

Hu Xirong looked around and, not seeing Ji Yongling, turned to look for Jia Ronghua. Maihua, meanwhile, sat down on a low stool under the apple tree and picked up a scrap of cloth and needle and thread from the table to begin her work.

Just as Jia Ronghua had coaxed Ji Yong'an to sleep, Hu Xirong came in.

Seeing the sleeping Ji Yong'an looking so adorable, Hu Xirong couldn't help but gently flick the baby's face with her finger. Then, she said excitedly in a low voice, "Oh dear, Third Sister-in-law, it's such a pity you didn't get to see the sights today. Tsk tsk, I never expected that this scholar's wife, Feng, who never looks down on anyone, would be so subservient to a village woman like me."

Jia Ronghua slapped Hu Xirong's arm with disdain: "Look at you, so capable, why bother arguing with someone like her who flatters the powerful and belittles the weak? Aren't you ashamed?"

Hu Xirong pouted: "I just can't stand her pretentious attitude. Before Peach Blossom's father passed the imperial examination, she was just like us, working the land. After being a scholar's wife for a few years, she thinks she's superior?"

"She thinks we villagers are rustic, dirty, and that the pigs stink! Even if she's an empress in the capital, without us villagers who grow grain, she wouldn't have the coarse food she eats! In the play, they say the Eastern Palace Empress bakes flatbreads, and the Western Palace Empress peels scallions. But she has to be waited on hand and foot every day!"

Jia Ronghua took a bolt of cloth and handed it to Hu Xirong, saying, "Alright, alright, it has nothing to do with us. Hurry up and cut the cloth, it's the last bolt, I guess Ling'er will have to buy two or three more."

Hu Xirong took the cloth and spread it out on the kang (a heated brick bed), still complaining, "She always claims to be a scholar's wife, look what she's done to Maihua! And look at Taohua, she doesn't do any chores, all she does is study and embroider, and prepare her dowry. Haha, she's so fair and delicate, if you didn't know better, you'd think Taohua's surname was Yang and Maihua's surname was Liu!"

Jia Ronghua, holding scissors in her hand, measured the piece of cloth from top to bottom and said, "Alright, no matter how much we feel sorry for Maihua, she is still Maihua's mother in name. Besides, look at Xinghua, she is her own daughter, but she can't compare to Taohua, she's just a little better than Maihua. Even five fingers are not all the same length, and people's hearts are also biased. It's normal to have favoritism towards children. In Feng's eyes, Taohua can marry into a higher social class, and Jiafa is a son who can inherit the family business, so she will definitely favor her more."

Hu Xirong stopped what she was doing, looked up at Jia Ronghua, and said seriously, "Sister-in-law, can I ask you for a favor?"

Jia Ronghua, puzzled, looked up and asked, "What are you up to now? You're being so serious, it's not like you at all."

Hu Xirong took Jia Ronghua's hand and said, "Third Sister-in-law, I'm serious, really. If one day I'm gone first, I'll entrust Yongning and the others to you. You don't need to take care of them much, just give the children something to eat so they don't starve. If you have enough money in the winter, make sure they have a pair of cotton shoes and a cotton coat so they don't freeze to death. The rest is up to their fate." After saying this, she wiped away her tears.

Jia Ronghua said blankly, "What's wrong with you? You were fine just now, how did you start talking about such distant things? Even if you're not here, there's still Manqing. And with your ability to eat, drink, and make a lot of noise, even if I leave, you'll still be gone. What's that old saying, 'A legacy lasts a thousand years'?"

Hu Xirong wiped away her tears, patted Jia Ronghua's arm, curled her lips, and said, "Third sister-in-law, look at you, you ruined the mood that everyone was trying to build up. Men are all heartless, I can't risk Manqing's conscience. People say, 'It's better to live with a beggar's mother than a father who is an official,' and with a stepmother comes a stepfather."

“We’ve known each other for so many years, but I still trust you more. Anyway, let’s not talk about that. I need to make money. Ling’er has found a way for her mother and aunt to make money, and I have to seize it. Besides, if I make money and then pass away, I can leave the money to the child.”

Jia Ronghua laughed and said, "Aren't we leaving it for Manqing?"

Hu Xirong raised her eyebrows and said feigned anger, "What's the point of leaving it for him? To let him marry a concubine? So he'll sleep on my bed, spend my money, and raise my child? Dream on!"

Jia Ronghua laughed so hard she couldn't stand up straight, and Ji Yong'an next to her hummed twice before the two women stopped laughing and started working seriously.

.........

Inside the Xu Family Pharmacy, Dr. Xu was setting the bones of the man in front of him.

With a "snap," the man stretched his neck and said happily, "Oh, that's it! It really doesn't hurt anymore. Dr. Xu, you truly live up to your reputation as a miracle doctor. Thank you so much!"

Dr. Xu waved his hand and said, "You still need to rest for a while when you get back. Don't bend over and chop vegetables every day. Your neck can't take it."

The man smiled sheepishly: "Doctor, as you know, I make a living by chopping and preparing vegetables. If I don't bend down and chop vegetables, my family will starve. I really can't afford to rest."

Dr. Xu knew that this man worked in the kitchen of the only restaurant in the county. To earn more money, sometimes after the restaurant closed in the evening, he would go to help wealthy families with weddings and funerals by chopping vegetables until late at night, and then come back to work at the restaurant the next day. He sighed, didn't say anything, and waved his hand to let him leave.

After bowing again to express his gratitude, the man prepared to turn and leave.

A woman with freckles on her face called out to him from behind, asking, "Are you the vegetable chopper who cooked for the banquet at Zhang the Rich Man's house in Zhangjiabao earlier this month?"

The man turned around and saw a strange woman. He said, "Yes, I cut the vegetables at the banquet at the Zhang family's house in Zhangjiabao. I carved the radishes and winter melons. Who are you?"

The freckled woman smiled and said, "I'm from Zhangjiabao. I helped wash the dishes the other day, didn't I? I heard you say that you once hosted a banquet there. There was a person there who had epilepsy. What kind of deworming powder did he take?"

The man nodded: "Yes, that's true. I was chopping vegetables elsewhere when a waiter told me about it, but I only overheard it. He didn't say exactly where he heard it, and I didn't pay attention. I just listened as if it were something interesting or strange, and didn't know if it was true or not. Why are you asking about this?"

The freckled woman sighed and said, "Oh, the day before yesterday, a teenager in my hometown village had an epileptic seizure and bit off his tongue, which killed him."

"Oh, poor child. This, this, this seizure, everyone's condition is different. Your child might have some other illness. I heard from someone that there are worms in their brain, and that medicine is the only thing that works."

Another fair-skinned woman waiting to see a doctor chimed in, "You two, please stop talking. It's really creepy. I'm already feeling uneasy because I'm sick, and what you two are saying is making my chest feel even worse."