country bumpkin

Without Yunya by her side, Mu Shuyun felt uneasy. Her mind was in turmoil, and she just couldn't fall asleep.

Kong Tongming noticed that she was tossing and turning and wouldn't go to sleep, so he asked her what was wrong!

She said, "It's nothing, it's just that Yunya isn't around, so I can't sleep." Then she shed two more tears.

Kong Tongming saw that she was crying, wiped away her tears, and comforted her, saying, "Children will eventually leave their parents when they grow up, and the same goes for your granddaughter."

Mu Shuyun understood all this. Just like her children, they all grew up and left her side to live their own lives.

She said with a nasal tone, "I understand. At my age, I know all about these things. It's just that I can't bear to leave my child. I miss her."

Kong Tongming had no choice but to gently pat her back. "Alright, it's getting late, go to sleep!"

Mu Shuyun could only lie down again, and soon her husband's snoring could be heard.

The snoring sounded like a lullaby and put Mu Shuyun to sleep.

The next day was July 17th, the second day of school. Yunya and her sister were woken up by Kong Xiujuan and got up to wash their faces.

She was still angry about what happened yesterday, so she didn't speak to Sun Limei. Sun Limei waited until she finished washing her face before washing her own.

Many parents today don't understand dental hygiene at all, so Kong Xiujuan herself didn't know that she needed to brush her teeth in the morning and evening, nor did she teach her children these things.

There wasn't enough time to cook breakfast, so Yunya and Sun Limei could only make pancakes with boiled water, lard, and scallions.

The two sisters hastily ate half a bowl of scrambled eggs with pancakes and then went to school.

As they exited the gate, Sun Fei and Gu Yu from across the street came over, and they walked to school together.

Sun Limei looked around and saw that everyone there was her younger sister's friend and she didn't have any close friends of her own.

She turned her head and saw her classmate. She called out to her, and her classmate quickly ran over. She then walked away with her classmate.

Seeing that her older sister had abandoned them without even saying goodbye, Yunya didn't bother with her and went to school chatting and laughing with her friends.

After all the students who were supposed to go to school had left, Kong Xiujuan began to work. She got up, washed up, and then went to the donkey shed to fetch the donkey.

He then prepared the cornmeal and took the basin to feed the donkey. After the donkey finished eating the food in the basin, he threw it two dried peanut vines.

The donkey ate heartily, and Kong Xiujuan went back to the kitchen to cook.

I made three big bowls of egg noodles and poured the leftover vegetable soup from yesterday over them. Just as delicious.

Sun Zitao ate two bowls of noodles, while Kong Xiujuan and her son only ate one. Sun Zitao is young and strong, and he does heavy work, so he has a particularly large appetite.

Sometimes one person can eat as much as a whole family. After finishing his meal, Sun Zitao hitched up his donkey cart and went out to wait for work.

After feeding her son, Kong Xiujuan washed his face, took a toy and a water bottle, and pushed her tricycle with her son to Wang Yufeng's house.

Wang Yufeng's wife, Chu Yiping, had just finished packing and was heading out. She was also pushing a tricycle, which also carried toy water babies and two sickles.

When Kong Xiujuan saw her, she asked, "Sister Yiping, do you have any extra sickles? I haven't had time to buy one yet, so I'll borrow it for today."

Chu Yiping smiled and took two sickles from the tricycle, handing one to her and saying, "Here, I knew you hadn't prepared any tools. I suggested you go cut grass yesterday on the spur of the moment. Luckily, I have an extra one at home, so you can use it for now."

Kong Xiujuan accepted the sickle and exchanged a few polite words. Chu Yiping said, "No need to be so polite, we have a long time to get to know each other!"

Kong Xiujuan smiled and agreed. The two of them took their youngest sons to cut grass on the barren hillside on the outskirts of the city.

After they rode their tricycle shakily to the wasteland, they settled their youngest son aside to play with toys and drink water.

The two then began to cut grass. The sun gradually rose higher, and the weather became hot.

While cutting grass, Kong Xiujuan chatted with Chu Yiping, talking about household chores and lamenting the hardships of life.

Chu Yiping shared some tips on saving money at home.

Suddenly, Kong Xiujuan saw a nest of baby rabbits in the grass. The rabbits' eyes were not fully open yet, and they were very cute with their fluffy fur.

She excitedly called Chu Yiping to come and see. After looking at it, Chu Yiping said that wild rabbits are difficult to raise and it's better to leave them alone.

But Kong Xiujuan couldn't bear it, thinking that her children might like it.

Especially for Yunya, perhaps these small animals can distract her from her obsession with returning to the countryside.

So they carefully wrapped the rabbit hutch in cloth and placed it on the tricycle.

Sun Guoqiang and Wang Jilei's eyes lit up when they saw the little rabbits. They squeaked and squealed with joy.

Wang Jilei even grabbed a small rabbit, looked at it in front of his eyes, and smelled it.

The poor little rabbit was being carried by him, looking weak and helpless, and it was a pitiful sight.

Sun Guoqiang quickly snatched it back and put it back on the tricycle, muttering a complaint: "The little bunny is so cute, why did you grab it? It will hurt."

Wang Jilei looked at the fierce-looking Sun Guoqiang and was too scared to utter a sound.

Kong Xiujuan and Chu Yiping were completely unaware of what was happening on this side, and continued cutting grass.

It was already 10:30, almost time for the students to get out of school, and the two of them had almost finished cutting the grass. So they pedaled their bikes, carrying the child and the grass, back home.

On the way, she met other people who were also there to cut grass. They asked her curiously what was in the cloth bag. Kong Xiujuan smiled and said it was a few small wild rabbits.

The man joked that the kids would have something new to play with now.

Kong Xiujuan imagined with great anticipation the happy looks on her two older children's faces when they saw the wild rabbit, and she pedaled her bicycle a little faster.

Fortunately, they got home before the students were dismissed from school. They quickly went to the kitchen to cook.

At Chu Yiping's home, her mother-in-law had already prepared the meal. She didn't need to worry about delaying the students' meals.

Kong Xiujuan was quite busy. The children would be back soon, but the meal wasn't ready yet.

Let's keep it simple. I stewed a pot of bean sprouts and glass noodles with a small piece of pork.

Then they made a circle of cornbread around the pot, so now they had both a meal and a side dish. After the meal was ready, they also cooked a pot of savory soup.

The meal had just been prepared when the students came in.

Yunya skipped and hopped away, saying goodbye to Sun Fei and heading home. Gu Yu said goodbye to another friend and went home as well.

Sun Limei returned with Wang Jilei's older sister, Wang Shuting. At the fork in the road, they said goodbye and went their separate ways home.

When I got home, I saw a circle made of bricks in the yard, and inside were several little rabbits.

The younger siblings were gathered in a circle watching the rabbit. Their mother had already served the food and was calling the two sisters to help carry it.

They left Sun Zitao's portion of food warm in the pot. The mother and her children washed their hands and ate.

At the dinner table, Sun Limei asked Kong Xiujuan, "Mom, where did you get this little rabbit? It's so cute."

Kong Xiujuan recounted her experience of cutting grass that day.

At this moment, Yunya, who was eating in silence, asked, "Mommy, you took the little rabbit away. Will the mother rabbit be worried if she can't find her baby rabbits? Will they be sad? Also, will the little rabbits starve to death if they leave their mother?"

These words chilled Kong Xiujuan to the bone, reminding her of Yun Ya's experience.

Perhaps only Yunya can truly understand the feeling of being abandoned by her parents from a young age.

Sun Limei and Sun Guoqiang would never have thought of such things. They were both children who grew up surrounded by their parents, pampered and loved by them. How could they possibly imagine such things?