allendalepharm Chapter 376 - 199: Competition (2)
Chapter 376 - 199: Competition (2)
She hadn’t even finished speaking when Liu Yungen burst out with a snort of laughter. "Laicai, support his family? That’s a real gut-buster. If he can do that, pigs can fly."
He had finally found someone worse off than himself. ’I may not be able to compete with you,’ he thought, ’but surely I’m better than Laicai?’
Laicai had been listening intently to Juhua, his heart swelling with fighting spirit. He never expected to be mocked like that by Liu Yungen. He was instantly furious and about to retort, but Juhua patted his shoulder. "Don’t argue with him," she said. "Anyone can get into a war of words. What good are empty promises? You’d be better off using that energy to figure out how to apply yourself. Read more, and help your dad more with the housework. Once you start getting more capable, who will dare to laugh at you then?"
Laicai listened and nodded vigorously. "Right! Juhua, I’ll definitely change for the better. You just wait and see!"
He shot a sideways glance at Liu Yungen. ’I’m not going to argue with you now,’ he thought. ’I’m going to change for the better and leave you in the dust. Juhua said I’m even smarter than my dad. If I just apply myself, what is there that I can’t do?’
Liu Yunlan looked at her brother and said, "If even Laicai can knuckle down and improve himself, it’ll be a real disgrace if you don’t. You need to redeem yourself."
Seeing Laicai ignore him and hearing Juhua’s comment about empty promises, Liu Yungen felt a fire light within him. "Sis, don’t you worry. I’ll definitely work hard. You just watch. If there’s anything I’m not doing right, you tell me, and I promise I’ll listen."
Qingmu saw the two boys had squared off and couldn’t help but smile. "Alright, then. We’ll just have to see which of you two is more capable."
Juhua and Liu Yunlan exchanged a smile.
Liu Yunlan then brought out two pairs of shoes she had made for Qingmu and Juhua. When Juhua saw the neat, even stitching, she was delighted and praised them profusely. She then quickly brought out her own sewing basket to ask Yunlan for advice on her technique.
Qingmu saw the two of them with their heads bent together, speaking intimately. Noticing Laicai and Liu Yungen sitting there looking utterly bored, he beckoned them to their feet. "Come on, I’ll take you two for a walk." With that, he scooped up Laishou and led them away.
Juhua heard them and quickly called out, "Brother, don’t go too far! It’s almost time to eat."
Qingmu called back that they’d be right back.
He figured the two boys were just bored and that lecturing them would be useless. It would be better to take them for a look around, to tell them about the plants in the fields and on the mountains, how to tend the crops, how to raise fish in the ponds, and so on. Maybe that would spark their interest.
And just as he’d hoped, by the end of the tour, both Laicai and Liu Yungen had warmed up to him considerably, peppering him with all sorts of strange and curious questions along the way.
When Liu Yungen saw that there really were big fish in the pond, he asked admiringly, "Qingmu, your village has the dregs from making acorn tofu to feed the fish in winter. Other villages can’t manage that; you can’t even cut grass in the winter."
Qingmu smiled. "If you were really serious about raising fish, you’d just have to store up some fodder in a cellar ahead of time. That’s all there is to it. For us, this is just a bonus."
He shot him another glance. "Your sister grows Shanyu, doesn’t she? The Shanyu vines feed the pigs, the Shanyu itself is used to make starch for cellophane noodles, so can’t the dregs from making the starch be used to feed fish? Of course, your family doesn’t have a fishpond, so it’s better to use those dregs for the pigs. They’ll fatten up on it."
Liu Yungen nodded. "Our family uses the Shanyu dregs to feed the pigs."
He suddenly said with excitement, "This year I’m going to plant those carrots you mentioned! But my sister says the fields need to rest and recover over the winter, or the soil will get more and more depleted."
Qingmu told him that if he raises a lot of pigs, he can collect the manure, burn some wood ash, mix it all with some composted soil, and use that to line the planting holes for the carrots. He said it works wonders.
Liu Yungen nodded, taking a mental note.
Qingmu thought for a moment, then said with a gentle smile, "Yungen, your sister is so clever; you should be proud and try to learn from her. I’ve noticed that many families in your village aren’t nearly as good at planning and organizing as she is. If you just study under her for a couple of years, there’s nothing you won’t be able to do."
For once, Liu Yungen didn’t feel his usual rebelliousness flare up; he actually took the words to heart. Gazing at Qingmu, who spoke to him so gently, he suddenly no longer felt so awkward and realized this future brother-in-law of his was actually pretty decent.
Laicai, who still knew nothing about farming, could only listen. He listened very attentively, though whether he actually understood any of it was another matter entirely.
Although the two boys had made competing vows, changing one’s disposition isn’t something that can happen overnight. It was merely a goal that had been set to give them something to strive for.
At lunchtime, they had a lively meal, splitting up into a table for the men and another for the women. Both the hosts and the guests were in high spirits.
Zheng Changhe and Liu Fugui had both had too much to drink. The two prospective fathers-in-law held hands, speaking intimately and endlessly praising each other’s children. As they talked, Liu Fugui’s eyes grew red.
He spoke to Zheng Changhe from the bottom of his heart. "Old brother, I’m not going to put on a show for you, there’s no point—you can see for yourself I’m a man of no great prospects, and my wife’s the same. We’re two of a kind, one no better than the other. It’s my poor daughter who’s the capable one. She’s been looking after the family since she was a child. I’ve lived half my life, and I’m still having my own daughter teach me how to be a decent man. But what can I do? This is the extent of my abilities; I’m a man of shallow insight. It doesn’t matter that I’m useless, as long as my daughter is happy. My only fear was holding her back. Now that our families are joined, I can finally rest easy—you and your wife are both sharp, sensible people. With her going to your family, I feel a hundred percent at ease."
Zheng Changhe’s eyes widened. "What kind of talk is that? We’re farmers. Which one of us has any great abilities? Aren’t we all just simple people with limited horizons who only know how to farm a few acres! You’re from the same village as Qingmu’s maternal grandmother and eldest uncle; everyone knows everyone’s background. Knowing we’re all honest folk is what matters. And if you want to talk about capability, I can’t hold a candle to my son and daughter either. We’re old now, no need to get hung up on saving face."(To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian.com and vote for it with recommendation tickets and monthly passes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)