Chapter 340: Chapter 339: Xiao Yu’s Worries

Xiao Yang was getting married in the spring, so the He Family was bustling with activity before the New Year even arrived.

Gao Cuiyun and Mrs. He were at home making wedding quilts. The fabric and cotton were all brand new.

With no one to play with at home, Xiao Yu went out by herself.

Not far away, a few boys were playing with pebbles. Xiao Yu walked over to them.

She thought their game looked interesting, but she didn’t dare ask to join, so she just stood and watched.

Just then, the children noticed her.

"Hey, who are you?"

Xiao Yu whispered, "I’m Xiao Yu."

"Who’s Xiao Yu?"

An older boy said, "Oh, I know who she is. She’s that kid with no mom and dad."

"No mom and dad? Doesn’t that make her an orphan?"

Xiao Yu retorted, "I’m not an orphan! I’m not a kid with no mom and dad. My mom’s still around, and I have my grandma and grandpa. I have a family. I’m not an orphan!"

"Yes, you are! My mom said so. Your mom ran away and your dad’s dead, so you don’t have a mom or a dad. If you’re not an orphan, what are you?"

The accusation made Xiao Yu burst into tears. "I’m not an orphan! I have a mom! You’re the orphans!"

"Liar! Then where’s your mom now, huh? How come we’ve never seen her?"

Tears streaming down her face, Xiao Yu looked at them and insisted, "My mom’s in the city! You’ll see her someday! I’m not an orphan."

A voice called out from a short distance away, "Hey, kids! Are you bullying her?"

When the children saw He Ziming approaching, they all scattered and ran.

Only Xiao Yu was left, wiping her tears. He Ziming walked up to her and asked, "Did they bully you?"

Xiao Yu didn’t say anything.

Seeing that she wasn’t talking, He Ziming tugged on her sleeve. "Come on, let’s go home. Don’t mind them. They’re just a bunch of brats."

Xiao Yu shook his hand off and ran home.

Mrs. He was busy all day and didn’t notice Xiao Yu’s mood. It wasn’t until that evening, as they were getting ready for bed, that Mrs. He saw Xiao Yu seemed upset.

"What’s wrong? Did your cousins bully you?"

Xiao Yu shook her head.

"Then what is it?"

Xiao Yu still didn’t say anything.

Mrs. He didn’t press her further and started getting the quilts ready on the kang bed.

It was only when Mrs. He was helping Xiao Yu get undressed for bed that the little girl mumbled, "Grandma, I want my mom to come back."

Mrs. He didn’t hear her clearly. "What did you say?"

Xiao Yu couldn’t bring herself to say it again and just shook her head.

Mrs. He chided her, "If you have something to say, just say it. Why are you hemming and hawing? A child your age shouldn’t be overthinking things all day. Just focus on eating well and getting enough sleep."

Xiao Yu swallowed the words that were on the tip of her tongue.

Over in the rooms of the second family, the three brothers were sleeping on one kang bed for the night.

"Second Brother, can’t you wash your feet before getting on the kang? They stink to high heaven," He Ziming said, pinching his nose.

Xiao Yang deliberately lifted his foot and stuck it closer to him. "You think I stink? Then why’d you follow me to Big Brother’s room to sleep? Go back to your own room."

He Ziming quickly lay down. "No way! I want to sleep with Big Brother too."

Wrinkling his nose at the smell in the room, Little Chen frowned. "Second Brother, get down and wash your feet."

Xiao Yang sniffed the air. "Big Brother, I don’t think they smell that bad. I just washed them last night. Besides, I’m already in bed."

"Get down. Wash your feet, then come back up. Otherwise, go back to your own room."

Seeing that his big brother had laid down the law, Xiao Yang hopped off the kang to wash his feet. "Such a pain."

He Ziming laughed. "Second Brother, you’re so unhygienic. Your wife will probably be disgusted with you too. Don’t be surprised if she doesn’t let you on the kang! HA HA HA."

Little Chen laughed too.

Xiao Yang grumbled, "Of course I’ll be more mindful when I have a wife. I’m not married yet, am I?"

Little Chen said, "Habits are formed over time. The way you are, how long can you pretend? Your wife will get fed up with you sooner or later."

Xiao Yang paused, then declared righteously, "Starting tomorrow, I’ll wash them every day."

Once the three brothers were lying down with the lights off, Xiao Yang spoke up. "It’s so much better now that you’re back, Big Brother. Usually it’s just me and Third Brother, and it’s so boring."

He Ziming took offense at that. "What do you mean it’s boring with me? I think *you’re* the boring one!"

Little Chen chuckled. "Alright, alright. I heard from Mom that the harvest was pretty good this year, and you two both earned full work points."

Xiao Yang said proudly, "Of course! You work hard earning money out there, so we work hard farming and taking care of Mom back home. Life is bound to get better and better. And once I get married, our family will have another pair of hands. We’ll definitely have more grain next year."

Little Chen nodded. "I believe it. But I read in the newspaper that some places are starting land reforms. You don’t have to report for collective labor anymore. Instead, the land is contracted out to individual households. It’s a household responsibility system. That means we’d have our own land."

Hearing this, Xiao Yang shot upright. He yanked on the light switch and looked at his brother excitedly.

"For real? Is that even possible?"

Little Chen told him, "That’s what the newspaper said. It said they’ve already set up pilot sites. If the yields are high, they’ll probably roll it out everywhere."

He Ziming exclaimed, "Whoa! If that happens, then all those slackers in the village will be in trouble."

Xiao Yang was especially thrilled. His brother was away most of the year, so he was the main laborer on the family’s land. If the land was allocated to them personally, he could plant whatever he wanted. The very thought of it made him happy.

Then, He Ziming brought up Xiao Yu. "Today, I saw Gousheng’s son bullying her. The little girl looked so pitiful."

Xiao Yang said with contempt, "Who isn’t pitiful? I’m pitiful too! I work from dawn till dusk every day. She gets to eat without doing a thing all day. What’s so pitiful about that?"

Little Chen didn’t say anything.

Back when He Ze and Gao Cuiyun divorced, He Ziming was too young to remember, so he didn’t harbor much resentment toward Xiao Yu. But Xiao Yang was different. He remembered it all clearly—that vixen had seduced his father. Of course, his father wasn’t blameless, either.

Little Chen said, "Don’t worry about other people’s business. Let’s get to sleep."

Speaking of Xiao Yu, Little Chen didn’t really have strong feelings about her one way or the other. But he had been living away from home for the past two years and rarely visited his Third Uncle’s place, which was more or less related to the situation.

「Two days later.」

He Nan and his family returned.

Hearing that Xiao Yang was engaged, He Nan clapped him on the shoulder and said, "Attaboy! You’re about to get married! Congratulations."

Xiao Yang said happily, "Thanks, Uncle."

Xiao Nian asked Xiao Yang curiously, "Brother Xiao Yang, what does it feel like to be getting a wife?"

Little Chen laughed. "What, you want to get a wife too?"

Xiao Nian quickly waved his hands. "I don’t want a wife! I have the college entrance exams next year. I’m going to get into a university in Beijing City!"

Little Chen nodded. "That’s a good goal. Congratulations in advance. I’ll be waiting for you in Beijing City."

Xiao Nian puffed out his chest. "Definitely!"

Mr. He asked He Nan, "How are Xiao Nian’s grades? Is he confident he can get into a university in Beijing City?"

He Nan nodded. "They’re pretty good. Ziqing tutors him every time she comes back, and he’s been in the top few at his school in this year’s exams."

Mr. He exclaimed in admiration, "Looks like the He Family is going to produce another university student!"