SLH | Chapter 13

Xia Ge’er Gets Bullied

The two were so engrossed in their chat that they lost track of time. Liu Hu stood up and blocked most of the sunlight, making it hard to see the drawings clearly.

Tian Le tilted his body, not wanting to take his eyes off the drawings for even a second. “Brother Huzi, what are you doing? I was just discussing something important with my sister-in-law’s husband.”

Liu Hu ignored him and looked at his own wife, stubbornly saying, “Wife, you should go inside and rest.”

Song Tingzhu looked up at the man, a smile appearing on his lips. “Husband, can you give me a little more time?”

Hearing this, Liu Hu’s body froze for a moment.

Tian Le also blushed, lowering his head and rubbing the pages of the book with his fingers, his heart pounding.

He had never heard such a term in the village. His mother called his father “the head of the house,” and when she was angry, she would call him by his full name. Growing up, he had only occasionally heard it in town, but it was never as tender and sweet as his sister-in-law’s husband, almost like a coquettish tone. As a young man, even his ears felt tingly from hearing it.

He sneaked a glance at Brother Huzi, seeing him staring dumbfounded at his sister-in-law’s husband, and couldn’t help but cover his mouth and laugh.

Noticing Le Ge’er’s trembling shoulders, Song Tingzhu felt his ears heat up. He immediately averted his gaze and said to the man, “Just half an hour, I have a few more words to say to Le Ge’er.”

“Half an hour later, I’ll help you inside to rest.”

Seeing Song Tingzhu nod in agreement, Liu Hu turned back to where he was. He looked at the unfinished mat on the ground, losing the mood to weave, and touched his chest with his hand, his honest face full of confusion.

When his wife called him “husband” just now, his heart was beating so fast, like a drum. He had never felt like this before. Could it be that he was sick?

Liu Hu furrowed his thick brows and carefully felt it again.

It seemed to have gotten better now, so he didn’t pay much attention to it and picked up the mat to continue weaving.

Half an hour later, Tian Le walked out of the Liu family courtyard with a spring in his step, holding the drawings. Song Tingzhu, under the watchful eye of his husband, climbed into bed to rest.

At sunset, just as the sun was setting, Ruan Xiulian and her family returned to their small courtyard.

Liu Meng took the reins from his father and shouted, “Mom, I’m going to take the ox cart to Landlord Zhang’s house.”

“Go ahead.”

“Dad, where’s Xia Ge’er’s sugar figurine?!”

The little guy had fallen asleep on the way back after spending a few hours in town. He only woke up when the ox cart entered the village. He was still a bit dazed, but once his father took him off the cart, he remembered that the sugar figurine his aunt had bought for him was missing!

Tang Chunxing said from the side, “Your mom is holding it for you. How could she lose it?”

Xia Ge’er smiled with a small face, “Give it to Xia Ge’er. Uncle didn’t see the lanterns or eat anything delicious. Xia Ge’er wants to give the sugar figurine to Uncle to sweeten his mouth.”

Tang Chunxing felt a bit jealous seeing her little brother constantly mentioning her brother-in-law, “A sugar figurine isn’t worth much. Your uncle wouldn’t care about it.”

Xia Ge’er pouted, “No, Xia Ge’er already promised Uncle this morning~”

He kicked his little feet, anxious, “Dad, let Xia Ge’er down quickly.”

“Okay, I’ll let you down now.”

As soon as he touched the ground, the little guy ran towards the west room with his short legs.

Liu Xiaomei followed closely behind.

She made a little money today selling handkerchiefs and pouches, not only buying gifts for her parents but also bringing something for her sister-in-law’s husband.

Inside the west room, Song Tingzhu had already heard the commotion in the courtyard. Just as he finished getting dressed, Xia Ge’er knocked on the door.

“Uncle, Xia Ge’er brought back a sugar figurine for you! Aunt also brought you a gift!”

“Sister-in-law’s husband, I brought you a hair ribbon. The others were too expensive, and I can’t afford them yet. When I get better at embroidery and earn more money, I’ll buy you a gold-embroidered cloud pattern one. It’s really beautiful, made of silk.”

The two little ones surrounded the bed, chattering away. Song Tingzhu didn’t find it noisy at all; instead, he felt it was very heartwarming. He smiled and asked Xiaomei and Xia Ge’er if the lanterns were beautiful, if there were many people, and if the acrobatics were amazing.

“The lanterns were so beautiful! There were so many people, like this many~” The little guy spread his arms wide, speaking exaggeratedly, “Xia Ge’er was almost squished~”

“Really? Let Uncle see if your tummy got squished.” Song Tingzhu reached out and touched the little guy’s round belly, then smiled and said, “It’s okay, it didn’t get squished.”

Xia Ge’er liked Song Tingzhu and was willing to get close to him. After being touched, he leaned his body towards Song Tingzhu’s embrace.

“Because Dad was holding Xia Ge’er the whole time~”

The three of them chatted for a while before they finally went to the main room to eat.

The Liu family had a feast today, with scrambled eggs, bacon stir-fried with cabbage, and large buns bought in town. Most of the buns were vegetable-filled, with only five meat-filled ones. Each male member of the family got one meat-filled bun, and the remaining two were shared among the four women.

Ruan Xiulian broke a thin-skinned, thick-filled meat bun in half and gave the slightly larger half to Song Tingzhu.

“Brother Zhu, you look much better recently. One of these days, have Huzi bring the doctor home to take a look. If you’re feeling better, let Xiaomei accompany you outside more often. Staying cooped up at home all the time can turn even a small illness into a big one.”

Liu Dasheng, who usually spoke little, also chimed in, “That’s right. When my leg was said to be untreatable by the doctor, I just let it be. I ate and drank as usual, did what I had to do, and who knew that once my mood improved, my body followed suit. Later, I could even walk around.”

Ruan Xiulian added, “The doctor said it was miraculous, saying our family had good fortune.”

Then she turned to her son-in-law and said, “Brother Zhu, just relax and don’t worry about anything. Focus on getting better. You don’t have to worry about money. Your father-in-law and I can still work. Once the weather warms up, Huzi can find a stable job. Our family is full of hardworking people, and our days will only get better.”

Her words touched Song Tingzhu deeply, making his eyes well up. He held back the urge to cry and softly replied, “I understand, Mother.”

－

After the New Year, the holiday season was truly over. As mid-spring approached, farmers became increasingly busy. The Liu family also began to go to bed early and rise early, spreading manure and compost in preparation for spring planting.

Early one morning, the Liu family left the house before dawn, each busy with their own tasks. Liu Xiaomei stayed behind to cook, and the youngest, Xia Ge’er, was assigned the task of taking a small bamboo basket woven by Liu Dasheng to Aunt Cai’s house in the east of the village to exchange for tofu.

As he entered the gate, the little guy squinted his eyes into crescents and greeted brightly, “Granny Cai.”

“Oh, Xia Ge’er is here.”

Aunt Cai loved children the most. There wasn’t a child in the village she hadn’t held, but if there was one she adored the most, it was Xia Ge’er from the Liu family. Despite his young age, he was the most sensible, often helping the adults with chores, making him very likable.

After Aunt Cai doted on Xia Ge’er for a while, he lifted the small basket and said in a childish voice, “Granny Cai, I want to exchange for two pieces of tofu.”

“Alright, I’ll pack them up for you.”

Aunt Cai not only picked two large pieces but also added half a piece more. She bent down to hand the basket to Xia Ge’er and asked with concern, “Can you carry it? Should Granny Cai walk you back?”

Xia Ge’er shook his head, “Thank you, Granny Cai, I can carry it.”

Seeing how well-behaved he was, Aunt Cai patted the little guy’s hair and reminded him, “Alright, walk slowly and be careful not to fall.”

“Uh-huh, goodbye, Granny Cai~”

Aunt Cai watched Xia Ge’er walk away before returning to her courtyard.

The Liu family wasn’t far from the village entrance, but to get to Aunt Cai’s, one had to pass by Liu Ersheng’s house. Xia Ge’er was afraid of Old Biddy Du and Second Grandpa, so he always took a detour. He did the same today, but he couldn’t avoid trouble from the little ones at Liu Lao Er’s house.

Liu Ersheng’s eldest son’s two children were playing in the yard. The eldest, Liu Jie, was five years old. The little tyrant was used to being the boss at home and, influenced by Old Lady Liu, also hated Liu Dasheng’s family.

When he saw Xia Ge’er passing by the gate, he threw down what he was holding, ran straight over, and pushed Xia Ge’er to the ground, stomping the tofu in his little basket into a mushy mess.

“Who told you to pass by my house? How unlucky!”

Xia Ge’er was stunned for a moment. Once he realized what had happened, he lay on the ground and started crying loudly.

In the small courtyard of the Liu family, Song Tingzhu was sitting by the wall, basking in the sun. He hadn’t seen Xia Ge’er return for a while and was about to ask Xiaomei to go meet him when a plump woman ran breathlessly into the courtyard, shouting that something was wrong.

“Lingzhi, your Xia Ge’er is being bullied by Liu Lao Er’s kid. He’s lying on the ground crying right now!”

Author’s Note:

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