"Daughter, let me and your father discuss this matter, alright?" Madam Gu pinched Xiao Xitian's face.
Xiao Xitian lowered her gaze and listlessly took a sip of milk, falling silent.
Seeing this, Yun Sanman smiled and said, "Mother, why don't I take sister along? It's no good for her to be cooped up at home all day!"
Old Man Yun kicked him under the table upon hearing this. "Hasn't your sister been to enough places this year? She's been to the prefectural city and even took a good look around Bocai Academy. In my opinion, with the new year approaching, it's best for her to stay home for a few days, to settle her mind. After the new year, when she's six, it will be time for her to start attending elementary school..." kuAiδugg
Since Old Man Yun had spoken, there was nothing more for the family to say. After dinner, they began to busy themselves packing for Yun Sanman.
"Mother, it's getting cold in the mornings and evenings. Look, Miss Shangguan is still wearing thin clothes. Why don't we make her a padded jacket and padded trousers?" Du Tieshan sat on the edge of the kang, packing Shangguan Fang'er's belongings into a bundle.
Madam Gu sighed, "It's too late to make them now. Sanman leaves tomorrow. If it really doesn't work out, we can just buy one from the ready-made clothing shop in the county town..."
"That's fine!" Du Tieshan nodded with a smile. "I'll have Er Man go buy one!"
"Hey, what do you mean by having him buy it?" Madam Gu stopped her. "If Sanman had the intention, he should have dressed Fang'er properly. It's enough for us to ensure she doesn't go hungry or freeze..."
After speaking, Madam Gu let go of Du Tieshan and pulled Xiao Xitian, who was sitting by the pile of quilts, closer. "Daughter, come, have some dried hawthorn!"
Xiao Xitian was a little upset because she couldn't go, and her cheeks were puffed out.
She had wanted to help Sister Fang'er with her illness, but it had backfired.
"Haha, Sweetie is angry!" Du Tieshan tickled her nose when she saw Xiao Xitian's dejected look.
Madam Gu, of course, understood her daughter's thoughts. She hugged Xiao Xitian close. "Daughter, you know how cold it is outside. If you get sick, how heartbroken I would be..."
"Take Old Man Wang from our village, for example. Last year he went out to sell mountain goods with others, and when he came back, his feet were so frostbitten, they were covered in sores. No ointment worked, and in the end, he lost a toe!"
As she spoke, Madam Gu kissed Xiao Xitian's little chubby face. "My daughter is destined for great things. It wouldn't do if you lost a toe or an ear, would it?"
These words made Xiao Xitian laugh heartily. She lifted her little head and giggled, "Mother, Xitian won't lose any limbs..."
"Then tell Mother, why do you insist on going with Third Brother to collect furs?" Madam Gu brushed the hair from her daughter's face.
Xiao Xitian hesitated for a moment, then lowered her head and said, "To see a doctor!"
Then, she explained the whole story.
When Madam Gu heard this, she exchanged a glance with Du Tieshan and asked curiously, "So, you wanted to treat Fang'er, but you accidentally made things worse, which is why..."
"Yes, Mother. If Sister Fang'er remains half-crazy and half-foolish forever, what will happen to her later!" Xiao Xitian said with a worried expression. "Third Brother can't just abandon her, can he? Since he brought her back, he has to be responsible until the end, right?"
Madam Gu hummed and hugged her daughter tighter. "Mother sees it now. If even you can't cure her illness, then others are useless. So, this matter cannot be rushed. We must take it slow. Haste makes waste. Perhaps Fang'er will get better on her own one day..."
Xiao Xitian felt much better upon hearing this.
Mother always spoke so clearly and knew best how to comfort people.
Thinking of those people who had been bedridden for years and then suddenly opened their eyes wanting food one day, Xiao Xitian felt that Sister Fang'er would definitely wake up...
But whether she would accept Third Brother was another matter.
"Mother, I'm not going anymore!" Xiao Xitian's eyes curved, and she snuggled close to Madam Gu.
"You are truly Mother's good daughter!" Madam Gu smiled faintly.
In the west wing.
Zhao Guihua helped Yun Daman pack his things and said, "Daman, are you really going? Didn't you hear Sanman say that once you leave, you won't be back until the New Year? What if... what if you encounter bandits or robbers on the road!"
Yun Daman: "..."
I haven't even left yet, and you're already talking about bandits. It's making me not want to go.
"It's fine. With my strength, who would dare to rob me?" Yun Daman said with a smile.
If this trip yielded some profit, he would definitely go to the county town to open a small restaurant for his wife.
This matter had been put off for too long; it couldn't be delayed any further...
Zhao Guihua folded the clothes and was about to say something when Xiao Zhuzi started crying loudly.
She quickly unbuttoned her top, picked up Xiao Zhuzi, and nursed him. "Daman, it's okay if we don't open the restaurant. Don't put too much pressure on yourself. And that business isn't easy to do. If you lose money, how painful would that be!"
"Oh, Guihua!" Yun Daman sat down beside Zhao Guihua. "You worry too much. If you're always thinking 'this won't work' and 'that's scary,' how can we earn money? Even if I don't know how to do business, Sanman has been running shops for so many years, doesn't he understand? If there's anything I don't understand, I'll just ask him..."
Zhao Guihua snorted after hearing this. "Even close brothers keep clear accounts. And I can see it, ever since Sanman brought Fang'er back, he's clearly changed!"
"Changed what? He has someone to care about now, and he has to support Jingde. He can't just cater to others for everything!" Yun Daman said.
Actually, he hated it most when his wife spoke ill of his brother.
It was as if they had wronged him.
Zhao Guihua glared at him. "In any case, I've said what I needed to say. If you insist on going, I won't stop you. But if you dare to flirt with other women outside, I... I'll pack up Xiao Zhuzi and leave home. See if I dare!"
Yun Daman: "..."
Is he the type of person who would philander?
What is Guihua thinking about all day?
Yun Daman saw his wife wrinkling her nose and pouting, and a hint of mischievousness arose in his heart. "Guihua, isn't it popular now to have three wives and four concubines? What if I really meet a beautiful, radiant woman, I'll bring her back as a concubine. Then you'll be the main wife, and she'll be the concubine, what do you say?"
Zhao Guihua's face turned red at a visible speed. Yun Daman stifled a laugh and continued, "Don't worry, Guihua. I'll still treat you the same. If that concubine is disobedient or unreasonable, you can discipline her. I won't get angry..."
Hearing this, Zhao Guihua slowly put Xiao Zhuzi down on the kang and then lunged at Yun Daman at a hundred-meter sprint speed.
"You scoundrel, I'll rip that thing off you!"