When Jun Jiuli and the others returned to the thatched cottage, Zhao Xin Nuan had already changed her clothes and was sitting on the bed with red eyes.
Jun Jiuli sat on the bed, rubbing her sore shoulders, looking dejected.
"I'm so tired. Chen Guang, how are you feeling?"
"I'm alright. You don't have to push yourself so hard."
"Okay, we won't let Zhili and the others go in the afternoon."
"Mm, there's water left in the basin. Wash your face. You rest more, I'll go cook."
The water in the small clay stove boiled. Zhao Chen Guang slowly sprinkled in the cornmeal, stirring it constantly with chopsticks.
After it was cooked, it was the family's lunch, with no side dishes.
The cornmeal was ground, and it was quite coarse, sent by the village chief. It was still a bit scratchy in the throat even after cooking. Zhao Chen Guang, an adult, couldn't get used to it.
He could only force himself to swallow it as he had to work again in the afternoon. The two children ate it with tears in their eyes.
"There isn't much cornmeal. Let's make it thinner next time. You have more work, so eat more. We'll eat less,"
Jun Jiuli said, pouring more than half of her rice into Zhao Chen Guang's bowl. When Zhao Chen Guang tried to give it back, she immediately stopped him.
"I can't get used to it. Don't waste food."
Zhao Chen Guang took this as comfort, his heart filled with self-blame and guilt.
In the afternoon, Jun Jiuli's movements clearly slowed down. Several aunts looked at her with displeasure.
After a day's work, the scorekeeper only credited her with three work points, while her sister, who had the same workload, received six.
The scorekeeper left after finishing the records, giving Jun Jiuli no chance to argue with him.
Zhao Chen Guang's arms ached terribly. Both his hands were covered in blisters, and his back and face stung from the sun.
"Chen Guang, how many work points did the scorekeeper give you? I just saw him give me only three. If this continues, will we have enough food next year?"
Zhao Chen Guang frowned. He hadn't expected such a thing. He knew exactly how much work Jun Jiuli had done and that it shouldn't be so little.
"I don't know. We'll ask tomorrow."
"Mm, return the tools and go up the mountain to collect firewood."
"Okay."
The weeds were deep, and the small path was difficult to navigate. One wrong step could lead to a fall. Dragging their tired bodies, they walked for a long time without finding any firewood.
"Do we have to cut down trees ourselves? These trees look new, and there's no cut wood. Brother Xu Han must have picked up branches that the villagers didn't want."
"We don't have tools either. You sit here and rest and wait for me. I'll go in and look around."
"Okay."
Jun Jiuli found a shady spot to sit and wait for him. It was meant to be watching someone suffer, so why should she suffer herself?
Jun Jiuli's pace, not following Zhao Chen Guang, clearly slowed down. His back was so sore that walking was difficult.
There were some dry, rotten logs in the forest, as well as some small branches with leaves. There was nothing more.
He collected them, and it took him a long time to break a vine. He used it as a rope to tie the firewood into a bundle and walked back to find Jun Jiuli.
When Jun Jiuli saw what he was holding, her eyes were filled with disappointment, and she didn't say a word.
"Let's go back. Xin Nuan must be waiting anxiously."
Zhao Chen Guang also felt useless and lowered his head, not daring to say anything.
As soon as they reached the thatched cottage, the two children rushed out and hugged Zhao Chen Guang, crying earth-shatteringly, forcing him to bring them back to the city no matter what.
"Stop crying. I asked you both, and you agreed to come with us. We've worked all day. Can you be more sensible?"
"We don't want to be sensible. Children can change their minds. I know I was wrong, Mom. Please take me with you, okay? We don't want Dad anymore. Let him stay here alone. I want to go back to Grandma's house with you."
Zhao Xin Nuan: "Me too, me too! I didn't agree to come to this dump. It was brother who said it. Mom, please take me."
Jun Jiuli looked angry and walked into the house without them, "I can't take anyone with me."
"You're lying, you're lying, woo woo woo..."
After a day of exhaustion, returning home meant facing two willful, crying children. And he had explained this matter of returning home countless times.
His anger surged to the top of his head. He threw the firewood to the ground, pulled out a small branch, and started hitting the two children.
"Woo woo woo~ Don't hit, don't hit. Dad is bad, I'll never talk to you again."
"You're not my dad. Mom, save me! Mom, please save me."
"Those bad kids bullied us, and you're bullying us too. I don't want Dad anymore. Woo woo woo~"
As the two children cried, they began to cough, their faces turning red. They couldn't catch their breath for a long time. Zhao Chen Guang put down the small branch in his hand and hugged them, crying.
"I'm sorry, it's my fault. Dad was wrong. Dad shouldn't have hit you. Dad didn't understand things. Tell Dad who bullied you, and Dad will help you get justice."
"Woo woo woo~"
"They said our background is bad, that we are bad kids, and it's right that they hit us. They surrounded me and my sister and threw mud at us. I didn't recognize them. Woo woo woo~"
The children's accusations made Zhao Chen Guang realize how incompetent he was.
Knowing his situation and that things wouldn't be good here, why did he drag his wife and two children along?
Did he feel better seeing them suffer with him? Why didn't he send them back to his wife's maiden home?
It was clear that there was still time, and they had actively asked for it. He himself had dragged them into hell, and now he didn't even have the ability to protect them.
"It's my fault, I'm incompetent, Dad was wrong."
He said, hitting his own face with his hands. The hardships he had endured these days, the immense mental self-reproach and pressure, had completely broken him.
Zhao Zhili and his sister were startled by his actions and stood there blankly, not daring to speak.
Having been bullied, they dared not leave Zhao Chen Guang's side again and had to follow him to work every day.
After a short period, they became dark and thin, and they changed from their previous lively and clever selves to being silent and withdrawn.
The cornmeal from the village chief was finished, and the family ate dried potatoes every day. The potatoes were also running out. httpδ:/m.kuAisugg.nět
"Dad, Nuan Nuan is so hungry. Will I starve to death?"
Zhao Chen Guang felt uncomfortable being stared at by her eyes, so he turned his head away and remained silent.
"Mom, I haven't eaten eggs in a long time. I also want to eat braised pork, and steamed fish..."
"Nuan Nuan, be good. Didn't Nuan Nuan eat these things before? Just imagine the taste in your mind, and you won't be hungry."
"Mom, I'm even hungrier."
As Zhao Xin Nuan spoke, saliva dripped from the corner of her mouth. She clutched her stomach, feeling extremely uncomfortable.
Zhao Zhili looked at Zhao Chen Guang with longing, "Dad, buy some meat. We haven't eaten meat in a long time."
"I'll go up the mountain and see if I can get some meat."
Zhao Xin Nuan: "Yay! Dad is the best."
Zhao Zhili: "Dad, go for it!"