After picking a few dates, Chen Zi'an found himself in an awkward situation.
He had gotten excited and climbed up by himself, forgetting to bring any bags or baskets. After picking a handful of dates, he couldn't carry any more.
"Manxiu, I remember you have a bag for selling vegetables. Can you help me pack these dates?" Chen Zi'an had to ask Su Manxiu, who was under the tree, for help.
Su Manxiu also slapped her forehead and said, "Look at me, how could I not have reminded you?"
She quickly ran into the house, grabbed a cloth bag, and ran back out.
But Chen Zi'an was in the tree, and she couldn't reach him, so she prepared to find a stool to climb up.
Seeing her look for a stool, Chen Zi'an quickly said, "I'll come down to get it. You don't need to come up, it's dangerous."
What was originally a simple sentence made Su Manxiu's eyes well up with tears.
For how many years, no one had cared if she was in danger.
In Old Wang's family, daughters-in-law were like bought cattle and horses, expected to do all the work.
Even things that men would do in other families, like repairing a leaky roof, were done by the daughters-in-law in Old Wang's family.
Who cared if it was dangerous?
If she died, it was just her bad luck!
But this person in front of her was afraid she might be in danger.
Chen Zi'an saw Su Manxiu's eyes suddenly redden and her look like she was about to cry, and he panicked.
In his haste, he immediately dropped the dates in his hand, jumped down from the tree, and then grabbed Su Manxiu's hand.
His voice was anxious, "What's wrong? Did the thorns on the date tree prick you?"
Hearing this deep concern, Su Manxiu's tears began to fall uncontrollably.
She quickly raised her hand to wipe them away, but the more she wiped, the more tears flowed.
"Xiuer, what's wrong?" Chen Zi'an, not understanding, became even more anxious.
"It's nothing, Minister Chen. It's just... it's just that, after all these years, you're the first person to care about me," Su Manxiu replied honestly.
Hearing her say this, Chen Zi'an felt even more heartache. He truly didn't know what kind of life this woman had lived all these years.
That Old Wang family deserved to die. They didn't know how to cherish such a good person and instead tormented her.
Chen Zi'an finally couldn't help himself and reached out to pull Su Manxiu into his arms.
Caught off guard, Su Manxiu was embraced. In his warm and solid chest, she felt Chen Zi'an's heartbeat.
But she knew very well that this shouldn't be happening.
As if pricked by a thorn, Su Manxiu immediately pushed Chen Zi'an away.
Chen Zi'an watched Su Manxiu jump away, his embrace feeling empty, filled with immense disappointment.
He couldn't hide his disappointment, but he also knew he had been reckless.
"Manxiu, I couldn't help myself..."
"Minister Chen..." Su Manxiu was overcome with shyness, her face red.
She wasn't angry at the man's sudden intimacy, only felt shy.
"Don't call me Minister Chen. Just call me Zi'an from now on. Calling me Minister Chen feels too distant," Chen Zi'an said, looking at Su Manxiu cautiously.
He had been reckless just now, and now he was worried Su Manxiu would be angry. He even wondered what would happen if Manxiu slapped him.
Fortunately, Su Manxiu didn't show any anger, only blushed.
"This is not good..."
"It's nothing wrong," Chen Zi'an interrupted Su Manxiu.
"We are not that kind of relationship!" Su Manxiu added.
But even she didn't know why she said such a thing.
Not that kind of relationship?
What was she expecting? Or hinting at?
"Xiuer, on my way to work this morning, someone asked about you, planning to introduce you to someone!" Chen Zi'an cautiously probed.
Su Manxiu looked up at Chen Zi'an. Someone wanted to introduce a partner to her?
And they had asked Chen Zi'an?
She suddenly felt anxious, unsure whether to ask how Chen Zi'an had answered.
She really didn't know if she was expecting Chen Zi'an's answer.
"I said, you are my fiancée!"
When Chen Zi'an said this, he was indeed worried that Su Manxiu would smash the winnowing basket in her hand over his head.
But he had really said it at that moment. Hearing that someone wanted to introduce a partner to Su Manxiu, he had become anxious.
He was afraid that such a hardworking, capable, and resilient woman would be snatched away by someone else.
Even he didn't know when it started, but his eyes were full of her. Every day after work, seeing the figure busy in the yard and kitchen, he felt his heart settle.
He even started looking forward to going home, wanting to finish work and go home as soon as possible every day.
Even people at the department said he had changed a lot recently, no longer as cold and distant as before.
All these changes were because there was a woman in his home.
After so many years as a bachelor, he had never felt anything before. But after saving Su Manxiu, he had changed.
Su Manxiu, however, didn't notice Chen Zi'an's caution. Her mind was buzzing.
What had she just heard? Minister Chen said she was his fiancée?
Did she hear wrong?
How could that be?
Minister Chen was a big leader in the county, and she was a country bumpkin, a woman rejected by her in-laws for being unable to have children.
Thinking about not being able to have children, Su Manxiu shivered and completely came back to her senses.
No, she couldn't hold Minister Chen back.
"Minister Chen, I am not worthy!"
Su Manxiu's voice was bitter, and she even raised her hand to cover her face.
She could feel Chen Zi'an's kindness.
During this time, she had also done her best to help Chen Zi'an manage everything in the house.
However, she dared not even dream of being with Chen Zi'an.
When Chen Zi'an heard Su Manxiu say the words "I am not worthy," he felt a piercing pain.
She said she wasn't worthy!
Such a good woman, what was she not worthy of?
"Manxiu, you are a hardworking and capable good woman. There is nothing you are not worthy of!" Chen Zi'an said, seeing Su Manxiu trying to evade him, and immediately reached out to pull her back.
"I am not worthy, a woman who cannot have children, is not worthy!" Su Manxiu's arm was held, and tears gushed out, but she looked stubbornly at Chen Zi'an, "I can't have children, I am incomplete!"
This was her most heartbreaking pain, but now she had to say it.
"I don't care," Chen Zi'an said, equally stubborn.
"I care!"
"Xiuer, I never intended to find a woman to have children with. It's only because you appeared, and I fell in love with you, that I acted like this today. Whether you can have children or not, it doesn't matter!"
He truly hadn't planned to get married and have children, thinking he would live his life alone.
Su Manxiu's sudden intrusion into his life showed him her wonderful side, which made him have the idea of finding someone to spend his life with.
"I've been married before!"
"So what if you've been married? I was married before too," Chen Zi'an's voice was louder.
Su Manxiu was stunned. She didn't know much about Chen Zi'an. Suddenly hearing that he had been married before, she was dumbfounded.
He had been married before, and he was still bothering her?
Was he trying to take advantage of her because she was a divorced woman?
"You have a wife, and what you're doing is wrong!" Even the usually gentle woman couldn't say anything too harsh when condemning.
"Not anymore."
Not anymore? What did that mean? Su Manxiu looked at Chen Zi'an in confusion.
"Years ago, when I was serving in the army, I was seriously injured. Somehow, the news reached home that I had sacrificed myself. My wife, oh, my ex-wife couldn't wait and remarried."
Chen Zi'an said these words very calmly, as if he were talking about someone else's affairs, without any emotion.
He couldn't deny that when he returned home and saw a woman with a bulging belly laughing and chatting with another man, it had indeed been difficult.
But that difficulty had only lasted for a moment and quickly dissipated.
He had even generously blessed the couple.
Su Manxiu, however, felt that he must still be very upset. After all, his wife had married someone else; what man could tolerate that?
They were truly fellow sufferers!
"But you deserve better. There are so many girls in the county town; you can find anyone and live a peaceful life," Su Manxiu said, lowering her head.
"But I like you!"
This solemn declaration made Su Manxiu's face instantly flush. Her heart, which she thought was dead, began to flutter like a startled deer.
"There's nothing about me worth liking!"
"There is!" Chen Zi'an said firmly.
"I can't have children!"
When Chen Zi'an heard this, he felt like rolling his eyes. She had gone back to that again.
He placed his hands on Su Manxiu's shoulders, making her look up into his eyes, and said word by word, "It's okay even if we don't have children. If you like children, after a few years when things are stable, we can adopt a child and raise them from a young age, it's the same!"
Su Manxiu's tears began to fall again. Chen Zi'an gently wiped them away for her.
**************
This was destined to be a night that brought joy.
Not only did the lovers open their hearts to each other, but Su Xiaotian also received an unexpected surprise.
The system Su Xiaotian possessed allowed her to sign in and complete tasks.
However, there were few tasks, and so far, Su Xiaotian had only completed two small tasks, receiving not much reward. According to the system, she would only receive a big gift package after completing the first main quest.
She had currently completed one part of the main quest "There Are Thousands of Grains in Books" – changing her elder brother's mindset; and the second part – increasing grain production.
Su Xiaotian had completed these two tasks subtly, without much effort.
However, the third task, "Excellent Exam Scores," had made no progress to date.
There was no way, as this task required all the children in their family to achieve excellent exam scores.
But they hardly went to school anymore, and the school didn't seem to have exams, so how could they achieve excellent scores?
Su Xiaotian had been stuck on this for a long time. If it weren't for the daily sign-in tasks that provided many rewards, she might have been driven to the brink of collapse.
The rewards provided by the system for sign-in tasks also varied. Su Xiaotian observed quietly and concluded that the normal daily sign-in rewards were not much, with a relatively generous reward every seven days and a big gift package every month.
Today was the day to draw the big gift package, and Su Xiaotian was very excited.
From the morning, Su Xiaotian had been thinking about what good things she would get today.
The month before last, she received a sewing machine ticket and 150 yuan. Last month, she received a bicycle ticket and 200 yuan.
However, Su Xiaotian had kept these tickets and money well-saved and hadn't taken them out.
She felt that if she could get a big item each month, by the time her brothers got married, they might have all the "three turns and one ring" items.
That would be truly presentable.
Su Xiaotian returned to her room, lay down for a while, and listened carefully to ensure there was no sound around her, confirming that everyone in the family had gone to rest. Then, she excitedly brought up the system panel to start drawing.
The cursor flickered back and forth over the nine gift packages, from fast to slow, getting slower and slower...
Su Xiaotian felt her heart pounding out of her chest.
Finally, the cursor stopped steadily on one of the gift packages.
The big gift package suddenly opened, and Su Xiaotian's eyes widened in disbelief.
Grass and Wood Exquisite Heart?
What was this thing?
Not money, not tickets, not food or drink?
Grass and Wood Exquisite Heart?
She slightly raised her hand and tapped on the Grass and Wood Exquisite Heart, reading its description.
This was a big deal. Her initial disappointment was instantly replaced by excitement.
Su Xiaotian almost jumped up on the spot.
The Grass and Wood Exquisite Heart could allow the user to possess a pure and exquisite heart like grass and wood, thereby gaining the ability to communicate with plants.
Most importantly, the Grass and Wood Exquisite Heart was not a one-time item, but a permanent buff item.
Oh my god, she was rich!
This was Su Xiaotian's first reaction.
Her second reaction was that this was worth trying.
However, in the small room, there wasn't even a blade of grass...
The Grass and Wood Exquisite Heart required close proximity to plants.
That night, Su Xiaotian fell asleep with both resentment and excitement.
The next morning, Su Xiaotian got up and washed, then eagerly ran to the small vegetable garden in the yard to talk to the vegetable babies.
As her fingers gently brushed the green leaves of the spring onion, she heard the spring onion say, "It's too cold!"
When she touched the cabbage leaves, the cabbage said, "It's gotten cold, and I've grown big..."
Su Xiaotian touched every plant in the yard, but she found it uninteresting.
These spring onions, cabbages, and cucumbers all said the same repetitive things. After hearing them once, they became meaningless.
Su Xiaotian pouted, "This Grass and Wood Exquisite Heart isn't that interesting."
Grandma Su saw Su Xiaotian go to the vegetable garden so early and touch all the vegetables.
Then she saw the usually happy little girl's face fall.
She couldn't help but smile and say, "Why is my dear treasure unhappy? Who made my dear treasure unhappy?"
"Grandma, it's not fun," Su Xiaotian complained.
Grandma Su didn't know what wasn't fun; she just didn't understand children's worlds!
Grandma Su took her hand and had her wash up and get ready for breakfast.
Su Xiaotian originally wanted to go up the mountain, but Grandma Su said that the brigade was picking fruit today, and the young lads all had to help.
Although she wasn't very happy, Su Xiaotian was sensible and knew that picking fruit was a big deal. Moreover, everyone who climbed trees to pick fruit would get full work points.
She couldn't just focus on her own happiness. Besides, during the fruit-picking season every year, people in the brigade were generally happy.
Thinking about the few fruit trees in the brigade, Su Xiaotian instantly became happy again.
Red Heart Brigade had a few old pear trees. Grandma Su said these trees were older than she was.
If she could communicate with such old trees, would they be as uninteresting as the vegetables in the yard?
With a thought, Su Xiaotian immediately became happy again, giggling.
Grandma Su shook her head dotingly. This girl was indeed a child. She was unhappy just now, but now she was smiling.
Breakfast was millet porridge, steamed sweet potatoes, and coarse flour pancakes.
There was also a basin of steamed eggs.
Liang Xiu divided a small half of the steamed eggs into the bowls of her father-in-law and mother-in-law. The remaining bit was for Little Nine and Xiaotian.
Neither of the two children was selfish; they each took a small spoon and gave some of the steamed eggs in their bowls to their elder brothers, sharing with them.
Grandpa Su and Grandma Su both liked this warm scene.
Nothing made them happier than their children being sensible.
"Hurry up and eat. The brigade leader said that the frost has fallen these past two days, and all the fruit must be picked today," Third Uncle Su said, looking at the sun that had already risen outside, and urged them.
Grandpa Su also said, "The weather is likely to change in the next few days. The fruit tastes good after the frost, but if it's not picked before the snow, it will be frozen and ruined."
Hearing Grandpa Su's words, Su Xiaotian's thoughts stirred. She remembered what the spring onion had said in the morning, that it was too cold.
She suddenly realized that perhaps the spring onion was expressing that the weather was about to change.
Yes, it seemed that the Grass and Wood Exquisite Heart was quite useful. However, the information collected needed to be carefully sorted out to find what was useful.
She would take her time; there was no rush.
Eventually, she would figure it out.
After breakfast, the whole family, carrying baskets and winnowing baskets, set off for the pear orchard to pick fruit.
Before they even reached the pear orchard, they could smell the rich fragrance, the unique scent of Ruan'er pears.
The pear orchard of Red Heart Brigade had dozens of trees, with Ruan'er pear trees being the most numerous. The king of the trees was also a Ruan'er pear tree.
Ruan'er pears had a very strong flavor, fragrant with a hint of wine.
Moreover, their taste was good, a mix of sour and sweet.
"Grandma, it smells so good!" Su Xiaotian said happily.
"Little glutton, once the pears are picked and distributed to each family, you can eat your fill!" Grandma Su patted her granddaughter's hand and said.
It had to be said that the commune members' awareness was truly high. Even children wouldn't steal pears from the orchard.
Of course, another possibility was that they were afraid of being caught and labeled as sheep shearers.
If anyone was labeled with such a crime, they would be collectively despised and wouldn't be able to walk freely in the brigade.
They arrived at the pear orchard, chatting and laughing. Many people were already there.
The brigade leader, Su Changjiu, was also present.
Seeing that most people had arrived, Su Changjiu made simple assignments.
Generally, a few families would be responsible for picking the fruit from one tree.
The Su family had many boys, and they were all good at climbing trees. The brigade leader assigned them the main responsibility for the century-old king tree.
Li Zhuzi was undoubtedly busy with the Old Su family.
Those who were good friends with Grandma Su even said that Li Zhuzi was like the fourth son of the Old Su family.
Some even urged Grandma Su and Grandpa Su to adopt Li Zhuzi as their godson.
Grandma Su would just smile and agree.
Meanwhile, Su Xiaotian was being pulled by Little Nine towards the century-old pear tree. The two little ones ran very fast, and Grandma Su was truly worried that her granddaughter would trip over the roots on the ground.
"Oh dear, Little Nine, slow down, be careful not to let Sister fall!"
Everyone heard this and laughed, saying that Grandma Su really doted on Su Xiaotian.
Regarding the Old Su family's pampering of a little girl, people in the brigade found it a bit perplexing. After all, was a mere girl worth it?