The Journey Of The Peasant Mother-in-Law

From the conversation with Wu Li Shi just now, Zhulan came to know that the Wu family had no land. Because her grandsons were studying at home, Old Man Wu and Wu Li Shi worked as helpers all year round. Zhulan also learned that Wu Li Shi had two sons. Because the younger son and his wife died unexpectedly, the old couple came out from the eldest son’s house to live with the children of the younger son’s family.

Zhulan admired Wu Li Shi very much, that she gave up the enjoyment of her old age with her oldest son for the sake of several grandchildren. From the way Wu Li Shi talked about her elder son, she understood that the eldest son did not want to raise his nephews and niece. There was a big divide in the family.

Zhulan saw that Wu Li Shi was anxious to return, so she said kindly: “Aunt Li, you go back first!”

Wu Li Shi knew that if she didn’t make a good impression on the master’s family on the first day, she was afraid that she would lose her job. She’s afraid of not having any tasks to do, so she says, “Madam, I’ll wait until the front courtyard work is finished before returning.”

Zhulan said: “The front yard won’t be over for a while, you can clean it up tomorrow morning.”

Wu Li Shi was really anxious. Today the host gave her meat and vegetables, and she wanted to go back and give the children a good meal, “Thank you ma’am, I will definitely come over early tomorrow to clean up.”

Zhulan didn’t plan to tidy up. She just went to the front courtyard and took a glance. All ten dishes were meat dishes, greasy and not easy to clean. “Okay.”

After Wu Li left with the bowl, Zhulan went to the side room. Xuehan was there with two little ones, playing with colored markers. “Girl, there’s hot water in the kitchen. Take them to wash their feet later. We are in a different place tonight, so there’s no need to extinguish the oil lamp.”

Seeing her mother’s tired face, Xuehan said, “Mom, I can take care of the two of them, so you go to bed earlier!”

Zhulan felt her daughter’s concern, and her heart was warm. The saying that daughters were their mothers’ little cotton-padded jackets, was really true.

Back in the main room, Zhulan wiped herself with hot water, soaked her feet, and took out ten taels of silver to give to Zhao Bo. The furniture had already been paid for with silver earlier. The ten taels were for things like utensils, bedding, and other expenses. In reality, it didn’t reach ten taels, but giving a round amount looked better, and the remainder was Zhao Bo’s labor fee.

Zhulan wanted to wait for Zhou Shuren to come back, but she was tired after a long day of traveling, and she had developed a biological clock. After a while, her eyelids started fighting, and she felt in a daze that someone was holding her. She was too sleepy and didn’t wake up.

Zhou Shuren had a good tolerance for alcohol, just slightly tipsy. After washing up and soaking his feet, he became sober. Once he finished tidying up and sat on his bed, he glanced at Zhulan sleeping nearby. He felt that his own bed must not be warm enough. With growing courage, he swiftly got out of bed and went outside. Upon returning, he blew on the bedding, smelled the strong scent of alcohol, and felt satisfied.

He messed up his own bedding, and only then did he uncover Zhulan’s blanket. With his arm around Zhulan’s waist, he smoothly pulled her into his embrace, making a significant advancement. If you were to ask about his feelings, there was excitement from this breakthrough. Contentedly, he closed his eyes and went to sleep.

The next morning, Zhulan woke up first, because she remembered that Wu Li Shi was going to arrive early and she needed to go and open the door. But in the current situation, she was in Zhou Shuren’s embrace, his large hand tightly wrapped around her waist. She didn’t dare to move. Gritting her teeth, she couldn’t believe that Zhou Shuren drank too much. She thought he was just using alcohol to gather courage!

Zhou Shuren hissed, “You pinched so hard!”

She twisted the fleshy upper hand, and it was still 360 degrees, so it must be purple!

Zhulan replied, “If I don’t do it, who will? You’ve become quite bold!”

Zhou Shuren’s paws didn’t let go and he could hug for a while, “I really drank too much.”

Zhulan snorted, “Who are you trying to fool? Even the foot basin on the ground has been emptied. It’s clear you didn’t drink much. Don’t think you can deceive me just because there’s a hint of alcohol on your breath.”

Zhou Shuren saw the footbath from the corner of his eye, he really made a mistake!

Zhulan felt a little awkward, she and Zhou Shuren were sticking to each other, “Don’t let go, Wu Li Shi is coming.”

Zhou Shuren actually wanted to continue holding onto her, but Zhulan’s hand was pinching his back’s flesh. If she didn’t let go soon, it wouldn’t be a full 360 degrees. He quietly withdrew his reluctant hand.

Zhulan turned her back and got up to put on her clothes, the corners of her mouth curled up but she quickly pressed it down again.