Chapter 39: The Hapless Fool

As for the other things, Tang Xin had no intention of taking out too much at once. She understood all too well that if she were too generous from the start and made others think she was an easy mark, it would only lead to trouble for her in the future.

Tang Xin simply took a tin of malted milk, a bag of brown sugar, and a bag of candies from the farm’s storeroom—items that were difficult to come by in this era. The brown sugar and malted milk could be used to make nourishing drinks for her mother-in-law and the others, and as for the candies, well, she could use them to win over her young brother- and sister-in-law and get them to help around.

As for the fabric she had bought before getting married, Li Sheng had told her to keep it for herself, but Tang Xin decided to use it to make clothes for her father- and mother-in-law. The old couple had been frugal all their lives, always saving the best for their children; now it was time for them to enjoy some comfort.

While she was busy with these tasks, the sound of footsteps drifted in from outside—the family members who had gone out to work were returning. Amidst the commotion, the bickering voices of her young brother- and sister-in-law could be heard.

Li Kai and Li Xiyue were close in age and both believed that, being younger, they deserved to be indulged, so the two of them often quarreled like fighting cocks.

The twin brothers, who were watching with amusement as their second brother and sister argued, suddenly noticed their new sister-in-law leaning on the windowsill, watching too. Grinning, the two of them ran over together.

Having tasted all sorts of delicious treats from their sister-in-law, the twins already considered her the best person in the family after their parents and eldest brother.

As for the quarrelsome pair, the twins found them embarrassing and didn’t want to acknowledge them as siblings.

“Sister-in-law,” Li Jiang and Li Hai greeted in unison.

As for what their sister had said before the new sister-in-law entered the family, the two younger brothers had long since pretended not to hear it.

They were convinced she was just being mischievous, trying to keep them away from their sister-in-law so she could have all the goodies for herself.

By the standards of the time, the twin brothers were considered quite fair-skinned, though that was relative. In Tang Xin’s eyes, they were simply a pair of little black beans, but with their well-formed features and bright eyes, they made for a pair of handsome little black beans.

Looking at them, Tang Xin felt her mood improve. “Why are those two arguing?”

The twins exchanged glances and shrugged.

Then Li Jiang said, “Isn’t it just our second sister acting up again?”

Well, for children so young to say such things!

Tang Xin smiled and tapped his little head. “You even know how to say ‘acting up’—who taught you that?”

“Second brother, of course. He went to see a movie—” Li Jiang suddenly realized he’d said too much and clapped his hand over his mouth. He was doomed; second brother would never share any of his good fortune with him again after this leak.

Tang Xin deliberately drew out her words, “Oh—” and, seeing how nervous Li Jiang was, finally said, “Next time, I’ll take you both to the city to see a movie.”

The twins cheered—trips to the city were rare enough, let alone going to the movies. The only reason second brother had a chance was because their eldest brother’s good friend worked at the cinema, and even then he’d gone secretly.

Their eldest brother hated taking advantage of others and disliked being pitied, especially when people looked at them with eyes full of charity and sympathy.

The twins continued chatting with Tang Xin, explaining that the quarrel had started because both second brother and second sister felt they’d done more work and gotten less out of it during the day.

Tang Xin was puzzled. “Why don’t you try to stop them instead of just watching the show?”

“What’s the point? They’re just arguing, not really going to fight,” Li Hai said, sounding for all the world like a little adult.

Tang Xin was even more surprised. “Why wouldn’t they fight?”

Both were only sixteen or seventeen—did they really have that much self-restraint, to argue fiercely but never come to blows?

Of course—that wasn’t the case.

In the past, they really did fight. The twins were too young to remember those days, but they’d heard their parents talk about it.

From the time second sister was four or five, she and second brother frequently bickered and fought. Second sister was clever enough to realize she couldn’t win a fight, so she usually just argued. But there was that one time she picked up a stick, feeling emboldened, and challenged her brother.

Second brother, not to be outdone, grabbed a stick himself, and they went at each other until both were left battered and bruised for days.

At the time, their eldest brother simply watched without saying a word.

A few days later, when their injuries had healed, the eldest brother finally acted—he gave second brother a thorough beating.

He never hit girls, though, so he left their mother to discipline second sister by making her do embroidery.

Second sister cried as all ten of her fingers were pricked and bleeding, but eldest brother was unmoved, insisting she finish embroidering a handkerchief.

After that, whenever second brother and second sister fought, their eldest brother would beat second brother and find a way to discipline second sister.

Eventually, the two of them learned that they could argue, but never fight. The rest of the family, having seen this enough times, stopped trying to intervene and simply watched the drama unfold.

During the wheat harvest, the days stayed bright well into the evening. Even though it was nearly seven o’clock, it was still broad daylight outside.

Decisively, Mother Li called everyone to set up the tables in the courtyard for dinner.

Lunch had been quite sumptuous, so most of the evening meal consisted of leftovers. In this kind of weather, leftovers spoiled quickly anyway, so with so many children in the house, it was best to finish everything in one sitting.

Li Sheng and Li Kai moved the big table into the yard, the twins fetched stools, and everyone else helped bring out dishes and tableware.

With so many hands, the work was done quickly, and soon the table was set.

Just then, Father Li returned, accompanied by Old Gu, the third uncle.

Old Gu was carrying a bundle of freshly picked vegetables from his own garden—string beans, eggplants, tomatoes, and the like, all abundant at this time of year.

Mother Li disliked the sour taste of tomatoes and never grew them in her own garden. Old Gu, knowing his niece-in-law enjoyed them and had even once mentioned eating them raw, deliberately picked the biggest, reddest ones, washed them clean, and brought them over.

Li Sheng stepped forward to greet Old Gu and invited his third uncle to join them for a drink.

His son, Gu Nan, came along as well—the same boy who had run errands for Tang Xin in exchange for several pieces of candy. He looked about the same age as Li Jiang and Li Hai, and the three got along quite well.

After napping off the afternoon’s wine, Mother Li was feeling refreshed and helped the children ready dinner.

But before they started eating, Mother Li glanced at Father Li, then cleared her throat and said, “Now that everyone’s here, there’s something I’d like to discuss.”

She and her husband had already talked this over in the backyard earlier.

They were getting on in years and didn’t understand many things, but their daughter-in-law truly seemed like a good person. When she brought it up, Father Li had agreed without hesitation.