Yuchuan also entered the kitchen and saw his wife decocting medicine. âWife, is this for me to drink?â
âYes,â she said, âSix doses, three times a day, take it for two days, and the poison in your body will be neutralized.â
Xiao Yuchuan, touched by his wifeâs diligence in decocting medicine, said, âWife, you are so good to meâ¦â
She smiled faintly without saying anything more.
Xiao Yishan saw his Fourth Brother and Third Brother holding the new clothes their wives had bought for them as they entered the kitchen. He frowned, âSecond Brother, Third Brother, give me your new clothes. The kitchen is full of oil fumes; itâs not good if they get greasy. Iâll help you take them to the room.â
Xiao Qingheâs hand tightened around the new clothes before saying, âAlright.â
Yuchuan also handed his clothes to his second brother.
Hidden in the master bedroom, Xiao Ailiu admired the new bedding on the bed. The huge bed, three sets of padding and blankets; even the cotton inside was new. The material and texture were so nice, something a poor family couldnât affordâ¦
Noticing two rows of large jars next to the wall in the master bedroom, she wondered what was inside. She wanted to open them, but remembering how she was almost unable to enter the house earlier, she decided not to disturb the sealed jars â they probably contained pickled vegetables or something similar.
Ailiu opened both doors of the two large wardrobes, rummaged through them but found nothing valuable, only old clothes. Disappointed, she lifted the quilt to try and find where the Xiao Family had hidden the 300 taels, but she couldnât find the money after checking all three sets of padding on the long bed.
Hearing footsteps outside the door, she hurriedly smoothed out the padding and picked up a blanket, pretending to fold it.
Xiao Yishan entered the room, âBig Sister, what are you doing?ân/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
She bent down to fold the blanket, stood up, and smiled, âSecond Brother, I saw that the blankets on the bed were not folded, so I helped.â
âIs that so?â Xiao Yishan put the new clothes in the wardrobe.
Ailiu looked at her brotherâs tall and robust figure, âSecond Brother, itâs been a few years since we last met, and youâve grown taller and stronger than before.â She sighed, âIn the blink of an eye, youâre married.â
âIt wasnât in the blink of an eye.â Xiao Yishan put away the clothes and said indifferently, âItâs been five years since you got married. Those five years were the hardest days for the Xiao Family, with every day feeling like a year. It wasnât until later when Yueâer earned money that things got better.â
âSu Qingyue knows how to make money; sheâs quite capable.â Ailiu said in praise, âBut sheâs too lazy. As a wife, she should buy cloth and make clothes for her husband, but she bought ready-made ones. Thatâs fine, but the blankets on the bed were not even folded. Whose wife is this lazy!â
Xiao Yishanâs face darkened, âBig Sister, donât say anything bad about Qingyue in front of me.â
âThat woman, she doesnât even respect me as her older sisterâ¦â Ailiu awkwardly said, âBig Sister just cares about you.â
âWe donât need your meddling.â
âHow can it be meddlingâ¦â
Soon, Xiao Qingheâs voice came from the kitchen, âSecond Brother, time for dinner!â
Xiao Yishan turned around and left the master bedroom, heading to the kitchen for dinner.
Ailiu, hearing her Fourth Brother call only for her Second Brother and not her, and Second Brother also not inviting her, felt both angry and resentful. Thinking about the big bowl of cooked pork bones and the large bowl of fried fish on the kitchen table, she couldnât help but salivate.