Lai Mei was impatient and immediately crawled out of the torn quilt, "Mom, big brother, why did you come back just now? My second brother and I have been waiting for you for a long time."
Qiu Mei, who was still in the quilt, poked her head out and smiled a little embarrassedly. He and his third brother were the only ones here, so he didn't dare to sleep at all.
Jiang Xingzhi looked at his mother and saw her nod slightly. Then he excitedly showed off to his two younger brothers: "Second brother, third brother, I have a new name."
Like a parrot that had just learned to mimic words, he repeated what his mother had said before in front of his brothers, and finally told them loudly: "Xingzhi, from now on I will be called Jiang Xingzhi."
Mingyue was looking at Jiang Xingzhi with amusement, and soon a little firecracker rushed into her arms, raised his head and acted coquettishly to her: "Mom, Laimei also wants a new name."
Qiu Mei, who was standing next to him, also opened her eyes wide and looked at her mother with longing. She also wanted a name of her own, a new name as nice as her elder brother's.
"Don't worry, we have it all, you all have it." Mingyue pinched her little son's soft face, "From now on, I will call you Jiang Muzhi. Mother hopes that you can be a free person who is not bound by worldly rules and regulations."
Jiang Muzhi's eyes sparkled, and he cheered happily: "Wow, I have a new name, Jiang Muzhi, my name is Jiang Muzhi." He came close to his eldest brother and said, "Brother, my name is Jiang Muzhi." He then pulled his second brother's quilt and shouted, "Second brother, my name is Jiang Muzhi."
"Okay, okay, I'll call you Muzhi from now on." Jiang Xingzhi understood his third brother's joy very well, because he was the same not long ago, and was so excited that he couldn't control himself.
"I understand, Muzhi." Jiang Qiumei smiled at her third brother, but her eyes never left her mother.
Finally, Mingyue looked at Jiang Qiumei and said jokingly, "Let's call our Qiumei Jiang Yizi. Mother hopes that you can live a happy and comfortable life. Don't be a sad old man anymore. If you think too much, you won't grow taller."
Jiang Yizi then smiled shyly and said seriously, "Mom, I like this name very much."
It was obviously just a change of name, but the three little guys all looked very satisfied, as if they had gotten a huge benefit.
When Mingyue asked the little ones to rest quickly, Jiang Muzhi's eyes were still shining, and he whispered softly: "Muzhi, it's so beautiful."
The eldest and second oldest kids next to them are no less impressive, they are also busy thinking of new names!
Mingyue was too lazy to care about them and just turned over and went to sleep.
When Mingyue woke up the next day, the three little ones were still sleeping soundly. It was obvious that they had been excited for most of the night and must have gone to bed very late.
Mingyue didn't call them to get up. She walked out of the dilapidated temple in the dew, preparing to look for some wild vegetables or mushrooms.
Yesterday, Yizhi and Muzhi exchanged the fish for four chipped bowls, a small bowl of salt and some lard.
Mingyue thought about cutting some bamboo to cook, but this was not a good idea forever. The family could not live in a dilapidated temple forever, nor could they eat fish and wild vegetables forever. She had to think carefully about how to live in the future.
The original owner did not have any special skills, because she had an older sister with a smooth personality and a younger sister who was extremely intelligent. She, the second child who was ordinary and mediocre in every aspect, had always been the least favorite daughter of Mrs. Jiang.
Especially after the original owner was unable to have children anymore, Old Lady Jiang lost her last bit of hope for her. She often scolded her for being a waste and having no future, which led to her giving up on herself and becoming depressed, which is why she had been bedridden for so long.
Mingyue does have a lot of skills, but she can't display them in the village where her original owner was born and raised, so she has to leave this small village and go into the city!
Mingyue narrowed her eyes slightly and quickly made a decision. It hadn't rained recently, so Mingyue walked around the area and only picked a handful of wild onions and a handful of wild vegetables.
When she returned to the dilapidated temple, the three little ones were up, the beds had been made, the floor had been swept, and even the statue of the Goddess of Heaven in the dilapidated temple had been wiped. Now they were busy wiping the pillars and broken windows.
It is obvious that they really regard this dilapidated temple as their future home, so they manage and protect it carefully.
Mingyue's heart softened and she asked them to stop and go with her to the bamboo forest outside to cut bamboo.
Even the oldest of the three children, Jiang Xingzhi, is only sixteen years old, Jiang Yizi is only thirteen, and Jiang Muzhi is only six years old. In Mingyue's eyes, they are all children, at the age when they should play freely.
But except for the youngest Jiang Mu, the other two children were taught to be too sensible and modest, and they were always used to thinking about others first. This is not a bad thing, but Mingyue would rather they be more selfish and think about themselves first.
After the mother and her two children came back from cutting bamboo, Mingyue let the children play while she took a bamboo to the river to prepare to process the bamboo joints.
Mingyue had just washed the four sections of bamboo when Muzhi came running over from a distance, saying, "Mother, mother, aunt, aunt is here to see you."
Mingyue's eyes flickered slightly, and she had a feeling that it was not a good thing for Jiang Qingyue to come so early in the morning.
As expected, things turned out just as Mingyue had expected. When Jiang Qingyue saw her when she returned to the ruined temple, she sighed, "My third sister came back from the county town early this morning. You know she is a spoiled person and she spoils Xue'er the most... Anyway, she saw that Xue'er's mouth and stomach were blue, and she felt so distressed that she kept urging me to teach Panmei a lesson. So, I asked you to take Panmei back with you."
Jiang Xingzhi, who had changed his name, heard this and immediately put down the handkerchief in his hand and walked to his aunt: "Aunt, this has nothing to do with my mother. It was me who did it. I beat Jiang Xueer. Just take me back."
Jiang Qingyue had seen his face before, and felt sorry for her nephew, but she knew better that the old mother in the house only had eyes for her granddaughter, and would not feel sorry for her grandson, let alone a grandson with a disfigured face.
"Pan Mei, you should let your mother go with you. You know your third aunt well. This matter..."
Before Jiang Qingyue could finish her words, she was interrupted by Jiang Xingzhi: "Aunt, I changed my name. I am now Jiang Xingzhi, not Jiang Panmei."
Mingyue couldn't help getting angry when she saw Xingzhi being so anxious to be punished.
But she also knew that he had become accustomed to carrying everything on his shoulders, and that he would not be able to change that habit overnight, so she could only blame Jiang Huiyue and her daughter.
Mingyue's face darkened. "Jiang Xueer only had bruises on the corners of her mouth and stomach, but you saw how badly Xingzhi's face was injured. Let me be frank. Anyone with a conscience in this world would not hit a man in the face. Moreover, Jiang Xueer is Xingzhi's cousin. Xingzhi usually gives in to her. She is only thirteen years old and she has acted so viciously. What will happen to her in the future?"
Jiang Qingyue looked at her nephew's face and felt indescribable. But she dared not disobey her mother's words!
She slowly shook her head towards her second sister: "Mingyue, you know it's useless for you to say these words to me."
Mingyue sneered: "Okay, if there is a grievance, there is a perpetrator. Then I will go to Jiang Xueer and talk to her face to face."
(End of this chapter)