Chen Xuan gave the big chicken drumstick in the casserole to Wei Nian to eat. The next morning, Wei Jin turned the casserole upside down in the kitchen but couldn't find the second big chicken drumstick. He even asked about it. Although Chen Xuan knew that Wei Jin was difficult to deal with, she didn't hide anything. "Brother An Nian was tired all day yesterday and was hungry at night, so I took out a chicken drumstick and made chicken noodle soup for him. Sister-in-law, I always heard Brother An Nian say that you loved him when he was a child. Sister-in-law, you won't be angry with me, right?" Chen Xuan dared to do this, so she was ready to be scolded by Wei Jin. However, she still used her brain. Although she was not afraid of being scolded by Wei Jin, it would be best if she could avoid being scolded. So, Chen Xuan first praised Wei Jin according to the method she thought of yesterday.
Wei Jin was a little angry, because the two big chicken legs were what Wei Jin wanted to save for his son. However, after hearing what Chen Xuan said, Wei Nian was also a brother, Wei Jin raised his eyelids, glanced at Chen Xuan, and snorted, "I love all of them. Our family didn't have such good conditions before. I took care of them all. Now they have married and forgotten their elder sister."
Li was a docile person, and she quickly said, "I dare not do that."
"Yes, Brother Anian often told me to respect my elder sister." Chen Xuan felt that it might be because reading can make people smart. If she were in the past, she would never have made up such a thing. Wei Nian definitely did not say such a thing to Chen Xuan.
Wei Jin snorted, stretched his neck to take a look into the pot, and a look of dissatisfaction appeared on his face. He asked Chen Xuan, who was stirring the glutinous rice with a spatula, "How did you see this glutinous rice? Can't you make anything else?"
A hot and fragrant hutazi came out of the pot, the aroma of chopped green onions mixed with the aroma of flour, eggs, and oil, making people salivate. Wei Jin still had a gloomy face, and Chen Xuan replied without any instruction, "Brother Anian said that my elder sister likes to eat hutazi, so he asked me to make more hutazi."
Wei Jin looked at Chen Xuan with contempt and said to her, "You are just stupid and obedient. You don't use your brain. I can tell from this that A Nian is lying to you. I like to eat fried cakes in the morning, and he likes to eat porridge. He asked you to make what he likes in the morning. You are really stupid." He gave Chen Xuan a comment at the end, and Chen Xuan lowered her head and said nothing.
Wei Jin waved his hands, looked at the two stupid sisters-in-law with disappointment, shook his head, and went out to buy oil cakes.
Chen Xuan breathed a sigh of relief, and the heart that had been hanging in her throat finally settled down.
The third uncle of the Wang family was a quick-witted man. He moved to the house in Wangfucang Hutong after breakfast that day. After the New Year, Chen Xuan would go to clean the house every ten days or half a month. Li also prepared most of the things that the third uncle needed in advance, so it was quite cheap to move in now.
After Uncle Wang settled down and saw that his niece was doing well and getting along well with his sisters-in-law, he said goodbye and went back to his hometown. Old Master Wei tried hard to keep him, mainly because there was still spring planting in the countryside, and Old Master Wei was afraid of delaying the season, so he had to ask Wei Shi to rent a carriage for Uncle Wang, and the whole family had a drink and sent Uncle Wang off.
Chen Xuan has been busy growing strawberries.
This time, Chen Xuan planted strawberries. With last year's experience, she didn't plant all of them at once. The first strawberries were of course the strawberry seedlings in the strawberry garden in the yard. These were the seedlings that had grown strawberries last year. They had survived the severe winter under the straw mats, and they were getting more energetic day by day after the spring came. Then, the second batch was the seeds that were planted after the strawberry seedlings that froze to death last year. The third batch was in the vegetable garden in the front yard. No vegetables were planted this year, only strawberries. The last batch was the strawberries in Wangfucang Hutong. The date of each batch was different. Chen Xuan made small signs for each of them, and numbered each small sign. Then, Chen Xuan sewed a notebook with the white paper she bought last year, which was used to record the growth of strawberries.
But in fact, the planting time of each strawberry bed in each batch is slightly different.
Therefore, Chen Xuan would plant strawberries every three to five days. It was not very noticeable when she was at home, because Chen Xuan was busy in the morning and evening, and she did not miss any household chores. It was obvious when she arrived at Wangfucang Hutong. Chen Xuan had to walk there before going out, plant the strawberries, and then walk home. When she got home, she had to prepare lunch with Li. Chen Xuan spent less time at home, so naturally she did less.
Moreover, it is not enough to plant strawberries. Planting is just the beginning. Chen Xuan needs to keep an eye on the emergence of seedlings, watering, and the growth of strawberries. Therefore, she goes out almost every day.
Wei Nian simply hired a rickshaw for Chen Xuan, so that she could take the rickshaw every day instead of walking, which was too far. Occasionally, she would call a rickshaw to go home. Chen Xuan had been in Beijing for a long time and would not be reluctant to spend the money. But Chen Xuan was reluctant to pay for such a rickshaw, and even Mrs. Wei was not happy about it, saying that Chen Xuan was spoiled. Wei Jin also said, "I just go back to my parents' home to take a rickshaw. A Nian really loves his wife."
Chen Xuan kept her head down, unable to utter a word. Wei Nian said to her, "You are so eloquent in front of me, but so useless in front of mom and elder sister!" A stupid girl is still a stupid girl, she is useless at the critical moment.
Chen Xuan whispered, "How about I just walk over there. Brother Anian, I think it's not a good idea to hire a car. My old man always walks to the shop."
"Wangfujing is only a few steps away from our home, is it the same as Wangfucang? It's at least ten miles from our home to Wangfucang Hutong!" Wei Nian glanced at Chen Xuan, "Don't worry about these trivial things all the time. It only costs four dollars to hire a car for a month. Don't you feel tired walking all the time? I said that your progress in studying at night these past two days is not as good as before, and your math is getting slower and slower."
"No, I always study according to the plan and never skip a thing."
"Then I'll give you a math problem." Wei Nian immediately gave Chen Xuan a math problem. Chen Xuan really couldn't figure it out after thinking for a long time. Wei Nian immediately said, "See, you've become stupider. You're too tired during the day, so you don't have enough energy at night. I advise you to take it easy. Don't care what mom and big sister say. If they keep nagging, tell them to come to me."
Originally, according to Chen Xuan's personality, she would rather walk than listen to the sarcastic words of Old Lady Wei and Wei Jin. However, she was also worried that her learning efficiency would decrease. She had just become smarter, what if she became dumber again? In fact, Chen Xuan knew whether it was tiring to walk to Wangfucang Hutong every day. It was ten miles to go there and ten miles to come back, which was twenty miles in total. Although Chen Xuan had been used to working since she was a child, she was not made of iron.
In her mind, both studying and growing strawberries were extremely important matters, and she didn't want to delay any of them. Chartering a car to go back and forth would indeed save Chen Xuan a lot of energy and time. Chen Xuan sat there shamelessly.
In fact, Li admired Chen Xuan's calmness. If she had been scolded by the old lady and the elder sister-in-law all day long, she would have been unable to bear it. But Chen Xuan was like nothing happened. Chen Xuan didn't know that Li thought of her like this. If she knew, she would say that Li misunderstood. Chen Xuan's psychological quality was far from that level. She just put on her usual dull face and pretended to be deaf.
Wei Yin couldn't listen any more. With just one sentence, Wei Yin made Old Lady Wei and Wei Jin shut up. When no one else was in the room, Wei Yin said to Old Lady Wei, "Last year, a pound of strawberries cost one dollar. Mom, you can save four dollars a month for the bus fare and ask Second Sister-in-law to run back and forth all day! Second Sister-in-law is not made of iron. When Second Sister-in-law gets sick from exhaustion and delays the strawberry business, it will be fine. By then, the rent of three hundred dollars a year from Wangfu Warehouse will not cover the cost, and the loss will be all yours."
Compared to the four dollars per month for transportation, the big strawberry is of course more important. Old Mrs. Wei is also very shrewd. "Will you get tired if you walk a few more steps every day?"
"Not tired? I'm just telling you the ugly truth first. If you don't believe me, I'll go talk to my second sister-in-law and ask her to return the rickshaw money."
"I've already paid, why should I return it?" Although Mrs. Wei thought Chen Xuan was a strong man who would not get tired even if she walked back and forth on the soles of her feet, the strawberry business was more important. The family rented a house in Wangfu Warehouse for the strawberries, which cost more than 200 yuan a year. In the end, Mrs. Wei did not want to take any risks on strawberries. So, she just accepted the matter.
As long as Wei Yin can deal with old lady Wei, Wei Jin's nagging is not in Wei Yin's eyes. Wei Yin just doesn't want to say much on weekdays, but he can't be too bullying. Second sister-in-law has been diligent and hardworking since she came in, and there is nothing wrong with her. Second sister-in-law is honest, so should she be bullied? Wei Yin couldn't stand it anymore. After Wei Yin solved the problem, he said to Chen Xuan, "Mom won't say it anymore in the future. Second sister-in-law, you can just take the bus to go and come back every day."
Chen Xuan felt bad, "Ayin, you are younger than me, and you have to worry about such a small matter of mine." In fact, Chen Xuan was used to the weirdness of Mrs. Wei and Wei Jin, and she didn't take it seriously.
Wei Yin didn't see it that way. He said seriously, "This is what should be done."
Chen Xuan nodded seriously, thinking that she must grow the strawberries very well, so as not to let down Wei Nian who rented a car for her and Wei Yin who stood up for her.
When Chen Xuan has time, she would teach Wei Nian the math problems from that day, "Brother Nian, how do you solve this math problem?" Chen Xuan is not the type of person who would ask others for help whenever she has a problem she doesn't know how to solve. She would always think about it first, and then ask others if she still can't figure it out.
Wei Nian glanced at Chen Xuan's entire page of calculation notes, feeling a little guilty, "This is a theorem, you can learn it soon. When you learn it, just memorize it."
Chen Xuan laughed angrily, "Brother Anian, you just like to fool people."
Fortunately, Chen Xuan was really good-tempered, otherwise, someone else would have slapped the calculation book on Wei Nian's face. Chen Xuan took out her textbook from the small drawer and prepared to continue studying. Wei Nian took her book first and said to Chen Xuan, "Mom and big sister are both nagging. If something like this happens again in the future, don't just keep silent. Speak when you should, and be reasonable when you should. If you are more powerful, they will behave themselves."
Chen Xuan thought for a moment, "Originally, I thought that the old lady and the eldest sister-in-law were idle at home all day and had nothing to do. If I didn't let them chatter, they would get sick. But today, Ah Yin spoke up for me. From now on, I'll speak up myself. Otherwise, it's not good for me to keep it to myself all the time."
Wei Nian was a little curious and asked Chen Xuan, "How do you tolerate the old lady and the eldest sister's nagging?"
Chen Xuan almost laughed at Wei Nian's harsh words, but Chen Xuan was not a mean person like Wei Nian. She answered honestly, "Whenever they talked about me, I would recite books or do arithmetic problems in my mind. In fact, I didn't hear anything they said."
Wei Nian suddenly burst into laughter.
Chen Xuan felt embarrassed to be laughed at by Wei Nian. Really, Brother Nian insisted to ask her, and she couldn't not tell the truth. After telling the truth, Brother Nian still laughed at her like that. Chen Xuan narrowed her eyes and stared at Wei Nian's laughing face, not knowing why Wei Nian was laughing so foolishly! Chen Xuan said to Wei Nian, "You always say others are stupid, as if you are so smart. What are you laughing at? What's so funny?" She didn't find it funny at all.
Wei Nian supported the small table with one hand, laughing so hard that he couldn't stand up, and waved his hands, "Please don't make me laugh." When asked what he was laughing at, he laughed at one thing and conquered another.
"Stop laughing. I have something I want to discuss with you, Brother Anian."
"Tell me about it." Wei Nian stopped laughing for a moment.
Chen Xuan glared at Wei Nian's fluttering face and said seriously, "Brother Nian, our Chinese toon tree has started to sprout. The first batch of Chinese toon sprouts are the most fragrant. I thought about sending some to Mr. Wen and Mr. Jiao. What do you think? I always feel that the two gentlemen treat us very well. Although we don't have any valuables, this is our intention. But I'm worried that if we just send a handful of Chinese toon sprouts, it will seem too stingy." Chen Xuan is of such a personality. She remembers clearly the kindness others have shown her and can never forget it for a moment.
"What's so simple about this? You don't know that the Chinese toon in our yard sprouted early because it is old. I heard that Chinese toon usually sprouts in the Grain Rain, but now it has just sprouted at the Spring Equinox. Most of the Chinese toon sprouts on the market are from caves. Cave goods are fresh, but they are nothing compared to the old toon in our house. Cave goods are not cheap. Besides, Mr. Wen and Mr. Jiao are not fussy people. You also said that this is our intention. No matter how expensive or cheap the things are, the intention is here. Don't worry, the two gentlemen will not dislike it. When you pick them, put them in a clean bamboo basket, write a card, and I will ask someone to send it." Wei Nian also reminded Chen Xuan, "Don't forget Uncle Xu, he likes this too."
"How could I forget this? Our two families live close to each other, so I picked the toon shoots and sent them to you right away. The fresher the toon shoots are, the better they taste." After discussing the matter about the toon shoots, Chen Xuan was unwilling to waste even a little time. Not only did she seem to be more excited about learning than before, she also kept an eye on the time, and studied until she had made up for the time she had spent on discussing things, and then she took a break.
Lying on the kang, before falling asleep, Chen Xuan thought about Brother Nian asking her how she tolerated the nagging of Old Lady Wei and Wei Jin.
Although Chen Xuan could handle the old lady and her elder sister-in-law's gossip, she had never really thought about it. Chen Xuan just felt that she was so busy, she had to grow strawberries every day, learn new knowledge, and become a knowledgeable person in the future. Whenever she thought of her ideal, Chen Xuan felt that those gossips that frightened her in her previous life, those people that frightened her in her previous life, were actually nothing big.
The author has something to say: ps: I forgot to put away the manuscript box last night, good morning everyone~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~