Volume 1 Farmer's Joy 024 Brother and Sister-in-law, True Heart

  The Lian family had a large population, and Lian's father and his wife lived in the main house. Lian Tiantian was separated by a curtain in the middle of the main house, where there was a small space with a kang bed, which could only accommodate one person.

  Li Hong came over and definitely lived with her, the two of them sleeping head to head. Lian Tian was already eager to squeeze over and asked, "Hey, cousin, this time you've come over, have you figured out how to get rid of that woman?"

  "Are you talking about Third Aunt?" In the darkness, Li Hong's voice was laced with a hint of hesitation and sadness, "Sister, are you crazy? Third Aunt already has children, where would I even fit in? I think this is impossible."

  "What's the big deal, let's just get rid of that woman." Lian Tian'er's eyes gleamed with malice as she spoke nonchalantly, "Sister, I'm telling you, if you really have a mind to do it, you'd better hurry up. I heard my dad say that once Third Brother passes the imperial examination, he'll find him another..."

  "How is it possible, San Biao's sister she—"

  "But she's just a merchant's wife, is she worthy of being an official's wife? She must be dreaming." With a flick of her lips, Lian Tian'er turned over and said, "You think about it yourself, I'm going to sleep. In the future when my third brother becomes an official, don't regret it and say that I didn't help you." After saying this, Lian Tian'er had already closed her eyes.

  Behind her back, Li Hong tossed and turned on the straw-covered kang, unable to fall asleep until just before dawn, and got up with a pair of panda eyes the next morning.

  As soon as she stepped out of the house, she bumped into Lian Qing who was just opening the door and walking out. Li Hong bit her lip, and her face suddenly turned red. She awkwardly wiped her hands on her sleeves a few times, took a few steps back, and stiffly bowed to Lian Qing, "Third... Third Brother, good morning."

  "Morning." He glanced at her, nodded slightly, and was about to walk away when he frowned and looked at her again. "Why is your face so red? Are you sick? If you're really sick, you'd better hurry home, or else you'll infect my family and that won't be good."

  Li Hong was still moved by the first sentence, thinking that her third uncle cared about her, but then Lian Qing's next words made her stunned - afraid she would get sick and infect everyone?

  She opened her mouth, wanting to explain, but Lian Qing had already floated away! Li Hong stood on the ground, wanting to cry without tears, watching Lian Qing enter the house, and her tears were about to fall out.

  Pu Chi, Fu Qiu Lian couldn't help but burst out laughing.

  Looking at Li Hong who was about to cry out loud in front of her, okay, she admitted that she was very unkind - just now she deliberately stood behind Lian Qing to see how Li Hong would react, but unexpectedly this little girl hadn't even finished speaking when her own bookworm directly killed her off.

  Li Hong turned around to see Fu Qiulian standing behind her with a smile on her face. As soon as she thought about the scene just now, she felt like finding a hole in the ground to hide in, feeling both ashamed and indignant. Her voice became sharp, "Third Aunt, what are you doing? How can you stand behind us and eavesdrop on my conversation with Third Uncle?"

  "Sister, you're wrong. This can't be considered eavesdropping. I was walking with my husband and even greeted you. It's just that you only have eyes for him and didn't notice me." As she spoke, Fu Qiulian let out a sorrowful sigh, "Alas, I didn't expect the relationship between you and my husband to be so good. I'm truly moved. My husband only has one younger sister, Sweetie, but now he has another... His younger sister is also my younger sister. From now on, I'll definitely treat you well, Sister. Don't worry."

  Looking at her hand being held by Fu Qiulian, Li Hong endured several times before she didn't fling it away. She wanted to angrily shout at Fu Qiulian, "I don't want to be Third Uncle's sister, I want to be his wife!" But on the surface, she still had to force a smile and thank the woman in front of her whom she detested, "Thank you, Third Aunt, I...I also deeply respect Third Uncle."

  "Hmm, I know." Is respect true? Is love even more true?

  Lian Qing had already sat down in the house, and when she saw Fu Qiu Lian and Li Hong come in together, she frowned, "Why are you coming in so late? Didn't you say you were hungry? Come over and eat quickly, or else you'll be complaining about your stomach hurting again."

  "Husband, I want to eat dinner, and also have some pickled yellow cucumber."

  Lian Qing glared at Fu Qiu Lian, wanting to throw the chopsticks in her hand onto this woman's face. What's the big deal about eating? Why be so picky? But thinking was one thing, and as she glanced around the table with the corner of her eye, she knew that Li Shi hadn't brought out that small yellow cucumber yet. She muttered "You wait a bit, I'll go get it" before resignedly getting up to retrieve the pickled small yellow cucumber from the jar in the corner of the room, grumbling to herself...

  He did all this for his son!

  "Third Brother, don't move, this is women's work. Your hands are for reading and writing, can't be stained with these things." As she spoke, Li Hong quickly got up, ran a few steps over, bent down to pick some up and put them in a coarse ceramic bowl, her big black eyes shining as she held out the bowl with both hands to Fow Autumn Lotus, "Third Sister-in-law, here, this is the small yellow cucumber you wanted to eat."

  "Thank you, sister-in-law. I've been craving this dish for the past few days." Fu Qiulian glanced at her and smiled, then turned to Lian Qing, "Husband, it's not good to eat the cucumber like that. Would you mind cutting it into small pieces and adding some oil? That way, it'll be more delicious." She hadn't intended to make things difficult for Lian Qing, but since Li Hong was being so pushy, she couldn't let her say that she didn't know how to treat guests properly. Fine, as a good hostess, now she could make things a bit difficult for her own husband, right?

  Lian Qing's face turned black, "Won't." Almost wanted to turn around and leave, if you like eating then eat, don't drag it out!

  Fu Qiu Lian pouted, "Then I won't eat." She glanced at the bowl of porridge in Lian Qing's hand, "I want to eat that bowl you're holding." After a pause, seeing Lian Qing raise an eyebrow, she quickly spoke up, "If you don't give it to me, I won't eat. I won't eat and your son will go hungry. Even tigers don't eat their own cubs, husband, you wouldn't intentionally starve your own son, would you?"

  Lian Qing: "......"

  "Hey, some people really think they're princesses! They don't even have hands or feet. Cousin, you're our guest, not her servant girl. Why are you getting things for her? Quick, sit down and eat." Lian Tian'er glared at Feng Qiulian, pulled Li Hong to sit beside her, and just as she did, Lian Qing was on the other side. With a flick of her eyes, Lian Tian'er started speaking again, "Cousin, why don't you hurry up and help Third Brother serve the porridge? Some people think they're empresses and need to be served, but in reality, I reckon she's got a screw loose."

  "Tian'er, don't say that. San Biao's wife is just not feeling well, that's all." Li Hong said as she quickly ladled another bowl of porridge, "San Biao Ge, you drink this."

  Lian Qing furrowed his brow, glanced at Li Hong, then looked at the porridge in Li Hong's bowl, and dropped the words "eat your fill" without looking at anyone else in the room, turned around and walked out.

  Li Hong's face turned alternately pale and red, but Li Shi spoke up to relieve her, "Quickly sit down and eat, your third uncle is just that kind of person, he has always been easy to offend people, we are one family, don't take it to heart."

  "What's wrong, Third Uncle is very good."

  Next to her, Qian Shi, who had been warned by a stern gaze not to make a sound, let out a laugh and hastily drank several mouthfuls of thin porridge that was barely visible. She looked at Li Hong with disdain and said, "I'm saying, cousin, in your eyes, only Third Uncle is good, but First Uncle and Second Uncle are no good?"

  "How could that be? Several of my brothers-in-law are very good people." Li Hong was a bit at a loss for words after being spoken to by Qian Shi, and after thinking for a moment, added another sentence, "Really, all three of my brothers-in-law have been very good to me."

  "Sister, why does what you said sound so awkward to me? Is it not true?" Qian Shi stuffed another small cucumber into her mouth, chewed three or five times, and smiled meaningfully at Li Hong, "Or perhaps, sister, in your heart, only Third Brother is the one who is truly sincere towards you?"

  Digression

  Come on, come on, come on, come on - give me some motivation, guys!

  PS: If it reaches 530 by midnight, there will be two updates tomorrow. Take care of yourselves, everyone...