The Country Maiden: Fields and Leisure-Chapter 72 - Can’t just take someone else’s things for nothing
72: Chapter 72: Can’t just take someone else’s things for nothing
72 -72: Can’t just take someone else’s things for nothing
At that moment, Wang Yongping, without any hesitation, walked up with a smile and gave each of his brothers a punch, “It’s been a long time since we three brothers have seen each other.
After we plant the tree, let’s go to the village smithy to pick up some stuff.
I’m heading into the mountains in a few days.
Are you guys coming?”
It was just like any other day.
Seeing that Wang Yongping wasn’t angry with them at all, nor was he holding a grudge, the Li Family Brothers were naturally happy.
They quickly planted the tree and walked arm in arm to the mouth of the village.
Leaving behind Li Zhuye, the young girl felt annoyed, watching her heartless brothers who had forgotten their sister for their brotherhood, stomping her feet in vexation.
Today, Wang Yongzhu was still practicing needlework in the courtyard.
She had learned threading the needle yesterday, and today, she began learning to tie knots and the simplest stitching techniques.
Seeing the little girl pouting, Wang Yongzhu’s irritation had long since vanished.
How could she possibly stay mad at such a young girl?
Moreover, the little girl had sharp eyes, noticing at a glance that she had lost weight.
That proved that the double-acting fat burner was effective, and by that account, the day of a successful weight loss wasn’t far off.
As a result, her mood had been good all morning, and even Wang Yongping mentioning Song Chongjin didn’t affect her.
At this time, she waved at Li Zhuye.
Li Zhuye looked carefully at Wang Yongzhu, and seeing that she was indeed not angry, cautiously moved closer with a hint of embarrassment on her face, “Old…”
Wang Yongzhu chuckled to herself, seeing that the maid was embarrassed.
She nodded, pulling a hair flower out of her sleeve, “Here, this is for you from me.
Thank you for the flower tree.”
She couldn’t just take something from someone without giving something in return; that was Wang Yongzhu’s principle.
Li Zhuye’s eyes widened in surprise, “Old Granny, is this really for me?” It was a crudely handcrafted artificial flower, made from layers of gauze.
Its saving grace was its bright color; otherwise, it wouldn’t have been picked by a straightforward man like Wang Yongping to be brought home.
Indeed, it was the bead flower that Wang Yongping had intended for Li Jinzhi, but which had been picked up by Wang Yongzhu.
Old Granny Zhang had directly given it to her own daughter; Lady Lin, although she really wanted it, thought it wasn’t proper for her as the elder sister-in-law to ask for something bought by her brother-in-law, so she held back.
Lady Jiang was timid; despite seeing Jinhua’s longing gaze, she knew her place in the Wang Family.
Knowing she wouldn’t be able to get it anyway, she turned a blind eye to Jinhua’s dimmed eyes.
Now, Wang Yongzhu had no interest in these flowers or ornaments, so she had been keeping them stored away.
Taking it out now, its pink color was still very much capable of drawing a young girl’s attention.
Li Zhuye eagerly looked at the hair flower, gingerly reaching out to touch it.
The sensation of the silk gauze under her fingers made her eyes widen with delight.
She had seen such hair flowers on her cousin Li Jinzhi before and had wanted to touch them, but Li Jinzhi had said she was afraid that she’d soil them, saying that a country girl like her didn’t deserve to touch such things.
This had really hurt Li Zhuye’s feelings, which was why she disliked Li Jinzhi!
Now, actually touching the flower, Li Zhuye wanted it, but also felt it was too precious and feared she would be punished if she brought it home.
Yet, in the end, her longing for the hair flower overcame her fear.
Li Zhuye accepted the flower, “Thank you, Old Granny!”
She couldn’t wait to wear it on her head and, turning to Jinhua with an envious look in her eyes, asked, “Jinhua, do I look good with this flower?”
Jinhua lowered her eyes with a less cheerful tone than before, “It’s beautiful.”
Yes, it truly was beautiful!
Too bad, it was something she couldn’t have.
Jinhua turned her head, meeting Lady Jiang’s apologetic and soothing gaze.
Somehow, it no longer felt the same as before.
In the past, when she and her brothers were scolded by their grandma, wronged by their elder aunt, and ordered around by their old cousin, and they went to their mother for help, she would always look at them with that apologetic gaze, silently saying nothing, never defending them.
Afterward, their mother would hold them in her arms and cry, apologizing because their father never stayed at home and didn’t care about them, which was why their branch of the family was the least respected and always bullied.
But there was no other choice, for without a father to support them, they had to endure and yield.
She had always been sympathetic to their mother who raised all three siblings alone and received the least affection in the house, so any grievance was borne in silence.
Otherwise, what could be done?
Their mother was not to be relied upon, as she would never stand up for herself.
But now, seeing the smile on Li Zhuye’s face and the pretty hair ornament in her hair, Jinhua felt both heartbroken and angry.
Why, when it came time to divide the hair ornaments, could their mother not speak up just once knowing how much she liked them?
Even when she wanted to speak up, she was stopped by her mother.
If she had spoken up and been rejected by Old Granny Zhang, perhaps she wouldn’t have felt so upset.
Lady Jiang was of course aware of Jinhua’s feelings, and seeing her daughter’s longing gaze, she too felt pained.
Silently bowing her head to fiddle with the thread in her hands, she knew Jinhua was a sensible child who would soon get over this moment of sadness, and she could offer comfort later that evening.
Wang Yongzhu witnessed the silent exchange of glances between Lady Jiang and her daughter.
Whether it was the her of the past or the her of the present, she had no respect for Lady Jiang in this regard.
A mother who cannot fight for her children’s interests, silently suffers everything, and expects her children to endure along with her, is thoroughly unqualified!
At the time of dividing the hair ornaments, she had actually noticed Old Granny Zhang glancing at Lady Jiang and Jinhua.
Knowing Old Granny Zhang as she did, having turned away an unwanted prospective daughter-in-law and obtaining ten taels of silver in the process, her mood was good.
Plus, Lady Jiang had put in the effort, and in the house apart from herself, Jinhua was the only girl.
If Lady Jiang and Jinhua had simply spoken up, there was a seventy to eighty percent chance that Old Granny Zhang would have agreed.
But Lady Jiang never spoke up, and she even held back Jinhua when she tried to.
Even though Wang Yongzhu thought Lady Lin was petty and calculative, as a mother, she was qualified.
All her schemes and cautious considerations were for her children.
Even if she was scolded viciously by Old Granny Zhang, the next time, for the sake of her children, Lady Lin would still face the storm head-on.
If one perseveres enough times, eventually, there will be that one or two successes.
Lady Jiang appeared non-confrontational, which is why their branch of the family always got the short end of the stick in daily life.
Then there was Jinhua, her eyes bright red, yet stubbornly holding back tears from falling.
Wang Yongzhu’s heart softened.
Originally, she had only intended to give Jinhua a slight lesson, but now seeing her in such a pitiful state, she decided to let it go and offer some consolation.
She then took out the remaining red hair ornament from her sleeve, keeping a straight face, “Jinhua, come here.”
Jinhua had been indoctrinated by Lady Jiang that their branch was looked down upon, so they had to be obedient, sensible, hardworking, and not ask for too much.
She had almost gotten used to it.
The presence of Lady Jiang and her children in the Wang Family had always been quite low.
Thus, when the old aunt’s attitude toward her changed, even if only slightly, Jinhua was the first to notice.
The slightest bit of kindness made Jinhua feel unexpectedly cherished; she was afraid to lose even that little bit of kindness, so she nearly exerted all her strength to close the gap with the old aunt, hoping life for their branch, for her and her brothers, would then become less miserable, right?
But she hadn’t expected to ruin everything.
Jinhua was extremely disheartened, afraid to return to the days before.
Hearing Wang Yongzhu calling her over, her eyes shone frightfully bright; the tiny Jinhua felt that this was her last chance to grasp onto.
