"Your job today is still to cut pigweed. Each of you gets a sickle, return it before finishing work."
With a straightforward speaking manner, Yi Roujing turned her head and saw a girl with short hair cut at ear-length. She had a round face, and all her facial features were round too, looking quite blessed. She wore a blue work suit with buttons fastened meticulously. She appeared to be around twenty years old, but her expression seemed like she was in her thirties or forties.
"Xiaojing, my sister-in-law is joining us to cut pigweed today too. Would you please give her a sickle as well?" Ding Anmin said with a smile.
Upon hearing it was about her, Yi Roujing stepped forward to stand beside Ding Anmin and Xia Xingchen, greeted them, and said, "Hello, much appreciated."
Ding Anmin was again surprised around but was secretly relieved that after an illness, this person had become more polite, not losing face for her family.
"Each person's work is assigned by the team leader, and the number of people is fixed. Whether you're supposed to cut pigweed, I don't know." Ding Xiaojing glanced at Yi Roujing and said, "Wait for the team leader to arrive for your assignment."
Ding Anmin was a bit anxious, fearing that Yi Roujing might show a face to Ding Xiaojing for being displeased, so she quickly explained, "Xiaojing, my sister-in-law has just recovered from an illness and can't do heavy work."
Yi Roujing looked at Ding Anmin, feeling a bit warm inside. She took back her previous impression that this girl was not kind; she was a real sweetheart.
"I can't manage this." Ding Xiaojing glanced at Yi Roujing, with a faint trace of jealousy in her eyes, but it disappeared quickly.
Yi Roujing carefully thought back but couldn't recall any interaction with this round-faced girl.
Since she couldn't get a sickle, she could only wait for the team leader to arrive. Ding Anmin also stayed nearby, and Xia Xingchen didn't leave either. The three of them stood in a row, watching others receive their farming tools and depart, receiving quite a few glances and whispers.
In the era when everyone was earning work points, the team leader, Ding Xiaoding, didn't arrive late. Yi Roujing estimated that she only waited around five minutes.
Yi Roujing noticed that the team leader didn't look much different from an average person, probably around forty or fifty, wearing a brown work suit with some mud stains, washed until it turned whitish, with patches on the elbows and knees.
Looking at so many people, Yi Roujing realized that many people's clothes were patched. Comparing this, she found that the clothes of the original owner were quite decent and looked new, as did those of Ding Anmin and Xia Xingchen.
"Team leader, my sister-in-law is starting work today," Ding Anmin greeted with a smile. "But my sister-in-law hasn't really done much work before, her body isn't quite well yet, she just recovered from a fever today, could you assign her some lighter work?"
"Going with us to cut pigweed would be good enough. Anyway, work points are counted according to the amount of pigweed, you see..." Ding Anmin said softly.
Ding Xiaoding turned to look at Yi Roujing, smiled and said, "Is this Ancheng's wife? Starting work now? Not going to be three days of work and two days off, right?"
"Not possible." Yi Roujing responded, with a slightly serious expression, "I'm the kind of person who faces challenges head-on."
"I was initially apprehensive about the new environment and didn't do much when I was at my mother's home, but since marrying here for these three months, seeing how hard my in-laws and my younger siblings work, I've realized that my previous way won't work, so starting today, I'll work hard to earn work points."
"But Anmin also speaks the truth. I've just recovered from illness, my body is not quite recovered, so I might only be suitable for simple tasks right now. Otherwise, delaying everyone's work isn't good either."
Ding Anmin recalled seeing her sister-in-law's lips moving, and thought of how her sister-in-law was before, always had so much to say, but whatever she said would be unpleasant, with dirty words easily popping out.
But today... what she said was coherent and made sense.
This is spooky, never thought she was capable, speaking human words when seeing people, when seeing ghosts... wait, what was she thinking.
Although Ding Anmin thought of a lot, she didn't show it but looked expectantly at Ding Xiaoding.
"Alright, today you just follow Anmin and the others to cut pigweed. Xiaojing, give Ancheng's wife a sickle." Ding Xiaoding nodded in agreement and spoke to the round-faced girl.
Ding Xiaojing pursed her lips but still fetched a sickle, an old rusty one, "Here, take it, since you're not used to work, it's better to leave the good tools for those who can work, don't you think?"
This person is definitely holding a grudge against her, Yi Roujing confirmed, although she didn't know the specific reason.
Already given the task of cutting pigweed today, she didn't want to make it worse, so Yi Roujing accepted it readily, "You're right, Xiaojing. Once I'm familiar with the work and earn good points, I'll use the good sickle then."
"Who's your sister?" Ding Xiaojing mumbled to herself in dissatisfaction.
"Everyone, get to work while the weather's good today," urged Ding Xiaoding, and the members of Dingping Production Team quickened their pace, with Yi Roujing following Ding Anmin and Xia Xingchen to cut pigweed.
"Anmin's sister-in-law..."
"Just call me by my name," Xia Xingchen walking beside her moved closer, making Yi Roujing a bit uncomfortable, more so with her form of address; Ancheng's wife was more than enough, now Anmin's sister-in-law, it was quite enough already, her name is clearly nicer.
"I'm the same age as Anmin, so I'll just call you sister-in-law."
Yi Roujing twitched her lips, thinking, why can't a married woman use her own name? But since this girl was smiling nicely and seemed approachable, she didn't argue, it's just a name, right?
"Sister-in-law, you're not quite like what I heard," Xia Xingchen said slightly excited.
"Heard?"
"Ahem—" Ding Anmin coughed vigorously beside them.
Xia Xingchen's expression became awkward, quickly changing the subject, "Sister-in-law, you were so impressive today, that Hupozi was left speechless after you hit back at her, really gratifying."
"Hupozi?" Yi Roujing could tell there was something between the two, but she didn't mind, considering the original owner's reputation... so she followed the topic, "The lady who always runs her mouth?"
"Oh, you're so right, isn't she just babbling nonsense," Xia Xingchen clapped and laughed heartily.
Yi Roujing looked Xia Xingchen up and down, thinking that her looks didn't quite match her lively personality.
"Stop chatting, let's hurry to cut pigweed," said Ding Anmin, with a basket on her back and a sickle in hand, leading the way. In no time, they reached the edge of the pond, squatted, and started cutting deftly.
Yi Roujing took a closer look at the so-called pigweed that Ding Anmin was cutting, which was Houttuynia cordata, also known as fish mint, a medicinal herb. Knowing what to cut, she squatted down and started cutting as well. Although the sickle was rusty, it was still effective, and fish mint wasn't hard to cut. However, there wasn't much of it, and soon enough, a large part around the pond was gone.