Tian Erfu was scared to death; she was afraid of her Mother getting angry, for once her Mother was angry, her life would become miserable.
"I... I don't dare."
"If you don't dare, then eat. Are you waiting for me to feed you?"
Qin Sang's tone was fierce, and Tian Erfu didn't dare to disobey any longer.
If Mother wanted her to die after she was full, then so be it; at least she wouldn't become a hungry ghost.
Holding onto this thought, Tian Erfu took the flatbread and began to chew in large mouthfuls.
She took a bite of the flatbread and then a sip of herbal tea from the water skin, her cheeks bulging as she ate.
As she swallowed hard, her tears flowed down in streams.
Qin Sang felt helpless; she didn't know how long it would take for this child to get used to the way she was now.
With the flatbed cart lighter now, they returned to the village quickly, arriving in less than an hour.
Da Huang came running to meet them at the village entrance, wagging its tail. Seeing the cart, it jumped on and sat steadily beside Qin Sang.
Qin Sang pulled it close, patted its head, and secretly fed it a piece of jerky.
Beside her, Tian Erfu lowered her head when she saw her Mother looking at a dog with such a gentle and kind expression.
In Mother's eyes, she wasn't even as good as a dog.
Qin Sang patted Da Huang's back:
"Get down quickly, Er Fu is about to be pushed off by you. Go home and behave; you're not allowed to chase the chickens, do you hear me?"
Da Huang was shooed off the cart by Qin Sang. Tian Erfu watched as Da Huang ran off.
Mother just shooed the dog away; was she worried she would fall off the cart?
Mother would worry about her?
Tian Erfu peeked at her Mother again, feeling that something about her was different.
In the past, her Mother only smiled when she saw her youngest brother, but now, there was a faint, gentle smile on her Mother's face.
It was a look she had never seen before.
Hunter Xu and the others got off the cart as soon as they reached home, not mentioning the matter of wages at all. Qin Sang called out loudly:
"I'll have Da Zhuang and San Gui bring the wages over once I'm home. Don't worry."
Hunter Xu and the others hurriedly said:
"No need, Da Zhuangs Mother. We're all fellow villagers. We just took a trip and even got good food and drink out of it. There's no need for wages."
"That's right, In-law. We didn't really help much today, so how could we take wages?"
Qin Sang waved her hand:
"How can that be? You all were a huge help today."
"Think about it, if we didn't have so many people, even with the Lime helping, we wouldn't have been able to handle so many people rushing us."
"It's also lucky nothing happened today, otherwise I, Qin Sang, would have truly let everyone down. So, you must take these wages."
Tian Youdi smiled and said:
"Sister-In-law, even if you send Da Zhuang and San Gui over, we won't accept it."
"Right, right."
Qin Sang said helplessly:
"If you don't take it, how can I have the face to ask for your help next time? Wouldn't that force me to hire people from other villages?"
"Who knows if those outsiders would start scheming against my family."
Tian Youdi disagreed:
"Sister-In-law, this business is so big, you can't just call people from other villages."
"If anything happens to your family, the villagers will truly have no way to survive."
Qin Sang nodded:
"So, are you going to take the wages or not?"
The four of them looked at each other and finally agreed reluctantly:
"Alright then, Da Zhuangs Mother, we'll do as you say."
Qin Sang nodded and then drove the horse cart toward home.
Tian Erfu sat on the flatbed cart, somewhat dazed.
What did she just hear?
Mother was forcing money onto others?
When did Mother become so generous?
Does the family have that much money?
Before long, the mule and horse pulled the cart to a stop in their courtyard.
Hearing the noise, the family members working in the main room poured out. When they saw Tian Erfu jumping down from the cart, the smiles on their faces froze.
Eldest Girl was the first to rush over:
"Eldest Paternal Aunt, Eldest Girl missed you so much."
Eldest Girl hugged Tian Erfu's leg. In the past, when the eldest brother and his wife went to work in the fields, Eldest Girl was cared for by Er Fu, who carried her on her back.
When Tian Erfu was sold to the town by the Original Body, Eldest Girl hid in the shed and cried for several days.
Now that she saw her Eldest Paternal Aunt was back, Eldest Girl was the happiest, and her tears flowed down.
Tian Sijin also walked over and hugged her sister:
"Sister..."
Eldest Brothers Wife secretly turned away to wipe the corners of her eyes. Third Brother and his Wife looked a bit strange, standing there without coming forward.
Tian Erfu also cried, her voice timid:
"Eldest Girl has become prettier. Si Jin, you've grown taller. Fifth Brother, Eldest Sister-In-law..."
Tian Erfu's gaze fell upon Third Brother and his Wife.
This must be the third brother's wife; she really is beautiful. No wonder the third brother's betrothal gift cost ten taels of silver.
A sour, swollen feeling pressed against her throat, making it impossible to squeeze out a single word. Finally, she pursed her lips in distress and looked away.
Eldest Brothers Wife hurriedly responded:
"It's sunny outside, hurry and come inside. Eldest Girl, go pour some water for your Eldest Paternal Aunt."
Qin Sang looked at Third Brother and his Wife:
"Are you mute? Don't you know how to greet people?"
Tian Sangui shrank his neck:
"Se... Second Sister."
Third Brothers Wife retreated behind her husband, her voice weak as she quickly called out:
"Sister."
Tian Erfu didn't respond and was led into the main room by Eldest Girl and Si Jin.
Under the heavy pressure of Qin Sang's narrowing gaze, Tian Sangui hurriedly walked a few steps into the courtyard:
"Eldest Brother, you've been out all morning, go rest. I'll unload the goods."
As he spoke, he snatched the bag of Flour his eldest brother was about to carry onto his own shoulder, leaving Tian Dazhuang standing there in a daze for several seconds.
Did the sun rise from the west today?
Third Brother is rushing to do work?
However, Tian Dazhuang didn't actually go to rest; he decided to teach his younger brother while unloading the cart.
In the main room, Eldest Girl poured a cup of water for Tian Erfu:
"Eldest Paternal Aunt, have some water."
Si Jin ran into the room and then back out, holding an oil-paper bundle in her arms. She opened it and placed it on the table, saying happily:
"Second Sister, these are Pastries, Snacks Mother bought. Have some."
Eldest Brothers Wife said happily:
"Mother, you must be hungry. I'll go to the kitchen and bring the Lunch over."
Qin Sang nodded, fanning herself with the Palm-leaf Fan.
Tian Erfu held the cup and looked at her family members; they all seemed to have changed.
In the past, Eldest Sister-In-law would never speak so loudly, and she certainly didn't dare to look up at Mother's face.
But just now, Mother wasn't angry at all.
Eldest Girl was no longer wearing patched clothes, nor did she look so thin and weak that she would fall over in the wind.
Her little face, with its baby fat, looked extremely cute.
It was the same with Si Jin—she actually dared to go into Mother's Bedroom and even take the Pastries Mother had bought. Was she not afraid Mother would beat her to death?
And then there was her youngest brother. He used to be the most afraid of the heat and was always clamoring for someone to fan him.
Now Mother was sitting there fanning herself, yet her youngest brother just stood blankly to the side, not going over.
Tian Erfu felt that the home was clearly still the same as before, yet everything was different.
Tian Wenmo didn't notice his second sister's bewildered gaze. He was thinking about something, and after much thought, he plucked up the courage to walk to Qin Sang's side and asked:
"Mother, now that Second Sister is back, where will she sleep tonight?"
He had finally gotten used to sleeping in the Woodshed; he couldn't have her return only for him to be sent back to sleep on the flatbed cart.