Chapter 496 - 510: Aunt

The mule-drawn cart moved a little faster once it entered the village.

The snow in front of every household had been cleared, with each family’s patch gradually connecting to the next.

At a time like this, if a single household failed to shovel, the news that they were lazy—couldn’t even be bothered to clear the snow—would spread through the entire village in the time it took to use the outhouse.

So... the power of gossip was a great motivator. Every household had done a fine job with their shoveling.

The mule trotted along, its hooves going CLIPPITY-CLOP, and the wheels crunched on the thick snow. This sent An Ning’s longing for home soaring.

When the great mountain came into view and her home was just a few dozen meters away, An Ning finally jumped off the cart and ran ahead.

As she ran, she shouted, "I’m going on ahead!"

"What’s the rush? We’re just a few steps away."

An Guoqing shouted, cracking his whip a little louder in the air. The mule picked up its pace.

Beside him, Jiang Xia watched An Ning’s retreating figure with a happy look on her face. She was truly glad.

"Mom—!"

At her call, An Ning saw Lin Cuihua push open the door and jog out from inside.

"Why are you running back?! Where’s your big brother? That little rascal, I told him to pick you up and he couldn’t even do that right!"

"You must be freezing! Get in the house, quick. When your big brother gets back, I’ll—"

"What did I do now?"

An Guoqing’s question, "What did I do now?" made his status in the family perfectly clear.

An Ning took Lin Cuihua’s arm and said with a grin, "Mom, I rode the cart all the way back. I only got off right at our doorstep."

Lin Cuihua grunted an "Oh," then looked over at An Guoqing, who was awaiting his verdict. Her unique motherly tone immediately kicked in again.

"What are you staring at?! Is that luggage going to grow legs and walk inside on its own?"

"And another thing, don’t you go shouting like that. What are we going to do if she hears you?"

An Guoqing tied up the mule cart. Being scolded, he didn’t dare say a word in his defense. He turned to unload the luggage, making sure to be quiet about it.

An Ning tugged on a corner of Lin Cuihua’s shirt and asked, ready for some gossip, "Who are you afraid will hear? Is there someone in this village my big brother can’t beat in a fight? Who is it? I’ll go take care of them!"

Lin Cuihua gave the self-proclaimed champion, An Ning, a disdainful pat on the shoulder.

"Oh, get outta here. All you think about day in and day out is fighting. I’m talking about your sister-in-law."

Lin Cuihua beckoned to An Ning. Understanding, An Ning leaned her head in, her eyes wide as she whispered, "Really?"

"Of course! Would I joke about something like this? It’s just... the morning sickness. It’s a real problem. She’s been throwing up nonstop. Your big brother has been sleeping over by the pigsty these last couple of days."

An Ning stood frozen in place and looked toward the window. Her sister-in-law was waving at her, as if to explain why she hadn’t come outside.

An Ning nodded back with theatrical emphasis, making sure her sister-in-law could see her.

It’s a wide world out there, full of wonders.

An Ning thought to herself, ’This is the first time I’ve ever heard of someone’s morning sickness being triggered by their own husband.’

"Mom, I’m back!"

An Guoping came over with a grin, calling out to his mom, and was rewarded with a smile from Lin Cuihua.

"Not bad. I can tell you’ve been eating well at school. You haven’t lost any weight. In fact, have you gotten a little chubbier?"

Lin Cuihua sized up An Guoping carefully, giving his arm a few pinches to confirm her suspicion that he had indeed put on weight.

"No way! I’ve been studying so hard, how could I have gained weight?"

Grumbling about how it was impossible, An Guoping joined the others in carrying the luggage.

"Auntie—!"

Little Hei Dan came waddling out of his mother’s room on unsteady feet and started shouting "Auntie" at everyone in the courtyard.

As for which one of them was actually his aunt, little Hei Dan had no idea.

"Hei Dan’er, how are you still so dark!"

An Guoping teased Hei Dan cheekily. But while Hei Dan might be little, his temper was not. He immediately scowled at An Guoping.

"Stinky Auntie!"

An Guoping, who was in the middle of carrying luggage, burst out laughing. He pointed at himself and said, "I’m not your auntie, I’m your uncle, got it? Can you say Uncle?"

"Yeah!"

"No, no, you’re supposed to call *me* Uncle. Say ’Uncle’!"

"Yeah!"

"No, you little stinker!"

"You’re stinky!"

Though Hei Dan’er didn’t say much, every word he spoke was critical. He was also incredibly stubborn. An Guoping was defeated.

An Ning looked at Hei Dan’er, who was as dark as ever, and thought, ’Our Hei Dan shows no signs of getting any lighter at all!’

"Hei Dan’er, I’m your auntie."

An Ning called out to Hei Dan. He turned his head to look at her, as if sizing her up all over again.

"Hei Dan’er, this is your auntie."

Lin Cuihua chimed in to help. Hei Dan’er glanced at Lin Cuihua, and having finally confirmed An Ning’s family status, he deigned to open his mouth and call out a rather cool, "Aunt."

"Yes!"

An Ning responded at once, then pulled Baobei forward from behind her to introduce the two children.

"Hei Dan’er, this is Baobei. You two can play together, okay?"

Baobei wasn’t much older; he would only be four after the New Year. He stared at Hei Dan’er for a long moment before looking up at An Ning and asking, "Why is the little brother black?"

"Baobei—! You can’t say that, it’s not polite."

Anna, who was standing behind them, immediately stepped forward to apologize. Baobei prepared to do the same, but Lin Cuihua stopped him with a wave of her hand.

"What’s there to apologize for? My Hei Dan is dark! His skin wasn’t fair to begin with, and ever since he learned to wander around, he never stays indoors. He’s out in the sun every single day. He’s tanner than the folks who work in the fields!"

As everyone was chatting and laughing, Grandpa Jiang, Uncle Jiang, and Master Tang from next door came over.

Jiang Xia took her things and went home first. There was no rush to chat; they would have plenty of time for that later.

Li Chengze, who had returned with them, was led away by Jiang Xia. He was once again posing as her cousin so he could stay with her family.

Li Chengze was heading abroad after the New Year, and An Ning had invited him to come study for a few more days so he’d feel more confident when he left.

Li Chengze, of course, had no issue with this arrangement. He planned to go back to his own home before the New Year, stay for a few days, and then depart from there.

It took several trips back and forth, but finally, all the luggage was inside.

The family had spare rooms, and Lin Cuihua, knowing Anna and Baobei were coming, had already prepared the bedding for them.

Once everyone was more or less settled in, Lin Cuihua began to prepare a meal.

Only then did An Ning get a chance to ask, "Where’s Dad? Is Second Brother not home?"

"They’re home. The two of them went out to shovel snow."

Shoveling snow?

An Ning then remembered the group of people she had seen at the village entrance. ’So Dad and Second Brother were in that group?’

She had been in too much of a hurry to really notice.

With nothing else to do, and feeling stiff after sitting on the cart for two days, An Ning decided to grab a shovel and go help clear the snow.

Lin Cuihua didn’t try to stop her, only reminding An Ning to wear waterproof shoes and put on a pair of gloves.

"Got it—!"

An Ning’s voice floated back in reply, but she was already out in the yard.

Just as she came out with a shovel over her shoulder, Jiang Xia emerged from next door, also carrying a shovel.

"You going too?"

"Of course. How could I possibly miss out on an opportunity to serve the people?"

An Ning walked past Jiang Xia, making a TSK-TSK sound.

"Your skin is getting thicker by the day."

"Thick enough to stop a bullet?"

"In your dreams. Bulletproof skin is expensive. Yours is just plain thick."

The bickering pair walked one after the other toward the entrance of the village.