Chapter 713 - 709: Gleaning Wheat Ears

Sun Yeshu gave Leng Qingtian an aggrieved look.

Her eyes were red-rimmed.

She was already feeling some discomfort from her pregnancy. On top of that, her mother-in-law had been ordering her to do this and that, and her husband was ignoring her. For a moment, she felt like she could just burst into tears and wail.

Just as Sun Yeshu was feeling miserable, she heard a burst of cheerful noise from the adjacent field. She looked over and saw Gu Jiaojiao with a group of children, gleaning wheat.

Sun Yeshu was gleaning wheat behind Leng Qingtian, while Gu Jiaojiao was doing the same in the field behind Leng Yuan.

And the two men had been assigned adjacent plots of land.

Leng Qingtian felt a little awkward. Although he hadn’t told Sun Yeshu to do what she did, it was his wife who was causing the embarrassment.

He wanted to apologize to Leng Yuan, but Leng Yuan walked over with a sickle, not even glancing at Leng Qingtian. Instead, he kept talking with Chen JianShe, who was beside him.

Back then, he and his other cousins had been jealous of Leng Yuan and had even ganged up to try and bully him. Although they hadn’t succeeded, it had strained the relationship between the cousins.

Leng Qingtian hadn’t thought much of it before. But now, watching Chen JianShe laugh and joke with Leng Yuan, he saw that even though Leng Yuan seemed a bit annoyed by Chen JianShe’s boisterousness, he still patiently listened to him.

And Chen JianShe looked at Leng Yuan with pure adoration in his eyes, calling out "Brother Leng" with more affection than he would his own brother.

Watching them interact, they looked more like real brothers than he and Leng Yuan did.

The sight made Leng Qingtian burn with envy, and the apology on the tip of his tongue was swallowed back down.

He grabbed his sickle and simply started working.

Nearby, Chen JianShe was talking to Leng Yuan about going hunting in the mountains.

They used to go every few days.

But in the last six months, they’d hardly gone at all. Now that Brother Leng was finally on leave, he was determined they had to go a few times. He was starting to crave meat.

Last night, he’d even dreamed of spicy kung pao chicken.

Pestered to the point of annoyance, Leng Yuan could only agree.

"If you still have any energy after work today, we’ll go up the mountain."

Chen JianShe’s eyes lit up. Having gotten Brother Leng’s approval, he walked over to his assigned patch of the wheat field.

In truth, he hadn’t been assigned to this section. He had pestered the team leader for a long time and finally bribed him with half a wild pheasant before Chen Beiguo relented and let him come over.

Chen JianShe was quite pleased with himself about that.

Leng Yuan paid Chen JianShe no mind. He looked at Gu Jiaojiao and instructed her softly, "Just follow behind me and glean the wheat in a little while."

Gu Jiaojiao nodded obediently.

Leng Yuan was the last to start, but he was a natural at this kind of work. His height and large hands gave him an advantage.

Leng Yuan gathered a large handful of wheat in one arm, his sickle swiped right after, and in an instant, a patch of the field was cleared.

Leng Qingtian and Chen JianShe were also skilled workers, but in no time, Leng Yuan had left them far behind.

Gu Jiaojiao carried a basket to glean wheat, a large group of children trailing behind her. Before she could even make a move, the fallen ears were picked completely clean.

Sweet Girl instructed Gu Jiaojiao like a little adult.

"Sister, these wheat ears are a bit prickly. Your skin is delicate, so don’t touch them. If you see any, just call me and I’ll get them."

Sweet Girl had now clearly become the king of the kids, with a large group of little children following her.

Gu Jiaojiao smiled and patted Sweet Girl’s head. "Okay, I got it."

After Chen JianShe cleared a patch of the field, Chen Sandan came running over, followed by Chen Erniu. The two of them were looking for Sweet Girl.

Gleaning wheat wasn’t tiring, making it the perfect job for children. They never seemed to get tired, running between the fields and picking the ground clean of every last ear.

Gu Jiaojiao followed along the whole way but barely picked up a few ears of wheat herself.

Nearby, Sun Yeshu saw the leisurely look on Gu Jiaojiao’s face and felt a surge of irritation.