Chapter 810 - 417: Punishment for Liu’er’s Mother

Chapter 810: Chapter 417: Punishment for Liu’er’s Mother

Juhua asked with a smile, "Father, how can these oxen be so sensible?"

Zhang Dashuan said proudly, "Of course they are. I talk to these oxen every day. When it’s time to go out and work, and when it’s time to come home, I call them by their names and tell them. They’ve gotten used to listening to me. Whenever I call, they naturally come running back."

He said, "Oxen are very sensible. Even ducks know to come home when it gets dark, and oxen also want to come home as soon as night falls. Those cattle thieves dragged them toward the woods late at night—how could they be expected to listen? The poor black ox had its nose torn. How are we going to thread a rope through it from now on? I soaked a lot of beans to feed it for a while and help it recover. It just so happens that we need to add more forage for them during the spring plowing anyway."

Zhang Dashuan took a sip of porridge and said, "It’s not a problem. These oxen are completely tamed. It’s fine even if we don’t thread their noses. I’ll put a halter on its head and attach a rope to it. Mother, why hasn’t Huai Zi come back yet?"

He said, "That’s exactly what I was wondering. Juhua, did you save some food for Huai Zi?"

Juhua replied, "I did. Mother, don’t worry. Think about it—it’s such a long way, and Huai Zi only left after lunch. A round trip, plus the time needed to talk things over with people... even if he took a cart, it wouldn’t be that fast. But I reckon he should be arriving home right about now."

He nodded and resumed discussing tomorrow’s chores with Zhang Dashuan. Juhua, along with Pu Pao—who had come over to help after her own meal—cleared the dishes. Then she washed Banli and Cong, coaxing the two children to sleep.

Under the lamplight, Juhua sat by the edge of the small bed. Listening to the natural, distinct rustling of a spring night, she gently patted Banli and Cong while softly humming a lullaby.

Banli’s eyes were drowsy, but he kept struggling to open them from time to time to look at his mother. Seeing her patting him, he would close his eyes again in relief. After doing this a few times, he could hold on no longer and finally fell into a deep slumber. As for Cong, she had fallen asleep long ago.

Juhua tucked their light blanket around them and carefully checked to ensure everything was fine. Only then did she pick up a small pair of overalls from her sewing basket and sit back under the lamp to sew. She was making these for the two children to wear in the heat, which would save her the trouble of dressing them in separate little shirts and pants with ties.

A short while later, the dogs started barking outside, letting Juhua know that Huai Zi had returned.

Low voices murmured outside, then moved toward the kitchen. Not long after, Huai Zi pushed open the door and entered the room. He gave Juhua a gentle smile under the lamplight, then looked at their sleeping children on the small bed. Stepping lightly, he walked to the table, sat down, and asked softly, "Why haven’t you slept yet? Waiting for me?"

Juhua glanced at him and teased, "The man of the house hasn’t returned, so I didn’t dare sleep."

Huai Zi grinned silently. He pulled a cloth bundle from inside his shirt and handed it to Juhua. "Doctor Yun asked me to bring this to you. She was complaining that you never visit her. I told her you’d go see her once Banli and Cong can walk." As he spoke, the smile on his lips widened.

Their conversation had actually gone like this: Huai Zi had said, "Juhua is tied up at home. Once Banli and Cong can walk, she’ll bring them to the market town to visit you." Yun Ying curled her lip at this and replied, "By the time they can walk, Juhua will probably be on her second pregnancy. She still won’t have time to visit me." Hearing that, he had just chuckled in amusement.

Juhua didn’t ask why he was smiling. She opened the small bundle to reveal a porcelain jar about the size of a teacup. Inside was some face cream. A faint, pleasant fragrance of herbs and woods wafted out.

She put the item away and said, "I’ll find some free time to visit her." Then she asked, "How is Zhao Feng? Is Liu’er’s mother alright?"

A fight was one thing, but if Liu’er’s mother was beaten beyond saving, it would be a huge problem. Could they really let He pay with her life? Even if they avoided that, endless entanglements between the two families in the future would be incredibly tiresome.

Huai Zi understood her concerns and softly reassured her, "They’re fine. Well, actually, both of their injuries were quite severe, but Doctor Qin and Doctor Yun can cure them. Sigh! Doctor Qin threw a huge fit today. He said he was already incredibly busy trying to treat people, yet we still had the free time to fight and cause trouble for him. He said that if he hadn’t been there, the injury on Zhao Feng’s head could have turned him into a fool. He also said that Liu’er’s mother suffered internal injuries and won’t be able to do heavy labor in the future."

Juhua frowned upon hearing this. She thought that from Qin Feng’s perspective, it truly was infuriating.

She didn’t know what to make of today’s incident. Liu’er’s mother was definitely in the wrong, and Shi Tou’s mother hadn’t meant to severely injure her—she had just wanted to teach her a lesson. Who could have expected that Zhao Feng would rush in like that? Seeing her son thrown to the ground had caused Shi Tou’s mother to instantly lose her mind. If He hadn’t kept a relatively clear head, Liu’er’s mother would have been dead for sure.

Huai Zi sighed and said, "He’s an upright man who only cares about treating illnesses and doesn’t get involved in disputes. When we told him what happened today, he didn’t gossip with others. He just called Qingmu and me into his room and gave us a scolding. He said we shouldn’t even pay attention to someone like Liu’er’s mother. If things got out of hand, we should have just asked the village chief to step in."