Splendid Twins

"This is a good job. I love doing it."

Si Laoer smiled with wrinkles all over his face. He wiped his hands and went into the house to change into a clean patched coat.

Si Yang and Si Qing were cleaning the pig blood on the ground. Liu Niang felt that her face looked ugly, so she boiled some hot water and wiped her face. When Si Yao saw this, he put down the knife in his hand, walked over and whispered:

"Mom, please come in with me."

Si Yao placed a small bag in a wooden box in the house. There were no valuables in it, but it was just a cover for her to take things from the space.

Taking out a bottle of ointment and disinfectant cotton pads, he pulled Liu Niang to sit down. Si Yao disinfected gently for fear of hurting her, and then applied a thick layer of Meibao on her face. Liu Niang felt that the burning sensation on her face suddenly dissipated a little, and the cool feeling was very comfortable.

"It's a waste to use such good medicine on me. Yaoyao, keep it for yourself later."

Liu Niang felt sorry for Si Yao. Her daughter had never drunk a single sip of her milk, but she was so loyal to her!

"It doesn't matter which one of us uses it. Mom, next time someone hits you, fight back. If you can't beat them, run away. Your daughter will fight for you. Don't hurt yourself anymore."

"Hey, you kid..."

Liu Niang reached out and touched the top of Si Yao's head, looking at her with loving care, "Silly child, there is no daughter-in-law beating her mother-in-law in this world!"

If she rebels and disobeys her mother-in-law, her children's reputation will be damaged and her life will be over!

The village chief happily carried the pork home, and the eyes of the people he met along the way lit up:

"Where did you get the meat, village chief?"

"It looks quite fresh, Village Chief, where have you been?"

The village chief, who was holding the meat in one hand and had his other hand behind his back, glared at this:

"You only asked me after you saw the meat. All right, whoever wants to buy meat, bring the money and follow me to Si Laoer's house."

"Si Lao Er? Didn't his wife just have sex with his mother..."

The village chief's face changed, and he looked at the person who spoke and said angrily:

"Don't you know how to talk? You keep staring at other people's trivialities all day long!"

"Don't be angry, this is just a conversation..."

"You all know how much pork costs per pound. This is a wild boar that Yao girl killed in the mountains. She thought of us villagers and only charged eight cents per pound. You should all be more conscious and stop looking down on others!"

After the village chief finished speaking, he carried the meat and walked away. The people who stayed behind realized what was happening and hurried home to get money to buy the meat. It was only eight cents, and in town it was more than twenty cents per pound. It was far away and might not be fresh. This was simply a huge bargain!

The village chief didn't care about these troubles. He returned home, handed the meat to the old woman, and called his grandson over:

"Come with me to the second brother Si's house, kid, be alert. If you make good friends with the two brothers of the Si family, you will definitely benefit from it in the future!"

"Master, I can't play with his two brothers."

The village chief's grandson Dazhu was chopping wood and thought his grandfather was calling him for something. He didn't like dealing with people.

"You, you are simply..."

"Alright, everyone knows what life is like for Si Laoer's family. If the kid doesn't want to, don't force him."

The village chief wanted to discipline his grandson, but was interrupted by the old woman. After hearing such words, he cursed angrily:

"Ignorant woman, with long hair and little knowledge!"

Looking at his grandson who looked indifferent, he felt compelled to explain it clearly, so he said:

"Yes, Si Laoer's family was poor, but things are different now. His daughter is back. Didn't you see how she made Mrs. Si faint with just a few words today? In military tactics, this is called winning without fighting. And she, a weak woman, can kill a wild boar in the mountains!

Let's not talk about these for now. Just the fact that she sold pork to the villagers at a low price, your grandfather and I have lived for most of our lives to understand people's hearts. She, a girl, can see it clearly. Today, she made Mrs. Si faint with anger. In the future, there will inevitably be gossips. Then she will use pork to shut her mouth. Who can't get along with meat? If she can beat one today, maybe two tomorrow. With such a smart and capable girl, Si Laoer's family will not be too bad!

If you can be half as good as me, I will leave the position of village chief to you!"

Seeing his grandfather nagging, Dazhu had no choice but to speak:

"Okay, okay, I'll go with you."

The village chief looked at the stunned old woman with a proud look on his face, and said in a generous tone:

"Give me some meat tonight!"

The old woman responded and scolded with a smile:

"You two can just let them eat their food to death. I'll give these two cabbages to Lady Liu later. Since you've said that, let's make peace with each other."

"That's right, old lady, you did a great job!"

"Get out of here, mom!"

After hearing the news, the villagers ran to the hut one after another. Wow!

The fair-skinned girl from Si Laoer's family was holding a butcher knife and chopping pork with every move. Some people looked at Si Laoer timidly. How could this honest man give birth to such a domineering daughter?

"Girl Yao, give me something fat."

"Me too, I'll go back and make some oil residue to eat."

Si Yao nodded silently, holding the knife. He raised his hand and cut, and each piece of meat was attached to a large piece of fat. The person who bought the meat weighed it in his hand and smiled with his eyes narrowed.

At first, I thought Si Yao was a little heartless for giving me such a big gift for free. I thought this girl had a clear distinction between love and hate!

"Yao girl is really capable. Is your mother feeling better?"

Aunt Huang asked as she stood aside, holding half a piece of fat and lean meat.

"No, my mother just applied some medicine and is resting."

Si Yao looked around at the woman standing at the door and replied in a low voice.

"Your grandma is really cruel. Your mom got beaten a lot at her hands!"

Aunt Huang said this while cracking pumpkin seeds, and also invited a few other aunts to join in the chat.

The whole wild boar was almost sold out, so Si Yao kept some for herself. Seeing that there was still some fat and meat, Si Yao looked at her aunt standing at the door chatting, picked up a knife and cut the meat into several portions, then spoke slowly:

"Aunts, come here for a moment."

"What's wrong, Yao girl?"

Aunt Huang looked at the pork on the chopping board and a hint of joy flashed in her eyes.

"I just returned to my mother. She is not in good health. As her daughter, I have to take care of her. Sometimes I have to trouble a few aunts to help. Consider this meat as my thank you gift in advance. I hope you will accept it."

"Look at what this girl said. Every neighbor has some minor illness or disaster. Your mother is just too honest."

Aunt Huang stretched out her hand and picked one for herself first. Even though there were several of them, she still had to pick the one that suited her first.

"Your Aunt Huang is right. Your mother is just too weak. You are much better than Miss Wan. That girl always raises her chin to look at people. Don't be so awkward."

Another aunt also picked one, and a few gossipers in the village gathered together and began to praise Si Yao, then compared her with Zhou Wan, and then whispered gossip about Mrs. Si when she was young...

Si Yao accepted the two cabbages brought by the village chief. Si Yang and Da Zhu helped to unload the door panels. Si Lao Er collected a lot of money today and put it on Si Yao's bed when he returned to the house, then took the donkey out to eat grass.

When the village chief returned, Si Yao took out another piece of meat and handed it over:

"Take it. I'll come to your house in two days."

The village chief knew that Si Yao was in trouble, so he took over and said:

"Okay, I'll be here whenever you come."

The setting sun gradually sank to the west, and the orange-red light illuminated the sky. The returning birds flew into the woods in twos and threes. Smoke rose from every household in Sijia Village. The whole village was filled with the aroma of meat tonight!