When Li Zhengguo entered, he found Tiantian lost in thought, with Hao Hao already asleep in her arms.
"Tiantian?"
Tian Jing snapped back to attention, placed her son into the quilt, and recounted what Old Mrs. Tian had said to Li Zhengguo.
Li Zhengguo held his wife and said, "Tiantian, whether Old Mrs. Tian's words are true or false, that's a matter for the previous generation. Even if our two families are enemies, don't dwell on it. Those grudges have nothing to do with us."
"Besides, these might be Old Man Tian's schemes. You're a walking treasury right now, and the Zhangshan Production Team is all blaming Old Man Tian."
"Mm, I know."
Tian Jing nodded, "I just feel there are some mysteries I haven't figured out, and I don't like this feeling of being kept in the dark."
Li Zhengguo comforted her, "There will be a day when the truth comes out. Don't mind them; they're just after profit."
Tian Jing agreed, "Yes, I'll have to ask Grandpa properly in the future."
...
On the third day of the Lunar New Year, Ouyang Meihua returned from her parents' home and told Tian Jing about the amusing events of her visit.
"Tiantian, having a daughter like Dama is truly a blessing."
It turned out that Ouyang Meihua, her husband, and her two daughters had returned to her maiden home. They were met with scorn from her second sister and third younger brother's families, who not only resented her for not visiting on the second day but also for being a stepmother, a stepmother to a ten-year-old girl.
Dama paid no mind to the adults' squabbles. She, along with her sister, knelt before Ouyang Meihua's parents and kowtowed repeatedly, wishing her grandparents good health.
No matter how unreasonable Ouyang's father was, he couldn't get angry at the children during the New Year, especially since these two girls weren't his own grandchildren. He could only politely give them lucky money and tell them to get up.
After receiving the lucky money, Dama led her sister to kowtow to their aunt and uncle. The loud thuds of their heads hitting the ground made Ouyang Taohua and Ouyang Feng turn pale. They gritted their teeth and gave them lucky money.
Dama was happy, but Ouyang Meihua was not. She said her family was bullying her for marrying into the countryside and looking down on her, giving her daughters only one year's worth of lucky money.
Her two daughters were eleven and nine years old, respectively. She told them to handle it, or she would sever ties and wouldn't give lucky money to her nieces and nephews in the future.
Ouyang's father wished he could sweep his eldest daughter out with a broom.
Being a man who valued appearances, he could only make up the lucky money for the two unexpected granddaughters.
During the meal, Ouyang Meihua piled meat and fish onto her husband's and stepdaughters' bowls, making Ouyang's father's face turn ashen.
As they were leaving, Ouyang Meihua asked for more things, claiming she was pregnant and needed nourishment.
Ouyang's father's expression improved slightly, and he asked Ouyang's mother to pack more things for them.
"Before, when my second sister and third younger brother's wives were pregnant and returned home, they were treated like royalty. Hmph! I won't tell them beforehand; I'll just cause trouble. If my father dares to lay a hand on me, I'll punch his stomach."
Tian Jing chuckled. With such a rebellious daughter in her old age, Ouyang's father's blood vessels must be about to burst.
...
With the arrival of the little one, time flew by, and it was suddenly the Lantern Festival.
This year's Lantern Festival was different because Lin Guangde's grandson was celebrating his hundredth day, and the Lin family threw a grand banquet.
Although Hu Hongju recognized that Lin Jizong, Lin family's grandson, was not her younger son's child, she couldn't say it. If she did, her younger son would be definitively cuckolded.
But if she didn't say anything, everyone else would assume the child was her younger son's. If her younger son didn't react, it would be seen as a sign of surrender.
Therefore, Hu Hongju was so angry at the Lin family's grand banquet that she felt a suffocating discomfort.
However, Li Aiguo himself was very quiet. Whether it was the full moon banquet or the hundred-day celebration, it seemed as though it had nothing to do with him. He just silently worked on clearing the barren land to the south.
Before the ground had even thawed, he had already begun clearing it.
It wasn't that no one helped him; he just didn't want anyone to help. He dug and carried stones himself, slowly clearing the rocky barren land.
After Lin Jizong's hundred-day banquet, Fang Qiuhong dragged her husband to the county town.
They had been married for over a year, and seeing that Zhang Fangcao and Tian Jing had already had children, she still hadn't conceived. It was time to take this seriously.
Upon their return, she got into a fight with Zhang Fangcao.
The villagers who were preparing farm tools for spring plowing were all drawn to the commotion.
Why were the usually good sisters and sisters-in-law fighting today?
The villagers, bored for a while, naturally wanted to pay close attention.
Tian Jing, upon hearing about it, handed her son over to her mother-in-law and pulled Li Min along to watch the spectacle.
Although Fang Qiuhong wasn't as sturdy as Zhang Fangcao, she was agile.
The two women employed all the fighting tactics women used, finally ending up with each other's hair firmly in their grips.
Then, their dynamic fight turned into a static shouting match.
As they argued, the onlookers finally understood the reason for their fight.
It turned out that from the beginning, Zhang Fangcao had told her that drinking tea brewed from cattail root was beneficial for conception.
Yesterday, Fang Qiuhong had seen a doctor in the county town, who told her that cattail root could cause infertility and was the main reason for her long-term infertility.
The villagers sighed in amazement.
Tian Jing, however, smiled. She had wondered why Zhang Fangcao hadn't bothered her recently; it turned out she was busy dealing with Fang Qiuhong.
Huang Sulan hugged her daughter tightly. Today was a good opportunity; she had to clear her daughter's name.
When Huang Sulan stepped forward and accused Zhang Fangcao of personally making pillows filled with Datura and mint for her while she was pregnant, causing her to be constantly agitated and resulting in her daughter being born with six fingers, all the villagers were horrified.
This Zhang Fangcao was too wicked; whoever she married into, that family's daughter-in-law would suffer misfortune.
Lin Silai, looking disappointed and heartbroken, asked Zhang Fangcao, who was still being manhandled, "Fangcao, is what they're saying true?"
Although he couldn't see Zhang Fangcao's expression, the disappointment in his tone made her anxious. "Silai, let me explain."
"Explain what? Explain that what they're saying is false and that they're framing you? Fangcao, I treated you like a precious jewel, wanting to shower you with all the good things in the world, and I never expected you to be such a wicked woman. I was wrong about you; you're not worthy of my true love and devotion."
The last sentence, Lin Silai shouted, then ran back to his room, slammed the door shut, and locked it.
Zhang Fangcao, in her panic, yanked Fang Qiuhong's hand away. Ignoring the clump of hair Fang Qiuhong had pulled out, she rushed into the courtyard.
Lin Guangde sneered. No wonder Li Zhengguo wanted to deal with Zhang Fangcao. Such a wicked woman couldn't be suppressed in an ordinary family.
His elder brother's family only had Er Lai. If Zhang Fangcao first eliminated Er Lai's descendants, then later eliminated Wu Lai's descendants, and even never gave Si Lai a biological son, then all of the Lin family's assets would belong to Lin Jizong.
Too ruthless!
The crowd dispersed.
The villagers, remembering Zhang Fangcao's wickedness, warned the women in their families to never trust Zhang Fangcao's words, as they never knew when that woman might extend her demonic claws to others.
... Sudancn.com
After Stirring of Insects, the only land that needed plowing was the barren land to the south; the fields were covered with winter wheat.
Having witnessed the Li family's cotton harvest last year, the villagers actively started clearing the barren land again.
When Spring Equinox arrived, every household began nurturing seedlings.
Amidst the busyness, they noticed Lin Guangde personally carrying his grandson, no longer smiling with the contentment of having a grandson as before, but sternly scolding the four-month-old baby.
The baby, frightened, dared not cry and sobbed aggrievedly on his back.
Li Zhengguo, while working at the processing room, kindly reminded him, "Weave a basket to carry him; it'll be more comfortable for both of you. If you bind him like that for too long, your lower limbs will have problems."
"Understood."
Taking advantage of the machine's noise, Li Zhengguo whispered in Lin Guangde's ear, warning him to be careful. "This baby belongs to Li Weiguo. He's a ruthless and black-hearted person with no loyalty, righteousness, or conscience. Be careful he doesn't plot against you secretly. Zhang Fangcao is his inside agent."
"I know. Si Lai is dealing with her recently. Should we get her sterilized too?"
"No, we should make her prone to pregnancy and tell Si Lai not to touch her."
"I understand."
"Dr. Yang said Fang Qiuhong's condition can be cured by taking Motherwort pills."
"Mm-hmm, I'll quietly tell Er Lai."
...
After the Tomb-Sweeping Day and before Grain Rain, villagers began planting corn and cotton on the barren land.
Of course, they followed the Li family's intercropping method from last year.
Only Li Aiguo planted corn and sweet potatoes on his barren land. He owed the team too much grain, so he focused on planting grains.
After planting, he went to clear more wasteland elsewhere.
When the villagers saw this, they became anxious. Even the laziest person in the village was clearing land; what excuse did they have to complain about being tired?
A wave of wasteland clearing erupted in the Kuxan Mountains.
Just as the commune sent in piglets and chicks, along with the secretaries and captains from several other production teams, they saw the lively scene in the Kuxan Mountains and seemed to glimpse the future of their production teams.
Upon hearing that they could collect piglets and chicks, the villagers quickly sent the elders of their families to the team office. Elders were capable of caring for livestock, while the younger generation was better suited for physical labor.
The atmosphere in the Kuxan Mountains grew better and better, while the atmosphere in the Lin family grew worse and worse.
Zhang Fangcao coaxed her husband daily but could no longer receive his smiling face or gentle treatment.
As life became increasingly difficult for her, her temper grew more explosive, and she spent more time wandering around the village.
On March 11th, young Master Li Weihao celebrated his hundredth day, and another banquet was organized.
Xiao Hu delivered ingredients, tobacco, and alcohol, bringing Tian Jing and Li Zhengguo news about Ouyang Lei.
Ouyang Lei, using his martial arts skills, had helped the fishermen with many matters and had successfully integrated into the fishing community, establishing a firm foothold in the south.
Tian Jing knew that Ouyang Lei was meticulous and capable, making him very suitable for the south.