Chapter 103 Eat More Worry Less

  "Mother..." Shen Sisi called out in distress, just about to call out bitterly, but unexpectedly Niu Xiaohua buried her head in He Axiu's arms and cried out, "Mother... waaahhh..."

  Shen Sisi is really a dark horse, this should be her playstyle?! Is she too strong, too tomboyish, that her functions have all regressed? I'm speechless, being stolen the show by Niu Xiaohua.

  He Yaxiu immediately understood and hugged Niu Xiaohua, saying: "Good child, don't cry, Mom is here..." She was worried to death just now, but seeing her crying like this, she knew that she had suffered a great grievance. Her heart sighed, what kind of mother would do this? Not having a good day in her own home, being forced to their house and still having to suffer from her own family's temper...

  Niu Xiaohua cried enough, then stopped, Shen Sisi helplessly looked at her by the side, Er Bao and San Bao had already returned to the house, they couldn't stand these women's crying.

  He Ah Xiu comforted her: "Don't think so much, if your mother says something unpleasant, just ignore it and don't be sad, or you'll cry your eyes out..."

  She didn't dare ask her what had happened after all, and besides, she had called out for her mother, but it wasn't even her real mother, and she knew to be cautious.

  "Hmm." Niu Xiaohua responded with a murmur, and was then pulled by Shen Sisi into the inner room.

  Niu Xiaohua looked at Shen Sisi with embarrassment, knowing that she had heard everything. She was momentarily at a loss for words and didn't know how to explain herself. "Tuniu, I...I absolutely won't listen to my mother's words. That braised meat, I absolutely won't..."

  "I know..." Shen Sisi interrupted her urgent words, thinking to herself that this secret recipe couldn't be so easily obtained, Zheng Niangzi had put in so much effort but still got nothing, and wouldn't she have to buy the sauce package again, wasting both money and energy without gaining anything.

  Tian Guihua let Niu Xiaohua handle this again. Not to mention that Niu Xiaohua's heart was cold and didn't want to do it, even if she really had the opportunity, she would still be messing around blindly.

  Shen Sisi sighed and said, "You're just too weak, that's why you're always being bullied. Your mother sees how weak and obedient you are, and in the future, she'll only cause more trouble for you. If you don't want to continue like this, you need to become stronger yourself. Our family can only protect you temporarily, but we can't protect you forever, Xiaohua, do you understand?!"

  Niu Xiaohua nodded with a hint of confusion in her eyes, which were slightly red.

  It's still a child, Shen Sisi sighed and said: "In short, don't give your mother anything in the future, whether it's what our family gives you or what you have yourself. The more you give her, the more she'll want, only to fill an insatiable void, and as for you, she won't be grateful, but will only become more and more overbearing. You must think this through...

  Niu Xiaohua nodded vigorously and said: "The hairpin was pulled out by my mother, I didn't want to give it away, let alone the clothes..."

  "This is...” Shen Sisi smiled and said: “Your mother wants you to give her money, but don't give it to her. It's what your father left for you, so you should keep it for yourself as a precaution. If she tries to trick you, just ignore her. If she cries and says you're unfilial, you can just use this to shut her up. I brought this up with Uncle Niu precisely because of this point. If only your mother were more clever and cared about you more, we wouldn't have had to resort to this. Xiaohua, from now on, you must take charge of your own affairs. Don't be so weak-willed again. If you're not capable of taking care of yourself, no one can protect you. Do you understand?!"

  Niu Xiaohua nodded firmly and said: "...... Tuniu, I'll listen to you, I understand."

  As she spoke, she took out the twenty taels of silver from her bundle again and handed them to Shen Sisi: "This is for you."

  Shen Sisi stared at her in surprise and said: "What is this?! I don't need your silver..."

  "You help me keep it, anyway I won't use it, I live here and eat here, you even buy me clothes and hairpins, I don't need this money either, put it on you instead... later..." Niu Xiaohua said dejectedly: "If mother comes to ask for it, I'm afraid I'll be soft-hearted, she... after all is my mother."

  "Alright then, I'll help you keep it. In two years when you get married, I'll give it back to you..."

  Niu Xiaohua's face turned red, and she lowered her head without making a sound. She began to sew clothes with the fabric on the kang, twisting and turning. Shen Sisi saw this and smiled faintly, saying: "The clothes you're wearing look really good."

  "Niu Xiaohua said to me: '... Mother said that the clothes on my body were too tattered, so she made this one first and I just put it on. Tuyao, this one is for you, it will be done by this afternoon...' "

  "That's good, I'll wait for the new clothes this afternoon..." Shen Sisi comforted her with a smile, knowing that she had something to do and wouldn't think wildly. In fact, Shen Sisi really didn't have any feelings about these floral clothes, just thinking they were tacky. In modern times, she had seen so many fashionable clothes, but now she was reduced to wearing village girl clothes, what a tragedy! Shen Sisi silently looked up at the sky. Actually, she would rather wear boy's clothes, and thought that if not, she might as well make a new set of men's clothes to wear, anyway, she didn't have any feminine charm.

  Upon hearing this, Niu Xiaohua immediately said: "It will definitely be ready by this afternoon. You're small in stature, so your clothes are easy to make, and I can work quickly..."

  "Okay..." Shen Sisi responded with a smile, "This afternoon, we're going to slaughter pigs in the courtyard. You and your mother should just keep making clothes and don't come out. It's very bloody..."

  "Hmm, Tuniu, you are too..." Niu Xiaohua said with a smile.

  Shen Sisi smiled and said: "I'm not afraid of blood......" After finishing speaking, she went out.

  Niú Xiǎohuā looked at her small and slender back, feeling a little dazed for a moment. Why did she think this little girl was more reliable than her father? Obviously also a girl, but the things she did and said were just like an adult. She was several years older than Tǔ Yú, yet still needed to comfort herself, and even scared away her mother...

  Niu Xiaohua didn't quite understand, but she felt that Shen Sisi was a reliable little sister. From now on, she only wanted to treat her better and repay her kindness. She herself wasn't good at anything, and her cooking skills couldn't compare to Shen Sisi's. Those fancy dishes and thoughtful gestures were something she could never come up with. So, she could only wholeheartedly help Shen Sisi out and be a good assistant. Her only strong point was that she was good at making clothes, and she thought to herself that in the future, she should make more new clothes for Shen Sisi.

  As soon as Shen Sisi went out, she threw the silver into her space. She thought to herself that this was also good, saving the money from being cheapened by Tian Guilhua. Taking advantage of Niu Xiaohua's currently unsteady will, she would keep it for her, and return it to her after she got married...

  Thinking nothing of it, I arrived at the courtyard and saw Da Bao washing a basin. Seeing me come out, she said: "Dad has been out for an entire morning, why hasn't he returned yet?!"

  Shen Sisi was also worried, just thinking of going out to find him, when he heard the sound of pigs oinking and grunting outside, a bit noisy, seemingly not just one. The two came out to take a look and saw Zhong Gensheng, covered in sweat, driving two big fat pigs. However, the two big fat pigs were disobedient, and Zhong Gensheng had no choice but to chase after them as they ran wildly ahead, which is why he was so sweaty.

  As soon as he entered the yard, Zhong Gensheng finally let out a sigh of relief and drove the pigs to the back pen. Only then did he let out another sigh and said: "Pigs are really hard to drive, oh, originally I wanted to buy one, but that family had the biggest pigs, with two heads, saying they would sell them together if they sold them. I thought that since we were going to slaughter pigs tomorrow anyway, we might as well bring them all back. It's just that it's not easy to drive such big pigs, and it's really tiring, sweating all over, more exhausting than working in the fields. Even if I had the heart to tie them up and carry them back myself, I wouldn't have enough strength, so I could only drive them back like this. It's really exhausting, which is why we've wasted a lot of time..."

  "We were just worried and wanted to go find Dad... " Shen Sisi smiled and said: "Dad, let me get some water for you to wash your feet, you've walked a long way, are your feet sore?!"

  Even if Zhong Gen Sheng was tired, hearing his daughter's considerate words warmed his heart. He patted her little head and said, "Dad is not in pain, Tuniang is well-behaved, Dad will come himself, you don't get too close to the well, what if you fall in?!"

  After finishing speaking, he hastily pulled Shen Sisi and went to the well to fetch water to wash his hands, face and feet.

  He Ashu heard the voice and came out, saying: "You're back, let's eat quickly, the rice has been steaming for a long time, just waiting for you to come back..."

  Zhong Gensheng smiled and said: "It'll be ready soon, you can serve the dishes first..."

  He Axiu and Niu Xiaohua went to put dishes on the table, the family's food was good, and one by one, they slowly recovered from their original dark and rough skin, becoming ruddy and radiant, with smooth skin. Only Shen Sisi didn't know if it was because she hadn't reached puberty yet, but no matter how much she ate, she still felt like there was no change from before, which made Shen Sisi very depressed.

  She's always secretly worried that she's been starving herself too much, and now her nutrition is inadequate and can't catch up, no matter how hard she tries to supplement it. This makes her feel very depressed and heartbroken. What if... Her hand trembles, the dish slips out of her chopsticks and clatters to the ground. What if she really can't recover? What if she's stuck being short and stunted for the rest of her life? How can she bear it?! She feels like crying, so worried...

  "Tuni, what's wrong?!" He Ashu looked at her worriedly and said: "Is your hand sore, why are you shaking?! Ah, this child just doesn't listen. Look at how thin and small you are. From now on, don't do cooking or chores, let Mother and Xiaohua do it. What's most important for you right now is to grow up strong, listen to me! When you're a bit older, it won't be too late to do these things..."

  He Axiu felt heartache for her exhaustion.

  Although Shen Sisi understood her good intentions, she felt a bit suffocated, but still said softly: "Mother, I know..."

  Zhong Gensheng also looked at her with a sympathetic gaze, serving her many dishes and saying: "Tuniu, eat more, gain some weight, it looks good..."

  "......" Shen Si thought silently and gazed up at the sky... She wanted to grow taller, not develop horizontally, okay, Dad?