Early the next morning, Lin Chunju was cooking when she suddenly heard noises from the courtyard.
Cluck, cluck, cluck.
It seemed a chicken from someone else's home had run to her doorstep.
Just as she was wondering, she heard Zhang Ying's voice.
"Mom, Lin Chunju's at the door."
Lin Chunju wiped her hands on her apron and went out to see.
Little Lin Xiaohong stood at the gate, holding a hen that fluttered its wings.
"Aunty Lin, Yue Jiandong was kind to let my man help him with his work, so I came specifically to thank him."
Yue Qingqing, with her backpack on, watched Lin Xiaohong from inside the yard.
The woman's body was slightly hunched.
Though younger than Zhang Ying, her face was wrinkled and weather-beaten beyond recognition.
Lin Chunju quickly waved her hand, "Yu Guoqiang was just helping our eldest too, you shouldn't have brought anything."
Lin Xiaohong bent over, her face brimming with smiles.
