Madam Zhou smiled. She was not as stupid as Madam Zhao. When Madam Li said that, she knew exactly what Madam Li was up to.
She was not stupid. Old Master Su was still in good health, and Madam Wang was not old yet. She would not dare to mention separating from the family unless she did not want to stay in this family anymore.
Madam Zhou smiled and said, "Aiyah, Sister-in-law, you can't say that. Third Sister-in-law has a lot of difficulties too. Our lives are still better, don't you think so?"
Madam Li chuckled. "Hehe, that's true."
When Madam Zhou said that, she knew that she could not possibly use her to her own advantage. Madam Zhou was very clever.
Both of them had their own plans, and neither spoke again.
Although Madam Wang was detestable and they were all secretly cursing her to die, none of them could be happy if Madam Wang died now.
If Madam Wang were to die now, Old Master Su would definitely have to marry a widow soon. At that point, life would be even harder for them. Therefore, even if they hated her, they still hoped that she would just grow old quickly.
As for the third branch, Madam Zhao was no longer pressured by her mother-in-law. It was just that they might not be able to survive the winter in that dilapidated house.
Perhaps the old house would collapse if the snow got too heavy in winter.
… .
Su Sanlang's family did not know about what happened to Su Xiaozhi.
As soon as Su Xiaozhi left, Su Sanlang and his two sons continued to flip the soil.
With Su Sanmei taking care of Madam Zhao, Su Sanlang did not have to worry.
After Su Sanlang dug through the ground twice, he looked at the thick piles of grass and grass roots that had been cleared. Hard soil was difficult to dig, and if those grass roots weren't dug out, then nothing much would grow on this land. Since grass grew faster than grain, he had to dig up all the grass roots at once.
At the end of the day, only a small plot of land had been sorted out. Not even half an acre.
After dinner and washing up, the children went to bed.
Su Sanlang had just lied down when Madam Zhao touched the bloody blisters on his palm. Her heart ached. "Sanlang, let's take a break tomorrow."
Su Sanlang smiled and said, "It's not a big deal. I'm in good health, so it's not a big deal. It's just that the ground is a little difficult to dig. But after I deal with it, I won't have to work so hard next year."
Madam Zhao stroked the blisters and leaned against Su Sanlang, silently crying.
"Sanlang, starting tomorrow, tell Sanmei not to pick up our eggs and let them hatch into chicks. If things move along fast, we can will chicks in October. If it's too cold by then, we can raise them in the house."
Madam Zhao began to plan. As long as the eggs in the chicken coop reached a certain amount, the hen would no longer lay eggs.
And it took twenty-one days for a nest of eggs to hatch. It was now August 18. If nothing went wrong, a nest of chicks would be born in October.
Su Sanlang had worked so hard for this family. How could she bear to let him work alone? How could she eat the eggs that were given to her?
Su Sanlang nodded. "Sure, I'll listen to you. Thanks to Xiaozhi who sent the eggs, you'll have something to eat, so I'm not worried."
Su Xiaozhi sent over 40 eggs and they ate five for lunch. There were still 35 left.
Madam Zhao could eat one every day for a month and five days.
It was just that the three children couldn't continue to eat eggs. They were sensible and would not cry if they could not eat them, but the thought of this made Su Sanlang feel sorry for them.
When they had more hens laying eggs in the future, he would let his children eat eggs every day.
Su Sanlang fell asleep as he thought about this.
Madam Zhao knew that Su Sanlang was very tired and did not say anything else. She gently patted Su Xiaolu and soon fell asleep too.
Beside Su Xiaolu was her third sister. When Su Xiaolu woke up in the middle of the night, she secretly fed her spiritual spring water again.
Early in the morning of August 19, Su Sanlang went to check the traps. To his surprise, he caught four rabbits. The other traps did not trap anything, but neither were they destroyed.
He carried the rabbits home and locked them up.
The rabbits were in good spirits. He was too busy to go to town these few days, so he planned to make a big cage to keep the rabbits in first.
Su Sanmei was delighted to see the rabbits.
After breakfast, Su Sanmei took Su Chong and Su Hua to catch insects and pull grass to feed the rabbits.
The grass at the place where she often washed diapers was green, perfect for rabbits.
Madam Zhao was making clothes in the house and was very happy to hear that Su Sanlang had caught four rabbits. When she was feeding Su Xiaolu, she even sighed and muttered to herself, "The heavens love us."
After Su Xiaolu was full, she spat out a bubble and smiled at Madam Zhao.
Right now, she wasn't worried that this family would die of coldness or hunger. Since the insects that Su Sanmei had caught carried a tiny bit of spiritual energy, she wasn't worried that Su Sanlang's traps wouldn't be able to catch anything. The mountain was so big. If he couldn't catch them in this area, he could simply find another place to catch them.
As for her, she only needed to eat and drink well.
Every day, she would let her diligent Third Sister drink spiritual spring water. When her Third Sister's health improved, she would be able to catch more insects and work even harder. It was a virtuous circle.
After Su Sanlang finished weaving the cage, he went into the house to see Su Xiaolu and teased her.
"Simei, Daddy is going to flip the soil. Be good at home with Mother."
Su Sanlang liked talking to Su Xiaolu, and Su Xiaolu gave him a smile.
Blinking her eyes, she opened her mouth wide after laughing.
Daddy, go ahead. I'll send you my love, she thought.
Su Sanlang looked at Su Xiaolu's face and felt a warmth in his heart. Every time he looked at his little daughter, it was as if he was provided with a lot of energy.
After seeing his daughter, Su Sanlang said to Madam Zhao, "Darling, take your time making the clothes. Don't be too tired. I'm going out."
Madam Zhao smiled gently and nodded.
Before Su Sanlang left, he said to Su Xiaolu, "Simei, help me take care of your mother. If your mother doesn't listen to me, tell me when I come back."
Su Xiaolu opened her mouth and replied, "Yiyi—"
No problem, she thought.
Madam Zhao did not know whether to laugh or cry. Her heart felt like it had been injected with honey, making her feel sweet.
Su Sanlang had reached the back of the mountain to flip the soil. Su Chong and Su Hua helped clear the grass and weeds.
In addition to helping Madam Zhao change and wash diapers, Su Sanmei also pulled grass and caught insects, taking care of the chickens and rabbits.
From time to time, the four rabbits would make noises. Every time Su Sanmei came over with grass, the rabbits would be so scared that they didn't dare to move.
Su Sanmei said softly, "Little rabbits, don't be afraid. Eat quickly. Eat your fill."
Rabbits loved to eat green grass. Su Sanmei even saw a rabbit pulling at the fur of another rabbit. She used a small stick to push it away and said, "Little Gray, you can't do this. If you pluck its fur, it won't look good."
Her father would have to sell these rabbits. If they were bald, they might sell for less. Therefore, Su Sanmei had to stop the rabbits from plucking their fur. When she tried to stop it, the gray rabbit stayed away. However, the next time Su Sanmei looked over, it would be plucking the fur of other rabbits again.