"I haven't eaten much for three days. I was pushed to the ground by my grandmother and almost went to reunite with my father in hell," Hua Jiujiu said mockingly.
Bai Zhi's heart ached as she asked nervously, "How are you feeling now?"
"It's alright. It's just that the King of Hell said that if this continues, he'll take me in."
Bai Zhi became even more anxious.
"This time, it was because Father risked his life to beg for mercy in front of the King of Hell that I had a chance to come back. But next time, no one will beg for mercy for me." The reason why Hua Jiujiu brought up these things was to make Bai Zhi stand up for herself.
If she did not stand up, they would probably still live miserably in the future.
Bai Zhi was stunned.
Then, tears streamed down her face. "Oh, eldest, you've suffered so much!"
Then, she wiped her tears again with a determined expression. "Don't worry. Your father risked himself to take your life back. I won't let anything happen to you again. I'll definitely protect you and the other children in the future."
Hua Jiujiu looked at the determined Bai Zhi and felt a little gratified. "Mother, after you recover, let's split the family from grandmother."
Bai Zhi was stunned.
"Eldest, how are we going to survive if we split up?" It was obvious that she subconsciously still felt that she had to have a man at home to support her. Otherwise, if an orphan and a widow went out, they would only be bullied.
"Mother, we have hands and feet. How can we not live?" Hua Jiujiu knew what Bai Zhi was thinking, but she would think of a way to deal with this.
"I'll think about it." Bai Zhi's heart was in a mess.
Hua Jiujiu didn't force her. She didn't expect her to accept it immediately. In any case, she had already given her the idea. It would only be easier in the future.
After eating, Hua Jiujiu washed the pots and pans and put them back so that no one would suspect her.
After washing the dishes, Hua Jiujiu went to the only family in the village that raised sheep.
Fortunately, they hadn't gone to bed yet. Otherwise, her younger siblings wouldn't be able to be fed at night.
However, Hua Jiujiu did not have that much money to pay for it and could not fork out the money herself. Instead, she said, "Uncle Lin, my younger siblings are still waiting to be fed. Can I bring the sheep back first? Don't worry, my grandfather will definitely give you the money. He agreed in front of everyone today."
Before Lin Shi could speak, Lin Shi's wife agreed first. She knew what had happened in the afternoon and sympathized with their family's encounter. Naturally, she would not make things difficult for Hua Jiujiu. She even secretly stuffed a small bag of brown sugar into her hands.
Hua Jiujiu thanked them profusely. Then, she took the brown sugar and led the sheep home.
Lin Shi's wife looked at Hua Jiujiu's skinny back and sighed deeply.
What a sensible girl.
She wondered what this family would do in the future.
When Hua Jiujiu returned home, her younger siblings woke up from hunger again. She hurriedly ran to feed them milk.
After the two children had eaten their fill and fell asleep, Hua Jiujiu went to milk another two bowls and let Second Sister and Third Sister drink it before going to sleep.
The two little girls were very sensible. They were afraid that their younger siblings would not have enough milk to drink, so they refused to drink it.
Hua Jiujiu persuaded them for a long time before letting them drink it. However, the two little girls still left half for Hua Jiujiu.
Hua Jiujiu's heart warmed. After drinking a few mouthfuls, she pushed it back to them.
Hua Jiujiu managed to wait until the entire family was asleep before she went to the straw hut at the back of the mountain.
She wondered if the man had finished eating. She had to clean up the place to avoid any trouble.