The midday sun shone brightly, but since it was still early spring, the heat wasn't oppressive—just a bit intense. After rummaging around at home for a while, Li Xiangli managed to find a straw hat. It wasn't much, but it would do for some shade. She promptly placed it on Le'er's head.
"Wear this to block the sun. Xiaozhu is a boy, and it's fine for him to endure some sun," Li Xiangli said with a smile.
Xiaozhu immediately puffed up with pride. "Right! A real man isn't afraid of a little sun!"
Le'er pouted in dissatisfaction. "Le'er wants to be a real man too! Le'er's not afraid of the sun!"
As she spoke, she tried to tug the hat off, but Li Xiangli was quick to press it back down on her head. Laughing, she said, "Le'er is a girl—what's the point of being a man? If girls get tanned, they won't look pretty anymore. Mother wants to raise you to be the prettiest girl around."
Le'er tilted her head in confusion. "If I'm the prettiest girl, will I get to eat more food?"
"Mother will make sure you always have a full belly. You don't need to worry about that. Now be good and follow me," Li Xiangli coaxed.
"Then Mother has to be a pretty girl too! Mother should wear the hat!"
"Mother is already pretty enough. I don't need it. If you want to grow up pretty, you have to keep wearing the hat to block the sun. Otherwise, if you get tanned and look ugly, you'll make Mother lose face."
Le'er froze for a moment and then nodded solemnly. "Le'er will grow up pretty for Mother and won't let her lose face!" With that, she obediently pressed the straw hat tightly onto her head, her rosy little face hidden away as if she'd accepted an important mission. In her heart, she vowed to grow up as beautiful as her mother!
Li Xiangli laughed and gently pinched Le'er's cheek. "You're just too cute."
Xiaozhu, on the other hand, had a deadpan expression. When did Mother become so sly?
"Isn't it Uncle Liu who takes people to town? His family has an ox cart, but if we're late and the cart fills up, it'll be trouble. We'd better hurry," Li Xiangli suggested.
"Don't worry, Mother," Xiaozhu reassured her. "Yesterday, I heard Grandpa Liu say he'll leave after lunch. We're early. There'll be seats for sure."
When the family of three arrived at the village entrance, where Uncle Liu lived, a few women were already waiting there. Dashan Village was quite remote, several miles from the nearest town. Few families could afford an ox cart, so people often carpooled, paying a small fee of one copper coin to share a ride.
"Oh, isn't this the little bitch from the Guo family? How dare you show your face around here!" jeered Ma-shi, a notorious village gossip.
Xiaozhu clenched his fists, ready to retort, but Li Xiangli grabbed his arm. She didn't want to stir up unnecessary trouble. Right now, their priority was to sell goods in town and ease the family's financial burden—not to quarrel with people like her.
Li Xiangli ignored Ma-shi completely, but that only made the latter more indignant. She immediately started gossiping loudly with the other women, spreading exaggerated tales about Li Xiangli and Feng An as if she wanted the whole village to hear.
Just then, Uncle Liu came out of his house, smiling apologetically. "Sorry to keep everyone waiting! My wife's cooking ran late, so I couldn't set out sooner."
Ma-shi quickly fawned over him, saying, "Oh, it's no trouble! We're all grateful to hitch a ride on your cart. Waiting a bit isn't a problem at all."
The disparity in her treatment of Uncle Liu and Li Xiangli was stark.
Uncle Liu smiled and was about to say something when he spotted Li Xiangli. He paused for a moment. "Oh, Xiangli, you're heading to town too?"
Li Xiangli nodded. "I'm going to sell some things and buy supplies for the house."
Ma-shi snorted. "Oh, selling things to make ends meet, huh? But it's just a basket of wild greens, isn't it? At most, you'll get three or five coppers. What's the point? You might not even make enough to cover the cart fee. Uncle Liu, don't let her cheat you—hauling her for free would be a loss!"
Uncle Liu looked a bit awkward, unsure of how to respond. Before he could say anything, Li Xiangli calmly took three copper coins from her pocket and handed them to him. "Here's the fare in advance. No need to worry."
Ma-shi sneered. "Well, well! How generous! Spending three coppers just like that—should I call you foolish or show-off?"
Xiaozhu couldn't hold back any longer and snapped, "What did my mother ever do to you? Why do you keep picking on her?"
Ma-shi glared at him. "That little brat has no manners! Your mother disgraced the whole village with her scandal. She's made it so none of us can hold our heads high. You ask what she did to me? She ruined our reputation! If it were me, I'd hang myself with a white cloth and spare everyone the shame!"
Turning to Uncle Liu, she urged, "Uncle Liu, you can't let her ride with us! We're all decent people. Associating with her will ruin our reputations. What do you all think?"
The other women, already disdainful of Li Xiangli because of past rumors, quickly joined in. "She's right! We don't want to be seen with her!"
"She might tarnish our family names. If she's coming, I'm not!"
Ma-shi smirked triumphantly at Li Xiangli, her expression brimming with self-satisfaction.
Li Xiangli's face remained calm, but her clenched fists and sharp gaze betrayed her fury. She rarely lost her temper, but some people just didn't know when to stop.
Suddenly, Xiaozhu charged forward and headbutted Ma Shi in the stomach. "Bad person! How dare you bully my mother!"
Disclaimer:
I am not the original author of this work. This is a translated version of the original text, shared for reading and reference purposes only. All rights to the original content belong to the original author. I do not claim ownership of the original work or its characters. This translation is intended solely for informational and entertainment purposes.