Chapter 7: Not Coming BackHaving encountered Mrs. Qian and been lectured by her, Lin Qinghe felt somewhat disheartened as she walked home, her mood dampened.Thinking about the marriage arrangement with the Zhao Family, she couldn’t help but feel that Mrs. Su had been too hasty when settling the engagement. After all, Mrs. Qian was no pushover in the village. Having lost her husband, she had raised her son alone, and no one in the village dared to provoke her—a testament to her capabilities.If there were no marriage ties between the two families, Lin Qinghe would have praised Mrs. Qian as a formidable woman.But as a future mother-in-law, especially one with such a strong personality, she would be difficult to get along with. However, judging by Mrs. Qian’s attitude, she seemed to look down on Lin Qinghe as well, which suited her just fine.From a distance, she saw the gate of their home wide open, with her three younger siblings slowly carrying firewood into the yard. The lingering gloom in her heart dissipated at the sight.“Are you tired? If you are, go rest. I can handle these chores.”Hearing her voice, the younger ones immediately brightened up. “Eldest Sister is back!”Lin Qinghe smiled. “I’m back, but I didn’t buy much. Once I sell a few more loads of firewood, I’ll buy you some candy.”Lin Qingmiao shook her head. “Candy can rot your teeth. I don’t want to eat candy anymore.”“I’m already grown up. I don’t need candy—I’m not a child anymore,” said Lin Qingsong.Lin Qingbai chimed in, “I don’t need candy either, Eldest Sister. Don’t buy any. If you have money, buy some grain to keep at home.”Lin Qinghe smiled in surprise. Were they all so sensible now? Suddenly, a pang of sadness struck her. When their parents were alive, all the siblings had been childish and carefree. But now, it seemed as if they had grown up overnight.She didn’t want to say too much now, as empty words meant nothing. It would be better to wait until she earned some money, so they could buy whatever they wanted to eat.“Was anyone here while I was away today?”Lin Qingsong replied gloomily, “Eldest Sister, you’re asking if Mother came back, aren’t you? No, she hasn’t been seen all day.”“Mother said she’d be back in a couple of days. Today is only the first day. Maybe she’ll come back tomorrow,” Lin Qingbai whispered.Lin Qingmiao looked confused. “Isn’t it said that a married daughter is like water spilled on the ground? Since Mother is married, shouldn’t she only come back to her natal home during festivals?”Lin Qingbai quickly tugged at her arm. “You’ve got it wrong. This isn’t her natal home.”Lin Qingsong grew impatient and snapped roughly, “Both of you, stop talking. You don’t understand anything.”Lin Qingmiao glanced at her irritable second brother, then at her calm eldest sister, and said softly, “I don’t understand because I’m young. If you understand, explain it to me clearly!”She didn’t quite understand why her second brother had suddenly lost his temper.“Alright, let’s not talk about unhappy things. Look what I bought.” She placed the basket on the ground and lifted the leaves covering it.“Tofu! We haven’t had it in so long. Eldest Sister, why did you buy so much?” Lin Qingmiao licked her lips, her expression clearly showing her craving.Lin Qinghe patted her head. “We’ll cook two pieces tonight. The rest will be made into fermented tofu to sell in the county town for money.”It was hard to say how much money it would fetch. Such things were merely snacks, hardly fit for grand occasions. The likely customers were ordinary commoners. Wealthy families feasted on meat and fish daily and probably wouldn’t look twice at such humble fare.“What’s fermented tofu?”"You'll know once it's done."Lin Qinghe entered the courtyard and saw that most of the ground was covered with firewood drying in the sun. She couldn't help but praise, "Well done! You haven't slacked off while I was away for most of the day."Turning to glance at the three of them, she noticed the second and fourth siblings had rosy cheeks, but the third, Lin Qingbai, looked pale and listless.She walked over, reached out to feel his forehead—no fever—then touched his back. "Your inner shirt is soaked with sweat. Go back inside and change into dry clothes. You don't need to work anymore. Stay home with Qingmiao and rest. Your second brother and I will go to the back mountain."Lin Qingmiao, hearing her name, looked up and asked, "Big sister, isn't this enough already?""It's not enough. A family in the county town has arranged with me to deliver firewood to them every day. Since we don't have any other livelihood for now, we'll cut more firewood and store it. When I get busy with other things later, I probably won't have time to cut firewood.""Then let me help too. I'm not tired. Even if I can't cut, I can help drag it back home." Lin Qingmiao had volunteered to stay home instead of going with Mrs. Su to the Wang family, eager to prove she wasn't useless or just a freeloader.Lin Qinghe shook her head. "No, you've already helped for so long. You're still growing, and too much exhaustion can stunt your growth. Just stay home and keep your third brother company. Aren't there books at home? Let your third brother read to you and teach you to memorize them."Lin Qingmiao made a face of disdain. "What's so good about books? They can't be eaten or worn, and they're so expensive. If you ask me, the money spent on books could buy enough grain to feed us for a long time."When Mrs. Su was home, she was never without a book. Besides children's primers, she had bought several poetry books for herself. She took the poetry books with her, but the primers remained."That's not the way to look at it. Books may be expensive, but there's a reason for it. Reading helps people gain knowledge and become smarter. If you don't want to turn into a fool, you must read more."No child, no matter how young, wants to become a fool. Not just Lin Qingmiao, but even Lin Qingbai grew a bit anxious."Big sister, is that true?""Of course. When have I ever lied to you? To become a better person, you must read more—it makes you smarter. Right now, our family doesn't have the means, so we can only read at home. When we're better off in the future, we might even send you to school."She had plans, but they had to be taken step by step.On this point, she also had to thank Mrs. Su. Because Mrs. Su was literate, the children had learned a little from a young age. However, the original Lin Qinghe had spent more time with Lin Dazhuang, so she only knew a few characters.As for Lin Qingsong, he wasn't the type to sit still, so his literacy was also limited. Lin Qingmiao was still young and hadn't seriously started learning characters. Among the four siblings, Lin Qingbai was actually the most educated—at least he had finished all three primers at home.Of course, that was in the past. As for the current Lin Qinghe, she had a university degree and could be considered quite knowledgeable, especially since people in this era didn't have her breadth of experience. But to say she was exceptionally learned—well, that wouldn't be accurate either.After all, her foundation in classical Chinese was actually quite weak. She could read and generally understand it well enough, but asking her to write a masterpiece that would be passed down through the ages would leave her completely stumped.

Eldest Sister of a Farming Family: Managing the Household, Farming and Opening Shops