23: Chen Qifen
Lu Laoba stepped forward with his arms crossed. “I’ve noticed today that you two siblings are getting along better and better. Not bad, you’re acting like a real older brother. I’m pleased.”
Lu Zaiyang: ……
Working in hot weather always made one feel listless. Today was another fine day, just after getting up in the morning, you could already see light glowing on the horizon.
To be able to knock off work a bit later in the afternoon, you had to get up earlier in the morning. After eating breakfast and heading out, it probably wasn’t even seven o’clock yet, and they were already in the fields.
Around midday, Lu Guoguo raised her hand, took out her handkerchief from her pocket, and wiped the fine sweat from her forehead. “This weather is really hot.”
Beside her, Educated Youth Chen’s face had turned somewhat pale. The sweat on her body wasn’t even from the heat—it was cold sweat. She felt completely dizzy, using her hoe like a crutch to prop herself up.
Lu Guoguo and the team leader noticed and quickly helped her over to rest under a tree.
Educated Youth Chen raised a limp finger, pointing to where she had been resting earlier. Lu Guoguo ran over and fetched her water pouch, which contained mint leaves Educated Youth Chen had soaked herself. Knowing her body couldn’t handle the heat, she had come prepared.
“Are you okay? If not, ask for leave and go home to rest.”
The team leader looked at her uncertainly, seeing that her complexion had improved somewhat after drinking the mint water.
“Yeah, we’re about to harvest the corn soon. Don’t hold our team back.”
Someone muttered quietly.
Educated Youth Chen pressed her pale lips together. “This afternoon I’ll ask the scorekeeper to adjust my work assignment.”
She really couldn’t keep up with everyone else’s pace.
Lu Guoguo went to the side, tore down a banana leaf, folded it a few times, and handed a simple banana leaf fan to Educated Youth Chen.
Educated Youth Chen took it and smiled at her.
The banana leaf had just been torn from the tree, and when you fanned yourself, you could still catch a faint fresh scent from it.
They rested for a while, then continued working. When work ended, Educated Youth Chen went to find the scorekeeper. After confirming Educated Youth Chen was truly okay, Lu Guoguo headed home along the main road.
When she arrived home, she saw smoke already rising from the kitchen chimney. Lu Guoguo ran inside and found Lu Zaiyang. “Brother, you’re back so early?”
“Learned fast, so left early.”
Lu Zaiyang, along with Li Shan and a few others, had been sent by the team leader to the neighboring production team to learn tea seedling cultivation techniques. Every morning they went to study until noon, then worked normally in the afternoon.
Today was the first day of training.
“Were there many people? Just our production team, or did nearby teams send people too?”
Lu Guoguo washed her hands and came over to help with meal prep, curious about their training, so she asked.
“Everyone sent people.”
Recently, the cucumbers, pumpkins, and bitter melons in the vegetable garden had become ready to eat. Lu Zaiyang was shredding some tender pumpkin—this tender pumpkin was best stir-fried, while old pumpkin was good for soup.
Knowing this person would only answer one question at a time, Lu Guoguo just kept asking relentlessly. By the time she’d asked enough, the food was ready to be served.
When Sun Zhaodi came back, Lu Laoba hadn’t returned yet. The family wasn’t worried and simply waited for him to eat together. Anyway, with the weather this hot, the food would cool slowly.
Lu Laoba didn’t keep them waiting long before returning.
“Second Sister-in-law went to Guoguo’s grand-aunt’s place. Before she could even say much, the other party thought the conditions in Eldest Brother’s family were pretty good. From what Second Sister-in-law said, she wants to marry her nephew’s wife into Eldest Brother’s family.”
In Lu Laoda’s family, only one son was still single: the second one, Lu Shan. Lu Shan’s wife had died from excessive bleeding during childbirth, and their child had also died in an accident at age three. Lu Laoda didn’t want to spend money to find him another wife, so Lu Shan was still single, nearly forty years old.
The grand-aunt’s nephew’s wife was also a widow, with a ten-year-old son. She was notoriously fierce in their area, but fierce as she was, she was capable!
“Second Sister-in-law met the woman first and told her about the situation in Eldest Brother’s family. The woman said that as long as Lu Shan was willing to help raise her son, she would marry him without asking for any betrothal money.”
Lu Laoba picked up his bowl and chopsticks. “As soon as Second Sister-in-law got back, she privately found Lu Shan. Without a second thought, Lu Shan agreed. As long as she was willing to be with him, bear him children, and bring her child along, he had no objections. So, Lu Shan has already gone back to find Eldest Brother and the others to discuss it.”
“Now this should be interesting,” Sun Zhaodi sneered coldly. “I know that nephew’s wife of hers. Fierce doesn’t even begin to describe her, she even beats her men. Her previous husband got beaten every few days, and later died under unclear circumstances.”
“What do you mean?”
Lu Guoguo clutched her chopsticks, curious for more details.
“He was originally sick, but she insisted on driving him out to chop firewood in the middle of winter. Several days in a row, his illness got worse and worse, and not long after, he died.”
“What about the man’s parents?”
“Long gone. No brothers to help either. This woman’s name is Chen Qifen. Because her previous man died under such unclear circumstances, no one dared marry her when she first wanted to remarry. Later, she even tried to find a match herself, offering betrothal gifts too, but still no one was willing. Your grand-aunt’s relationship with her is so-so. I think she just wants to marry Chen Qifen off so she can take over her house.”
Sun Zhaodi’s words left Lu Guoguo and the other two stunned.
“No wonder Second Sister-in-law wanted to play matchmaker,” Lu Laoba clicked his tongue. “That’s quite a clever move.”
When Lu Shan went back and told his family, Lu Laoda only asked one question: “Really no betrothal gifts?”
“Really. Not a single cent, just bringing one child along. That child is only ten, raise him well and he’ll remember my kindness.”
Lu Shan hung his head. “Dad, Mom, I’m almost forty and still don’t have a child. I’m begging you to let me have this.”
But Eldest Aunt-in-law wasn’t willing. “You don’t know Chen Qifen’s reputation! She’s not someone you can control!”
“This woman is very capable. Besides, you think I can’t handle one woman?”
Lu Shan refused to back down, even stiffening his neck to argue for marrying her. “If you won’t let me marry, then separate my share from the family! I’ll go live with her family!”
“You’re rebelling against heaven!”
Eldest Aunt-in-law raised her hand to strike this unfilial son, but Lu Shan dodged, loudly shouting about which family’s son was over forty without a partner or children. The house immediately fell into chaos.
Xiao Shi was off to the side, gleefully clapping his hands. “Hit Second Uncle! Hurry and hit Second Uncle!”
“Enough!”
The weather was already hot, and even mealtime couldn’t be peaceful. Lu Laoda let out a thunderous roar, and everyone immediately froze.
“Let him marry then! We can get a wife for Second without spending a single cent. Besides, a woman bringing one child to marry into the family, with so many of us here, we can certainly handle her. Let him marry!”
Lu Shan’s face immediately broke into a delighted smile. “Then I’ll go pick her up this afternoon!”
When Eldest Aunt-in-law heard Lu Laoda’s words, she also thought it made sense. Hearing her son’s eagerness, although she felt it was a bit rushed, having her come sooner meant she could start helping with work sooner, earning more work points to support the family!
“Ask her how she wants to handle the house, whether to sell it like your Eighth Aunt-in-law did, or return it to the production team. Take as many of the household items as you can. If you can’t bring everything in one trip, make multiple trips…”
That very afternoon, Lu Shan brought Chen Qifen and her son over. The mother and son didn’t have many belongings. As for the house, she had sold it to the grand-aunt.
That evening when Second Aunt-in-law came to their house to say the matter was settled and they’d just have to wait for the drama in Elder Brother’s family, Lu Guoguo’s face still showed some bewilderment. “That fast? Second Aunt-in-law went in the morning, right? And she was married by afternoon?”
Seeing her adorably confused expression, Second Aunt-in-law couldn’t help covering her mouth and laughing. “Adults get things done quickly. Anyway, this whole affair won’t end well for either of them.”
Having married off such a daughter-in-law, Eldest Aunt-in-law surely wouldn’t let the grand-aunt off easily. As for Second Aunt-in-law, she wasn’t afraid at all. Apart from Lu Laoda’s family, all the other Lu brothers stood united. With numbers on their side, Second Aunt-in-law had no fear of Eldest Aunt-in-law at all.
Chen Qifen truly wasn’t someone to be trifled with. Eldest Aunt-in-law’s attempt to establish dominance failed miserably, instead, Chen Qifen overturned the table so no one could eat. But she treated Lu Shan quite well, and Lu Shan thoroughly enjoyed her kindness, so whenever his wife clashed with his family, he just played deaf and mute.
In just a few days, Lu Laoda and his wife seemed to have aged ten years. They were limping to and from work, and upon inquiry, it turned out Lu Shan’s wife had pushed them. But Chen Qifen had injuries on her face too, and without anyone asking, she claimed Lu Laoda and his wife had beaten her.
In short, the drama in Lu Laoda’s family became the post-dinner talk of the whole production team.
Unable to bully Second Aunt-in-law, Eldest Aunt-in-law could only go after the grand-aunt. She complained about being saddled with such a daughter-in-law and demanded that the grand-aunt return Chen Qifen’s house to her. Faced with her own interests, the grand-aunt refused to back down. Their argument escalated into a fight, and in the brawl, one ended up with a broken leg, the other with a broken arm.
This gossip continued intermittently for a month, only dying down when it was time to harvest the corn.
Lu Guoguo was assigned to the same work group as Chen Qifen. By family hierarchy, they were of the same generation, so Lu Guoguo called her Sister-in-law Fen.
Since there were quite a few sisters-in-law, Lu Guoguo simply called her Sister Fen.
Chen Qifen was fierce with her own family but fairly reasonable with outsiders. “Little sister, I can see you’re quite slender. Here’s what we’ll do—you pick the corn, and I’ll carry it. Fill the basket as full as possible. I’m strong, I can carry it!”
“Oh, okay.”
Lu Guoguo agreed and started picking corn. Chen Qifen sat nearby waiting until she had filled a bamboo basket, then carried it to the main road. She’d dump it there, and someone else would pick it up, load it into another basket, and carry it to the threshing ground. By the time she returned, Lu Guoguo would have just finished filling another basket with corn.
Eldest Aunt-in-law was quite dissatisfied when she saw this. During break time, she deliberately pulled Chen Qifen aside and spoke in a scolding tone. “Are you stupid? Let her do the heavy work!”
Chen Qifen snorted lightly. “All I have to do is carry. She hasn’t even asked me to pick corn with her, so I even get to rest a bit.”
Knowing her mother-in-law had issues with Second Aunt-in-law and the others, Chen Qifen purposely interacted with them just to irritate her in-laws.
Having said that, Chen Qifen went straight back, completely ignoring her.
Eldest Aunt-in-law was furious, but when others looked their way, she forced a smile and said, “I was just thinking that Guoguo hasn’t done much heavy work, so I wanted my second son’s wife to help her out a bit.”
When these words reached Sun Zhaodi and her husband’s ears, they just found it amusing.
Lu Zaiyang even asked Lu Guoguo about it. “Did she really say that?”
Lu Guoguo had just washed her hair and was sitting in the yard cooling off with the family, drying her hair as she did so. Hearing the question, she looked up with a completely blank expression. “I don’t know. I was just focused on picking corn. Those corn leaves are long and scratchy—when they scrape against your face, and with sweat on it, it stings terribly. It’s really uncomfortable…”
**