Shen Meng and Bai Jinxi carried the firewood into the woodshed together. The gate to this courtyard wasn’t wide enough for the donkey cart to get through, so they had to carry the bundles inside one by one by hand.
Bai Jinxi was meticulous about everything she did. In modern terms, she was probably a little obsessive-compulsive.
Every bundle of firewood was roughly the same length, and the bundles were all about the same thickness. At first, they had tied them with the thin rope they’d brought along, but when they ran out of rope, Bai Jinxi braided more out of wormwood stalks.
The two of them neatly stacked all fourteen bundles on the empty side of the woodshed.
“It looked like a lot when they were piled on the cart. How come they look like so little now that they’re stacked here?”
Shen Meng frowned at the small pile, dissatisfied with herself.
“This is already a lot!”
Bai Jinxi was grinning from ear to ear. She was quite satisfied with it.
“Even a strong adult laborer can only chop about this much firewood in a day at most. For a young girl like you, this is already impressive! And we came down the mountain early today. We delivered firewood to everyone along the way, and it’s not even dark yet.”
Shen Meng shook her head. “At this rate, there’s no way we’ll fill half the room in five days.”
“How full are you trying to make it? Half a person’s height is plenty,” Bai Jinxi said.
“No. If I’m going to do something, I have to do it as well as possible!”
Shen Meng had always been fiercely competitive and unwilling to admit defeat. It was that drive that had taken her from ranking over three hundred in her grade when she first transferred to the county school to ranking first in the entire county on the college entrance exam. It had also taken her from a remote little county to Nancheng University, the nation’s top university for English.
“We wasted too much time eating and talking today, so I didn’t really put my back into it. If I work properly tomorrow, I should be able to chop twice as much! I’m going to stack it all the way to the top!”
Shen Meng was determined to prove herself against that little pile of firewood.
Bai Jinxi laughed. “There’s really no need. If you stack it too high, the people cooking won’t be able to reach it, and someone could easily get hurt if the firewood falls. If half a person’s height isn’t enough for you, stack it up to your shoulders. You’re already tall enough. You’re taller than a lot of grown men. If you stack it any higher, your sisters-in-law won’t be able to reach the firewood when they’re cooking.”
Shen Meng thought about it and decided Bai Jinxi had a point.
“All right. Shoulder height, then. Do we still have to deliver firewood to the Granduncles tomorrow?”
“Yes. From now on, whenever we go up the mountain to chop firewood, we’ll deliver some every day,” Bai Jinxi said. “What Ma Jinyu said is true. We really don’t have anyone to rely on in Shen Family Village. We need to build good relationships with people. Your Granduncles and Great-Aunt are all people whose words carry weight in the village. It won’t hurt to visit them more often.”
“Oh, right. That young woman who was so nasty earlier—her name is Ma Jinyu. She’s Shen Baozhong’s wife. She’s twenty-six this year, a year older than Shen Baozhong. Her father is the village head of Zouma Village next door. She’s extremely domineering. Even a sharp-tongued woman like Wang Cui’e is afraid of her. Ma Jinyu hasn’t done a single bit of housework since she married into the Shen family.”
“The village next door?”
Shen Meng hadn’t seen any villages nearby at all when she’d gone up the mountain. At least, there hadn’t been any within sight.
“Our area is huge, but the population is sparse. When we say, ‘the village next door,’ it’s actually five or six li away. There are also rocky cliffs blocking the view, so you can’t see it from here. Zouma Village is also by the sea, but they’re closer to Hushan, only about half a li away. They’re practically right at the foot of the mountain. Hushan runs diagonally over this way.”
Bai Jinxi gestured as she explained.
“Shen Family Village is the farthest from Hushan Town out of the dozen or so villages in the township. It’s more than thirty li away. And if you go south from our village, the nearest inhabited village is at least fifty li away.”
“So, Shen Family Village really is in the middle of nowhere.”
Shen Meng now had a rough idea of where Shen Family Village was located.
Wang Cui’e, her eldest son Shen Baohe’s wife Wu Xiuxiu, and Shen Baozhu were all crowded into the kitchen, scrambling to prepare the meal.
“Today, the father-in-law took Baozhong out to learn how to fish and get familiar with the sea. They didn’t go far and will be back today, so we have to get the meal ready before they return!”
Wang Cui’e wiped the sweat from her forehead with her sleeve and stirred the fish soup simmering in the pot.
Shen Baozhu was washing some baby bok choy, one of the few green vegetables available here in early spring.
Wu Xiuxiu was cutting tofu.
“These past five years, ever since Bai Jinxi returned to Shen Family Village, she’s been the one taking care of the household. I’ve already forgotten how our family managed before she came back,” Shen Baozhu said. “Who would’ve thought that a pampered city girl like her could prepare meals for an entire household all by herself? She could even feed the chickens, grow scallions, baby bok choy, and radishes, and keep Grandfather and Grandmother’s courtyard so clean. She even kept the donkey shed and chicken coop spotless.”
“So, it’s not surprising that Xiaomeng can chop so much firewood and bring it back. They’re both very capable.”
Wu Xiuxiu looked shy and introverted. She spoke softly, and beneath her lowered lashes, there was a glimmer of admiration and envy.
“Capable, my foot!”
Ma Jinyu walked in and shot Wu Xiuxiu a disdainful look. Wu Xiuxiu immediately bit her lip and lowered her head even further.
But Ma Jinyu wasn’t about to let her off that easily. She walked over to Wu Xiuxiu and poked her on the head.
“You little mute. You really have terrible judgment!”
Wang Cui’e tugged Ma Jinyu back and ladled some fish soup into a bowl.
“Stop picking on Xiuxiu all the time. Here, taste the soup and see how it is.”
Ma Jinyu shot Wu Xiuxiu another contemptuous look. Seeing her cower into herself, she finally let her off and took the bowl, drinking a sip.
“Too bland.”
Suddenly, Ma Jinyu remembered something.
“Are those two good-for-nothing women going to come to Grandfather’s courtyard and eat with us today?”
“The father-in-law said that if they managed to bring back the firewood today, he’d let them eat with us,” Wang Cui’e said.
“As if they’re worthy!”
Ma Jinyu tipped her head back and drained the rest of the fish soup.
“I’ll let them eat! I’ll give them a little something extra!”
With that, Ma Jinyu took the bowl out of the kitchen and went into the latrine beside the woodshed.
A short while later, she returned to the kitchen carrying half a bowl of fresh, steaming waste.
The moment Wang Cui’e saw it, she pinched her nose and stepped farther away.
“What are you doing? Why are you bringing that disgusting stuff into the kitchen?”
Ma Jinyu walked straight to the pot of fish soup and ladled a large spoonful into the bowl.
“Don’t let any of it splash into the pot! And don’t get any on the ladle!” Wang Cui’e said anxiously. “What are you thinking, doing something like this? It smells so bad that anyone will know what it is the moment they smell it.”
Wang Cui’e took the iron ladle from Ma Jinyu and handed it to Wu Xiuxiu.
“Take it outside and wash it. Wash it several times!”
“Okay.”
Wu Xiuxiu took the iron ladle and hurried out of the kitchen. When she saw Shen Meng standing at the doorway, her eyes suddenly widened. She bit her lip and ran toward the well.
Shen Meng stepped aside to let Wu Xiuxiu pass, then slipped into the kitchen.
She snatched the bowl from Ma Jinyu’s hand and poured the entire contents into the pot of fish soup that was still simmering.
She had moved so suddenly that no one had time to react. By the time they realized what had happened, everyone screamed.
“Oh, what have we done!”
Wang Cui’e’s voice cracked from panic. She dropped onto the ground, slapped her thighs, and wailed, “Oh, heavens! The father-in-law and the others are about to come back! There’s no time to make another pot of soup!”
Shen Meng remained expressionless. She slowly tilted the bowl, making sure every last drop went into the pot.
“Shen Meng!”
Ma Jinyu was furious and terrified at the same time. Deep down, she was actually very afraid of Shen Mancang. If Shen Mancang found out about this, he definitely wouldn’t let her off.
Shen Mancang valued family harmony and unity above everything else.
Shen Meng shoved the bowl back into Ma Jinyu’s hands.
“I told you. If you don’t want us to have an easy time, then none of us will have an easy time.”
The last bit of liquid still clinging to the bowl ran down the rim and onto the outside, coating Ma Jinyu’s hand.
“Ugh!”
Ma Jinyu disgustedly flung her hand away. The bowl fell to the ground and shattered into several pieces.
Shen Meng shoved past Ma Jinyu and strode out of the kitchen.
After finishing washing the ladle, Wu Xiuxiu passed Shen Meng on her way back. Her eyes shone as she looked at Shen Meng. Then she quietly walked into the kitchen, poured the fish soup into the slop bucket, and carried the iron pot and ladle to the well to scrub them clean.
“Xiuxiu, make sure you wash them several times!” Wang Cui’e called after her in a tearful voice.
“I know, Mom.”
Xiuxiu answered without even looking up.