Looking at Shen Meng's expression, Wang Guizhi couldn't refuse any longer. She put the money and tickets in her pocket, chuckled, and said, "Alright, alright, Mother knows you're filial. I'll take this money; I won't spend it, I'll save it for you. If you run out of money, just come home and ask Mother. Seeing you like this, Mother knows you're in good health. Your father and I are going back now. If anything happens, come home and find your father and me, okay?"
Shen Meng felt a pang of sadness, turned around, and nodded gently.
"I know, Mother. Once I'm better, I'll come home to see you in a while. Take advantage of the cooler sun now, you and Father, and go early. Don't worry about me, I'm fine!"
Wang Guizhi took Shen Meng's hand and patted it, saying nothing more. The child was grown up and knew how to manage her life. Too much talk would annoy her. Right now, she and her husband were in good spirits, and if Xiao Meng didn't understand something, they would help her.
After the elderly couple left, the four children took the opportunity to run away. They didn't want to stay with Shen Meng, especially seeing her current state, they were afraid she wouldn't die anytime soon.
She was alone at home and wandered around the brick house. There
were three brick houses with a main room. The largest room on the east side was Shen Meng and Lu Zhenping's bedroom. There were two rooms on the west side, one for the boys and one for Lu Mingfang. Besides these, there was a mud-brick kitchen, a mud-brick woodshed, and one empty room. The yard wasn't small, and there was a sycamore tree in the open space. Shen Meng thought she could build a fence around the sycamore tree and plant some vegetables and fruits, or even build a chicken coop.
Previously, Lu Zhenping thought that Lu Mingfang, being a girl, should have her own room as she grew up. Although the room wasn't big, he had built a wardrobe for his youngest daughter and kept the small room clean and tidy. However, after he left, Shen Meng moved all the children into one room, locking away their valuables in their own room and storing their food in a large wardrobe. The children often had to go out to find food because they were hungry.
She was unhappy if anyone helped the children, feeling that they were deliberately making others laugh at her. She would often scold and beat the children while making veiled accusations.
As Shen Meng looked at the yard, she recalled the plot. When Lu Zhenping built this house, Liu Sanjin vehemently disagreed. She wanted to build a new mud-brick house in the old yard for the eldest son's family, using the saved money to repair the old yard, and keeping the remaining money for herself.
Lu Zhenping disagreed. Having served in the army for many years, he could easily intimidate people with a slight change of expression. In the end, Lu Changzhu approved the house construction, but it couldn't be too far away or too big, so as not to make the other brothers uncomfortable.
Shen Meng didn't know what was wrong with her. "If you're so capable, why don't you build your own house?"
she thought. They had enough food, but no vegetables. Yesterday, Tian Guihua brought over some dried vegetables—shepherd's purse, bracken, purslane, and the like, dug up in the spring. She was still outwardly "seriously ill," so she couldn't very well go out and pick vegetables. She
did have some in her spatial storage, but she couldn't just casually take them out!
Shen Meng was a little worried.
Just as she was thinking of soaking some dried vegetables for noodles for lunch, there was a knock on the gate. Tian Guihua came over with a basket.
"Are Mingyang and Mingliang home? Auntie's here, can I come in?"
"Sister-in-law, come in! The door's unlocked. Mingyang and Mingliang aren't home, they've gone out," Shen Meng said weakly, leaning against the doorframe.
Hearing that it was Shen Meng responding, Tian Guihua quickly pushed open the door. Seeing Shen Meng's sickly appearance, she quickly put the basket down.
"Good heavens, why are you out in the fields? Aren't the children home?"
"I'm fine, sister-in-law. I can walk around the house now. I've been taking the medicine Dr. Lu prescribed, but I still have a headache. Why are you here now? Aren't you out working?"
Tian Guihua helped Shen Meng's arm, and the two went into the main room together. After they sat down, Tian Guihua said, "Your mother was worried about you before she left, so she came to my house and asked me to look after you. She even gave me a dollar. Look at my aunt, she's such a good person. I'll leave the money here for you. I told you yesterday that you are..." "My dear sister, how could I possibly take your money? It's just a coincidence. I didn't go to work today; I was tending to our little plot of land. I figured you just moved back, so you probably don't have many vegetables at home. That's why I brought you a basket—cucumbers, green beans, and stuff like that. There's plenty in the garden. If you need more, Mingyang can go pick some more."
Tian Guihua was a straightforward person. Her brother-in-law said he wanted to build a good relationship with Shen Meng to be good to his son, so she rushed over. At first, it was genuinely for her son's sake, but now she had a real desire to befriend Shen Meng.
"Thank you so much, sister-in-law. I just got up and took a walk around. We really don't have a single vegetable leaf at home. How come you gave me so much? It's enough to eat for several days."
"It's nothing. Everyone has vegetables in their garden. It's nothing rare. Just eat it. Look at your energy now, you're obviously much better than yesterday."
Shen Meng smiled and said, "That's right. No wonder Dr. Lu is the best doctor in our commune. His medical skills are really good."
Tian Guihua also said a few good words about Lu Changhong. Lu Changhong, who was reporting to the commune, sneezed three times in a row. When he rubbed his nose, he felt like someone was cursing him.
Tian Guihua didn't stay long; there was still a lot of work to do in the fields. Before leaving, she said to Shen Meng, "Sister, if there's any work you can't do, tell me, and I'll help you. You still need to take care of yourself. If the Lu family won't let you come over for a meal, have Mingyang cook something so your family can make do. If that's not possible, I'll have Wenxiu come over and cook something for you."
"It's alright, sister-in-law. Eating isn't a problem. The Lu family shouldn't be so stingy as to refuse us food. Besides, we haven't separated the family yet. If they really don't give us food, then we can separate the family. We can live our own lives behind closed doors, which is fine."
Tian Guihua looked at Shen Meng with surprise, then thought about it and realized that it made sense. Who wouldn't want to live their own life behind closed doors? When she was young, she dreamed about it every day. But now that her son was about to get married, she actually wanted the whole family to live together. Tian Guihua shook her head; she wasn't like Liu Sanjin, who favored his mother.
"Okay, Xiaomeng, you stay home and rest. I'll head back now."
"Okay."
Tian Guihua had brought quite a few groceries, which she put entirely in the cupboard. The cupboard, about the height of a person, was practically empty except for a few bowls and chopsticks, which Wang Guizhi had taken from the Lu family's kitchen yesterday, earning her several glares from Liu Sanjin.
Shen Meng found a clean clay basin in the kitchen and placed two bundles of handmade noodles inside. The side dishes and soup base were also ready-made, all in large bowls, waiting to cook at home for lunch.
She was certain the Lu family wouldn't invite her to lunch.