4 – A Hair on Fire
“Right, if she really is a monster, we’ll have to drive her away!”
Old Lady Li pressed her hand down: “That woman from the Bai family isn’t someone to mess with. We need to see with our own eyes whether she’s a monster or not. It’s best not to spread rumors before we know the truth.”
“How can we see for ourselves?” a woman pressed.
“Here’s what—I’ll go home and get five eggs to bring to the Bai family, saying it’s a gift for their new baby,” Old Lady Li thought for a moment and said.
In the village, when someone had a new baby, neighbors would send small gifts as a token of goodwill. Although the Bai family was poor, they never fell short on etiquette—these women had all eaten eggs from the Bai family when they gave birth.
“I’ll go too! I’ll go home right now to get eggs!”
“I’ll bring a pound of dried noodles!”
“I’ll bring a pound of brown sugar!”
The women chattered eagerly, all wanting to see for themselves what the little girl brought by the white tiger looked like and whether she really was a monster.
After a while, a group of women headed to the Bai house with gifts. As they walked, they debated whether the little girl was a monster, saying that if she really was one, they would drive her away!
Unexpectedly, Li Zhenzhu overheard this.
Li Zhenzhu usually loved sitting on the stone slab gossiping too, but she never expected the gossip to turn toward her own family today.
Terrified, she clenched up and scurried home in a flash to report to Cui Shi.
“Mother…” Li Zhenzhu panted, out of breath from running, “A bunch of women are at the village entrance saying our Little Tiger Girl is a monster and that they’re going to drive her away. Please think of something quickly!”
To her surprise, Cui Shi merely rolled her eyes, acting as if she hadn’t heard, continuing to sew while amusing the little dumpling beside her.
The little dumpling, full and content, rolled chubbily on the kang, playing with the small cloth tiger in her arms.
The cloth tiger was a toy Cui Shi had stayed up late to make for the little dumpling after she fell asleep last night.
“Mother, the fire’s reached our eyebrows! How can you be so calm?” Li Zhenzhu scratched her head and ears in agitation.
Cui Shi finished her last stitch, bit the thread off with her teeth, held up the little red silk garment to examine it, and finally spoke leisurely: “Third Daughter-in-law, if I’m not mistaken, you’re the one who spread the news about our Tiger Girl, right?”
Li Zhenzhu’s face flushed instantly. She had indeed mentioned Tiger Girl to Old Lady Li when she passed by the village stone early that morning.
“Ahem, Mother… I did mention it…” she had to admit, her face reddening.
Li Zhenzhu felt her mother-in-law was like an old fox—there was nothing she didn’t know.
Cui Shi’s face darkened: “Li Zhenzhu, Li Zhenzhu, when will you ever learn to keep your big mouth shut? I’m not blaming you, but what have you been doing all morning?
You didn’t cook, you didn’t look after Wu Keng, all you do all day is hang out with those women gossiping. Can’t you do anything useful?”
“Mother, it’s my fault. Those people are coming soon. Please think of what to do—Little Tiger Girl can’t leave!” Li Zhenzhu was nearly in tears.
They finally had a delicate, jade-like little girl in the house. She didn’t care if she was human or monster—she simply couldn’t leave!Cui Shi grabbed the little dumpling’s tiny foot with one hand, causing the chubby little body to twist around immediately. She scooped the child into her arms and said gently, “Little Tiger Girl, come, let Mother help you get dressed. We’ll make our Little Tiger Girl so beautiful that no one would dare call you a monster!”
As she spoke, Cui Shi guided the little dumpling’s soft arms and legs into the clothing.
The outfit Cui Shi had made for the little dumpling was a set of small red silk clothes. This piece of red silk had been part of her dowry, stored away for twenty years without being used, and now it was perfect for making clothes for the little dumpling.
The fair and tender little dumpling dressed in bright red silk resembled a fully ripe lychee fruit—fragrant, sweet, and utterly captivating.
“Mother, why aren’t you worried? Those people’s words are sharper than knives!” Li Zhenzhu stamped her foot anxiously.
Given her temperament, she would have long since taken a knife to confront those people—how could she sit around idly like this!
Thinking this, Li Zhenzhu acted on it. Seeing her mother-in-law remain unmoved, she gritted her teeth and headed for the kitchen to grab a knife. If anyone dared call her sister-in-law a monster, she would fight them to the death!
“Stop! At your age, how can you be more reckless than Tiger Girl!” Cui Shi scolded in a low voice.
Li Zhenzhu had no choice but to halt, though her heart burned with anxiety. “Mother!”
Ignoring her, Cui Shi turned to play with the little dumpling on the kang. The little dumpling’s adorably large eyes sparkled, and her cheeks were rosy and plump. Li Zhenzhu thought no child in the entire village could compare to her sister-in-law’s beauty.
Suddenly, she slapped her forehead as if realizing something. “Ah! Mother, you’re right. How could there be such a beautiful monster in this world! Mother, wait, let’s show them exactly what our Tiger Girl looks like!”
With that, Li Zhenzhu hurried back to her room to fetch a rouge box and dabbed a spot of vermillion on Little Tiger Girl’s forehead.
Now Little Tiger Girl looked even more beautiful, with an added touch of liveliness in her charm.
The women at the village entrance gestured and chattered as they walked, only falling silent when they reached the Bai family’s doorstep.
One woman named Zhang Cuihua suddenly said nervously, “I’m a bit scared. Will that little monster look terrifying?”
“Exactly! Could she have horns or three heads and six arms?”
“Maybe she’s an ugly creature with hair on her face? Would she eat us?”
“I’m not going in anymore. I’m afraid I’ll have nightmares tonight.”
As everyone spoke at once, the atmosphere grew somewhat eerie.
Old Lady Li, frightened by their talk, also considered backing out at the last moment.
Just as she was caught in a dilemma, Cui Shi’s voice suddenly rang out.
“Oh, isn’t this Sister-in-law Li? Please, come in and sit down!”