Chapter 118: The new mother-in-law and daughter-in-law
Madam Ma caught Qiao Mingjin's gaze and hurriedly whispered, "Sister-in-law Jin, the dishes you prepare are better than the ones we usually prepare for guests at home. There are meat, vegetables, and broth."
Several women also responded one after another.
A woman then said, "Ms. Jin, if you have any leftovers, can I take some home for my grandchildren?"
The woman who spoke was named Yan. The man was also a member of the Yue tribe, but he left long ago, leaving her alone with a son and a daughter. The daughter had been married for a few years, and only one son was left by her side.
His name is Yue Dachuan.
Yue Dachuan grew up until he was in his early twenties. Because his family was poor, he did not ask for relatives. Later, with the help of his clan, he married the daughter of a poor family from another place. The girl married herself, but she was very diligent and courteous.
She was able to work both inside and outside, and was filial to Mrs. Yan. She also gave birth to a son and a daughter to Yue Dachuan. Mrs. Yan always praised her daughter-in-law for her ability when meeting everyone.
Yan's family doesn't have two or three acres of land, so she was digging wooden stakes in the woods to exchange money a few days ago. But she is old after all, and she has two young grandchildren to take care of at home.
I heard that Qiao Mingjin was looking for a woman to cook, so I asked Qiao Mingjin.
Qiao Mingjin agreed after being persuaded by Sister Xiu...
At this moment, a woman standing by heard what Yan said and said, "Dachuan mother, if there is any leftover, Jin mother will keep it. If you heat it up at night, the craftsmen can still eat it."
Mrs. Yan was so embarrassed that she lowered her head, looking ashamed.
Qiao Mingjin looked into the pot and saw that there may have been too much preparation today. After the craftsmen had finished eating, and even the women who were cooking had finished eating, there was still a lot left in the pot.
Qiao Mingjin thought for a while and said: "I made too much today, you can take the leftovers back later. There is no need to send them to my house. It's hot today, so I probably won't be able to put them away at night. But tomorrow, we have to do it.
As long as there are enough people to eat, there is no need to cook more dishes and leave them until the evening. Otherwise Mr. Saturday should say we wasted."
Several people happily agreed.
There is a lot left over today. There is also a lot of meat. Where can I usually eat such meat and vegetables at home?
Just now, Dachuan's mother put her own portion in a bowl and planned to take it back to her two grandchildren. When they saw it, they also set some aside to take back to their own families.
Unexpectedly, as soon as Jin Niang opened her mouth, she could take back whatever was left in the pot. The food in the pot was all clean, and everyone scooped it into their own bowls with spoons to eat. They could take it back and have more for their families at night.
Let's add some meat and vegetables.
The women were very happy and thanked Qiao Mingjin again and again.
Qiao Mingjin walked towards the construction site again.
The people brought by Master Guan did not rest even after eating. They were all busy building bamboo tents.
Among them were two people who looked like foremen. They had been here with Zhou Yanqing and Master Guan before, and they both recognized Qiao Mingjin. When they saw Qiao Mingjin coming, they brought someone over to say hello to Qiao Mingjin.
Qiao Mingjin greeted them and asked the foreman named Quan, "When will your bamboo shed be erected? Can you sleep at night?"
The master surnamed Quan smiled and said: "Yes. We are used to building it. It's not that difficult. The place here is quite open. Sometimes we don't have room to build a bamboo shack for the work we do, so we sit on the floor at night.
And lying down.”
"Then how do you sleep at night? Sleeping on the floor? There may be mosquitoes at night in this summer."
A few masters built a bamboo shed and said to her with a smile: "If you make some straw for the night, why do you need a bed? If you add some mugwort leaves, the mosquitoes won't dare to get close. We are no better than you women. We are like this."
The skin is rough and the flesh is thick, so even if its teeth break, it won't be able to bite in."
The men who were setting up the tent all laughed and showed their dark arms to Qiao Mingjin.
Qiao Mingjin didn't think there was anything inappropriate. She had seen very few topless people in her previous life.
The clothes she was wearing on the beach were no different than nothing she was wearing. She had nothing to blush about.
On the other hand, Master Quan scolded everyone.
Qiao Mingjin stood on the side and looked at it, then said to Master Quan: "I will help you ask in the village for a while. Who has straw, and who has mats, and I will find some for you.
I'll give you a few more oil lamps. It will be easier to get up at night."
Then Master Quan thanked Qiao Mingjin again and again.
When Qiao Mingjin returned home, she gave Yun Jin a few instructions, and Yun Jin went out.
She chatted with Zhou Yanqing for a few more words. Seeing that Zhou Yanqing had nothing to do with him at the construction site, he explained a few words, got in the car and left.
When the car drove away, he even lifted the car curtain and waved to Wan'er, causing Wan'er to trot along and follow a few steps.
Qiao Mingjin pulled Wan'er and watched him go away.
Wan'erfang mysteriously leaned into Qiao Mingjin's ear and said, "Mom, Uncle Zhou just carried me into the carriage and took me on a horseback ride!"
"Oh? Is it so good? Isn't it comfortable to ride in the carriage?"
The little thing nodded repeatedly: "Yeah, it's comfortable. It's more comfortable than riding in a bullock cart. The carriage is so wide, you can lie down, and there's a table inside. You can eat fruits and drink tea while riding in the cart."
Seeing Qiao Mingjin staring at her and smiling without saying a word, she shook her mother's hand and said, "Mom, mother, can our family also buy a carriage? This way, next time my mother takes my aunt and I into the city, we don't have to sit on a cow.
If you sleep on your back, you can sleep in the carriage."
Qiao Mingjin laughed after hearing this.
"But we used to go to the city to sell firewood, right? If we use a horse-drawn carriage, how can we haul firewood?"
The little thing thought for a while and said, "Don't we not sell firewood? Then next time we go to grandma's house, we can sit in the carriage. If it rains, we won't be afraid of getting wet."
"But horses are very expensive. What should I do if my mother doesn't have money to buy them?"
Qiao Mingjin teased her daughter leisurely.
The little thing glanced at his mother, then turned to look at his aunt standing next to him, and scratched his head.
Then he whispered: "Then we can not buy horses, but only carts. How about using our oxen to pull the carts? We need to make a covered canopy. Let Grandpa He and the others help make it, okay?"
Qiao Mingjin touched her daughter's head and laughed.
An old ox is used to pull a carriage? I have seen donkeys pulling it like this, but I have never seen an ox pulling it like this.
"Okay, next time when Grandpa He and the others are free, Mom will ask them to make a carriage for our Wan'er that won't be afraid of getting wet."
The little thing immediately jumped up happily.
"Mom, then I'm going to go play with Sister Liuzhi and the others!" After saying that, she ran away in a hurry.
Qiao Mingjin didn't restrain her. It was better for her daughter to be lively than to be dull. She only gave Mingqi two orders and let her aunt and nephew run away.
After work started in the afternoon, Qiao Mingjin also went.
She also saw Mrs. Sun and Mr. Yu walking around with Liu Meiniang looking for someone to talk to.
Qiao Mingjin only glanced at it and then looked away.
Liu Meiniang originally wanted to talk to Qiao Mingjin, but she found that every time she wanted to walk towards Qiao Mingjin, Qiao Mingjin clearly didn't look at her, but as if he could feel her movements, he walked away every time.
Liu Meiniang didn't care. She had Wu's promise that she could stay at Yue's house for many days, and she wasn't leaving today. She wasn't in a hurry.
Sister Xiu, on the other hand, came to Qiao Mingjin with an angry look on her face and cursed in Qiao Mingjin's ears for a long time.
"Aren't your mouth dry? You've been talking for so long?"
"I just can't stand the foxy look on her face! People who don't know it would think she's her new wife! She sweetly calls people uncle and aunt when they meet her, it's shameless!"
Qiao Mingjin couldn't laugh or cry.
"You don't care whether someone wants to be shameless or not. Let her do whatever she likes. You have the time to take care of other people's business."
"This is nothing! This is a major matter that concerns you and Wan'er. How can it be nothing?"
"I don't care. Why are you so angry? By the way, did my cousin ask you to look for someone in the village who has straw or mats?"
Sister Xiu was immediately taken away by Qiao Mingjin: "Hey, isn't it just straw and mats? Which family doesn't have it? It won't be long before every family has to harvest rice and grain again, and they are waiting to clear out the woodsheds and warehouses.
Well. You don’t even need to give me money, and they might still want to thank you.”
"Really? What about the mats? It's time to thresh grain, isn't it for drying the grains on the mats? I'm afraid I won't be able to even out one or two sheets, right?"
"What's that worth? Whose house only has one bed and two beds? If you feel bad about it, if you give it a few cents, they will even pull out the mat for you to sleep on."
"Really? Then let's go and ask. I really can't bear to let them live on the construction site."
"They are all rough-skinned men. Which one didn't roll in the mud? Just make sure you have enough to eat. There's no point in that..."
Although he said this, he still followed Qiao Mingjin towards the village.
Maybe the people in the village are now waiting for the workshop to be built so that they can arrange their own labor to earn money, and they are all very fawning and enthusiastic towards Qiao Mingjin.
Qiao Mingjin will soon have straw and mats.
She had all the copper coins in her purse and she didn't even spend them.
Qiao Mingjin also bought several oil lamps from several families in the village who had the conditions.
When she, Sister Xiu, and several enthusiastic village women arrived at the construction site with mats and straw, the craftsmen had also set up the bamboo shed.
He took the things Qiao Mingjin sent and thanked him very much.
When Master Guan saw him, he said he would sleep in the work shed with the craftsmen.
She was persuaded by Qiao Mingjin. Zhou Yanqing and she had already arranged for Master Guan to stay at her house.
In the afternoon, because it was summer, it got dark late. By the time the work was finished, half of the construction site had been leveled. I think the rest of the land would be leveled tomorrow, and the foundation could be laid the day after.
Qiao Mingjin really hopes it can be done soon.
First, the autumn harvest is coming, and second, the local rainy season is also coming.
Now there are many wooden stakes in the forest. Qiao Mingjin took Father He and others to pick out the decay and remove the excess roots. The first few stakes are almost dry and can be pulled back for further treatment.
It's carved. It wouldn't be good if it got caught in the rain. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for recommendations and monthly votes. Your support is my biggest motivation.)
