The Country Maiden: Fields and Leisure
Chapter 253: Hehe

Chapter 253: Chapter 253: Hehe

Li Jinzhi cried harder and harder, "Without mentioning anything else, even if my two brothers became live-in sons-in-law, after all, we are siblings born of the same mother. Seeing me with such a big belly, after having walked dozens of miles of mountainous roads, it wouldn’t be right to not even offer me a sip of water, just to drive me away like this..."

Wang Yongping watched Li Jinzhi cry until she was short of breath, her lips dry and her cheeks flushed red. In this scorching heat, a pregnant woman walking such a long distance without even a sip of water was indeed too much to bear.

After hesitating for a moment, he asked, "So are you going back now?"

Li Jinzhi wiped away her sweat and looked at Wang Yongping pleadingly, "Fourth Brother, I know I am not in any position to ask this favor, but I truly can’t hold on any longer, I’m so exhausted that I can barely walk, I probably have blisters on the soles of my feet, too. I’m extremely thirsty; can I, could I possibly go to your house to catch my breath, have some hot water to drink? My heart feels uneasy, I’m really scared something might happen to the child in my womb..."

Her eyes brimming with tears, she looked at Wang Yongping.

Even Wang Yongping, who was often inattentive, knew that to bring Li Jinzhi home, aside from anything else, Old Granny Zhang would probably be the first to break his legs.

But he simply couldn’t bear to watch Li Jinzhi suffer alone without even a drop of water to drink.

Looking at Li Jinzhi’s obvious belly, he gritted his teeth and said, "Come with me!"

At this moment, at the Wang Family,

After several days of intense sunlight, the indigo paste had dried into a powder form.

Having passed the Xiao Tiantian System’s inspection, it was deemed qualified as an indigo dye.

Only then did Wang Yongzhu feel relieved.

She put half of the powdered indigo into a small ceramic jar and stored it in her room.

Deciding to try out the remaining half, Wang Yongzhu proceeded with her plan.

Indigo is a rare dye that can color fabric even in cold water, and with the weather being hot, the Wang Family would sun-heat large vats of water every day, which they generally used for bathing in the evening.

Wang Yongzhu scooped up half a vat of lukewarm water from the large vat into another vat that had indigo in it and mixed it well.

Soon, it turned into a vat of blue water.

She decisively brought out the plain fabric she had bought the other day. This fabric still needed to be soaked in limewater first.

Fortunately, the family did not yet need the vats for pickling mustard greens, so they were available.

Wang Yongzhu had prepared a vat of limewater and was about to place the white fabric into it when she heard the courtyard gate being pushed open. She turned around,

Only to see Wang Yongping creeping in, as if he were a thief trying not to be caught.

Following behind him was unexpectedly someone else?

Upon taking a closer look, Li Jinzhi?

Why was it her?

Wang Yongzhu’s face immediately darkened!

Was Wang Yongping still not over Li Jinzhi, actually bringing her back home?

Was he trying to get his legs broken!

"Fourth Brother, why did you bring her to our home? We don’t welcome people from the Li Family here! Get out!" Wang Yongzhu’s cold gaze landed on Wang Yongping, almost bringing him to his knees begging for mercy.

Li Jinzhi’s face turned beet red after being pointed at and told to leave by Wang Yongzhu; she looked at Wang Yongping with a pleading gaze.

Wang Yongping spoke nervously, "Younger sister, I really felt sorry for her. On the way back from town to Qilidun this morning, she was chased out by her brother and sister-in-law; she hasn’t even had a sip of water since then! There’s still a child in her belly, if anything were to happen——"

Wang Yongzhu just wanted to scoff, "Her own brother and sister-in-law don’t care about her and have chased her away; what business is it of yours? Could it be, Fourth Brother, you want to play the cheap daddy to the child in her belly? I’m telling you right now, if that’s what you’re thinking, drop it this instant! Moreover, that child in her belly—if she really cared about the child, would she walk dozens of miles on mountain roads to the village by herself? What kind of mother doesn’t know the importance of this? Trying to play the suffering card? I’d say, stop dreaming!"

"Out of consideration for the fact that you are carrying a child, I won’t use the broom to sweep you out. Have some self-awareness and scram! Otherwise, if my mother comes back, you might not find it so easy to leave!"

Li Jinzhi thought of the venomous words Old Granny Zhang had said to her, so vicious and ruthless they could peel her skin off, and she couldn’t help shuddering.

Yet, she saw the white cloth in Wang Yongzhu’s hands, and the large vat behind her. Gritting her teeth, she squeezed out tears: "I know I’ve wronged Fourth Brother! Wronged the Wang Family! It’s my shamelessness, my frivolity; I deserve to die! I also know I have no right to stay at your Wang Family’s home, but I really can’t hold on anymore. For the sake of the child in my belly, I shamelessly beg for some hot water to drink! Really! I ask for nothing more, just let me have some hot water, I promise I won’t enter the house, I’ll just sit in the courtyard! I haven’t had a grain of rice or drop of water all day; I can’t hold on anymore!"

"Wang Family sister! I’m begging you! For the sake of the life in my belly, I will remember your kindness, truly!"

Wang Yongping couldn’t take it anymore. Seeing Li Jinzhi plead so desperately, about to collapse, clutching only the courtyard door, she looked nothing like the entitled, impatient woman who once looked down her nose at him.

"Younger sister, I’ll just get her a bowl of hot water, let her drink, and she’ll leave! I’ll keep an eye on her, she won’t set foot inside, is that not enough? Forget everything else, the child in her belly is still a life!"

Wang Yongzhu was simply frustrated to the point of being furious!

Such a fool! Just a few days ago, she was sharp-tongued and gloating when she met Li Jinzhi!

And now, within a few days, she’s pitifully begging to enter our home just to drink water, heaven knows what wicked schemes she’s cooking up!

Yet seeing Wang Yongping’s face full of reluctance, she knew Fourth Brother appeared rough but had a very soft heart inside.

He used to have feelings for Li Jinzhi, and now that Li Jinzhi was acting so fragile and pitiable, it would be difficult for him to ignore her, and he probably couldn’t get over it himself.

If she continued to block him, Wang Yongping might end up with a grudge in his heart after being begged by Li Jinzhi a couple more times.

Better to just wait and see what kind of tricks Li Jinzhi wants to pull!

After all, it’s within our home; as long as she doesn’t enter the house, what could possibly happen?

Frustrated, she threw the cloth on top of the vat and turned to go back to her own room.

Wang Yongping, seeing Wang Yongzhu huff into the house, knew he had truly angered his little sister, and he couldn’t help feeling a chill at the back of his head.

He inwardly lamented, knowing that once Old Granny Zhang returned, he was probably in for a beating.

The sudden courage that had surged in him dissipated, Wang Yongping scratched his head and let Li Jinzhi sit on the stone bench in the courtyard.

"You sit here for now. I’ll go get the water boiling for you!"

With that, he went into the stove room to stoke the fire and boil the water.

The courtyard was quiet and still. The other members of the Wang Family in the house, hearing the commotion and initially intending to come out, decided otherwise after seeing Wang Yongzhu storm into her room—who would want to come out now?

Huddled in their rooms, none of them wanted to see Li Jinzhi.

Li Jinzhi rested a while and, noticing Wang Yongping still tending the fire in the stove room, she slowly got up and looked around.