The Country Maiden: Fields and Leisure
Chapter 396: Didn’t Hurt Your Back, Did You?

Chapter 396: Chapter 396: Didn’t Hurt Your Back, Did You?

Seeing Song Chongjin as comfortable as a fish in water, Wang Yongzhu couldn’t be bothered to worry about him anymore and went straight home.

The clothes from Song Chongjin that he had changed out of the day before were washed by Wang Yongzhu himself, who hung them out to dry in the yard.

Wang Yongzhu, seeing they were dry, took them down and brought them inside, intending to compare them with the fabric to tailor a new garment.

Only then did he notice that the clothes were already frayed at the edges, and the fabric wasn’t that great either, coarse and stiff; there were also patched areas on the back with sewing that felt rough to the touch, barely holding together.

Looking at Song Chongjin’s garment, Wang Yongzhu didn’t know why, but he suddenly felt a tinge of sadness.

He picked open those carelessly sewn stitches and mended them meticulously.

Originally intending to make only one set of clothes for Song Chongjin, he took out a piece of indigo cloth and started cutting it.

He had thought that the harvest in the fields would take up a lot of time, and these clothes would take several days to make.

But unexpectedly, thanks to Song Chongjin’s help and the addition of a horse cart, the Wang family’s efficiency improved significantly.

The very next day, they had finished harvesting the five acres of rice fields belonging to Wang Yongzhu.

What remained was to thresh the rice brought back home on the grain drying ground in front of the house and then to dry it out.

Of course, these tasks were not something for Wang Yongzhu to handle.

The bundles of rice sheaves that had been dragged back were spread out evenly on the grain drying ground, and then a stone roller was dragged behind a mule, with Wang Laozhu leading the mule, rolling it round and round over the rice.

Following him, Lady Lin and Wang Yongfu used pitchforks to turn over the straw, ensuring even pressure for the threshing.

Once all the grains were successfully threshed, the straw was forked to one side and piled up; then the large impurities among the rice grains were gently swept away with a broom,

After which, the rice was laid out under the sun. After some time, someone had to go into the spread-out rice and kick out paths with their feet so that the grains dried evenly.

In the evening, when the sun was about to set, that’s when they would gather up the rice again. Then, using a wooden shovel made specifically for the task, they would toss the grains with careful timing according to the wind so that the heavier rice would fall to the ground and the impurities and dried husks would be blown away.

What remained were the clean rice grains.

These grains would then be packed into baskets and bags and stored inside the house to protect them from the dew if left on the grain drying ground overnight.

The next day, the rice that hadn’t dried completely would be brought back to the grain drying ground for more drying, which by then was much easier.

The children were left to watch over it, each holding a bamboo stick with strips of cloth tied to it, each guarding a direction, to keep poultry from stealing the grains, and they were reminded to kick the rice every half hour.

The adults, meanwhile, busied themselves bundying up the threshed straw into bundles again and stacking them neatly into straw stacks.

This was fodder for the mules, horses, and cattle in the winter, and it could also be used as firewood.

Stacking these straw stacks was a task requiring a man’s strength; the higher the stack, the more strength was needed. The person below would lift the bundles of straw into the air with a pitchfork, and the person atop the stack would have to take them down, so the two needed to coordinate well.

At the Wang family home, this task had always been done by Wang Yongfu and Wang Yongping in past years, but this year, both had injured legs.

Fortunately, there were Song Chongjin and Wang Laosan.

Though Wang Laosan was a bit lazy, he had been chided by Old Granny Zhang enough these days not to dare slack off; of course, he still chose the easier job, standing on top.

Old Granny Zhang gritted her teeth and barely managed to pretend she hadn’t seen it.

At dinner, she kept scooping meat into Song Chongjin’s bowl with her spoon as if afraid he would throw out his back. For a man, the back is most important; it couldn’t be compromised.

While scooping meat for Song Chongjin, she also asked with special concern, "Chongjin, are you tired today? Did you strain your back?"

Song Chongjin had just brought a piece of meat to his mouth and couldn’t help but twitch the corners of his lips, "Auntie, I’m fine, not tired at all!"

Old Granny Zhang was startled for a moment, then continued to serve Song Chongjin the good cuts of meat, "That’s good if you’re not tired! Eat more meat to build your strength, build up..."

The young lad isn’t likely to admit it if he did hurt himself, she thought. No, she had to visit Doctor Liu tomorrow to inquire, see if she should bring back some medicinal oil.

Though Old Granny Zhang was presently just Song Chongjin’s future mother-in-law, she already considered herself one in practice. A mother-in-law is still a mother; she ought to dote on her son-in-law a bit more for her daughter’s sake.

Doting on her son-in-law more now meant he would dote on her daughter more in the future. Quite a good deal that would be!

Wang Yongzhu almost suffered an internal injury from holding back, looking at Song Chongjin, who usually kept a poker face, as if he would remain unfazed even if Mount Tai were to collapse in front of him. Yet, he was actually forced into a moment of weakness by Old Granny Zhang.

Song Chongjin could clearly see Wang Yongzhu’s mockery, and he cast his eyes down.

After dinner was over, Song Chongjin took the opportunity, while everyone was busy, to slip into Wang Yongzhu’s room.

Wang Yongzhu was startled, "Why are you coming into my room? Get out quickly, or my dad will beat you if he sees you!"

Song Chongjin’s face remained expressionless, but his voice carried a hint of grievance, "Yongzhu, I didn’t strain my back, if you don’t believe me, feel—"

Wang Yongzhu...

Never expected that you’d be like this, Song Chongjin!

"I believe you, your back is fine!" Wang Yongzhu, seeing Song Chongjin act as if he’d grab her hand to prove it if she didn’t believe him, was almost losing her composure and hurriedly stated her complete trust in him.

Disappointed, Song Chongjin withdrew his hand, "Yongzhu, have you finished making my clothes?" He had seen these past few days, Yongzhu had been busy with housework and then sewing clothes.

Mother-in-law had already said, the clothes were being made for him.

Just thinking about wearing the clothes made by Yongzhu’s own hands filled Song Chongjin with great anticipation.

The clothes he had changed out of last time, which were folded neatly on the kang later, felt different the moment he put them on.

His own hastily sewn clothes, now frayed, had been neatly mended; at first glance, one couldn’t see any signs of the repair.

Who else but Yongzhu?

As Song Chongjin touched those newly mended spots, he felt an indescribable sensation in his heart.

Ever since he could remember, it seemed he had grown accustomed to relying on only himself for everything.

His own mother would complain of discomfort daily, lying in bed and taking medicine, leaving her neither the desire nor the energy to attend to him.

He had to provide for both his mother and himself. In those early years, he had to stretch every copper coin as if it were two.

When other people’s clothes tore, they had mothers or sisters to mend them; he did not, as his mother would complain of headaches after holding a needle and thread for just a short while.

As for the Song Family, aside from mocking him, they offered nothing.

Latter on, as he grew older, those so-called girls who fancied him indeed wished to mend his clothes for him, yet he kept them at arm’s length.

Now, he had Yongzhu, the girl he liked, who would someday be his wife, and in the future, the mother of his children. She would tailor clothes for him, cook for him, bear and raise his children...

At this thought, Song Chongjin’s expression softened, and his eyes filled with longing.