"Woof woof..."
Xue Ling squatted by the doghouse, barking incessantly.
Old Man Yun frowned, "Who is it now, not sleeping in the middle of the night?"
Yun Erman said, "Could it be someone looking for Daqiang?"
Fu Daqiang lived in the front yard, and he lived in the back yard...
"Take the lantern and go take a look! Be careful, don't run into any bears!~" Old Man Yun teased.
Yun Erman smiled helplessly, "Bears don't knock on doors either!"
He carried the lantern to the main gate and heard the snorting of a fine horse.
It must be someone who arrived by carriage from afar...
"Who is it?" Yun Erman raised the lantern towards the door bolt.
"Where's my dead husband? Is he dead from drinking yet?"
Madam Huang, leading her daughter Chen Xiaoran, stood outside the door, stamping her feet in anger.
This damned scoundrel, drinking from morning till night, why didn't he just drink himself to death...
Now he wouldn't even come home, he clearly didn't want to be married anymore!~
Yun Erman was slightly taken aback, he quickly opened the main door and said with a smile, "Oh, it's Madam, please come in, the Prefect has already gone to bed!"
"Gone to bed?" Madam Huang looked Yun Erman up and down, narrowing her eyes, "You reek of alcohol, have you been drinking with him again?"
"No, no, no..." Yun Erman forced a laugh, "Let's talk inside!~"
Madam Huang pulled Chen Xiaoran and angrily walked to the backyard.
"Sister Xitian!"
Upon seeing little Xitian, Chen Xiaoran instantly became cheerful.
They hadn't seen each other for a long time...
Little Xitian smiled and handed her the homemade jam, "It's sweet and delicious!~"
Then the two little girls sat at the head of the kang, eating jam with small spoons.
Madam Huang went to the east room to check on Prefect Chen. She pinched him hard, but he didn't react...
"Drink! Keep drinking until you die, no one will care!~" Madam Huang was so angry that tears streamed down her face.
She had guessed that this damned scoundrel would come to the Old Yun family.
He didn't even bring any guards with him, what if he encountered danger?
He was a dignified prefect, a fourth-rank official of the court, yet he was so undisciplined...
It was no wonder that Prefect Chen had become less and less like an official since he started managing the Heyang County area.
The county magistrate Jin, sent by the court, was driven away before he could even take office.
Who knew when Prefect Chen would be transferred to the prefectural city.
Looking at his perpetually dazed state, it was probably impossible in this lifetime...
"Madam, it's so late, I feel terrible for making you come all this way. The Prefect has already gone to bed, why don't you let him stay here for the night, and I'll have Daman send him back tomorrow morning!~"
Madam Gu said calmly.
Madam Huang sighed and glanced around the room, "Has Jinshan not returned?"
Madam Gu: "..."
Good heavens, she was still thinking about her grandson?
The idea of him marrying into the family was unthinkable.
"Jinshan is studying at the academy and rarely comes back!" Madam Gu wiped the cold sweat from her forehead.
Seeing her daughter playing happily with little Tiantian, Madam Huang didn't want to leave either, "Are there any other rooms?"
"No..." Madam Gu replied, "Perhaps we can squeeze into this west room?"
This house only had two rooms, east and west. The men and women stayed separately, divided by a curtain...
In any case, it was far from the large house of the Yun family in the past.
Madam Huang wrinkled her nose.
How could they sleep like this!
Including Jin Huaihua and Hu Xier, how many people were already lying on this kang.
She would feel embarrassed even to pass gas in the middle of the night...
"Daughter, let's go back!~" Madam Huang went to pull Chen Xiaoran.
"No!" Chen Xiaoran broke free from Madam Huang's hand, pouting, "I want to play with Sister Xitian!~"
Going home was boring and dull.
She heard that Sister Xitian had a fulfilling life every day.
Even when she was bored, there were so many playmates in the village to catch fish, roast toads, dig bird nests, and catch grasshoppers with...
But as soon as she returned to the county town, she had nothing.
Liu Cuirong leaned against the door with her arms crossed, curling her lips, "I say, Madam, are you finding our home too dirty and feeling disgusted?"
"It's fine, if you don't want to stay, you can go back. With two fewer people, the kang will be more spacious!~"
Madam Huang: "..."
Jinshan was handsome, humorous, and sensible. How could his mother be like this?
"Cuirong, go get the bedding!~" Madam Gu reprimanded.
Liu Cuirong snorted, opened the cabinet, and brought out two sets of bedding...
Madam Huang reached out and touched the surface of the kang. It was a bit hot, so she suggested, "I want to sleep at the head of the kang with Xiaoran!"
The head of the kang was not as hot as the side, she was afraid her daughter would get too hot sleeping on the kang.
"That won't do. The head of the kang belongs to my little sister. You're taking it as soon as you arrive, how can you be so entitled?"
Liu Cuirong said indignantly.
Madam Gu: "..."
This blockhead, the Prefect's wife is a guest, a guest! Don't you have any brains?
"Cuirong, if you dare to say another word, I'll send you to live in the pigsty, don't believe me, let's try it!~" Madam Gu's face darkened.
Upon hearing this, Liu Cuirong quickly covered her mouth, her eyes darting back and forth...
"Daughter, you two stop playing and go to sleep!~" Madam Gu put away little Xitian's things and hugged her daughter, lying down at the head of the kang.
Jin Huaihua closed the door, and the noisy Old Yun family finally quieted down for the night.
The next morning, all the men in the east room got up, but Prefect Chen was still lying sprawled out, hungover...
The women in the west room also started to get up to wash their faces, comb their hair, and cook, leaving only Madam Huang and Chen Xiaoran sleeping soundly on the kang.
Liu Cuirong stood by the kang, arms crossed, and mocked, "Sister-in-law, look, birds of a feather flock together, they're all the same, one sleeps more than the other!~"
Zhao Guihua heard this and glared at her, "Hurry up and say less, Mother wants you to go to the garden to pick cucumbers..."
Breakfast was simple: millet porridge with cornmeal steamed buns, served with pickled cucumbers and preserved garlic eggplant. The stir-fried bean sprouts from last night were still plentiful, and Jin Huaihua heated them all up.
Yun Daman was going to the mountain to plant trees, and Yun Erman also planned to go to the county yamen with Prefect Chen.
So the brothers only ate a quick bite, waiting for Prefect Chen to wake up...
Old Man Yun carried his hoe and went to the fields with Xue Ling.
Madam Gu led little Xitian to Gou Gou Lake. The loaches caught in the morning would be cheaper. Madam Gu planned to buy two catties and make braised loaches.
Madam Huang and Chen Xiaoran slept until the sun was high in the sky before waking up.
"Hmm? Where did everyone in the family go?" Madam Huang asked while dressing her daughter.
Jin Huaihua gestured with her hand, "Ah ah..."
Madam Huang gave her a sideways glance.
In this Old Yun family, even the maid was mute.
"Has my husband woken up yet?"
"Ah ah!~"
Madam Huang: "..."