Little Miss Fortune: I Will Bring Prosperity to My Tang Family!-Chapter 94: The Daily Life of the Chubby Kid

Chapter 88

The Daily Life of the Chubby Kid

Xiaolin woke up early. Upon exiting her room, she saw her father, her big burly friend, and Uncle Lei San sprawled out in the middle of the hall. The other four uncles had likely left to go squid fishing last night. After watching the three collapsed figures for a moment, she heard Uncle Wu Zhong calling out from the front of the house. The round little body ran out to see.

"Xiaolin, hasn’t your father woken up yet? He hasn’t taken the cart to fetch the seafood," Wu Zhong said as he saw his little niece coming out to greet him, and he walked through the gate.

"Not yet, Uncle. It’ll be a while."

Hearing that, Wu Zhong walked into the house, followed by the round little girl. Inside, he shook his head at the sight of the three drunkards sprawled all over each other.

These three kept drinking nonstop, and this is the result. Last night, they had to be carried in together, otherwise, they would have slept under the night dew outside.

"In that case, can I borrow the cart to deliver the goods to the town? If we wait for your father, the shop won’t open today," Wu Zhong asked Xiaolin, who was standing beside him.

"Thank you, Uncle. When you come back, stop by for some food. I’ll make something delicious for you."

"Thank you, Xiaolin. I’ll be going then."

Xiaolin nodded vigorously, watching Uncle Wu Zhong leave before heading to the kitchen, where she heard her grandmother and Aunt Huan Qingqing’s voices from inside.

"What are we having for breakfast, Grandma, Auntie?"

"I made stir-fried pork with pickled vegetables, stir-fried bamboo shoots with chili oil, and boiled salted eggs. Do you want to make anything else?" Zhang Ruo turned to ask her plump little granddaughter.

"Let’s make some pork bone soup for the drunkards. And Auntie, could you please boil some pork belly for me? I want to make crispy pork. Make a bit more food, Grandma, I’ll share it with Uncle Zhong too."

"Sure, dear."

"Should I boil the skin first?" Huan Qingqing looked at the chubby-cheeked child with affection.

"Yes, Auntie. Oh, and let’s also make stir-fried Chinese cabbage with eggs and morning glory stir-fried. I’ll go pick the vegetables."

Xiaolin grabbed a basket and headed towards the vegetable plot. She saw her grandfather carrying a water bucket to water the plants. Looking at the over ten large vegetable plots, she felt sorry for her grandfather who had to carry water buckets every day. He also had to take care of her restaurant. Xiaolin picked vegetables while chatting with her grandfather.

"Isn’t it tiring to water the plants alone, Grandpa?" The small hand pulled up plump kale plants, placing them in the basket she carried.

"It’s a bit tiring, but I don’t do it all day, so I get some rest," Hui Song looked at his granddaughter, surprised by her sudden concern.

"How about we buy a couple of slaves to help with the work? Then Grandpa won’t be so tired. And we can get female slaves to help Grandma with the housework too." She had never thought about slaves before because she didn’t want strangers in her home every day, but seeing her grandparents work so hard made her feel uneasy.

"I’m still strong enough, no need to buy slaves, dear." Hui Song smiled broadly at his granddaughter’s concern.

"But I don’t want you and Grandma to work so hard. If Father wakes up, I’ll talk to him. Grandpa, you mustn’t refuse."

Hui Song watched the round figure gathering vegetables, then carrying the basket back to the house. He chuckled at his granddaughter’s stubbornness, but it was a stubbornness born from love and care.

"You’ve gathered a lot of vegetables. I’ll help you wash them," Huan Qingqing said as she came outside, seeing the round figure carrying the basket in.

"Thank you, Auntie. Besides being beautiful, you’re also kind and polite." Huan Qingqing laughed at the child’s sweet words.

"You sweet-talker. Come on, let’s wash these and start cooking." Huan Qingqing took the basket from the chubby girl, and they began washing the vegetables together.

After washing the vegetables, Xiaolin sat peeling the tough outer layer off the kale stems to make them crunchy and tasty, not too hard. The boiled pork belly was taken outside to drain before Huan Qingqing helped Zhang Ruo with the rest of the cooking.

"Are those drunkards still not awake?" Zhang Ruo asked about the group of drunkards sleeping in the hall.

"When I woke up, they were still sleeping," the chubby child replied while peeling the kale stems.

"My husband has never been this drunk before, Auntie. I’ve never seen him in such a state," Huan Qingqing sighed deeply, thinking of her husband’s condition.

"I’m used to it. My husband has been a heavy drinker since he was young. It got better once we had kids, but lately, he’s been drinking more often."

The two housewives chatted while Xiaolin sat quietly, eavesdropping. By the time the cooking was done, it was already late morning. Wu Zhong returned to collect the food and walked back to the beach in a good mood.

The drunkards were woken up and sent off to bathe because it was mealtime. They staggered out of the house, but the smell of food from the kitchen perked them up, and they quickly took turns bathing and then sat in the hall. Lei San borrowed Tianrong’s clothes and stayed for breakfast.

"Drink the soup to sober up," Zhang Ruo didn’t say much, just ladled hot pork bone soup and handed it to them. She was tired of scolding her husband after so many years.

"Thank you," Tianrong said, taking the soup. Lei San and Huan Tan also took the soup and drank it.

"Why did you make so many dishes today, Xiaolin?" Tianchen asked his plump niece.

"I wanted to eat a variety of things," Xiaolin replied, smiling widely as she picked up a piece of crispy pork and chewed on it.

The food was so good that everyone ate silently, the only sounds being chopsticks and dishes. Xiaolin ate her rice while sipping the soup, thinking about how she hadn’t had Khao Maan Gai in a long time. Her chubby cheeks moved as she chewed, watching her father and uncles eat quietly, unsure if they would be able to work today.

"If you can’t manage the shop today, stay home and rest, A’Rong. There’s nothing special that needs attending to at the shop, right? I’ll go take a look," Hui Song said, looking at his son-in-law, who rarely drank this much. Last night, they had to carry him to the hall.

"Thank you, Father. I’ll take a rest today."

"Uncle Zhong, please tell Uncle Lei to rest too," Xiaolin said with her mouth full, looking at the dishes on the table, unable to decide what to eat next.

"In that case, I’ll rest on the bamboo bed at the back of Xiaolin’s house. It’s cooler here than at my place."

"Sure, but make sure to tell your family first so they won’t worry."

"Understood."

"Tomorrow, I want to eat Khao Maan Gai. I wonder if anyone can catch a chicken for me. As for today, how about we make braised pork leg, Grandma?" the chubby child said, not addressing anyone in particular, but several people were interested and eager to catch a chicken for her.

"In that case, after we finish eating, I’ll start braising it right away. It needs to simmer for several hours to get tender," Grandma said.

"I want to eat both Khao Maan Gai and braised pork leg rice too," Tianchen, whose ears had perked up, quickly turned to his niece.

"I’ll catch the chicken myself," Lei San said, hastily chewing his food.

In the end, it was the three drunkards who would go catch the chicken. Tianchen, who looked sad, brightened up when Xiaolin promised to save some for him to eat the next evening, as today they would have braised pork leg rice first. He then left on the cart in a good mood.

Xiaolin told the drunkards to rest in the morning and go catch the chicken in the afternoon. She grabbed a basket and went into the forest with the three young boys from the Huan family, with Weng Shui accompanying them.

Xiaolin planned to collect duck eggs to make salted eggs for the winter. The villagers were starting to prepare their provisions as it was about a month until winter. She also needed to find time to hunt another pig because she only got one pork leg from yesterday’s hunt.

"Xiaolin, can you make a lot of salted eggs? I want to take some home too," Ching Long, walking beside the chubby girl, asked. He loved eating salted eggs from his sister’s house. If he could eat them with hot rice porridge in winter, it would be wonderful.

"Sure. We’ll need to help each other collect a lot then,"

When they arrived at the lotus pond, the four of them started collecting eggs from the surface while Weng Shui collected from the shallow waters. The villagers probably hadn’t collected the eggs recently, so there were plenty.

It didn’t take long for Xiaolin’s small basket to fill up. The boys also filled the large basket that Weng Shui had brought. Once their baskets were full, they headed back out of the forest. There were still plenty of eggs left, so Weng Shui planned to come back for more.

"Clean them gently with a cloth. I’ll go prepare the vinegar," Xiaolin instructed, then went to the kitchen to fetch several jars of vinegar, as she could only carry the small jars.

"Xiaolin, there’s someone here to see you," Hui Ning called out as she emerged from the house, followed by two young boys.

"Oh, Master Zhou," Xiaolin said, blinking at the two smiling boys.

"My brother and I haven’t visited in a while, so today we’re here to help you, Xiaolin," Zhou Minglu said, smiling broadly at the little girl. They were dressed in plain cotton clothes, knowing that if they came to the Tang household, they’d end up working with the chubby girl.

Xiaolin looked at the two young men who were ready and led them to the back of the house where the Huan family boys were cleaning eggs. When the Zhou brothers saw this, they eagerly joined in, having done it before.

"Are you masters staying until the evening?" Xiaolin asked.

"Yes, and we will be visiting often. We want to experience village life more. Once our mother gives birth to our sibling, we will have to return to our studies," Zhou Mingwang replied.

He noticed that the chubby sister didn’t really like it when they would call themselves brother. So, he changed his pronouns. Once they were closer, the brother pronoun could then be used.

"That’s fine, but I have many tasks to do because I need to prepare supplies for the winter."

"We are ready to help you," Zhou Minglu smiled broadly, his youthful face showing signs of impending maturity that would surely catch the attention of city girls to the point where they’d tear apart their flannels.

"You’ve come at the right time. Today, Grandma is making stewed pork leg with rice and boiled kale. It’s delicious,"

"Really? I love your family’s cooking. It’s better than restaurant food," Zhou Mingwang said with excitement.

"Then you’ll have to wait until evening," 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

Hundreds of duck eggs were cleaned and soaked in vinegar before being salted and stored in jars. There were still more eggs that Weng Shui had just collected.

After finishing with the eggs, Xiaolin took her friends to see Xiao Zhong and Xiao Bai, who were grazing under a large tree. Lazy Xiao Zhong chewed grass leisurely, unlike Xiao Bai, who wandered not far away.

"When did you get the new cow?" Ching Long asked, excited to see the white-haired cow. He had been in town with Tianrong the previous day and had not seen Xiaolin bringing Xiao Bai home.

"It’s so cute, Xiaolin," Huan Luwen said excitedly as well. Ching Long looked at the two cows with bright eyes but said nothing, opting to stroke the fur of the lying Xiao Zhong instead.

"I got it along with a wild boar yesterday," Xiaolin said. Hearing her voice, Xiao Bai hurried over adorably.

"I wish I had a cow with hair this long," Zhou Mingwang said, stroking Xiao Bai, who responded affectionately.

"I’m going to bathe Xiao Zhong and Xiao Bai today. Who wants to help?"

"I do!!" The others raised their hands in unison, making Xiaolin laugh.

The Zhou brothers had brought a change of clothes, so Xiaolin led the two cows to the stream. Xiao Zhong, knowing what was coming, lay in the water, allowing everyone to wash him, and Xiao Bai followed suit.

Xiaolin let the young men pour water over the cows while she walked back to the house to get soap. Since both cows had long fur, they needed a thorough cleaning, which didn’t happen often.

She had noticed during the past summer that Xiao Zhong was easily irritated. Typically, long-haired cows live in high mountains with cold climates, so living in the warmer lowlands likely made him uncomfortable. Xiaolin planned to trim his fur next summer so that by the time winter arrived again, his fur would be long and soft.

When Chubby Xiaolin returned with the soap, she heard the cheerful laughter of the young men, who were as wet as the cows themselves.

The main reason for their wetness was Xiao Bai, who was joyfully splashing around in the stream, causing water to spray everywhere. Even Xiao Zhong, who lay in the water, had his fur wet and covering his face. Fortunately, Xiao Zhong wasn’t aggressive towards Xiao Bai and allowed the young cow to share his pen.

"Xiao Bai, you little rascal, you’ve gotten everyone wet!"

Moo~

"Come here and stand still. I’ll give you a proper wash."

The smart cow walked over and stood still, though his tail kept wagging. Xiaolin poured water over him and scrubbed his fur with soap. Meanwhile, Xiao Zhong continued to lounge lazily in the water, enjoying the coolness. As he had grown, the humans usually tied him to a big tree, preventing him from playing in the water.

The three Huan family boys gently scrubbed Xiao Zhong’s long fur, while the Zhou brothers helped with Xiao Bai. The young cow couldn’t stand still for long and soon started moving around, occasionally jumping and causing more splashes, leaving everyone thoroughly soaked.

After bathing the cows, everyone ended up having a great time playing in the water. The two normally stoic Zhou brothers, who were usually seen as calm and serious by the city girls, were now playing in the water like children.

Their laughter and shouts echoed around the stream, attracting the attention of Zhang Ruo. She walked out to see what was going on and, upon seeing the soaked children, scolded them and told them to go inside and change into dry clothes.

The six of them, now subdued, walked back to the house, dripping wet, while Zhang Ruo watched them with a weary shake of her head. She then turned to look at the two cows: one lying contentedly in the water and the other still frolicking playfully.