Turning Antagonist to Protagonist: He is Both Soft and Fierce-Chapter 66 - 61: Little Uncle, Say That Again and I’ll Get Mad
"How long will it take?" Lin Qiao glanced at the inner room and found it quite spacious.
The boss thought for a moment, "At the latest, the day after tomorrow."
"Alright." Lin Qiao nodded.
"Whether it works out by the day after tomorrow or not, you must give me a reply, so I can consider other options." The boss was still a bit uneasy, giving her additional instructions.
Lin Qiao assured, "Don’t worry, boss. I’ll reply by the day after tomorrow."
"That’s fine. If it works out this time, I’ll only buy your designs in the future, giving you 500 cents per piece." The boss gritted his teeth and added some conditions.
This task wasn’t easy.
The family was notoriously picky and allegedly had a relative working in the county government that couldn’t be offended.
"Alright, I’ll do my best." Lin Qiao nodded again.
The design for the square cloth was exchanged for one tael and twenty cents, which the boss readily paid, saying, "I definitely need a reply."
"Okay." Lin Qiao held the heavy silver with a hint of joy in her eyes.
At last, there was some source of income for the family.
But after visiting the medicine shop, half of the silver coins were gone. Lin Qiao didn’t mind spending a hundred cents on some tonic herbs, planning to buy a hen to stew for Song Rong and Song Qin to nourish their bodies.
After buying a more than four-pound hen, measuring five pounds of flour and two pounds of pork, there wasn’t much silver left.
The basket was almost full.
It was already a bit heavy for Song Tingfan to carry on his back, so Lin Qiao reached out from behind to help lift it and lighten his load.
Song Tingfan turned his head with a smile, "Sister-in-law, it’s alright, I can carry it."
Quickly he added, "Sister-in-law, why don’t you take the donkey cart home? I’ll walk and will be back quickly."
He was feeling a bit anxious about spending so much silver; after all, his grandfather’s medicine still needed purchasing, any savings that could be made should be made.
There was no way Lin Qiao would let him walk home; that wasn’t in her character as a good sister-in-law. "We’ll all take the donkey cart back. No need to save this bit of silver, let’s get back early to make dumplings."
"Sister-in-law, I will be back soon." Song Tingfan moved the basket on his back.
Lin Qiao pulled him, "Be good and listen to your sister-in-law."
"Sister-in-law, I walk really fast..."
Before Song Tingfan could finish his sentence, Lin Qiao interrupted with a teasing wink, "Can my little brother-in-law fly?"
"No, I can’t." Song Tingfan scratched his forehead.
"If you can’t fly, then take the donkey cart with your sister-in-law."
"Sister-in-law..."
"Little brother, if you keep talking, I’ll get angry and won’t speak to you anymore."
Immediately, Song Tingfan didn’t dare make a sound. His delicate phoenix eyes looked at her cautiously, afraid she’d get angry.
Lin Qiao couldn’t help but rub his head, only to find it a bit of a stretch; she switched to pinching his cheek instead, "I’m not mad."
Once on the donkey cart, people couldn’t help but glance at their basket, though fortunately, Song Tingfan covered it with green vegetables.
It wasn’t just them; nearly everyone on the donkey cart did the same, afraid others would see what they’d bought.
Throughout the journey, the women chattered away until a man yelled impatiently, "Can’t a person get some sleep? Talk when you get home."
Instantly, it got much quieter.
Lin Qiao gradually dozed off, later waking up with her head on Song Tingfan’s shoulder. Given last time’s experience, she was more composed this time.
She yawned, glanced at the road ahead, and saw they were near the village.
Before long, the donkey cart stopped at the village entrance, with the sound of a litter of puppies, "Yip yip yip yip..."
"Who left these puppies lying around? If they starve to death, it would be really unlucky." A woman with a basket grumbled.
"Probably that family; their dog was pregnant a while back." Another woman remarked, glancing at the "yipping" puppies.
Song Tingfan looked at the puppies, pursed his lips, and paused, "Sister-in-law, can we raise a couple of dogs?"
Having dogs would deter anyone from sneaking into the yard.
"Sister-in-law, I’ll find food for them in the mountains, no waste of silver."
Lin Qiao glanced at him, then at the four puppies under the tree, "If my little brother wants, let’s keep them."
Having a kind-hearted villain is a good thing; she had to nurture this.
"Thank you, sister-in-law." Song Tingfan’s grin stretched from ear to ear as he stood next to the puppies: two yellow, one white, one yellow and white.
The yellow and white one looked the best, with shiny black eyes.
"Sister-in-law, which two do you like?"
Lin Qiao seriously observed, "The yellow and white, and the white one."
"Okay." Song Tingfan picked up one in each hand, and the two little puppies yipped as he did so.
Lin Qiao helped cradle one, calming them with a gentle hand.
"Oh, you can afford to feed dogs?" A woman in gray short cotton clothing mocked.
Lin Qiao: "..."
Could these women not speak gossip for just one day? Would they die?
"What’s it to you, you old hag? Hurry back, I’m starving to death." The woman’s husband had no patience for her gossip; she could comment on any family’s affairs and got cursed every few days.
Besides, what was wrong with the Song Family raising two dogs? The whole village could raise ten without it being anyone else’s business.
"Why are you scolding me? Oh, did the vixen catch your eye?" The woman, thinking he was siding with Widow Song, angrily cursed aloud.
Lin Qiao was completely baffled; what did she do? She had kept quiet.
And her man hadn’t even glanced at her.
"..."
Song Tingfan glared angrily at the woman.
The woman’s husband glanced at the gathered onlookers, both men and women, including some men he worked with.
Shamed by his wife’s rants, he slapped her, "What nonsense are you spouting? I’ll divorce you sooner or later."
"Get out; if you’re not going home, go back to your parents."
The woman instantly fell silent, following him away.
Lin Qiao: "..."
Seems like violence resolved things.
She inexplicably felt pleased, "Little brother, let’s go home."
...
Song Family
Song Qin saw each of them with a puppy, "Where’d you get them?"
"At the village entrance, someone abandoned them." Lin Qiao put the puppy down, and the little white one dashed into the main room and curled up.
Song Tingfan’s dog ran into the main room as well, and the two puppies huddled together.
After watching for a bit, Lin Qiao left them be; it was already past noon, and she had to quickly prepare some food.
There was leftover rice from the morning, enough for the four of them, so she made a simple meat and vegetable stir-fry.
After eating and resting for a while, Lin Qiao started making dumplings.
Song Tingfan washed his hands and kneaded the dough, while Lin Qiao prepared the filling, chopping greens and lean meat finely, mixing it with salt. Remembering something, she put down her chopsticks, went to the courtyard, and pinched some green onion shoots, which were still short and tender, breaking off easily with a gentle pinch.
By now, the little puppies were exploring everywhere, having been scared by the hen tied in the courtyard, yipping non-stop.
Song Rong gently nudged them with his foot, sending them off to play elsewhere.
"Grandpa, why don’t you go rest inside? Don’t worry about them." Lin Qiao reminded.
Song Rong’s spirits had improved greatly, and his face wasn’t as thin as before, a bit more like Song Tingfan now.
He chuckled warmly, "Qiao’er, it’s nothing, go on with your work."
