Unlimited estates for rural beauty-Chapter 27: Dad didn’t marry you, so you’re this jealous of my mother?

"They’re coming, Yijiang, Xizi, Jiaojiao, Xuxu, let’s head home. We’ll come back this afternoon," Auntie Hui waved her hand, calling the children who were working.

A few men, carrying their hoeing tools, were laughing and joking as they walked ahead, while Auntie Hui led the children following behind. About a quarter of an hour later, Uncle Hui and Grandfather Qi, Feng Fu and Feng Cong parted ways at the entrance to the village and each headed to their own homes. Feng Cong deliberately lagged a few steps behind next to Zhang Hui, muttered something quietly, then turned and chased after Feng Fu.

"Husband, what was Feng Cong whispering to you about? It’s so secretive; he didn’t even let us hear," Auntie Hui asked Uncle Hui beside her when Feng Cong was far enough away.

"Nothing much. Just said to come to our house after dinner to help plow the fields," Uncle Hui mentioned without much concern.

Pushing open the courtyard door, Feng Xuxu sat down on a small wooden stool, massaging her not yet old but tender waist. After such a short time in the fields, her back hurt so much that she realized how hard-earned each grain of food really was.

"Tired, aren’t you, Xuxu girl? Take a good rest at home this afternoon. Don’t go to the fields; your uncle and I are enough," Auntie Hui said, sympathetically massaging Feng Xuxu’s slender waist.

"Auntie, I’m fine. This afternoon, I’ll just do what I can in the fields and tell Uncle how to plow. I’m worried that if we don’t do it right, it could delay the mid-season rice and affect the harvest," Feng Xuxu said, letting go of her waist and looking worried. Auntie Hui thought it over and agreed, "Alright then. But this afternoon, you are not to do any labor; just give instructions from the sidelines."

"Mom, Xuxu, come and eat," called Sister Jiaojiao, with an apron tied around her waist, from the kitchen doorway.

"Oh, that was quick. Let’s go eat, Xuxu girl."

"Haha, Brother Hui, I’m here. Looks like I’m not too late," Feng Cong said, carrying a hoe as he entered the yard and seeing everyone resting. He took a seat on a stool as if he was at his own home.

"It’s better to arrive at the right time than early. We were just getting ready to go to the fields," Uncle Hui said with a chuckle, finishing his water before speaking to Feng Cong.

"Haha, Brother, it seems I do have good timing," Feng Cong patted his thigh, poking fun at himself.

"Let’s go and try to level out those three acres by dusk, then divide them into smaller plots tomorrow, which will be quicker." Uncle Hui finished speaking, grabbed the hoe and crowbar, slung them over his shoulder, and strided out the door, chatting with Feng Cong as they walked to the fields.

"Jiaojiao, you and Xuxu bring up the rear with the water. I’m going ahead with your brother, Feng Xi," Auntie Hui instructed, then turned to leave with Yijiang and Feng Xi out of the courtyard.

"Coming, Mom," Jiaojiao responded to her mother, quickly filling the kettle with water.

"Sister Liu, where are you hurrying off to?" Feng Sheng’s wife, Feng Zheng, heard the neighbor closing their door and, peeping through the curtain, saw Feng Xi Liu hurriedly preparing to leave.

Feng Liu looked at her next-door neighbor, Zheng, and then approached her, "Today I went out to buy tofu and ran into Feng Fu’s wife, Luo Zhaodi, at the tofu shop. She told me that Zhang Hui’s family is planning to plant a different type of rice that yields quite a harvest twice a year. So, here I am, heading over to Zhang Hui’s to find out if it’s true." 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

"Is that true, Sister Liu? Wait for me. I’ll lock the door and come with you." She didn’t even finish her last sentence before she turned and ran to lock her door.

As the two chatted on their way, they didn’t notice a group of women gossiping under the village’s large pagoda tree, "Hey, Xiquan’s wife, Sheng’s wife, where are you two heading?"

Feng Zheng and Feng Liu turned around to see the village’s notorious gossip, Jiang Family’s wife. They wanted to avoid her and keep walking but she caught them squarely in her sights.

"I just called out to you two, why didn’t you feel like acknowledging me?" Jiang Family’s wife, with her sharp triangular eyes, looked annoyed at them both.

"Oh, Sister Jiang! We didn’t hear you, we’re in a hurry to get to Zhang Hui’s place," replied Feng Liu, looking helplessly at Jiang who was blocking their path.

"To Zhang Hui’s? But Zhang Hui and his family have gone to the fields, been gone for half the day. Tell me what’s going on; maybe I know something about it," Jiang’s interest peaked when she heard they were looking for Zhang Hui, and she inquired, her curiosity obviously piqued.

Liu and Zheng, seeing the "you’re-not-going-anywhere-until-you-tell-me" stance held by Jiang, hesitantly shared what they heard at the tofu shop that day.

"What? Is that even possible? The Zhang family has lived in our village for many years and I’ve never heard of them causing such a stir. I suspect this wasn’t Zhang Hui’s idea," murmured Jiang, increasingly convinced that something wasn’t adding up.

"Exactly, Zhang Hui and his wife are honest, simple folks. Could they have been duped? I’ve never heard of paddy rice being harvested twice in a single year," said Feng Jian’s wife, Feng Hua, who was sitting under the pagoda tree making shoes, chiming in disdainfully, her lips curled in a sneer.

"That’s not all. Dahong’s son Feng Xi and Feng Xuxu have disowned their family bonds and left with nothing, and they’ve been living at Zhang Hui’s for two or three days now," another, slightly younger woman, Feng Xue’s wife, Feng Lei, added, eager to share the gossip she knew.

"Well, that explains it. It must be that jinx, Feng Xuxu’s doing. She’s cursed her own parents to death, and now that the Feng Family has disowned her, she’s off to curse someone else’s household. What a piece of work she is. Shameless, that one. Just one look and you can tell she’s no good, a shameless flirt," sneered Jiang with disgust, turning her head to spit on the ground repeatedly. Still feeling unsatisfied, she kicked at the ground a few times with her foot.

Feng Xuxu, who had come back from the fields earlier than usual, happened to overhear Jiang’s last remark. With a cold, livid face, she slightly curled her lips, giving Jiang a sidelong glance. "What’s the matter, Auntie? Are you still so bitter because my father refused to marry you back then, so full of envy, jealousy, and resentment towards my late mother? My mother has been gone for years, yet here you are, slandering her name. What exactly are you after? Aren’t you afraid that my mother’s ghost might come knocking on your door at midnight? You say I’m a jinx, that I caused your death or the death of your son—I wasn’t aware my skin was so thick. But speaking of thick skin, there’s no telling how thick yours is, notorious across the village. No wonder your two sons can’t find wives. Humph!" Venting the frustration that she’d been holding back felt incredibly satisfying, especially seeing Jiang Family’s wife’s face turn a deep shade of red, enjoying the flush of victory in her heart.