In town.
Liu Duo and the men sat in their rented boat as they observed the water lilies close up and gathered some lotuses.
“Ran Er, be careful. Don’t fall into the river.”
“Sis, relax. Even if I fall into the water I’m not afraid, because I have you and my two brothers-in-law who’ll surely come to my rescue!”
The smile he gave was cute, if not a little cheeky.
On this trip, he revealed his childish innocence, unlike the restrained soul trapped in the Liu household for years.
The neighborhood kids used to make fun of him for having a sister who was a lowly shared wife and four poverty-stricken brothers-in-law.
Back then, he would get fired up and get into fights, but he never considered his sister lowly nor his hardworking brothers-in-law poor and pedantic!
The other three could not decide whether to laugh or get mad at him.
They were glad to have gained the young boy’s trust because it proved that they were important figures in his life.
“Liuzi, Ling, let’s pick more lotuses and bring some to Aunt Ye,” Liu Duo said, holding the plant in her hand. “Aunt Li can take some home too. It goes perfect with porridge in the morning. But not too many. They go bad if they’re left too long untouched. We can’t overeat them either.”
Lotuses were cool in nature. Over-consumption was not good for the body, especially for women!
Liu Duo loved listening to Ye Ling’s gentle and patient voice.
Ye Liu plucked one pink lily for Liu Duo. “A beautiful flower for a beautiful maiden. It matches you perfectly, Little Duo.”
Liu Duo accepted the blooming flower and savored its fragrance. “Liuzi, get some of those which are still budding. They’ll look nice in vases at home.”
Lilies don’t have a strong scent, but they serve well as decorations.
Her bedroom looked too simple without any flora anyway.
Seeing his wife in a state of joy, Ye Liu felt incumbent to satisfy Liu Duo, so he plucked another five lily buds.
Ye Ling and Liu Ran followed suit and plucked more buds for her.
“That’s enough, guys. You should stop,” Liu Duo said, her hands almost full.
They had no more than two vases at home. They could not hold that many.
“We had a great harvest today. We ought to go home now.” Ye Liu looked at the sky. They had about two hours before lunchtime.
Each of them carried some lotuses and lily buds as they went home on their bullock cart.
At home, Ye Mo sat down to work on that day’s accounts while Li Wazi helped out in the kitchen.
As for Li Chunmei, she had been standing by the entrance the whole time. She did not dare to enter, nor did she plan to leave.
She observed Ye Mo with tears in her eyes. It was such a pain to love someone when it was never meant to be!
When Liu Duo got back with her gang, they all noticed Li Chunmei standing by the entrance to their home. Their smiles instantly vanished.
“Sis, who’s that? What’s she doing at our house?” Liu Ran asked curiously.
Li Chunmei heard footsteps and chatter. She turned around to face Liu Duo.
Her eyes flickered, yet she spoke first. “Liu, Ling, Sister Duo, Ran Er, were you guys in town?”
When Ye Ling saw Li Chunmei, his temper rose quickly despite his gentle nature.
Hei Xiaomeng’s sharp hearing recognized the voices outside the yard and ran out to greet its owners.
