The Spirited Daughter-in-law and the Mountain Man

The thought of his wife being mute, unable to express herself, stirred a pang of sympathy in his heart.

Little did he know that she was now only deaf, not mute.

She understood that he wanted to take her with him. She nodded, letting him lead the way while she followed behind.

She surveyed her surroundings as she walked. This was an ancient village, and the home she was temporarily staying in was located at the southern foothill. Nearby were a few scattered houses.

This area was slightly higher in elevation than the others. Looking ahead, she saw clusters of houses on relatively flat land. This was the most populated area in the village.

Almost every household lived in adobe houses. Some homes had thatch roofs, while others had tile roofs, indicating better living conditions.

Some low structures covered with thatch were probably barns for livestock. A few houses were better built than most others. Although most of them were still adobe houses, the benefactor’s house was rather run-down, suggesting that he was quite poor by village standards.

Fields surrounded the village. Crops in the fields were lush and green. Most fields grew rice, while some also cultivated wheat and other crops. Other general vegetables, sweet potatoes, corn, and the like were grown on the land.

Considering the weather and crop growth, she concluded it was probably early May, just after the busy farming season.

It was a village surrounded by mountains. The mountain peaks rose higher and higher, and the mountains were dense with trees. Some land at the foot of the mountains had been ploughed into vegetable fields where people were sweating bullets, weeding the fields.

A river ran to the south of the village. There were quite many willow trees along the river, but they were a bit far from here, on the other side of the fields. The village was actually closer.

Su Qingyue paused to appreciate the scenery.

The breeze was warm, flowers were slightly fragrant, mountains rose and fell in the distance, water flowed eastward, and the simple and rustic ancient customs still existed.

Used to the bustling high-rise buildings of modern times, she found this countryside scenery to be simply elegant.

The village roads meandered, made of hard mud mixed with stones. Three or two villagers sat under the shade of the trees, fanning themselves with palm fans, enjoying the cool. Children ran and played, their dirty faces filled with childlike innocence.

“Oh, Chuanzi, taking your wife for a stroll?” Shi Cai from the same village was sitting under a tree, chatting idly with a few other villagers. As soon as he saw Xiao Yuchuan, he quickly came forward.

“Yeah, my wife agreed to stay with the Xiao family.” Xiao Yuchuan had a smug expression on his face. “Of course, I will accompany her more.”

“Chuanzi, you are indeed good-looking, but paired with such a wife, it’s just like a beautiful flower growing out of cow dung.” Wang Qigu, a woman, shook her head.

Shi Cai put on a scholarly air, “You don’t understand, Aunt Qi. You can’t use a flower to describe a man. Flowers are for describing women.”

“Humph, how dare you correct me, you can barely read.” Wang Qigu didn’t buy it.

“At least I know that flowers are used to describe women.”

“Then what is used to describe men?” Wang Qigu countered.

“This…” Shi Cai rubbed his head, “The big trees on the mountains, I suppose trees stand for men…”

Wang Qigu burst into laughter. “No wonder they say, ‘A reliable man is as rare as a sow that can climb trees.”‘

“Hehe…” A few ladies and girls laughed, albeit less exaggeratedly.

Shi Shanzao, sitting on the side, wasn’t laughing.. Staring at Xiao Yuchuan’s swollen face, dissatisfaction flickered in her eyes, “Brother Chuan, did you hurt your face yourself?”