Chapter 9

Damn it, being looked down upon by a kid, Zhang Xuan quickly caught up.

He asked, "It's still two li away from home, how did you appear here?"

The chubby kid said, "I came to play with my classmate."

Zhang Xuan remembered who it was, tilted his head, and asked, "Is it that chubby girl from the Li family?"

Hearing this, the chubby kid was unhappy, "Where is Li Xiang fat? She's not as fat as me, humph, don't say that about her, she's my best friend."

"Oh..." Zhang Xuan laughed, understanding, and then stared straight at the chubby kid.

The chubby kid had a thin skin, and being stared at like this, even if there was nothing wrong, it felt like something was wrong. Finally, his face turned red, and he ran off with the urea bag on his back.

Zhang Xuan shouted from behind, "Hey! Slow down... I can't keep up."

After four in the afternoon.

After much hardship, they finally arrived home, and this 10-li journey felt more tiring than the Long March.

He gave the chubby kid a few oranges from their own orchard to quench his thirst. Seeing that he was about to leave, he sincerely said, "Wait a bit before going back, come to our house for dinner."

The chubby kid used his hands to peel an orange, stuffed half of it into his big mouth, and shook his head vigorously, firmly refusing, "I won't eat at your house, your food is bad, just eating grass every day."

"Damn it!..."

Zhang Xuan couldn't stand this, almost fainted with anger, and picked up the mat by his feet to throw it at the kid's back.

Damn it! If you have the guts, don't run!

After five in the afternoon, Ruan Xiuzhen came back from the field with a bamboo basket full of radishes.

Seeing Zhang Xuan, Ruan Xiuzhen's morning resentment had long dissipated, and she immediately asked, "What did the doctor say?"

Zhang Xuan smiled, "Mom, don't worry, the doctor said I'm completely fine."

"Good, good, but you still need to remember to take your injection in the evening," Ruan Xiuzhen reminded.

"Okay, I know, I'll go after dinner," Zhang Xuan replied.

With her son's health restored, Ruan Xiuzhen's mood naturally improved, and she started to look through the things he bought.

Seeing the clothes, shoes, and fabric, she stretched them with her hands but didn't say anything.

Seeing the waterproof leather gloves, she only muttered, "This is too expensive."

Seeing the charcoal, she fell silent for a long time before saying, "You have good eyes, this charcoal is well chosen."

But when she saw the beef and mutton, Ruan Xiuzhen's face immediately fell, and she couldn't hold back anymore.

She glared and said, "Eating so well, what will the creditors think of us?"

"Oh, Mom, I promise this is just once, we'll eat it secretly behind closed doors during the New Year," Zhang Xuan knew this would happen and had to act shamelessly.

Knowing her son well, Ruan Xiuzhen didn't believe him at all and continued to glare at him.

Fine! No choice, Zhang Xuan had to bring the doctor into the picture: "The doctor told me today that my body is too weak, and my immune system is poor. In such cold weather, he advised me to eat more beef and mutton to supplement, so I bought them."

Knowing that her son was lying, but this time Ruan Xiuzhen was stunned, stopped glaring, and turned to take the beef and mutton to the kitchen. As she walked, her eyes suddenly filled with tears.

She felt heartache, bitterness, and guilt, thinking that she was useless and had failed her husband's wishes, and felt sorry for her three children.

Dinner was sweet potato rice again, and the dishes were the leftovers from the morning, with only a few diced radishes added, which made Zhang Xuan sigh for a long time.

After barely filling his stomach, the weak Zhang Xuan carried the medicine and saline solution to get an injection. This time, the barefoot doctor's granddaughter saw him and immediately lowered her head and ran away.

Seeing her uncomfortable and awkward, he felt no guilt at all, but rather found it interesting, thinking that young girls are full of vitality.

The barefoot doctor was a cautious person, not allowing the infusion to be too fast, and forbidding Zhang Xuan from adjusting it himself, fearing that the medicine would be too strong and cause an accident.

Later, seeing that he was still trying to speed it up, the doctor simply sat next to him and started reading a Jin Yong novel. It was the not-so-good "The Book and the Sword," with the cliché plot of Yu Yutong secretly loving Luo Bing.

Zhang Xuan suddenly asked, "What do you think of Yu Yutong?"

The barefoot doctor crossed his arms, looking like a great swordsman, and said, "This man should be killed!"

Zhang Xuan asked again, "What about Luo Bing?"

The barefoot doctor clearly had strong feelings, his eyes filled with anger, "Not keeping to her wifely duties, she should be killed too!"

Dizzy, the beauty of the Red Flower Society was killed like this, what a waste, it goes against the laws of nature.

Looking at the barefoot doctor again, Zhang Xuan decided to let it go. This was an old-fashioned person, and he had no interest in continuing the conversation. He started reciting history and geography, enduring for three and a half hours.

When he returned home in the evening, it was already quite late.

At this time, Zhang Ping had also returned, happily chopping radishes.

Ruan Xiuzhen was sitting next to her, sewing the soles of cloth shoes, occasionally giving a cold glance.

Zhang Xuan went in and asked, "Sis, it's so late, what are you chopping? Isn't the pig feed for tomorrow morning already prepared?"

Zhang Ping replied, "I'm chopping for tomorrow evening."

"Oh, take it easy then, be careful with your hands," Zhang Xuan understood. His sister was going on a date tomorrow, no wonder his mother looked unhappy.

The next morning, Ouyang Yong indeed came to take Zhang Ping out to play. Ruan Xiuzhen, considering the wild game, didn't say anything.

The third day, Ouyang Yong came again, this time not with wild game but a large grass carp freshly caught from the pond. Wow! What a big fish! It weighed about 5 kilograms, and its tail was wagging with great strength.

The neighbors all praised Ouyang Yong for his generosity and teased Ruan Xiuzhen, asking when the wedding would be.

The fourth day, the snow melted, and Ouyang Yong arrived on his motorcycle to pick up Zhang Ping, leaving Yang Ende empty-handed.

Yang Ende stood at the crossroads, watching the motorcycle disappear into the distance, his dusty face showing no expression.

But Zhang Xuan still gave this expression a name, "constipated face."

From then on, Ouyang Yong's figure could be seen at the Zhang family's door every day. He was very considerate, always arriving a little earlier than Yang Ende, then taking Zhang Ping away on his motorcycle, leaving his rival to stare at the exhaust fumes.

Later, a "scandal" began to spread in the village.

Some villagers were spreading the news: "Let me tell you! It's so rare! My wife and I saw Ouyang Yong and Zhang Ping holding hands and kissing in town..."

Another villager added with gestures: "Yes, yes! I saw it too, you can't imagine how it looked, oh my! They were on a motorcycle, and Zhang Ping was hugging him from behind, the way she wrapped her arms around his waist was so mushy, I blushed just watching..."

When Ruan Xiuzhen heard this news from a neighbor, her face remained calm, showing no reaction, but she sat alone in silence for the rest of the afternoon when she got home.

From that day on, Yang Ende no longer came, but Ouyang Yong came more frequently. Zhang Ping was caught between her mother and her lover, feeling both happy and scared.

On the 27th of the 12th lunar month, the Zhang family slaughtered their New Year pig.

The pig was large, and after removing the head and tail, the best meat weighed over 260 pounds. Everyone praised Zhang Ping for her skill in raising pigs.

Ouyang Yong came to help, and his father, Ouyang Zhu, also came to help sell the meat.

After slaughtering the pig and selling the meat, during lunch, Ouyang Zhu, amidst the cheers of the crowd, laughed and asked, "Mother-in-law, when will you pick a good day to have