Chapter 13: Ah Lei, You've Struck Gold

Seeing how terrified Jiang Xia was, Zhou Chenglei said, "Great-Grandma is just joking. Snakes are only on the mountains and in the grass; they won't be everywhere."

Great-Grandma interjected, "Ah-Lei, don't lie to her! I'm not wrong. Snakes are common—they're everywhere in the vegetable patches and fields. They even crawl into houses at night. I once caught one inside my quilt!"

*Crawl into the quilt?* Thinking of news stories she had scrolled past before, Jiang Xia's face turned pale.

Seeing Jiang Xia's expression of utter despair, Zhou Chenglei felt he couldn't let Great-Grandma say another word. He said, "Great-Grandma is lying to you just to scare you. Great-Grandma, could you help me go throw those two snakes away?"

If Great-Grandma kept scaring her like this, she probably wouldn't dare sleep tonight.

He picked up a snake-skin bag he had brought earlier to collect trash and tossed the snakes inside.

The village elders had said that if a snake enters the house, you shouldn't kill it; you should only throw it out.

"I wasn't lying, it's true." However, the reason there had been snakes in the quilt was that Great-Grandma had caught two to let her grandson play with, and the bamboo basket lid hadn't been tied properly that night, allowing them to crawl out.

Seeing how pale Jiang Xia's face had become, she felt she had scared her enough; the girl probably wouldn't dare sleep alone tonight.

She also tossed the snakes into the bag, then held it up and called out to the neighbors, "Alright! It's fine now, everyone go back to your own business! If anyone has nothing to do, you can stay and help my Little Stone tidy up the yard."

Upon hearing this, Pan Daidi's family immediately left.

With a pile of chores waiting at home early in the morning, no one had time to help someone else clean their yard.

Zhou Junjie glanced at Jiang Xia; he actually wanted to stay, but his wife pulled him away.

Once everyone had left, Great-Grandma intended to test Jiang Xia's courage. In the countryside, one couldn't afford to be afraid of snakes. In the heat of summer, snakes could dart out from the roadside at any moment.

Great-Grandma grabbed Jiang Xia's hand and pulled her toward the exit. "Come, Great-Grandma will take you to dispose of the snakes."

Being pulled along, Jiang Xia felt stiff all over. *Did Great-Grandma's hands just touch snakes?*

The two walked toward the fields.

Not far ahead, Pan Daidi said to her two daughters-in-law, "Go weed the peanut field today."

Zhou Junjie was Pan Daidi's youngest son. Upon hearing this, he immediately said, "Mom, I'm going to the pier to see if there's any work."

And then he ran off!

Pan Daidi's eldest daughter-in-law pursed her lips. At this time of day, all the boats were already out at sea; what work could there be at the pier?

The second son was lazy, gluttonous, lecherous, and a gambler; he was probably off to gamble. She was already thinking about splitting the family.

Pan Daidi ignored him and led her two daughters-in-law toward the peanut field.

Pan Daidi's younger daughter-in-law remarked, "She's so worked up over just two common grass snakes. I thought something serious had happened!"

The eldest daughter-in-law said with envy, "She's a city person; where would she see snakes normally? She's probably seen more cars."

Thinking about how Jiang Xia ignored her, Pan Daidi said sarcastically, "I've seen plenty of people afraid of snakes, but this is the first time I've seen someone so terrified! If she's this delicate, she shouldn't have married into our village! Didn't you see her just now? She wouldn't even acknowledge people when spoken to; she's got her head stuck in the clouds. So what if she's seen many cars? It's not like her family owns them!"

Thinking of the way her own husband looked at Jiang Xia, the younger daughter-in-law couldn't help but mock her, "Are city people so special? Even as a city person, she ended up marrying a fisherman. They say she's educated, but is an educated person really that improper? Riding on a man in broad daylight—it's simply shameless. Even the chickens in District Three know how to ride better than her."

These words infuriated both Jiang Xia and Great-Grandma!

Jiang Xia desperately wanted to throw the snakes from the bag onto them.

As if reading her mind, Great-Grandma handed her the bag.

Not knowing where she found the courage, Jiang Xia immediately took it, swung the bag, and flung the two snakes out. They landed right at the feet of the three women.

Hearing the commotion, the three looked down.

"Ah!"

The two snakes scurried around their feet. The three women screamed repeatedly, jumping in terror.

Just then, an old man was walking up the path from the field, and the younger daughter-in-law jumped directly onto his back!

Having thrown the snakes, Jiang Xia grabbed Great-Grandma's hand and ran!

The two ran all the way back to the old Zhou family house, looked at each other, and couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Zhou Chenglei was cleaning the house. Hearing the noise, he walked out and looked at them, confused.

Great-Grandma laughed, "Ah-Lei, your wife is quite something. You must cherish her."

Jiang Xia felt embarrassed. Where did Great-Grandma see that she was "quite something"?

Was throwing snakes at people "quite something"?

Or was the "hit-and-run" after throwing them "quite something"?

Zhou Chenglei glanced at Jiang Xia. Not understanding, he simply nodded politely in response to Great-Grandma.

Feeling awkward, Jiang Xia hurriedly said, "I'll go sweep the house."

As she walked into the house, she looked around, feeling as though a snake might be hiding in some corner waiting for her at any moment.

Zhou Chenglei sensed her fear. "I can handle the cleaning. You go home and pack your things."

Jiang Xia shook her head. "No need. We'll clean together. I want to check everything thoroughly."

Zhou Chenglei said no more. He knew that if she didn't inspect it carefully, she probably wouldn't dare live here.

He suddenly understood why she had been making a fuss every few days; she truly seemed very unaccustomed to the countryside.

Looking at the drafty, musty house, the living conditions here were even worse than where they were staying now.

He figured she would probably leave after a few days of not being able to stand it.

Great-Grandma added, "I'll help you guys weed."

The couple said in unison, "No need, Great-Grandma, we can do it ourselves!"

Great-Grandma said with a chuckle, "It's fine, I'm idle anyway. Xiao Xia, remember to check carefully. Who knows if those two snakes left a nest of eggs in the house to hatch a bunch of little ones."

Jiang Xia: "..."

What kind of wild imagery was that?

Laying a nest of eggs and hatching a bunch of little ones?

Was that even possible?

She wanted to travel back in time!

She missed her one-bedroom apartment in Beijing, even though it hadn't been handed over yet.

Great-Grandma smiled as she used a hoe to clear the grass. *Haha... I don't believe she'll dare sleep alone tonight.*

*She'll probably be too scared and have to cling to Ah-Lei to sleep, right?*

*I'm looking forward to having a great-grandchild!*

Great-Grandma's son was the same age as Ah-Lei (though of a different generation), and his children were already old enough for primary school.

Although Great-Grandma had a higher seniority, she was only two years older than Zhou's mother.

She worked very efficiently; with each stroke of the hoe, she could peel away a thin layer of sod.

It wouldn't be right to leave Great-Grandma in the yard alone, so Jiang Xia went to help her weed.

Jiang Xia tried to mimic Great-Grandma's technique, but she couldn't do it. Either she dug too deep and created holes, or she dug too shallow and the roots remained. The ground she worked on became uneven and unsightly.

After weeding for a while, her waist and hands ached.

Looking down, she saw blisters forming on her palms.

Her hands were too soft; they blistered so quickly. Her body was indeed too delicate.

Jiang Xia took a look but didn't stop, continuing to weed slowly with the hoe.

Once Zhou Chenglei finished cleaning, Great-Grandma and Jiang Xia had also cleared the weeds from the yard.

Jiang Xia was capable; she had already learned how to use the hoe, though her palms had developed several broken blisters. She didn't pay much attention to the pain while working.

Looking at the patch of land Jiang Xia had cleared—level, smooth, and clean—Great-Grandma praised her happily, "Xiao Xia learns so fast. Ah-Lei, you've married a treasure."

It was the first time Great-Grandma had seen someone so capable, picking up a skill so quickly.

Zhou Chenglei looked over.