Chapter 10: Educating Children

Su Li rolled her eyes. Boys these days certainly knew how to protect themselves, though it seemed they were applying this method to the wrong person.

"Hurry it up. Don't make me repeat myself."

He Dahu and He Erhu were extremely reluctant, but finally, under Su Li's pressure, they had no choice but to submit!

A small piece of skin had been pinched off behind He Erhu's ear by Wang Chunhua, which wasn't a major problem. He Dahu's body was a bit bruised because of those several collisions with He Jinbao, but fortunately, he hadn't suffered any internal injuries.

Children recover quickly; they didn't need any special treatment and would be fine in a couple of days!

Su Li looked at the two brothers and said seriously, "A brave man doesn't insist on taking losses when he can avoid them. Before you act, check your opponent's situation first. If you can't win, run. Don't be stupid and go head-to-head with people."

"But he wants to steal our meat pie to eat!" He Erhu mumbled softly, his eyes fixed on the toes of his shoes.

Su Li reached out and patted his head. "If he wants to eat, let him have it. If you want to eat, I'll make some for you tonight. Given the situation today, there are only you two brothers at home. Even if you could beat He Jinbao, your grandmother is still present, so you would be the ones suffering in the end!"

He Dahu said with puffed-out cheeks, "You're lying. There's no food left in the house."

He had seen Su Li take out all the food today; the last of the grain in the cupboard had been cooked up by noon, so they would have nothing to eat tonight and would go hungry!

Su Li burst out laughing. So, the reason they were saving the meat pie was because they were afraid of starving!

However, thinking about their previous circumstances, Su Li understood their behavior.

"Didn't your father go to town? He will definitely buy food on his way back. You won't go hungry."

Given He Yufeng's personality of doting on his children, he would certainly buy food. It had been that way for all these years, and this time would likely be no exception.

Once Su Li mentioned He Yufeng, the two brothers finally fell silent; after all, He Yufeng was quite trustworthy.

Looking at them, Su Li couldn't help but add one more instruction.

"A gentleman's revenge is never too late. If you want revenge, you must have sufficient strength. Remember, don't act so recklessly in the future. We shouldn't be bullied by others, but we shouldn't bully others either. Do you hear me?"

"We know!" He Dahu and He Erhu responded gloomily.

Su Li didn't care whether they truly listened or if it went in one ear and out the other; she had said what needed to be said, and as long as her conscience was clear, it was fine.

The wasteland in the backyard hadn't been fully cleared yet, so Su Li hoisted her hoe, intending to go back to work.

She looked at the bamboo gate lying on the ground with a sense of speechlessness. She didn't even know why they needed this courtyard gate.

It was a redundant measure against thieves; seeing the state of this house, a thief would probably run away before even stepping through the door!

To ward off evil spirits? That was a possibility, since this gate was somewhat tainted by "dog-blood" plot tropes.

Su Li stepped forward to prop the bamboo gate up and found a piece of hemp rope to tie it back in place.

Other people had courtyard gates, so she had to have one too; she couldn't be an exception.

He Dahu and He Erhu poked their heads out from the house, then slowly shuffled out, eventually moving behind Su Li's backside.

Su Li sensed their approach but said nothing and continued with her work.

When Chen Xiang came out of the house and saw Su Li repairing the gate, she looked as if she had seen a ghost. Was this still the Su Li she knew?

Not only had she helped her with a huge favor and given her a bowl of wild boar meat, but today she was even personally repairing the gate. Unless Su Li was possessed, she wouldn't normally do such things.

Sensing the scrutinizing gaze, Su Li looked up.

Chen Xiang hurriedly averted her eyes and picked up her buckets to leave, though her walking posture was still a bit strange.

Su Li frowned. Hadn't she told her to rest and avoid heavy labor? In the blink of an eye, she was out carrying water!

Was she intentionally making things difficult for her?

Forget it, there was no use if she wouldn't listen. Su Li withdrew her gaze and continued repairing the gate.

After finishing the gate, Su Li carried her hoe toward the back of the house, with two little tails following behind her!

He Dahu and He Erhu followed Su Li cautiously. They didn't dare get too close because they were afraid she would drive them away.

After working all afternoon, Su Li was already drenched in sweat. Combined with the small meal at noon, she was both tired and hungry; today's physical activity had certainly reached its limit!

He Dahu and He Erhu weren't idle either; the brothers helped Su Li pile the cut grass into a heap, which saved Su Li a lot of trouble.

Su Li praised them, "Not bad, you know how to help with the housework. I'll boil some eggs for you when we get back."

The eggs in the house had been sent over by Chen Xiang; otherwise, given the original owner's temperament, there wouldn't even be an eggshell to be found in the house!

He Dahu and He Erhu looked a bit embarrassed; this was the first time Su Li had ever praised them, and their hearts instantly felt sweeter than honey.

Su Li lit the pile of grass on fire. They didn't raise livestock, so there was no use taking it back; it was better to burn it in the field as fertilizer.

Watching the last bit of flame die out, Su Li said to the two little ones who were playing happily in the field.

"You're both like little mud monkeys. Hurry and come home with me to wash up."

He Dahu and He Erhu stood up from the ground and patted the dirt off their bodies, glancing at Su Li with some fear.

Su Li: "..."

She wasn't a tigress; was there really a need for this?

Upon returning home, Su Li glanced at Chen Xiang's house. The main door was left ajar, and she didn't hear any movement inside.

Su Li first gave the two little ones a bath, and then she bathed herself; she truly couldn't stand the smell of sweat.

There were far too many smelly clothes in the house. In order to earn the silver to give to Wang Chunhua every month, He Yufeng's days spent at home were few and far between.

And the original owner was someone too lazy to even roast a snake to eat; she would avoid washing her own clothes whenever possible, and she never washed the children's clothes at all.

Every time, it was either the brothers throwing their clothes into water to swirl them around before hanging them straight out to dry, or He Yufeng hurriedly washing them after returning from hunting.

Su Li sighed as she tidied up.

She put all the dirty clothes into a bamboo basket and then headed toward the river with the basket on her back.

With so many clothes, washing them at home would be a huge waste of water, and that half-bucket of water probably wouldn't even be enough for her first rinse.

Along the way, Su Li received many strange looks, especially when people saw her carrying a whole basket of clothes; their expressions were as if they had seen a ghost.

When she reached the river, there was no one there. People usually got up to wash things at dawn, and when the sun came up, they had to rush to the fields to work. There really wasn't anyone like Su Li who came to wash clothes in the evening!

Su Li wasn't used to using soap pods to wash things, so she was mentally calculating how to make some soap. Not only could she use it herself, but she could also take it to the market to sell.

The family was truly too short on money. Relying solely on He Yufeng, they would probably have to live in that dilapidated house for the rest of their lives!

Su Li kept her head down, focusing seriously on washing the clothes, and she had not yet noticed a dark shadow appearing on the surface of the river.

(End of Chapter)