157 Madam Is Poisoned
The w.a.n.g family spent two days cleaning the house inside and out. The carpenter also happened to finish making a batch of smaller furniture.
The big furniture had to be a.s.sembled in the house.
This time, Qian Deyi also followed his father-in-law over. They transported the wood to Old man w.a.n.g’s courtyard, and his father-in-law brought his two disciples inside to help.
Old Madam w.a.n.g asked Madam Ma to boil some chicken soup and put it in a big soup bowl before giving it to the surrounding neighbors.
Although they lived in town, not every family’s conditions were good. These neighbors were a little embarra.s.sed to receive a large bowl of chicken soup with meat.
“How can we take this? I see that your family has a lot of people too. It’s better to save them for the children to nourish their bodies.” Auntie Hua’s eyes lit up when she saw the chicken soup, but she still refused.
Madam Ma smiled and said, “Our Old Madam said that the house is still very messy and it’s not convenient to entertain guests. We’re new here and originally wanted to invite the neighbors over, but it’s really not convenient now. When the house is cleaned up, we’ll definitely invite all the neighbors to visit.”
Seeing that Auntie Hua was still a little hesitant, Madam Ma repeated Old Madam w.a.n.g’s words. “Distant relatives are not as good as close neighbors. We have to stay together for a long time in the future. This bowl of chicken soup is not much. Auntie Hua, don’t refuse. Perhaps I’ll have to ask you for help in the future!”
Auntie Hua took it. “Then wait a moment. I’ll return the bowl to you.”
Auntie Hua took the bowl of chicken soup into the house. After a while, she returned the bowl to Madam Ma, but it was not empty. There was also a bowl of peanuts inside.
“There’s nothing good at home. I planted these peanuts myself. Take them back for the children to crunch.”
Madam Ma smiled and said, “That’s good. Our Ah Yu likes to eat beans and peanuts. I’ll thank you on behalf of the child.”
“You’re welcome.”
Madam Ma did the same thing with the other neighbors.
Originally, Madam Ma could not say these pleasantries. It was all taught by Old Madam w.a.n.g.
Old Madam w.a.n.g said to her, “In the future, Changui will have to take the Imperial examination. Regardless of whether he can pa.s.s it or not, he’ll be an educated man. If you don’t want to be looked down upon in the future, you should improve with him. He studies hard, so you should learn how to interact with people.”
How many couples end up resenting each other after many years? If one side was improving, and the other was still walking on the same spot, the one that could not stand the partner who was still walking on the same spot would end their marriage ultimately, leaving behind a pile of chicken feathers.
Old Madam w.a.n.g could not be bothered to look at that kind of situation, so she simply let the couple improve together from the beginning.
It was the same for her other children. As for whether they listened or not and how much they could listen, it was not her business.
After giving the neighbors something, everyone muttered in their hearts that this new w.a.n.g Family should be a kind family.
A bowl of chicken soup was not considered expensive, and it would not make people feel indebted, but it was not cheap either. It was more sincere and warm than sending a box of delicious pastries.
It looked more like the most ordinary communication between neighbors.
Everyone felt at ease.
It was precisely because of this that when the carpenter started work in their house, although the neighbors felt frustrated by the noise, they could understand.
If their neighbor wanted to build new furniture at home, they could not possibly ask that they not make a sound.
Because Little Ah Yu’s pet was a lamb, Little Ah Yu became a very special existence in the eyes of the neighboring children.
There were two four or five-year-old children waiting at the entrance of the w.a.n.g Family, wanting to play with the lamb.
“Little Sister Ah Yu, can you let us ride your little lamb?” Hua Dandan from Auntie Hua’s house asked Little Ah Yu carefully as he sucked back his snot.
Little Ah Yu shook her head. “No, Big Brother Dandan, you’re too fat. You’ll flatten the little lamb.”
And the lamb would not be happy.
Hua Dandan pinched his chubby hands. His grandmother clearly said that he was a blessed child who was filled with good fortune.
But this Little Sister Ah Yu didn’t seem to like it. Even her little lamb didn’t like it.
“Then if I become thin, can I ride it?” Hua Dandan asked.
Little Ah Yu nodded without hesitation. “Sure, sure.”
“Then you must wait. I’ll lose weight soon!”
The other little friend was called Zhou Xiaolang. He pinched his small arms and legs and asked expectantly, “Little Sister Ah Yu, I’m not fat. Can I ride the lamb?”
Little Ah Yu still shook her head. “No, Big Brother Xiaolang. You’re too tall. The lamb will be afraid.”
Zhou Xiaolang was originally unhappy, but on second thought, he realized that Little Sister Ah Yu was praising him for being tall.
Alright, he wasn’t that unhappy.
“Then let’s play with the sand. I can pile sand very high!”
Little Ah Yu was especially supportive. “Alright, I’ve never played it before!”
After playing, Little Ah Yu hammered her small arms and legs and patted her stiff face with a smile before walking towards the second entrance.
Along the first entrance, there was a lot of sand in the courtyard. The w.a.n.g family had placed it here. They wanted to tidy up the courtyard here and use a portion of it for farming, and the rest would be made into a playground for the children.
It was mainly Little Ah Yu’s playground.
Seeing Little Ah Yu’s tired expression, the adults found it funny.
“Ah Yu, are you tired from playing?”
Little Ah Yu said seriously, “Ah Yu is not playing. Ah Yu is accompanying Big Brother Xiaolang. Big Brother Xiaolang’s father and mother have gone to work. It’s not fun for him to be alone.”
Everyone nodded when they heard that. Oh, so that was what their Ah Yu thought.
“Then why didn’t you play well with Dandan? You even said that he was fat.”
Little Ah Yu hurriedly explained, “No! Ah Yu also likes Big Brother Dandan. But Grandma Hua asked Ah Yu to help. She said that Big Brother Dandan always has to eat a lot of snacks and was afraid that he would fall sick, so Ah Yu deliberately said that!”
Ah Yu was not a bad child who bullied others.
Everyone came to a realization.
It turned out that their Ah Yu had unknowingly taken on so many responsibilities.
“We misunderstood you. Ah Yu is really a good child.”
Little Ah Yu raised her chin proudly. “Of course!”
Ah Yu only wanted to be a good child. Only a good child would be liked.
Qin Huai finally managed to buy a house. Originally, he wanted to buy one beside the w.a.n.g Family, but the families beside the w.a.n.g Family did not express any intention of selling their house.
In the end, he could only settle for the next best thing and buy one on Nanhe Main Street.
Chi Jia directly distributed the money and hired more than 10 people. In less than half a day, they cleaned everything inside and outside. Other than the furniture, the various equipment inside had been replaced with new ones.
“Make a few swings here and two climbing racks over there,” Qin Huai instructed, pointing to a corner.
Chi Jia acknowledged with a grunt.
After everything was done, Qin Huai asked Chi Jia to invite Little Ah Yu over to play and gave them the address.
However, he suddenly received an urgent letter from Chi Bing.
“Little Master, something bad has happened. Madam is seriously ill!”
Qin Huai was not very moved, as if he was not concerned about this news at all.
“The divine doctor is with her,” Qin Huai said coldly.
He was not a doctor. What was the use of telling him?
Chi Jia could tell that Qin Huai didn’t mean what he said, so he asked Chi Bing, “Is Madam really sick?”
“I’m not sure.” Chi Bing hesitated for a moment before telling the truth. “When I returned this time, they said that Madam didn’t seem to be seriously ill. She should have been poisoned.”
Qin Huai’s hand that was holding the tea trembled.
At this moment, a few voices came from outside.
“Little Sister Ah Yu, Qin Huai’s house is even larger than ours. Is their family very rich?”
“Fifth Brother, you’re so stupid. How would Ah Yu know something you don’t even know?”