Chapter 176 - 168: Busy
Chapter 176: Chapter 168: Busy
’He’s no fool. How could he not understand Bai Zhi’s intentions?’ He was touched. ’That girl really knows how to repay kindness and values her relationships. It seems I wasn’t wrong about her. I didn’t help the wrong person.’
Back home, Doctor Lu was waiting at the door. When he saw them return, he quickly asked, "Is Lord Meng here?"
Bai Zhi hurriedly explained, "We went into the mountains to gather herbs today and were attacked by a fierce tiger. He was injured while saving me and has already gone back. Did you need him for something?"
Hearing that Lord Meng had been injured by a tiger, Doctor Lu was startled. "Is the injury serious?"
Bai Zhi shook her head. "I fainted at the time, so I didn’t see the wound. I heard from Hu Feng that it seems to be just a flesh wound, so it shouldn’t be serious."
Doctor Lu let out a sound of understanding and sighed. "It seems the Bai Family’s case will have to wait until he’s recovered."
"The Bai Family’s case? What case?" Bai Zhi was completely baffled.
Doctor Lu took an IOU from his robes and recounted what had happened when he went to the Bai Family’s home to collect the debt earlier today. "Luckily, I was wary of her and showed her a fake one first. Sure enough, I was right. That old woman never had any intention of paying the money back."
Bai Zhi sighed, speechless. "This family is a piece of work. It’s just one thing after another, completely endless. Doctor Lu, you absolutely must not let them get away with this. Otherwise, they’ll think skipping out on debts is some kind of skill."
Doctor Lu nodded. "Isn’t that the truth? That’s why I came looking for Doctor Meng. Since he’s not here, I’ll go to the government office to find him another day."
Meanwhile, after gathering wild vegetables, Bai Erzhu’s family went straight to the home of Ms. Zhang’s second older brother. Zhang Erniu was an honest and kind-hearted man. Seeing his younger sister’s family arrive with freshly picked vegetables, he quickly told his wife to cook some extra congee.
The family had a wonderful, filling meal at Zhang Erniu’s house before heading back to the Bai Family home with their empty baskets.
Bai Dazhu’s family was famished, and they all sat by the door, anxiously waiting for the second branch’s family to return.
Bai Dabao suddenly jumped up and pointed at the figures in the distance. "They’re here, they’re here! They’re back."
Hearing this, Old Mrs. Bai, who had been sitting inside, came out. Seeing Erzhu’s family returning in the distance with baskets on their backs, a smile finally broke through her tense expression. She quickly shoved Liu. "What are you standing around for? Go boil some water."
With no rice or oil at home, the only way to eat the wild vegetables they brought back was to boil them.
’Boiled wild vegetables might be bitter and astringent, but it’s better than an empty stomach,’ she thought. ’Having anything to eat at all is a blessing.’
Liu was so hungry she felt weak all over. She had no energy to work; even standing felt like too much effort. "Mother, I haven’t eaten in several meals. I’m so hungry my vision is blurry. Let’s just have sister-in-law cook."
Old Mrs. Bai glared at her. "Cut the nonsense. She was already reluctant to go out in the first place, and now you want her to work the moment she gets back? Do you think she’s Zhao Lan? That she’s such a pushover?"
Liu glanced at her two sons, but they both looked away. Her husband’s hands hadn’t healed yet, so she couldn’t count on him at all...
Liu trudged slowly to the back kitchen and poured water into the pot. Before she could even light the fire, she heard shouting and cursing from the front yard.
She quickly dropped the firewood in her hands and hurried to the front yard. There she saw the four members of the second branch’s family, each holding a basket. But the baskets were completely empty—not a single wild vegetable, not even a blade of grass, could be seen.
She lunged forward, inspecting the baskets one by one. Then she scanned the yard. There really wasn’t a single vegetable!
Holding up an empty basket, she asked Ms. Zhang, "Where are the vegetables? Where are the wild vegetables you dug up?"