"What's wrong?"
Xiaxia originally wanted to dress herself and make a good impression on her father, but after a long time of being busy, she still couldn't get herself dressed properly, so she started to get angry with herself.
Upon hearing her father's words, she turned her head to the side, clearly refusing to talk.
"Huh? Get dressed, why didn't you call me?"
Xia Xia snorted softly, still angry, but she didn't refuse when her father came over to help her get dressed.
Previously, Xia Xia had always been taken care of by Wei Yutang. At first, Wei Yutang was unfamiliar with dressing Xia Xia, making her cry loudly when he dressed her, but now he is very skilled at it.
After changing his clothes, I gently patted him and said:
"Call me next time."
The little guy, having changed his clothes, nodded perfunctorily, then quickly stood up and ran outside.
He had already seen his father busy outside, and he didn't know if he could still make it to help.
Wei Yutang followed closely behind and went out as well.
"You're awake? Breakfast is ready."
Chu Qing got up quite early, probably because she couldn't sleep in this slightly unfamiliar place. She tossed and turned for a long time, and finally got out of bed when she saw that it was getting light.
The original owner didn't take care of the house much, so Wei Yutang did most of the work. Chu Qing got up early and wanted to see what was there.
After looking around carefully, I found that their family was really poor. The only thing they were doing well with was that they kept three old hens and one rooster in their yard.
He took two eggs from the henhouse, beat them, made a steamed egg, sprinkled some sesame oil on top, added some chopped green onions, and it tasted delicious enough.
I also cooked another pot of porridge, which I simmered for a long time. It was very thick and looked delicious.
I took some pickled vegetables out of the jar, stir-fried them, and put them on a plate.
The steamed eggs are for Xiaxia. Although the little one is good-looking, her complexion is not very good. She is at the age where she is growing, so eating some eggs can help her get the nutrition she needs.
Wei Yutang hadn't noticed before, but after Chu Qing reminded him, he realized that Xia Xia really wasn't very good at using chopsticks.
After dinner, Wei Yutang tidied up the kitchen. Once finished, he took out tools from behind him. Chu Qing, seeing this, was somewhat surprised and subconsciously asked:
Are we going hunting again today?
"I'm not going."
Upon hearing that it wasn't a hunting trip, Xiaxia immediately set off, wanting to follow and see for herself.
Xia Xia had already gone, and Chu Qing was still a little worried. After leaving the house, Wei Yutang saw two people following him. The usually silent man with little emotional fluctuation now felt a slight headache.
"Why are you following me?"
"Father, shall we go together?"
These questions didn't need Chu Qing's answers at all; the little guy, who was eager to go along, provided the answers himself.
Wei Yutang thought about it carefully. He was only going to cut down trees to make two spoons for Xiaxia today. He wouldn't go any deeper into the forest. If they wanted to come with him, there shouldn't be any problem.
"good."
He went to a place he usually went hunting, a road that was rarely used by anyone other than him.
Xiaxia hadn't walked far when he started to feel tired. Wei Yutang reached out and picked him up, frowning as if he was getting in the way.
When I picked Xiaxia up, I noticed Chu Qing out of the corner of my eye. He probably didn't walk on this kind of road often either, because now his forehead was covered in fine beads of sweat.
"You should go back first."
Chu Qing realized that Wei Yutang was talking to her, and quickly shook her head.
"No need, I can manage."
The original owner rarely even left the house, so her physique was indeed not very good. Chu Qing didn't really like her body, which made her pant after walking only a few steps. It would be good to take this opportunity to exercise herself.
Wei Yutang felt that he was just putting on a brave face, but he was too embarrassed to say it, so he could only silently slow down his pace.
He finally found a suitable tree, cut it down, and was too lazy to take it back. He just started working on it right there.
He wasn't good at woodworking, so the spoons he made looked a bit ugly and were very rough.
Xiaxia knew before leaving home that her father was going to cook for her, and she was very excited on the way. She couldn't hold chopsticks properly with her little hands, and her father always helped her to use chopsticks to get the meat into her mouth.
But when Wei Yutang handed him one of the prepared spoons, Xia Xia subconsciously glanced at his father to confirm that this was indeed the spoon he was going to use to feed him, and his little face immediately began to scrunch up.
Suddenly I realized that maybe... chopsticks aren't so hard to hold after all.
Wei Yutang chopped down some other trees on the other side, intending to take them back to make chairs. After finishing, he stood in front of Xiaxia, and seeing her current appearance, asked in a low voice:
"What's wrong?"
Xiaxia didn't know how to tell her father, and after much hesitation, she finally spoke in what she thought was a very tactful tone:
"It's fine, just..."
"It's just a little bit ugly."
Chapter 106
Chu Qing seemed to have just spotted a rather unusual herb in this forest. He went over and dug it up, and just as he returned, he overheard Xia Xia's words.
I couldn't help but be curious about what it looked like. I went closer to take a look and saw that it was so rough that I could barely make out that it was shaped like a spoon. I couldn't help but laugh.
Wei Yutang didn't quite understand what they were laughing at. After all, he himself never paid attention to these strange details; as far as he was concerned, these things were just functional.
Xiaxia wrinkled her little nose and ran to her father's side.
It's not that something so ugly can't be used, it's just that I feel a bit sorry for myself after waiting for so long.
Chu Qing reached out and ruffled his hair. The little guy, comforted by his father, suddenly felt so wronged that even the area around his eyes started to redden slightly.
"Father..."
"It's okay, I'll fix it for you when we get back and it'll look better."
"good."
Xiaxia proactively placed her hand in her father's palm, clearly indicating that she didn't want to talk to him for the time being, and even felt that even if her father could carry her down the mountain, it wouldn't be as good as him holding her hand.
Wei Yutang wasn't a fool; he could tell that the little guy, who had previously relied on him quite a bit, had suddenly become somewhat resistant. He carried Dongyu Xi Tuanxi down the mountain.
After arriving home, Chu Qing casually planted the herb in the yard.
When he went up the mountain, he thought this herb might be useful, but after digging it up, he felt it was useless, so he simply planted it there.
He remembered what he had said to Xiaxia on the mountain. After arriving home, he didn't even have a sip of water before starting to find tools to polish the wood. Finally, he carved a flower at the end that didn't look particularly exquisite.
After some polishing, the rough spoon looked much better, and Chu Qing even carved a flower on it. Xia Xia couldn't resist picking it up when she saw it.
While her father went to the vegetable garden to pick vegetables, she took the spoon and ran to her father, who was making a stool, and gently shook it with her little hand.
“Father, look, this is what Xiaxia wants.”
For Wei Yutang, there was actually no significant difference between the two items; in his eyes, they were merely tools for making a living. However, the one Xiaxia was holding was indeed more exquisite.
"Did Father make this?"
"Hoo~"
Xiaxia's voice rose slightly at the end, and a child's voice is pleasant to listen to, let alone one's own son.
Wei Yutang gave a soft "hmm" and continued working, pondering as he worked on the chair. From the time he returned home yesterday until now, Chu Qing's behavior had been very strange.
Unlike before, she no longer resists him and even cooks for him. Now she's even making this for Xiaxia.
Aside from some other situation arising on his parents' side that required his help, Wei Yutang couldn't think of any other possibility that could make Chu Qing suddenly compromise like this.
Just thinking about this made Wei Yutang feel disgusted.
He really couldn't understand why Chu Qing couldn't see that his parents were neglecting him, and even after things had come to that point, he still wholeheartedly thought about them.
If what Chu Qing gave away could get her the answers she wanted, Wei Yutang wouldn't say a word more.
But in reality, they didn't take Chu Qing seriously. They might have mocked Chu Qing behind her back, calling her a fool, for the things Chu Qing had worked so hard to deliver.
Chu Qing didn't have time to take a close look yesterday, but he did so today while picking vegetables. The vegetable garden was very well maintained, with very few weeds. There was just one empty plot of land, and he thought he would like to plant something else there if possible.
After preparing the vegetables and washing them in the stream near the entrance, Chu Qing suddenly encountered someone on her way home, who was probably an aunt from their village.
In the original owner's memories, this aunt was the most gossipy person in their village. No matter what the gossip was, she was always eager to chime in and say a few words.
Some people say that once she finds out about something, it's not far from the whole village finding out soon enough.
"Chu Qing, have you heard anything about your parents?"
Although Chu Qing's parents told him to pretend he wasn't their son when he was with the hunter in the village, they still couldn't help but take a chance. Plus, Chu Qing would always go and help whenever something happened there.
Many people mocked Chu Qing behind his back for being stupid, but no one said he was unfilial.
With such a big thing happening this time, she didn't believe Chu Qing wouldn't be anxious after finding out.
"Hmm? What is it?"
Chu Qing pretended to be curious, but in reality he wasn't curious at all. Even if the person over there was dead, he only planned to send some incense and candles over.
He came here with only Wei Yutang and Xia Xia as his targets; nothing else mattered to him except for these two.
"Your father broke his leg when he went up the mountain yesterday. The doctor said it would cost a lot of money to heal it."
After saying that, the aunt kept staring at Chu Qing's face, wondering if he would actually pay the money.
In the past, Chu Qing would have rushed over the moment she heard the news, but she didn't know why it was so quiet today, so quiet that the aunt couldn't help but wonder if she had remembered the wrong person.
"Oh, that must cost quite a bit."
After saying that, Chu Qing planned to go back. Wei Yutang must have been tired in the morning, so it would be perfect for him to go back and cook. There was still one egg left from the morning's collection, so he could put it on top of the rice and steam another one for Xiaxia at noon.
Most people would have left after hearing Chu Qing's words, but this aunt was no ordinary person. She was extremely curious about Chu Qing's reaction and continued:
"Aren't you going to go and see? Something so serious has happened."
"I've been pretty busy lately, so I guess I won't go."
"Auntie, I'll head back now."
Judging from the original owner's memories, those people definitely did not welcome him back. If we're being honest, it's possible that they hoped Yinzi would go back to visit.