Dragon, Truly Shameless (Yuri Futa, Farming) - Chapter 2
The kitchen was cleaned very thoroughly, with all sorts of pots, bowls, and utensils. Shen Qingming placed the firewood aside, took a bundle of dry grass, loosened it into fluffy clumps, and placed it inside the stove. She struck a match gently, and within a few breaths, a bright orange-red flame lit up the stove.
A single spark can start a prairie fire. As the fire burned brighter and brighter, both the temperature and the light increased exponentially. In nature, there isn’t anything else that can simultaneously warm people and dispel darkness; fire is one, and only one. It is precisely because of this that fire always brings an inspiring power. Whenever Shen Qingming looked at the flames dancing on the firewood in the stove, she sometimes thought they were unknown spirits dancing in the blaze, and admiring their beautiful “dance” was one of her few hobbies over the years.
As a member of the old Shen family, in fact, rather than saying she was a member, it would be more accurate to say she was a servant raised by the old Shen family. The three Shen brothers had not divided the family property. Originally, the hopes of the entire family and even the clan rested on Shen Qingyuan. However, Shen Qingyuan’s rebellious behavior not only dragged the old Shen family into the abyss but also brought great shame to Taohua Village. Having such a father, it was already an act of kindness that she had a roof over her head, and she should be content.
Looking around the kitchen, although this home seemed to treat her like a servant, every corner bore the traces of her hard work. Perhaps it wasn’t entirely devoid of warmth after all.
Shen Qingming fell into that ridiculous self-deception. She took an egg from the basket, cracked it into a bowl, and added a spoonful of cane sugar. Such extravagance was naturally not for her to eat but for Shen Jinbao.
As the only grandson in the younger generation of the old Shen family, Shen Jinbao was practically born with a silver spoon in his mouth. The second and third uncles each had two daughters. She was the eldest, the second and fourth were the second uncle’s daughters, and the third and fifth were the third uncle’s daughters. The third aunt was now pregnant again, and it was expected to be the third uncle’s last child. After the third aunt became pregnant, they consulted many fortune-tellers, who all said it would be a son. Whether it was true remained to be seen after birth, but Shen Qingming had seen the third uncle go to the Dragon King Temple to burn incense and pray for a son more than once, otherwise his family line would end.
Placing the well-mixed custard in the pot to steam, Shen Qingming scooped out a large spoonful of rice. To have more strength for work, during the busy farming season, rural families ate dry rice, but they would mix in some taro and sweet potatoes. The old Shen family ate only rice, but most of it was old rice, the grains were yellowed, and upon closer inspection, one could even see some mold spots. But even this was considered a first-class delicacy in a farming household.
She didn’t idle while cooking rice. Besides food for people, there was also food for the chickens and pigs. Pig feed had to be cooked before it could be used to feed the pigs. Bundles of pig feed completely filled the pot. Since it wasn’t washed, there were all sorts of messy vegetable leaves and soil mixed in. Cooking it together inevitably produced a strange smell, smelling almost sour. This was why many people disliked cooking pig feed, but Shen Qingming had long been accustomed to this smell. She took out the cooked pig feed, chopped it up, mixed it with the broth, and poured it into a bucket. This was the most basic pig feed.
At noon, the Shen family returned on time.
Shen Jinbao quickly ran towards his own father when he saw him, calling out, “Dad.”
“Hey.” The second uncle of the Shen family revealed a hearty smile, while the third uncle beside him lowered his head, looking a bit lonely. The second uncle squatted down and picked up Shen Jinbao, noticing that the weight in his arms had increased. He couldn’t help but pat his son’s bottom. “You’ve been greedy again. Where did you go to play today?”
“I went to steal bird eggs.” Shen Jinbao gestured excitedly. The second uncle frowned upon hearing this. He pinched Shen Jinbao’s ear. “You little rascal, I told you not to go into the woods, and you still went! Are my words just wind in your ears?”
“Everyone else goes in, Dad, be gentle.”
“Can you do what everyone else does? You little brat, the mountain is the Dragon King’s territory. You went to his territory to steal bird eggs? Unreasonable! You deserve a beating. See if I don’t beat you to death today!”
The second uncle picked up a rattan stick and whipped it towards Shen Jinbao. Shen Jinbao immediately let out a pig-like scream. Upon hearing this, the second aunt of the Shen family quickly shielded her son in her arms, glaring at her husband.
“Why are you hitting him? Isn’t it normal for a boy this age to play?”
“It’s because he runs all over the mountains all day and doesn’t know how to study! Is the mountain a place he should be going?” The second uncle put down the rattan stick and loudly scolded his son.
“Isn’t he still young? He’ll go to school at the end of the year anyway, and then he’ll understand.” The second aunt of the Shen family lovingly wiped away the tears from her son’s face, constantly complaining about her husband in her heart.
The second uncle still had a stern face. Seeing that the third brother had already silently set the tables and chairs to prepare for eating, he couldn’t help but reveal a smug smile. Scenes like the father teaching his son just now were staged daily in the old Shen family, with the second branch as the performers and the third branch, and of course Shen Qingming, as the main audience.
Over here, Shen Qingming brought over the cooked food and found that both the second and third uncles of the Shen family were shirtless. The temperature in May this year seemed to be much higher than in previous years. After half a day of work, both men had a layer of sweat on their bodies. The rural houses were not very well ventilated, and the smell of sweat filled the room, making the odor imaginable.
Shen Qingming awkwardly looked away. She was fifteen years old this year, which in ancient times was called *jiji* (hairpinning ceremony), the age when young women were betrothed. Logically speaking, she should have been paying attention to the proper distance between men and women by now, but the second and third uncles of the Shen family had been ignoring her for more than just a day or two. In the old Shen family, she had no presence. Everyone treated her like air, and there was no intention to arrange a marriage for her.
The two men each took a large bowl of rice and sat at the door, eating heartily with the vegetable soup. Shen Jinbao also had a large bowl of rice, eating the custard with drooling eagerness.
The second uncle of the Shen family occasionally gave Shen Jinbao a few words of instruction while watching him eat. His son was his pride, and also the pride of the old Shen family. Because he had a son, his back was straighter than ever, and he seemed to have inexhaustible strength for work. It was unlike the third brother and his wife, who almost couldn’t lift their heads in front of him, didn’t dare to breathe loudly, and worked very diligently. People without sons were like trees without roots. If they didn’t work hard to please him, Jinbao wouldn’t even send them off in their old age.
While they were eating, the four girls of the Shen family also came out of the room. The old Shen family was notoriously full of girls. Besides Shen Qingming, who was unwelcome, the two brothers each had two daughters. After entering puberty, the girls no longer played in the mud or with Shen Jinbao. Instead, they hid in their rooms doing needlework, hoping to find a good family to marry into in the future. This was the best care that a rural family could give their daughters.
Of course, Shen Qingming didn’t have this kind of treatment. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to learn needlework, but her hands had long been roughened by years of hard labor, comparable to tree bark. Perhaps even touching fabric would cause snags, so she couldn’t embroider handkerchiefs at all. Being able to sew a pair of shoe soles was already a blessing.
While the family was eating with their heads down, the old man and the old woman of the Shen family arrived late.
“Old man, are you crazy? Offering a pig’s leg as tribute? Where are we going to get one?” Before they arrived, their voices could be heard. The old woman’s raspy voice was very distinctive. Hearing her words, the Shen family members who were silently eating couldn’t help but frown.
It was May, the time for spring plowing, and the Dragon Boat Festival was approaching, meaning the Dragon Boat rains were about to come. The Dragon Boat rains were crucial for the grain harvest and had been highly valued by the common people since ancient times. Taohua Village was no exception. The old man of the Shen family had gone to the village chief’s house today to discuss this matter. According to the village customs, every year during the Dragon Boat rains, offerings had to be made to the Dragon King Temple to worship the Dragon God in order to pray for favorable weather. However, the tribute was a bit too much for the already burdened old Shen family to bear.
“Father-in-law, does our family have to provide a pig’s leg this year?” The second daughter-in-law of the Shen family couldn’t hold back her impatience and quickly put down her chopsticks and walked over. The old man nodded, looking worried and distressed. “Mmm.”
The second daughter-in-law immediately became anxious. Everything in the old Shen family would eventually be left to Shen Jinbao, which meant it would be hers. Naturally, she was unwilling to waste her family’s money and meat.
“Where are we going to get a pig’s leg? A pig’s leg costs a string of cash!”
“Isn’t there a cured pig’s leg at home that hasn’t been eaten yet? We can use that one,” the old man said.
“How can that do? That’s Jinbao’s tuition fee!” The second daughter-in-law disagreed. The two brothers of the Shen family also came over, looking hesitant. “Father, can’t we postpone it?”
The old man shook his head. “Jinbao can go to school next year. I think it’s quite dry and hot this year. Properly worshiping the Dragon King will give us peace of mind. The Dragon King Temple also needs to be renovated. Let’s just consider it spending money to avoid disaster.”
“Then how much did the village chief say each family should contribute?”
“Thirty copper coins per family. Our family is providing the pig’s leg because it’s our turn this year to provide meat.”
The Shen brothers breathed a sigh of relief. Thirty copper coins wasn’t much. The whole village pooling together would have nearly two taels of silver, enough to buy things to worship the Dragon King. Even so, it was still giving away a pig’s leg that they themselves couldn’t bear to eat, so they were still somewhat resentful. The second daughter-in-law reluctantly brought out the pig’s leg.
“Pig’s leg, oh pig’s leg, we haven’t even smelled enough of your aroma before you’re offered as tribute! Husband, I remember last year Madam Li offered an old hen. How come it’s a pig’s leg for our family? Doesn’t the village chief consider our family at all, when we have so many mouths to feed?”
“Whose family doesn’t have several mouths to feed? Hurry up, our branch will contribute ten coins,” the second uncle urged.
“It’s not the same! Our family eats plain rice. In the future, these girls will be like water splashed out, and besides, they’re not all ours anyway.” She spoke pointedly, her gaze directed at Shen Qingming.
Shen Qingming immediately lowered her head, her hands holding the bowl turning white.
“All of you shut up! Hurry back and get the money. The village chief will send someone to town to buy things this afternoon,” the old man interrupted his chattering second daughter-in-law.
The two daughters-in-law had no choice but to reluctantly take out ten copper coins each, and another ten copper coins were taken from the family’s common funds. In this way, the old Shen family’s thirty copper coins were collected. The already struggling Shen family became even more impoverished because of the offering, and the atmosphere during the meal became particularly heavy.
Shen Qingming wished she could shrink into the corner of the wall. She saw that the bowl she carefully held in her arms was only half full of rice. Although she did the most work, she ate the least and couldn’t have any complaints. She tried her best to minimize her presence, numbly eating the rice. She didn’t dare to take any vegetables at all. In fact, compared to being at home, she preferred to work outside. Even though she worked from dawn till dusk, at least it was comfortable, unlike the suffocating atmosphere now.
After eating, the old man took the thirty copper coins and the pig’s leg to the village chief’s house. Shen Qingming began to clean up the dishes. While cleaning, a bowl suddenly appeared in her vision. The bowl actually contained eggs and rice, as well as cabbage. She abruptly raised her head. The old woman of the Shen family had walked in front of her at some point and handed her the bowl.
“Sigh, hurry up and eat,” the old woman sighed. After all, this was the only bloodline left by her eldest son. Every time she saw her eldest granddaughter, she would think of her useless eldest son. Although her eldest son was ungrateful and heartless, ultimately, the father was responsible for not teaching him well. The son was born and raised by her, so how could she have no feelings at all? This granddaughter also had a hard life, but there was nothing she could do about it. She could only try her best to secretly give her some food, otherwise, she was afraid that Xiao Shen would suddenly starve to death.
“Grandma,” Shen Qingming felt a heat in her eyes and a lump in her throat.
“You, ah, sigh, if you’re not full when cooking, secretly eat a little yourself, don’t starve. No one will care if you starve to death.” These words came from the old woman’s heart and were a reflection of reality. The old woman, already past fifty, shook her head and went out, leaving Shen Qingming alone with tears in her eyes.
She swallowed the rice in large mouthfuls. In fact, if the old woman hadn’t occasionally added rice to her bowl like this, she probably would have starved to death hundreds of times already. But facing such a family, she didn’t even have a foothold. Something as small as eating eggs had only happened a handful of times since she was born. If asked about her future plans, she didn’t know. Just staying alive had already used up all her strength. Even so, she had to rely on meager pity for help. The future, for her, was a luxury.
After eating, Shen Qingming cheered herself up again, or perhaps she was already numb to life. She carried the pig feed to feed the pigs, and life returned to the monotonous routine of work.
She had thought that this year would pass like any other year, with a life that she could see the end of at a glance. But she never expected that an accident that occurred when the sweltering summer heat approached would completely change her life, making it no longer so ordinary.
Two months later, the summer heat once again swept across the land. Fortunately, they had made offerings to the Dragon King Temple, and the Dragon Boat rains in May and June were sufficient, greatly alleviating the drought. The transplanted rice seedlings had now jointed and grown to nearly the height of a person. Looking out at the paddy fields, rows of rice seedlings followed one after another, lush and green, growing very well.
Rice in its growing stage needed a sufficient amount of water. Every morning, the villagers would go out as a family to tend to the fields. However, today, as the men of the old Shen family finished their morning work and prepared to return home for lunch, a terrified scream suddenly came from the house, followed by the sound of pots and pans falling to the ground.
The second and third uncles of the Shen family exchanged a glance and then ran towards the house as fast as their legs could carry them. At the same time, the villagers who heard the sound also followed.
The old woman of the Shen family stood at the door in horror. The courtyard’s fence gate had been knocked down by external force, and the inside was a mess. Wooden basins and pottery jars lay scattered on the ground, along with broken bowls and plates everywhere. The vegetable garden was in disarray, and even the chickens in the house had run out. The second and third uncles of the Shen family rushed in and were also stunned by the scene before them. However, they quickly calmed down and noticed a series of blurry footprints on the messy ground.
Four claws were tightly pressed together on what looked like a fleshy pad. The footprints were square and round, very large, with one being comparable to a human face. The villagers of Taohua Village were no strangers to such large and distinctive footprints.
The mountains near Black Dragon Mountain stretched endlessly, with deep mountains that no one had ever set foot in. Since ancient times, there had been no shortage of tiger troubles. July and August were the months when mother tigers raised their cubs.
“It’s a tiger! Quickly see if everyone is still here!”
The villagers immediately reminded the Shen family, and some went back to get wooden sticks and machetes.
The old man and the old woman of the Shen family hurried over. The stunned Shen family men also came back to their senses. The third uncle immediately rushed inside, heading straight for his bedroom. His wife was still pregnant. Fortunately, when he opened the door, the third aunt was in the room, and all the girls were there as well. They were just a little frightened and otherwise fine. Before the third uncle could breathe a sigh of relief, the second aunt’s wail echoed from the next room.
“Jinbao is gone!”