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Chapter 279: Chapter 281: Are You a Pig Spirit?_1
But Tan Zhengyuan walked further and further down the path of defiance, completely ignoring what Tan Zhenghong had said.
Giving his land to his daughter? Wasn’t that just setting him up for a fall?
Not a chance!
Tan Zhengyuan huffed, "If you don’t want to help, forget it!"
Having said that, he headed for his own house. Thinking about cooking for that woman made him burst with frustration.
Forget it, for his son’s sake, he would still do the work.
After all, he and Tan Zhenghong were brothers; he didn’t believe that when the time came, Tan Zhenghong would stand by and watch his crops get ruined by the rain.
The elders in the village all said it would rain in three days, so those who had already harvested their rice could rest for two days.
If they planted the wheat and then it rained, the seeds would rot in the ground.
Everyone was preparing to wait and see for two days; after all, planting winter wheat a few days late wouldn’t have much impact.
Qiao Duo’er had asked Tan Zhenghong how the elders predicted the weather.
Tan Zhenghong said it was because the elders suffered from chronic pains like back and leg aches, which flared up before it rained; they judged how many days until rain based on the severity of the pain.
This method seemed a bit astonishing, but had been passed down from generation to generation.
Tan Zhenghong was still busy; he had to order materials for building a house, like bricks and tiles, which all required his attention.
Meanwhile, Qiao Duo was marinating meat at home, with Big Girl’s help; this allowed Hu’s Clan to free up some time to take care of the fields.
Two days later, the grass clippings in the field had dried out.
Usually, these grass clippings were burned in the field, along with the rice stubble left after harvesting.
After eating, Tan Zhenghong went to the field with Qiao Duo to set a fire.
Tan Zhenghong used a rake to gather the grass clippings together, trying to cover as much of the rice stubble as possible.
"You look like Pig Bajie right now," Qiao Duo couldn’t help but laugh.
Tan Zhenghong asked, puzzled, "Who is Pig Bajie?"
"He’s someone who was mistakenly born into a pig’s body, also known as the Pig Spirit. He uses a nine-tooth rake just like you," she explained.
Now Tan Zhenghong understood. So Qiao Duo was calling him a Pig Spirit.
He didn’t argue, just threw the rake toward Qiao Duo, who reflexively caught it.
Tan Zhenghong said with a mischievous tone, "Wife, you play the Pig Spirit for a while. I’m going to get some taro from someone’s place to roast for you to eat."
Qiao Duo, left in the field, gritted her teeth. This guy was pretty quick on the uptake.
It wasn’t long before Tan Zhenghong returned with several taros still covered in mud.
He gathered up all the grass clippings, put them into a pit he had just dug, lit a fire, and threw in the taros. Then he covered them with more grass clippings. When they were nearly done, he covered them with soil.
"Once we’ve finished with the five acres, we can dig them out and eat," he said.
The roasted taros smelled delicious; his wife would certainly like them.
Qiao Duo had been thinking about them as she worked. When they were done, she couldn’t wait to dig out the taros and eat them.
Just as Tan Zhenghong had said, the taros were perfectly cooked, but they were too hot. Qiao Duo touched one and immediately drew back her hand.
Tan Zhenghong alternated hands to hold them, waiting for them to cool enough to peel.
"Wife, try this, it’s delicious!" Tan Zhenghong offered a taro close to Qiao Duo’s face.
Sympathizing, Qiao Duo took a bite. It was indeed fragrant and slightly better than roasted sweet potatoes.
She wanted to take it herself but was stopped by Tan Zhenghong. The taro was still hot, and he could handle it with his rough skin; but Qiao Duo, with her delicate skin, definitely could not.
So Qiao Duo had to eat it while being fed by Tan Zhenghong’s hands.
After finishing one, Tan Zhenghong peeled another.
