Witty Wife, Better Life

Chapter 118: Chapter 112 Continues to Shepherd_2

"Things went smoothly, didn’t they, Brother Zhijie, Brother Zhiwen? Didn’t feel like going out to play?" At this time of the year, the farming work was less pressing, and with New Year’s approaching, villagers who enjoyed a good game would gather to play cards. Of course, there’d be a small wager involved, but nobody was wealthy, so the stakes were low, just a bit of fun.

"Mom said you’d come by tonight, so she asked us all to be here." In truth, Zhijie was a bit reluctant. Why should he, as her cousin, wait at home just because Yunfang was visiting? It all seemed topsy-turvy. Nevertheless, out of respect for his father, he came, even though he didn’t look too pleased.

"Ha ha, that’s perfect. I’ve brought back some things for you guys." Shen Yunfang said cheerily as she placed her handbag on the kang and unzipped it to take things out.

"Uncle, this is for you." Shen Yunfang first took out two bottles of white liquor for Uncle Shen. Of course, it wasn’t the specially supplied Maotai, but a locally renowned baijiu from Yuzhou she bought at the provincial department store, costing a little over two yuan per bottle.

Uncle Shen enjoyed a good drink and eagerly inspected the liquor Yunfang brought. "Hmm, this is some good stuff. Must be pricey, right? Kid, you shouldn’t have. It’s not easy for you to go out, why spend money on this?"

"It wasn’t too expensive." Indeed, it wasn’t, especially compared to Maotai, which was over eight yuan a bottle. This was definitely a bargain.

She continued to pull out gifts for Zhijie and Brother Zhiwen. For them, she had clothes, military uniforms, sourced from Li Hongjun.

"This is quite a novelty." Shen Zhiwen said as he picked up a piece and started trying it on.

At that time, wearing military uniforms was considered prestigious. If no one in the family was in the military, such apparel was hard to come by.

Shen Yunfang also took out several packs of candy from her bag, one for each child, each of a different kind.

When it was time to eat, in front of Aunt Shen and the sisters-in-law, she brought out their gifts. For Aunt Shen, it was a pair of pillow covers, which she cherished so much she barely dared to touch them vigorously, for fear that her rough hands might snag the fabric.

"These are nice. They’ll come in handy when Yunxiu gets married."

Shen Yunxiu, holding the scarf she received, looked on. Hearing her mother’s comment, she seemed somewhat displeased and thought about retorting, but then she seemed to reconsider and held her tongue.

Shen Yunfang raised an eyebrow. It was indeed rare for Shen Yunxiu not to quibble about something. Were red rains going to fall from the sky?

The gifts for the eldest and second sisters-in-law were also scarves. For Shen Jingyu, the eldest niece of Shen Zhiwen’s household, it was a pretty floral headpiece with plastic beads, not available for sale here.

With this, Shen Yunfang had made Uncle Shen’s entire family very happy.

As everyone ate, they asked Shen Yunfang about life in the outside world, and she shared only the good parts—how tall the buildings in the provincial city were, how broad the streets were, how clean the avenues, and so on.

Listening to her, everyone wore an envious expression. Yet Shen Yunfang noticed Shen Yunxiu with a look of longing. This girl couldn’t be crazed with the idea of going to the city, could she? No, that wasn’t fair to say. The Shen girls were all quite attractive. If Yunxiu married a city worker someday, that would be her ticket to city life. But considering her temperament, Shen Yunfang thought it might not be beneficial for her to move to the city. It would be better for her to marry someone local, with Uncle Shen around to make sure no one dared to trouble her. How much nicer that would be than living in a city where you have to curry favor to get by.

Of course, these were just Shen Yunfang’s naive thoughts. Everyone has their own aspirations, and that’s not something you can control.

Once Shen Yunfang had shared all her experiences from her journey, Uncle Shen finally said, "While you were away, the village had some good fortune. First, at the end of the year, people got paid."

Uncle Shen paused there, as leaders do, becoming more mysterious at crucial moments. The other Shens were all smiling; it seemed the collective had paid out well this year.

Uncle Shen expressed his satisfaction with Shen Yunfang’s composure before continuing, "This year our team had a great harvest, we delivered extra grain to the state, and received high praise from the leadership. Everyone in the village had a good New Year." Uncle Shen mused nostalgically.

"Ah, stop with that nonsense. Just tell Yunfang how much she got," Aunt Shen interjected, unimpressed with her husband’s grandstanding, especially since there were no outsiders present.

Uncle Shen glared at his wife before saying, "Although you don’t have the highest share from sheep herding, you hardly missed work last year. So, after deducting the cost of food, you had a decent share coming to you—thirty-six yuan and seventy-four cents."

"Last year’s earnings cleared most of your late mother’s debts, and this year, it’s all paid off. You have twenty-one yuan and fifty-five cents left." From a chest on the kang, Aunt Shen took out a small handkerchief and handed it to Shen Yunfang, "The village also distributed some vouchers, and I’ve put those in here for you too."

"Thank you, Aunt." Shen Yunfang took it.

"This money may not be much, but if you spend it carefully, it should be enough for you to live on," Uncle Shen advised. "And one more thing, given your age, the collective was originally not going to keep you on for sheep herding this year, as it’s hardly fitting. However, during a meeting before the New Year, Aunt Lan Hua suggested that you continue. Our village has only one martyr’s family, and you’re on your own. You must be taken care of. Besides, you’ve been herding for two years; the sheep are used to you. Changing herders suddenly might not work out, and nobody had any objections. So, the leadership decided you’d continue herding this year."

Shen Yunfang smiled. It seemed her efforts before the New Year hadn’t been in vain.

"Your uncle spoke highly of you, you know. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have gotten to keep such a good job," Aunt Shen chimed in, seeking credit.

Shen Yunfang smiled knowingly.