Chapter 718: Fleeing from Famine 23
Yuan Chun let out a wail, "Oh, my eldest child, you’ve gone, what am I to do..."
Then, acting as if overwhelmed by the shock, she fainted.
The next day, when Yuan Chun woke up, she called her eldest grandson and granddaughter to her side. With tears in her eyes, she told them, "Xiao Wu, Xiao Yu, your parents are gone, but don’t worry, you still have your grandma. From now on, your grandma will take care of you. I’ll work in the fields to earn points for your school, so you’ll make granny proud by graduating high school and showing me."
"Grandma, are my parents really dead?" Xiao Yu burst into tears, throwing herself into Yuan Chun’s arms, her sobs leaving her breathless. "Grandma, I want my parents."
"Grandma, my sister and I will be children without parents from now on." Geng Xiaowu wiped his tears, bawling loudly.
Geng Dalin and Sun Chunfeng heard it too and couldn’t help but cry.
The three youngest children, seeing everyone at home crying, cried as well.
For a moment, the Geng family was filled with deafening cries.
The family was in a slump for several days until the village head informed everyone to go to the brigade office to collect relief grain. Only then did the family pull themselves together.
Geng Dalin dragged the cart, took some burlap sacks, and went with Sun Chunfeng to the brigade office, soon bringing back the relief grain.
With twenty catties of grain per person, the Geng family of eight received one hundred and sixty catties.
Then, the river outside the village had water again, and the village head organized the villagers to dig channels to divert the river water into the fields. It was a bit late for late rice, but they could plant vegetables, radishes, potatoes, wheat...
Geng Dalin took the job of digging channels, earning ten work points per day.
Sun Chunfeng took the job of plowing fields, earning eight work points per day.
Yuan Chun, having just lost her son, was still in deep grief. She didn’t go to the fields but stayed home doing housework and looking after the children.
Three more days passed before Yuan Chun managed to pull herself together to leave the house.
As soon as Yuan Chun reached the brigade’s gate, someone called out to her, "Auntie Geng, you’ve come out to work today too. I heard from Chunfeng that you’re not well, are you sick?"
"What sickness! It’s grief, isn’t it? Geng Dazhuang and Du Jincui were struck by lightning, Granny Geng sent her black-haired son to the afterlife, how could one be well?"
"Old Geng family, what happened that your Da Zhuang and Jincui were struck by lightning? Did they do something so awful for Heaven to come for them?"
Yuan Chun looked at the two women who meant her no good and asked coldly, "I really don’t know what bad thing my Da Zhuang and Jincui did, why don’t you go and ask Heaven yourself?"
"Old Geng family, how am I supposed to ask? Heaven is way up there," the old woman said, rolling her eyes, suddenly slapping her thigh, "Oh, so you’re secretly cursing me to die, huh?"
Yuan Chun wouldn’t admit it, "Old Xu family, I just suggested you ask Heaven, I didn’t curse you. However, my Da Zhuang and Jincui were watched by you all as they grew up. Did they do anything bad? You should know. My Da Zhuang and Jincui might be a little lazy, but they’re not bad people. They’ve never done anything wrong in the village, not even dared to fight, so I was even thinking you might as well ask Heaven if He struck the wrong people?"
"Gosh, can lightning strike the wrong people?" someone exclaimed.
Someone else said, "Although Geng Dazhuang shirks work and loves to brag, he’s not a bad person. It’s those Du family and Old Fan family members who aren’t straight. Geng Dazhuang and his wife might just have been dragged down by the Du family, right?"