A Good Country Wife

Zhao Erhu hurried to finish the last bit of work he had on hand when he heard from Sanlang that his eldest cousin had arrived, and was preparing to go home when he saw Zhao Fuquan had already come looking for him, "Elder brother, I was just about to head back. Why have you come?"

"It’s no trouble. I just came to see if there was anything I could help with. As you know, I don’t have much else, but I do have quite a bit of strength." Zhao Fuquan had heard a lot from Dalang and Erhu, and even though he had a good idea of the situation, the sight of the lush and thriving vegetable garden still surprised him. His mother had been concerned that Erhu’s family did not have much experience planting vegetables in previous years, prompting her to send some with him. Now, seeing the garden, not to mention the variety in the yard that outdid their own family garden, and several kinds he had never seen before, he was quite intrigued.

Since he was already at the vegetable field, Zhao Fuquan didn’t return home but instead allowed Zhao Erhu to show him around. As he listened to Erhu’s explanations, he became somewhat entranced. The crop he grew the most at home was rice, and planting vegetables was just about fertilizing, watering, and weeding. He hadn’t realized vegetables required such care. No wonder they grew so well here.

As they walked, Zhao Fuquan expressed his admiration all the way and when he returned home and saw Lin Yue, he was full of praise, "The crops in your field are doing so well, it’s truly amazing. It’s the first time I’ve heard there’s so much to know about planting vegetables. No wonder they grow so well and you can sell them to the Government Office. It’s all thanks to your clever thoughts, sister. Your family’s life is getting better and better."

Lin Yue, upon seeing Zhao Fuquan’s enthusiasm about the crops in the field, shed her earlier reserve and her weathered, darkened face lit up with boundless hope and joy. For an honest farmer like him, nothing could tug at their heartstrings more than the crops in their fields.

"It’s really nothing special. I just tried some methods I read about in a few miscellaneous books, and it turned out they actually worked. So it goes to show, no matter what you’re doing, even if it’s farming, if you put your mind to it and work hard, you can do well," Lin Yue, happy to interact with a frank and straightforward farmer like Zhao Fuquan without any schemes, was willing to chat more.

It was through this conversation about farming that Zhao Fuquan started to feel that Erhu’s wife, Lin Yue, was much more down-to-earth than he thought before. Not feeling as if he was treading on eggshells around someone superior, he became more and more engaged in the conversation.

"Sister, you’re right. That is exactly the principle. We farmers depend on the crops from our fields for a living. It doesn’t hurt to put extra thought into it. Sometimes, we just don’t think of it, like the method of planting vegetables you found in books. Even if I racked my brain, I wouldn’t have figured out that’s how sweet potatoes are planted. No wonder other people’s yield isn’t that good. The method of planting vegetables is the same. Erhu said the yield of sweet potato is high if planted right. Next spring, I’ll try planting half an acre myself. The rice we plant, after paying the taxes, leaves us tight at the end of the year, living in fear of not having enough and starving."