Chapter 35: Aiwen Takes on Lai

 

**When Old Master Tang heard about this, he got angry again. He said, "Old woman, can't you understand? Your son is a human being, but your daughter-in-law isn't? Haven't you seen that your daughter-in-law has been working in the fields during the day, both in the public fields and on our own land, to fight drought? She has been doing this for two months, and our son collapsed after just a few days. Is our son made of mud or what?"

Old Lady Tang replied angrily, "How can our son be compared to our daughter-in-law?"

In her heart, Liu Xiujuan felt a chill. In Old Lady Tang's eyes, it seemed that a daughter-in-law was an outsider.

Old Master Tang sneered, "Of course, our son can't be compared to our daughter-in-law. Our son is a man, and our daughter-in-law is a woman. If women can do certain tasks, why can't men?"

"But our son is still so young. He's not even fully grown," argued Old Lady Tang.

"Our son is fifteen years old. When I was fifteen, I was cutting bamboo on the mountains and paddling rafts in the river. What wasn't I doing?" Old Master Tang's anger made his beard bristle.

Tang Erlong was also frustrated. He pointed at Aiwen and said, "Isn't carrying water traditionally a woman's job? Shouldn't she be watering the sweet potatoes?"

Old Master Tang almost came over to hit Tang Erlong again. He said, "Why didn't you suggest that Tang Ailian go fight the drought? Aiwen is only seven years old. Does she even reach the water buckets?"

Tang Erlong defended himself, "She can't carry a water bucket, but she can carry a bamboo tube. We have two big bamboo tubes at home."

Aiwen chimed in, "Daddy, I'll go carry water on Sundays."

Aiwen's older sister, Aishi, quickly joined in, "Daddy, I'll go too. I'll carry water with my sister."

Old Master Tang looked at Aishi and Aiwen, then at Tang Erlong. He sighed deeply and pointed at Tang Erlong, saying, "Look at you, look at you! You're such a grown man, and yet you can't compare to Aiwen, a three-year-old!"

In the end, Tang Erlong couldn't escape the task of watering the sweet potatoes. He was required by Old Master Tang to watch the production team's cows in the morning and water the self-cultivated sweet potatoes in the afternoon.

On Sundays, Aishi and Aiwen took care of watering the sweet potatoes. When Tang Xiaoyue found out about it, she also went along. Although she was only eleven years old, she was tall and had innate strength, capable of carrying a water bucket. Aishi used a large bamboo tube, Aiwen helped with the watering.

Tang Ailian also went to the field with them. When her aunt and siblings weren't paying attention, she diverted water from the well to water the sweet potatoes. When she saw the sweet potato vines growing vigorously, she quickly reduced the water usage, afraid that her younger aunt and siblings would notice.

The village's primary school opened, and Tang Xiaohu went to enroll. He was a year and a half younger than Aishi but had started school two years later. This year, he finally began attending school, although it was a bit late.

When Tang Xiaohu was enrolling, he brought Tang Aiwen along. However, Aiwen caused a rather amusing incident that left everyone feeling both amused and exasperated.

A short, chubby, and thirty-something-year-old teacher from the village named Long asked Xiaohu, "Name?"

"Tang Xiaohu."

"Gender."

"What?"

"Is he a boy or a girl?"

"He's a boy."

"How old is he?"

"Seven."

"Parent's name."

"What do you mean by parent?"

"Your father's name."

"Tang Yousheng."

"School fee is ninety cents."

Tang Xiaohu handed over the money, and Teacher Long wrote a receipt and handed it to him, then called out, "Next!"

Aiwen stepped forward.

"Name."

"Tang Aiwen," Aiwen replied.

Teacher Long looked up at Aiwen in surprise and scolded, "What nonsense are you causing? Step aside."

Tang Xiaohu hurriedly pulled Aiwen aside and said, "Why did you also enroll? You're not old enough for school yet."

"But Xiaohu Ge is going to school, and I want to go too."

"You're still too young—"

"I'm already four years old."

"No, you're not. You're not even three and a half yet," Tang Xiaohu corrected him without hesitation.

"I can go to school when I'm six." Teacher Long had to patiently explain.

"No, I want to go to school. Xiaohu Ge is going to school, and there's no one to play with me. I want to go to school." Aiwen cried and rolled on the ground, demanding to go to school.

His body had been transformed with Ling Water by Tang Ailian, making him strong, and he had a sharp mind and quick reflexes. Surprisingly, the teacher had no choice but to tolerate him.

In the end, Teacher Long had to let Tang Xiaohu go home and call Liu Xiujuan to the school.

(End of this chapter)