Fear of Cows
Man Bao shook his head, went to check on the stew she was making, and Bai Shan Bao also ran in to help her carry the soup to the table.
The dishes and rice were arranged by Qian Shi, and the students who hurried over were already lined up in a noisy manner. Qian Shi started serving food to everyone at that moment.
Man Bao and Bai Shan Bao took their bowls and ran to the back of the line.
Bai Erlang rushed to the front and quickly got his food. Seeing that the two of them were at the back of the line, he was extremely surprised and asked, "Why are you two standing here?"
Bai Shan Bao: "Guess!"
Bai Erlang couldn't be bothered to guess. He glanced at Man Bao, hmphed twice, and walked away with his head held high.
Bai Shan Bao turned to Man Bao and said, "He's still angry."
Man Bao nodded in understanding.
Last time they had a bet, and Bai Erlang lost. Although he refused to admit that he lost because he believed he was not guilty, he thought that Bai Shan Bao was biased, so he stood on her side.
But when the three of them asked Bai Lao Tai Tai, Bai Tai Tai, Bai Lao Ye, Liu Shi, and Zheng Shi, they all said that Bai Erlang was darker today than yesterday. Even though he was unwilling, he still handed over the two zodiac signs to Man Bao.
Bai Lao Ye and the others finally understood why the three children came to them early in the morning to determine if his foolish son was darker today than yesterday.
After serving the food, Man Bao and Bai Shan Bao stayed back. Curiously, Man Bao asked Qian Shi, "Sister-in-law, are you going to plow the field?"
"No plowing," Mom asked the fourth brother to do the plowing. "I took him to see if the field could be worked on, which caused a delay."
"The fourth brother is truly pitiful."
"And your fifth brother as well."
Man Bao immediately said, "Sister-in-law, the last time we went to the county town, we brought back some scraps of cloth." "Can you help me sew them into two thick straps?" Then give one to the fifth brother to wrap around his hands and another to put on his shoulder, so it won't hurt as much.
Bai Shan Bao, eating on the side, said, "Why bother with so much trouble? Just ask for a cow at my house.
Man Bao turned to look at him and asked, "Doesn't your family's cow work anymore?"
Bai Shan Bao shook his head, "No, my family only has that much land, and it's idle."
Their land was not originally here; the piece they currently own was acquired from Bai Lao Ye, but it was not significant. They only grew vegetables and raised chickens and ducks, occasionally planting some special crops.
Man Bao became happy and said, "After eating, let's go together to lead the cow."
Bai Shan Bao was surprised, "Can you lead a cow?"
Man Bao confidently said, "No!"
Even though they didn't know how, the two children still went. Xiao Qian Shi also went, of course.
Upon spotting the dark water buffalo, Man Bao and Bai Shan Bao halted at a distance, and no one dared to approach.
Bai Shan Bao said, "Didn't you say you wanted to lead the cow?" Hurry up.
"This is your family's cow; you should take care of it."
Seeing that the children were scared, the worker responsible for tending the cows and farming chuckled, "Young masters, Miss Zhou, this cow won't attack people, so rest assured."
The cow, unsure if it was understood, mooed a few times and even tilted its head towards them. The two children screamed and ran away, disappearing in an instant.
Qian Shi:...
Worker:...
The worker scratched his head awkwardly and, feeling a bit guilty, said to Qian Shi, "The kids are a little scared... By the way, the old lady mentioned that you can keep the cow for as long as you need it. "There's no rush to return it; just bring it back when you're done."
Qian Shi thanked him and took the rope, leading the cow away.
Man Bao and Bai Shan Bao ran across the bridge, out of breath, before stopping. They kept looking back warily and saw that the frightening cow wasn't following them, so they sat down on the grass.
"Your cow is too scary."
"But, didn't you want to lead it?"
Man Bao fell silent, feeling guilty.
Qian Shi appeared with the cow in sight. As she saw the kids on the other side of the bridge trying to run away, she shouted, "Man Bao, I want to give the cow to your fourth brother…"
The piece of land in Xiaowan was on the other side of the bridge. Man Bao stopped and asked, "Sister-in-law, do cows eat people?"
"Cows eat grass." Stop overthinking. Go back to school. Young master, please take Man Bao back to school to rest; you still have classes in the afternoon.
Bai Shan Bao agreed and led Man Bao back to school.
"Why are you afraid of your own cow?"
"I don't see it often, but you do." Why are you afraid of it?
The two children bickered as they walked away. Far in the fields, Zhou Si Lang, who was struggling with the plow, saw the cow that his sister-in-law had brought and nearly burst into tears.
He sat on the ground and asked loudly, "Sister-in-law, where did the cow come from?"
"Man Bao and the young master borrowed it."
Fang Shi handed a handkerchief to Zhou Si Lang to wipe his sweat and whispered, "Look at you, your brother hasn't even complained."
Zhou Si Lang glanced at his brother and said, "Yeah, he hasn't complained, but look at him."
Fang Shi looked over and saw Zhou Wu Lang lying on the ground. As he listened to them talk, he weakly raised his arm and waved.
Fang Shi couldn't help but ask, "Is it that tiring?"
"It's quite exhausting; you wouldn't know if you haven't done it," Zhou Si Lang said. "During spring plowing, I could simply lie down and sleep." I couldn't wait to stay still.
He glanced at Zhou Wu Lang and added, "But poor Wu, it's his first time plowing."
Zhou Wu Lang nodded in agreement. Given that he was underage and had four older brothers, heavy work like this was typically not his responsibility.
It was the first time he realized how difficult plowing was.
Thinking about the land back home, besides the portion suitable for plowing with a cow, the remaining work was carried out by the four brothers, with the eldest and third brother taking on the majority of the plowing. He couldn't help but sigh, "My eldest and third brothers are really hardworking."
"That's right, you should treat your fourth brother better." "Don't always provoke me and come up with excuses to avoid helping him."
"I'm talking about my eldest, second, and third brothers, not you."
After catching his breath, Zhou Si Lang stood up, took the cow, and harnessed it to the plow. He playfully kicked his brother's buttocks and said, "Hurry up and get up, don't block the way." Just because you are two years younger than me doesn't mean you can avoid hardship. "You should know that when I was your age, I was already plowing the fields."
The memories of the distant past were blurry for Zhou Wu Lang, so he asked in confusion, "Really?"
"Of course it's true."
Zhou Wu Lang got up and said, "Alright, I'll ask Dad when I get home tonight." Dad remembers everything about the land the best.
Zhou Si Lang waved his hand, unafraid, as he had started plowing with his older brothers when he was fifteen. At the time, he had it much worse than Wu, as it was during spring plowing, and the plot of land to plow was more than an acre.
Spring plowing took almost two months, and he cried for the same duration. It was truly exhausting.