Chapter 23: Romeo To Her Rescue.
A struggle developed between Mu Jiayi and her little niece. Mu Chun leaned down towards Mu Hien, crying out of pure annoyance. She spread her arms, wanting to be in her big aunt's lap. "Hien Hien, take me, woo…" She put in her best effort, by threading four words together in a sentence.
Although Mu Chun's pronunciation was half understandable, Mu Hien deciphered it fine. Her face was racked with guilt, as she said, "Big aunt can't take you now, her hands are dirty. Look at this slush…" She tried to repel the toddler. "It's yucky!"
Woo!
Mu Chun babbled something amidst her crying and leaned down even more.
Mu Jiayi tightened her hold on the toddler, gritting her teeth. "Mother and second sister-in-law are busy with sheeps!" She screamed, overpowering the sound of her niece's cry. "Big sister-in-law is cutting fish. Today's lunch and dinner is her responsibility." Her face twisted into a scowl, as the little girl started clawing at her hair. Apparently, she felt least connected with her little aunt. "I'm going to help Chun Chun's mother in the kitchen." Mu Jiayi opened her niece's fingers one by one, and rescued her hair. "Sis, wash your hands and tend to the kids!" Her irritation rose to the sky.
"Third Sister-in-law can't handle it alone." Mu Hien argued back, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear using her wrist. It left a dirt mark on her temple and hair.
"Don't put words in her mouth! Did she say she can't do it?" Mu Jiayi bit out, inflamed. "Furthermore, why were you doing it in the first place? Didn't mother forbid you to coat the walls, wash greasy utensils, go in front of the mud oven and do all other hard chores until you get married?" She pointed at her big sister's disheveled appearance. "Look at the dung and mire crammed under your fingernails and into the cuticle beds. Huo, the oldie matchmaker, has brought a good marriage alliance for you. They'll come to see you tomorrow. Weren't you informed? This is how you will go in front of them?"
Each word stirred trouble inside Mu Hien's heart. She bit on her lips, her oval face going ghostly pale.
"Let me just fetch mother," Mu Jiayi spoke through gritted teeth, turning on her heels.
"Jiayi…" Mu Hien called back with a shaky voice. "No need to bring mother here. I'm going." Fifty-fifty mixture of fear and sadness ran high, as she almost choked on her emotion. Without meeting Tang Yu's gaze, she got up briskly and strode inside.
Tang Yu's spidey senses went off. Was it pre-marriage blues or something else? She closed her eyes. Well, getting married meant undergoing a major life milestone. Jittery, by no means, was an uncommon occurrence. She drew her gaze back from Mu Hien, seeing the back of her sneaking suspicion.
"I had to scold my sis all because of you!" Mu Jiayi said, stomping her foot on the ground. "Ever since you entered our family, nothing good has happened." She readjusted the terrible two on her waist, and took off.
Speechless, Tang Yu stared at her blankly.
She didn't even add a single word to the mix. With a shake of her head, she binned off the immature girl's words, then started measuring the walls mentally. Would she have to do it all alone?
Nevermind, she was a trouper.
Tang Yu bulldozed a fist of soft mud with her hand, and spread it on the wall. She felt a tingling sensation on the back of her hand, before it spread to the fingertips. It was there again! The phenomenon threw her off guard slightly. Fazed she was, but still she carried on with her job. She redid the step all over the front walls. To confirm her earlier assumption, the artwork couldn't be more precise and perfect.
With a dose of new found enthusiasm, she moved on to another wall. Just then, a spider the size of her palm, landed on the ground right beside her foot. "Eh!" She let out a muffled squeak, recoiling with fear. Was she afraid of it hearing her?! Perhaps, so.
Tang Yu, with a stiff gait, eagle eyed on the brown spider crawling away with its eight legs. The hairy legs were creepy, a brief shudder went down her spine. All of a sudden, a creature with taloned feet, feathered wings and a curvy beak rushed into the scene. Before she knew it, the rooster landed a fatal blow to the spider's abdomen, splitting it open.
Apparently, it had one heck of a kick! In no time, the spider was lying dead. Bobbing his head up and down, the rooster pecked it on the ground a few times. He broke it down into pieces while producing tid-bitting calls. Three hens came running to the invitation.
Tang Yu felt a wee bit poorly, and decided to take a tiny break. She flumped on a low stool, and took delight in the scene with interest. What was he doing, holding a feast? Nah, it was more like a lunch date. Quad, was it called?
She couldn't but grow a soft spot for her savior, like immediately. The rooster kept picking up the broken parts of the spider and dropping them repeatedly, showing the chickens what he just found.
Traditional Romeo with a modern twist.
Two chickens picked up two pieces, then ran away with them gripped in their beaks. The third one stayed, and beautiful courtship rituals followed right after. He hopped onto her back, pecking her neck with his beak and pulling back her head.
Having a spirit of inquiry, Tang Yu widened her eyes. She tried to observe the process. However, to her utter confusion, he got down in just two seconds, shook his feathers and left.
That was it? What really happened?
Tang Yu sighed, leaving the matter to think later. She looked up, the delicate threads of spiders' web constructed between the roof and wall drooped on that side of the wall — torn in the middle. A gust of wind probably tore it. The 'now dead' guy must've gone to spin a new web, and happened to fall down.
Alas, his fate.
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