Chapter 15 - Digging for Wild Vegetables
"Not foot wrapping, not foot wrapping." Zhang's and Lian Zhi'er then both laughed.
Wulang laughed and pulled Xiao Qi out, so Lian Zhi'er took off her shoes and showed Lian Man'er her feet.
Lian Zhi'er's feet were Heavenly Feet, wearing thin cloth socks with circles of gauze wrapped around the outside.
"Mother is afraid that we are always doing rough work, making our feet ugly to walk on. With gauze wrapped like this, we can't have such small feet like Sister Hua'er and the others, and it won't be too ugly." Lian Zhi'er said, "It also doesn't delay the work."
"Oh, so it's like this."
Lian Man Er breathed a sigh of relief. She remembered that in her previous life, she seemed to have heard that during the Song Dynasty, women used this method to wrap their feet in order for them to look good. She didn't know why in later years, foot-wrapping would evolve into that disabling way of wrapping the feet.
"Come, Mother will wrap it for you." Zhang let Lian Man'er sit on the kang, picked up the gauze, and wrapped it around Lian Man'er's feet one by one. She also asked Lian Man'er if it was tight while wrapping it. "Mother won't wrap it too tightly for you, and it can't be too loose either, it's useless if it's too loose."
Zhang lowered her head and carefully wrapped her daughter's feet, her heart was filled with guilt.
"Mother is sorry for you." Zhang whispered.
"Mother don't say that, big feet are quite good." Lian Zhi'er said, she had been helping Zhang since she was very young and knew that Zhang felt sorry for her in order to not be able to wrap her little feet.
In this era, most of the girls in big families are wrapped feet, and so are some of the better families. But in the poorer families, the girls also had to work to help with the household expenses, so they needed to keep a pair of sky feet. Therefore, in the eyes of many people, a pair of three-inch golden lotus represents status. Girls with small feet were more likely to marry into wealthier families.
Although there were also better-off families that didn't care about this, they were in the minority after all. It was really like what Man'er had said, her virtuous forbearance had dragged her children down to be unappreciated in the family, and had also affected their future lives. Zhang sighed heavily, she could not afford anyone in the Lian family, except for her own few children.
"You are all big feet, you can only marry an ordinary Zhuang family in the future. Can not be like flowers as a young grandmother, live a day of enjoyment ......, mother usually do not stop you work, you hands and feet more diligent, the house and outside of the house work are good at, in the future to the in-laws will be able to run the household, living life waist pole is also harder." Zhang couldn't help but speak the words in her heart.
Lian Zhi'er's face flushed red.
Seeing that her eldest daughter was bashful, Zhang stopped talking.
Lian Man'er, however, cocked her head and pondered. It turned out that having small feet meant being able to marry into a wealthy family and live a good life. That is to say, if a woman does not come from a wealthy background, she has to rely on her small feet to win a man and rely on marriage to live a good life. So can't she live a good life if she is a big foot, can't she make her own money without relying on marriage or men?
"...... make money on your own, buy a field, and be a landowner, Bigfoot can also have a good life." Lian Maner solemnly said. Yes, she had to work hard and be a landowner herself.
Zhang's and Lian Zhi'er both looked at Lian Man'er.
"You guys don't believe me?" Lian Man'er raised her head, "Wait and see, I will definitely be able to be the landlord."
"Good, good, our Man'er will definitely be able to be a landlord in the future." Zhang's perfunctory smile, and personally put a straw hat on Lian Man'er, and instructed Lian Zhi'er and Wulang to take good care of Lian Man'er and Xiao Qi, before letting several children go out.
Not far from the village, there are large fields. It was already August weather, the crops in the fields were about to mature, waiting to be harvested. Full of idyllic scenery, it was refreshing. While walking, Lian Man'er teased Xiao Qi and talked, learning about the Lian family and the village. Lian Zhi'er and Lian Wulang also explained for Lian Man'er.
Soon, Lian Man'er learned that the village she lived in was called Thirty Mile Camp. This is near the northern border of Ming, since the founding of the country, this is where the soldiers are cantonment, in order to strengthen the border defense, the court will also be some of the exiled prisoners sent here, and then gradually from the south of the country to move a lot of stragglers, which was originally deserted place gradually have a life.
Founded a hundred years, Ming and northward to advance the boundaries, the surrounding war subsided, soldiers to return to the field, there are many simply stay. The original cantonment barracks, some slowly become ordinary villages. Only occasionally from the name of the place, you can still see the characteristics of the original garrison war preparation.
Thirty Mile Camp was named because it was thirty miles away from Jin Yang County, the original border defense town.
"Let's walk farther away, I'm afraid that all the vegetables in the near area have been dug up." Lian Zhi Er led the way.
All the way along the path between the fields, there were also three or two children of all sizes carrying baskets in their hands, they were also out to dig wild vegetables.
"Let's dig here, when we came here yesterday, there were several large patches of currant." Walking to the head of a sorghum field, Lian Zhi'er said.
"Mang'er you wait at the head of the field, we'll go dig the vegetables." Wulang said.
Lian Man'er shook her head, she wasn't that delicate.
"Okay, then Man'er you follow me, if you feel tired or uncomfortable, you tell me." Lian Zhier said.
Lian Mang'er nodded her head, carrying a wicker basket in one hand and a small rake and hoe in the other, she followed Lian Zhi'er into the sorghum field. The countryside children's body agile, know can not hurt the crops, three drill two drill, really saw several rows and ditches in the rows and ditches of large patches of curly mustard, and many other wild vegetables.
"Let's dig here." Lian Zhi'er squatted down and said.
Lian Man'er also squatted down and followed Lian Zhi'er's movements, digging a piece of curly mustard into the basket. There were many wild vegetables here, and Lian Zhi'er only picked up the currant, cartwheel cabbage and amaranth to dig.
"Our pigs and chickens love to eat these the most." Lian Zhi'er spoke to Lian Man'er as she dug, "If you can't dig enough, gray ashwagandha will do."
Bitter cabbage, also known as bitter cabbage, cartwheel cabbage, also known as plantain, and amaranth, all of these are edible wild vegetables with good medicinal value.
Lian Zhi Er's hands and feet are very fast, afraid of Lian Man Er's hard work, but also from time to time will dig the wild vegetables loaded into Lian Man Er's basket. After a while, the two of them dug two baskets full of wild vegetables. Wulang and Xiaoqi also dug two baskets, a few children from the sorghum field out, in the ground under the shade of a large tree sat.
Wulang then handed the basket to Lian Zhi'er and took Xiao Qi and dug into the ground again.
"What for?" Lian Man'er greeted.
"Don't mind them, they're wild there." Lian Zhi Er told Lian Man Er.
Lian Man'er stopped talking. The children in the village, all born and raised on this land, were as comfortable in the fields as they were in their own homes. They came out to dig for wild vegetables and also let off steam to play in the meantime.
"Mang'er, sis'er will weave you a flower crown to wear." Lian Zhi'er spoke and ran to pick wildflowers in the grass next to her.
Lian Zhi Er picked a large handful of yellow, red, blue and white wildflowers and came back, holding it in her hand, twisting it left and right, and after a while, she really braided a beautiful flower crown, and was about to give it to Lian Man Er to put on.
The two sisters laughed and fooled around for a while, because Lian Man Er still had a wound on her head, in the end it was Lian Zhi Er who put the flower crown on her head.
"Auntie Xiu'er's pompoms are so pretty, don't you think so, Man Er?" Lian Zhi Er said.
Lian Man'er glanced at Lian Zhi'er and nodded.
"Sis, you'll have prettier pompoms to wear in the future."
Lian Zhi Er then smiled, "I don't ask for any velvet flowers to wear, as long as ......"
"Second sister, here, look what's this?" Lian Wulang and Xiao Qi had a head full of sweat and came out from the sorghum field.