Chapter 29: Following me has really broadened your horizons!

Li Xiaojiang and his cousins were shooed out of the chicken coop by their grandmother, but they didn't go far, lingering outside to wait.

Mother Li cast a suspicious glance at Li Xiangdong and asked, "How come you're up so early today? Didn't get enough to eat last night?"

"Now, why would you say that? I’m turning over a new leaf, aren't I?"

To change how others perceived him, he had to start with the little things. Li Xiangdong had decided that the first step was to stop sleeping in.

Mother Li remained skeptical. "I hope you can keep it up for more than a few days. If there’s nothing else, go on outside. Why are you bringing the child in here? It smells, doesn't it?"

"Your granddaughter wanted to see the hens, so I brought her in."

Li Xiangdong held his daughter’s tiny hand and pointed to the chickens on the ground. "These are the hens, Xiao Qi. Do you want to eat one? If you do, I’ll tell Grandma to slaughter one and make you some chicken soup."

"Cheep... cheep..."

Li Xiaozhu watched the hens wandering around with curiosity. "Eat... cheep..."

Mother Li laughed, walked over, and pinched her cheek. "Don't listen to your father’s nonsense. We can't eat our hens; we need them to lay eggs."

Li Xiaozhu persisted. "Eat... cheep..."

"You little girl, you’re even greedier than your brothers. They only have their eyes on the eggs, but you’re eyeing Grandma’s hens!"

Mother Li took an egg from a bowl and let her granddaughter touch it. "This is an egg. If we eat the hen, there won't be any more eggs for you to eat, you know?"

Li Xiaozhu nodded and reached out to grab the egg. "Egg... eat..."

Mother Li pulled her hand away and said cheerfully, "You can't eat it now. Grandma will make you some egg-drop soup in a little while."

"Eat..."

Li Xiaozhu pouted, on the verge of tears.

"Don't cry, Xiao Qi. How about Daddy lets you play with the egg?"

Seeing tears welling up in his daughter’s eyes, Li Xiangdong took the egg from his mother and held it out for his daughter to play with.

Mother Li stood by watching. Once the little girl stopped crying, she wanted to ask for the egg back, but fearing another outburst, she urged, "Third, keep a good hold on that egg. Don't you dare drop it."

"Don't you worry, Mother."

He was a grown man; surely he could hold onto a single egg?

Seeing his mother tidying up the coop, Li Xiangdong tried to butter her up. "You’ve really raised these five hens well. It’s all thanks to you that we have eggs to eat every day."

The coop was cleaned daily and wasn't very dirty. Mother Li swept it briefly, fed the chickens, and only then found the time to respond to him.

"I really lucked out today! Your grandmother must have forgotten about her favorite grandson, otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to gather so many eggs."

Li Xiangdong was speechless. He had said so many nice things to keep his mother in a good mood, but she didn't give him any face at all, immediately throwing a veiled insult his way.

"I already talked to Grandma yesterday. She promised not to sneak your eggs anymore and to leave them all for you from now on."

Mother Li walked off with the bowl of eggs, completely unimpressed. "Who knows? As for how many eggs I get, if you and your grandmother don't speak up, it’s not up to the hens!"

Li Xiangdong’s face flushed red at his mother’s words.

He followed her out of the coop with his daughter in his arms and complained, "Mother, can you give me a little face in front of my daughter? Do you have to say everything that comes to your mind?"

"You know how to be ashamed? I didn't see you feeling shy when you were sneaking around eating them."

Mother Li glanced back at him without slowing her pace. She walked to the stove under the eaves of the main house and placed the bowl into a nearby cupboard.

Li Xiaojiang and his three brothers, like little tails, followed them from the yard to the coop, and then from the coop to the stove.

"Grandma, egg-drop soup is too bland. Can you add some sugar?"

"Grandma, I want sweet egg soup."

"Grandma, it tastes better with sugar."

Surrounded by her four grandsons, Mother Li felt her head buzzing.

"Shut your mouths, all of you! Go out and ask around—whose children get to eat eggs every day? You really don't know how good you have it. Asking for sugar—does sugar grow on trees?"

"Then, Grandma, we don't need sugar. Can we have boiled eggs today?"

"Yeah, Grandma, there are five eggs today; we all saw them."

"Grandma, eat boiled eggs."

Mother Li flatly refused. "No. There are only five eggs. You’d fight over them if I boiled them. Get away, and if you keep making a fuss, you won't even get the egg-drop soup. I’ll just scramble them for your grandfather to have with his wine."

Seeing their grandmother lose her temper, the four boys realized that pestering her was useless and backed off.

Mother Li chased her grandsons away, picked up a ladle, and scooped a few measures of water from the vat into the large iron pot on the stove.

"Xiaomei, add some more firewood. Once the water boils, don't add too much, understand?"

"Understood, Grandma."

After instructing her eldest granddaughter, Li Xiaomei, who was squatting by the stove, Mother Li turned to look at Li Xiangdong, who was standing under the eaves.

"A child is fine to play with for a bit, but you can't just let her hold onto an egg like that. Put it in the cupboard, quickly."

Li Xiangdong thought his mother was right; eggs were quite precious these days.

No one would ever treat an egg like a toy for a child. He coaxed his daughter and placed the egg into the cupboard.

"Want..."

Li Xiaozhu tugged at his hair and pointed at Li Xiaomei, who was still squatting by the stove.

"You want to play with your sister?"

"Play..."

Li Xiaozhu nodded.

But seeing him move toward the stove with his daughter, Mother Li let out a sharp rebuke: "Li the Third, when the doctor cut your umbilical cord, did he cut out your common sense along with it? How old is your daughter? Why are you bringing her near the fire!"

*Damn!*

Li Xiangdong stood frozen, stunned by his mother’s sharp tongue.

"Why are you still standing there like a fool? Did the wine you drank last night burn out your brain? Are you busy or not? If not, get lost and stop being an eyesore!"

Li Xiangdong looked at his mother speechlessly and muttered, "Xiao Qi is just learning to speak like an adult; aren't you afraid of being a bad influence on her?"

With that, he carried his daughter and hurried far away.

Li Xiaozhu had already learned to hit people from his mother; he didn't want her learning to curse, too.

Mostly, it was because his mother had such a vast repertoire of insults that anyone who stayed around her for too long was bound to learn a thing or two.

"What are you mumbling about, Li the Third?"

"Did you hear wrong, Mother? I didn't say anything."

Li Xiangdong couldn't afford to offend her, so he chose to retreat. He sat on the stone steps with his daughter, watching the four rowdy boys playing in the yard.

"Xiaolan, go to the small kitchen and see if the steamed buns are ready."

"Your eldest and second sisters-in-law are dawdling all day long; I have to nag them for everything!"

"Li the Third."

"Yes! What is it now, Mother?"