Carefree Farmwife: Training the Husband, Raising the Bun - Chapter 24

Ying Su clenched her fists and took a deep breath. Her eyes, tinged red by the glow of the clouds, shut for a moment before she reached out to pat the little bun on the head, soothing him. “It’s fine.”

Those firm words instantly loosened the tension in the little bun’s small body. His black eyes, brimming with tears, reflected the pitiful state of the thatched hut.

The roof, which had already been full of leaks, now had a gaping hole smashed into it. Looking up, one could see the vast sky. The walls, made of bare mud, were cracked at the corners. Their only iron pot had a hole at the bottom, clearly shattered by a stone.

The wooden tub they had just made yesterday was riddled with holes. Every wooden bowl was stomped into pieces on the floor. The only quilt they owned was soaked with water, trampled full of muddy footprints, filthy and wet.

Even the old clothes Madam Li had given them were torn into strips of rags.

The little bun fought back his tears, his small hand clutching Ying Su’s tightly. Putting on the air of a little adult, he comforted her, “Mommy, don’t be sad…”

But before he could finish, two streams of tears rolled down from his eyes, streaking his delicate face and making him look heartbreakingly pitiful.

“Mommy, I’ll clean it up. Don’t be sad.” Turning away, the little bun wiped his face fiercely with his sleeve and squatted down to start tidying the mess.

Looking at her son’s small but responsible figure, Ying Su’s nose stung, her eyes burned, and she almost let tears fall. She pressed her lips together, a sharp glint flashing in her eyes before she calmed herself again.

She quickly pulled the little bun up from the ground and forced a smile. “Don’t clean. Mother brought you something tasty. Eat first.”

Ying Su pulled out a paper-wrapped meat bun from a wooden bucket at the side and shoved it into his hand. “Eat.”

The little bun’s dark eyes were misty. Holding the bun, he looked up at her with trembling lips, as if he was about to cry.

Ying Su smiled casually and pinched his cheek. “What’s wrong? You’re not happy to have good food? This thatched hut is broken beyond repair anyway. I was already thinking of tearing it down and building a new house in a few days. Now it’s great, someone helped us out. Saves me and you from doing it ourselves! Eat quickly. Once you’re full, you can help Mommy with work.”

She turned her back and began tidying up. But deep in her gaze, a dangerous light flickered. She must find out who did this. Whoever dared, she would never let them off!

The little bun walked over and stuffed the meat bun back into her hand. With a face full of maturity, he said, “Mommy, you eat first. I’ll do the work.”

Ying Su didn’t take it, only smiled. “Mommy already ate her fill in town. You eat! If you’re not full, how will you have the strength to help me? Don’t be sad either. Out with the old, in with the new! It just means we’re meant to live in a new house.”

Perhaps her optimism rubbed off on him, the little bun felt less upset. Smelling the fragrance of the bun in his hands, he swallowed hard, lowered his head, and took a bite. It was so delicious he nearly swallowed his tongue.

This was the first meat bun the little bun had ever eaten in his life. It was unbelievably tasty, and for a while all his attention was captured by it, his sadness completely forgotten.

Halfway through eating, he suddenly paused and looked at Ying Su. “Mommy, how much is one bun?”

Still squatting and gathering the straw they used for bedding, Ying Su answered casually: “Two copper coins each.”

“What?” The little bun stared at the bun in his hand, his heart aching. He muttered, “Mommy, two coins for one bun? How could you bear to buy it? Two coins! Why doesn’t that seller just rob people instead?”

Ying Su, missing the point entirely, replied, “Two coins each. That’s the market price.”

The little bun looked at the bun again, suddenly finding it not tasty at all. He wiped his mouth, thinking that his mother’s careless spending was no good at all. He must teach her to become a thrifty, frugal woman who knows how to run a household.

So, refusing to eat more, he trailed behind her and began lecturing seriously, “Mommy, these buns are two coins each. You bought five, that’s ten coins! If we saved those ten, it would add up fast. You can’t waste money like this again. They’re expensive and not even that tasty. For ten coins we could buy so many other things!”

This time Ying Su finally realized what he was fussing about. Amused, she almost burst out laughing. Her own son was such a miserly little man. Stingy men were the worst, no, no, she’d have to fix this bad habit of his.

When she didn’t answer, the little bun continued earnestly, “Mommy, little savings add up. Our family’s so poor we can hardly put food on the table. You need to learn how to run the household frugally. Every coin must be spent wisely. Look at today, you bought meat, buns, even paper and brush for me. That’s wasting money!” 

“I don’t even know many characters. Writing with a tree branch on the ground is fine. Mother, you must promise me, you won’t waste money like this again.”

Earlier, he had been too happy to notice. But now, seeing their broken-down hut, reality hit him again. With food hard to come by, remembering how much money she had spent today made his heart ache until his face looked like a bitter gourd.

Ying Su curved her lips, almost laughing in exasperation. She tapped him lightly on the head. “Your mother makes money and spends it however she wants. You haven’t earned a coin yet, and already you’re lecturing me?”

At that, the little bun’s delicate expression shifted. His big dark eyes softened adorably as he quickly coaxed her. “Mommy, I’m not lecturing you. It’s just… we’re too poor. Every coin must be stretched. We’re just mother and son. If something happens in the future, who can we rely on? We must save money for emergencies. That’s why we can’t be wasteful!”

“Hmph!” Ying Su muttered to herself. This little rascal, when it came to money, he was sharp as a knife, even knowing how to argue round and round.

Speaking of money reminded the little bun of the hundred coins Grandma Li had given. His face immediately darkened.

“Mommy… you didn’t spend all the hundred coins Grandma gave us, did you?”

Ying Su twitched her lips. Spend them all? She had spent nearly a whole tael of silver today, far more than just a hundred coins. But seeing how anxious he looked, she couldn’t bear to tell him and quickly reassured, “Of course not. Mother wouldn’t spend it all.”

“That’s good, that’s good.” Relieved, the little bun patted his chest. Then he asked again, “Mommy… then how much of that hundred do we still have left?”

Ying Su couldn’t help rubbing her forehead. Raising a son was truly a long-term battle. Just correcting his stingy habits alone might take forever. Poor child, he must’ve been scarred by hardship before, which was why he now clung to money so tightly.