Chapter 187 The Dragon Raises Its Head on the Second Day of the Second Lunar Month

"No, I traded two ounces of flour for it. When I got there, I found out the stove and everything were dirty, and there wasn't even a place to chop vegetables or knead dough. You can't eat anything too heavy right now. These noodles are thin and easy to digest, so eat quickly."

"Mom, what did you eat?" Zhao Lingli gestured with her chin. "I went to the cafeteria, so I must have eaten. Just eat yours and don't worry about me."

Xiao Jiu knew perfectly well that she must have been eating cornbread and pickled vegetables. All mothers in the world are the same; they are reluctant to spend money on themselves, just so that their children can eat better.

After being persuaded by Zhao Lingli, he ate one egg and drank a few mouthfuls of noodles, but then felt that his appetite had been affected by the strange person he had just met, so he stopped eating.

That old lady was definitely doing it on purpose. Even though she had the curtain drawn, she deliberately carried the urinal around the ward. Luckily, they weren't the only ones who had a problem with her. It was lunchtime, and no one was going to tolerate her. They loudly scolded her for being rude.

Surrounded by so many people, even the thickest skin has to keep quiet.

Xiao Jiu barely glanced at them, but instead looked at her mother with gentle eyes.

Seeing her eat half of her mouth without any disgust, Xiao Jiu felt very sorry.

She had just finished eating when her father arrived, bringing her malted milk powder, steamed egg custard, and canned yellow peaches.

Seeing that Xiao Jiu was in good spirits, he comforted her with a few words and even praised her for her abilities. Under his mother's rather harsh gaze, he hurriedly left again.

"Listen to what your father just said, 'You have the ability'? I'd rather not have that kind of ability. And you're not allowed to show off anywhere in the future. What kind of person are you, a girl, going to save? I agreed to let your brother teach you to swim, not so you could save people, but so you could protect yourself. Do you understand?"

This is the biggest difference between men and women. Women tend to consider safety when educating children, while fathers consider the bigger picture. It's not a matter of perspective, but rather that gender determines the outcome of many things.

Therefore, the father's role is very important in parent-child relationships and should never be absent. Otherwise, children raised by their mothers may appear petty and narrow-minded.

"Grandma, I want canned food, I want steamed egg custard, and I want malted milk powder! Grandma, I want some too!"

The canned snacks and malted milk powder on the table hadn't been put back in the cupboard yet when that brat saw them and started clamoring to eat them.

Mother doesn't have a good impression of this old lady, so how could she possibly give her a name?

Without even glancing at her, he handed a sponge cake to the girl in the bed opposite Xiaojiu, which made that brat yell at his grandma in anger.

"Grandma, I want to eat sponge cake! Grandma, ask me for one, or go buy me one! I want to eat sponge cake, ahhh!"

"What's all the noise about? All I hear all day is you, you little brat, making a racket. Can't my grandson get any rest? My grandson is already sick, what are you yelling about? If you keep yelling, I'll break your legs. Shut up!"

The old man in the bed next to the little bastard finally couldn't hold back anymore and started cursing at that tiger grandson. Not only did he curse at his grandson, but he also cursed at the old woman.

"Look what you've done to your grandson! Keep spoiling him, spoil him as much as you want. If he doesn't get what you want in the future, he might beat you half to death. Just try it and see. You've ruined your grandson. Keep spoiling him. You're always finding fault with this and that. I think you're the one causing all the trouble!"

Even the eccentric old woman, who was used to being aggressive and domineering, was stunned by these words and only reacted after everyone had finished cursing.

Before she could even open her mouth, the old man launched into another tirade, leaving the old woman red-faced and speechless with rage. Not only was she unable to utter a word, but even her domineering grandson was silenced by the old man's scolding.

At this point, forget about sponge cake; when he's hungry, he'll happily munch on the steamed bun in the old lady's hand.

Xiao Jiu was very satisfied with the effect, because after being scolded by the old man, the grandfather and grandson were too timid to make a sound.

The chubby boy wanted to poop and pee on the bed, but the people around him criticized him.

"You made him go to the toilet by himself? Is there anyone as disgusting as you? Is his leg broken, or is he incontinent? You still serve him when he needs to poop or pee in bed? We've put up with you for too long. Also, the trash can is for throwing away trash, not for you to urinate in. If we find out again, we'll put the trash can on your grandson's head. And the sink outside is for washing hands, not for you, this stinky old lady, to wash your feet. If we find out again, we'll shove you into a basin and let you drink your fill!"

The people in the ward assumed she had given in when she didn't speak. But when her son came over after get off work, she sat down in the ward and started wailing and crying, throwing a tantrum and complaining to him about how the people in the ward had bullied her and her grandson.

Seeing the old lady like this, everyone assumed that her son and daughter-in-law were probably no good either, so they said with a sneer.

"Listen to what your parents are saying! We bully her? Why don't you just say she's trying to disgust us in every way possible? Is it because she has sons that she's the only one with them? Let me tell you, I have six sons. You dare to say a word? Right now, your grandson is in the hospital. If you really piss me off, I'll make sure all four of you end up in hospital rooms!"

"Exactly, do you think we're all alone? My husband's still at get off work. When he gets off, I'll yell a couple of times too. Anyone can do that, right? You think you're the only one who can yell and cry? Hurry up, since you're here as their son, either transfer them to a different ward or you'll be treated like an enemy by all of us. Ugh, what a piece of trash, disgusting to even look at!"

"That's for sure. They haven't had a moment's peace since they moved in. They're so noisy, it's unbearable. They haven't done anything all day but glare at you with furrowed brows. And they're so oblivious, don't they see we're glaring at them?"

The old lady thought she had finally found a backer when her son and daughter-in-law arrived, but before she could even recount what had happened, she was attacked by the group and even the nurses were alerted, who came up and questioned her.

"Hey, old lady, why is it always you? The people in your ward have complained about you countless times. Can't you be a little more considerate? The children are sick and already uncomfortable. Is it appropriate for an old lady to make such a fuss all day? Family members, you need to educate your family members properly. It's outrageous. We're all so busy that we don't have time to mediate these kinds of things. Can't you all be a little more considerate?"

The old lady's son and daughter-in-law were so embarrassed that they left without saying a word, not even bothering to look at their son anymore—it was too damn shameful.

Zhao Lingli and her daughter watched coldly as the children received their injections and medications. After the injections, they even strolled around the courtyard outside the corridor for a while.

"Mom, look how well I am. After you get your injection tonight, you can go back to the factory to sleep. Don't stay here watching over me. I can manage."

This was the umpteenth time Xiao Jiu had said this. Zhao Lingli had heard it so many times that she was too lazy to respond. Anyway, her daughter was sick, and she, as the mother, couldn't leave. She was still young, and who knew if human traffickers would stay up all night and take her daughter away?

Zhao Lingli wouldn't leave, so Xiao Jiu had no choice but to sleep together that night. The next morning, Tang Cuilian, who had just finished her night shift, came over with some snacks she had bought for Xiao Jiu. When she saw Xiao Jiu looking quite well, she instinctively breathed a sigh of relief.

"If I hadn't run into my godfather in the cafeteria, I wouldn't have known you were sick. What happened? You're so small, and it's so cold, yet you dared to go into the river to save someone? You're really brave!"

"That's right, I've scolded her so many times. That girl is so stubborn and likes to show off. She has no idea how dangerous the river is. This time it's pneumonia, what about next time? Your sister is here today, and I still have to say it several times. There won't be a next time, understand?"

After a silent sigh, Xiao Jiu obediently nodded. At this moment, there was really no other way to respond except in this way.

She stayed in the hospital for five days and recovered. Her grandparents then sent someone to pick her up in an oxcart.

On the way back to the village, she learned that Jinbao's situation was more complicated than hers. The main problem was that going to the township clinic for treatment delayed her diagnosis. She spent a lot of money and suffered a lot. She was still not well and coughed so much that she almost couldn't breathe. In contrast, Xiaojiu was treated in time. Although she still had some coughing, she was much better than them because she couldn't breathe.

Grandma was worried that she would develop a chronic illness, so after returning home, she boiled pear water for her every day and went everywhere to find sugarcane roots. She had also dried some loquats before, and now she mixed them with pear water and rock sugar to stew for her to drink. Although the effect was not very noticeable, this kind of care was something that an ordinary granddaughter could not enjoy.

It was still cold, so when she returned to the village, she was made to stay at home and not allowed to go anywhere. Her grandmother was worried that anyone who came to see her would catch her illness.

This made Xiao Jiu exclaim that the treatment was too good. It was probably because she rarely got sick growing up that she was so concerned about herself.

In contrast, she didn't do this much when her grandparents were sick, which is really inexcusable.

On the second day of the second lunar month, when the dragon raises its head, Tao Xiaoan was taken to town by his grandfather to get a haircut. His head was shaved completely. When he got home, he started crying, which amused Xiao Jiu. Luckily, light bulbs were not common household items at that time; they were only seen in the county town. So, his bald head didn't make him look like a light bulb. Even so, Xiao Jiu was upset for a while because of his bald head. He only calmed down after seeing that most of his male classmates had shaved heads when he went to school.

Actually, it wasn't just him; even Grandpa went to join in the fun and got his head shaved. He told Grandma about it when he got home.

"Look at how well others have done it, that's better than yours. At least you didn't cut me until I bled. I don't know how many cuts I've suffered at your hands."

Grandma said in a good-natured tone, "You can't expect to save money and avoid suffering. This is how they make a living. If I could outdo them, I would be setting up a stall to cut hair for people. Why would you be here criticizing me?"