Zhou Gu'er returned home.
The meal was already on the table, but since Zhou Mazi, Zhou Gu'er, and Zhou Cai hadn't returned yet, no one had started eating.
"Look at her, coming back just in time for dinner. She really thinks she's something special. Says she's sick but still wanders all over the village. If you ask me, she's just being lazy and trying to get out of work."
Zhou Feng'er muttered resentfully as she watched Zhou Gu'er return.
Zhou Gu'er ignored her.
"Your father isn't back yet, probably off drinking again. And why isn't Cai Zi back? School's been out for a while; he must be out running wild with someone again. Du'er, go to the door and give him a shout. Tell him to hurry back for dinner. He has to go back to school later."
Li Hua instructed Zhou Duo'er.
Zhou Duo'er reluctantly got to her feet, but before she even left the room, she heard a shout from the courtyard. "Mom, I'm starving! Is dinner ready? Hurry up and get the food out, I have to go back to school after I eat."
It was Zhou Cai. He was in the third grade but hated studying and was at the bottom of his class. After school, he would play with other kids his age from the village and wouldn't come home until it was time to eat or until it got dark.
When Zhou Gu'er saw Zhou Cai enter the house covered in dirt, she knew he must have been out climbing and running wild with other kids again. But she said nothing. She felt no affection for this younger brother.
It was no wonder Zhou Gu'er felt that way. Though Zhou Cai was young, he was a complete brat. He knew Zhou Gu'er wasn't his biological sister and treated her horribly, bullying her constantly. Once, when she didn't do what he wanted, he grabbed her by the hair, punching and kicking her. Zhou Gu'er didn't dare fight back, and even then, her adoptive father slapped her twice afterward, scolding her for making Zhou Cai angry. It was clear just how low her status was in this family.
Zhou Cai sat down at the table and started eating without a word. By the time everyone else had picked up their chopsticks, he had already slurped down more than half his bowl.
"Give me your rice."
Zhou Cai yelled at Zhou Gu'er.
"There's more in the pot. I'll get you some. Why do you need to take your sister's?"
Li Hua said hurriedly.
"I don't want it! I want what's in her bowl. Are you going to give it to me or not!"
Zhou Cai didn't even glance at Li Hua; he just stared at Zhou Gu'er. 'If she dares to refuse, I'll throw the bowl at her and get Dad to beat her. Who cares? I had a bad day outside, and I need to take it out on someone.'
Zhou Gu'er knew exactly what he was thinking. 'But there's no need to argue with him. He's just a child, after all.' So, without a word, she picked up her bowl and poured most of her rice into Zhou Cai's until it was full.
"Hmph."
Seeing her obedience, Zhou Cai snorted and said no more, digging back into his food.
"Gu'er, I'll get you some more."
Li Hua knew what her son was like, but she couldn't control him. He wouldn't listen to anyone except, occasionally, Zhou Mazi. If she dared to discipline him, Zhou Mazi would beat her too.
"Get her more for what? That little bit is enough for her. If she dares to eat any more, I'll make Dad throw her out."
Zhou Cai said viciously.
"Mom, I have enough. You should eat."
Zhou Gu'er paid no mind to Zhou Cai's words. For one, she didn't have much of an appetite. For another, her thoughts weren't on him anyway. Zhou Cai was a bully who only acted tough at home. He wasn't as disgusting as he would later become; for now, as long as you went along with him, he wouldn't do anything too terrible.
After dinner, Zhou Cai ran off again. Zhou Gu'er didn't clear the dishes; she got onto the kang.
Zhou Feng'er and Zhou Duo'er were so angry they ground their teeth. But whether they pleaded or cursed, Zhou Gu'er completely ignored them. There was nothing they could do but clear the dishes themselves.
Zhou Gu'er looked at the red marks on her arm. They were from where Zhang Da had grabbed her earlier. The marks still hadn't faded, which showed just how hard he had squeezed.
'In a little over six months, Zhang Da will bring money to my adoptive father to propose marriage. I have to find a way to make money in these next six months. Only if I can earn money and show my adoptive father my worth will he not sell me to Zhang Da for that little bit of cash. Then, I need to find a way to escape his control and become independent. Whether I get married or not, I can't let my adoptive father control my fate.'
As for how to make money, Zhou Gu'er still needed to think about it. It was very difficult to earn money at this time. Besides, she had no starting capital, so she could only consider ventures that required no investment.
'What if I go to the city and find a job?'
Zhou Gu'er immediately shook her head. Finding a job now wasn't like it would be in the future, where they were everywhere. Back then, you had to have a connection to get a job; otherwise, no one would dare to hire you.
Not only did she not know anyone in the city, but even if she did, Zhou Mazi would never let her go.
Zhou Gu'er thought all afternoon but still couldn't figure out what she should do.
That night, she found it hard to sleep. Zhou Mazi's snoring, the crush of six people sleeping on one kang, and the pungent smell in the air all made her miserable.
'This won't do. I can't sleep on this kang anymore. I have to move out. But where would I go?'
Zhou Gu'er thought of the storage room. It wasn't large and was piled high with junk, but if she cleaned it up, it would be big enough for her to live in.
'There's no kang in there, so I'll just have to set up a couple of planks to use as a bed. But it's not a place you can live in during the winter. It gets cold enough to freeze someone to death.'
'I'll worry about that later. It's only April, so winter is still a long way off. I'll deal with it when it comes.'
'Once I've recovered, I'll go clean out that room.'
With these thoughts in her mind, Zhou Gu'er slowly drifted off to sleep.
When she woke up the next morning and saw the unchanged room, Zhou Gu'er finally, completely believed that she had been reborn. 'Alright then, let's live this life well!'
Zhou Gu'er took a deep breath. 'I can't rest again today, or my adoptive father might actually hit me. I don't have the power to challenge him right now, and I'm afraid my adoptive mother would suffer for it, too.'
Seeing Zhou Gu'er get out of bed and start doing chores on her own initiative, Zhou Mazi just snorted and didn't curse at her.
When Zhou Feng'er and Zhou Duo'er saw that their sister was able to work again, they both felt a sense of relief.
"Feng'er, Du'er, don't you two just stand around. Your sister hasn't fully recovered yet, so you'd better be quick about it."
Li Hua still called the two over. She would have Zhou Gu'er do the light work, and if Feng'er and Du'er did a little more, that would be enough.
"Mom, isn't our sister here? Why do you still want us to do it?"
Zhou Duo'er grumbled as she worked.
"Your sister isn't fully recovered yet. Besides, you two aren't little kids anymore. If you're this lazy at home, what are you going to do when you get married? If you don't know how to do anything, your mother-in-law will curse you to death when you move in with her family. From now on, you two will follow your big sister's example every day and learn from her. You can't just ignore all the work anymore."
Li Hua chided her two daughters. They were truly just too lazy.
Zhou Feng'er and Zhou Duo'er were unhappy, but all they could do was grumble and drag their feet. They couldn't refuse to do the work entirely.