There were women from the village wanting to enter the room, and Mrs. Zhang, dropping her quarrel with Mrs. Lai, also came in.
“My girl, you were sick and couldn’t get out of bed. If you don’t cover yourself with a quilt, you’ll catch even a worse cold. What will we do then? Oh my heavens, you are ill, and their family won’t even compensate you so you can see a doctor.”
“Mom, I am better now, there’s nothing wrong anymore. Please stop arguing with Granny,” Mrs. Zhang’s daughter said with a smile, soothing her mother’s concern.
“Mrs. Zhang, did you hear what your daughter just said? It turns out you were trying to extort me. Luckily, my granddaughters were here, and fortunately, I didn’t give you any money because we were arguing,” Mrs. Lai said as she came in and saw Mrs. Zhang’s daughter standing there, looking healthy and not at all sick.
She had also come in earlier and found it strange that the girl had suddenly recovered in such a short time; the girl’s recovery was good news for their family.
The other villagers had previously thought Mrs. Zhang was the one in the right, but now that the girl was well, the situation turned around. When Mrs. Lai said Mrs. Zhang was extorting money, they nodded in agreement.
What farmers care about most is their grain and money!
Just now, Mrs. Zhang had been demanding such a large amount of money. If her daughter really were about to become a fool, they would have to compensate no matter the cost.
But now that the girl was well, the one with a justified cause had become unreasonable.
Mrs. Zhang, hearing Mrs. Lai and the other villagers say this, anxiously defended herself:
“Just now, you all came in and saw my daughter, really sick in bed. Now my daughter is well, and it is thanks to the Bodhisattva’s blessing. It’s not because we were trying to extort money. Mrs. Lai, you can’t be farting around , only you would have such poor character.”
“Mrs. Zhang, whether it was the Bodhisattva’s blessing or not, we don’t owe you any money. It was the Bodhisattva image that my son carved today,” retorted Mrs. Lai, making the villagers curious, and even Ye Shiqi overheard. People from ancient times advertised too, huh.
After Mrs. Lai mentioned the Bodhisattva, the previous quarrel turned into discussions about the Bodhisattva.
“It really is the Bodhisattva’s blessing, huh! Let’s pray to the Bodhisattva more often,” said a woman from the village.
“If you want to pray to the Bodhisattva, would you like to buy a wooden Bodhisattva to worship at home?” Mrs. Lai said with a gleam in her eye, having thought of a way to make money.
“Is that for real? Hongji can carve Bodhisattvas? Where would he have such a skill? I mean, it’s already impressive that he and his father can make furniture; doesn’t everyone in our village know that?”
One of the grandmas gave Mrs. Lai a skeptical look, thinking she was boasting to fool the villagers.
“I reckon Mrs. Lai must be deceiving us. We all know Hongji can make furniture, but why have we never heard that he can carve as well? Are the carvings on furniture not crafted by carpenters quite exquisitely? She’s just trying to bluff us.”
Mrs. Zhang, seeing her daughter surrounded by several children, her gaze resting on them, noticed that her daughter genuinely seemed to be well again. She didn’t insist on getting compensation anymore and started to focus on dealing with Mrs. Lai, constantly rebutting her.
Hongji, standing at the door, heard the voices inside, and along with some villagers in the courtyard, had learned that the patient inside was much better.
Without thinking too much, now that his cousin was better and his family didn’t have to pay compensation, it was time to take the children home to sleep.
“Daya, take your sisters outside. Let’s go home and sleep,” said Hongji.
A villager beside Hongji said to him softly, “Hongji, can you really carve wooden Bodhisattvas?”
“Yeah, today I carved four Bodhisattvas. My mom said we are going to sell them,” said Hongji, an honest man who did not hide the truth from his fellow villagers. There were many surnames in the village, and even if they didn’t share a surname, they were still considered brothers from the same village.
“Hongji, could you carve a Bodhisattva for me? A Fertility Guanyin, hehe. My wife is pregnant, and I hope this one will be a boy,” whispered the earnest Mr. Li.
Hongji patted Mr. Li’s arm and said earnestly:
“Brother, we’re men; do we believe in these superstitions? Isn’t it your first child? Aren’t boys and girls both the same? Besides, your wife is already pregnant, so you’ve already been granted a child.”
The man, a bit embarrassed by his brother’s words, still spoke with determination:
“Hehe, I am just seeking some peace of mind. Plus, the wooden Bodhisattva you carve won’t be very expensive, right? Sell me one at a discount!”
Hongji looked at Mr. Li. He was about the same age as himself. This man had married a wife later and his firstborn was on the way; his concern and attention were understandable. When his own wife had their first child, Hongji thought it would be his eldest son and heir, but they had a girl instead.
Anticipating a boy for the second child, their hopes were dashed time and again; now on the fifth attempt, they had another girl.
“Alright, brother. In a couple of days, when I have carved it out, I’ll sell it to you for just a bit of profit, basically just charging you for the labor,” Hongji agreed.
“Thanks, thanks, brother.” Mr. Li happily went home to share the joy with his wife.