Rebirth in 1980: The Farm Wife Makes a Comeback
Chapter 281: No Meat, No Bones

Chapter 281: Chapter 281: No Meat, No Bones

The village occasionally echoed with a few barks of dogs, as if the New Year spirit lingered still. However, there were already quite a few people in the fields and at the ends of the farmland.

Qin Xiangnuan and Qin Xiangyang had been on a train all day. First, they returned to the Siheyuan to rest. Qin Xiangyang was short on time; right after getting off the train, he had to report back to the military academy. The siblings each went their separate ways. Though there was a sense of farewell, it was fortunate they were not far apart. So, there wasn’t too much heartache.

Instead, this proximity only intensified the sorrow of separation.

She took out her keys, unlocked the door – no barks from Conghua, no laughter of children. Everything was as silent as when she first arrived, eerily quiet.

As soon as her foot entered the courtyard, several sparrows were startled into flight. The courtyard wasn’t very dirty - clearly, it had been swept not long ago. There wasn’t much dust on the outdoor table either, obviously wiped regularly. She walked over, ran her finger across the table’s surface, and as expected, there wasn’t a speck of dust.

The only one who could come here, the one who had the keys, was Jian Zhiqing.

She opened the door to her room. The bedding that she had rolled up when she left was still placed just as before. Although it had only been half a month, a fair amount of dust had accumulated, and it felt a bit damp—these needed washing.

She put down her bag, unrolled the bedding, stripped the duvet and sheets, replaced them with fresh ones, and completed a thorough cleaning inside and out. She soaked the removed linen in water; after finishing all these tasks, she felt so tired that her back and waist ached - it had been a long time since she last did such labor. Indeed, she had developed ailments of the affluent.

She had just gotten off the train and busied herself for most of the day, now so tired that all she wanted to do was sleep.

She pulled the quilt over her body. There was no odd smell as the bedding was newly changed, but the room felt a bit damp. If there was sun tomorrow, she would take the quilt out for a good sunbathing to fluff up the cotton inside.

She didn’t think much and fell asleep immediately, only waking up when it was almost dark.

She checked the time.

It was almost five o’clock.

She stretched lazily; she had slept deeply, and her stomach involuntarily growled. She grabbed her clothes, drank a bottle of milk bought from the system, and planned to go out and buy some groceries, otherwise she would go to bed hungry. Milk was surely not filling, and it only made her hungrier the more she drank.

It was just after New Year’s, but people here had started working again. She needed to clean her shop too; although she had swept it with her brother before the New Year, it must have accumulated more dust by now.

When she brought in a pile of groceries, she heard barking from outside.

It was Conghua.

A fully black large dog charged out, its ears perked sharply, its four legs straight and robust, and its large tail sweeping back and forth, appearing quite fierce.

"Conghua, how did you get so thin?"

Qin Xiangnuan rushed over, putting the groceries on the ground and pinching Conghua’s pointy ears.

"Lost so much weight?"

She couldn’t believe it; she felt Conghua’s belly again. Conghua immediately rolled on the ground twice, its eyes moist, as if harboring some grievances.

"Are you hungry?" Qin Xiangnuan felt sorry for Conghua; the poor thing must have been starved to thinness.

"Woof, woof..." Conghua promptly stood up, barking incessantly at its soft-hearted owner.

Qin Xiangnuan took the groceries into the room, and Conghua followed her inside, wagging its tail excitedly.

"Eh?" Qin Xiangnuan finally reacted.

"Conghua, how did you come back?"

"Woof woof..."

"Who brought you back?"

"Woof woof..."

"Where is your brother?"

"Woof woof..."

"Do you understand dog language?" Jian Zhiqing came out from his room, looking like he just woke up, a bit languid. He was wearing the long coat that Qin Xiangnuan made him for the New Year. The color really suited him. The coat had double-breasted buttons, and it looked good whether buttoned or not.

"Why did you come back?" Qin Xiangnuan entered the kitchen, and Conghua was about to follow in when a small foot kicked backward, hitting Conghua on the head.

"Men and dogs are not allowed in,"

After that statement from Qin Xiangnuan, Jian Zhiqing and Conghua could only stand outside. Conghua kept wagging its tail, thinking that with the return of its owner, it could go back to enjoying good days of eating and drinking.

Jian Zhiqing seemed to know what Conghua was thinking. He squatted down and rubbed Conghua’s big head, "Don’t even think about it, your figure is so good now. When you go out, there will be a bunch of female dogs following you. Unlike before when you were fat, other dogs would walk around you."

Conghua barked twice, burying its head between its front paws, seemingly troubled.

"Brother Jian, how did you know I came back?" Qin Xiangnuan was busy inside the kitchen, the clattering sound of chopping vegetables resounding, and she knew Jian Zhiqing was outside.

"Your brother gave me a call," Jian Zhiqing walked to the kitchen door, crossing his arms.

I see, Qin Xiangnuan understood. Perhaps Qin Xiangyang felt that it was not safe for her to live here alone in such a big Siheyuan, especially since Conghua was not back. It wasn’t about fear; it was quite lonely actually.

"Do you have any sauce bones?" Jian Zhiqing glanced inside, noticing it was all vegetarian dishes, no meat.

Hearing the words ’sauce bones,’ Conghua immediately lifted its head, constantly rubbing Jian Zhiqing’s leg with its paw.

Qin Xiangnuan’s hands reached out from under the tap, washing vegetables. Ah, bones, meat.

She checked her purchased groceries, "Really, there’s no meat, no bones."

"I’ll go and buy some," Jian Zhiqing said as he headed toward the door, with Conghua following closely.

Qin Xiangnuan didn’t mind; after all, her own desired food was already here.

Yes, she thought, maybe she would deep-fry some meatballs later, making some meatball soup as well would be nice.

Not long after, Jian Zhiqing returned, indeed, he had brought back a lot of meat and bones, which were big bones, perfect for making sauce bones.

Qin Xiangnuan cleaned the meat and bones, soaking them aside, preparing to cook them later. Actually, she just wanted to make some noodles for herself to eat, but now with two people, and since Jian Zhiqing wanted sauce bones, she would need to steam some rice too.