Witty Wife, Better Life
Chapter 300 - 290 Scared and Confused

Chapter 300: Chapter 290 Scared and Confused

"If you don’t have any, that’s fine, I was just asking." Mrs. Wu saw she was in a difficult position and quickly backpedaled, mentally kicking herself for even daring to ask for something so precious.

"No, it’s not that, sister-in-law, I do have some jam left, just not much. Last fall, I was pregnant with our Pangpang, so I didn’t really go up the mountain much, and I didn’t pick many wild grapes. Also, you might not believe it, but the amount of grapes needed for just a small dish of jam is quite substantial, so I only made three jars this year.

Today alone, these little rascals have already finished off one jar, leaving me with just two. I had thought about sharing some with you so that you could bring it home for your kids to enjoy, but with so little left, it’s tricky deciding who to give it to and who not to. That’s why I hesitated to mention it.

But since you’ve asked, sister-in-law, I’ll give you one jar. Just don’t tell anyone, okay? If others come asking for it, I genuinely won’t have any left. It’s first come, first served."

Mrs. Wu, upon hearing this, felt a little embarrassed but still smiled, "Then I’m really getting a bargain. I won’t say any more polite words to you, sister. I’ve got dibs on your jar of jam. This fall, I’ll help you out, and we can go up the mountain to pick grapes together. You just need to take care of making it at home, and we can make a whole lot more to enjoy as much as we want."

"That sounds great," Shen Yunfang laughed too.

As the two chatted and washed dishes, Li Hongjun came out from the west room. "Why did you come out? Have you finished eating inside?" Shen Yunfang asked.

"Not yet, the jar of wine I brought over wasn’t enough, so I came out to get some more." Li Hongjun looked at his wife with a smile. He was feeling particularly satisfied today since everyone was praising the food and drinks his wife had prepared. "Eh, why is it locked?" He tried pushing the storeroom door open only to find it wouldn’t budge and that it was locked.

"I saw there were a lot of kids today, and Erni slipped in there again. It’s quite chilly inside, and I was worried about the kids catching a cold," Shen Yunfang got up and took out the keys from her pocket to unlock the door for him.

Li Hongjun knew exactly what had happened the moment he heard this. He was aware of the past incident when the child had broken their pickle jar, so today the child must have caused trouble again and got caught by his wife. It’s no use scolding the child, so the only option was to lock up the storeroom.

"Alright, I’ll go get it. You and sister-in-law should stop washing. Let it soak for a while, and I’ll wash it later. You’ve been working hard all day, better go rest in the room for a bit." Li Hongjun knew his wife had worked hard, preparing so much food since morning, and now that everybody was done eating, she was still washing the dishes. He felt it was unfair. What were these older women doing, coming to eat for free and not even offering to help with the work? Li Hongjun had no consideration for the presence of others; Mrs. Wu had been completely overlooked by him.

"I understand, don’t worry about it, just make sure our guests are happy. But remember, drink less," Shen Yunfang didn’t listen to him. She had managed both the tables, and now only the last rinsing was left. After all, when she was in her mother-in-law’s house, she also shouldered all the responsibilities by herself, right up to the very end.

Li Hongjun soon came back holding a small jar, saw his wife still washing the dishes without saying anything, and reentered the west room. But after a short while, he came out again.

"Why are you out again?" Shen Yunfang asked, surprised.

Li Hongjun came over, helped his wife to her feet, took off her apron, and said solemnly, "I’ll wash these dishes. You and sister-in-law go and rest inside."

"Oh, someone’s feeling sorry for his wife," Sister Wu couldn’t help but tease as she saw Li Hongjun act like this, her voice filled with envy for Shen Yunfang. Her own husband, Wu Guoqiang, was considered a good man, but he had never shown the level of care for his wife that was virtually... what was the term? Sister Wu pondered for a moment before it came to her: extraordinarily attentive.

Shen Yunfang blushed at Sister Wu’s words, but her mindset was still that of the modern times; it was only natural for a husband to be tender towards his wife. Unlike the people now, still addressing each other as comrades within the home, that she did not understand at all.

"I’m not tired, just a few bowls. Sister has also helped me wash, and we’ll be done in no time. If you have the energy, save it for washing your son’s diapers," Shen Yunfang gently pushed Li Hongjun, signaling him to hurry up and go inside.

"When have I ever asked you to wash? Neither you nor Sister need to wash the dishes. We’ll still have a ton to wash after the meal in our place anyway, I’ll take care of all of them tonight," Li Hongjun insisted. His wife had only recently finished her confinement period, and he usually wouldn’t even let her touch cold water. She was in charge of cooking, and he was responsible for washing dishes. Having guests over for the house moving was out of necessity, otherwise, he would have never let his wife toil so much. In his mind, the best scenario would be for his wife to have a full three months of postpartum recovery for her health to be optimal.

Just as Shen Yunfang was about to say something, a child’s shrill cry came from inside the room, sounding like it was Tingting.

Sister Wu shuddered and dashed into the room. What was going on? Why was there such an alarming scream?

"Auntie, come quick, Erni fed Pangpang a quail egg," Tingting’s thin voice echoed from inside the room.

Shen Yunfang’s mind went blank, and it wasn’t until she understood Tingting’s words that she, too, shot into the room, wishing she had eight legs to run faster. She was frustrated with herself for not listening to Li Hongjun earlier; how much better it would have been to lie down indoors and watch the children instead of bothering with those few broken bowls.

By the time the couple rushed into the east room, little Tingting had already been scooped into Sister Wu’s arms, Erni was grabbed by the back of her collar by Qiu Fengmei, and Liu Shuli seemed to be in shock, staring blankly at the spot on the kang bed where Pangpang lay, looking as if she had been scared witless.

The remaining children were crouched next to Pangpang, seemingly focused on something.

Shen Yunfang’s heart skipped a beat, and she kept telling herself it was nothing serious; she knew the Heimlich maneuver, and even if Pangpang was choking, she could handle it. Being choked by something was not to be feared; it would be fine once it was dislodged. However, she also knew the severe consequences if a hard object was stuck in a child’s trachea, and what to do if it couldn’t be removed? Even in modern times, not every child could be guaranteed to be saved, let alone with the backward medical standards of the present.

Many thoughts crossed her mind, but in reality, it was all a matter of seconds.

Shen Yunfang watched wide-eyed as Li Hongjun passed her and reached the kang, scooping up their son in an instant.

"What are you doing, don’t move the child, you don’t know..." Shen Yunfang’s eyes reddened, how could he just pick up the child like that when he didn’t know anything? What if it caused the object to slide deeper into the airway?

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