stingy landlady

Chapter 1 Crossing

This story is set in an alternate history.

Beside a small river, a little girl wobbled to her feet. She didn't know how long she'd been lying there; her stomach was growling loudly, the hunger throbbing, and tears involuntarily streamed down her face. Where was she? Wang Guizhi looked around, thought for a moment, then looked at her reflection in the river. Oh! Was that me? How did I end up in the body of a little girl?

I'm a girl who grew up in the countryside. My parents scrimped and saved to send me to university. I had just graduated and was preparing to apply for a job at a big company. But because I wanted to save some money on transportation, I got up early to walk there. When I was crossing the road, I clearly looked left and right and there were no cars. How did I end up being hit and thrown into the air by a speeding truck?

I opened my eyes and was immediately overcome by a headache, feeling dizzy again. I felt like something had been added to my memories. When I opened my eyes again, I found that my hands and feet were fine, but much shorter than before, and my clothes were patched and patched, also much too short. I stood up unsteadily and looked at my reflection in the river; my thin frame made it impossible to tell if I was beautiful or not. My stomach just felt terrible, and I was starving.

Wang Guizhi had read online novels before and knew that she had traveled through time; she was now a young girl from an unknown dynasty.

There are four girls in the family. She is the third oldest and is only seven years old. Her younger sister is just three years old, her eldest sister is eleven years old, and her second sister is nine years old.

The father was the eldest son in the family. The mother was always looked down upon by her grandparents because she could not give birth to a son. Her grandmother often scolded her for being a good-for-nothing and said that she would cause the Wang family line to die out.

With both uncles having sons, my mother's situation became even worse. She had endless chores to do every day, and tried to eat and dress as little as possible, feeling ashamed. My eldest sister was my grandparents' eldest granddaughter. When she was born, my grandparents were very fond of her, but as more granddaughters were born, their expressions became more and more unpleasant, and they would say hurtful things without hesitation.

Guizhi was the third child, and her grandmother already disliked her. After her younger sister was born, her grandmother completely exploded, calling her a "money-losing child," saying she would "die without an heir," and demanding that her son divorce her for not producing a grandson...

In short, Guizhi is sensitive and timid in this environment and often goes hungry.

Because she was too young to work, her mother had to take care of her younger sister, and her two older sisters had to dig wild vegetables to feed the pigs, wash clothes, and help with household chores as needed. Guizhi came to the only small river in the village and saw a toad. She ran to catch it, but she didn't catch the toad. Instead, she slipped on a stone and fell on the bank.

Fortunately, she didn't fall into the river. When she opened her eyes, she was Wang Guizhi, who had traveled through time.

After barely managing to process all of this, I was still thinking about how my parents must be heartbroken to hear the bad news about me, and I couldn't help but burst into tears.

Suddenly, someone patted her on the shoulder and pulled her along, saying, "Sanya, aren't you going home for dinner? There won't be any for you later, waah! Can't you be a little smarter? I've called you so many times and you still don't answer!"

It was my second sister. She had just finished washing the clothes and was calling Guizhi home for dinner. If it got any later, everyone in the family would have finished eating, and no one would be thinking about the two sisters.

Guizhi quickly wiped away her tears and whispered, "Okay, Second Sister, I'm hungry. I'll get you a bowl."

The two carried the basin of wet clothes slowly home. Low, thatched huts came into Guizhi's view. Once home, they quickly hung the clothes to dry. An old woman with her hair in a bun came out. "Why are you so late? Did you sneak off to eat? You two lazybones are coming back just before dinner!"

"Grandma, my third sister and I are washing clothes together. She's younger, so I'm teaching her. When she's a little older, she'll be able to help with chores too. Look, Grandma, my third sister can hang the clothes up with me!"

"Hmph! You have to learn to work, otherwise you'll end up eating everything and being useless! We don't support idlers in our family!" Er Ya nudged Gui Zhi and then gestured to her grandmother, signaling Gui Zhi to speak.

"Hey! Grandma, I'll learn, I won't be lazy," Guizhi said. "Oh! Mom! The sun has risen in the west, Sanya can talk now!" Second Aunt came out of the kitchen, smiling.

She was bringing food to the elderly couple's room. The whole family was eating in the elderly couple's room, with one table on the kang (a heated brick bed) and another on the floor.

After Guizhi's mother finished cooking, she took some porridge back to her room to feed Siya before eating herself. Siya was too small to sit at the table and might make a fuss, so she quickly fed the little one first so the adults could have a bite to eat.

Otherwise, both mother and daughter would go hungry and be scolded. In the past, Sanya didn't dare to speak, afraid of being beaten and scolded. Her voice was as soft as a mosquito's hum, or she would just stand still without saying a word.

Guizhi quickly expressed her opinion upon arriving, wanting to learn from her second sister. Her second sister spoke crisply and clearly, with a smile on her face, making her very likable.

Daya carried the bowls and chopsticks towards the old house, saying, "Grandma, come inside and rest. You don't need to bother, we'll bring everything inside in a bit. Second Sister, Third Sister, hurry up and finish drying them, then come inside and help Grandma serve the rice!"

"Yes, yes!" the two sisters answered in unison, then exchanged a smile. The old lady was still worried, so she went to the kitchen to check on the food again. She figured out what was going on and would be able to tell if anyone was stealing food. She then turned around and went inside to wait for the food to be distributed to everyone.

The family was poor, so they cooked a big pot of corn porridge for the whole family, one bowl for each person, along with green beans and potatoes stewed from their own garden.

The old man also brought his three sons back from working in the fields. The youngest son found a job in town, driving a carriage for a horse and carriage company. He and his wife rented a house in town with their son. His wife was skilled at embroidery and could sell handkerchiefs and the like, so they had some income.

The fifth brother was studying in town, preparing for the imperial examination. During his days off, he would go to the third brother's house for meals, ostensibly to improve his diet.

The fourth son is still looking for a wife. He's a good eater and can work hard. There aren't any extra rooms, so he currently shares a room with his parents. They have two separate kang beds, one on the north side and one on the south side. When it's time for dinner, the men sit at one table on the floor, while the women and children sit at another table on the kang.

When Guizhi entered the house, Grandma had already prepared large bowls of porridge. The men who did hard labor ate large bowls, the children ate small bowls, and the women shared two bowls, one for each person. There weren't many potatoes or green beans either. On the table on the kang (heated brick bed), each person only had a small amount of porridge, and the table on the floor was also for eating with rice.

After feeding Siya, Guizhi's mother put Siya on the kang (heated brick bed) to play by herself, and then invited the three girls to sit down and eat. The old lady sat in the middle facing the table on the ground.

"Second son, take care of Da Bao, don't just eat by yourself!" Uncle's family has three children. The eldest is a boy who is ten years old. His daughter, Taozhi, is eight years old. His eldest son, Erbao, is told by his aunt to sit at the men's table, since the food there is a bit more plentiful and he can eat a few more bites. His youngest son, Erbao, sits next to his grandmother and eats slowly, which also allows him to feed himself.

Everyone ate in silence, and soon they were all half full. Although the men had more portions, they also did more physical work, so they ate two or three bowls of food to be full.

People are poor and have no oil in their stomachs, so they can only eat more grain. But they don't have much land, and the land doesn't produce much these days. They also have to prepare food for their third and fifth sons, so the family can only tighten their belts and eat half full in the morning and evening, and then have another meal at noon. If there is no work to do in the winter, they will only eat two meals a day.

After dinner, Daya and Erya diligently cleaned up the dishes, and Guizhi also rushed to help. Guizhi's mother and second aunt each took their own babies back to their rooms, where they either sewed and mended or made up the kang (heated brick bed) and coaxed the babies to sleep.

Everyone went to do their own thing, and Taozhi followed closely behind her mother, saying she wanted to learn needlework.

The three remaining sisters slowly packed their things. In the past, Guizhi would run back to take care of her younger sister and ask her mother to come and collect and wash the dishes. Tonight, Guizhi wanted to do it with her older sisters.

"Grandma, my older sisters and I are learning to do housework. I'll take it slow."

"Hmm, slow down, don't take too much at once. Don't break the plates and bowls, or this family won't have enough to go around ruining." Grandma saw Guizhi, the little girl, carefully clearing away the bowls and plates, and didn't scold her. As long as the sisters were willing to work and didn't slack off, she was too lazy to nag.

After tidying up here, Daya and Erya washed the dishes together. Guizhi couldn't move the table, so Guizhi's father helped put the two tables away.

Grandpa spoke up: "We've finished hoeing the fields for today. There's not much work tomorrow, and we're free for the next few days. Are you planning to go to town to find work or go up the mountain?"

Grandma said, "Fourth brother, tidy yourself up these next few days, make sure you're clean and neat. I'll find a matchmaker to find you a wife." The fourth brother smiled shyly and agreed, then happily went out to visit neighbors.

The second child said, "Mom and Dad, I feel tired. I'll rest for a few days and take a walk in the mountains when I have time." After saying that, he went back into the house to play with the children.

Guizhi's father hadn't spoken yet, he hadn't made up his mind, when Grandpa spoke up: "Eldest son, are you planning to go to town to find work or go up the mountain? You don't have a son, and these girls won't be of much help in the future. Sigh! What will happen when the family divides up in the future?"

"What are we going to do? The second son's family has been complaining a lot lately. They think they've raised a few money-losing kids and that they'll have to rely on their nephews to support them. They feel like they're being taken advantage of! So how can they expect to be nice to you in the future?" Grandma chimed in.

"Father, Mother, let me think about it some more. I'll go back to my room and ask the girl's mother."

"Why bother asking her? She's a barren thing, yet she wants to be the head of the household and the master of the house. Ignore her, do whatever you want!" Grandma shouted angrily.

Guizhi's father sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) with his head down, not saying a word, unsure of what to say.

Guizhi was small and inconspicuous. She gently tugged at her father's clothes. Her father looked at her and said to the old man and old woman:

"Father, Mother, I'm going back to my room now. I'll work hard!"

“How can you compare to several strong laborers by yourself? You still need a boy! Sigh!” Grandpa said again.

Guizhi looked at her father and shook her head, indicating that they should go back to their own home to talk. The two of them slowly walked back. The two old people remained in the house, talking in hushed tones.

“This can’t go on forever. The eldest son’s family has no sons, only girls who can’t do heavy work or work in the fields. When they grow up, they’ll all marry and move away. How will the two of them survive? Who will take care of them in their old age? Will they rely on their nephews? The second and third sons also have to rely on their sons! Besides, they still have to raise several girls for many years, and they all have complaints,” Grandma said.

Grandpa thought for a long time. “Children are all a burden! It’s not that I’m biased. The eldest son is capable and hardworking, but he can’t support all his wives and daughters on his own. He’s always taken advantage of his younger brothers. Everyone has helped him. After all these years, he still hasn’t had a son. How long will he have to rely on others? This can’t go on.”

“Well, we can still keep them in check now, but in a few years when they get old, they'll have to rely on their children for support, and then we won’t be able to keep them in check anymore. It will be difficult for us to divide the family property then. How about we separate the eldest son? Let them live on their own for now. The two youngest daughters are grown up and can help out. If they get engaged in a couple of years and have some betrothal gifts, they can arrange things themselves and have a little easier time.”

"Sigh! Go to sleep early! You've had a long day! You still need to think things through." The two elderly people fell asleep anxiously.