The Daily Life of a Down-on-Hard-Life Medicine Girl Supporting Her Family

Chapter 130 Borrowing materials for longevity

"Chunnuan, something terrible has happened to your family." Before she even reached the courtyard gate, Aunt Cai saw her and hurriedly said, "Your house has been broken into by bandits. They set fire to your house and stole your things. Your grandmother is dead."

Grandma is gone!

Chunnuan stumbled and fell forward.

"Be careful!" Zhao Minghua quickly reached out and pulled his fiancée back, whispering in her ear, "Don't rush anything, the family is counting on you now!"

Chun Nuan took a deep breath and listened to Zhao Minghua's advice.

Spring is back.

As she approached, her neighbors stepped back, making way for her to go home.

This isn't the way home; it's a path leading to sorrow.

The room was filled with weeping; it was a truly heartbreaking scene.

Spring warmth blurred my vision with tears.

My grandfather passed away 639 days ago, and my grandmother followed him in death!
Chunnuan knew that her grandmother's body was weak and wouldn't last much longer, but she didn't expect this day to come so soon, especially since it was caused by external factors.

As spring warmth gradually entered through the gate, everyone inside was crying.

"Second Miss is back." Mei'er was the first to see Chunnuan.

Upon hearing Mei'er's shout, the crying of the crowd abruptly ceased.

"Nuan Nuan, your grandmother has passed away." Xu Shi cried out sadly as Zhao Minghua helped Chun Nuan in, "Nuan Nuan..."

"grandmother!"

Chunnuan knelt down with a thud, choking back tears, and said, "Grandmother, your granddaughter is unfilial and failed to protect you..."

Since arriving in Sichuan, she has kept an extremely low profile.

They already had the means to buy a large house in the county town, but they still chose to build a house in the countryside in order to stay away from a lot of trouble. However, they neglected security, which gave them an opportunity to take advantage of them.

The way her grandmother passed away left a deep scar on Chunnuan's heart, and she felt very guilty and remorseful.

“Nuan Nuan…” Aunt Xu came over and helped her up with tears in her eyes: “Don’t blame yourself. It’s already a blessing from heaven that you were able to come back safely… By the way, where is Chun Ning?”

"Don't worry, Madam. Chun Ning and my men have caught the thief and sent him to the authorities."

"Thank you, Young Master Zhao."

"Madam, you don't need to be so polite."

"Who am I? I am the son-in-law of the Xiao family. Wouldn't it be too formal for you to be so polite with me?" said the eldest madam. "Please accept my condolences as the old lady has passed away. If you need any help from Minghua with the funeral arrangements, please don't hesitate to ask."

Xu nodded with satisfaction at Zhao Minghua's sense of responsibility, then turned to look at Chunnuan.

“Nuan Nuan, we don’t know much about funeral rites in Sichuan. Every region has its own customs. Your grandmother’s funeral should be handled according to the customs of Sichuan. We’ll have to rely on you for this. Your mother, your third aunt, your eldest sister-in-law, and I are at your beck and call.”

"Yes, Aunt, Chunnuan will definitely be taken care of."

As Zhao Minghua said, this family still depends on her.

Chunnuan kowtowed to her grandmother and stood up. Looking at her helpless elder, her young siblings with tears streaming down their faces, and her nephew nestled in the arms of her wet nurse, Wu Ma, she felt a pang of sorrow. "Eldest sister-in-law, you and Wu Ma are responsible for looking after Chunqiang, Chunxin, and Muyang. There are many things to do, and the children cannot be out of your sight."

Since the Xiao clan is determined to make things difficult for them, there is no doubt that they will repeatedly resort to despicable means. One should not have the heart to harm others, but one must be wary of others. This is something we must pay attention to.

"Second Miss, rest assured, your servant and the eldest young mistress will take good care of them."

Wu Ma's eyes were also red and swollen from crying. The old lady was a young lady from a wealthy family and the pillar of the Xiao family. She was strict with her servant, but also kind. She was very saddened by the old lady's sudden departure.

“Aunt, you and Mother and Third Aunt stay with Grandmother. Chunyan, you take Chunshu and Chunan to accompany her.” Chunnuan said, “I’ll go ask Aunt Luo and the others if there are any precautions.”

When Aunt Luo saw Chunnuan come out, she quickly went up to her and asked if there was anything she could help with.

“Aunt Luo, our family lives in the capital and we don’t know the customs of Sichuan. My aunt said that every place has its own customs, so since we’re in Sichuan, we should follow the local rules. We’ll have to ask you and Uncle Luo for help with this.”

"Of course, of course," Aunt Luo said. "Let's hurry up and buy some old clothes for the old lady to change into."

Old clothes?

"It's just old clothes that the elderly wear; you can buy them at the old people's shops in town."

"We also need to buy a coffin."

"Where can you buy it in the middle of the night?" Aunt Cai said, "After Chen Erniang in the village turned sixty, her daughter made six sets of old clothes for her. Her son prepared a coffin for her last year. When spring comes, you can go to her to buy them or return them to her later."

Is this okay?
"Yes, yes, let's find Uncle Chen and use Aunt Chen's spare money for now." Aunt Chen said, "Come on, Chunnuan, I'll take you to talk to them."

"Is this really okay?"

Chunnuan felt that these things were all taboo.

How can someone who is perfectly healthy prepare for everything?
“Sure, let’s go, it’s spring, I’ll take you to the Chen family.” Aunt Luo turned to Aunt Cai and said, “Sister Cai, may I borrow your torch?”

"Let's go, I'm going home too. It's on your way, just drop me off at my door and I'll take the torch."

Chunnuan followed behind Aunt Luo and Aunt Cai, and Zhao Minghua followed as well.

After seeing Aunt Cai off at her doorstep, on the way to the Chen family's house, Aunt Luo began to talk to Chunnuan about the customs of Sichuan.

“In our area, whenever parents turn sixty, their married daughters prepare burial clothes for them on their birthday. Those who are well-off prepare more, while those who are poor prepare just one set, with the woman wearing two sets and the man wearing one.”

What do "women's doubles" and "men's singles" mean?
"It's about preparing burial clothes. If it's for the mother, prepare four, six, or eight sets; for the father, prepare five or seven sets," Aunt Luo said. "Your grandmother will need to borrow four or six sets."

"For Aunt Chen's birthday, her eldest daughter prepared six sets of coffins for her; last year, because it was a leap month, her son hired a carpenter to make a cypress coffin."

"The person is still alive and well, why are you preparing their funeral clothes and coffin? Isn't that unlucky?" Zhao Minghua never cared about these things, but when it came to his fiancée's family, he had to ask: "Will they mind if we go to their house and use their belongings without permission?"

At this moment, Zhao Minghua felt very regretful. Why hadn't she paid more attention to these things before? They were such small matters, yet she couldn't help at all.

"No, birth, aging, sickness and death are the natural course of life. If there is an emergency in a family, as long as there has been no quarrel, they can usually reach an agreement. Choosing a leap month to prepare the coffin is also for good luck, it is the hope that she can live a long and healthy life."

Aunt Luo remembered that the Xiao family was no longer the Xiao family when they first came to Sichuan. Now they were rich. Even if spring was not warm, when had Young Master Zhao ever lacked money?

"There's no need to choose to borrow; you could also buy it at the same price."

Aunt Luo practically said: "If you pay enough money, the items are naturally yours."

(End of this chapter)