After fleeing the famine, my older sister and I married the brother next door.

"Old woman, I've taken the eggs. I've already arranged with Er Mu to go visit Wu Fu's family." After saying this to Chen's mother, Chen's father picked up the small bamboo basket he had prepared beforehand, which contained twenty eggs that he had saved up. The basket was lined with clean wheat straw, and he walked out of the yard. The basket was light, but his heartfelt intention was heavy.

Chen Dashan and Chen Xiaohe were also getting ready to go out. Chen Dashan said, "Mom, Xiaohe and I will go to the river to set the fish traps first. We've changed to a new spot today, and Xiaohe has modified the opening of the traps. We'll try to catch more fish and shrimp. We'll wait for Dad to come back later. Let him rest at home and wait for us. We'll come back after we've set the traps, and then we'll go to the fields with Dad to take a look."

Chen's mother was straightening the threads on the loom when she heard this, and nodded: "Go on, go on, be careful on the road. I'll talk to your father when he gets back."

The father and his two sons went out one after another, and the courtyard immediately fell silent. Only the rhythmic clanging of the loom and the soft sounds of Su Xiaoyin and Su Xiaoqing tidying up the embroidery thread and occasionally discussing the stitch colors in hushed tones inside the room remained. The sun shone warmly, and a gentle breeze rustled the dried vegetables drying in the sun; everything seemed peaceful and ordinary.

Mother Chen sat at her loom, the shuttle weaving back and forth, her mind lost in the interlacing of warp and weft threads. After more than an hour, feeling a slight ache in her back, she stopped and stretched. Turning her head, she saw her two daughters-in-law still engrossed in their embroidery at the window of the east wing, their expressions focused, the fine needles in their hands occasionally gleaming silver in the sunlight. She walked to the window and gently knocked on the shutter.

Su Xiaoyin and Su Xiaoqing looked up at the sound and saw their mother-in-law, both showing knowing smiles. Su Xiaoyin called out, "Mother, let's get up and stretch after we finish this!" This was a tacit understanding developed between the three of them; whenever they did embroidery for more than an hour, Mother Chen would always remind them to rest their eyes.

The two sisters put down their needlework and sat down on a low stool in the courtyard. Mother Chen brought out a small earthenware bowl from the house, containing wild berries that Chen Xiaohe had brought back from the mountains the other day, washed clean and bright red, looking very appealing. The three of them ate the sweet and sour wild berries, chatting casually.

Su Xiaoqing glanced at the sun and asked疑惑地问道, "Mother, why haven't Father, Big Brother, and Xiaohe returned yet? It shouldn't take this long to set the fish baskets, right?"

Chen's mother frowned slightly, glancing towards the courtyard gate. "Yes, it's been quite a while. Your father isn't the type to linger at other people's houses. He usually just drops off a few things, says a few words, and comes right back. Could it be..." A sudden unease crept into her heart. "Could something have happened?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the courtyard gate creaked open, and Mr. Chen walked in with his two sons, both with a somewhat gloomy expression on their faces.

Upon hearing the last half of his wife's sentence, Mr. Chen interjected, "Who's in trouble? Who are you talking about?"

Seeing that they had returned safely, Chen's mother breathed a sigh of relief, but seeing the expressions on the faces of the father and his two sons, her heart tightened again: "We were so worried about you! You said you'd be back soon, but you've been gone for so long. What happened?"

Chen Xiaohe, young and impetuous, spoke first: "My older brother and I were walking back after we finished unloading the fish baskets when we saw several people running towards Uncle Wufu's house, shouting that something had happened there. My older brother and I remembered that Dad had delivered eggs there that morning, and we were worried that something might happen to him if he was alone there, so we quickly followed them."

Su Xiaoyin quickly got up and poured a bowl of warm water for each of the three travelers, father and sons, and asked softly, "Dad, what happened to Uncle Wufu's family? They were fine this morning, weren't they?"

Chen's mother pressed further, "Yes, old man, didn't you go to deliver the eggs? Why did you make such a commotion?"

Mr. Chen took the bowl, drank half of it in one gulp, sighed heavily, and sat down on the stone stool by the well, his brows furrowed: "Sigh, don't even mention it. The woman's family has come."

He paused, seemingly organizing his thoughts, his voice tinged with helplessness and a hint of anger: "They heard that the third brother had injured his leg and were worried, so they came to check on the injury to see how serious it was and whether it would cause any lasting problems that would affect his walking and work. That's understandable. The doctor said that the third brother's leg just needs a few months of rest, and as long as it doesn't develop into a chronic condition, it'll be fine. That would have been enough."

"But," Chen's father's tone turned somber, "the eldest and second daughters-in-law of Wufu's family, I don't know if they're stupid or doing it on purpose, made sarcastic remarks right in front of their own family! They complained that their younger brother-in-law couldn't work these past few months, just eating and not earning money, and was a burden. They even said that if he became lame, wouldn't he be a burden to the whole family for the rest of his life? Their words were full of contempt."

Su Xiaoqing couldn't help but exclaim in a low voice, "How could they say that? Isn't that just adding fuel to the fire?"

"It's more than just adding fuel to the fire!" Chen Xiaohe interjected angrily. "When the bride's family heard this, their faces turned green! They haven't even married into the family yet, and their two sisters-in-law are already so mean-spirited. If their daughter marries in, won't she be bullied to death? The bride's parents' expressions immediately turned ugly, and their words implied that they wanted to call off the marriage."

Father Chen nodded and continued, "But those two foolish women, seeing the situation was turning sour, not only didn't shut up, but they added fuel to the fire, saying things like, 'It's better if he doesn't get married, so the public funds won't have to pay for his new house,' and 'The timber and bricks prepared for the third son's house can be used by their son in the future.' This was a complete blatant betrayal! Your Uncle Wufu was so angry he was trembling all over, almost fainting! The third son lay in bed, listening to these words, tears welling up in his eyes, both angry and anxious, his wounds probably about to burst open!"

Chen's mother shook her head, "What a tragedy! Is this how a sister-in-law would say something like that? For a few bricks and timber, she's willing to throw away her brother-in-law's future and the family's reputation!"

"We and the others who arrived later quickly tried to mediate and at least appease the bride's family, inviting them to sit down in the main room." Mr. Chen rubbed his temples, looking extremely tired. "They've made it clear that the Wufu family needs a 'satisfactory explanation,' otherwise, this daughter absolutely cannot marry into the family. After temporarily persuading the bride's family to leave, seeing Uncle Wufu's ashen face and the third brother's dejected expression, we felt terrible. But even an upright official can't settle family disputes; we could only offer a few words of advice, ultimately unable to manage their internal conflicts. After staying for a while, seeing there was nothing we could do to help, we returned."

A silence fell over the courtyard. The loom stopped, and the embroidery needles were laid down. The afterglow of the setting sun bathed the courtyard in gold, but it could not dispel the heaviness in everyone's hearts. The farce in Wufu's family was like a mirror, reflecting the scheming in people's hearts and the fading of family ties, and making the Chen family realize even more how precious their own harmony was.

Mrs. Chen sighed, stood up, and said, "Alright, it's no use worrying about other people's business. We still have to live our own lives. It's getting late, aren't you going to check on things in the fields? I'll go prepare lunch. Xiaoyin, go get the tofu we bought this morning; Xiaoqing, pick some vegetables from the backyard; I'll go get some firewood. Old man, you two go and come back quickly."

Everyone responded and sprang into action, the tranquility of the courtyard replaced by a familiar atmosphere of busy activity.