Whoever Barks, I'll Call a Dog

Zhou Wanwan looked at her and said, "Nothing much, just some pig offal. Do you want some?"

The auntie next door couldn't resist sneering:

"Why does your family eat that stuff? Is it even fit for people?

Only poor families eat it. Even dogs wouldn't touch it."

Most people in Wild Field Village were quite friendly to them, but there were always a few families who couldn't stand them.

Zhou Qinghe couldn't resist sneering back. "That's right. We'd feed it to dogs before we'd give it to certain people. They'd just bite people at random after eating it."

The auntie next door roared, "Who are you calling a dog? Say that again, and see if I don't smash your mouth!"

Zhou Qinghe gave a cold snort. "Whoever barks, I'll call a dog."

"You... fine, just fine! You're nothing but a family down on your luck, yet you really think you're so great. If you can't afford meat, then don't eat it!

Instead, you're eating cheap filth that even lowly people won't touch," the auntie next door shouted.

Zhou Qingyan looked at them coldly. "You have money, but I don't see you eating meat every day either."

The auntie next door's grandson swallowed. "Grandma, I want meat. The meat next door smells so good!"

Old Madam Shen shouted at him:

"Have you never eaten anything good before? Only dirt-poor families eat that. What decent family would eat this stuff?

Those intestines are pig intestines. Do you know what pig intestines are? They're stuffed full of pig shit. Do you still want to eat them?"

The eldest grandson next door quickly shook his head. "That's really disgusting. How could anyone like eating that stuff? Your whole family must be dogs! Only dogs like eating shit!"

The other children behind him burst out laughing...

Zhou Fusheng said angrily, "What's wrong with the people next door? What business is it of theirs if our family eats meat?"

Liu Su'e sighed.

"Better to have one less problem than one more. You children, come back!

Don't argue with her. We don't know the people in the village well. If something really happens, no one will help us, and it would be terrible if they drove us out."

Zhou Wanwan chuckled.

"Father, Mother, they're clearly the ones in the wrong. Why would they drive us out?

Even if they really do drive us out, we won't be afraid."

Her parents were quite the pushovers, though her three older brothers' personalities were all right.

Zhou Fusheng smiled. "Never mind them. Let's eat dinner. I just don't know whether these pig intestines are fit to eat."

He was still hesitating, but Zhou Qingyan couldn't be bothered with all that. He picked up a piece of intestine and put it straight into his mouth. After one bite, his eyes lit up. "Delicious! It's even better than meat."

Zhou Qinghe and Zhou Qingchen didn't even have time to speak as they shovelled down their rice.

Zhou Wanwan ate at a leisurely pace. Pig intestines in ancient times really were different from those in modern times, with a particularly chewy texture. She ate a big bowl of rice too.

This was her first full meal since coming to ancient times. Once everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, Liu Su'e began making her bed.

Zhou Wanwan now lived in the study. The house had only three rooms in all: one for her parents, one for her three brothers, and the study where she lived alone.

The study could hardly be called luxurious, but it was quite spacious, about twenty square meters.

A rosewood bookshelf stood against the wall, holding more than a dozen books. A solid wood desk stood in the center. It had no elaborate carvings, but it suited Zhou Wanwan just fine.

Beside the bookshelf against the wall stood a cushioned daybed a little over a meter wide. That was Zhou Wanwan's bed.

Zhou Qingyan picked up the books. "They're actually books! We'll have books to read from now on."

Zhou Qinghe snorted. "Big Brother, even if we have books, we can't read them!"

Zhou Wanwan looked at them. "Didn't you go to school?"

She regretted it as soon as she said it. She coughed and said, "Oh! Our family really has it rough. Why didn't Grandma let anyone in our family go to school?"

Zhou Qingyan sneered.

"Because our father isn't their biological son, that's why!

Father's lot in that family was to work like an ox and a horse. We were all their servants, and they could treat us however they pleased."

Zhou Wanwan leafed through the books. They were all written in traditional characters. She had studied medicine, so while these characters might be very difficult for others, they were easy for her.

Their family definitely had no money for school now, but that didn't stop her from teaching them!

Zhou Wanwan looked at them. "Brothers, I can read all the characters in these books. How about I teach you?"

Zhou Qinghe laughed. "Little Sister, how could you possibly know the characters in these books? How about this? I know a few characters, so I'll test you."

He flipped to a random page, found a particularly difficult character, and said, "Look at this one. How do you read it?"

Zhou Wanwan smiled. "Zhou! It's our surname."

Zhou Qinghe pointed again. "What about this one?"

"Wu..."

"And this one?"

"Feng..."

Zhou Qinghe plopped down on the stool. "Good heavens! You really do know them all!"

Zhou Qinghe had secretly learned the Hundred Family Surnames from the eldest son's children, so he knew some of the characters in it.

Zhou Wanwan looked at him. "Yes! It's as if I suddenly came to know them. Brothers, do you want to learn?"

Zhou Qingchen nodded. "Yes, I do! I love learning most of all. Little Sister, will you teach us?"

Zhou Wanwan nodded earnestly. "I'll start by teaching you the Hundred Family Surnames today! Tomorrow we'll make some sand and soil and practice writing and drawing with sticks."

Zhou Wanwan taught them five characters, and they quickly understood them all. It had to be said that her three older brothers were quite impressive: they could remember something after seeing it once.

Zhou Wanwan smiled.

"Bite off more than you can chew, and you won't digest it. Why don't we continue learning tomorrow?

And I think we should write on the ground more. That way the characters will stick in your minds."

Zhou Qingyan was still a little reluctant to stop. "All right. I'll make a sand tray tomorrow morning. Let's get some rest early!"

Zhou Wanwan was truly tired. She was exhausted after spending the whole day digging up medicinal herbs on the mountain, and fell straight asleep.

That night, as she slept in a daze, she suddenly heard a potted spider plant beside her say, "Someone's come in. This little girl is sleeping so soundly, I'm afraid she's in for terrible luck."

Zhou Wanwan suddenly opened her eyes and saw that someone really was prying the door open.

Zhou Wanwan moved extremely quickly. She picked up the dagger beside her and hid in a corner.

Before long, she heard Pockmarked Liu's voice:

"You were sold to me as a wife, and you still want to run? Heh heh heh, tonight I'll have my way with you.

Then I'll have gotten you without spending a single copper. Now that's what I call practical. Spirit Medium Zhou really is clever."

He stumbled toward the bed and threw himself onto it, then hugged the quilt and kissed it fiercely. "Wife, where are you running? I'll treat you well. When you grow up, give me a son."

Zhou Wanwan picked up the dagger and stabbed it viciously into his neck.

Zhou Wanwan picked up a rag and covered his mouth. All she could see was blood everywhere...