am-books Chapter 348: Daily Life on the Farm 20
Chapter 348: Daily Life on the Farm 20
"You’re different from everyone else. Even if I had met many other people that day, I would have still walked straight to you."
His expression was incredibly serious. "If I could do it all over again, I’d make the same choice."
—
Miles Vaughn’s wedding came to a close. The next morning, it began to snow on Immeasurable Mountain again. A frigid wind howled past, whipping the fine snow into flurries. A thick layer had already settled on the wooden cabins, and Chet Lawrence brought some people over to clear it. Ronan Kendrick was an early riser, and Evelyn Ford heard him chatting with Quincy in the courtyard.
Evelyn Ford stepped outside with a cup of hot water to find that Drako and Nathan Xavier had already scraped the snow off the roof.
"And here I thought the snow had stopped," Quincy said with a yawn. He clearly stayed up all night watching TV. "I can’t believe it only let up for one day."
"Has anyone checked the greenhouses today?" Evelyn Ford asked, taking a sip of hot water as she looked at them.
Chet Lawrence raised his hand. "I did. The wheat has already sprouted."
"That’s good. Keep the greenhouse sealed for another two weeks before opening it again." ’The wheat field is full of crown daisy,’ she thought. ’The plants we didn’t finish harvesting last time all went to seed, so we should be able to get a good crop this time around.’
’Crown daisy can be used as a filling for dumplings, served as a cold salad, or simply stir-fried.’
"The radish seedlings have sprouted too, but the cabbages are growing more slowly."
"Let’s get some of the cabbage we stored in the cellar and make kimchi. Does the farm have any large crocks left?"
"We do. How many crocks should we make?"
Evelyn Ford did a quick calculation. "One crock holds about two hundred pounds. Let’s make four or five. And doesn’t the kitchen have an oven? We can dry some radish strips. They’ll be easy to store and can be eaten like pickles."
Quincy nodded. "Alright, I’ll go tell Aunt Crane in a bit."
"By the way, is Zoe Hughes still at your place? What are you thinking of doing about her?"
Quincy shrugged. "Wyatt loves her. I think having Zoe here has fulfilled a dream of hers. I support her, and I accept Zoe. I’ll treat her as my own child."
Evelyn Ford understood.
"Once she becomes your child, she’ll be your greatest vulnerability. She’ll be a weight on your conscience and a tether on your actions. You won’t be able to live like you did before. From this moment on, you’ll be responsible for her upbringing and her safety. Even so, are you still willing?"
’Evelyn Ford was just curious. Could someone really give so much for another life, even without any blood ties?’
’She’d thought about this question many times. Ever since she could remember, the biggest thing people talked about when it came to her was the fact that she wasn’t her parents’ biological daughter.’
’At first, she took all the love and tolerance her parents gave her for granted. But as she got older and heard the whispers more often, she grew sensitive. Because she wasn’t their biological child, she carried a heavy sense of guilt.’
’Her parents saved millions for her, provided her with the best education, and poured all their energy and heart into raising her. Even in their final moments, they were still worried about her.’
’If it weren’t for her, they would never have had to work so hard.’
"Of course I’m willing," Quincy said, his usual playful grin gone. In his eyes was a paternal love and resolve that Evelyn Ford had never seen before. "Because from the moment I accepted her, she became my child. A parent’s love is unconditional."
"That man who came to trade for supplies... his own clothes were stuffed with scraps of cloth and cattail fluff for warmth, but his daughter was wearing his two thickest coats. I believe I can be a good father, too."
Evelyn Ford was silent for a few seconds before breaking into a gentle smile. "I believe you can."
After Quincy left, Ronan Kendrick moved to stand beside Evelyn Ford and handed her a snowball.
"If you’re unhappy, you can throw it at me."
"And what if I’m happy?"
"You can still throw it at me."
Evelyn Ford handed him her cup and stretched lazily. "I just had a realization, so I’m in a great mood now."
"I realize now that I’ve always been hung up on my origins. I’ve been fixated on the fact that I was an abandoned baby. Whenever anyone brought it up, I’d bristle like a porcupine, full of resentment, anger, and maybe even self-pity. But what Quincy just said... it was like an epiphany. Even though I was abandoned, someone took me home and gave me all their love. The moment they decided to become my parents, a new bond formed between us. I became someone new—not the baby who was thrown away, but their daughter."
The gloom in Evelyn Ford’s eyes vanished. "I was so foolish before. I always treated it like a stain on my name, like my Achilles’ heel. Anyone could use it to hit me where it hurt."
Ronan Kendrick shook his head. "You were too young then. It takes time for a person to mature and learn to accept themselves. The young are always sensitive and fragile."
Evelyn Ford looked up at Ronan Kendrick. "Right. I’m just old now."
Ronan Kendrick was at a loss for words.
"That’s not what I meant."
"I’m not listening, I’m not listening, I’m not listening!"
"So, that comforting advice you just gave me... did you come to that realization on your own?"
"Nope. I read it in a psychology book."
Evelyn Ford was speechless.
—
The man who had previously begged Evelyn Ford to take in his daughter suddenly appeared, braving the snow to trade for supplies. He had a bundle of firewood on his pushcart, still covered in snow and mud. The man was shivering violently. Evelyn Ford had Aunt Crane pour him a cup of hot water, which he drank with trembling hands. The skin on his face was tinged purple from the cold. Quincy told him to warm himself by the kitchen fire, but as he stared at the clean room, he seemed at a complete loss.
"My shoes... they’re dirty."
"Don’t worry about it. Hurry and get warm by the fire. You’re frozen solid."
The man sat before the fire, looking tense.
"This isn’t much firewood. I’ll go cut more tomorrow. But... could I possibly get some grain on credit? My daughter hasn’t eaten in two days."
As he spoke, he suddenly dropped to his knees. "Please, I’m begging you."
Quincy remembered the man and hurried to pull him up. "Hey, sir, calm down. Just warm yourself by the fire first. Don’t you know that once you get this cold, your body can’t get blood to your limbs? You could freeze to death!"
"I was just so desperate, I’m sorry. But my daughter is truly starving. She has a weak stomach. I dug up some tree roots for her to eat, but it made her severely bloated. I know the farm isn’t trading for supplies right now, but I have absolutely nowhere else to turn."
Quincy looked to Evelyn Ford. After all, she had the final say on the farm. ’The firewood on the cart is probably only forty or fifty pounds,’ he thought. ’There’s no way to get into the mountains right now. He must have gone through hell to cut even this much.’
Evelyn Ford looked at Chet Lawrence and Miles Vaughn. "Take the horses to Fairgate and bring the child back."
The man froze, but Quincy was thrilled. "Evelyn, are you letting them come work at the farm?"
Evelyn Ford looked at the man. "The farm is currently short on people to clean the latrines. Are you willing to do it?"
The man’s body went limp, and he slid right off the stool. "I can?"
He was so overcome with emotion that his whole body shook. His lips trembled for a long time, but he couldn’t seem to find any words.
"You’ll also have to muck out the manure from the horse stables and the sheep pen."
The man was so overwhelmed with emotion, and so weakened by the cold, that he was rendered completely speechless. Evelyn Ford urged Chet Lawrence and Miles Vaughn to hurry and bring back the child and their belongings.
"Starving for two days... I wonder how that poor child is doing." Since taking in Zoe Hughes, Wyatt Vaughn had been overflowing with maternal love and couldn’t bear to see any child suffer.