CHAPTER 106: CHAPTER 106: THE LITTLE KITTEN IS BACK

"Mom, when is Dad coming back?"

Second Aunt was sowing seeds while Xiaomi was pulling weeds with her big brother. It was the sunny spring of March, and the goose grass in the field was growing lush and even flowering.

If they didn’t clear the weeds in time, wild grass would grow even fiercer next year.

As for Second Daughter, she was of course watching the children. Little Tiedan was quiet but, if left unattended, could be quite destructive.

Second Aunt carried a small cloth bag in one hand and grabbed a handful of sorghum seeds with the other, scattering them lightly so the seeds fell evenly onto the soil without missing a spot.

Xiaomi watched with envy. She couldn’t do it like this; if she tried to scatter seeds, they often clumped together. But for an experienced worker like Second Aunt, it was nothing.

"He should be back soon. Your dad left early this morning, perhaps he’ll return shortly."

The Big Water Buffalo was very clever, well-acquainted with the route from Fu’an Village to town. It didn’t even need Jiang Hu’s guidance and could walk on its own.

So, even if Jiang Hu left early, he could take a nap on the ox cart.

Xiaomi was thinking about the kitten, wondering what kind of kitten it was.

Once the sorghum was done, Second Aunt called out to Second Daughter to make sure the siblings hadn’t wandered off too far and they started pulling weeds together.

Most of the wild grass in the wheat field was goose grass, many of which had climbed onto the wheat stalks.

In a few days, this grass would be about to wither, generally not affecting the wheat harvest.

But theirs was different, if the wild grass wasn’t removed, the next crop would be more abundant for sure.

The goose grass was quite old now, and chickens didn’t really eat it anymore, but they could still carry it home for the pigs, especially since it came from their own fields.

Tiedan got bored after playing for a while and wanted to join them in working. Second Daughter simply called him to pull weeds, watching closely to ensure he only pulled grass and didn’t touch the wheat stalks.

The corn planted in the middle of the wheat field had also sprouted tender shoots, just breaking through the soil. Everyone knew to be careful and avoid stepping on them.

Yet Tiedan stretched out his fingers, trying to poke at the corn seedlings to dig them out. Luckily, Second Daughter was vigilant and didn’t let him succeed.

When the sun was glaring, around midday, Second Aunt was ready to take the children home. At long last, Jiang Hu arrived with a load of manure. From afar, they could hear people greeting Jiang Hu.

Xiaomi cheered and ran, luckily remembering not to step on the corn.

"Dad, you’re back!" Xiaomi quickly ran to the edge of the field: "Did you catch the kitten?"

She continued scanning around her father’s hands, finally realizing that even if he caught it, he wouldn’t bring it to the field.

Jiang Hu: "I caught it, it’s confined in the kitchen. If Xiaomi wants to see it, you can have your big brother take you home first?"

Xiaomi shouted with joy, quickly calling out: "Big brother, hurry up, let’s go back and see the kitten first."

Knowing Xiaomi couldn’t contain herself, her big brother started gathering goose grass to put in his small basket as she got up to run off, reducing the burden their parents would carry later.

The siblings rushed home, receiving many invitations along the way to catch loaches in the fields in the afternoon.

As soon as they got home, Xiaomi couldn’t wait and dashed towards the kitchen, immediately hearing a kitten’s meow coming from the corner as she entered the door.

’Woof woof~’

Besides the kitten, was there also Xiaobai?

Xiaomi hurriedly searched around, finding Xiaobai in the corner of the kitchen, with an overturned basket nearby. The kitten’s meowing was emanating from inside it.

"Xiaobai, come here." Xiaomi quickly pushed Xiaobai away: "Don’t scare the kitten."

Her big brother entered and shut the door behind him: "Xiaomi, be careful not to let the kitten run away. If it escapes, we won’t be able to catch it."

Xiaomi nodded repeatedly, opened a small gap in the basket, reached her hand inside, and let a drop of spiritual spring water trickle from her fingertip, trying to attract the kitten.

The kitten remained still, but Xiaobai was getting anxious, jumping and barking next to Xiaomi, probably having already smelled the spiritual spring water.

Luckily, her big brother came over and promptly chased Xiaobai away: "Why did Dad lock Xiaobai in the kitchen as well."

"Maybe he wasn’t paying attention." As she spoke, Xiaomi felt the kitten licking her fingers.

Her eyes lit up, quickly letting the spiritual spring water pool in her palm, and when the kitten continued licking from her palm, she caught it in one swift move.

It was only two-handful size, a tabby cat with slightly dark, almost black fur—no wonder, with tabby and black parentage.

Xiaomi hugged the kitten in her arms. It kept meowing, trying to escape.

"So cute." Xiaomi’s eyes sparkled, reaching to stroke its neck and back, and the kitten quickly calmed down, not struggling anymore, even letting out a contented purring sound.

Xiaobai returned, seeing that its owner had been snatched, anxiously circling around Xiaomi’s feet, trying to remind her.

Seeing Xiaomi had caught the kitten, her big brother was preparing to leave: "Xiaomi, don’t let the kitten escape."

Once her big brother left, Xiaomi quickly threw Xiaobai a piece of pet jerky. With the jerky in its mouth, Xiaobai stopped barking and ran to the side to gnaw at it.

Sure enough, the food was more tempting.

Xiaomi sat on a small stool with the kitten. The kitten seemed to be barely a month old, with no good set of teeth yet, making Xiaomi wonder how to feed it.

But since Dad had captured it, there must be a way. She didn’t dare tinker too much and just secretly offered it more spiritual spring water, leaving food for when her parents returned.

The allure of the spiritual spring water kept the kitten from struggling even if Xiaomi didn’t hold it tightly.

"I’ll give you a name then, how about calling you Xiaomi? I’m Xiaomi, and you’re Xiaomi, just like me."

Xiaomi mumbled the name to herself, and the kitten responded with two meows, as if quite satisfied.

Originally, they were supposed to go to the fields in the afternoon, but now, with a cat and dog at home, Xiaomi didn’t want to go out. The fluffy kitten was wonderful and lovable.

When Jiang Hu and others finished in the fields and returned, they planned to find a rope and tie the kitten under the eaves, so it wouldn’t escape.

After all, having just caught it, the kitten would be wary. If it ran off, it’d be hard to find, as kittens aren’t as homing as dogs.

However, Jiang Hu’s plan was stopped by Xiaomi. The kitten was smart enough, and with spiritual spring water, as long as it wasn’t scared, it certainly wouldn’t run away.

To take good care of the kitten, Xiaomi didn’t go to the fields for several days in a row. This was problematic, while the Jiang family didn’t hurry, others did.

Regardless of whether they’d had disagreements with the Jiang family before, they came over with eggs or bought treats that children liked.

It had no other purpose but to ask Jiang Hu and Second Aunt not to watch the children too closely and let them, especially Xiaomi, have some time to play in the fields.

Jiang Hu and Second Aunt were dumbfounded. They didn’t stop their children from going out; it was Xiaomi who was constantly thinking about the kitten.

Nevertheless, generally speaking, people didn’t like kids playing in the fields, fearing they might accidentally damage the crops.

But the situation was different for Xiaomi: everyone changed their attitude completely, afraid that she wouldn’t go.