Scarlett pushed her bicycle home.
Elizabeth had been worried sick. Scarlett was late, and when they’d finished the day’s work without seeing her, Elizabeth was about to head out to look. Luckily, Scarlett returned just in time. Despite tidying herself up, the faint smell of broken eggs lingered on her clothes.
“I fell on the road and had to push the bike back. A lot of eggs got smashed,” Scarlett admitted.
Elizabeth didn’t care about the eggs. She immediately asked, “Are you hurt? Let me check!”
Scarlett twirled around and jumped up and down to reassure her.
“I’m fine. I actually ran into two kind-hearted comrades who gave me a lift part of the way. I promised to bring them breakfast tomorrow to thank them.”
“Why don’t you take a break tomorrow?”
“I already said I’d bring them breakfast. Besides, I ate dinner in the city. What about you? What’s for dinner?”
Harvesting rice was exhausting, with sweat and bits of grass sticking to their skin. William and Amanda were off washing up, while Elizabeth kept an eye on Michael and prepared dinner. Now that Scarlett was home, Elizabeth shooed her off to take a bath.
Michael clung to Scarlett, asking, “Scarlett, when will you take me to the city to play?”
His puppy-dog eyes melted Scarlett’s resolve. She pinched his cheek playfully.
“Your sister’s busy earning money. How can I take you to play? But if you’re good, I’ll bring you a present tomorrow.”
Michael’s eyes lit up. He thought for a moment and held out his hand.
“I don’t believe you. You promised before and snuck off without me. Let’s pinky swear!”
Michael stuck out his pinky, and Scarlett had no choice but to hook her pinky with his.
They chanted, “Pinky swear! A hundred years, no breaking the promise. Whoever breaks it is a puppy!”
William came out of the bath just in time to hear this.
“You little rascal! Who’s the puppy?” he teased.
If Scarlett was a puppy, then William, as her uncle, would have to be the big dog!
Michael darted away, and William pretended to chase after him, though his exhaustion from the day’s work meant it was all for show. Scarlett intervened, laughing.
“Uncle, we were just playing. It’s fine!”
Her words made William chuckle. “Listen to you, sounding so grown-up. You’re still just a kid yourself!”
Eighteen was old enough to marry, but to William, Scarlett was still half a child.
He sighed. Scarlett’s family situation was pitiful—biased relatives, an irresponsible father, and the burden of supporting her household at such a young age.
“You really just fell?” William asked, skeptical.
Scarlett hesitated but decided not to hide the truth.
“I was attacked by some thugs. They even knew my background. Do you think my bad reputation has reached the county?”
William shuddered at the thought. “I’ll head into the city tomorrow to ask around and thank those two saviors of yours. Do you really think treating them to breakfast is enough?”
“But the fields…”
“Don’t worry, I’ll arrange for help. The harvest won’t be delayed.”
—
Elizabeth worried about Scarlett’s plan to cook breakfast. Scarlett’s skills were limited—she could whip up a fresh stir-fry but struggled with more intricate dishes.
Amanda interjected, “The pickled radishes we made earlier are ready. Mince them with some chicken, and you can make pickled radish and chicken dumplings.”
Pure meat dumplings?
That hadn’t even crossed Scarlett’s mind. In this era, just having some meat flavor was a luxury. Pure meat fillings were practically unheard of!
