In September, there were plenty of household chores to tend to.

The vegetable garden had to be tilled quickly to plant winter vegetables, and the maize stalks in the fields had to be cut down to let the sweet potatoes see the light of day, so they could grow a bit in the soil during the final two months. The fields without sweet potatoes were even more urgent—they had to be prepared for planting wheat.

The same went for the rice paddies that had been harvested; aside from the seedbeds set aside for raising seedlings for the coming year, most of them had to be planted with wheat.

There’s plenty of work in the fields, and plenty at home as well.

In September and October, it’s time to go up into the mountains to chop firewood. The family’s annual supply of firewood must be stockpiled in advance so that later, whether during the busy farming season or come rain or shine, they can focus on working or resting at home without worrying about running out of firewood for the stove.

Wan Dongyang’s family didn’t own much land. When the family split up years ago, Wan’s parents, recognizing that Wan Yong’an had a talent for gathering medicinal herbs and was still young enough to help build up Wan Dongyang’s livelihood, allocated him a smaller share of the family’s land, giving half of it to their second son.

When the group arrived home, Mother Wan was squatting by the ditch outside the door, washing clothes. Liu Qishuang recognized their wedding robes and hurried over to offer to wash them herself, but Mother Wan smiled and stepped aside, saying only that from now on, he would have to do the washing himself—but today, she’d let him off the hook.

Wan Dongyang’s clothes had always been washed by his mother and older sister-in-law. Seeing his mother doing laundry didn’t strike him as unusual, but upon hearing his words

, he quickly glanced at the fulang standing before him.

That’s right—he’d married a fulang, so it was only natural for his fulang to wash his clothes. But his fulang looked so small; wouldn’t this be like bullying a child? The group entered the house, where only Wan Xiaohua and Lin Qiuyue were at home.

His second older brother and his wife were rushing to clear the rice paddy and had gone out to work in the fields; Father Wan had gone to help them as well.

As soon as Wan Yong’an got home, he slung a back basket over his back, grabbed a small hoe, and was about to head out for the mountains. Wan Xiaohua’s eyes lit up at the sight; she hurried back into the house—clearly to get her gear ready so she could follow her uncle into the mountains.

Liu Qishuang saw that everyone in the household had work to do, and not wanting to sit idle, asked Wan Dongyang if there was any work he could do.

Lin Qiuyue, however, cut in: “Shuang, you don’t need to bother. Ask Third Brother to show you around the house and fill you in on what’s going on here. Once you’re done with your chores, if you’re bored, come over and keep me company while I do some needlework.”

“Big Sister-in-Law, I’ll have him come find you in a bit.” Wan Dongyang was in the middle of discussing something important with someone else, so without a moment’s hesitation, he grabbed the person and pulled them into the room. The window in Wan Dongyang’s room faced the east wall. Although it was an inner room, the light was still quite good during the day when the window was open.

Since he hadn’t been married yet, the room contained nothing but a bed, a wardrobe, and a square table by the window.

After his marriage was arranged, his parents placed a dressing table at the head of the bed and tossed a woven bamboo basket into the room, telling him to make do with it, since his original wardrobe had to be cleared out for his new fulang.

Only the dressing table wasn’t new—it was part of Lin Qiuyue’s dowry.

The dressing table Lin Qiuyue had been using all these years was the one the Wan family had prepared for her back then; her own had been sitting idle all this time, but now that her younger brother’s fulang had moved in, it came in handy.

As soon as the two entered the room, Wan Dongyang pulled his over to sit by the window. He pulled a small wooden chest from under the bed, then tipped it onto the wooden table by the window, instantly filling the table with silver and copper coins.

Liu Qishuang’s lips curled upward at the sight of the table covered in silver and copper cash. he quickly gathered the scattered silver ingots and copper cash into the center. Once all the cash was piled together, Wan Dongyang set the whole silver ingots aside, took out a small scale to weigh the loose silver, and finally began counting the copper cash.

While Wan Dongyang counted the cash, Liu Qishuang held the small scale in his hands, examining it as if it were some rare treasure. he studied it intently, his eyes fixed on the balance beam for a long time, unable to look away.

After counting the copper coins on the table once, Wan Dongyang had a rough idea of the total. He sat down to one side and called out to his fulang to count the copper coins again, to double-check that their counts matched.

Liu Qishuang was, of course, more than happy to count the cash; he’d been eager to do it himself for a while. As soon as Wan Dongyang finished speaking, he quickly set down the small scale and began working at lightning speed, using both hands to scoop up five coins at a time, and soon had the total number of coins tallied.

“Five hundred short.” Liu Qishuang looked at Wan Dongyang as he called out the count, waiting carefully for him to verify the numbers. Wan Dongyang truly hadn’t expected his young fulang to be so quick-witted—much smarter than he’d imagined.

Nodding in satisfaction, Wan Dongyang was just about to tell him how much silver there was when Liu Qishuang stood up and walked over to his dowry chest, pulling out a pouch of silver coins from inside.

Yesterday, the Wan family had carried the betrothal gifts to the Liu household. After welcoming the bride, they had taken all the gifts back as part of his dowry. When the items were brought back, Liu Qishuang’s parents had instructed the servants to move them directly into Wan Dongyang’s room, since they were now part of his dowry and he was free to handle them as he saw fit.

When he saw those trunks and baskets in the bridal chamber yesterday, Liu Qishuang knew those items were meant for them—her parents wouldn’t take them back.

He was overjoyed—he finally had his own cash, and what’s more, he didn’t have to hide it away on the sly; it was cash he could use openly and honestly.

“Here.” Opening the cash pouch, Liu Qishuang took out a copper coin and handed it to Wan Dongyang, rounding the amount to a whole number. As a result, the pile of copper coins came to exactly five hundred.

Wan Dongyang was amused by the sight of someone turning a single wen into ten taels of gold. He gently smoothed out the pile of five hundred wens and took two taels of silver from the silver pile.

“Here’s your change.” Earlier, when Liu Qishuang had angrily come to return the cash, Wan Dongyang had actually kept those two liang of silver when he left.

He was afraid she’d take the silver home and run into that couple—in which case the silver would be snatched away. So he took the silver and told his he’d return it once they were married.

Liu Qishuang was just thinking about those two liang of silver—they were the source of his confidence, courtesy of Wan Dongyang. Without them, he would have long since given up on the idea of having someone become his husband.

After accepting the two liang of silver, Liu Qishuang now had four liang in his cash pouch. Just as he was feeling pleased, Wan Dongyang pointed to a wooden chest he’d been rummaging through moments earlier and told him to look under the chest to see what was there.

Liu Qishuang knew there must be something good inside. He hurried over and, after pushing aside some cloth and bedding, discovered a huge ingot of silver at the very bottom of the chest!

“Husband! It’s silver!” Liu Qishuang had only ever heard of “silver hidden at the bottom of a chest”; he never imagined there would actually be silver there—and that it was his!

Overcome with excitement, Liu Qishuang blurted out the term of endearment he’d been thinking in his heart. Wan Dongyang was momentarily startled by the sudden address, but he quickly regained his composure. After all, they were married now—calling him “husband” was perfectly natural.

When Liu Qishuang carried the silver to the table, he was smiling so broadly that only a sliver of his larger eye was visible. Seeing his so overjoyed, Wan Dongyang decided to make his even happier.

“My parents had already set aside the betrothal gift for me to give to my fulang. Since our wedding was so rushed, the actual expenses were less than we’d planned. This silver was meant as the betrothal gift—now that I’ve married you, it naturally belongs to you. Keep it safe, and spend it however you like.”

In many families, when a fulang marries a bride, he must prepare not only the betrothal silver but also numerous other items, among which large pieces of furniture and jewelry are the most expensive. Since their marriage had been arranged in such a hurry, they had barely prepared any furniture, and the jewelry was merely a ready-made set they’d purchased.

A ger’s jewelry isn’t as flashy as a young woman’s, so naturally, it doesn’t cost as much. Now, those silver earrings and rings were already adorning Liu Qishuang.

“Husband, how much silver is this? Is it ten liang?” Liu Qishuang had never seen a full ten liang of silver before, let alone held it in his hands. he couldn’t bear to put the silver down, so he tipped it back and forth, estimating that it must be ten liang.

Wan Dongyang gave a slight nod in acknowledgment, then took some loose silver and two small silver ingots from his pile, making up a total of five taels, which he pushed across to her.

“Here, this is for you. You can spend it however you like. I originally had a hundred taels of silver, but after buying that old bear pelt for Father, I only have fifty left

; otherwise, I could have given you a bit more.”

“It’s for me?” Liu Qishuang’s lips hadn’t stopped curving into a smile since she’d entered the room.

He happily accepted the silver, quickly stowed it in his cash pouch, and then held the pouch in his hands with a beaming smile, though he didn’t say a word. Since Wan Dongyang had already laid out his family’s financial situation, he took the opportunity to explain the family affairs as well.

Back when the family divided their property, they had a total of ten mu of paddy fields and ten mu of dry land. Wan’s parents decided to allocate half of his second older brother’s fields to his family, while the remaining half was split equally between the two brothers.

“I received three mu of paddy fields and two mu of dry land. Since I wasn’t married, the produce from these fields was used to feed the whole family. Also, although I was the one who originally raised the family’s pigeons, Father took care of them later on, so naturally I couldn’t keep the income all to myself—I split it fifty-fifty with my family.”

Wan Dongyang shared these details simply to give people a general understanding of his family’s situation. After listening to his explanation, however, Liu Qishuang’s thoughts turned elsewhere.

“Since Second Brother moved out to live on his own after getting married, might they also be allocated their own share? But they don’t even have a house yet.”

When Wan Dongyang saw his nod, he fell silent. Thinking he was worried about the cash they’d be allocated, he added, “Don’t worry about the cash. Although we no longer have the merchant caravans traveling abroad, and we’ll earn considerably less this year, I’ve found other avenues. I’ll make a profit this October, so don’t worry about the family running out of cash.”

“I can earn money too,” Liu Qishuang shook his head, indicating he wasn’t worried, yet he looked at him with a determined gaze, as if to tell Wan Dongyang that he wasn’t just a good-for-nothing who lived off others—he could earn money too.

Back when he lived at home, no matter how much cash was earned, none of it ever made it into his hands; even spending a few copper coins required sneaking around. Naturally, he had no motivation to earn cash back then. But now that whatever he earns stays in his own hands, he’ll naturally find ways to make money.

Wan Dongyang had long known that his young fulang was a penny-pincher, but he didn’t see anything wrong with that. On the contrary, he thought it was a good thing that his fulang was eager to make money; when he had some free time later, he could teach him how to do the math and keep accounts.

He was sharp-witted; he should pick it up quickly.

Having discussed all the important family matters with everyone, Wan Dongyang was about to take someone to check on the pigeons behind the house. Just as the two of them stepped outside, they ran into Mother Wan returning home. She mentioned that the Song family’s Xiaoya had been wandering around outside for quite a while—perhaps looking for someone—and told Liu Qishuang to go out and take a look.

As soon as Liu Qishuang heard this, he hurried out—Sai Xue had actually come looking for him.

Liu Qishuang stepped out of the courtyard gate but didn’t see anyone. When he reached the roadside, he spotted a head peeking out from the corner by the loquat tree, and only then did he call out.

“Sai Xue!”

As soon as Song Sai Xue heard Liu Qishuang’s voice, she stopped hiding and rushed out, running straight to him and feeling all over his body.

“Did he hit you last night?” Song Saixue’s face was full of concern. Liu Qishuang was taken aback by the question. Who would hit him? Wan Dongyang?

“Who’s spreading rumors? I’m perfectly fine—why would anyone hit me?” Liu Qishuang pulled her toward the Wan family’s house, but Song Saixue didn’t want to go. She pointed to the loquat tree beside them; she wanted to climb it to say something.

She’d wanted to climb that loquat tree at the Wan family’s house for a long time, but since she wasn’t close with the Wan family, she hadn’t dared to.

When they were little, the two of them used to climb trees and play with the other village kids all the time. As long as there was a big tree, even if they had nothing in their hands, just sitting in the tree and swaying the branches could keep them entertained for half a day.

Liu Qishuang hesitated for a moment, then nodded in agreement.

He thought to himself that since it was now his family’s loquat tree, there shouldn’t be any harm in climbing it.

The two climbed up the tree, no longer worried that anyone might overhear them, and with their inhibitions gone, Song Saixue finally explained why she’d come looking for him so urgently.

“Didn’t your family turn down the Wan family’s marriage proposal earlier? Then someone saw you going to the Wan family’s house—which, in itself, wasn’t a big deal. But yesterday, you and Wan Dongyang suddenly got married, and that night, Wan Dongyang threw a huge tantrum. My mother said you must have used the debt of gratitude for saving his life to pressure the Wan family into the marriage, forcing Wan Dongyang to marry you. He wasn’t happy about it, which is why he made such a scene last night.”

Song Saixue spoke earnestly, as if that were exactly how it had happened.

Liu Qishuang hadn’t expected last night’s events to be interpreted this way, but it actually sounded quite plausible—no wonder Saixue had been so frightened.

Just as he was about to explain, Song Saixue cut in, “I was afraid he’d hit you, so I came to find you as soon as I finished my chores at home.”

Liu Qishuang hadn’t expected that last night’s unexpected incident would lead to such a misunderstanding. He wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry, but he knew that no explanation would be as convincing as tangible evidence.

Hurriedly rolling up his sleeve, Liu Qishuang intended to show them his large silver bracelet, only to find his wrist bare. It was then that he remembered the bracelet was too loose—it kept falling off when he wore it—so he’d put it away.

He didn’t have the large silver bracelet, but he had other things.

Liu Qishuang held his left ear up to the other person’s face so they could see what was on it, then extended his left pinky finger for them to examine. With a smug smile, he said, “These are all fine pieces—none of them are plain. Some are ornate; they must not have been cheap. My in-laws treat me very well.”

After showing off the gifts his in-laws had prepared for her, it was time to talk about Wan Dongyang. Liu Qishuang felt a little embarrassed, but he continued anyway: “He’s very kind, too. He just gave me some silver to spend as I please. Next time we go to the market, I’ll buy you something delicious—I have cash now.”

As close friends, Song Saixue could naturally tell whether Liu Qishuang was lying or not.

“That’s wonderful.” Only after Song Saixue finally felt at ease did she have a chance to look around at the loquat tree, which was now bare of fruit, and then she chuckled, “So can I come eat loquats here next year?”

“Of course you can.” his parents weren’t stingy people; they wouldn’t mind if others came to pick a few loquats to eat. It was just that the village children were afraid of Wan Dongyang and didn’t dare come to ask for fruit.

With Song Saixue’s worries put to rest, it was now Liu Qishuang’s turn to worry.

he glanced toward his home, then toward the village entrance. he bit his lip, hesitating for a moment, before finally tugging at Song Saixue’s sleeve and pleading, “Saixue, could you keep an eye on the village entrance for me? If you see my parents coming back, come tell me right away.”

He was afraid that if those two suddenly returned, his grandfather would be beaten to death.

After Liu Qishuang and Song Saixue went their separate ways, he went with Wan Dongyang to check on the pigeons behind the house. But with his mind elsewhere, he wasn’t really interested, and since he was eager to join Lin Qiuyue for some needlework, he returned after just a short while.

Lin Qiuyue was very skilled at needlework. Liu Qishuang had originally just been helping her untangle the cotton thread, but watching the lifelike flowers she embroidered filled him with envy. When Lin Qiuyue asked him what kind of embroidery he could do, he honestly admitted he didn’t know how to do any.

All he knew how to do was sew a single stitch to mend a torn piece of clothing.

Lin Qiuyue was amused by his honesty, thinking to herself that this young man was indeed sincere—he hadn’t tried to put on a brave front or tell lies just because he was new to his in-laws’ home.

“It’s okay. You’ll learn as you go. Setting aside everything else, as a husband and fulang, we absolutely must know how to sew and mend. Otherwise, if a man works hard all day to earn cash but comes home to find he can’t even wear a decent set of clothes or a good pair of shoes, that just won’t do.”

“Mm-hmm,” Liu Qishuang nodded in agreement.

He didn’t know about the others, but he certainly couldn’t bear to see Lin Qiuyue doing heavy labor in the fields. In a marriage, couples should look out for each other—you can’t expect one person to do everything while the other does nothing. No one should be a freeloader.

Since his older sister-in-law didn’t do much work outside the home, she must be managing the household very well.

Liu Qishuang had always wanted to learn needlework; he greatly admired Song Saixue for being able to earn cash through embroidery. Now that he had the chance to learn, he was very earnest and constantly asked questions.

Lin Qiuyue showed not the slightest impatience; seeing how attentive and earnest he was, she felt deeply satisfied.

She’d been afraid this ger might be one way before marriage and another afterward—pretending to be pitiful to win the Third Brother’s sympathy before the wedding, only to turn out as foolish as his parents and get into trouble afterward. For now, though she couldn’t be certain of his true nature, he seemed like someone capable of managing a household.

Before she knew it, it was past the middle of the Shen hour. Lin Qiuyue went to prepare dinner, and Liu Qishuang naturally followed to help. Lin Qiuyue took the opportunity to briefly explain the family’s preferences to him and showed him where the rice and flour were stored, as well as where the meat was kept.

Liu Qishuang was eager to learn everything at the moment. Having just arrived at this household, he felt as if his feet were treading on cotton—utterly detached from reality—and his heart was filled with anxiety; the more he understood about this family, the more at ease he would feel.

The two chatted as they cooked. By the time dinner was ready, Liu Qishuang had learned quite a bit about the household, and even his expression had become much more relaxed and natural.

It was past the middle of the You hour when the workers returned from the fields. Liu Qishuang helped serve the dishes and pass the rice, but Mrs. Wan called out for everyone to stop fussing—after all, a new fulang shouldn’t be doing such work. Liu Qishuang didn’t reply; he just smiled and carried on with what he was doing.

Earlier, while cooking, Lin Qiuyue had already told everyone that the second son and his wife had huge appetites, and if the whole family was eating together, they absolutely had to cook two extra bowls of rice. Liu Qishuang hadn’t really grasped just how big their appetites were until now, when he saw the bowls in front of the couple—which were noticeably a whole size larger than theirs—and watched them have their rice refilled time and time again. Only then did he understand why his elder sister-in-law had emphasized this so repeatedly.

Their appetites really are huge!

If he’d cooked according to his own judgment, there definitely wouldn’t have been enough to go around.

Watching his second older brother and his wife eat so heartily, Liu Qishuang began to pay close attention to Wan Dongyang beside him. When he noticed that Wan Dongyang was eating quite a lot as well, an idea formed in his mind.

That evening, he couldn’t help but ask.

“Wan Dongyang, are you as strong as my second older brother?” Once they were tucked into the same quilt, Liu Qishuang’s courage grew considerably.

First, he tentatively tugged at the person’s clothes; seeing no reaction, he slowly wrapped his arms around him, pulling his entire arm into his embrace.

Wan Dongyang couldn’t figure out what was going on in his young fulang’s head—why did he keep asking such random, nonsensical questions?

“I’m not too bad, but Second Brother really is strong.”

“Huh?” Liu Qishuang’s face fell; he couldn’t very well ask his second older brother to go back with him. “My dad’s pretty strong.” He could grab him and toss him

out.”

“Ha.” Wan Dongyang was amused; he knew exactly what this little rascal was getting at. He just wanted to know if he could beat his own father, didn’t he?

“Do you think I’m that useless?”

“Well, could you lift him up and toss him onto the roof?”