While the Shen household bustled with their meal, Brother Shen Dage and his wife had expected today to bring conflict. Sending their second son away had felt unkind, but necessity had driven them—their household simply couldn’t sustain him anymore.

Though Shen Dasao disliked Shen Linchuan, she still sent her husband to town yesterday to buy groceries. She cleaned the house inside and out, even teaching the two children proper manners to avoid embarrassment.

Today, to her surprise, Shen Linchuan didn’t seem to care at all. Perhaps getting married had finally made him grow up. As long as Shen Linchuan stopped causing trouble, life would be easier for both families.

Shen Dasao stopped giving Shen Linchuan the cold shoulder. After all, she had watched him grow up. She just hated to see his potential wasted. The past was behind them now; they were still family.

She urged Shen Linchuan and Zhou Ning to take more wine, pouring them another bowl. “Drink up. Our family hasn’t had much to celebrate lately. Once you two have children, I’ll come help take care of them. I promise they’ll grow up plump and healthy.”

Shen Dasao wasn’t the type to hold grudges. Once things were out in the open, they were settled. With only these two brothers in the Shen family, who could be closer?

Zhou Ning blushed at her words. Shen Linchuan knew his Fulang was shy. Seeing how much Zhou Ning enjoyed that fish, he picked out more pieces for him. “Have some more.”

It had been ages since the Shen household had been this lively. Before, arguments over Shen Linchuan’s studies were constant, but now, thankfully, those days were behind them.

The two little ones ate with abandon, their hands and mouths slick with oil. Even Shen Dage and his wife were flushed with the warmth of good cheer as they chatted about everyday matters.

Shen Dage nearly shed tears. Such a prosperous and peaceful life—his family hadn’t known this in so long. His youngest brother had finally grown up. Though he’d married into the family, his life wasn’t bad. He’d lived up to his parents’ expectations.

Meanwhile, Zhou Da went alone to town to sell meat. Zhou Ning used to help him occasionally, but now that his ger had just gotten married, he didn’t bring him along. Zhou Da could manage alone, even if it meant customers had to wait a bit longer.

Zhou Da had a brisk morning trade. The peak time for business was always early morning. He’d been selling pork in town for over ten years. Honest in his dealings, never shortchanging customers, he had plenty of regulars.

“Uncle Zhou, give me a piece of meat—more fatty, please. That’s the best.” A young Fulang approached carrying a basket.

Zhou Da acknowledged the request, carefully selecting a prime cut for the customer. The young Fulang, a regular here, struck up a conversation: “Uncle Zhou, why didn’t you come in the past few days? I haven’t seen you around.”

At this, Zhou Da burst into hearty laughter. “My ger got married! I was delayed at home for a few days. Now that things have settled down, I’m back.”

“Oh! Young Master Ning got married?”

“Yep.”

Nearby was a flatbread stall run by an elderly man. Hearing their conversation, he chimed in, “He even took a son-in-law—a scholar, no less! Uncle Zhou’s been in high spirits these past days.”

The fulang smiled at this. “Then congratulations are in order, Uncle Zhou! May Young Master Ning soon be blessed with children and your family prosper.”

Hearing this, Zhou Da grew even more delighted. He gave them a hearty thank you and tossed in an extra bone. “Thank you, thank you.”

The Fulang beamed even wider. “Thank you too, Zhou Da! You wouldn’t believe it—the other day, when I went to buy meat, you weren’t there. I had to buy from another shop, and they gave me some meat nobody wanted. I didn’t know any better, and when my mother-in-law saw it at home, she gave me such a scolding!”

“Old Zhou here does business with integrity—honest with young and old alike. If the meat’s not up to par, I’ll tell the customer and sell it cheaply. I won’t do anything that goes against my conscience.”

“That’s right, that’s right. Buying meat from you, Uncle Zhou, is always reliable.”

The Fulang chatted briefly before leaving. By late morning, the crowd thinned out. The afternoon brought only a trickle of customers. The morning rush remained the busiest time, yet Zhou Da manned his stall all day long.

In business, the worst thing is being inconsistent. Even when a few customers came in the afternoon, he stayed put. In earlier years, when he was more energetic, he’d send Zhou Ning to tend the stall while he went to collect pigs. The stall was always busy.

Having done business in town for all these years, many people trusted his shop. Business had always been steady.

By late morning, Zhou Da skipped eating out on the street. He pulled out the pancakes and meat his ger had wrapped that morning from the cart frame and borrowed the fire from the flatbread stall to warm them up.

Old Wang teased, “Zhou Da, now that your big event’s over, you’ll just be enjoying the good life from here on out.”

Zhou Da laughed heartily. “Not so fast! My son-in-law is a scholar—he can’t take over my trade. But if we have a grandson someday and he calls me Grandpa, well, that’ll cost him some silver!”

Zhou Da chuckled as he spoke, his life growing brighter by the day.

Before the wedding, people said his son-in-law was no good. But now, after just a few days of marriage, Zhou Da trusted only what he saw with his own eyes. The man was hardworking—up early to fetch water and cook meals. He’d never seen a man in the kitchen before, but this one knew how to care.

Zhou Da warmed the flatbread, then rolled up some pork jowl and scallions to eat. That first bite was heavenly.

Zhou Da gestured to the old man beside him. “It’s lunchtime. Try some of my meat.”

Old Wang didn’t hesitate, pinching off a piece and popping it into his mouth. His eyes widened as he savored it. “Mmm! Delicious! Zhou Da, give me another taste.”

Zhou Da wasn’t stingy. “Take your flatbread and wrap it up. I’ve got scallions too—all rolled together. It’s unbelievably fragrant!”

The old man nodded, quickly pulling a steaming flatbread from the stove. He added some meat to his own sandwich. “Zhou Da, this meat looks like offcuts. Where’s it from? How did you make it so flavorful?”

“Pork jowl. You’ve got sharp eyes, old man. It is offcuts, but my ger’s husband prepared it. Have some more—it’s delicious.”

“Oh? Your ger’s son-in-law cooks? I thought he was a scholar?”

The old man added more meat to his own pancake. It was indeed delicious—the fatty parts tender and sticky, the lean meat fragrant. Sandwiched between the pancake layers, it was simply divine.

At this, Zhou Da beamed with pride. “My son-in-law dotes on Ning-ger. He’s been cooking all our meals these past few days.”

“Well done, Zhou Da. You’ll never have to worry about living well from now on.”

Zhou Da was overjoyed by the compliment. “My son-in-law is simply wonderful.”

Zhou Ning had packed quite a bit of pork head meat for his father. The two of them shared it all, leaving nothing behind. After finishing his flatbread, the old man smacked his lips. “Never had meat this good. Zhou Da, I reckon you could make a business out of this. Pork head meat is hard to sell as is, but if you prepare it like this, you could make a pretty penny.”

Zhou Da chuckled. “He’s a scholar—how could I make him handle this every day? It’s just for our family to eat.”

“What a shame. This meat is incredibly tasty. If your family sold it, I’d buy some myself.”

By late afternoon, Zhou Da’s stall had emptied. He packed up, pushed his cart away, and sold the remaining meat cheaply along the road. Tomorrow, he could buy another pig.

Zhou Da returned home a bit late. From afar, he spotted the cooking smoke rising from the village and quickened his pace.

Upon arriving, he saw his ger and son-in-law bustling about in the kitchen. Spotting him, they both smiled. “Father, you’re back.”

“Ah, I’m back, I’m back.”

Zhou Da felt even happier inside. Now that his young ger was married, the house had become lively again.

Shen Linchuan was busy around the stove. “Father, it’s time to eat. I made a refreshing vegetarian meatball soup today.”

“Alright.”

“Father, tomorrow Ning-ger and I will go to town together. We’ll bring back my luggage and buy some vegetable seeds—that plot of land at home is just sitting idle.”

“We won’t be going to town tomorrow. Business has been booming these past few days; that pig is already sold out.”

Shen Linchuan perked up at the news. “Business is that good?”

“You bet.”

After the family gathered around the table for dinner, Zhou Da noticed the new stools. “Did you get these from your eldest brother’s place?”

Shen Linchuan nodded. “My brother made some and had them brought over. He said if we ever need anything, we can just go to him.”

“Alright. Your brother’s a solid guy.”

After dinner, they rested a bit before heading to their rooms to sleep. After all these days, Shen Linchuan had grown accustomed to holding the person close in his arms. He was doing better than before—practice really paid off. Holding someone all night no longer left his arms numb.

No sooner had they lain down than Shen Linchuan felt the person beside him stir. Quick as a flash, he pressed him back down. “Sleep. We’re not doing it tonight.”

Zhou Ning blinked in confusion. “Then when will I get pregnant?”

Shen Linchuan was exasperated. He tugged at Zhou Ning’s cheek. “So you married me just to have a baby?”

“What else?”

“…”

Fine. He was utterly infatuated with Zhou Ning now. This fool had no real feelings for him—it was all technique. A wave of frustration welled up inside him.

“So it could have been anyone? If I hadn’t married into your family, would someone else have taken my place?” Shen Linchuan began to nitpick.

“Maybe. I met two or three others willing to marry into the family, but none were as handsome as you. The better-looking ones produce prettier children.”

Great. So he was only after his looks.

This ger’s bluntness was infuriating.

Zhou Ning tried to sit up again, but Shen Linchuan, who’d been ready for this, held him tight. “Rest today. Who cooks every single day?”

“You can’t handle it? Dad’s slaughtering a pig tomorrow—I’ll save the kidneys for you.”

Shen Linchuan’s face darkened. “You’re not afraid of the pain anymore?”

“Pain or no pain, we need kids to liven up the house.”

“No way. I’ll have kidney deficiency.”

“Kidney deficiency? Then go see Yi-ger’s dad. He can prescribe some herbs for you.”

That chatterbox just knew how to get under his skin. Was he not capable? Was he really suffering from kidney deficiency? It was all because he couldn’t bear to see this stubborn little ger suffer!

In the end, he’d have to swallow the blame, bite by bite. Talking about it just made him furious. What was he babbling about? He just wanted to kiss him.

Shen Linchuan pressed Zhou Ning’s nape and kissed him, forcing his jaw open and tangling his tongue inside. Finally, that infuriating mouth was silenced.

Zhou Ning gasped for air, pushing back weakly. Shen Linchuan pursued the kiss relentlessly. Zhou Ning felt like he was dying. He mustered strength and shoved Shen Linchuan, who had sat up, back down onto the bed.

Shen Linchuan lay there panting. “Zhou Ning, you’re trying to murder your husband! Thank goodness it was the pillow. If it had been the bedpost, your husband would’ve cracked his skull open.”

“I… I didn’t mean to.”

Zhou Ning sat there flustered, her eyes filled with confusion. “Shen Linchuan, don’t kiss me like that. It feels so strange.”

“What’s strange about it? This is how it is after marriage.”

“Nonsense! It’s not like that at all. The diagram Granny Wang gave me didn’t show this.”

“Then hers was no good. Your husband will buy you a proper one someday. Come here, lie in my arms. Sleep. No more talking.”

To spare him the frustration, Zhou Ning obediently lay across Shen Linchuan’s chest. Shen Linchuan reached down to massage his waist. “You’re such a fool—getting sold off and still helping count the money.”

The person on his chest had already fallen asleep, warm breath tickling his neck. Shen Linchuan closed his own eyes as he held him.