A huge, huge thank you to WANGXIANNURSE for the kofis. We’re so sorry we couldn’t deliver on time but here it is, hope you enjoy these bonus chapters!

The Zhou family has moved into the county town! New and old villains as well as friends appear! Please alert us if there are any mistakes, in the comments or on Discord, thanks!

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A middle-aged man called out, “Mr. Song, Mr. Song, someone’s here.” 

The man surnamed Song gave a noncommittal “Hmm, I see.”

Mr. Sun walked over, casually peered into the courtyard, then moved closer to Mr. Song. “Looks like they’re from the countryside—they even brought a chicken coop. Who keeps chickens? It stinks to high heaven. You can tell they’re from the sticks just by looking at them.”

In this Baobao Alley, more than half the households belonged to townspeople, while some courtyards were rented out to outsiders—mostly people who’d come to run small businesses.

Mr. Sun was the sort who loved to gossip about everyone in the neighborhood; he was the best-informed person in the whole alley. Seeing Mr. Song sitting in the sunny spot by the door mending clothes, he couldn’t resist stopping by to say a few words. “Hey, I just saw them—looks like a couple. The man in this household is quite sturdy.”

The man Sun had just seen was Zhou Ning, who was lowering a chicken coop. Not only did the family dog look listless, but the dozen or so chickens inside were huddled together, looking dejected.

Many of them had been with him since they were chicks, and Zhou Ning was heartbroken to see them like this; the first thing he did upon arriving at the courtyard was to take the chicken coop down.

Sun Fulang hadn’t gotten a good look and mistook Zhou Ning for a young man.

Mr. Song was bent over mending clothes, but Mr. Sun kept glancing at the new neighbor. When he saw the man wasn’t paying him any mind, he nudged Mr. Song’s arm. “Hey, did you see that? There’s even a mule.”

Mr. Song yelped as the needle accidentally pricked his finger. Mr. Sun gave an awkward laugh. “Go on, get back to work. I’ll head home and take a look around.”

Mr. Sun scurried off in a flash. That accountant Song’s husband was such a tight-lipped guy—you couldn’t get a word out of him even after three tries. Tsk.

Shen Linchuan and his two companions were busy tidying up the courtyard. They’d chosen this place partly because it was close to the academy and the market, and partly because everything inside was ready to use. The courtyard was clean, and though the furniture was a bit worn, it was all functional. When his older brother arrived, he asked him to help fix it up.

“Shen Linchuan, there’s no chicken coop here. We need to build one right away.”

Knowing how much his husband cared for the chickens, Shen Linchuan closed the courtyard gate. “Let’s let them out for now. We won’t be able to find bamboo to build a coop in the short term.”

Zhou Ning hummed in agreement and hurriedly let both cages of chickens out. “The countryside is still better. We can just go to the back mountain and cut some bamboo there, but here we have to buy it.”

“Tomorrow, let’s go to the market together. We’ll buy whatever we’re missing, and once we’ve got everything sorted, we can start cooking.”

The three of them set to work cleaning up without stopping. There was no well in the courtyard, but Fang Yazi had mentioned there was one at the end of the alley—everyone in the alley went there to fetch water, which was much like back in the countryside.

The furniture inside the house was covered in a layer of dust and needed to be wiped down. Shen Linchuan set off to fetch water with a wooden bucket on his shoulder. Fortunately, they had brought everything they needed—unused salt, sugar, and other supplies from home, not to mention the large iron pot, which they’d loaded onto the mule cart.

Although the mule had a bit of a hard time, at least they’d brought almost everything they needed, so they wouldn’t have to buy anything once they arrived. Shen Linchuan set off with the wooden bucket to fetch water.

Sun Fulang let out a gasp when he saw him. The man of the house was quite handsome. Although he was from the countryside, his complexion was quite fair; if he hadn’t been wearing a coarse brown tunic, he would have thought he was some young master from a wealthy family.

“Has this young man just moved in?”

Shen Linchuan nodded at him. “Just moved in.”

“Are you brothers? Are you married yet? What do you do for a living? If you’re not married, I’ll keep an eye out for you—I guarantee I’ll find you, someone you’ll be happy with.”

This barrage of questions left Shen Linchuan a bit dazed. The woman was jumping from one topic to another, and her enthusiasm was a bit over the top. Shen Linchuan managed a faint smile. “We’re married. That’s my husband.”

With that, Shen Linchuan hoisted his carrying pole and walked away; he had to get home to fetch water and clean the house.

Sun Fulang muttered under his breath, “I misjudged him. I’ve never seen a young lad who’s both dark-skinned and tall. I only caught a glimpse of his profile and thought he was a young man.”

In the Dafeng Dynasty, delicate, fair skin was considered beautiful, and the face powders at the cosmetics shops were exceptionally popular. Zhou Ning wasn’t actually dark—he had healthy, wheat-colored skin and long, slender limbs. If he were a man, he’d be extremely popular; it was a pity he was a ger. That was why their match hadn’t worked out a few years ago.

Fortunately, Sun Fulang’s mutterings went unheard by Shen Linchuan; otherwise, Shen Linchuan would surely have argued with him. If he’d said he looked like a man, Shen Linchuan would have retorted, well, why call his husband dark-skinned? Shen Linchuan is fiercely protective of his own—his husband is quite handsome, after all.

Shen Linchuan returned after fetching two buckets of water. He rolled up his sleeves and began scrubbing. Every piece of furniture in the room needed a thorough wipe-down, inside and out. Zhou Ning was sweeping the bed nearby; he gave it a shake, and the bed creaked loudly. “This bed’s loose.”

“Maybe the mortise and tenon joints aren’t tight enough. We’ll have Big Brother fix it for us when he gets here.”

Although the furniture in the room was a bit worn, the interior was quite bright. The house was made of blue-glazed bricks and tiles, with paper-covered windows. Even the walls were lined with a layer of white paper, though it had yellowed slightly. They planned to buy some more white paper tomorrow to paste over it, which would make the room even brighter.

The three of them worked tirelessly to settle in. They laid out the straw mats, arranged the bedding, and stowed all the pots, pans, and utensils in the wooden cupboard—they’d even brought the large iron cauldron with them. Zhou Dazheng was busy mixing some mud to plaster the stove.

Shen Linchuan was quite pleased with this little courtyard. It wasn’t far from the schoolhouse and was close to the market. Even walking to the school would take him about forty minutes; riding a mule would be faster. Shen Linchuan didn’t consider this distance to be far at all.

By the time the courtyard was tidied up, it was nearly dark. Zhou Ning took a look around the kitchen. “We’re out of firewood, and there’s no hot tea right now.” 

“We’ll make do for tonight. Let’s go eat.”

“Father’s right. Now that we’re in the county seat, every little thing costs a coin—even firewood has to be bought with silver.”

Zhou Ning felt life was better back in the countryside. If they ran out of firewood, they could just go gather some from the mountains. In the spring, they could pick wild greens; they had a vegetable garden at home; sometimes when the river flooded, they could catch some fish and shrimp; and in the fall, needless to say, they could gather wild chestnuts and walnuts.

Knowing his husband was careful with money, Shen Linchuan smiled as he took his hand to reassure him, “We still have a few hundred taels at home; that should last us for a while.” 

“We can’t just spend that recklessly—it’s all set aside for your education.”

“All right, all right. Then we’ll be careful with our spending.”

In a few months, they’d receive another shipment of mosquito coils and cooling ointment. Even if the three of them didn’t do any work, they wouldn’t be short of money. Shen Linchuan calculated in his mind that this money wouldn’t be enough. For now, they’d only rented a courtyard, but sooner or later they’d have to buy one of their own. He’d also need to come up with a way to make money.

Seeing that it was getting late—if they waited any longer, it would be dark—the three of them went to the market together, had a light meal, and returned home. They ran into an old man hauling firewood back home, and Shen Linchuan called out to him, asking him to help unload it into the courtyard.

There was still half a cartload of firewood left. At fifty cash per bundle, ten bundles cost half a tael of silver. Zhou Ning whispered to Shen Linchuan, “No wonder people in the county seat prefer to eat out so often—even firewood is expensive here.”

Zhou Da chuckled and said, “Go ahead and burn it. Dad doesn’t have much to do lately anyway. I’ll take the mule out of town for a spin and see if I can bring back some firewood.”

“Father, I don’t think it’ll be easy to find firewood. We’re not familiar with the area, and I’m afraid we might accidentally cut down someone’s tree.”

“You’re right. It’s easier back in the countryside—we can just head up into the mountains and gather some dead branches and fallen leaves, and that’ll be enough.”

Fortunately, they came across a firewood vendor. After spending the whole afternoon gathering firewood and getting covered in dust, Shen Linchuan finally felt a bit better after boiling some hot water to wash up that evening.

Lying in bed, Shen Linchuan reached out and pulled the other person close. “We’re finally settled. Once we’re all set up, I’ll write a letter to my older brother and sister-in-law. We should also ask around about the schools in the area to see if there are any good ones.”

Zhou Ning’s eyelids were already drooping. “There should be some. You’ll have to look carefully, young man. Xiao Yu has a gentle nature—we can’t let him get bullied.” 

“Let’s sleep. At least we finally have a place to stay.”

They’d been traveling for three or four days, and spent another day at an inn yesterday—neither of those places felt like home. But now they were going to live in this courtyard for several years. With her husband and father both here, how could this not be their home?

Zhou Ning felt a bit uncomfortable with Shen Linchuan’s arm around him, so he rolled over to the other side. As he moved, the bed creaked. Zhou Ning, half-asleep, mumbled, “Shen Linchuan, this bed isn’t very good.”

Shen Linchuan almost laughed. “It’s not as sturdy as the bed at our place, but we’ll make do for a few days.”

The two murmured a few words to each other before drifting off. Although they were in a new place, Shen Linchuan quickly fell asleep, lulled by the familiar scent of soapberry blossoms wafting to his nose.

He’d hoped to settle in and get a good night’s sleep, but early the next morning, he was roused by the commotion from next door. Shen Linchuan couldn’t be bothered to get up; he rolled over, and the bed creaked loudly.

The shouting in his ear hadn’t stopped yet. “Oh my, I told you to cook a meal, and look at how much rice you’ve used! And these eggs—why are you boiling them again today? Do you have any idea how to manage a household?”

Zhou Ning was also woken up by the noise. Both of them opened their eyes wide. Shen Linchuan let out a sigh, “Whose house is that? Making such a racket first thing in the morning.” Zhou Ning, now completely wide awake, said, “Let’s get up. We need to go buy some groceries.”

Shen Linchuan let out a sigh and burrowed into Zhou Ning’s arms. “Just a little longer, just a little longer. I’m still a bit sleepy.”

Shen Linchuan kept pestering Zhou Ning to stay in bed, and with no other choice, Zhou Ning lay back down. Shen Linchuan was a bit grouchy in the morning; having worked hard to study and pass the scholar exams, his body clock was set to wake up as soon as it got light. These past few days, he’d finally been able to sleep in a bit longer, only to be woken up by the noise.

Zhou Ning patted Shen Linchuan’s back as if soothing a child. “Alright, sleep a little longer then.”

Shen Linchuan nuzzled contentedly against his husband’s chest. “Ning, you’re so good to me.” Zhou Ning’s lips curved into a smile as he indulged his husband’s whims.

The two curled up together and closed their eyes. Shen Linchuan had just begun dreaming of rolling around on a grassy slope with his husband, who was so obedient he let him kiss him wherever he pleased. Shen Linchuan was so delighted he almost laughed out loud, but just as the corners of his mouth turned up, that grating voice woke him again. “Hurry up and serve your husband his meal! You’re so clueless, day in and day out.”

Shen Linchuan was completely wide awake now. He put on his clothes with a sullen expression, and Zhou Ning got up as well. “Shen Linchuan, don’t go arguing with him.” 

“I won’t argue. I’m just going to check on him.”

Shen Linchuan opened the door. His father was already up, having somehow procured some bamboo strips and was busy building a chicken coop in the courtyard. Shen Linchuan called out, “Father,” and strode out.

Zhou Ning hurried out after him. Her hair wasn’t even combed yet, so she could only stand in the courtyard and hastily tie it back.

“What’s wrong with Linchuan? He looks a bit upset. Have you two been bickering?”

Zhou Da asked with some concern. His son had been married for over a year, and the young couple had always gotten along so well they’d never even raised their voices at each other. His son-in-law was also a good-natured fellow who rarely gave anyone the cold shoulder.

“No, Shen Linchuan was woken up by the noise and is a bit annoyed.”

Zhou Ning hadn’t finished tying his hair yet, so he could only watch helplessly as Shen Linchuan walked out the door.

Shen Linchuan’s mood was gloomy. Who on earth was disturbing his sweet dreams this early in the morning? If it was this noisy every day, how was he ever going to get any sleep!

He’d thought that now that they were living in a small courtyard house, they’d be free of the conflicts that come with having neighbors above and below. Who would’ve thought he’d be woken up after just one night? Shen Linchuan wasn’t the type to let things slide. While outsiders thought he had a good temperament, that was simply because he believed in the principle of “live and let live”—if others didn’t provoke him, he wouldn’t provoke them.

Shen Linchuan followed the sound and banged on the door. It opened almost immediately. “Who is it? Who is it? Are you trying to kill me this early in the morning? I’m coming—stop knocking!”

The woman who came to open the door was a sharp-witted old lady who lived right next door to the courtyard Shen Linchuan and his group had rented. She gave Shen Linchuan a quick once-over.

“What’s the matter? Who are you?”

A faint smile tugged at Shen Linchuan’s lips. “We’re the new neighbors. Did you guys have a fight? I just came over to check.” 

“What fight? Everything’s fine here.”

A man in a long robe emerged from inside. “You’re the new neighbors. My husband mentioned you yesterday. My surname is Song—you can just call me Accountant Song.”

“Hello, Accountant Song. I thought you were having a fight, so I came over to check.” 

“No, no, it’s just my mother raising her voice a bit.”

“As long as it’s nothing serious, that’s fine. We’re neighbors after all. If there was a fight, I’d be happy to help mediate.” 

“Thanks, but it’s nothing.”

Shen Linchuan finally left. Sleep was out of the question now, so he yawned and headed home. Zhou Ning hadn’t finished styling his hair yet; the more he hurried, the worse it looked. When he saw Shen Linchuan return, he breathed a sigh of relief. “You weren’t arguing, were you?”

“No, I just went to check on things.”

Since he’d gone over there today, if they were sensible, they wouldn’t be shouting so early in the morning from now on.

Zhou Da was crouched on the ground building a chicken coop. Hearing his brother say that, he chuckled, “Linchuan has a good temperament—he’d never get into a fight with anyone.” 

Shen Linchuan chimed in, “Exactly, exactly.”

Zhou Ning shot Shen Linchuan a sidelong glance. They shared a bed; how could he not know Shen Linchuan’s temperament? On the surface, he seemed easygoing, but he was someone who wouldn’t let anyone take advantage of him. If anyone provoked him, sooner or later he’d get his revenge.

Shen Linchuan took his husband’s hand. “All right, look at how messy your hair’s getting. Come on, let’s go inside, and I’ll comb it for you.”