After tidying the kitchen, dusk had fallen. Aunt He’s family took their leave, and Yan Shaoxuan departed with them.

After he departed, Yan Shaocheng bowed his hands in apology to Yan Xiaoyu: “Perhaps witnessing our mother’s murder by our uncles left him scarred. Shaoxuan’s nature is rather solitary—he’s kept others at arm’s length all these years. It’s not directed at you, Xiaoyu. Please don’t take it to heart.”

Yan Xiaoyu, unaware of this backstory, paused in surprise before waving his hands repeatedly. “It’s nothing, Brother Yan. I haven’t taken it to heart.”

“Everyone has their own temperament. Being reserved isn’t a flaw.” Scratching his head, he chuckled, ”I’ve always admired scholars, but I’m a coarse man myself. I just feared saying the wrong thing and offending you, which is why I spoke like that earlier.“

”That’s good to hear,“ Yan Shaocheng replied earnestly. ”Truthfully, Shaoxuan isn’t opposed to associating with you. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have rented this house to you, nor would he have come over for dinner today. He may not be good at expressing himself, but he has a soft heart. You needn’t worry about saying the wrong thing. If there’s anything he can help with, don’t hesitate to ask.“

”I know you’re straightforward, not some pedantic person. Speaking to you like this, I admit, has a personal motive.” He chose his words carefully. “I’m often away on business. Shaoxuan lives alone at the foot of this mountain and doesn’t like to socialize. I worry about him when I’m gone. Your family is all good people. I’d like to ask you to look out for him—I’d love for him to spend more time with you.”

Yan Xiaoyu had anticipated this. When Yan Shaocheng first rented him the house at a monthly rate of one hundred wen, he’d suspected the man might have ulterior motives.

But back then, time was tight, and he had little choice. Besides, he’d formed a favorable impression of both Yan brothers and sensed no ill will toward his family, so he hadn’t pressed the matter. Yan Shaocheng’s words today finally cleared up his doubts.

Though each harbored their own motives, their goals aligned surprisingly well.

“Rest assured, Brother Yan. We’re neighbors separated by just a wall. Looking out for each other is only right.”

“Good. Hearing you say that puts my mind at ease.”

━━ 🐈‍⬛ ━━

Meanwhile, on their way home, Aunt He’s family discussed the matters concerning Yan Xiaoyu’s household.

“I don’t think Yan Er’s injuries were that serious. He seemed pretty lively to me,” Liu Pingshan said doubtfully.

“When Brother Yu came to repay the money earlier, he said there was no danger to his life. You just have to overthink everything, afraid he’s taking advantage of you!” Aunt He retorted impatiently. “Now that Brother Yu can manage things, he doesn’t have to worry about anything. He’s being well fed and cared for—of course, he’s recovering!”

Liu Tiao looked envious, “His family even had leftover meat today! Aunt Qiu said Brother Yu wanted to help them build up their strength. With his amazing cooking skills, could he get a job as a chef at the town restaurant?“

Aunt He felt a bit relieved. ”Brother Yu has really made something of himself now. With his cooking skills, finding work at a restaurant shouldn’t be hard. Your Aunt Qiu finally has something to look forward to.”

Liu Pingshan frowned thoughtfully for a moment. “Wife, send the vegetable baskets to the Yans again the day after tomorrow. I noticed their two vegetable plots still aren’t properly tended. They’ll likely have to rely on wild greens soon.”

“Oh, suddenly you’re being generous! Didn’t you refuse to associate with them before? Tiao’er, look how opportunistic your father is—he kept his distance when they were down on their luck, but now they’re on the rise, he’s eagerly cozying up. It’s a disgrace to our family. Don’t you dare follow his example!”

Liu Tiao was both amused and exasperated, while Liu Pingshan’s face flushed crimson. “Isn’t it all for the children? Our Tiao hasn’t been betrothed yet. If Yu-ger gets a job at the restaurant, couldn’t he arrange for Tiao to marry a cook or an accountant? Wouldn’t that be better than being a farmer?”

Now it was Liu Tiao’s turn to blush. “Father, lower your voice!”

The family’s conversation had drifted unnoticed to Liu Tiao’s marriage prospects. Though the chatter was boisterous, it carried an inexplicable warmth.

━━ 🐈‍⬛ ━━

Early the next morning, Yan Shaocheng set out again on his business travels. Before leaving, he specifically told Yan Xiaoyu that the peaches in the courtyard were ripe and he should feel free to pick and eat them, lest they go to waste.

Yan Xiaoyu, who was indeed craving those fuzzy peaches, readily agreed.

For the next three days, Yan Xiaoyu was either weeding in the fields, cutting bamboo or firewood in the mountains, or occasionally cooking meals. He was as busy as a bee.

The other three members of the household were equally occupied.

He Qiuhua washed clothes, cooked meals, cared for Yan Xingmao, and tended the vegetable garden while drying greens for winter.

Yan Xiaoyue tended the crops, gathered wild greens and firewood from the mountains, and helped Yan Xiaoyu level the ground in the front yard.

Yan Xingmao worked tirelessly, weaving mats and baskets for the summer harvest and drying millet…

Though it was tiring, the family pulled together with one purpose. Without the need for scheming against others, Yan Xiaoyu found life quite pleasant.

Two more days passed before the summer harvest finally arrived.

The harvest encompassed not only rice but also crops like sweet potatoes, ramie, rapeseed, and cotton. Yet rice was crucial—used for paying land taxes and fetching the best prices—so villagers planted it most extensively and tended it with utmost care.

The twice-yearly rice harvest was the most important event for the villagers of Xiling Village. After the village elders picked an auspicious day, everyone eagerly awaited it.

This morning, Yan Xiaoyu and Yan Xiaoyue rose at the first light of dawn. He Qiuhua had gotten up even earlier to prepare breakfast for them.

They planned to head to the fields while the morning air was still cool to cut the rice. When the sun grew hotter, it would be time for lunch and a rest; they risked heatstroke.

Though villagers usually ate only two meals a day, during the summer harvest, they had three. Those who could afford to cook meat, as their bodies couldn’t endure the work otherwise. Today, He Qiuhua specially boiled eggs for the children.

After breakfast, Yan Xiaoyue and her brother each carried two bamboo baskets and hurried to the fields. The plot Old Master Yan had assigned them lay on the outskirts of the village, a fifteen-minute walk from the foot of the mountain. It bordered Aunt He’s paddy field. By the time they arrived, Aunt He and her two children had already been harvesting for a while.

After greeting them, the siblings drew their sickles and began working.

Though Yan Xiaoyu had never harvested rice in his modern life, his original body possessed ample experience—almost like muscle memory. Grasping a sheaf with his left hand and wielding the sickle with his right, he effortlessly cut through the stalks.

For farming families, the summer harvest was exhausting yet joyful. For many households, their entire year’s sustenance depended on their two acres of land. During both summer and autumn harvests, the harder people worked, the greater the yield—and the greater their delight.

Villagers in the surrounding fields chatted animatedly while harvesting, their faces beaming as they shared the village gossip—Mr. East’s missing chickens, Mr. West’s ger getting married, so-and-so’s good-for-nothing husband, such-and-such’s wife having a baby…

At first, Yan Xiaoyu listened with rapt attention, occasionally chiming in with a comment or two. But after an hour, drenched in sweat and unable to straighten his back, he lost all interest in the gossip.

Yan Xiaoyue plodded on in silence, pushing himself with all his might. Yan Xiaoyu glanced back and saw his sister had already pulled far ahead. Forgetting his own fatigue, he grimaced and swung his sickle hard, struggling to keep pace behind her.

Another half-hour passed before Yan Xiaoyu could endure no longer. “Sis, let’s take a break!”

Only then did the siblings pause to rest.

The mountain air was cooler than outside, offering some relief in the mornings and evenings. Though the sun had risen only recently, Yan Xiaoyu sat on the field ridge, sweat dripping steadily onto the soil.

His face burned crimson, his arms and neck streaked with red marks from the rice stalks.

Yan Xiaoyue was similarly affected, though her darker complexion made it less noticeable. Her clothes were hand-me-downs from Grandma Yan, washed until they were as thin as paper and fragile. The sleeves had already been torn by the rice stalks.

Yan Xiaoyu’s eyebrows furrowed deeply. “Next time we go to town, I’ll buy you a new outfit. These clothes are worn out.“

Yan Xiaoyue glanced at him and muttered, ”Buy me some? Your clothes are torn.“

Yan Xiaoyu’s clothes were patched together from several of Yan Xiaobao’s old garments and were indeed quite worn. He thought for a moment: ”

“We’ll buy them all—one for each of our parents, too.”

Earlier, He Qiuhua had mentioned that once the ramie harvest was gathered and spun into thread, they’d take it to Beiling Village. There, skilled weavers would help spin the thread into cloth, which they’d then bring back to cut into garments themselves.

This method was far more economical than buying ready-made cloth or clothes from town, though it required waiting several days. Yan Xiaoyu hadn’t objected before, but now he didn’t want to save that little bit of silver.

━━ 🐈‍⬛ ━━

After drinking some water and resting for half a quarter of an hour, the siblings got up and continued cutting rice.

Before long, He Qiuhua pushed over a brand-new flatbed cart. She took over for Yan Xiaoyu, who began using the cart to haul rice back home.

This cart had been ordered earlier from the carpenter in Nanling Village and picked up just yesterday, costing one tael and two mace of silver. Yan Xingmao and He Qiuhua felt the pinch of the expense, but they remembered Yan Xiaoyu’s warning that the siblings might fall ill from overwork during this summer harvest. They dared not skimp on this expense.

The quarter-hour journey wasn’t long, but pushing a cart loaded with rice made the road home feel much longer.

After two trips, Yan Xiaoyu was panting heavily, drenched in sweat. The straps of the cart had dug deep grooves into her shoulders, stinging with pain as the sweat soaked in. Her limbs felt weak.

Later, Yan Xiaoyue took over the cart, while He Qiuhua returned to cook, carrying two baskets of rice back with her, her back bent so low she could barely stand straight.

Watching the rice piled high in her baskets and the weight bending the poles on her shoulders, Yan Xiaoyu’s desire to buy an ox reached its peak.

This truly wasn’t work for humans!

His hands moved in a blur as he pushed cart after cart of rice home. The family worked from dawn until the moon hung high in the sky, laboring like this for two days until the two mu of rice fields were finally harvested.