Thanks to RayRay and Sam for the Kofis. Enjoy the bonus chapters.

Except for Lian-ger’s sister-in-law in the kitchen, who was cooking, everyone surrounded Lian-ger. His parents asked, “Lian-ger, what happened? Why did you suddenly bring such a heavy gift?”

“Mother, yesterday Shunzi came back from the town and brought these back. Shunzi got work at a bun shop, and our household’s life has gotten a lot easier.”

Lian-ger’s mother said again and again, “That’s good, that’s good.”

The eldest brother asked, “How many copper coins does he earn a day?”

“Forty.”

The eldest brother was so shocked that he jumped. “How is it so much! Is it really at a bun shop?”

That was more than a tael of silver a month — even more than what a literate accountant earned! That was a tael of silver! Their family had never had that much silver. In a good year, if they scrimped and saved, they could save two or three taels.

Lian-ger’s father was also so shocked that he plopped straight onto the ground. “How could it be so much?!”

Lian-ger explained, “He went with someone from the village. They are good people, and they pitied us, so they gave that much. All Shunzi does is knead and proof dough.”

Lian-ger knew it was because of Yu-ger that Wei Qingshan had come that day to ask Shunzi to go work in the town. Because he had once spoken a few words for Yu-ger, they had kept it in their hearts.

At noon, the Lian-ger’s sister-in-law cooked half the meat, and also stir-fried wild vegetables with lard. Today, they had originally planned to cook wheat gruel, but since Lian-ger had brought rice, they cooked rice instead.

The whole family gathered around the two dishes. Lian-ger didn’t dare eat much of his maternal family’s food, so he only drank half a bowl of rice porridge and ate a few bites of wild vegetables. His life was better than his maternal family’s now, so he would eat after going back home.

The meat on the table was divided slice by slice by the eldest brother using chopsticks, so no one would fight over it. The third child, who hadn’t eaten meat in years, shoveled porridge into his mouth and ate a slice. “Father, mother, the meat tastes so good.”

When Lian-ger left, he saw there were dried bamboo shoots and black fungus at home, so he told his mother that the bun shop might still buy them. If they did, he would exchange them for copper coins and send them over.

The eldest brother quickly packed a basket full for Lian-ger to take back. These were things that mountain people could gather easily, and they weren’t worth much money when sold. They hadn’t expected someone would actually want them.

Lian-ger told them to gather more black fungus, mushrooms, and such when they had time. If people wanted them, he would come carry them back. His family nodded again and again.

___

The wheat in the dry fields of the Lujia Village had turned yellow. Every household had sent the entire family, old and young, to the fields to harvest wheat. Lin Yu’s family only had two mu of wheat, so Wei Qingshan didn’t hire anyone. He could finish harvesting those fields by himself.

Zhao Yueniang and Shi Xiaoliu also took sickles to go harvest. Harvesting wheat wasn’t heavy work. Now that it was the busy farming season, not to mention that they were already thirteen or fourteen years old, even the seven- and eight-year-old children in the village went to the fields with sickles.

A few of them drove the mule cart together to the fields. They had already eaten breakfast, so they came early, but when they arrived at the fields, they saw they were full of people. The others had come even earlier.

Now, during the busy farming season, the fields were full of people everywhere — old and young, men and women, husbands and wives. The entire family went into the fields. Smiles were hung on everyone’s faces. They could finally eat this year’s new grain, they had finally endured through.

Today, when they went to the fields, Shi Xiaoliu especially changed into a short coarse jacket. He was reluctant to wear his new clothes — what if the wheat stubble snagged and tore them?

The three of them all wore straw hats when they went to the fields. Lin Yu, unable to work, just sat in the shade at the edge of the field watching. Although he could not work, seeing the wheat being harvested made him happy. When the wind blew, the wheat swayed in neat waves — this year the weather had been favorable, and it was a year of good harvest.

Wei Qingshan worked quickly and skillfully, bending over and cutting in swishes. Zhao Yueniang and Shi Xiaoliu were slower but still nimble; both of them had been working since they were little, and doing work like cutting wheat was second nature to them.

After cutting the wheat, they laid it on the ground. When they finished cutting, they would tie it up into bundles and use a mule cart to take it home. There were very few households in the village that had mule carts — most people carried their wheat back little by little on their backs.

The fields were very lively, voices rising and falling as people talked. Everyone was bent over working, making Lin Yu sit alone under the tree’s shade look especially conspicuous.

“Isn’t that Yu-ger? Why isn’t he working in the fields?”

“Who knows? Qingshan spoils his husband, probably can’t bear to let him work in the fields.”

Someone spotted him and chatted idly for a few sentences. “Before, everyone said he was unlucky, but look at how good his life is now — he opened a shop in town, they even took Shunzi with them.”

“Hey, when Yu-ger first married over, you were the one gossiping about him behind his back. If you had spoken a few good words for him, maybe they would have taken you along too.”

“A few days ago, I even smelled the fragrance of meat coming from Shunzi’s house.”

The villagers were quite envious. Aside from farming, there were few ways to earn money. Yet he had taken Shunzi with him.

A woman passed by carrying several bundles of wheat on her back and greeted Lin Yu, “Yu-ger, are you resting?”

“Mm, Auntie, your wheat grew really well this year.”

“It’s not bad, not bad. We finally got it harvested — I’d been so anxious waiting.”

After a few words, the woman carried the wheat away. She had seen clearly that Yu-ger was wearing a silver bracelet on his wrist. It was shiny and likely worth a lot of silver.

In this village, the number of women who could wear silver bracelets could be counted on one hand, and they were all elderly. Yet Yu-ger, so young, already wore a silver bracelet.

Lin Yu had nothing to do sitting at the edge of the field. He had brought his embroidery basket today, so he took it out and started embroidering a child’s bellyband. He did not know if it would be for a little boy or a little ger — either was fine. He embroidered auspicious clouds and little bats on it, which were suitable for both.

By almost noon, most of the wheat in the field had been cut. Zhao Yueniang and Shi Xiaoliu wiped their sweat and came out. Lin Yu poured water for them. “Drink some water quickly.”

Zhao Yueniang’s face was flushed from the heat, but she did not feel tired at all. This was their family’s grain — having grain made her heart feel at ease.

Shi Xiaoliu also held the bowl and gulped it all down. “Lin Ama, Uncle Wei told us to go back first and make lunch. He said he’ll watch the field.”

“All right, then let’s go home first.”

The three of them went home together. There was no pork at home now, so Lin Yu told them to fry eggs. Since the weather was hot, everyone liked to eat something cool. Lin Yu rolled up his sleeves and fried the towel gourd with eggs to use as a topping, while Shi Xiaoliu rolled out the noodles. At noon, they ate cold noodles.

After lunch, Lin Yu carried a basket to deliver food to Wei Qingshan. Wei Qingshan was worried that after the wheat was cut, there would be no one watching the field, and if some bad people stole some, they would not even know.

Inside the bamboo basket were two big bowls of noodles, with a layer of golden fried egg on top. In the field, Wei Qingshan was tying up the wheat, one bundle after another, standing them up so they could later be thrown directly onto the mule cart.

Lin Yu stood at the edge of the field and called, “Qingshan, time to eat. Come rest for a while before you keep working.”

Wei Qingshan wiped his sweat and came over. He had just finished tying up the bundles, so soon they could be taken home.

By midday, Wei Qingshan’s back was soaked with sweat from the heat. Lin Yu poured water for him to wash his face. “No need to work so urgently. Looks like it’s not going to rain today. Take a break.”

“The sooner it’s done, the sooner we can go home.” Wei Qingshan smiled. This was just the time of harvest. At this time, every household had people out working in their fields.

Wei Qingshan drank another bowl of water and felt much cooler. It was only hot under the sun — once he sat under the shade of the tree and the wind blew, it was nice and cool.

Lin Yu handed him the food. After working all morning, Wei Qingshan was hungry. He held the bowl of noodles and started eating. Just from one bite, he could tell that it was his little husband who had made the meal. Wei Qingshan asked, “Did you go home to cook?”

“No, Xiaoliu cooked. I just made the topping. I haven’t cooked in quite a few days.” I wanted to make something for you to eat. Lin Yu did not say the second half aloud, but Wei Qingshan understood. His little husband was worried that he would feel tired, so he wanted him to eat something he had cooked.

By this time, Shi Xiaoliu and Zhao Yueniang were already in the field loading the wheat onto the mule cart. This job was not heavy, so in no time they had loaded a full cart. From the looks of it, it would take four or five trips to get it all home.

Wei Qingshan sat at the edge of the field and ate two bowls of noodles. His little husband’s cooking was indeed good — he ate with great satisfaction.

After resting for a while at the edge of the field, Wei Qingshan drove the mule cart home. The three of them stayed to watch the wheat. After getting home, Wei Qingshan unloaded the wheat into the courtyard, fed the mule grass and water, and then led it back to the field. By afternoon, they had hauled everything back.

This year, they did not have to pay taxes. Families who were short on grain immediately started threshing as soon as they brought their wheat home to eat it. The village was very lively. They could finally eat the new grain — the children, once full, had the energy to run around playing, chirping, and chattering as they ran through the village. Everyone had a smile on their faces.

When Lin Yu got back, he immediately took a bowl and went out again. Zhao Yueniang cleaned up and followed him. Since they had not slaughtered pigs and would have to go to town to buy meat, there was nothing meaty to eat at home. He just wanted to go to Chun-ger’s house to see if they had made tofu and buy some to make a refreshing dish of cold tofu with scallions.

When the two of them arrived, there were five or six villagers already at Chun-ger’s house buying tofu. Chun-ger was selling tofu in the courtyard, and his son was running all over the place.

When he saw Lin Yu coming, Chun-ger was very happy. “Yu-ger, you came!”

“I thought that since it’s the busy farming season, you wouldn’t be selling tofu now.”

“This year, Wang Da and Wang Fulang went to help with work in my field, so I just had time to sell tofu.”

Chun-ger still felt a little strange about it. In previous years, the two families each did their own work. His family both sold tofu and had to go down to the fields, which kept them far too busy.

He did not know what had happened this year, but Wang Fulang seemed like he had turned over a new leaf and had actually taken the initiative to come help him, which was how he had time to make tofu.

Chun-ger took out two pieces of tofu for Lin Yu. The silver bracelet on Lin Yu’s wrist was especially eye-catching, and many people noticed it.

“Oh wow, such a thick silver bracelet — it must be worth a lot of silver.”

Since someone said that out loud, and everyone turned to look. Lin Yu only smiled. “Qingshan bought it for me.”

Lin Yu put a few copper coins on the table. Last year, there had been a famine, and even tofu had become much more expensive. Now that the new grain was harvested and the first batch of soybeans had also come in, tofu might get cheaper in a few days.

When Lin Yu came out of Chun-ger’s house carrying the tofu, he happened to see Wang Da and the others carrying wheat to Chun-ger’s house, each with a huge pile of wheat on their backs.

Wang Fulang happened to meet Lin Yu face-to-face. He looked a little embarrassed and smiled at Lin Yu. “Yu-ger, came to buy tofu?”

Lin Yu gave a quiet hum of acknowledgment and smiled at him. When others greeted him kindly, he would not respond with a cold face.

After not seeing him for a few days, Wang Fulang seemed to have changed. In the past, he had gossiped about Lin Yu behind his back, and Wei Qingshan had even gone to his house over it. Wang Fulang had once loved to gossip and spread rumors, but now he seemed much more pleasant and even came to help out at Chun-ger’s house.

As soon as Lin Yu left, the women and husbands in the courtyard buying tofu started gossiping. “My goodness, such a thick silver bracelet, and I think there are designs on it too — how much silver must that be?”
“When we were working today, I saw that Wei Qingshan wouldn’t even let his husband work in the fields.”

“Could it be that he’s pregnant? When the wind blew just now, I thought Yu-ger’s belly looked a bit rounded.”

“Really?” Chun-ger immediately asked. When he had been in confinement after giving birth, Yu-ger had even sent him eggs, and he still remembered that. If Yu-ger really was pregnant, that would be a happy event.

“Hey, when he first married into our village, a lot of people laughed at him. But I think Yu-ger is blessed. After marrying Wei Qingshan, their life has been getting better and better.”

“Exactly, and this time he even came back with another ger, who looks like he’s there just to take care of him.”

“Who says he isn’t? Truly enviable — I don’t even know if I’ll ever get a silver bracelet in my life. Forget a bracelet, I’d settle for a silver hairpin.”

Lin Yu brought the tofu back home. That night, they steamed mantou, stir-fried some vegetables, and on the table there was a cold dish of cucumber with wood ear mushrooms, as well as tofu with scallions. Lin Yu currently liked eating cool dishes, and he ate quite a lot.

The next day, there was no work left, so Wei Qingshan spread the wheat out in the courtyard to dry. By tomorrow, he could drive the mule to thresh it. Lin Yu stayed in the house embroidering the child’s bellyband.

Chun-ger was not sure whether Lin Yu was really pregnant or not, so early in the morning, taking advantage of the cool weather, he came over carrying a basket. Just as he entered the courtyard, he saw Lin Yu embroidering the bellyband.

“Oh! So it’s true, congratulations, congratulations!”

Lin Yu quickly offered him a stool. “Yueniang, go find the jujube cakes at home and let Chun-ger taste some.”

“Okay.”

Chun-ger sat down. “No need to trouble yourself. Yesterday I heard the woman say you were pregnant, so I came to see you. How many months along?”

“Three months.”

Chun-ger was very happy. Lin Yu had been married for nearly three years now, and at last, there was a child. Some villagers had gossiped out of jealousy over how well Lin Yu and Wei Qingshan were living, saying that Lin Yu’s pregnancy mark was shallow and he could not conceive. Naturally, since Wei Qingshan and Lin Yu did not often stay in the village, they had never heard such talk.

“Now that the weather’s hot and you don’t have much appetite, I brought you some tofu and dried tofu. Mix it and eat it.” Chun-ger took out the bowls from the basket — four pieces of tofu and a bowl of dried tofu.

Zhao Yueniang took it and swapped it into their own bowl, washed Chun-ger’s bowl clean, and put it back into the basket.

Chun-ger stayed to chat for a while before leaving. His own household was busy, so he could not sit for long. Lin Yu grabbed two handfuls of melon seeds and two pieces of jujube cake from the table and handed them to him. “Take these back for your child.”

Chun-ger did not refuse. “No need to see me off, I’ll head back now.”

At lunch, Lin Yu made a dish of dried tofu in red chili oil, with crushed peanuts and chopped scallions, finishing with a drizzle of sesame oil. Everyone loved it. It was a pity that Chun-ger’s family did not sell dried tofu — he had probably made it just for their own household. The bowl he gave was enough for two meals.

In the afternoon, Wei Qingshan thought the wheat had dried enough, so he decided to take advantage of the cool weather to thresh it. He drove the mule, pulling the stone roller to crush the wheat in the courtyard. Lin Yu thought it was interesting and stood by the hall door watching.

Having a mule made farm work much easier. Otherwise, pulling the heavy stone roller by hand would be exhausting. Wei Qingshan drove the mule back and forth until the wheat was all threshed, then raked the straw aside.

Wei Qingshan fetched a wooden shovel to winnow the grain. “Xiao Yu, go inside and keep the door closed so it doesn’t blow into the house.”

“Okay.” Lin Yu retreated into the house a bit and prepared to close the door, “Yueniang, close the door a little in your room too.”

“Okay!”

Wei Qingshan was winnowing wheat in the courtyard. When the wind blew, the wheat husks mixed in were blown away. Once the wheat was winnowed well and then dried in the courtyard for a day, it could be bagged.

Wei Qingshan was covered in dust, so he carried water to the backyard and washed himself clean. If his little husband got choked by all that dirt, what would he do?