MFBOWSBTMT Chapter 127

“Father, what’s wrong with A-mu?”

 

Three-year-old Tangyuan looked up, his eyes brimming with tears, staring intently at the door.

 

Lu Dongqing patted Tangyuan’s back, soothing him in a low voice, “A-mu is giving birth to your younger brother or sister. The ones Tangyuan wanted.”

 

Another muffled cry came from inside the room. Tangyuan burst into loud sobs, “I don’t want younger brother or sister anymore! I want A-mu, I want A-mu!”

 

Lu Dongqing had no choice but to carry Tangyuan further away, his own heart also clenched into a tight knot. “We’ll see A-mu very soon. Don’t cry, alright? If A-mu hears you, he’ll worry.”

 

Tangyuan immediately covered his small mouth with both hands, sniffing and sobbing, “Tangyuan won’t cry anymore.”

 

Aunt Qian was busy fetching water back and forth, with each basin turning crimson with blood. Lu Dongqing found it hard to breathe. He turned his back to block Tangyuan’s view.

 

Fortunately, this birth went smoothly. The baby’s first cry was loud and strong.

 

But Lu Dongqing waited for a long while without hearing Midwife Yuan announce the good news. His heart thumped wildly and he rushed closer to the door to call out, “Mother, how is it?”

 

Inside the room, Miao Lianhua was rushing about frantically, her voice filled with both surprise and worry: “There’s another one! Wait!”

 

It’s twins!

 

Upon hearing this, Tang Guo’er immediately stuck his head out from the kitchen, his eyes widened as he asked, “Da-ge, there are two?!”

 

He then turned to Lu Xuesong with astonishment on his face. “To give birth to two at once! Quick, boil more water!”

 

“Alright, you sit and wait.”

 

Lu Xuesong moved a chair next to Tang Guo’er.

 

Tang Guo’er glanced at him, then lowered his head to rub his already rounded belly, smiling as he sat down to wait for the water to boil.

 

After a while longer, another cry rang out. Qiao Ruifeng, who was busy carrying firewood, let out a sigh of relief. Thank goodness. Fortunately, everything went smoothly.

 

Midwife Yuan opened the door. She and Qin Yu each held a baby in their arms. She said with a laugh, “Congratulations on the twins! One little boy and one little ge’r!”

 

Qin Yu wore a beaming smile, “Look at their features, so handsome.”

 

Lu Dongqing pressed Tangyuan’s head into his chest, staring blankly for a moment at the two children, then quickly turned toward the bed. Qiao Suiman was covered with a quilt, clearly exhausted.

 

“Good… good.”

 

Qin Yu smiled, closed the door, and blocked the view.

 

A short while later, Miao Lianhua came out, leaving Zhou Shuifen and Hua Yun inside to tidy up. After washing her hands, she prepared to cook.

 

Tang Guo’er was chopping vegetables, but Miao Lianhua hurriedly made him sit and pick vegetables instead. Standing too long would make his legs ache at night.

 

Tang Guo’er was already five months pregnant. Hearing Miao Lianhua’s words, he obediently went to the yard to pick vegetables while Lu Xuesong was still boiling water.

 

Lu Dongqing’s heart settled. He touched the silver wrapped in red cloth inside his robe, waiting for Midwife Yuan to come out so he could give it to her.

 

Tear stains still lingered at the corners of Tangyuan’s eyes. Lu Dongqing wiped them with a soft cloth, then set him down on the ground, saying softly, “A-mu is very tired now. How about Tangyuan helps Father cook a meal for A-mu?”

 

“Okay.”

 

Tangyuan walked very steadily, holding Lu Dongqing’s hand as they entered the kitchen.

 

“Grandmother.” Tangyuan sniffled and called out.

 

“Yes, my good boy.”

 

Miao Lianhua turned around and saw Tangyuan’s little face flushed red from crying. Her heart ached for him, “You can see A-mu after eating. Be good and wait for the meal, alright?”

 

Tangyuan nodded, his voice milky and soft, “Eat meal, feed A-mu.”

 

Lu Dongqing isn’t much of a cook, but he could handle chopping meat and vegetables. A few of them busied themselves in the kitchen for a while. Goat milk was boiled earlier and was taken to feed the newborns. Now, they needed to prepare the food for the guests later.

 

When sounds came from the room, Lu Dongqing had just finished chopping ribs and meat. He wiped his hands clean and went out, inviting Midwife Yuan to sit in the main hall before respectfully presenting her with the gift money.[mfn]喜钱 xi qián – money given to guests on a happy occasion[/mfn]

 

Midwife Yuan weighed it in her hand and was overjoyed. “They’re both doing well. Man-ge’r also drank some goat milk. It wasn’t as difficult as last time.”

 

“Thank you, Grandmother Yuan.” Lu Dongqing clasped his hands in gratitude.

 

Once the room was tidied up, Lu Dongqing brought food inside. Tangyuan, who was usually greedy for food, didn’t fuss about eating first but obediently ran into the room.

 

Qiao Suiman wasn’t asleep, just resting on the bed as he gazed down at the two newborns with his heart full to the brim.

 

Lu Dongqing set up the small table and placed a bowl of thick rice porridge and a few dishes on it. He said in a slightly hoarse voice, “You’ve worked hard, Xiao Man.”

 

Qiao Suiman smiled faintly and slowly shook his head. He caught his breath before saying, “Let’s call the little boy Hetao[mfn]核桃 – walnut[/mfn], and the little ge’r Xiao Ou’er[mfn]小藕儿 – little lotus root[/mfn].”

 

“Alright. In a few days, I’ll go to Yuan’an Temple to ask for their formal names.”

 

Tangyuan stood by the bed. He had never seen Qiao Suiman look so weak before. His tears fell again, “A-mu, I don’t want younger brother or sister anymore. Wuwu, A-mu, what’s wrong with you?”

 

Qiao Suiman’s heart ached for him. He gently patted Tangyuan’s little head, “A-mu is fine. Look, your didi[mfn]弟弟 – younger brother[/mfn] are here. Tangyuan will have brothers to play with from now on, two of them!”

 

Only then did Tangyuan climb onto the bed to look at his two brothers. Then he pouted and said, “Stinky didi.”

 

Then, with his round eyes wide open, he asked Lu Dongqing, “Why are my didi so lazy, sleeping all the time? Tuanzi-ge and Xiao Gao’er aren’t like this.”

 

Lu Dongqing chuckled softly, “The little brothers are still small and need to sleep. Let’s feed A-mu first.”

 

“En!”

 

Tangyuan nodded firmly. In his understanding, if you aren’t feeling well, you need to eat to get better quickly. So, with his small hand, he scooped up a spoonful of porridge and steadily brought it to Qiao Suiman’s mouth.

 

Qiao Suiman’s eyes curved with a smile. After eating for a while, he asked Lu Dongqing to take Tangyuan out to eat first so he wouldn’t go hungry.

 

Lu Dongqing obeyed, leaving Tangyuan with Miao Lianhua before returning to continue feeding Qiao Suiman.

 

The food was made especially light. After Qiao Suiman ate his fill, he sat for a while longer watching the two babies before falling into a deep sleep.

 

With two new babies at home, Tangyuan, except for being angry at the little brothers on the day Qiao Suiman gave birth, spent the rest of the time constantly watching them. When he saw that the two brothers could only drink goat milk and rice gruel, he even shook his head and sighed, “My didi are so pitiful. They can’t even eat meat.”

 

This amused the whole family greatly.

 

Lu Dongqing continued to travel between the town and the village as before. Chen Xiasheng had already completed his apprenticeship and had recently taken on many bamboo weaving jobs in the village. His marriage had also been settled, waiting only for the following spring to hold the wedding.

 

The confinement period was boring. Fortunately, with a lively treasure like Tangyuan around, and Qin Yu often bringing Tuanzi and Xiao Gao’er over to play, Qiao Suiman barely managed to complete the two months of confinement.

 

The two babies have distinctly different temperaments. Little Hetao was somewhat calmer than Tangyuan had been as a baby. Xiao Ou’er laughs easily and, for the most part, doesn’t distinguish between people. He doesn’t cry no matter who holds him.

 

By the end of the eighth month, harvest time came. The few mu of land outside the town yielded enough grain to feed the family for over a year.

 

Because of this, Lu Dongqing was busier than before. Every day, besides managing the shop, he also had to find time to check on the fields.

 

Even so, he returned home happily each day, playing with the children and telling Qiao Suiman interesting happenings from the town. Before they knew it, time had passed by.

 

After the double full-month banquet, they returned to town. Their original small room had become too cramped. With three children’s belongings added, every corner was packed full.

 

Lu Dongqing simply moved their things back to the room at the bamboo ware shop first, and hired someone to break through the wall connecting the two rooms of the drink shop. Only then did they settle down properly.

 

At night, after Qiao Suiman coaxed the children to sleep, he said softly, “We should start looking for a proper house.[mfn]院子 yuànzǐ – courtyard[/mfn]”

 

“Mn. We’ll start looking. The children are still small, so going back and forth is inconvenient. When Hetao and Ou’er are over a year old, we can bring them to the shop during the day and all go home together at night. We’ll also need to buy someone[mfn]T/N: This story is set in ancient times and reflects social practices of that era. Mentions of “buying someone” (買個人) to serve in a household refer to historical systems of bonded servitude or labor. They are part of the setting and should not be understood as an endorsement of such practices today.[/mfn] to look after the house.”

 

Qiao Suiman thought it over. It was indeed time to buy a servant. Both he and Lu Dongqing have businesses and couldn’t get away. They wouldn’t feel at ease leaving the children at home for someone else to look after. This solution seemed the best option.

 

“Let’s buy two. One to guard the house and one to do cleaning chores at the shop. Otherwise, Zhang-dajie won’t be able to manage.”

 

Three children are far more work than one. Qiao Suiman himself is often busy enough. Even with Zhang Ning handling the cooking and laundry, he was still often kept so busy that it left him running in circles.

 

“Alright. We still have time to look. We’ll buy someone with a contract of permanent servitude[mfn]死契 sǐ qì (lit. death contract) – In ancient China (on certain eras), the practice of selling oneself or others into servitude was formalized through written “身契” (shēn qì, body contracts), commonly classified as 活契 (huó qì, living contracts) and 死契 (sǐ qì, death contracts). These terms literally mean a “live” or redeemable contract versus a “dead” or irrevocable contract. In essence, a 活契 (live contracts) allowed a servant to eventually regain freedom (by expiration or redemption), whereas a 死契 (death contracts) bound the person as a servant for life (often extending to their offspring)[/mfn] directly from a broker.[mfn]人牙 rén yá – middleman or broker[/mfn] That’s more reliable.”

 

“Mn.” Qiao Suiman agreed.

 

It sounds easy enough, but finding a place that’s close to the shop, reasonably priced, and spacious enough still took quite a bit of time.

 

One evening, Qin Xiaoyao came to chat with him, holding his child. His and Wu Qi’s eldest son was already one year old, an active child who kept squirming in Qin Xiaoyao’s arms.

 

Qin Xiaoyao had no choice. He took a walker, put his son inside, and let him walk around on his own.

 

“It’s a pity no one is selling houses near my place, otherwise we could be neighbors.”

 

“We’ll mostly be at the shop anyway. It’s the same.” Qiao Suiman smiled.

 

The two chatted for a while. As dusk fell and the shop closed, Zhang Ning had already prepared the meal and warmed the goat milk. She also helped feed Little Hetao.

 

“A-mu, why do my didi do nothing but eat and sleep?” Tangyuan pouted.

 

Qiao Suiman laughed, poking Tangyuan’s forehead with his finger, “You used to be like that too. You would cry if you were fed a little late.”

 

Tangyuan’s big eyes were full of surprise, “That’s not true! I would never cry!”

 

“Father, is A-mu lying?”

 

Lu Dongqing picked up Tangyuan and chuckled, “He’s not lying to you. When you were as small as your brothers, you were just the same. You ate, then slept, woke up crying to eat, just like a little piglet.”

 

Tangyuan was greatly shocked and sulked for a while. After a moment, he somehow came to terms with it and declared proudly, “You have to eat and sleep well to grow tall! My didi are as smart as me!”

 

Qiao Suiman and Lu Dongqing burst out laughing, “Right. Tangyuan must teach his didi well from now on, so they all grow tall.”

 

Little Tangyuan clenched his small fists and nodded with a serious expression, “I definitely will!”

 

Then, imitating how Qiao Suiman usually comforted him, he gently patted his two brothers’ little bellies, “Little Hetao, Xiao Ou’er, I’m your gege.”

 

Qiao Suiman’s heart melted. He slowly leaned into Lu Dongqing’s embrace and whispered, “Dongqing, days like these are truly good.”

 

Lu Dongqing wrapped his arm around Qiao Suiman’s waist, kissed the corner of his mouth, and said, “They will be even better in the future.”

 

“A-mu!”

 

“Tangyuan wants kisses too!”

 

Catching sight of the moment, Tangyuan demanded his share. Qiao Suiman glared playfully at Lu Dongqing and smothered Tangyuan’s cheeks with kisses.

 

“Father!”

 

Tangyuan turned his head, his eyes shining as he looked at Lu Dongqing.

 

Lu Dongqing chuckled lowly and kissed Tangyuan’s right cheek. Only then was Tangyuan satisfied and lay down.

 

They searched for a long time, even paid a broker to look, and finally settled on a place in the fourth month of the following year.

 

That house is located in the fifth alley behind the shop. Although it was at the very end, it was also more spacious because of it. There was even space to grow some vegetables and even a small peach tree.

 

The yard has a well, so it was more expensive than the other places they had seen. It has four habitable rooms, plus quarters for servants. The kitchen and woodshed were quite large, and it even has a livestock shed, which would save a lot of effort.

 

Including the purchase of a married couple in their early forties, it cost two hundred taels altogether.

 

They had saved up a fair amount of money over the years, but two hundred taels was no small sum. The broker originally asked for two hundred thirty taels, and it took a lot of haggling before they finally agreed on this price.

 

That couple was originally servants and laborers for a wealthy merchant family. The master’s family was secretly dealing in smuggled salt[mfn]私盐 sīyán (lit. private salt) – salt that was secretly trafficked and sold without paying taxes[/mfn] and was investigated. After the family’s property were confiscated, they were also sold off.

 

They heard it was Liu Mei’s husband who handled the case. It caused quite a stir not long ago, and even the prefectural city sent people.

 

They were the lowest-ranking slaves, unaware of their masters’ deeds, yet they were implicated and sold into permanent servitude. They also have a child with them, so it wasn’t easy for them either.

 

Qiao Suiman and Lu Dongqing observed them for a while. Seeing that they were honest and didn’t dare cause trouble, they bought them.

 

Old Li is quiet but diligent in his work. He would tend to the livestock at home, chop wood, and guard the house. He knows how to drive a cart, so in the future, Lu Dongqing could rest when going out.

 

Old Lady Li doesn’t talk much but is very efficient in her work. She noticed tasks without Qiao Suiman having to speak and did them herself.

 

Their child, Li Heng, is only ten years old. He is thin and small but not timid. He was assigned to learn serving tables under Fulang He.

 

Qiao Suiman had other thoughts as well.

 

The shop’s business was good now, and they would definitely open other shops in the future. Although he didn’t know how long it would take, it was never wrong to train people early. Anyway, the permanent servitude contracts of their whole family were in his hands, so they wouldn’t dare do anything else.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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