LC chapter 15

 

Sun Kang left Luohe Village in frustration, the fishy taste still lingering in his mouth. He spat several times, but the stench wouldn’t go away.

The Sun family lived in Nanzhuang Village, not too far from Luohe. Nanzhuang wasn’t as prosperous as Luohe, and the Sun family was big and poor. Life was tough for them.

That day in town, they heard that the demobilized soldiers had returned. Although they hadn’t been in touch with Sun Cui since her marriage years ago, they were still afraid she might come begging for money again. Therefore, Sun Kang kept a close eye on what was happening in Luohe Village.

That’s how they found out that the soldiers had indeed returned. They also heard that Meng Tao had died in battle, and his family had received a ten-tael silver pension.

The matriarch held authority in the Sun family. Her family had once been wealthy, and everyone still listened to her.

“The eldest is back?” Old Madam Sun was 57 now. Despite living in poverty, she was spirited and didn’t look her age.

She had given birth to four children. Sun Cui was her third daughter. The rest were sons. Aside from Sun Cui, who had married out, the rest of the family still lived together under one roof.

“I can’t stand Sun Cui!” Sun Kang spat bitterly, filled with resentment. He looked around the room at his family members and his hopeful son, then lowered his head.

He told them everything that had happened in Luohe that day—except for when Zhou Yuan lifted him up and threw dung at him. “She cursed me out. I guess she’s still holding a grudge over what happened back then.”

Old Madam Sun’s face darkened, her wrinkles deepening into a fierce scowl. “She really said that?”

Sun Kang nodded. “She sounded so hateful. I don’t think she’s going to hand over the money that easily.”

“That wretched girl! If only she had listened back then, she wouldn’t be in this situation now. And now she dares to resent me? Eldest and Second, you two are coming with me tomorrow. I can’t believe this!”

Sun Qi, the second son, tried to reason with her, saying, “The busy farming season starts tomorrow. If she wants help with the fields, we should help her and ask for money in return. It might be better to wait a few days. Besides, Dawei’s wedding is in September. There’s still time.”

Sun Kang’s eyes landed on the youngest boy in the house, and an idea came to him. “Mother, do you remember Sun Cui buying a boy to be Meng Tao’s husband?”

Old Madam Sun nodded.

“I think that boy’s quite good-looking,” Sun Kang said, shooting a glare at her husband.

“I mean, since Sun Cui bought him and Meng Tao died the day he arrived, he’s probably still a virgin. If we sell him again, we could get a decent price…”

Old Madam Sun nodded thoughtfully. “Good thinking. But are you sure the boy’s really good-looking?”

Sun Kang nodded quickly. “He’s small, but he has the right kind of build.”

This time, Sun Kang’s husband had enough. He yanked on her ear. “Sun Kang!”

“Enough! Don’t talk like that in front of the children!” Old Madam Sun scolded. “I remember there’s a Luo family in town. Master Luo has a thing for young boys. If he really looks like you said he does, he’ll fetch a high price—but are you sure he’s still a virgin?”

“He should be.”

A virgin was far more valuable than someone who had already “served” as a husband. Sun Kang was pretty sure the boy still counted.

“All right. Here’s the plan: Next time we go, we’ll take the money and the boy. Make sure to find the deed.” She frowned. “Fourth and A-Wei should go with us, too.”

Meanwhile, Chen Qing in Luohe Village had no idea what was coming. He and Aunt Sun headed to their cornfield and decided to start harvesting the next morning. Most of their farmland was on the mountain, so getting the crops down would be the hardest part.

“We’ll go early tomorrow,” said Aunt Sun. “It’s too hard to work once the sun’s up.”

Chen Qing nodded. They had done this for several years, and this year would be no different.

At the crack of dawn, the two of them got up. They didn’t bother with breakfast, just packing water and last night’s steamed buns into their backpacks and baskets. They left the house before the roosters crowed.

Corn leaves were sharp and made your skin itch and sting when they brushed against it. Chen Qing was quick with other tasks, but harvesting corn was always difficult for him.

The sky was still dark, and the road up the mountain was difficult. Chen Qing tripped a few times before they reached their plot.

They each ate a few bites of the steamed buns, but neither of them had much of an appetite that early. Then they started working. Chen Qing had a knife at his waist. After picking the corn, he would chop down the stalks, which could be used as firewood once dried.

They each took one row. Chen Qing was slower and quickly fell behind Aunt Sun.

By the time the sun started to rise and the birds began to chirp, his neck and face were scratched up. He scratched himself irritably.

The field wasn’t big. Chen Qing figured he could bring all the corn home in three or four trips.

“Ma, you can carry a basket first. I’ll come back and get the rest in a few trips,” he said as he sat on the ground to drink some water. He didn’t feel like eating, he just needed a drink.

“Alright.” Aunt Sun didn’t argue. Her back had been bothering her recently, and if she overdid it and ended up bedridden, that would be real trouble. “Just make more trips and carry less each time.”

“Got it.”

“This land isn’t too far. I’ll ask Zhou Yuan to lend us an oxcart. It should only take one or two trips that way,” she muttered to herself.

They finished harvesting the entire plot by sunrise. Aunt Sun packed some corn into the basket and helped Chen Qing load his. She didn’t fill them all the way, afraid he’d strain himself.

Before they headed back, Aunt Sun took out a handkerchief, folded it, and placed it on his shoulder.

His shoulder was already sore.

He carried one basket. Chen Qing took a deep breath and lifted both baskets onto a carrying pole.

They were heavier than expected, but manageable.

“Walk slowly, Ah Qing. Rest if you’re tired.”

“Okay, I will.”

His face flushed. The path down the mountain was steep, and he had to take steady steps.

Even so, the weight was too much, and he had to stop several times to rest.

By the time they finally got home, Chen Qing was exhausted—and that was just the first trip!

Aunt Sun wanted to help, so she took a backpack and went up with him again.

By the time they returned for round two, Li Xin was already in their courtyard, peeling corn husks. They could be dried and used as firewood later.

There was water on the table, and Li Xin had husked quite a bit.

“Li Xin? What are you doing here so early?” Chen Qing ran to the table, took a drink of water, and asked.

“No work at home today, so I came to help,” Li Xin replied. He had brought his six-year-old brother, Li Jingtong, who was tumbling around in the corn husks.

His grandfather gave him that name, but since he didn’t quite fit in with the village dogs and goats, his father nicknamed him Niu Niu.

“Niu Niu’s here too.” Aunt Sun loved kids. She pulled a piece of candy out of the house and gave it to him. Zhou Yuan had given it to Chen Qing last time, who had given it to Aunt Sun. She hadn’t wanted to eat it herself, though.

“Thank you, Auntie,” said Niu Niu sweetly as he sat on the pile of husks to enjoy his treat.

After a short break, Chen Qing got up to pick more corn. He figured he could finish in two more trips.

Aunt Sun wanted to go again, but Li Xin stood up. “Auntie, I’ll go with him. Your back isn’t well. Please look after Niu Niu. I’ll help him.”

After thinking about it, Aunt Sun agreed.

No matter what, Li Xin insisted on helping Chen Qing carry the pole. As they passed by Zhou Yuan’s house, they encountered him as he was walking out the door.

Thanks to Aunt Sun’s persuasion, Chen Qing could finally get along with Zhou Yuan and accept his help.

Zhou Yuan noticed the pole on Li Xin’s shoulders. He knew that Chen Qing would never ask someone else to do something he could do himself. But, strangely, Chen Qing wasn’t carrying anything this time.

He hadn’t run into Chen Qing on the mountain earlier, either.

“Heading out?”

Chen Qing nodded.

Just then, Li Xin moved closer and placed a hand on Chen Qing’s shoulder. His skin was red and swollen, and Chen Qing flinched when Li Xin touched it.

“The Chen family is harvesting corn from the mountain. He’s already made three trips. I just saw how swollen his shoulder was,” Li Xin explained.

Chen Qing tugged on Li Xin’s sleeve, embarrassed.

Zhou Yuan hummed and walked over, lifting the pole off Li Xin’s shoulder. “I’ll help carry the rest.”

“Hey, wait! You don’t have to. I can do it myself.”

Before Chen Qing could finish, Li Xin clutched his stomach. “Ah Qing, I have a stomachache. You go ahead. I’ll catch up later.”

Chen Qing had no choice but to move forward, gritting his teeth.

Thankfully, no one else had fields on that mountain. If people saw Zhou Yuan helping to carry corn for his family, the news would spread like wildfire.

Why did his stomach start hurting now of all times?

“Did you carry water up the mountain today?”

“Huh?” Chen Qing blinked, confused. “No, I didn’t fetch any.”

He never thought the path would feel so long. Once he was up there, he quickly filled the baskets and stopped before they were full.

Zhou Yuan glanced at the load. “Not packing the rest? You’ll have to make another trip.”

“It’s too much…”

I should be stronger than you.” Zhou Yuan packed the rest and even filled the backpack that Chen Qing had brought.

He lifted the pole as if it were nothing. Chen Qing had to carry the backpack. As soon as he put it on, the pain in his shoulders returned. He winced and sighed as he followed Zhou Yuan.

They could gather the stalks in the afternoon.

Chen Qing followed a short distance behind Zhou Yuan, watching him stride ahead. For some reason, he felt a quiet, secret joy.

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