LW chapter 65

 

The Lunar New Year was a warm and busy time.

There was slaughtering of chickens, boiling of meat, visits to graves, and a New Year’s Eve dinner.

Aunt Sun was not stubborn with Chen Qing, and they ended up spending New Year’s Eve at Chen Qing’s house after all.

Chen Qing was happy and energetic while cooking. The next morning, they went together to visit the graves. First, Chen Qing and Zhou Yuan paid their respects to their grandmother. Then, together with Aunt Sun, they paid their respects to Father Meng and Meng Tao.

After returning home, Chen Qing and Aunt Sun cooked in the kitchen while Zhou Yuan dug up a pile of yellow clay and played alone in the courtyard.

“Is this yellow clay?” Chen Qing asked when he saw Zhou Yuan’s hands covered in mud and some on his face, too.

“All right, I’ll make a small stove.” Yellow clay was the best material for crafting things. Zhou Yuan wanted to make a small stove like the ones in Yunxi City. Earlier, he had gone to find Li Xin and asked him to help make an iron mesh.

“When we were in Yunxi City, Shopkeeper Tian had a stove like this. You could roast potatoes, sweet potatoes, and meat on it.” Zhou Yuan looked at the wheel that had taken shape. “Just burn some charcoal underneath, and it’s ready.”

Aunt Sun had only asked Chen Qing to help Zhou Yuan, so she went back to the kitchen to cook. Chen Qing was skilled and worked much more carefully than Zhou Yuan did.

Zhou Yuan still had some bricks left over from repairing the house, and now they were all stacked in the cowshed. Chen Qing helped Zhou Yuan mix the yellow clay while Zhou Yuan went to wash the bricks.

By the afternoon, the simple stove was finished. Zhou Yuan went to the kitchen, scooped some burning charcoal, placed an iron mesh on top of the stove, and put a few mountain chestnuts on it. Zhang Xu’s family had also given him those.

Zhou Yuan had another idea. He asked Chen Qing to cut a few thin slices of pork for him. He placed the slices on his stove to roast. The meat sizzled and oozed oil, releasing a fragrant aroma. He sprinkled the seasonings they had brought back from Yunxi City on top, and Chen Qing and Zhou Yuan nearly filled themselves up right there.

Aunt Sun reminded them to save some space for dinner, otherwise, she thought Chen Qing and the others could eat half a pig by themselves.

“Should we roast more and send some to Li Xin and the others?” Chen Qing wiped the corner of his mouth and thought that Li Xin might like it.

“Okay.”

Chen Qing went to cut more meat and waited eagerly until Zhou Yuan finished roasting it. Then, he coated it with seasonings, sliced it up, and placed it in a bowl.

When they delivered it to the Li family, the Lis were preparing their New Year’s Eve dinner as well. Zhang Yin was cooking, Li Xin was helping, and Qi Shuning was stoking the fire. They were enjoying themselves as well.

Zhou Yuan and the others didn’t disturb them much, only arranging to go to the temple fair together the next morning.

When they returned home, Aunt Sun had laid out the dishes on the table: clear soup with stewed pig’s feet, boiled meatballs, bacon and sausages, potatoes and pork ribs, and three bowls of rice. The meal was quite sumptuous.

This year had passed too quickly. Last year, Zhou Yuan had not celebrated the Lunar New Year with them, but now they were family.

Zhou Yuan had bought wine. A day like this was made for drinking. It was the same sweet osmanthus wine as last year.

Chen Qing didn’t hold back today and drank happily. However, he passed out before drinking much. Aunt Sun and Zhou Yuan cleared the table together. Aunt Sun reminded Zhou Yuan not to forget to set off firecrackers at midnight.

Zhou Yuan agreed and walked Aunt Sun home. When he returned, Chen Qing was lying on the bed, trying to sober up.

His face was red and his eyes were watery. When he saw Zhou Yuan return, he reached out to hug him.

Chen Qing never normally drank. The last time he had a few drinks was on their wedding day. After drinking then, he said he wanted to go home. Today, however, after drinking, he didn’t say that. Instead, he just reached out like a child wanting a hug.

Zhou Yuan picked him up in a child-holding position. Chen Qing wrapped his arms around Zhou Yuan’s neck: “Zhou Yuan…”

Zhou Yuan looked at him. “What is it?”

“I like you,” Chen Qing said.

Chen Qing was usually very quiet. He almost never spoke about love in front of Zhou Yuan, yet Zhou Yuan never doubted his feelings.

They were evident in his affectionate eyes, careful attentiveness, and much more. Zhou Yuan was immersed in them, and no one understood them better than he did.

On a night of reunion like this, there was too much love to contain. Zhou Yuan nearly tore Chen Qing’s clothes off in a rush.

Drunken Chen Qing gave Zhou Yuan an even bigger surprise. On normal days, he was too shy. He never said what Zhou Yuan wanted to hear or did what Zhou Yuan wanted him to do. But today, he responded to nearly every request, making Zhou Yuan’s scalp tingle.

Fortunately, he did not forget Aunt Sun’s instructions. At midnight, he got up to set off firecrackers and then returned to bed with Chen Qing.

Having drunk heavily, Chen Qing remembered nothing. When he woke up the next morning, nothing seemed unusual, though his waist was a bit sore.

Zhou Yuan cooked eggs for breakfast and waited for Li Xin and the others to return. They had planned to go to the temple to burn incense today, especially since Zhou Yuan had started running outside this year. Inspired by Zhou Yuan’s injury, Chen Qing also wanted to put his faith in the gods and Buddhas.

Li Xin arrived late, after Chen Qing and the others had finished packing up. Chen Qing noticed Li Xin’s slightly awkward walking posture, and Qi Shuning couldn’t hide his smile.

Happy for Li Xin, Chen Qing laid out a mat in the cart while loading the ox cart. He knew Li Xin was shy, so he put the mat there to cover him up.

Qi Shuning kept grinning, making Zhou Yuan feel extremely embarrassed. Li Xin became so angry that he kicked Qi Shuning’s butt.

They were still at Huaiyuan Temple. This time, Qi Shuning didn’t worship Manjusri[mfn]Mañjuśrī is a very important figure in Buddhism. In Buddhism, Mañjuśrī is the Bodhisattva of Wisdom, often depicted holding a flaming sword (to cut through ignorance) in one hand and a lotus with a scripture (Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra) in the other. He represents transcendent wisdom and insight.[/mfn], he wanted to worship Yue Lao[mfn](月老, Yuè Lǎo) literally means “Old Man Under the Moon.” He’s a deity in Chinese folklore and Daoist tradition, regarded as the god of marriage and love.[/mfn] instead.

After returning from the temple, they planned to go to the county town to watch the Lantern Festival on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. Chen Qing hadn’t seen it last year, so he had to go this year.

On the second day of the Lunar New Year, Chen Qing and Zhou Yuan went to Aunt Sun’s house for dinner. Unexpectedly, Aunt Wang came again, this time for the birthday of the former village chief, Meng Zhong.

Chen Qing hadn’t expected them to be so shameless. Last year, they schemed against Zhou Yuan, and her son husband, Zhang Ran, caused Chen Qing trouble as well. This year, they dared to come and ask for gifts.

Aunt Sun maintained her superficial courtesy: “I have plans on the fifth day of the New Year, so I won’t be able to come.” They used to despise her for being an orphan and a widow, yet now she eagerly came to them.

Zhou Yuan’s face darkened, frightening Aunt Wang, but there was nothing she could do. The family was truly in dire straits and was only hoping to gain some respect from the villagers. However, they seemed to have forgotten that things were different now. Without the village chief’s identity, who would bow to them?

As she walked down the road, she looked back and saw Zhou Yuan still standing there. She regretted it for a moment. She should have known better than to provoke him. Now, with the village chief position gone, the family had split apart. The eldest and second sons no longer wanted to associate with Meng Zhong. Zhang Ran, that scoundrel, had run off. The family was now infamous in the village.

Aunt Wang went back to her family home to settle matters with Wang Shan because he was the root of all this. However, she learned that Wang Shan had married a hunter from their village. According to her sister-in-law, Wang Shan had left with the hunter and hadn’t given the family any betrothal gifts.

The hunter was said to have a dark face and burly build and to live in the mountains year-round. He seemed very fond of Wang Shan and brought him along when he went hunting. Even Aunt Wang’s sister-in-law didn’t dare go to their home to look for them, let alone Aunt Wang herself.

Her heart was full of bitterness she could not voice. Today, she visited many households in the village. The better-off families, like Aunt Sun’s, politely refused. Most were sarcastic and mocking. The worst of them even mentioned her husband cheating on her. Aunt Wang felt a burning pain in her heart.

When she returned home, she looked at the broken window and felt despair for the rest of her life. Meng Zhong was still lying inside. Hearing her return, he cursed her for not coming back earlier to cook.

Her youngest son, Meng Bing, sat in the doorway with vacant eyes, muttering Zhang Ran’s name over and over.

Aunt Wang sat on the ground and muttered to herself, “What a sin, what a sin.”

On the other side, Zhou Yuan looked at Chen Qing. “I remember you’re good at fighting. Why didn’t you beat her up?”

Chen Qing kicked him. “She’s old. What if she gets hurt?”

On the fifth day of the new year, the family went to Li Xin’s house for dinner. Since Zhang Yin was sick, they weren’t in much of a mood to celebrate the completion of their new house. They hadn’t gone back since. So, for a belated celebration, they planned to gather at Li Xin’s house on the fifth day of the New Year.

On the fourth day of the New Year, they went into town to buy some things. They couldn’t show up empty-handed.

When they arrived, Niu Niu was writing in the sand in the courtyard. Li the blacksmith was talking to Li Xin about smithing. Qi Shuning was building a fire in the kitchen. Zhang Yin was preparing food.

When Li Xin saw Chen Qing approaching, he stopped listening to the blacksmith and ran toward them. “I want a small stove like yours, too. It’s perfect for roasting meat.”

Unable to refuse Li Xin, Chen Qing and Zhou Yuan went to dig up some more clay and built a stove together in the courtyard. Niu Niu stopped writing and started playing with the yellow clay. At first, they thought Niu Niu was just messing around. But after Chen Qing finished building the small stove, they saw that Niu Niu had actually molded a porcelain vase.

Li Xin looked at it and said, “Isn’t this the vase from the Duobao Pavilion at my grandfather’s house?”

Niu Niu nodded and asked, “Brother, did I make it like that?”

“It does look like it. You did really well.”

Niu Niu touched his nose with his clay-covered hand and smiled happily after being praised. Li the blacksmith watched Niu Niu thoughtfully.

As expected, Li Xin immediately used the newly made stove to roast meat. He had been planning this for a long time, so he bought tender meat and a piece of mutton, which he cut up and placed on the iron mesh.

Not only meat, but vegetables too. Li Xin wanted to roast all the vegetables.

Zhou Yuan laughed at him. “You invited people to your house for dinner, yet you’re still asking them to bring their own pots and stoves?”

Li Xin didn’t care as long as he was happy.

Eating like this was fresh and fun. Niu Niu was so delighted that he couldn’t stop eating, even hissing from the heat.

In the end, Li Xin had eaten all the food he had prepared, so he brewed tea for everyone. After the New Year, Qi Shuning still had to return to the academy to study. He had already been delayed for a year, and he had to take the Autumn Examination in September of that year.

“Where will the Autumn Examination be held?” Zhou Yuan asked.

“There are two testing sites for the Autumn Examination: one at Yuancang Mansion and one at Linbei Mansion,” Qi Shuning replied. “We’re under the Southern Governor’s Office’s jurisdiction, so we’ll take it at the Yuancang Mansion.”

“Then we should leave early, otherwise, lodging will be a problem,” Zhou Yuan said.

“I know.” Qi Shuning nodded. “I’ll go there a month early.”

“What about you? Will you be away for a long time this year?” Li Xin asked.

Zhou Yuan glanced at Chen Qing. “I plan to take Aqing back to his hometown. After all, his parents are buried there. Now that we’ve settled here, I think we should invite all his relatives too.”

Li Xin nodded, then angrily said, “It’s better to teach Aqing’s relatives a lesson. What kind of people would bully a young ger like that?

Chen Qing pulled Li Xin’s arm. “I’m fine. Everything is fine now, isn’t it?”

Zhou Yuan said, “The good things now can’t cover up the suffering of the past. Go back and take a trip, and everything will be settled.”

He touched Chen Qing’s head. “When the weather warms up, we’ll go back.”

Chen Qing nodded and asked, “Do you still need to go back to your family’s home?”

Zhou Yuan shook his head. “I’ve already taken care of everything with my family.” When he decided to leave, he went to his uncle’s house armed with a knife and demanded the money that had been deducted from his grandmother for years.

His second uncle scolded him for being unfilial and said he would be struck by lightning and his line would be cut off. Zhou Yuan didn’t care at all. Only those who did evil would be left without descendants.

Chen Qing held Zhou Yuan’s hand. “But I still want to go see. Even though we rebuilt my grandmother’s grave, I still want to reinforce the hasty grave I dug before.”

“Well, it’s on the way, so it’s fine to go.”

Zhou Yuan looked at Chen Qing. As long as Chen Qing was by his side, everything would be all right wherever he went.

 

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