LW chapter 93: Extra 9

 

Grandmother saw Chen Qing carrying a knife and leaving the house and knew it wasn’t good. If he went up against the Zhou Mu family, he wouldn’t have any advantage. At best, he would get hurt; at worst, he might lose his life.

Chen Qing was fast, but Grandmother had been unwell lately and had weak legs. Even sitting up felt like a struggle. Using her cane, she pushed open the door, nearly falling over in the process.

Zhou Yuan reacted quickly, helping Grandmother stand firm. “Grandmother! I’m back!”

When Grandmother saw that it was Zhou Yuan who had come back, her mind froze for a moment. She reached out to touch his face, shrugged her shoulders, and began to cry.

Zhou Yuan pulled her into his arms. “Grandmother, don’t cry. I’ve come back, and from now on, our days will be good again!”

He hadn’t even brought a bundle with him. He returned the same way he left, only with an extra-long knife on his back.

Luckily, Grandmother didn’t get carried away by her overwhelming joy. She was still worried about Chen Qing, so she grabbed Zhou Yuan’s hand. “Hurry and go to your second uncle’s place.”

“Why are we going to Second Uncle’s place?” Zhou Yuan was also confused. He had just come back and hadn’t even had a sip of water yet when Grandmother pushed him out.

“Your husband went to your second uncle’s house to ask for money. I’m afraid Xiao Qing will suffer a loss. Hurry and go.” Grandmother was happy and worried at the same time, urging him toward the door.

Zhou Yuan: ?

“Where did I get a husband?” Completely confused, he walked out the door, but since Grandmother looked so anxious, he could only go first.

As he approached his second uncle’s house, he heard a thin voice loudly accusing his uncle. When he heard the words “my husband” from that voice, Zhou Yuan blushed, feeling as if a cat were scratching at his heart.

Could this “husband”… be referring to him?

But after hearing Chen Qing’s words, his face turned black. He had spent all these years living on the battlefield, risking his life. He thought that the more enemies he killed, the greater the reward he would receive. He fought among blades and shadows just to earn money so his grandmother could live well. But he didn’t expect his second uncle to take all the money.

Now, Grandmother is sick, and they don’t even have money to buy medicine. And this thin, small husband had to come ask for it?

Zhou Yuan was furious. His anger peaked when he saw Zhou Mu raise his hand against Chen Qing. He had just come from the battlefield, and the blood and killing aura hadn’t faded yet. When he saw Zhou Mu kick Chen Qing again, Zhou Yuan caught him.

Zhou Mu panicked when he saw Zhou Yuan. When Zhou Yuan joined the army, no one in the village thought he would return alive. Now, he was standing right in front of Zhou Mu, alive. It scared Zhou Mu so much that he stuttered, “Y-you…you…”

“I still have things to do today.” Zhou Yuan let out a cold laugh and put his knife back in its sheath. “I’ll come visit another day, Second Uncle.”

There was no rush to settle accounts with their family today. Grandmother’s health was more important. Earlier, he had heard Chen Qing say that Grandmother needed money for medicine. They should take care of Grandmother first, and then deal with the rest slowly. In any case, he had plenty of time, and he would settle both new and old debts.

Hearing this, Zhou Mu immediately ran inside and locked the door tightly.

After speaking, Zhou Yuan lowered his eyes and glanced at Chen Qing, who was standing beside him. He asked, “Can you still walk?”

When he heard the emotionless question, Chen Qing’s heart trembled and he quickly moved away from him. But he was too frightened and nervous. After stepping back, he suddenly sat down on the ground.

Chen Qing was still trembling. Not far from him lay the kitchen knife he had dropped in his panic earlier.

By then, Grandmother had finally arrived. Seeing Chen Qing sitting on the ground with Zhou Yuan standing beside him, she realized that she hadn’t introduced them.

“Xiao Qing, how are you?” Grandmother walked toward Chen Qing, already gasping for breath. She was worried. “Are you okay?”

Chen Qing pulled the corner of his mouth into a smile, but it looked worse than crying. “Grandmother, I’m fine.”

“A-Yuan, is Xiao Qing injured? Pick him up.” Grandmother thought that Chen Qing was injured and couldn’t stand; she was really worried.

Not wanting to go against Grandmother, Zhou Yuan bent down and picked Chen Qing up in one go.

Being lifted suddenly made Chen Qing’s chest tighten. He didn’t know whether to put his arms around Zhou Yuan, but Zhou Yuan didn’t care because Chen Qing was so light. He could carry him with one hand and spin around.

As soon as he lifted Chen Qing, he lightly grabbed his arm.

Zhou Yuan lowered his eyes and looked at him. “What’s wrong?”

Chen Qing had used up all his courage earlier. With Zhou Yuan being so tall and speaking in an emotionless tone, Chen Qing was even more frightened. He shrank back again. “The kitchen knife… the kitchen knife from home.”

Zhou Yuan also noticed the kitchen knife on the ground, polished to a shine. He lifted Chen Qing into his arms, picked up the knife, and carried him home.

Carrying Chen Qing, Zhou Yuan returned to the house. When he came back earlier, he hadn’t had time to look at the yard closely. Now, he finally realized that, although the small courtyard was tiny and simple, it was kept very clean. However, it was obvious that his grandmother hadn’t been living well—everything was old and worn, and there were many patched-up spots on the window frames.

He set Chen Qing down on a stool and put the knife away. After glancing around the house, Zhou Yuan relaxed a little when he saw that there was still some grain left.

Ever since they got back, Chen Qing had been anxious. Zhou Yuan had been so cold on the way back, acting as if he didn’t want anything to do with him.

If Zhou Yuan didn’t want him, he would have to wander again. Chen Qing hung his head, not saying a word.

Zhou Yuan walked out of the kitchen and looked at the two people sitting in the courtyard. His grandmother was visibly frail with age, and the other man was so thin that he could be blown away by a gust of wind. If he had come back any later, they would have probably starved to death. His resentment toward Zhou Mu grew deeper.

Only now did his grandmother react to Zhou Yuan’s return. She began to cry. “You’re finally back. Are you hurt? Why did you suddenly come home? Is the war over?”

Zhou Yuan nodded. “Yes, it’s over. We won a great victory. There will be peace from now on.”

Grandmother reached out to him, so he crouched down in front of her. She gently ran her fingers through his hair. “It’s good that you’re back. I thought I wouldn’t live long enough to see you return.”

Then, she remembered something and pointed at Chen Qing. “That’s Xiao Qing. He’s the husband I bought for you.”

Hearing them talk about him, Chen Qing straightened his back. He had imagined what it would be like when Zhou Yuan came home a while ago, but now that he was really back, fear crept up again.

Zhou Yuan looked helpless. “Grandmother, that money was sent back for you to live comfortably. Why would you buy me a husband?”

Chen Qing’s heart leapt into his throat.

“Grandmother won’t live much longer. I couldn’t let you come home to an empty house.” She smiled, and her complexion looked much better suddenly, as if her illness had lightened because Zhou Yuan had returned.

Zhou Yuan looked at Chen Qing, too. For a moment, he didn’t know what to do. Chen Qing’s heart twisted again, scared that Zhou Yuan would reject him.

Zhou Yuan remembered why Chen Qing had gone to Zhou Mu’s house. He stood up. “Grandmother, let me take you to see the doctor first.”

Only then did Chen Qing truly breathe a sigh of relief. Now that Zhou Yuan was home, his grandmother’s illness could finally be treated. However, he didn’t dare ask if Zhou Yuan still had money because medicine was expensive.

Zhou Yuan carried his grandmother on his back, and Chen Qing stood up too. His grandmother looked at him and said, “Xiao Qing, you stay. Your leg is injured.”

Chen Qing sat back down and watched them leave. His heart beat fast. He felt like he was going to end up wandering alone again. Remembering the look Zhou Yuan had given him earlier, he knew Zhou Yuan didn’t want to keep him.

He lifted his clothes and looked at his leg. The spot where Zhou Mu had kicked him was bruised and still hurt. Luckily, it wasn’t broken, and he could still move.

He stood up. Since it was Zhou Yuan’s first day back, he should at least have a good meal, whether Zhou Yuan accepted him or not. He also wanted to eat something good.

He took out his pouch. There were fifty-five coins left inside. Meat cost twenty coins per jin. Chen Qing planned to buy a jin of meat and prepare a welcome-home meal for Zhou Yuan.

They were both starving for something oily, so he bought a piece of fatty pork. Limping, he returned home.

Grandmother had planted some vegetables, but nothing good could grow on such poor land—only radishes, which grew for three seasons a year. Luckily, there was still some cabbage this season.

Chen Qing mixed the dough and made buns with cabbage and pork cracklings as the filling. He made ten buns, which should be enough. He also cooked radishes with pork and boiled a small pot of salted vegetable soup. Since there was no proper kitchen, Chen Qing had built a simple cooking slab where he could chop vegetables and knead dough.

At first, he could focus on cooking, but as the smell of meat spread, he couldn’t hold it in anymore. He squatted beside the mud stove and started crying.

He hadn’t dared to cry out loud since childhood, so he cried silently, tears dropping one by one onto the ground. After crying, he stood back up and limped back to the room.

But it wasn’t his room—it was Zhou Yuan’s. He opened the cabinet and found his clothes. His family was far too poor. He had never bought new clothes since coming here, only wearing the ones that had been altered from Zhou Yuan’s.

He had almost nothing to take with him. He touched the pouch Grandma had given him. Maybe that pouch was the only thing he could bring.

Chen Qing didn’t know if he should stay and eat with them. He sat on the bed, hesitating, for a long time. As the sky slowly darkened, grandmother still hadn’t returned. He thought that if he waited for them to come back, he wouldn’t have a place to sleep anyway. So, he picked up his pouch, slung the nearly empty bundle over his shoulder, and prepared to leave.

As soon as he stepped outside, he ran into Zhou Yuan and his grandmother, who were returning. Zhou Yuan was carrying Grandmother on his back, and she was holding a packet of medicine.

Chen Qing let out a breath. At least Zhou Yuan had money to take Grandmother to the doctor and buy medicine. Grandmother would surely live much better now. Looking at Zhou Yuan’s tall, strong build, Chen Qing thought that he really did look like someone who could earn a lot.

“Xiao Qing! It’s late. Where are you going? We’re home now—come back inside quickly.” Grandmother thought he had gone out to look for them. But when she got closer, she saw the bundle on his back.

She patted Zhou Yuan on the back, and he set her down. Grandmother grabbed Chen Qing’s hand anxiously. “Where are you going?”

 

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Author’s Note:

Aqing: *crying*