Translated by Amaryllideae, edited by Ahzinal~
Thanks for the ko-fi donation once again, Anon! Here’s the extra long bonus release as promised ❤
After Xi Yanqing finished sending the bride-price, the Luo family should have asked him to stay to drink some wine, but they were borrowing the oxcart to go up the mountain to cut wood. Therefore, after the people who came to join in on the fun had left, it was about time for Xi Yanqing to go up the mountain with Luo Tian. Han Yang also decided to go with him since his family wanted to make some new chopsticks and chairs for the children. Also, with something like harvesting wood, the more people the better.
Luo Fei also wanted to follow, but he had his own things to do. Li Yuehua arranged some hard work for him.
Usually, according to customs, Xi Yanqing should have sent fabrics and other materials at the time of the bride-price, so that the wedding quilt could be finished here then brought back with the dowry to the groom's house. The two families would do what they each had to do, and end up with a wedding worthy quilt. But at the time, there were too many things that Xi Yanqing and Luo Ji had to carry, so the fabric was not bought. What should they do? Li Yuehua decided to take care of the matter with her children. It was not a priority for the men to worry about, so she did not intend to ask Luo Tian. Thus, before Luo Tian took the ox cart to leave, Li Yuehua said: “I am going to take Erbao to town, and get some cloth. The quilt has not been made yet, and we must do it quickly.”
“Alright.” This kind of thing Luo Tian naturally would not oppose, “go early and come back early, be careful on the road.”
“This is something that I didn’t do well, so I have to trouble aunt with.” Xi Yanqing had thought it would be fine, but he now felt that he had done something wrong. Why didn't he just purchase the fabric and materials that day and hire someone to help him? That would have been better than delaying the matter.
“Hey, what trouble? You are a big man, but there is no family by your side to help you. You have already done a good job. Don’t worry too much, you caused no trouble. That said, are your wedding clothes done?” This was another thing they must hurry and do. Li Yuehua said: “Yanqing come in and let Erbao measure you.”
“He's going to make it for me?” Xi Yanqing found it somewhat unexpected.
“Of course. Are you not content with that? My family's Erbao is a bit lazy, but his needlework is good. It is not just auntie bragging. In our little town there are not even a few with skills like Erbao." Li Yuehua suddenly shouted, "Erbao, get the measuring tape out!”
“I know mother!” Fine, out of all the work to give him, it was a big job to make wedding clothes for Xi Yanqing! Fortunately, he wants to practice his needlework; otherwise he would not do it!
“Hey, I'm going to charge a manual fee.” Luo Fei said without reserve.
“You bear child!” Li Yuehua just heard him then, with a “pa!”, hit Luo Fei’s back, “From whose family are you taking the manual fee! That is your man! You still ask for money from him? Your brain is less than a pig's!"
“Aiyo mom, why are you learning from Dad? Can you hit me gently next time?”
“I already hit you too light!”
“Oh, he's joking with me auntie. It's nothing. I can’t let him do the work for nothing.” Xi Yanqing said as he really took out some money. All together, it was one or two silvers. He directly handed the money to Luo Fei. “It should be enough to buy cloth and cotton. What's left you can use to buy what you like.”
“This, are you sure?” Luo Fei was a bit aggressive. One or two silvers! He can no longer think that this is very little. After all, the hundreds of tens of thousands of liang on TV are not related to civilians like him. For him now, one or two silvers is equivalent to a few months of living expenses, quite a lot!
“You are my fiancee. In less than half a month, we will formally get married. It is natural that I give you money to spend.” When Xi Yanqing said this, his brow did not even wrinkle. It seemed like it was natural, and he always thought like that.
Luo Fei couldn’t refute it. Looking at Xi Yanqing's smiling expression, he suddenly felt a little uncomfortable. He didn’t look at him: “Then I won't be polite.”
He would have liked to add another sentence, “when I make back the money, I'll return it to you,” but because of the people nearby, he didn't dare say it.
Li Yuehua packed two parcels of dry food; one for Luo Tian and the other she carried on her back. She told Luo Ru and Luo Yi to properly look after the house. She also made dinner, so that they could eat a cooked meal at home. Then she pulled Luo Fei with her to go out.
“Luo Fei! Wait a minute!” Xi Yanqing suddenly stopped Luo Fei who was about to exit the door.
“What?” Luo Fei stood at the door.
Xi Yanqing went into the kitchen then came out again. Luo Fei did not find anything unusual at first. However, Xi Yanqing raised his hand and quickly rubbed something on his face.
“Hey! What are you doing?!” Luo Fei felt as if something had been smeared on his face.
“Hey! Xi Ge, you sure aren't letting go of my second brother.” Luo Ru said, “Second brother, Xi Ge dirtied your face so that it looks not so good. Now, it would be safer to go to town. Who let you be so good to look at?"
“Exactly! I just delivered the bride-price, but I haven’t married you yet. If you were taken away, wouldn’t I be so regretful?” Xi Yanqing said and returned the previously given little purse (with the shit stick in it lol) to Luo Fei. "Take this with you also, in case…”
"What 'in case'!” Luo Fei quickly shouted out the words and glared at Xi Yanqing with red ears. “Mother, let's go quickly! If not, it will be too late to go!”
“Yes, yes, then we will be going. You also be careful when you go up the mountain.” Li Yuehua was almost dragged out of the house by Luo Fei.
Xi Yanqing looked at them from behind and couldn’t help but laugh.
“Hey, let’s go you Xi guy. If we don't go now, I'm afraid you will be hooked to go to town by Erbao. How will we go up the mountain and cut wood together then?” Luo Tian patted Xi Yanqing's back, “Let's go.”
“The saying that says 'the closer to the wedding, the sweeter one becomes' is really true. Do not worry, this brother understands!” Han Yang smiled and sat on the oxcart.
Luo Fei and Li Yuehua walking was obviously not as fast as Luo Ji and Xi Yanqing. After all, their legs were not as long, and the distance to the town was not close. The two had to walk until noon to reach the town. However, for Luo Fei, the most difficult thing about this road was not the length, but what his mother kept on nagging about. Something about being more polite to Xi Yanqing in the future, and how to speak to his husband. Also, how, after he has married, he can’t be lazy anymore. The clothes should be washed well, the meals should be cooked superbly, and the table should be cleaned regularly. One will usually work indoors while the other will live outdoors. However, they both have to work hard, so the longer they're together, the hotter their fire will be.
Walking on this road, Luo Fei listened to so much that his head even became big!
Despite that, Li Yuehua still had not said enough: “You were spoiled in the hands of mother and father. But what mother has said, you must remember it all, understand? In the future. you can't act like a child anymore. Also, these days, in addition to making the clothes for Xi Yanqing, you must learn the skill of cooking with Sanbao. This way, you and Sanbao can evenly learn, so that both of you will know how to do needlework and make good food. Each one born with only one skill should learn the other."
“Aiya, mother, how can anyone be perfect? If you have even one of these skills, isn't that fine?” Luo Fei waved his hand. “Let's not discuss this anymore. Help me see if this piece of cloth is good.”
“It could be used to make quilts. Shopkeeper, how much do you want for this cloth?”
“Do you want a che (a che is one Chinese foot, or a third of a meter) or a bolt? One bolt is 90 wen, one che is nine wen.” The shopkeeper said, “If you are making a quilt, it is more worth it to get a bolt.”
“Make it cheaper, we want to buy two bolts.”
“Yeah uncle, make it cheaper.” Luo Fei did not know how to bargain before, but this time he was forced by reality to become a miser. This place is really poor! It's hard to have a pair of silvers in hand and he was going to spend it soon!
Here, one bolt of cloth is four zhang (a zhang is 10 Chinese feet, one zhang is around 3.3 meters), that is, around 13 meters, and two bolts should be able to make six bed covers. The quilts here were all single person quilts, and there are only a few who would do doubles, because the cloth is not as wide as in the modern era, so even if they had it, it was rare to see. Luo Fei is now pondering about how to make two bed quilts, two quilt covers, and one mattress. This should use almost all the cloth, because the mattress can not be used separately, that would be unlucky, so you have to put two pieces together. It is estimated that he could not be lazy when making these, because these must be done before the marriage.
“Eighty-eight for one bolt, can not be less,” the shopkeeper said.
“Aiyo, it's only cheaper by two wen. Make it a little cheaper. How about eighty-five? Boss, you see, eighty-five, if you do it, I will buy three bolts.”
“Ah? Mother, we probably can't use up that much?” Three bolts of cloths! If eighty-five wen for one bolt, two bolts of cloth plus a small piece it would already be a hundred or so wen. Three bolts would be around two hundred wen. There are only a thousand wen in one liang of silver. After buying the the fabrics for Xi Yanqing's wedding clothes, would there still be any left? ! To be honest, this cloth is actually rather expensive! Even if the cotton production of Yuqing Country is low, it can’t be so expensive, a cow is only five liang!
[Editor: sob sob too much math in this chapter. I can't keep up anymore T.T I’m on break from uni and I’m having ptsd now >.<]
[T: What's math ._.]
“We can use it! Two bolts are for yourself, just count it as Xi Yanqing's bride-price. Mother will buy one bolt to give for the dowry.”
“Oh!” This is right! Luo Fei felt that while his mother’s family was not affluently generous, but an added dowry of a piece of cloth was not bad.
Finally, Li Yuehua bargained down the price, and three bolts of cloth were bought for 255 wen. Luo Fei spent another ten wen to buy a big bundle of materials. If the cloth was combined into one piece, the area was around one zhang of cloth. The most exciting thing for Luo Fei was that there are all kinds of materials inside, not only cotton cloth, but also a small piece of satin which could be used to do embroidery. Anyway, he bought these things just to make some domestic items, such as pillowcases. He estimated that the big pieces of cloth would stretch a long way. There would also be remnants good for practicing embroidery.
Li Yuehua knew that he liked that stuff, so she didn't prevent him. After all, one only gets married once in their life. The ten wen, if it was spent, then just spend it.
His mother turned to take a look around and bought cotton stuffing and cloth for Xi Yanqing's clothes. Luo Fei also went to several embroidery shops to take a look. He didn't know if it was because the town was so small or what, but the things in the embroidery shops did not look so good. Luo Fei felt that even though he hadn't sewn in a long time, his skills were still stronger than that. He also didn't blame Li Yuehua for saying that he is skilled. Regardless of whether she was talking about the original Luo Fei or the current him, it was accurate.
Li Yuehua carried the fabric, and Luo Fei carried cotton. When Luo Fei saw Li Yuehua’s load being heavier, he busily took the fabric into his own load: “Mother, let me carry the fabric. Cotton is lighter, so you can carry it.”
In fact, Li Yuehua's strength was not less than that of Luo Fei. It should be said that she was actually stronger than Luo Fei. But the intent of her child just now was quite good. Besides, it was as she said before, they can't spoil him rotten anymore.
Therefore, Luo Fei carried the fabric all the way back to Huaping Village. As for the rest of the money, he didn’t spend any more this time. Originally, seeing some candied snacks (usually candied fruits or nuts preserved in a sugar solution or honey) he wanted to buy some, seeing the amount of money left in his hand, he decided to forget about it. Xi Yanqing seems to have a lot of money, but he himself doesn't have a penny. In modern times, he was never in need of money. Before he was ever short of money, his mother or grandmother would ask him, and never let him be short of his expenses. But now it's great (sarcasm lol), he can't even afford to buy some candied snacks.
(Candied snacks)
It was hopeless, having money had become a habit, without money, he doesn't have a sense of security, so he can only endure and not spend.
This whole way, he had to endure, and it almost made him go crazy. Fortunately, there was meat waiting for him at home, which became the greatest comfort.
Luo Ru’s needlework skills are clearly inversely proportional to his cooking skills. When Luo Fei entered the door, he was immediately hit with a fragrant smell. Luo Ru not only steamed some buns and brewed some porridge, but also made a large bowl of soy-sauce braised pork. In the dish, she also added a large helping of greens beans, which would help cut through the fattiness of the meat and also add flavor.
(Soy-sauce braised pork with dried green beans; Luo Ru used dry ones and soaked them in some water~ unbelievably delicious ahhhhh)
[T/N: MEATTTTT MEATTTTTT! Meat ;3]
Luo Fei felt that if there was also a bowl of white rice at this time, he would be completely full today, but thye would definitely not have rice must. Even this was already treatment for the New Year.
Luo Tian and Xi Yanqing have not returned yet, Luo Fei could only taste a few mouthfuls in the kitchen. Not to mention being gluttonous, even Luo Yi and Luo Ru were craving it, after all, during a whole year, they could only eat meat a few times.
“Mother, can we raise a few more chickens this year?” Luo Yi asked as he licked his fingers.
“Of course.” Li Yuehua said very cheerfully, “Let’s raise a few more this year.” In fact, in the past they had raised several, but more than half of them had to be sold for household expenses.
“Mother, tell me when you buy chickens this year, I will buy some too.” It is estimated that he would have moved to Xi Yanqing's place by that time. Luo family raises some here, he raises some there, and he must raise a good amount. It was best to also raise some ducks and big white geese.
“Second brother, aren’t you the one who hates to raise them the most? You are always saying it's troublesome to feed them.” Luo Yi said with amazement.
“Let your Xi-ge feed!” He is responsible for watching, Xi Yanqing responsible for feeding, at the end of the year they split it 50-50.
“What do you want me to feed?” Xi Yanqing just came back and asked Luo Fei.
“Chickens ah, when it's warmer I want to buy some small chickens to raise.” Luo Fei said, “Can we?” They would pass their days as partners, but it would still be the Xi house, best to ask Xi Yanqing first.
“Of course, my house is your house. What can you not do?” Xi Yanqing patted the dust off his clothes. “This house smells so fragrant.”
“That is, I made braised pork!” Luo Ru said proudly, “Borrowed the gifts of Xi-ge and second brother, haha.”
“Weren't you getting wood? Where's the wood?” Luo Fei didn’t see any wood.
“A part of them were thrown into the river, and some were brought to my house. Han Yang also took some.” Xi Yanqing still felt that his body was too dirty. “Erbao, can you help me get some water? I want to wash.”
“Okay.” Luo Fei went out with Xi Yanqing and got him some water. “Why should the wood be thrown into the river?”
“To get rid of any bugs, after it's soaked, we'll take it out and dry it and then use to it to make furniture, that way it will be more durable and not easy to change shape. However, after a few years, it will be too old, so let’s first build some simple furniture and wait for future…” Xi Yanqing looked right and left, and seeing no one else coming out, continued to Luo Fei: “When our situations are better, we can change them.”
“I hope there will be that day.” Luo Fei helped Xi Yanqing warm the water. “Ai, that, I helped you buy the clothes material today. I'll measure you in a little bit.” Before when his mother had him measure, he brought up the manual fee and changed the subject. His mother said, tomorrow he had to measure, and finish the clothes before their marriage, or he would be forced to sweep chicken poop every day.
“Okay, wait for me to wash and then you can measure.” Xi Yanqing looked a little tired, but was still always smiling.
Luo Fei looked from the side and suddenly admired this person. Until now, he still has dreams about his past life, but Xi Yanqing seems to have already adapted to now. The man lived by himself in a small earthen house, the house was cleaned very cleanly, he made meals for himself, and washed his clothes by himself. It seems that nothing was too difficult for him, besides not being able to patch his clothes.
“Ai, do you really not want to go back at all?” Luo Fei asked strangely. After Xi Yanqing finished washing his face, his father and elder brother also came over to wash, and then they returned to the house with Xi Yanqing. He then wanted to take the opportunity to measure Xi Yanqing.
“No.” Xi Yanqing looked at Luo Fei squarely. “You don’t know how much I appreciate this arrangement.”
“Fuck, bro, are you sick?!” Appreciation for the arrangement of a flush toilet becoming an outhouse? ! Or was it appreciation for the arrangement of running water becoming having to fetch well water? !
“I am not afraid even if I am sick. Anyway, I found medicine.” Xi Yanqing laughed. “I think you should also adapt like me, forget the things of the last life, start from anew, so you may find that life is not too bad now.”
“I'm going to measure.” Luo Fei measured and measure and suddenly glared at Xi Yanqing: “Hey, can you breathe softer? The warm air is blowing onto my face!”
“No,” said Xi Yanqing. “You don’t even know where you're measuring.”
Luo Fei looked down, his hips…
His hand was right in front of Xi Yanqing's "bird" (dick lol)…
囧 (character used as emoji I think) Damn it!
Notes: Phew, translating one whole chapter was hard! My brain hurts, must take nap now (´〜｀*) zzz