Chapter 70: Big Changes

The family had less and less money and the expenses were high. Although Zhao Xiping didn't say it, he was anxious in his heart. Before going to bed at night, he thought about where he could make money and how to improve the family's meals.

The next day, he carried his bow and arrow and rode a camel up the mountain. The mountain was covered with lush vegetation and overgrown branches and leaves. Compared with winter, the vision was greatly affected. It was easy to scare away the roosting birds by stepping on tree roots or pulling branches with hands.

Zhao Xiping spent a day wandering the sand hills, and when he came down, he had only two more nests of bird eggs, seven in total. He thought about going hunting again, following the river upstream, or leaving the city to look for rabbit holes in the wilderness.

Seven bird eggs were put into the pot that night. Sui Liang ate three, and Sui Yu and Zhao Xiping each ate two.

"Go catch a chicken later. That spotted hen is very aggressive and often pecks the chicks when eating. Kill it tomorrow." Sui Yu instructed.

Zhao Xiping followed the order and went to catch the chickens while Sui Yu was washing dishes. The chickens in the chicken coop were frightened and started clucking loudly, flapping their wings against the coop, making a banging sound.

The pigs in the pigsty grunted a few times, the two little camels in the camel pen moved around restlessly, the big camel snorted twice, lowered its head and licked the grass stems in the trough, and the little camels calmed down amid the chewing sounds.

"Pigs, pigs--" Sui Yu picked up the bucket to feed the pigs. The black-skinned pigs were the same color as the night. She first waved a stick above the trough. The pigs were not in the trough, so she picked up the bucket to pour out the food.

"You've done a good job herding the sheep today, so I added a handful of soybeans to the food when I cooked it." Regardless of whether the pig could understand or not, Sui Yu insisted on explaining it to it.

The chickens have been caught, the pigs have been fed, and it's time to go to bed.

There was a rustling noise in the first half of the night, but the room became quiet in the second half.

After dawn, Zhao Xiping boiled water, killed a chicken, scalded its feathers, and stewed the chicken in a pot. He sat in front of the stove and stared at the fire.

Sui Yu was kneading dough and cutting fillings to make dumplings. With the exception of Uncle Niu, all the guests she had invited today were big eaters, so a large pot of steamed rice would be needed. She was a little reluctant, but after much deliberation, she decided to make dumplings. Since she had meat at home and they had guests, she put a little more effort into the filling, adding meat, eggs, and radish, so it wouldn't fall flat when served.

"By the way, it's time to collect grain again. You should take some time to go and take a look. Last month, the grain was not distributed until the 21st or 22nd. I don't know if it can be distributed on time this month." Sui Yu said.

"Okay, I'll go check it out this afternoon."

After the chicken and radish stew were out of the pot, Sui Yu washed the pot and started to fry the stuffing. He first fried the eggs and then the diced meat. After stir-frying the diced meat, he poured in the diced radish and finally the eggs. He stirred them and sprinkled them with salt and chopped green onion leaves.

"Brother Zhao?"

"Huang Ancheng is here, go out and greet him." Sui Yu said, "I don't need you to light the fire anymore."

Zhao Xiping went out and called Sui Liang to come in and wait.

Huang Ancheng arrived, and Zhao Xiping went to the neighbor's house to call Qin Dashun. When he was about to call Uncle Lao Niu, he saw that he had already come over.

"It's quite hot outside. You guys sit inside. I'll cook some dishes and we can eat." Sui Yu went out to greet them.

"It's so hot, I'm sorry to bother you." Qin Dashun said with an embarrassed look on his face, "Just now your sister-in-law was scolding me. We're neighbors, and I came out to complain when you got into trouble. You have the nerve to come and have a meal. I just said it casually that day, but I didn't expect you to take it seriously."

"Brother, that's not what I meant. Many people heard the noise that night, but why did you come out when others didn't? It's because you are kind-hearted. To you, it was just a casual shout, but to me, it means something different. I appreciate your kindness." Sui Yu spoke calmly. She looked at Uncle Niu and said, "Just like Uncle Niu. When he heard that I was in trouble, he stayed outside without saying a word all night. After daybreak, he left without saying a word. You are all kind-hearted people."

Uncle Lao Niu waved his hands. He couldn't bear the praise, and he wasn't a kind-hearted person.

"Come in and sit down. I won't talk to you anymore. I'm still busy cooking." Sui Yu glanced outside the door and said, "Uncle Niu, isn't Auntie here? I'll bring her a bowl of dumplings and a dish of vegetables later."

Uncle Niu looked at her with a smile. This man was truly remarkable. He was good at talking and also at putting on a good show. If he didn't know that there was a grudge between Tong Huaer and Sui Yu, he would have agreed to it.

"No need to send me off. When I left, she had already started cooking."

Sui Yu gave up after hearing that.

In the main room, four men sat on the floor. Huang Ancheng asked, "What were you talking about just now?"

"A few brats knocked on the door late at night while Captain Zhao was away. Sui Yu scolded them, and I opened the door and went out for a walk. Uncle Niu came to guard the place the next night, and then everything quieted down." Qin Dashun looked at the silent man and said, "Captain Zhao, your sister-in-law is beautiful, so you'd better stay out of the house."

Zhao Xiping didn't say anything at the time. When the food and wine were served, he poured wine to Qin Dashun and said, "Brother Qin is a man of honor. I am thick-skinned. I am relying on your kindness to ask for one more favor. If I am not at home in the future and there is any movement in my family, please speak up to give me courage."

Qin Dashun was stunned for a moment. He took a sip of wine from the bowl and said, "This is a small matter, but do you plan to go out in the future?"

Zhao Xiping thought for a moment and said, "Captain Qu saw that I had some talent for archery, and he suggested that I go out and practice more often if I have the chance. If there's chaos someday, perhaps I can achieve some military merit."

"War is about to break out again?" The meat in his mouth no longer tasted delicious. Qin Dashun asked worriedly, "How many years of peace have we had?"

"The Xiongnu are ambitious and the Western Regions are small and weak. Once the Xiongnu recovers, I think the Western Regions will be in chaos, and they will most likely seek help from our dynasty." Huang Ancheng said, "By then, reinforcements should be drawn from the four counties of Dunhuang. It would be good for Brother Zhao to have a chance to go out and gain experience, instead of just focusing on farming."

Sui Yu brought in the food. After hearing what Huang Ancheng said, she looked at him again. He was a man with foresight.

"Uncle Lao Niu, I added a few more flames to this taro stew. The taro and meat are soft and mushy. Please try it."

"Oh, okay." Uncle Niu came back to his senses.

"Don't be busy yet, come and eat too." Zhao Xiping said.

Huang Ancheng looked at him.

"No, I left some food for Liang Ge'er and I to eat in the kitchen." Sui Yu walked out and said, "There are enough dumplings to cover the curtain. If you guys finish your drinks and want to eat, just give me a call."

Zhao Xiping followed her out to take a look. She kept all the dishes on the table, including stewed chicken with radish, stewed taro with meat, stir-fried meat with dried vegetables, and fried leeks with eggs. Then he returned to the table.

"What a great relationship they have," Huang Ancheng joked. He told the other two, "You don't know, when Brother Zhao didn't come back, his wife waited for him at the West City Gate for five or six days straight, waiting for him all day long. It made many of us envious."

"We know about this. Sui Yu and Sui Liang's comings and goings were all under our noses." Qin Dashun smiled. After eating the other person's food, he said a few good words: "My sister-in-law is a capable person. She has a flock of chickens, two sheep, a pig, and a camel at home. She is a lady from an official family, but she still manages to support them all and keeps the house clean. She also does the farm work well. If she's not catching insects, pulling weeds, loosening the soil in the vegetable garden, or wandering around in the fields. Brother Zhao, you're really lucky to have married this daughter-in-law."

Zhao Xiping nodded.

"Come on, come on, have a drink." Uncle Lao Niu interrupted and said jokingly, "If you have something to say, go back and praise your own wife. He knows whether his wife is good or not."

After finishing the remaining wine at the bottom of the bowl, the four people started to eat the chicken. The cat official lay under the low couch, looking around. If a bone fell, it would stretch out its claws and grab it, hiding under the couch and gnawing on the chicken bone.

When half the basin of stewed radish and chicken was empty, Zhao Xiping went out and said, "It's time to boil water and cook the dumplings."

"Okay." Sui Yu was waiting.

"You two didn't eat well today." Zhao Xiping came over and said, "I'll cook tomorrow, you can rest."

Sui Yu was overjoyed and agreed immediately.

Put the dumplings in when the water boils. After the water boils for three times, the dumplings float up. Sui Yu goes in to collect the wine bowls. There are only six bowls in the house. He washes and rinses the wine bowls and then uses them as rice bowls.

"Hey, the dumplings are delicious." Qin Dashun was surprised that the filling in the dough contained meat and eggs. It was richer and more flavorful than the fillings his family prepared for the Chinese New Year.

"If you like it, eat more." Sui Yu brought in a bowl and asked, "Uncle Lao Niu, is the meat tough after frying? I still have some dough left. Do you want me to make you another bowl?"

Uncle Lao Niu waved his hand and said that this bowl of dumplings tasted good, so he just needed to eat slowly and not eat the dough.

"Sister-in-law, you should have set up a stall to sell flatbreads. They are much more delicious than the buns you sell." Huang Ancheng said.

"I can't afford it. It has meat and eggs. If I sell it cheaply, I'll lose money. If I sell it expensively, no one will buy it." There was a smell of alcohol in the room, which Sui Yu didn't like very much. She said a few words and left.

After two layers of dumplings were cooked, everyone in the room stopped eating. Seeing that they were full, Sui Yu went to collect the bowls, chopsticks and vegetable dishes.

Zhao Xiping always felt something was wrong. He took the dish basin and said, "You take a rest, I'll clean up, and I'll wash the pots and dishes."

Huang Ancheng looked at him again after hearing this. This man had changed a lot.

"I'm going home. I'm a little drunk. I'm going to go back and get some sleep." Qin Dashun stood up and said before leaving, "If you need me later, just call me. I don't need anything else. Just set up another table with today's dishes."

"Okay." Sui Yu said with a smile.

"Are there any dumplings left? I'll take a bowl back for your aunt." Uncle Niu pretended to have forgotten what he said before the meal.

"Yes, it's still raw and not cooked yet. I'll fill a bowl for you. You can go back and light a fire and cook it." Sui Yu walked towards the kitchen.

Uncle Niu also went out with a bowl of dumplings.

Huang Ancheng stayed behind. Sui Yu could tell he had something to say, so she took the rag from Zhao Xiping and said, "Go and see Brother Huang off."

Zhao Xiping followed Huang Ancheng out.

"My sister-in-law is better at observing people's expressions than you." Huang Ancheng smiled.

Zhao Xiping didn't deny it. He looked at the entrance of the alley in front of him, stopped and said, "She said you have something to say to me. If you have anything to say, please say it quickly. I have to go back to work."

"It's nothing. It's about my sister-in-law. Don't mind me. I don't have any other intentions." Huang Ancheng was afraid that he would misunderstand that he was interested in Sui Yu, so he explained first and continued, "My sister-in-law is too beautiful, and you are just a centurion. If she goes out, she will inevitably attract people with bad intentions. If she catches the eyes of others, I am worried that you will not be able to protect her. If you don't like her, it's fine, but when I saw her today..." He didn't say the rest of the words. He found it disgusting and nauseating for a grown man to say such things.

"Your family only has a little farm work to do, and you can handle it all by yourself. Why not have her go out less and stay home to prepare three meals a day..."

Zhao Xiping waved his hands when he heard this. If Sui Yu was really locked up at home, he would not be able to save her life even if he bought a house full of medicine for her to eat as food.

"No, she is a human being, not a captive camel. Even a captive camel needs to go out for a run every day." Zhao Xiping felt that with Sui Yu's appearance, going out more often would be a kind of protection for her. Everyone knew her, so at least they couldn't rob her openly.

"We'll talk about it later." Zhao Xiping waved his hand again, unwilling to worry about something that had not happened.

"Brother, thank you very much. You can go back. I will go back too."

"As long as you don't mind me being nosy." Huang Ancheng was a little embarrassed.

"I'm not stupid. I can still tell the difference between good intentions and bad intentions." Zhao Xiping sneered and said, "Go back. Come back when you're not on duty."

The pots and pans were left on the stove waiting for the man to come back and wash them. Zhao Xiping walked into the house, rolled up his sleeves, and said, "I thought you had already cleaned up."

"I'll give you a chance to show off." Sui Yu followed him into the kitchen and asked, "What did your brother say to you? And he had to say it secretly behind my back."

"I'm afraid you'll fall for someone rich and powerful and run off with someone else, leaving me behind." Zhao Xiping squinted at her, "You won't run away, will you?"

Sui Yu crossed his arms happily and said proudly, "It depends on your performance."

"I don't want to wash it." The man put down the bowl.

Sui Yu laughed out loud, she stood in front of the stove and laughed so hard that her body shook.

Zhao Xiping also smiled. He picked up the bowl and continued to wash it.

"After a couple of days, clean up the main room and turn it into a wing room. You won't be entertaining guests at home anymore. You've been busy like a slave for a long time. It makes me uncomfortable to see you."

The smile on Sui Yu's face fell into his heart, and he said, "It's okay, after all, it's me who got it."