Chapter 71 A Girl Was Born

As the sun shifted and the heat gradually subsided, Sui Yu picked up a short-handled wooden shovel and went to the vegetable garden to dig radishes. Before leaving, he instructed, "When you get the food, pick up your basket and go to the vegetable garden to pick radishes."

Zhao Xiping agreed.

Sui Liang opened the gate and let the camels, pigs and sheep out. The pigs drove the sheep out, and the two big camels followed slowly behind. The cat official, who was lying under the eaves to cool off, opened his eyes. He didn't want to go out in such a hot day, so he turned his head, closed his eyes and continued to sleep.

Zhao Xiping went to collect grain first. After bringing back two loads of grain, he put the taro and beans into the grain jar, then carried the wheat and millet out to grind the husks.

It was not until sunset that he came back carrying rice and flour.

"Captain Zhao?" a passing woman called out from outside the door. "You're home! Your wife asked you to go to the vegetable garden and pick radishes."

"I was just about to go." Zhao Xiping dusted off the dust on his body, picked up his load, locked the door and went out.

When he arrived, Sui Liang also came over with camels, pigs and sheep. Sui Yu picked up a few tender radishes and threw them out, and the pigs and sheep nibbled on them.

"Are you here? Have you received the food?" Sui Yu asked.

"I got it. I came here just because the rice and flour have been ground." Zhao Xiping squatted down to pick up the radishes and threw them into the basket. He had big hands and quick movements, and he filled two baskets in less than a cup of tea.

"I'll go back first and come back later. I'll have two more baskets to fill."

"Well, just put the radishes under the eaves. There's no need to bury them in the sand pit. I'll wash and cut them and dry them in the next two days." Sui Yu instructed.

With her words, the next morning, Zhao Xiping carried the radishes to the river again. He threw the radish basket into the river to be washed by the river water. He rolled up his trouser legs, stood in the water, and rubbed them once or twice before they were clean.

For the next six days, Sui Yu spent her time at home cutting, drying, and turning radishes. After the radishes dried and were stored in the grain jar, she rolled up the bamboo mats and took them to the river to wash them. Once the mats were dry, Zhao Xiping found a suitable tree. He called a few people up the mountain to help chop the tree, carrying it down and bringing it directly to the carpenter's house.

On July 24, Sui Liang's bed was moved back, and Zhao Xiping also bought him a new wooden box.

The main room had been cleaned. Two steps from the entrance, a bamboo mat lay spread out. After washing away the grease, the mat had a dark, aged look. The entire room, save for a wooden box and a low couch leaning against the wall, contained only a bed and a bamboo mat, making it appear large and empty.

"From now on, if you find any stones you like, beautifully shaped branches, or brightly colored bird feathers, you can bring them back to decorate your house." Sui Yu leaned on Sui Liang's shoulders and said, "There's no better day than today. You can move in tonight."

Zhao Xiping looked over.

Sui Yu glared at him. What was he looking at? She ordered, "Go and bring the new manuscript rolls over here for Liang Ge'er to spread on. Also bring the mattress and cushions."

The manuscript was spread out on the bed, and then a mat with reed fluff on it. The summer night was cool, and even without the bamboo mat, it wasn't hot. Sui Yu took off her shoes and walked over. She crossed her legs and lay on the bed, breathing a sigh of relief. The new bed was so comfortable to sleep on, and the dry wood aroma was very pleasant.

Seeing how comfortable she was, Sui Liang climbed up as well. Thinking that this would be his bed from now on and he could roll around however he wanted, he suddenly no longer objected to sleeping alone.

"Is there anything else I can be of use to you?" Zhao Xiping came in and asked.

Sui Yu turned around and asked, "What are your plans?"

"No, if you don't need me anymore, I'll go out on my camel while it's still early and see if I can hunt a rabbit."

"Then go get busy. Remember to come back before dark." Sui Yu rolled up the mattress and put it under her head. She said, "I'm going to take a nap. When I wake up, I'll go dig the vegetable patch. Lock the door from the outside when you leave."

Zhao Xiping closed the door for her, took a camel with him, and went out hunting under the scorching sun.

Dunhuang's oasis has boundaries. Stepping outside the densely populated cities and villages, and crossing fields ripe for harvest, without the obstruction of crops, the wasteland stretches as far as the eye can see. To the southwest lies a vast desert, where the sun's golden rays are distorted and dizzying. Zhao Xiping averted his gaze, shaking his head, his gaze wandering across the barren land.

There are many holes in the wasteland, snake holes, mouse holes, rabbit holes, hedgehog holes... Birds are circling in the air, and the hunters in the sky are staring at the holes buried under the grass branches with their sharp eyes.

Zhao Xiping patted the camel and it stopped. He sat astride the humps, drew his bow and arrow, squinting at a sharp-billed sparrowhawk swooping down from about three meters away. The sparrowhawk swooped down and flew close to the ground. When it took off, a vole appeared in its claws.

With a "whoosh", the arrow shot out quickly, and the arrowhead flew out, brushing against the eagle's claws. The sparrowhawk flapped its wings quickly, gave up the prey in its claws, and suddenly rose high quickly.

"drive--"

The camel started running, and Zhao Xiping turned over and went to pick up the field mouse that had fallen to the ground and fainted. He looked up at the sky and went to pick up the arrow that was stuck diagonally in the grass.

The sun gradually set and the people sleeping in the house woke up. Sui Yu sat up and woke up for a while. She pushed Sui Liang awake, and the brother and sister went out to work.

Sui Yu went to dig the vegetable patch. The patch was dry and hard after the radishes were harvested. She used a shovel to turn the soil, then used the shovel to break up the soil, turning out all the insect eggs and weed seeds in the soil and drying them in the sun.

Sui Liang took the camels, pigs, and sheep to graze. He didn't walk far, occasionally stopping by to listen to Sui Yu's words before returning to watch over the sheep and pigs. Once the sheep and pigs had eaten their fill, he brought them back to the garden to wait. The camels, pigs, and sheep had grown accustomed to the place; it felt like a second home. They'd lie down on the ground, waiting for the people in the garden to emerge before heading back together.

"Sui Yu, I heard that your family got two new camels. Why don't you take them out to graze?" asked a passerby.

"He is timid and trembles when he sees people. Wait until he is well-trained before bringing him out," said Sui Yu.

"You only have 20 mu of land. Why do you raise so many camels? Or do you plan to sell them when they grow up? If you are willing to sell, please leave one for me. I don't have any camels at home."

"I probably won't sell it. If I plan to sell it, I'll tell you."

"OK."

When Sui Yu returned home, she found Zhao Xiping had already returned. She put the shovel behind the door, walked into the yard and asked, "Master, are you cooking? Where is he?"

"Lost." A voice came from outside the door.

Zhao Xiping held a basin in his hand. He closed the door and said, "Catch a rabbit and a vole. Fry the vole tonight and save the rabbit for tomorrow."

When he heard that he could eat meat, Sui Liang quickly ran over. Sui Yu also came over to take a look and said, "Not bad, we've gained something right out of the gate."

Zhao Xiping coughed lightly. He was too embarrassed to say that he had snatched it from a bird's claw.

"I'm going out of town tomorrow. The east side of the city is vast and sparsely populated, so maybe I can get a bigger harvest," he said.

Sui Yu scooped up some water to wash her hands. She went into the house to prepare dinner and said, "I'm also planning to practice archery. There will definitely be a lot of pheasants, rabbits, and field mice in the fields during the autumn harvest. When winter comes and the snow falls, these things can also be seen in the fields. I'd like to go out for a walk when I have some free time."

"Okay, then make another bow and I'll give you two arrows." Zhao Xiping thought that if she knew how to shoot arrows, she would have a way to protect herself when he was not at home.

Sui Yu did what she said. That night she cut a piece of wolf skin as long as a finger, burned and scraped off the hair on the skin, and then cut it into strips and soaked them in grass ash water.

"There are still four months until winter. I will practice for half an hour every day. When it snows, I will ride on my camel and go out with you to shoot wolves."

Zhao Xiping picked her up and carried her back to the main room with one hand, holding the oil lamp in the other. Sui Liang was not there tonight, so he could be more unrestrained.

The candlelight was dim, and the halo fell on the undulating body. The water on the peaks was bright, and there were clusters of shadows under the hills. The unevenly spaced "卜" characters fell on the rough earth wall, and the projected magnified shape was as frightening as a suppressed gasp.

This was the first time that Sui Yu saw the back and abdomen of a man under his clothes in the light. His wheat-colored skin was covered with a thin layer of sweat as if it was covered with oil. His strong body contained endless strength. The scorching temperature made her feel uneasy. She avoided his gaze and looked a little shy.

The wooden door suddenly slammed, startling the two people sitting upright. Sui Yu rolled down the man's lap and quickly put on her clothes. She cleared her throat and called out, "Brother Liang, what's wrong?"

Sui Liang knocked on the door again from outside.

"I'm coming." Sui Yu got out of bed and opened the door.

Zhao Xiping sat with his legs propped up and the mattress against the wall. He rubbed his face and smoothed his hair that was messed up by Sui Yu.

"Why are you crying?" Sui Yu opened the door and led Sui Liang in. "Did you have a nightmare?"

Sui Liang nodded, and he climbed onto the bed as if he knew the way. He spoke into the candlelight so that Sui Yu could read his mouth shape: Auntie, auntie, come and catch me.

He dreamed that his aunt was hanging on a rope and was talking and moving.

Sui Yu patted him and said, "Auntie likes you, why would she come to arrest you?"

She now understood that Sui Liang missed his aunt when he talked about her during the day, but was afraid at night. It was probably the fear buried deep in his heart that was the root of his illness, so he couldn't speak out loud.

"I'll go sleep with Liang Ge'er, you sleep alone tonight." Sui Yu turned her head and said, her eyes met his bare chest. Sui Yu took one more look, her ears felt a little hot, and she quickly looked away.

"Okay." Zhao Xiping got off the ground. He stood barefoot on the bamboo mat in his trousers. He held the oil lamp in one hand and hugged Sui Liang with the other. He said, "I'll take you there."

We can't sleep together tonight, otherwise he will get sick.

Sui Liang stopped crying. He pinched his brother-in-law's strong arms and thought that he would grow up to be like him in the future.

Every night after that, Sui Yu would go to sleep with Sui Liang first. After he fell asleep, she would return to the main room. In the mornings, she would go to the adjoining room to get dressed and put on her shoes, nudging him awake to give him the illusion that she had been sleeping there all night.

Perhaps because he was not nervous before going to bed, Sui Liang did not wake up for a long time. Sui Yu asked him if he had any nightmares, and he shook his head and said he didn't remember.

After the Mid-Autumn Festival, the wheat in the fields was ready for harvest. Sui Yu, armed with her newly acquired bow and arrow and a sickle, went to the wheat fields. Pheasants nesting in the fields fluttered up, and she and Zhao Xiping each drew their bows and shot arrows, but both missed. They didn't catch any pheasants, but they did pick up a lot of pheasant eggs.

The newly bought chicks this year have also started laying eggs. There are twelve little hens and one old hen. Sui Liang catches insects for them every day. Most chickens can lay an egg a day. Now he has to carry a basket every evening when he goes back to pick up eggs, and he can pick up thirteen at most.

There was no shortage of eggs at home. Every morning, whether Sui Yu or Zhao Xiping was cooking, they would wash three eggs and put them in the pot to boil, one for each of them. The remaining eggs would be made into salted eggs and stored in a jar, so that Zhao Xiping could make extra salted eggs to take away when he went out.

"When the weather gets cooler, I'll catch some rabbits or field mice and dry them to make dried goods. After the autumn harvest, you can go back to your hometown, or wait until the Chinese New Year and send them back to your parents," said Sui Yu.

Zhao Xiping glanced at her.

"What are you looking at? You just love the person and the dog." Sui Yu scolded him.

What do you love? The man was happy.

"Niece-in-law, your aunt has given birth. I'm here to tell you the good news." It was already dark when Uncle Niu came over happily. He knocked on the door and said loudly, "It's a girl. You have another sister."