Chapter 56

After discussing things with Tian Yao, Zhou Yuan and Chen Qing began preparing to return home.

Before leaving, they had dinner together. Zhang Yin slowly started taking her medicine. After taking the medicine, her spirits improved a lot, and she was able to sit with them in the evening.

“Since you’ve made up your mind, just go for it. Anyway, we’re here, and it’s not a big deal.” Zhang Yin held a fan in her hand and gently waved it.

“I know. We’ll go back and give our godfather a message so he won’t worry all the time,” Zhou Yuan said. He then looked at Qi Shuning and said, “After I leave, Shuning, you must take good care of them.”

Qi Shuning nodded: "I've already spoken to the teacher. I'm only a temporary student, so I can go this afternoon."

He could accompany them to Dr. Yu's acupuncture clinic in the morning, help them with housework after returning home, and then go to the academy. The vice dean even lent him his own notes so that he could copy them and return them.

In short, he had much more time to spend with them.

They started sleeping in separate rooms after arriving in Yunxi Town. Although they have slept in the same bed since they got married, nothing has ever happened between them.

Upon arriving in Yunxi Town, Li Xin said he needed to take care of Zhang Yin, fearing something might happen at night, so he slept in the same room as Zhang Yin, while Qi Shuning had a separate room. As a result, neither of them knew that Qi Shuning would go to sleep at midnight every day, just so he could copy more.

"You should also take care of your health."

Zhou Yuan made arrangements for them and left them enough money so that they could live well.

The next day, he took Chen Qing to Tian's shop, where Manager Tian had already prepared two truckloads of goods for them.

Tian Yao pulled Chen Qing along: "This cart is full of persimmons. You've probably already tried persimmon scrambled eggs. These persimmons are also delicious on their own. If you soak them in water, cut them into pieces, and add some honey, they're an absolute delicacy."

Then she pulled him to look at another cart: "This half cart is chili peppers. You've probably tried them before. Whether you chop them up and stir-fry them with meat, or dry them and grind them into powder, they're great seasonings. However, since everyone's tolerance is different, I only prepared half a cart for you. The other half is this cucumber. Cucumbers are refreshing. In the summer, you can mix them with some vinegar to whet your appetite."

In addition, there were some seasonings that Zhou Yuan brought last time, which they had all tried and found to be very good.

After the introduction, Tian Yao said somewhat seriously, "Just taking these things back won't necessarily make anyone buy them. You need to figure out a way to let people know what you're selling and how to do it as quickly as possible."

Chen Qing nodded: "Thank you, I understand."

Tian Yao patted him on the shoulder: "Be bold, don't be shy."

Chen Qing nodded shyly, his face slightly flushed. "I understand." He wanted to ask Tian Yao how to price it, but before he could say anything, Tian Yao had already left.

Chen Qing stood there, thinking that he could only discuss it with Zhou Yuan later.

These two trucks used for hauling goods also belonged to Tianji. While Tian Yao was speaking to Chen Qing, Zhou Yuan went to settle accounts with Tianji's accountant. It seems that Tian Yao had told the accountant that the deposit for these two trucks would not be collected. Zhou Yuan paid a total of fifty taels of silver.

After settling Zhang Yin in, Li Xin and Qi Shuning came to see them off.

Chen Qing hugged Li Xin: "Stay with Aunt Yin. We'll be back soon."

Li Xin held back her tears: "Be careful on your journey, I will take good care of Mother."

Zhou Yuan patted Qi Shuning on the shoulder and said, "Take good care of your husband and mother."

Qi Shuning nodded heavily: "Big brother, don't worry."

Chen Qing kept turning back to wave at Li Xin until he could no longer see them, then he leaned on Zhou Yuan.

They left Yunxi Town and slowly embarked on the official road.

Zhou Yuan didn't seem to have any other emotions. He put one arm around Chen Qing's waist and drove the car with the other, saying, "We'll be back soon."

Chen Qing leaned on his shoulder: "I forgot to ask Manager Tian how to price it."

"It's alright, we'll figure it out ourselves." Zhou Yuan said nonchalantly, "How was the trip?"

"It's great, everyone I've met is a good person," Chen Qing said.

“You see, the unknown isn’t actually that scary.” Zhou Yuan pulled him closer. “I want to go to many more places with you.”

"Okay." Chen Qing nodded.

"Manager Tian is really amazing." Chen Qing's eyes lit up when he talked about Tian Yao. "He can ride horses, he can do business, he is the president of the Chamber of Commerce, and he can also hunt. He is not afraid to go up the mountain alone."

"Are you envious?" Zhou Yuan asked.

Chen Qing shook his head: "I don't think I could do what he did."

Zhou Yuan smiled and comforted him: "I don't think it's necessary to divide things so clearly into what a man should do and what a young man should do."

“Ah Qing, what I really want to say is that women and boys are no less capable than men. They can do what men can do, and they can also do what men cannot do.”

Zhou Yuan put his arm around his shoulder: "We have a deputy general in our camp who's a bro."

Chen Qing's eyes widened: "A young man can join the army?"

"He probably didn't get in through recruitment. I heard he was General Cui's deputy. They came to the battlefield relatively late, so we didn't have much contact with him, but he was a bro, which is an indisputable fact in the army."

“Aqing, nothing is impossible in this world,” Zhou Yuan said. “What men can do, we can do too. But what you can do, we may not be able to do, such as threading a needle or embroidering. Look, you are better at farming than I am.”

Chen Qing was a little embarrassed: "I don't know that many things."

"However, everyone has their own ambitions. I only hope that Aqing can live out the rest of his life with me peacefully and smoothly."

During the day, they were fine walking on the road. When Manager Tian loaded the goods for them, he covered the contents of the car with felt cloth. It was fine walking on the official road during the day, but when they didn't stay at the post station at night, Chen Qing could hardly sleep at all, fearing that the goods would be stolen.

They camped out in the wild, sleeping right next to the car. Zhou Yuan had one arm around Chen Qing and the other holding his knife.

When Chen Qing rested during the day, he would make sure that none of the things had spoiled. After all, Manager Tian had said that it was the height of summer and fruits would spoil quickly. Fortunately, the heavens were on their side and nothing had gone bad.

They encountered no trouble along the way and arrived back in Luohe Village much faster than when they first came to Yunxizhen, taking only eighteen days.

Zhou Yuan did not bring these things back to the village, but stored them in the county town, where he rented a room for a short period.

Before returning, he sent a message to Meng Qi, asking him to set off for the county town.

After Meng Qi arrived, Zhou Yuan and Chen Qingcai prepared to return to the village. Meng Qi had many questions he wanted to ask, but seeing that they were in a hurry to go home, he didn't ask. He only needed to follow Zhou Yuan.

Zhou Yuan chose to ride a horse back, which would save a lot of time. By the time they reached the village entrance, Chen Qing was so tired that he could sleep soundly even on the bumpy ride.

Zhou Yuan put Chen Qing back home. The yard was clean and tidy, and it was clear that someone regularly cleaned it. He kissed Chen Qing and said, "You rest at home. I'll go and let my godfather know I'm safe."

Chen Qing nodded, but he couldn't fall asleep easily. He watched Zhou Yuan leave and then went to Aunt Sun's house.

Grandma Sun had just returned from outside with a bucket of water. It was hot, and the pig was always strutting around in its pen. Grandma Sun had to fetch water for it to wash every day. As she walked to the door with the water, she saw Chen Qing sitting in the yard. Startled, she dropped the bucket and ran to Chen Qing.

"Aqing! You're back?"

Hearing the noise, Chen Qing went forward and hugged Grandma Sun: "Mother, I'm back."

Grandma Sun quickly put her arm around him: "Why did you come back so soon? Were you alright on the way? How is your Aunt Yin? Where is Zhou Yuanren?"

Chen Qing pulled her aside to sit down, and then said, "Aunt Yin is doing well. She has already started treatment. Yunxi Town is really nice. Zhou Yuan and I brought some local specialties from there. Zhou Yuan went to let Uncle Li know that we are safe."

"There's still hope?" Grandma Sun squeezed Chen Qing's hand. "That's wonderful! A lot has happened in the village while you were gone for over a month."

"That blacksmith Li went crazy, hammering away at the blacksmith. He heard everything Zhang Yin said before she left. Niu Niu woke up in the middle of the night and there was no one at home. He came to our house crying."

"Uncle Li must have something on his mind. He's spent a lot of money on medical treatment, so he just wants to earn more money."

Grandma Sun said helplessly, "I told Niu Niu to sleep at home, but he wouldn't. He said he wanted to go home and wait for his father to come back. What a good child he is."

"Then let's wait for Aunt Yin to come back and deal with him," Chen Qing said.

Then Chen Qing heard about Zhang Ran from Aunt Sun. Zhang Ran wanted a divorce, but Meng Bing refused to agree. The two argued and fought at home all day long. When Zhang Ran realized that she couldn't persuade Meng Bing, she ran away and no one knew where she went.

Chen Qing didn't expect things to end like this, but at least he had beaten him up and vented his anger. As long as he wasn't around, these things had nothing to do with him.

Chen Qing changed the subject and started talking to Aunt Sun about Yunxi Town, about Doctor Yu, Manager Tian, ​​the delicious food in Yunxi Town, and their journey up the mountain to find medicine, without mentioning the dangers involved.

Looking at Chen Qing, Aunt Sun felt that he seemed more cheerful than before after going out for a while.

With more experience, one's mind naturally becomes more open.

Just then, a howling sound came from the backyard, and Aunt Sun realized that she had just gone to bathe the pigs, and now the water had all been spilled.

“This isn’t a pig, it’s an old man,” said Grandma Sun. “We have to wash him with water every day, otherwise he’ll keep howling.”

Actually, it's all thanks to this pig; otherwise, without Chen Qing in the family, she always felt a void in her heart.

Chen Qing followed behind her, also carrying a bucket of water back, and the two of them gave the pig a good rinse.

Grandma Sun fed the pigs exceptionally well. Although the pigsty still smelled, Grandma Sun kept it very clean.

"We're slaughtering a pig for the Lunar New Year this year too." Grandma Sun put away the bucket and walked outside with Chen Qing.

Chen Qing had completely forgotten how cute the piglet had looked before, and now he only felt that the pig in front of him was really big and ugly.

"Mom, shall we have dinner at home tonight? We brought back some local food from Yunxi Town. I'm sure you'll like it if we make it."

Chen Qing took some of the two cartloads of things he brought back, wanting to let Aunt Sun try them out.

Grandma Sun looked at the things Chen Qing brought back; they were red and green, quite pretty, but could they eat them? They had never seen anything like them before.

"I'll cook tonight," Chen Qing said. "Mom, you can also try the cooking I've learned."

When Zhou Yuan returned from the Li family, he didn't go into his own courtyard. Instead, he went to Aunt Sun's place and said to her, "Mom, I'm back."

Chen Qing was cooking in the kitchen, while Zhou Yuan and Aunt Sun were chatting in the yard.

"The corn harvest will be in a few days, so we've come back just in time."

“I can harvest it by myself. There are still cows around, so it won’t take much effort on me.”

Chen Qing brought out the stir-fried dishes: "Then it's faster for the three of us to cook."

Grandma Sun looked at the plate of scrambled eggs on the table. They were red and yellow, and even without considering the taste, the colors alone were festive.

She tasted it just one bite and thought it was delicious. Under Chen Qing's influence, she also felt that the people of Yunxi Town were living the life of immortals.

Zhou Yuan picked up where Chen Qing left off: "We brought back two truckloads of local specialties from Yunxi Town, and we plan to sell them in the county town tomorrow."

Although Grandma Sun was born in the mountains, she was not feudal in her thinking: "It's very good, very good."

Chen Qing looked at Aunt Sun and said, "Mom, why don't you go and help out tomorrow?"

Grandma Sun had lived with Chen Qing for five years, and she could tell what he was thinking just by listening to him speak. He just didn't want to go to the street to sell his wares, and he was too embarrassed to tell Zhou Yuan, so he could only bring up Grandma Sun. Now he's become much smarter.

"I'm not going. My piglets need a bath tomorrow."

Chen Qing: ...