Chapter 129: Shall I take you to the temple fair?

Fu Yucheng was varnishing the crib when Yun Tangyin came over with a bowl of pigeon soup. "Take a break and drink it while it's hot."

He put down his brush and took it. After taking two sips, he frowned: "How much astragalus did you put in? It tastes like military medicine soup."

"The old Chinese doctor said that adding more is more effective." Yun Tangyin stuffed a piece of sesame candy into his mouth, "If you find it bitter, just suck on a piece of candy."

She suddenly pointed at the bed rail and said, "We need to carve some patterns here."

Fu Yucheng traced the bamboo surface with his fingers: "Carve a peony? It will match the pattern you embroidered."

"Let's carve bamboo." She held his hand. "Bamboo symbolizes peace and good luck."

As he was speaking, Erzhuzi rushed into the yard holding a bamboo rattle: "Look! This one I made is even louder than my second brother's!"

The drum surface was covered with a layer of red silk cloth, which was the leftover material Yun Tangyin gave him.

"So energetic." Yun Tangyin stuffed a handful of dried hawthorns into his pocket. "Go see your brother Fu and see if he can weave another small one for his future little brother to play with."

Erzhuzi had just run out when Fu Yuanshan came in carrying a bundle of thin bamboo strips: "Acheng, make a bed guard for the baby's crib to keep out the wind in winter."

He spread a bamboo mat on the ground and said, "I'll teach you how to weave a swastika pattern for good luck."

Fu Yucheng had just picked up the bamboo strips when Yun Tangyin stopped him: "Eat first, I made some steamed red date cakes to replenish your qi and blood."

At the dinner table, Yu Xia suddenly scooped a spoonful of sesame paste into Yun Tangyin's bowl: "This is added with walnuts, you have to eat more."

She touched Fu Yucheng's arm and said, "You should eat more too. Don't always think about giving her food."

Fu Yucheng scooped a spoonful into his own bowl: "I'm not worried that she won't have enough to eat."

He suddenly remembered something, "Oh, right, Commander Zhang said there's an old Chinese doctor in the military hospital. Anyone trying to get pregnant should go to him. I'll take you to see him next week."

Yun Tangyin was about to shake her head when Yu Xia held her hand back: "You should go, you should go, go see an old Chinese doctor, that's what you should do."

The next morning, Fu Yucheng rode his bicycle to take Yun Tangyin to the military hospital.

As the old Chinese doctor felt her pulse, Fu Yucheng stared at the pulse pillow nervously: "Doctor, is there anything wrong with her body?"

The old Chinese doctor stroked his beard and smiled: "The girl is very strong, but she is a little lacking in energy and blood."

He wrote a prescription and said, "Prepare the medicine according to this. Boil it once in the morning and evening, and take two donkey-hide gelatin pills every day."

Fu Yucheng was about to write down the recipe when Yun Tangyin took out a pen and paper and said, "I've got it written down."

On the way back, Fu Yucheng suddenly stuffed an oil-paper bag into her hand: "I bought you some donkey-hide gelatin dates, just to fill your stomach first."

Yun Tangyin had just taken a bite when she saw a small stall selling bamboo toys on the side of the road.

The stall owner held up a bamboo dragonfly and shouted, "It's for kids, two cents each!"

Fu Yucheng suddenly stopped the car: "Buy two."

He handed the bamboo dragonfly to Yun Tangyin, "You should try it too. Didn't you play with it when you were a kid?"

Yun Tangyin smiled as she spun the bamboo dragonfly around: "I've never played it before."

She was born into a wealthy family and has never played this game before.

The sunlight shone on her face, and the silver hairpin sparkled.

When he got home, Fu Yucheng went to the kitchen: "I'm going to boil the medicine."

"Let me do it." Yun Tangyin stopped him, "You don't know how to boil the medicine. Don't boil out the dregs."

Fu Yucheng scratched his head and smiled: "Then I'll light a fire for you."

As the smell of medicine filled the yard, Erzhuzi ran in, looked around, and suddenly lowered his voice: "Aunt Fu, are you pregnant? My mother said you've been taking medicine a lot lately."

Yun Tangyin smiled and pinched his face: "When I have it, I'll be the first to tell you."

In the evening, when Fu Yucheng was carving patterns on the crib, Yun Tangyin sat beside him and embroidered the baby's socks.

The soles of the socks are embroidered with a pair of little tigers with fine stitching.

"Do you think this tiger's tail is embroidered like a real tiger?" she asked, holding it up.

Fu Yucheng leaned over to take a look: "It looks like it! It looks even more like the tiger Erzhuzi made."

He suddenly lowered his head and kissed her on the cheek, "My wife is really capable."

Just as Yun Tangyin was about to speak, Jiang Jianhua came in holding a bamboo medicine pot. "I heard from Yuanshan that you two were decocting medicine. This is the medicine pot that my mother's family gave me as a dowry. It's the best for boiling medicine."

"Thank you, second sister-in-law." Yun Tangyin stuffed a piece of red date cake into her hand, "Freshly steamed, try it."

Jiang Jianhua bit his tongue and smiled: "It's sweeter than the ones I steamed. By the way, I found a folk recipe for you, stewing mutton with black beans, it's said to warm the body."

Fu Yucheng suddenly stood up: "I'll buy a lamb tomorrow and stew it for you."

"No, no." Yun Tangyin stopped him, "We have an old hen at home. Let's make some chicken soup first."

Lying on the kang at night, Yun Tangyin touched the amulet on Fu Yucheng's chest and asked, "When do you think we can have a child?"

"Almost there." He snuggled closer to her arms. "Didn't the old Chinese doctor say that you're in good health, but you need to replenish yourself."

He suddenly sat up and said, "I'll go to the mountains to pick some ginseng tomorrow to nourish you."

"Don't go into the mountains." Yun Tangyin grabbed him, "What if you encounter a wild beast?"

"I have a gun." He patted the holster. "When I was in the army, I saw all kinds of wild animals."

Yun Tangyin suddenly snuggled into his arms: "I don't want ginseng, I just want you to be safe and sound."

Fu Yucheng hugged her tightly: "Okay, I won't go. Let's do as the old Chinese doctor said, slowly replenish our body, and we will eventually have a child."

The moonlight outside the window fell on the two people's clasped hands, and the silver bracelet jingled.

Yun Tangyin suddenly felt that even if she didn’t have children for the time being, this kind of life was pretty good.

With him by my side, I have hope. Every day is like medicine simmering in a pot, bitter yet sweet.

The next day, Fu Yucheng was sanding the bamboo edges of the crib with fine sandpaper when Yun Tangyin came over with a plate of red date cakes and said, "Stop sanding. Your hands are getting red."

She grabbed his hand and blew on it. "Look at these burrs. You need to rub them with beeswax to make them smooth."

"Beeswax?" Fu Yucheng raised his eyebrows. "I'll go to the supply and marketing cooperative tomorrow to see if they have any."

"No need to run so far." Yun Tangyin stuffed a piece of cake into his mouth. "Mrs. Zhou Ming said her family has some leftover from last year's honey harvest. I can just borrow some."

She suddenly pointed at the bed board and said, "We need to put a cotton pad here, wrapped in blue velvet, to make it soft."

Fu Yucheng put down the sandpaper: "I'll go pull out the cotton wool."

Just as he was about to stand up, she held him down and said, "Eat the cake first. It won't taste good if it gets cold."

Jiang Jianhua came in carrying an old hen: "My mother's family sent this to you. I'll make you some soup to nourish your body."

She walked towards the kitchen and said, "I'll stew it, you two take a rest."

Fu Yucheng quickly followed: "Second sister-in-law, let me light the fire."

Yun Tangyin was sitting in the yard embroidering a bellyband for a baby when she heard Jiang Jianhua's voice coming from the kitchen: "Acheng, you can go to the mountains to hunt rabbits. Yuanshan said that eating rabbits will make children run faster."

Fu Yucheng replied with a smile: "Then I will go hunt a rabbit tomorrow to feed Yinyin."

Yun Tangyin shouted through the window, "Don't hunt the rabbit! The old Chinese doctor said we should eat a lighter vegetarian diet!"

Jiang Jianhua laughed in the kitchen: "He's quite strict with people."

In the afternoon, Fu Yucheng went to the army to deliver a document box, and when he came back he was holding a wooden box in his hand.

When I opened it, I saw it was an embroidery frame with a bamboo frame that was polished to a smooth finish.

He stuffed it into Yun Tangyin's hand and said, "Try it."

Yun Tangyin suddenly looked up and laughed, "Then I'll embroider a pillowcase for Captain Zhang's wife as a thank you."

Fu Yucheng squatted beside her and watched her embroidering. Suddenly, he said, "On this day off, how about I take you to the temple fair? I heard there's someone selling sugar paintings. I'll buy you a big tiger."

"Temple fair?" Yun Tangyin's eyes lit up. "Isn't it too far?"