Chapter 207 Flatterer
Without entering the guesthouse, Sui Yu and Zhao Xiping took their child to cross the bridge on the frozen river. The ruins on the west side of the river were still piled there. The protruding wooden rafters had been carried away and chopped off by unknown people and burned as firewood. The beams buried under the adobe could not be removed. After a year of wind and sun, the wooden rafters had turned black and moldy.
"Just abandon this here and leave it alone?" Sui Yu asked.
"Maybe someone will come and take a few turns this winter. Anyway, no one will take care of these waste soil and rotten wood when we don't need them," said Zhao Xiping.
After crossing the river and walking two miles west, the wilderness ends and the barren soil turns into hard sand. Further west is the vast desert. The end of the city wall lies across the desert. There are soldiers stationed there for patrolling where there is no connection.
The snow melted, and the snow water seeped into the yellow sand and then froze into ice. The surface gravel was very hard. Zhao Xiping found a stick to poke the hard sand, and Sui Yu picked up a few pieces of sand that were solidified together. She asked the man to take off his coat, and then he walked back with the sand in his coat.
After a while, when I got home, the kitchen was already busy preparing dinner.
The sky darkened again, dark clouds gathered, and it looked like it was going to snow in the evening.
Sui Yu took the cub to scrub the dust off the gravel with hot water. Sui Liang saw this and ran over to play with them.
"Sister, what are you doing washing sand?"
"I plan to fry the chestnuts, half of them, and use the other half to make chestnut cake."
Sui Yu saw Sui Liang thinking about Sui Hu. She thought for a moment and decided to tell him the truth: "The caravan took the Nanshan Trade Road all the way back and forth, and didn't pass by that grassland. It was a different route from when we came here, so I didn't go to pay my respects to my father."
Sui Liang said "Oh", lowered his eyes and said nothing more.
"Hu Shang said that only officials can pass through the grassland. It is probably true. I am not sure. Next time I enter the customs, I will set off a month or two in advance. Then I will have enough time to take a detour and ask." Sui Yu said.
Sui Liang glanced at the cub. The next time he would enter the customs would be in the spring of the following year at the earliest. By then, the cub would be more than three years old and still seemed very young.
"Sister, take me with you next time you enter the country, and we'll go together." Sui Liang thought about it. The next time he entered the country, the kid would be five or six years old, and he would be able to leave for half a year.
Sui Yu nodded and agreed: "Okay, let Dad wait a few more years, and then we will go together to pick him up and bring him to Dunhuang."
The kid suddenly looked up and looked at Sui Yu blankly. His blank expression was mixed with uneasiness, and he looked really pitiful as if he understood but not really.
Sui Yu was silent for a few moments, then said, "Grow up quickly, and I'll take you with me when the time comes."
The kid understood the last three words, he grinned, and was happy now.
"How many teeth have you grown?" Sui Yu changed the subject. She lowered her head and said, "Open your mouth and let me count how many teeth you have grown."
The cub opened his mouth obediently. Sui Yu held his face and counted carefully twice, saying in surprise, "Seventeen teeth already? There are two more teeth coming out."
The kid sucked his saliva, chewed the air twice, and showed off with his teeth bared.
"Who doesn't have teeth? I don't want to see it." Sui Liang lifted his chin slightly and asked teasingly, "Will you sleep with uncle tonight?"
"No!" The kid immediately shook his head.
"Sleep even if you don't want to." Sui Liang snorted, "When you fall asleep, I will take you away."
The cub looked at Sui Yu, hummed a few times, and when she didn't speak, he shouted loudly: "Mom——"
"Hey? What's wrong?" Sui Yu tried to hold back his laughter.
"My uncle stole me."
Sui Liang laughed exaggeratedly. He shook the water off his hands, picked up the kid and ran out, "Steal you? Who stole you? Aren't you crying and shouting that you want to sleep with me now?"
Sui Yu watched the uncle and nephew run away, and she stopped washing the sand. She threw the rest to Zhao Xiping. She leaned against the wall and watched him scoop water to wash the sand, rinse it clean, and then spread it on a coarse cloth to dry.
As it was getting dark, the merchants from the guesthouse came in batches to have dinner. Sui Yu's family also had dinner in the warehouse. They had a bowl of chicken soup and half a bowl of noodles. The little boy sat next to Sui Yu and ate from the bowl without any help from the adults.
"Eat slowly, don't choke." Sui Yu wiped the soup from his mouth.
The kid shook his head and said seriously, "No... Slow down, or you'll grow up."
Sui Yu understood that noodles would swell up when soaked in soup.
"Don't worry about him. Just eat your food." Zhao Xiping handed Sui Yu two pieces of chicken and said, "Eat quickly. It's cold, and the food gets cold quickly."
The kid looked at his father, then lowered his head to eat his own food.
"I'm full." Sui Liang put down his bowl and chopsticks.
The kid choked, lowered his eyes and glanced at his uncle out of the corner of his eye. Seeing Sui Liang leaving alone, his heart finally settled down.
When he returned to the room, he saw that the light was still on in Sui Liang's room. He immediately shut up and moved lightly into the room.
"Mom and Dad haven't come back yet." Sui Yu said.
"If I don't come back now, I should stay at Xiaomi's place tonight."
"Is the little one back?" Sui Liang asked deliberately.
"No." The kid shouted loudly. He ran into the house in a hurry, shouting in panic: "Dad, Mom, hurry up -"
Hearing the door next door open, the kid screamed in fright. Sui Liang walked over with a big laugh. The door was closed, but he was still banging on it from outside.
"Alright, alright, keep going crazy during the day." Zhao Xiping was given a headache by the noise.
"Don't sleep at night, or I'll come and steal from you." Sui Liang left a word and floated away.
The kid was whimpering half-cryingly, Zhao Xiping watched him coldly, and when he saw him smile happily in Sui Yu's arms, he snorted inwardly.
The little boy suddenly woke up in the middle of the night. He didn't find anyone in his bed, so he opened his eyes and shouted loudly for his parents.
"Huh? Why are you sleeping down here?" Zhao Xiping pretended to be dumbfounded. He held the child in Sui Yu's arms and said, "Okay, let your mother hold you while you sleep, and don't let your uncle steal you away."
"My uncle stole it." The kid really believed it.
Sui Yu pinched Zhao Xiping and blamed him for talking nonsense.
"The door is closed, your uncle didn't come in." Sui Yu patted him and said, "Go to sleep, Mom is sleepy."
After waking up, the kid had forgotten what happened in the middle of the night. Ah Shui brought the cat owner over. He held the cat owner's tail and imitated the cat's meow. The cat owner was annoyed and turned up his ears. Unable to bear it any longer, he slapped Ah Shui with his claw.
After the chestnuts were fried, Sui Yu sent a plate to the warehouse and asked the children to peel and eat them themselves.
When the cat official saw her, he wagged his tail guiltily.
"Little guy, come here and wash your hands. There is cat hair on your hands." Sui Yu said.
When Dazhuang heard this, he held a chestnut in his mouth and pulled the kid to wash his hands.
Seeing that she didn't need to do anything, Sui Yu went back to the kitchen to peel chestnuts and prepare dough to make chestnut cakes.
When she was at home, Zhao Xiping didn't go out. When frying chestnuts, he sat by and made the fire. When peeling chestnuts, he sat by and helped. If someone came to help, he would chase them away.
The little cub played in the barn for a while and then came out to take a look. After making sure that his parents were at home, he went back to the barn to play with peace of mind.
At noon, the chestnut cake was ready. The little boy took his first bite and exclaimed in surprise, "It's sweet."
"Yes, sweet ones. Here, take some and eat them yourself." Sui Yu said, "Ah Shui, Ah Qiang, you can also help yourself. Eat the whole plate. Don't leave any for the little one. He can't eat much. If he wants to eat some tomorrow, I'll steam it for him."
The kid took the cake plate and generously shared it with others. After he finished the chestnut cake in his mouth, he said to Dazhuang, "The cake is delicious."
Da Zhuang nodded and said blankly: "This is the most delicious cake I have ever eaten."
"It's not a cake, it's a pastry." Hua Niu corrected.
"My mother, my mother did it." The kid interrupted.
A Shui glanced at him.
"My mother, my mother..." The kid giggled.
"Well, I know you have a mother." Ah Shui said unhappily.
"My mother is the best." The cub threw himself on the cat official and laughed foolishly.
He could cook delicious food, speak sweetly, smell good, hug him and kiss him, and call him cub... The little cub was so happy that the more he thought about it, the more satisfied he felt. He left the cat official and ran out. When he didn't find anyone in the kitchen, he ran out again.
"Young shopkeeper, where are you going?" asked the merchant who came out of the canteen.
"Looking for my mother——" the kid kept walking.
"Your mother is in the teahouse." The merchant followed her out.
The kid didn't listen. He went back to the room where he slept and shouted twice. No one answered, so he ran out again and fell on a pile of snow. The merchant cried out, but before he could come over to pick him up, the kid got up by himself and patted the wet mud off his pants.
"Little boy, are you looking for me?" Sui Yu vaguely heard him calling for his mother.
The little boy called out "Mom" and ran towards her with a smile.
"He fell down. Check if he hurt himself." The merchant instructed Sui Yu. "This child is very brave. He got up on his own after falling down without even crying."
"Wear thick clothes in winter, so it won't hurt if you fall." Having said that, Sui Yu still checked his hands and found that there were no scratches.
"What do you want to see your mother for?" Zhao Xiping came out and asked.
The kid forgot, and when Sui Yu held his hand, he jumped and followed her.
The merchants also followed. The interior of the teahouse seemed to have been tidied up. The oil lamps in the holes in the wall had been lit, and flames were dancing on the walls on all four sides. The empty inner room had an indescribable feeling, which indeed had a refreshing effect.
"When the time comes, move the dining chairs over here. They can't be too close to the stage, otherwise you won't be able to see the people on the stage." Sui Yu drew a line on the ground. She sat on the bench and looked out. The height was just right.
"Have someone dig a row of ditches along this circle. When the time comes, light a fire in the ditches, set up a few kettles on top, and have two people guard them." Sui Yu said to Zhao Xiping, "So they don't have to fetch water from the kitchen, keeping Yin Po and the others busy from morning till night."
Zhao Xiping nodded in agreement. The weather was too cold. If he didn't light a fire to warm himself, his legs and feet would be frozen numb after sitting for an hour or two.
"Starting tomorrow, right?" asked the merchant.
"The day after tomorrow, I'm thinking about frying a few pots of noodles," Sui Yu said. She asked the merchants, "Have you ever tried pepper-flavored oil tea before leaving the border?"
"That's too pungent. I guess only Hu merchants can swallow it." The merchant shook his head.
Sui Yu still wanted to give it a try. When Gan Da and Gan Er came with shovels to dig the ditch, Sui Yu called Zhang Shun and Qingshan to bring a stove to light the fire, and asked Zhao Xiping to bring an iron pot. She bought two pounds of peppercorns from the merchant caravan returning to the customs, and roasted them slowly over low heat until they were crispy but not burnt, fragrant but not pungent. She crushed them into powder while they were still hot, and sprinkled them into the flour and fried them together.
The kid squatted by and watched attentively. When the first pot of pepper noodles came out of the pot, Sui Yu made a bowl and let him taste it first.
"Is it delicious?" Zhao Xiping asked.
The kid frowned and nodded, saying involuntarily, "It's delicious."
"Flatterer." Zhao Xiping cursed.
Sui Yu glared at him and tried it herself. It tasted quite mellow, a little strange at first, but it became fragrant after tasting it for a while.
"Try it."
Zhao Xiping waved his hands and said disdainfully, "I don't want to eat it."
"Little guy, go catch your father. He has to eat today even if he doesn't want to." Sui Yu ordered.
The cub obeyed the order immediately like a lackey, and Sui Yu also chased after him with a bowl in hand. The mother and son were blocked from both ends, and Zhao Xiping had to surrender.
"Okay, okay, let me try it." Zhao Xiping said with a smile.
"It's too late. Open your mouth. These are all yours." Sui Yu smiled sinisterly. "Little cub, hold on to your father's head. I'll feed him delicious food."
The kid was so happy that he couldn't stop smiling. He slapped his father's face. When he saw Zhao Xiping raised his hand to hit him, he moved over mischievously and gave him a kiss.
"Okay, you little brat." Zhao Xiping didn't have the energy to hit anyone anymore.
Sui Yu took the opportunity to scoop a spoonful of oil tea into his mouth. She also leaned over to kiss him and whispered, "Is it delicious?"
"tasty."
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