Chapter 211: Leaving the Seclusion
The snow melted and the road dried up. Merchants set up stalls and shelves to dry their goods. Sui Yu was one of them, but she dried her goods in the yard.
When it snowed last year, the precious silks and satins were covered with camel hides. Twenty rolls of coarse cloth didn't cover them completely, and two or three of them got soaked by the falling snow. After returning, they were placed in the warehouse. Although they were spread out to dry, they still had a damp smell. When the sun came out in the spring, Sui Yu led his men to spread out the cloth and hang it on racks to dry.
The cub swung among the hanging cloths, pulling them to wrap themselves up, and from time to time he cried out, "Mom, guess where I am!"
At this moment, no matter how many things Sui Yu was doing, she would put them down without hesitation and go to catch the child wrapped in a silkworm cocoon.
The kid laughed a few times, then changed the cloth and continued to hide.
"Mom, come and catch me."
"The shelf is about to fall down. Come here quickly. I have made new clothes for you." Sui Yu bit off the raw silk.
The kid ran over happily. Sui Yu took a summer shirt made of silk cloth and measured it on him. The sleeves were an inch longer than his arms. He could just roll it up when he wore it this summer, and it would probably be the right length for next summer.
"So slippery." The kid rubbed the summer shirt on his face.
Sui Yu touched his face and took out a piece of silk cloth from the basket. She didn't know how to embroider, so she could only make him a plain bellyband.
The kid lay on her lap and watched.
"This is for you. When it's hot, you can wear it when you sleep at night." Sui Yu said.
The kid nodded repeatedly, slid down, and sat on his mother's feet.
Sui Yu stood on tiptoe and poked his butt with her toes, and he giggled with joy.
"Let's go play with Dazhuang and go out for a run." Sui Yu said.
The boy shook his head, resting his chin on his hands, his eyes following the movement of the needle and thread.
Sui Yu simply ignored him and buried her head in concentrating on her needlework. Silk cloth was easy to draw threads, so she had to sew all four edges tightly with raw silk. However, her needlework skills had been rusty for a long time, so she had to focus closely on each stitch and dared not be distracted.
"Little guy, come out and play." A Shui ran over and shouted.
Sui Yu looked up and said, "Go play with your Aunt Shui."
The boy refused and waved at A Shui, signaling her to leave.
Ah Shui walked in and stood beside Sui Yu, looking at her. "Sister-in-law, who is this bellyband for?"
"For the cub."
"Do boys also wear bellybands?"
"Yes, to protect your stomach from catching a cold."
Ah Shui patted the little cub's head and suddenly asked, "Sister-in-law, are you still leaving this year?"
Sui Yu subconsciously looked at the kid, who looked at her with a blank expression.
"A Shui, go out and play." Sui Yu said.
Ah Shui said "Oh", looked at the cub, and ran away.
Sui Yu lowered her head and continued to do needlework.
"mother?"
"Um?"
The cub cried out, but fell silent.
Sui Yu glanced at him and then returned her gaze to the plain white bellyband.
The kid lowered his head and used his fingers to pick at the dirt on the ground, then took off his shoes and scratched the ground with the soles of his shoes, leaving marks.
When the sound of camel hooves came from outside the wall, a bellyband was ready. Sui Yu bit through the raw silk and kicked the cub with her foot, saying, "Your father is back."
The cub looked back and then lowered his head listlessly.
"What happened? Did you get scolded?" Zhao Xiping strode in.
"Put his shoes on and let's go out for a walk," said Sui Yu.
"Why did you take off your shoes? Aren't your feet cold?" Zhao Xiping picked up his son and put his shoes on him. While Sui Yu was carrying the sewing basket into the house, he quietly asked, "Did you make your mother unhappy and get scolded?"
"No." The kid shouted in a childish voice. When he saw Sui Yu coming out, he pouted.
Sui Yu smiled and walked out with her hands behind her back.
Zhao Xiping was annoyed that the kid's legs were too short and he walked too slowly, so he picked him up and strode after Sui Yu.
Sui Yu started running, Zhao Xiping followed behind with the child on his back, and the family of three ran farther and farther towards the wilderness in the north.
The camels scattered in the wilderness grazing on the ground all looked up. After the people left, they continued to graze on the grass roots.
The big black dog on the haystack barked a few times, then stood on a high place with its ears erect and its tail wagged, staring at the people in the wilderness.
After walking around in the wilderness, Sui Yu whispered a few words to Zhao Xiping, and then they took the cub to their own farmland. When they got closer, they found Hua Niu and Da Zhuang digging earthworms and rotten beans in the field.
This land is under Sui Liang's name. Last year, soybeans, broad beans and taro were planted there. When harvesting the soybeans, a lot of beans inevitably fell off. There was no time to pick them up, and they were buried in the soil after the snow.
"Next year, when the cub is three years old, he will also be able to own twenty acres of land." Sui Yu said.
Zhao Xiping said, "Hmm," and then he said, "I'll get his household registration registered when he turns three."
Many children died in infancy. They were not considered to have established themselves until they were three years old. If they were under three years old, the government would not register their household registration or allocate land to them.
Passing Dazhuang and Huaniu, Sui Yu and Zhao Xiping took the cub to another field where there were sparrows looking for food, chirping from time to time.
The boy forgot what he was upset about before. He went to the field to chase away sparrows. Sui Yu and Zhao Xiping sat on the ridge and watched him.
The sun rose overhead and it was noon. Hua Niu picked up the broken jar containing earthworms. She looked to the other side and pulled Da Zhuang away.
"We have to wait for the cub." Da Zhuang looked back.
"No need to wait, the kid has parents, he won't get lost." Hua Niu pulled the idiot away.
When the cub saw Hua Niu and Da Zhuang leaving, he looked at his parents, stopped chasing the sparrows, and walked over and said, "Mom, let's go back."
"Are you hungry?" Sui Yu asked.
"Do you want to eat bird meat?" Zhao Xiping asked.
The cub's eyes lit up, and he turned his head to stare at the sparrow that had landed on the ground again.
"Do you want to eat a bird bigger than a sparrow?" Sui Yu took the cub's hand, pulled the child into her arms, and pointed to the northwest sky. "There's a kind of bird in the desert that can fly very high. Its beak is longer than your toes, its claws are longer than your fingers, and its wings are bigger than chicken wings. I'll catch it for you."
The cub nodded.
"Then you stay at home with your father. We have a lot of land. You can help your father plant wheat. When the wheat is harvested, mother will come back to stew bird meat and steam big buns." Sui Yu said again.
The cub looked bewildered. After a few moments, he seemed to understand what was meant. He quickly shook his head and said anxiously, "Cubs don't eat birds."
Sui Yu sighed and looked at Zhao Xiping.
Zhao Xiping had no choice.
There was no other way, so Sui Yu chose to speak directly: "Little boy, mother is going out to make money. I will go out with the uncles living in the guesthouse to make money. You and your father will wait for me to come back at home."
The cub looked at her without saying a word.
Sui Yu suspected that he didn't understand, and couldn't help but think that forget it, she wouldn't say anything more, and he would probably understand by the time she left.
Zhao Xiping poked the kid, and the brat swung his arms impatiently. He exclaimed in surprise and exchanged a glance with Sui Yu. He was quite temperamental.
"Let's go back and eat." Zhao Xiping stood up. He reached out to pull Sui Yu and asked without hesitation, "When are you planning to leave?"
"Masters Chen and Sun have agreed to leave the city in ten days. The people in these two caravans are relatively kind and decent. I plan to go with them then," Sui Yu replied. "But I haven't discussed it with Sister Song yet. I'll go to her house tomorrow to see if she's still going."
"She's also going out to trade?" Zhao Xiping was surprised. Thinking of Huang Ancheng's personality, he shrugged and said, "I guess it's difficult."
Thinking of the Song family's servants, Zhao Xiping suddenly had an idea: "I'll go find out tomorrow. If the couple is arguing, I'll go and persuade Huang Ancheng."
The kid suddenly let out a cry and sat down on the ground in anger, kicking his legs. Unable to vent his anger, he simply lay down and rolled around in the soft cropland.
Sui Yu and Zhao Xiping stopped talking. The couple moved to the ridge of the field in tacit understanding and stared at the rolling child in silence.
Zhao Xiaozai rolled farther and farther away, becoming dizzy. When he opened his eyes, he couldn't see his parents. He jumped up, turned around, and found his unmoved parents looking up at the sky.
The wailing stopped for a moment, and was followed by a louder cry.
Sui Yu walked over, gave him a way out, and brought the child back.
"Speak, don't cry. If you don't speak, we won't know what you mean." Zhao Xiping reached out and brushed off the dirt and grass debris on his head.
The little cub hugged Sui Yu's legs, wiped his tears and snot on her, and cried, "I don't want my mother to leave."
"I'll be back when the wheat is ripe." Sui Yu picked him up and said as they walked, "You're already a grown-up boy, why are you still crying? It's so ugly."
The cub's crying became a little quieter.
"Look at these birds. They come out to look for food during the day and return to their nests after dark. Their chicks are waiting in the nests for them to catch insects. It's the same with me. When the weather warms up, I'll leave home to earn money. You wait at home, little cub. When the wheat harvest is ripe, mother will come back with countless money."
"Baby doesn't want to eat meat anymore." The little kid cried.
"You have to eat meat. Eat more meat to grow up. When you grow as tall as your uncle, it will be your turn to go out and make money. Mom will be waiting for you at home." Sui Yu coaxed softly.
The little boy heard it, wiped away his tears, and hummed, "I'll go with my mother."
"Okay, when you grow up, Mom will take you to make money, and your uncle will go too, leaving your dad alone at home to look after the house."
"Daddy is going too."
"Ask your father if he wants to go."
The kid looked up, his nose running. Zhao Xiping followed behind him and wiped it off, saying, "How sloppy."
"Dad, you go too."
"I won't go. I'll stay at home and drink and eat meat. You earn money to support me." Zhao Xiping disagreed with him.
The kid pouted, and Zhao Xiping reached out and pinched the pig's mouth, saying, "Zhao Mingguang, you're really ugly now."
The cub wanted to cry again.
Sui Yu couldn't hold the baby any longer, so she handed it to Zhao Xiping, swinging her arms and saying, "When I come back, the cub will be much taller."
"I guess his teeth are almost fully grown, so he can chew big bones." Zhao Xiping continued.
"Then I'll shoot a wolf and catch a sheep. The wolf will eat the sheep, the man will eat the wolf, and the cub will eat the wolf and the sheep."
After several interruptions, the baby stopped crying and seemed to have accepted it. He went back to take a bath, changed into clean clothes, ate a full stomach, took a walk, took a nap, and woke up happy again.
Sui Yu went to see Song Xian the next day. Seeing that she looked not well, she asked with concern, "Are you sick?"
"No, I'll be fine after a few days of happiness and when I get out of confinement." Song Xian did not hide the bad things happening at home, but she did not drag Sui Yu to judge right or wrong.
"When are we leaving?" Song Xian asked.
"Ten days, no, nine days later, February 16th. Let's leave early and come back early, so as not to encounter windy and snowy weather on our way back." Sui Yu said.
"Okay, there's enough time. I'll get ready and wait for you outside the city gate early in the morning on the 16th." Song Xian said.
"I'd like to rent forty camels from you. My camels will carry the goods, and the rented camels will carry people and food." Sui Yu smiled and said, "To be frustrating, if we run into danger, we can abandon the goods and escape on the camels."
Song Xian had no objection, so she took people to the desert to select camels.
…
On February 16th, the caravan was ready to set off. Sui Yu and her servants had eaten their fill. She called out to the child standing under the eaves, "Little boy, I'm leaving. Will you go and see me off?"
The little boy had a sad face. Zhao Xiping went over to pick him up and asked, "Do you have anything for your mother?"
The boy wiped his tears, went back to the warehouse to get his hu flute, and followed Zhao Xiping out of the guesthouse on a camel.
"Don't cry, your mother will cry too." Zhao Xiping wiped his tears and said, "You have me and your uncle by your side at home, as well as Grandpa Niu and Ah Shui, and your aunt and uncle. Your mother is out of confinement and is all alone. If she cries, no one will comfort her. How pitiful."
The cub barely suppressed his sadness.
When they arrived at the west gate, Huang Ancheng was already on duty, and Song Xian was outside the gate with twenty servants and forty camels.
"Don't send me out of the city." Sui Yu rode her camel closer to Zhao Xiping. She smiled at the cub and asked, "Do you want a kiss from your mother?"
The cub leaned forward, letting out a muffled sob as he was held.
"Zizi, wait for your mother at home." Sui Yu kissed his forehead and said, "Be good."
"Okay." The boy handed her the flute. He freed his hands and pulled his eyelids to prevent tears from flowing.
Sui Yu wanted to cry and laugh at the same time. She handed the child to Zhao Xiping and said, "I'm leaving."
"We'll wait for you to come back." Zhao Xiping said a little nervously, "I'll take you out of Yumen Pass."
Sui Yu waved his hand, it would be the same no matter where he sent it.
Without saying anything more, Sui Yu drove the camel back towards the city gate.
"Mom——" the kid cried out in a crying voice.
Sui Yu turned around and bowed to him, and the little boy couldn't hold back his tears and cried out "wow".
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