Chapter 73 A Taste of Sweetness
After harvesting ten acres of wheat, they immediately began to harvest millet. To harvest millet, one only needed to cut the ears of wheat. Sui Liang also joined in. Sui Yu followed him in front to pick the ears of wheat and put them into baskets, while Zhao Xiping followed behind and cut the stalks with a sickle.
After eight days of hard work, Zhao Xiping finally threw the last bundle of millet stalks onto the camel's back. He dusted himself off and said, "You guys go back and cook first. I'll take the camel to the grain field and register."
"Okay." Sui Yu took Sui Liang's hand and walked back. Passing by the soybean field, she pulled a bean pod and peeled it open, and the soybeans could be picked.
She was thinking of resting at home for two days before going out to pick soybeans. As she walked into the alley, she saw a servant standing outside her door, and her heart skipped a beat.
Sui Yu had been busy all day, her clothes filthy and torn, the sweat dripping down her face had turned to dust and mud, and her hair was still stained with millet leaves. Even the most beautiful person, after such a disgrace, would only retain a fraction of her beauty. The servant took a quick look and wondered who had spread the rumor that Captain Zhao's wife was a beauty. She was no better than the young widow grinding tofu on East Street.
"Please tell Captain Zhao that the captain asked him to gather outside the government office at 9:00 a.m. the day after tomorrow. He doesn't need to lead a camel on this trip, as the army will distribute horses." said the servant.
Sui Yu agreed. She inquired, "Do you know what the mission is? It's not going to the battlefield, right?"
"I'm not very clear." The servant refused to say more. After saying this, he turned around and left.
Sui Yu stood outside the door for a long moment, then came to her senses and took out her key to open the door. With only one day left to prepare, she didn't have time to worry about anything else and hurried to prepare everything.
There were two dried pheasants and only one rabbit. Sui Yu took the dried chicken and rabbit off with a stick. He planned to steam them tonight and dry them overnight, then hang them out to dry for a day tomorrow, and let the man take them away the day after tomorrow. If it was inconvenient to eat while traveling, he could tear off a piece to satisfy his hunger.
Taro porridge was cooking at the bottom of the pot, and dried chicken and rabbit were steamed on the grate. Sui Yu asked Sui Liang to light the fire, and she scooped water to wash six salted eggs and put them in a bowl.
"I smell meat. Is there no meat at home?" Zhao Xiping led the camel into the house.
"Steamed dried chicken and rabbit, take them with you to eat on the way out." Sui Yu came out, wiping his hands. "Captain Qu just sent someone to inform you to gather at the government office at 9:00 PM the day after tomorrow. They didn't specify what you were going to do, just that you shouldn't bring camels. Horses will be provided later."
Zhao Xiping paused for a moment, then returned to his normal pace. He drove the camel into the pen, closed the door, and strode into the kitchen. He said nonchalantly, "Good news! When I return after my meritorious service, we'll have pork to eat again."
Sui Yu forced a smile and said, "Then we'll wait for your good news at home."
"Yeah." Zhao Xiping chased Sui Liang away and sat in front of the stove, lighting a fire. Thinking that after he left, the remaining five acres of soybeans and sorghum would fall on Sui Yu, he sighed and said, "If only it were ten days later, the work in the fields would be done."
"Don't worry about things at home." Sui Yu lifted the lid of the pot and used a spoon to drop six salted eggs into the boiling porridge. She said, "I don't know how long it will take me to return from this trip. It will be cold in another month. I will hurry up tomorrow and use the mouse skins and two rabbit skins I have saved to make you a woolen coat. If there are any extra, I can make two more finger sleeves and knee pads... It will be done in half a month. If I save more mouse skins, I can make two more knee pads. Your legs will definitely be frozen from riding horses."
"Maybe he'll be back before it gets cold."
"I hope so."
The taro porridge was cooked, and two chickens and a rabbit were also steamed. Sui Yu raised the oil lamp to fish out the eggs in the light. He heard some movement behind him, turned around, and stuffed a chicken leg into his mouth.
Sui Yu glared at him angrily. She took the chicken leg and kicked him angrily: "Why are you touching my things? I told you to take this away. You are so annoying. Get out. Oh, this is not for dinner tonight..."
"The chicken legs are thick and won't dry out in the sun, so why not eat them tonight?" Zhao Xiping was quick and broke off another one and stuffed it into Sui Liang's pocket. The next moment, he ran away.
Sui Yu picked up the spoon and chased him out. Seeing the man running towards the door, she raised the spoon and cursed: "Get out, don't come back..." Before she finished speaking, she turned her head and said "Pooh", then changed the subject: "Come back, it's time to eat."
Zhao Xiping smiled and stopped teasing her. He closed the door, bolted it, and strode into the kitchen.
The chicken legs had already been broken off, so they could all be eaten. Sui Yu shredded the meat and ate it with her three companions. She brought the remaining chicken and rabbit meat into the house and hung them up. At daybreak, she took them out and hung them in the yard to dry.
"Make a bowl of flour. You can make pancakes yourself today. I'll go find Sister Lamei and ask her to spare a day to help me sew a leather jacket." Sui Yu was worried that he would not be able to finish the work in one day.
Considering the high dexterity required for archery on horseback, Sui Yu first made finger sleeves, using rabbit fur for the back of the hand and rat skin for the palm, with the fur facing inward and the skin facing outward. She had already marked the size of the man's palm last night, so today all she had to do was cut and sew it together.
Sister Lamei took a look and said, "This one is good. The fingers are separated. I will make one when the weather gets cold. It will be convenient for sewing."
"Well, I'll make one when the time comes, so that I won't get frostbite on my hands again this year." Sui Yu responded casually, staring at the needle and thread in his hand without even raising his head.
After half an hour, the two swollen finger sleeves took shape. Sui Yu tried them on. Although they looked ugly, they were quite warm. She put the finger sleeves down and went back to sewing the rat skin. The rat skin was small, and if she cut it, the usable area would probably be less than the size of her palm. Sui Yu simply gave up cutting. A little more or less didn't matter. She just sewed them together first. The extra rat skin could be worn under her coat without any problem.
Eight pieces of mouse skin were stitched together to form a sleeveless vest. Sui Yu scraped the remaining skin and decided not to make sleeves. The remaining six pieces could barely make two knee pads. As for the remaining rabbit skin, she sewed it to the outside of the vest and stuffed two wooden boards into the interlayer around the heart and lungs.
The two of them worked intensively for most of the day, and by mid-afternoon, they had finished a waistcoat, two finger sleeves and two knee pads.
"Sister Lamei, I'm sorry to bother you today. I will go to the fields to help your family with work tomorrow." Sui Yu didn't know how to thank her. She had delayed other people's work in the fields, and she was thinking about helping to make up for it.
"When the farm work is done, you can teach me archery, and I'll go catch ground mice, skin them, and eat their meat. I'll have a warm vest for winter." Sister Lamei swept the lint and hair residue from the ground with a broom and said, "You can go back and get busy. The farm work won't need you. Are you still busy at home?"
"There's still sorghum and soybeans left. As long as the weather doesn't change, Liang Ge'er and I can finish the job in half a month." Sui Yu picked up the basket and walked out, saying, "Sister-in-law, I'm going home. I'll come and chat with you another day."
"OK."
When Sui Yu returned, she happened to see Zhao Xiping making pancakes. She was hungry, so she washed her hands and ate one. She said, "I'll make it. You go and try the waistcoat to see if it fits. If it doesn't, I'll modify it."
Zhao Xiping went to close the gate. After it was closed, he stood in the yard, took off his clothes and put on a fur vest. The rat skin was close to his skin, and the rabbit fur was facing outwards, making him look even stronger. There was a big bulge on his chest where the wood chips were stuffed, which was very conspicuous.
Sui Yu laughed as soon as she saw it. It was so ugly.
Zhao Xiping regretted not going into the house to try it on. He took off his woolen waistcoat and said nonchalantly, "It's the right size. No need to alter it."
"Then put them away, and put away the finger sleeves and knee pads as well. Put them on when the weather gets cold." Sui Yu instructed.
After a bowl of noodles was fried, it was dark. Sui Yu washed thirty salted eggs and put them in the pot to cook. She would take them away when her husband went out the next morning.
"It's been pickled for a short time, so it's not very salty. It will probably go bad soon. Take it with you on the road and eat the eggs first." Sui Yu said.
"I know. Let's go inside and sleep." Zhao Xiping couldn't wait any longer. He picked up Sui Yu, picked up the oil lamp and strode out of the kitchen.
When the atmosphere was hot, he said eagerly: "Give me a taste of sweetness first."
Sui Yu leaned on his shoulder and reached down.
Her fingers were also rough. From daily archery practice, there was a thin layer of calluses on the pads of her right index and middle fingers. However, the flesh underneath the calluses was soft, a completely different feeling from a man's rough hands with thick knuckles.
With a light scratch of her fingertips, the man's narrow waist suddenly shrank, and his breathing became choked. Sui Yu felt the shoulder under her face trembling.
She chased after him, and as soon as they met, Zhao Xiping couldn't bear it anymore. He raised his head and took a deep breath, pushed away the person beside him, and without saying a word, he jumped off the bed again, strode to the water tank, scooped water and poured it on himself.
Sui Yu followed him out to wash her hands. As soon as she stepped out of the door, the man ran away like a frightened rabbit.
Sui Yu was also a little shy. She rubbed her hands silently, then quickly went into the house and lay down on the bed to sleep.
Zhao Xiping sat in the yard for a long time. When the moon was at its zenith, his chaotic mood finally calmed down, and he pushed the door open and went into the house.
At this time, Sui Yu was already fast asleep.
The rooster crowed three times, and the night sky was torn open by the skylight. Dewdrops began to take shape on the grass leaves. When the water droplets condensed, the sky became bright.
In the dim bedroom, the man was breathing heavily. Sui Yu listened to his sometimes fast and sometimes slow breathing beside her ear, and goose bumps appeared on her body. She clenched her wet hand and looked quietly at the morning light coming in through the crack of the door.
Zhao Xiping endured it all night, but he couldn't bear it anymore, so he woke up early and woke Sui Yu up.
There was movement in the next room. Sui Liang was worried that Zhao Xiping was going out, so he woke up early.
"Get up." Sui Yu reminded.
Zhao Xiping responded vaguely, hurriedly picked up his clothes, and lowered his eyes, not daring to look at her.
There was still more than an hour before the Si hour, and Sui Yuhe made dough. She used pickled radish and eggs as fillings, and skillfully kneaded fifty dumplings. After cooking them, the three of them shared them, and then they carried the things out together.
Sui Yu and Sui Liang saw Zhao Xiping out. When they reached the gate of the government office, they stopped and watched the man walk away.
Zhao Xiping was carrying a bundle, a bow and arrows on his back, and another bundle in his hand. Captain Qu saw him and jokingly said, "Are you moving?"
Zhao Xiping smiled and asked, "Captain, what are you going out for this time?"
"The few scattered Xiongnu we defeated earlier have regrouped. A few days ago, we received news that a group of cavalrymen marched south to seize food and slaughtered half the villagers. Go investigate." Captain Qu looked off to the distance and said, "Send your wife back so she doesn't disrupt the morale of the troops."
Zhao Xiping put down his bag and ran over. He explained the purpose of his trip to Sui Yu and said, "Go home and wait. I will definitely come back safely."
Only then did he dare to look up at her.
Sui Yu winked playfully. This simple gesture dispelled the man's fear. He regained his spirits and said cheerfully, "Wait for me at home."
After saying that, he turned and ran away.
Sui Yu took Sui Liang away. The brother and sister took a walk outside, then cheered up and went home to lead the camels, drive the pigs and sheep. While the sun was not too scorching, Sui Yu took a patched linen bag and went to the field to pick soybeans.
With one less person at home, Sui Yu and Sui Liang were initially a little uncomfortable. For example, they instinctively used three pairs of chopsticks, scooped three servings of rice, and even added an extra bowl of rice when serving. The same thing happened while working in the fields. Sui Yu would occasionally turn around to speak, only to realize there was no one behind her before she finished speaking.
It took four or five days for Sui Yu and Sui Liang to adjust to life without Zhao Xiping. They resumed their old habits of opening the door at sunrise and closing it at sunset. They went to bed early at night and rose before dawn to cook, play shuttlecock and shoot arrows in the yard. When the people in the alley opened their doors and started walking around, they drove their livestock to the fields.
The two young camels hadn't seen the man who shot them for half a month, and they gradually got used to the life of being in captivity without worrying about food and water. One day, when the two big camels walked out of the pen, they also tried to go out.
Sui Yu was pleasantly surprised, but her expression remained calm. She picked up the farm tools as if nothing had happened, and pushed Sui Liang's face away with one hand to prevent him from staring at the two little camels.
The little camels took the initiative to walk out of the door. Their injured legs and feet had healed and they walked without limping. They followed the big camel's butt and walked quickly out of the alley.
"Are these the two new camels your family got? Their skeletons are quite big." Aunt Sun stared at the little camels.
"It's a wild camel after all, so it's probably okay if it grows up," said Sui Yu.
"Your family's livestock is thriving this year. Everything you raise grows." Aunt Sun said with envy. She stared at the pigs herding the sheep and said, "Is it a boar or a sow? Are you selling it for the New Year? I'll buy it."
Sui Yu shook her head and said, "I won't sell the pigs. I'm keeping them for piglets."
"Then I'll buy a piglet."
"Okay, I'll leave you a healthy one then."
When he arrived at the field, Sui Yu found a man standing in the sorghum field. It was Uncle Niu. He was sitting on the ridge and staring at the sorghum that was taller than him in a daze.
"Uncle Lao Niu, why are you here so early in the morning?" Sui Yu asked in confusion.
"I'm here to help you with the work. Your aunt has been urging you to do it for days." Uncle Niu sighed, "Only two acres of sorghum are left?"
"No need for help, I'll be done in another seven or eight days." Sui Yu declined. She smiled and said, "Thank you for your kindness, Auntie. But you don't even farm your own land. If you come to work for me, others will laugh at you."
Uncle Niu waved his hand and said, "Just laugh it off. I'll give you a hand. You can't move these sorghum stalks by yourself."
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