Chapter 60 I Want to Marry You
After the rain, grass grew wildly in the fields, and weeds surrounded the bean sprouts. Hares and field mice took advantage of the cover of the grass and quietly nibbled on the tender bean sprouts and the roots of millet and wheat in the fields.
With a "whoosh" sound, a wooden arrow pierced through the leaves of the bean sprouts and landed in the soil. The field mouse hiding under the grass roots and nibbling on it squeaked twice, turned around and disappeared.
Zhao Xiping strode over to retrieve the wooden arrow, then changed direction and continued shooting. The low-flying sparrows, the dragonflies resting on the wild flowers, the leaves swaying in the wind, the hares and voles in the ground... were all his targets.
Sui Yu glanced at him from time to time. When he put down his bow and arrow and went to pull weeds in the field, she asked worriedly, "Is the bow not suitable for your hand? Is the ejection force enough?"
Zhao Xiping hummed and said, "It's not the bow and arrow's fault. I haven't touched it in three years. My hands are rusty and my aim is not good."
Sui Yu was still a little worried, but she didn't say anything. She pounded her waist and lowered her head to continue pulling weeds. She and Sui Liang each worked at opposite ends of a row of bean sprouts, and it took almost an hour before they could meet again.
A family of three can only pull out four rows of weeds in half a day, which is less than one acre in a day.
At dusk, the people working in the fields were preparing to go home. Sui Yu walked to the edge of the field and sat down. Zhao Xiping was not done yet. He collected the grass piled in the field and put it into a basket. He would carry it back in the evening. He could feed the pigs and sheep at night, and use it as kindling after drying.
With a whoosh, a light wooden arrow fell powerlessly less than half a foot away. Sui Yu rubbed her scratched fingers and took another wooden arrow. She pulled the string with all her strength, aiming at the pile of grass in the furrow. When she let go, the wooden arrow shot out at an angle.
"There's something wrong with the wooden arrow." Sui Yu concluded.
"You have the problem." Zhao Xiping strode up with a straw basket. He took the bow and arrow and sat next to Sui Yu. He exerted a little force, tightened the leather string, and slightly bent the rattan bow arm. When the wooden arrow was shot out, the leather string made a crisp sound of varying strengths.
The wooden arrow was stuck in the haystack.
"Shoot a few more times. Weigh the weight of the arrow and the bow repeatedly, and remember the deflection direction of the wooden arrow. If you want to shoot at the haystack, aim the arrow an inch to the right." Zhao Xiping instructed her. He handed her the bow and arrow and said, "Try again."
Sui Yu did as he was told, pulled the leather string, and pointed the arrow at the bean sprout leaves an inch to the right of the haystack. With a "whoosh" sound, the shot wooden arrow landed on the edge of the haystack.
"You don't have enough strength. Try again." Zhao Xiping went down to pick up the arrow and handed it to Sui Yu. She had difficulty pulling the string, so he grabbed her hand from behind and pulled it back.
"loose."
The two men let go at the same time, and the wooden arrow hit the haystack, causing it to collapse.
Sui Yu smiled, turned around, clasped her hands together, and said, "Thank you for your guidance, Master. I have learned it."
Zhao Xiping's scalp tingled and the expression on his face froze for a moment. He reacted and looked at Sui Yu deeply. Without saying anything, he walked down the ridge and continued to pick grass.
Sui Yu looked down at the leather string on the bow. The wolfskin was very elastic and would recover after being stretched, but it was still a little looser than when it was tied. She then touched the sharpened wooden arrow. It was light and fluttered in the air. If the wind was strong, no matter how much experience Zhao Xiping had, his arrows would not hit the enemy.
"Come back, don't sit there anymore." Zhao Xiping shouted.
"Here they come." Sui Yu propped herself up with her hands and sat up. She put the bow on her back, picked up the wooden arrow and strode to chase the two people in front.
"What are we having for dinner?" Zhao Xiping asked.
"What do you want to eat?"
"Chives." The man chuckled.
"I'll bake it for you in two days. We're out of flour at home."
As people ate more noodles, the flour in the house was used up quickly. Fortunately, it was the day to collect grain. Zhao Xiping calculated that there was still a lot of millet left in the house, so he exchanged it for three more dou of wheat when collecting grain.
Thinking about eating leek dumplings, he put down all the work in the fields, and went to grind flour and rice after getting the grain.
With flour and leeks in the garden, Sui Yu didn't work in the fields that afternoon. She scooped three scoops of flour and mixed it with the sourdough starter she'd saved to let it rise. The leeks had been picked and washed the previous night, and with nothing to do for the moment, she wanted to fetch water to water the vegetables, but as she was leaving, she thought of the light wooden arrows and went back inside to open the wooden box and count the remaining money.
Not counting the odd copper coins, there were still twenty-seven coins tied together, which means she spent at least fifteen coins on medical treatment and medicine last month.
"It's so expensive to see a doctor when you're sick." Sui Yu sighed, she closed the wooden box, locked the door and went to the market.
In the blacksmith's shop, a tall and strong blacksmith was hammering iron. When he saw someone coming in, he raised his eyes and asked loudly, "Do you want to repair your sword or buy a sickle?"
"Do you have iron arrows for sale?" Sui Yu looked around the shop and asked in a different tone, "Can you make arrows with iron tips?"
The blacksmith looked at her twice. He threw the hammered iron into the furnace and asked, "What kind of bow do you want? What kind of bow do you want? How far can it shoot?"
"The maximum range is less than three meters. I use a rattan bow." Sui Yu gestured to him and said, "I want an iron-cast arrowhead. The wood of the arrow body should be heavier to reduce the effect of the wind."
The blacksmith understood. He went into the house and brought out a piece of wood. He said, "Do you want to bring the iron, or do you want to use mine?"
"How much is it?"
"Use my iron, that is, wood and iron, one ounce and two coins each. Including labor, one ounce and five coins per arrowhead."
Sui Yu shook the wood and said without hesitation, "Make me five and I'll go back to get the money. When can I get it?"
"At least three days." The blacksmith stopped the man who was about to leave and said, "When you take the money, please bring your household registration with you. I need to register it and report it to the authorities."
"Okay, then I'll come again tomorrow." Sui Yu took a breath. She didn't have the household registration, so she could only ask Zhao Xiping to bring the household registration to pay the money tomorrow.
After walking out of the blacksmith shop, Sui Yu heard the chirping of chickens. She followed the sound and saw a young woman selling chickens outside the butcher shop. She went over and asked how much it cost.
"One hundred coins each."
Sui Yu frowned and raised her foot to leave.
"Sister, don't be in such a hurry to leave. My chickens are already over two months old. Look, they've all grown feathers. They don't need a hen to lead them. Once you buy them back, they can find food on their own." The little sister-in-law stopped Sui Yu and added, "Chickens this big rarely get sick. Even someone who has never raised chickens before wouldn't kill them."
Sui Yu was tempted and bargained, "Eighty coins for ten."
"Ninety-five cents."
Sui Yu was about to leave again, and the little sister-in-law had no choice but to lower the price by another five cents.
Sui Yu squatted down to select the chicks. As her sister-in-law had said, the chicks were all very lively, and she wanted to buy more. Selling her own poultry wasn't considered business, so she planned to save some money by selling a few more chickens in the coming winter. Even if she couldn't sell them, she could still kill them and treat them to a good meal.
"Eighty cents, I'll buy ten more." Sui Yu said.
The little sister-in-law waved her hands and said, "It can't be sold. It can't be sold."
Sui Yu added another five cents and bargained for half a day before finally buying twenty chicks for eighty-five cents. She didn't have enough money on her, so she had to take her people back to the military settlement.
"Little sister, you who receive food every month are still arguing with me about those few cents? You should compensate me. I am a farmer and I can only save a few copper coins by selling chicken butts." The little sister-in-law felt unhappy.
"Everyone has their own difficulties. If I were well-off, I wouldn't argue with my sister-in-law over a few cents." Sui Yu opened the door and said, "I'll help you shout and see if anyone else wants to buy."
"One hundred coins each, don't talk nonsense."
"Okay." Sui Yu smiled.
Twenty chicks cost seventeen cents. Sui Yu handed over the money and picked out the chicks. Seeing Aunt Sun coming back from the vegetable garden, she asked loudly, "Auntie, do you want to buy some chicks?"
"I bought them last month when the weather got warmer." Aunt Sun came closer with the basket on her shoulder, looked out, and said, "The chicks are quite big. How old are they?"
"A little over two months."
Aunt Sun picked up one, which looked better than her own chicks. After asking the price, she went home and bought five.
People who heard the noise came over and started talking. The young sister-in-law had sold half of her chicks, but she refused to lower the price and kept selling them for 100 coins each.
After Sui Yu settled the chicks, she took her sister-in-law to Shiqitun and asked Aunt Du if she wanted to buy them.
The person sitting in the yard next door recognized her voice, and Tong Huaer opened the door and came out.
"I'm not sitting down anymore. The dough made at home is ready. I have to go back to prepare dinner." Sui Yu came out of Aunt Du's house and turned around to see Tong Huaer. She suppressed the smile on her face and walked straight towards her as if she didn't know her.
Tong Huaer moved her mouth but didn't know what to say. The mistake she made almost ruined Sui Yu, and it couldn't be offset by an apology.
The fields were busy with farming, and the military settlement had become deserted. Most of those left at home were elderly people with tottering feet and babbling children. The alleys were deserted, and Sui Yu felt particularly at peace walking through them. However, as she turned into Shisantun, she came face to face with Sui Ling. A single glance and Sui Yu averted her gaze.
Sui Ling panicked for a moment and subconsciously covered her mouth. When she saw that Sui Yu had his eyes downcast and didn't look at her, she calmed down.
The two walked on both sides of the road and soon disappeared into two adjacent alleys.
Sui Yu suddenly snorted while kneading dough. After a few days, there was a bustling scene in the alley next door.
At sunset, the people working in the fields came back, and the hens that were looking for food outside also flapped their wings and ran back.
Half a basket of weeds was poured into the yard, and the twenty chicks crowded in the chicken coop rushed out and started eating the weeds with the two hens.
Sui Liang was stunned, and so were the two hens.
"Did you buy chicks today? So many?" Zhao Xiping asked.
"I bought twenty. The more you buy, the more you can eat. When they grow up, I'll kill a chicken for you when you come back from your mission." Sui Yu poked his head out and said, "Brother Liang, wash your hands quickly. I've already cooked several leek dumplings."
Zhao Xiping took another look at the fluffy chicks before entering the house. Seeing the cat official approaching, he called out, "Cat official, stop making trouble and come in for dinner."
Sui Yu handed over two warm leek boxes and said, "Eat more. I'll give you an extra bowl of noodles today. It's enough for the three of us to eat for two meals."
Zhao Xiping had been thinking about it all afternoon. He took the plate and sat in front of the stove, eating while keeping an eye on the fire.
Sui Yu also ate while frying. When the last pot of leek dumplings was done, she was full.
Zhao Xiping was full again, so he asked Sui Yu to sit down and rest. He got up to clean the stove. After cleaning the house, he picked up a bucket and went to fetch water.
Sui Yu teased the cat official for a jog around the yard to help digest the food. When the man came back, she told him about buying arrowheads.
"I have already inquired about the price. Tomorrow you bring your household registration and bow, and we will go to the blacksmith shop to order five long arrows with iron arrowheads." Sui Yu said.
Zhao Xiping was silent, and now it was his turn to feel sorry for the money.
"Just buy two," he said.
"Two isn't enough. Even five wouldn't be enough. If you go on a mission and the government issues you a bow and crossbow, you can bring five more arrows with you. I'll feel more at ease." Sui Yu took the man's arm and walked into the house, saying, "Money can be saved if it's gone, but if a person is gone, it's useless to keep the money."
The next morning, Sui Yu took Zhao Xiping to the blacksmith shop with a bag of money. In order to facilitate identification, she asked the blacksmith to leave a mark on the arrow.
After getting the arrow, Sui Yu used the tip of a knife to carve Zhao Xiping's name on the arrow.
"You can read?" Zhao Xiping was surprised. "Why didn't you say anything when Lord Hu asked who could read?"
"I'm attracted to you." Sui Yu blew away the sawdust, winked at the man, and said sweetly, "I just want to marry you."
Bullshit, it’s probably because she can’t read or write.
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