Chapter 82
During the Autumn Festival, the winnowing baskets and hampers woven from hibiscus, along with dried fruits gathered from the mountains, were exchanged for more than eight coins' worth of loose silver.
During this period, since there were few places in the house where money could be spent, all the money was saved up under the mattress.
As autumn deepens, the sun is no longer scorching, but cool and comfortable.
Hibiscus got up early and swept the yard, tidying it up neatly.
Now a large wolfhound, the owl wagged its thick tail and circled him twice.
Mu Jin put the broom into the woodshed, patted its big dog's head, smiled, went back to the kitchen, and threw a big piece of steamed bun over.
The owl raised its head and leaped, popping the steamed bun into its mouth and swallowing it in two or three bites.
Now, thanks to it guarding the house, the whole family can sleep soundly and peacefully at night.
Night Owl, an energetic wolfhound, has taken to digging holes lately. Except for the pebbled areas in the yard, there are small holes every three steps and large holes every five steps in the rest of the yard.
Mu Jin filled in the hole that Night Owl had dug the night before, and looked at Night Owl with a rather helpless expression.
He patted the hole he had just filled in and scolded, "Stop digging! If you dig again, I'll beat you up."
The owl seemed to understand, its dog-like eyes looking at Hibiscus with an innocent expression.
Mu Jin chuckled, thinking that no matter what, the owl was a descendant of a hunting dog, and keeping it confined in the yard was unfair to it.
"Qi Qiu, I'm going to the mountains to gather firewood. You and Zhao Ran stay home and watch the house."
Bai Qiqiu's voice came from inside the dye house, as he walked out carrying a piece of red cloth that was still dripping with red dye.
"Understood, brother."
Mu Jin smiled, called out to Night Owl, and, carrying her basket on her back, went out the door with her dog.
As soon as it entered the mountains, the owl's wild nature was immediately revealed. It sniffed here and looked there, its ears standing straight up.
Hibiscus chuckled and shook its head, wondering what it could possibly smell.
Keep an eye on it out of the corner of your eye, making sure it doesn't wander too far, and then let it go.
It was much cooler in the mountains than down below. Mu Jin tightened her clothes and picked up firewood while looking for any dried fruit to gather.
"Oh dear, Brother Jin, you still have the mind to gather firewood?!"
Just as Mu Jin finished tying a bundle of firewood with the hemp rope she had brought from the basket, she heard a woman's exclamation.
"Aunt Mu."
Mu Jin gave a curt greeting, but because of Mu Liang and Zhou Si's matter, he didn't give his family a friendly look.
Strangely enough, Aunt Mu wasn't angry at all because of Mu Jin's indifferent gaze; instead, she seemed to be gloating.
"You're really something else. Your fourth brother brought back a boy from that filthy brothel! Your mother fainted from anger, and you still have time to busy yourself with other nonsense."
Aunt Mu spoke with great enthusiasm, spitting as she spoke, her face full of amusement that made you want to grab her and beat her up.
If the Zhou family hadn't closed their doors and there hadn't been no excitement to watch, she wouldn't have come to the foot of the mountain to gather firewood.
Mu Jin was surprised and glanced at Aunt Mu. Although he disliked the Zhou family, he disliked being laughed at by such a woman even more.
“Auntie, you still have time to care about my mother-in-law’s affairs? I heard yesterday that your son and husband took your eldest grandson back to your parents’ home again? It’s getting colder and colder. If a little baby is carried around all day, he’ll get cold.”
Upon hearing this, Aunt Mu's face immediately fell, and she glared at Mu Jin.
Since Qian Tong gave birth to a big, fat grandson for his family, he would often use his beloved grandson to manipulate the old couple.
I just got Mu Liang to coax him home yesterday, and as soon as he got back, he started making a fuss about needing money. His younger brother from his mother's side is getting married, and his family needs to renovate their new house, so they are short five taels of silver.
She refused, barely had time to sit down, and then left without looking back, carrying her eldest grandson.
Aunt Mu gets furious whenever she thinks about it.
Mu Jin felt much better, smiled gently, shouldered the firewood, carried a small basket of dried fruit, called out to Night Owl, and went home.
If looks could kill, Mu Jin would have been torn to pieces by Aunt Mu's glare from behind.
Before he could even scold Mu Jin, a black-backed wolfhound darted out of the bushes, carrying a plump gray rabbit in its mouth.
Judging from the appearance, the rabbit in the dog's mouth was terrified, its body limp and drooping.
Swallowing back the curse, Aunt Mu quickly moved to another spot, afraid that Mu Jin might get angry and call the big wolfhound to bite her.
Mu Jin was quite surprised. She had only ever heard that a dog's mouth could not produce ivory, but she never imagined that it could produce rabbits.
Back home, he piled the firewood into the woodshed and praised it with a smile.
"As expected of the kid who chases the wind, I'll save you a big rabbit leg for lunch."
The owl's tail wagged rapidly, and the dog looked extremely excited.
Hibiscus picked up the rabbit it had thrown on the ground and found that it wasn't even scratched; it had simply been frightened by the owl.
Mu Jin was both amused and exasperated. However, once Zhou Lin returned and skinned the rabbit, they could keep it to make a rabbit skin collar for winter use.
"Oh, Si-ge is here?"
Wen Zhaoran hung the last piece of cloth up to dry, noticed the rabbit in Mu Jin's hand, looked around, but didn't see Zhou Si.
“It was taken by Night Owl,” Mu Jin said cheerfully.
"Wow, that little owl is really amazing!"
Wen Zhaoran squatted down and happily hugged Night Owl's big dog head.
Bai Qiqiu walked over and patted the owl's head as well, its tail quickly sweeping up a cloud of dust on the ground.
It looks better than a broom.
Mu Jin chuckled softly, "Are the fabrics that were dyed yesterday already hung up to dry?"
Bai Qiqiu nodded, glanced at the rabbit in Mu Jin's hand, and scratched his head.
"Brother, Mu Zhaoye said that the wild animals in the mountains are at their fattest and most delicious in autumn. He can shoot arrows and says that hunting is much more fun than fishing. He wants to take me to the mountains for two or three days. Can I go?"
Mu Jin sighed and chuckled, somewhat disapproving, "Why would your brother go hunting? It's dirty and dangerous. You'd better not go."
Bai Qiqiu quickly replied, "I'll just go have some fun."
"It's not appropriate for a lone man to be alone together."
Mu Jin still disagreed. Although the two were engaged, it was improper for them to spend two or three days alone together before the wedding.
Bai Qiqiu sighed. Although he felt disappointed, he didn't insist on going with her.
Seeing this, Mu Jin had no choice but to back down and said, "Don't go deep into the mountains. Go in the morning and come back before evening."
Bai Qiqiu's eyes lit up, and he nodded emphatically, his eyebrows curving into a smile. "Big brother, good big brother."
Mu Jin chuckled, shook her head, and carried the rabbit to the kitchen.
Mu Jin didn't take Aunt Mu's words to heart. As for the Zhou family's affairs, unless he and Zhou Lin were invited back, they were none of his business.
He was too lazy to bother with Zhou Wu's affairs.
However, as Bai Qiqiu said before, if you walk by the river often enough, you're bound to get your shoes wet.
If you spend all your time in the Moonlit Pavilion, there will always come a day when you can't control yourself from gaining weight.
Mu Jin didn't want to get involved, but Zhou Qiang's wedding was a big deal for the Zhou family. Zhou Lin returned home at noon and had just finished lunch when his grandparents asked his third cousin to call them over.
The owl lowered its head to gnaw on the rabbit meat in its bowl, glanced up at it, and then lowered its head again to continue eating.
The third cousin stared at the owl, who was engrossed in eating, and clicked his tongue in amazement. Now that the family had separated, even the dog was getting meat to eat.
Mu Jin wiped her mouth and smiled when she saw this, saying, "This rabbit was caught by the night owl today, so it should be his."
The third cousin smiled, and the group went to the Zhou family without delay.
When Mu Jin and Zhou Lin arrived, Zhou Qiang was kneeling in the main room, with a young man dressed in bright clothes but as thin as a willow tree kneeling beside him.
"Mother, I truly love Zhou Lang. Don't worry, once I'm married, I will definitely serve you and Father well on Zhou Lang's behalf."
With their backs to Zhou Lin and Mu Jin, the two could not see each other's expressions, but they could sense that the young man spoke softly, with a tender and affectionate tone.
"Who gave you permission to call me mother! You shameless brat from that place, you really have no shame at all."
Zhou Wu patted her chest, her eyes red with anger.
The young man touched his belly and said, "I am carrying Zhou Lang's child, Mother, you can't deny it."
"Just because you say it's my youngest child doesn't mean it's my youngest child?!"
In that place, every young man and woman has a pair of jade arms that have been the pillow of a thousand men. She doesn't want her most beloved youngest son to become a thousand-year-old turtle.
Mu Jin pulled Zhou Lin forward, saying, "Now that we're here, we should watch the excitement properly."
Mu Jin looked the young man up and down and sighed inwardly, "No wonder it's the biggest brothel in town; none of the young men there are ugly."
This young man has a handsome face; although he is not stunningly beautiful, he has the appearance of a girl from a modest family.
The young man was on the verge of tears. “I used to perform in the brothel but not sell my body. That night, Zhou Lang got drunk and held me, calling out the name of the young man who had run away from the brothel. Zhou Lang often came to the brothel, and I had admired him for a long time, so I didn’t… Later, I found out that I was pregnant. I gave all the money I had saved over the years to Yue Niangzi, and only then did I regain my freedom. I don’t ask for wealth or status, I only ask to stay by Zhou Lang’s side.”
Zhou Qiang knelt to the side with his head down, not saying a word, seemingly lost in thought.
Zhou Lin frowned and sighed deeply. "Fourth brother, is what he said the truth?"
Zhou Qiang looked up, his eyes filled with regret. He glanced at his brother beside him, who was looking at him with a hesitant expression, and nodded heavily.
The main room fell silent for a moment, then Zhou Wushi's vision went black and she fainted.
Grandfather Zhou slammed his cane on the ground. "Qiang'er, you...you're so foolish! Such a bright future, and you...you..."
Mu Jin hurriedly stepped forward to help Zhou's grandfather calm down, "Grandfather, please calm down, don't hurt yourself."
Grandfather Zhou sighed deeply. After all these years, the Zhou family had only produced one scholar like this. How could he not feel heartbroken?
In the early days of the dynasty, although courtesans could redeem themselves, they were still not considered legitimate. If Zhou Qiang were to marry the man in front of him, his career would be completely ruined.
Their descendants will also be barred from holding official positions.
Grandfather Zhou sighed, "Now, alas, Lin'er, the only way to save your fourth brother is to call you here."
Mu Jin's brow twitched, and she knew in her heart that something was wrong.
Grandfather Zhou and Grandfather Zhou looked at Mu Jin with guilty eyes, then said to Zhou Lin:
"You and Ming'er, you two, choose one of you to take him as your concubine!"
"What?!" Three exclamations rang out simultaneously.
That young man was naturally unwilling. His preference for Zhou Qiang was because he had designs on the Emperor. If things were done this way, wouldn't it all be for nothing?
Zhou Lin frowned even more deeply, "Grandfather, great-grandfather, I will never marry anyone other than A-Jin in my life, let alone take a concubine! Even if you are angry with me or do not want to acknowledge me anymore, I will never agree to it."
Zhou Ming's eyes darted around, and seeing that the young man was quite good-looking, he stroked his chin.
It wouldn't be a problem for him to accept it, but it's just a child in his belly, which is strangely unpleasant.
Mu Qing pinched him hard, and Zhou Ming hurriedly said, "Let go... let go, I won't take it."
Mu Jin's eyes darkened slightly. It seemed that the elders of the Zhou family were not as virtuous, upright, and selfless as they had previously appeared.
It was simply that their private interests hadn't been touched at first.
However, it's impossible for him to let his husband take a concubine until he passes away.
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