Chapter Sixty-Four
The sound of clothes being pounded mingled with the laughter of the women and their husbands by the river.
“A few days ago, Brother Zhaoye and Uncle Mu separated their households.”
Mu Jin was surprised. Logically speaking, how could a man separate from his family before marriage?
Mu Mian cleared her throat and said in a low voice, "I heard from my stepfather that Brother Zhaoye's stepfather has his eye on the monthly salary he received when he was in the army. He found him a twenty-year-old boy who is still like a child. He asked for twenty taels of silver for the marriage and wedding banquet."
To be honest, Mu Zhaoye was a ruthless man. When he was fifteen years old, when he was being punched and kicked by Uncle Mu, he dared to pick up a wooden stick next to him and crack his own father's head open.
How could Uncle Mu bear such humiliation? Just thinking about the disdain in Mu Zhaoye's eyes when he hit him with a wooden stick...
My head, though bandaged, still throbbed with a dull ache.
Because his mind was still foggy and he was still lying in bed, he asked the clan elders to come and drown his unfilial son, Mu Zhaoye.
Mu Zhaoye rushed to the northern frontier overnight, determined that he would rather die on the battlefield than die at the hands of his despised father.
Two years ago, nineteen-year-old Mu Zhaoye returned home from the northern frontier with a long scar on his face, making him look quite fierce.
Mu Bo originally intended to kick Mu Zhaoye out the door, but after glancing at the long sword in his hand, he immediately fell silent.
His stepfather coveted the money in his hands and wanted to squeeze some out of him, so he didn't tell him to go somewhere else.
Most importantly, he was terrified when he saw Mu Zhaoye's face.
"If Brother Zhaoye doesn't want to give it to me, then so be it. I suppose Uncle Mu wouldn't dare to take it by force."
Mu Jin thought of how Mu Bo looked at Mu Zhaoye like a cat seeing a mouse. Even if he had the courage of a bear and the guts of a leopard, he wouldn't dare to snatch food from a tiger's mouth.
Mu Mian shook her head. "This time, Uncle Mu seems determined to make Brother Zhaoye marry that boy. If they don't get married, he'll just separate the family. He even invited the clan elders. It's quite a big show."
"So, the family has separated like this?"
Mu Mian nodded, "They took away some unused thatched houses and two or three acres of thin land in a village not far from us."
Mu Jin knew that place; when the refugees first arrived in the village, they were first settled there.
Mu Jin sighed; another pitiful boy who was not loved by his father.
"Brother Zhaoye asked the village chief to designate a plot of land there and is busy building a new house. I heard that he is going to build several brick and tile houses directly. It looks quite impressive."
Hibiscus: "..."
Let me pity myself first.
How is Si'er doing at home?
Mu Mian rubbed the clothes in her hands with soap and smiled when she heard this: "He's doing very well. Second Brother dotes on him, and Father and Uncle also like him quite a bit. Not to mention me, I love him too."
Mu Jin chuckled. If Zhou Si was doing well, then she and Zhou Lin could rest assured.
As the sun gradually rose, not far away, Mu Zhaoye and the other men hauled in their first net of fish.
After washing the last piece of clothing, Mu Jin threw it into a wooden basin and went home to hang it up to dry.
Bai Qiqiu and Wen Zhaoran sat under the peach tree, where there was some shade, but the weather was still too hot and humid, and both of them were covered in sweat.
After thinking for a moment, fearing that Bai Qiqiu and Mu Zhaoye would quarrel again, Mu Jin went back to her room to get some money and went to the riverbank.
The villagers eagerly awaited Mu Zhaoye's trip down to the river to catch fish and enjoy some meat.
Nowadays, wheat harvesting involves a lot of hard work, and pork can't be eaten every day.
But fish is cheap, and it doesn't spoil easily when kept in a basin.
Most villagers carry four, five, six, or seven fish home.
As for Mu Jin, the fish in the large wooden tub were struggling to get out, looking very energetic.
"Brother Lin, how many do you want?"
Upon hearing his younger brother's voice, Mu Zhaoye's lips unconsciously curled into a slight smile, and he glanced at Mu Jin.
"Give me five," Mu Jin said with a smile.
Mu Zhaoye walked over directly, selected five large ones, and threw them into the wooden basin he had brought.
Mu Jin counted the coins, handed them to him, her eyes crinkling with a smile, and made a joking remark.
"Brother Zhaoye, count carefully, I won't make up for any missing ones."
Everyone in the village was afraid of him, but Mu Jin was not.
If Mu Zhaoye hadn't been away from the village a few years ago, he might have been even more willing to marry a man as courageous and protective as him.
However, he is now married, and although Zhou Lin is a bit timid, he usually listens to him in most matters.
They had been married for more than half a year, so it would be impossible for him to have no feelings for Zhou Lin.
In his opinion now, his own husband is still the best.
Mu Zhaoye didn't even look at it before throwing it into the wooden box next to him.
"Why hasn't your son come? He said he was going to make a fishing net to teach me a lesson, but why hasn't he shown up yet?"
The villagers who were selecting fish nearby gasped upon hearing this.
It seems Mu Zhaoye is holding a grudge against Bai Qiqiu.
Bai Qiqiu, that guy, of all people to mess with, he had to provoke Mu Zhaoye, that fiend.
This is a ruthless man who dares to beat even his own father.
Even when buying fish, most villagers dared not approach Mu Zhaoye.
Mu Jin was also taken aback for a moment, then looked up and saw a hint of a smile in Mu Zhaoye's eyes, and breathed a sigh of relief.
She smiled and said, "We just harvested the ramie. Qi Qiu is at home working on it. It should be ready in about ten days."
Mu Zhaoye's lips curled slightly as he recalled how that boy had fought with him for the fishing net, his movements more energetic than the fish splashing in the wooden bucket.
"Then I'll wait."
The villagers who came to buy fish gasped in surprise.
These days, during the busy farming season, there's no time for idle chatter. After buying fish, people usually hurry home.
Arranging hemp is a time-consuming and meticulous task, and the sweltering heat makes people uncomfortable, especially when they have little patience left.
Bai Qiqiu picked up a peach soaking in cold water, took a bite, and felt a little better.
The days grew longer and longer, and Zhou Lin returned home later and later.
Cooking in the kitchen these days is practically torture; the heat from the stove roasts the iron pot and the person cooking.
When cooking a meal, two handkerchiefs aren't enough to absorb the sweat.
It was very hot in the kitchen, so Mu Jin and Bai Qiqiu moved the dining table to the yard and ate their dinner in the setting sun and gentle breeze.
"Why isn't it raining yet? It's so hot it's making me faint."
Looking at the steaming food, even his favorite fish and meat, Bai Qiqiu lost his appetite.
Zhou Lin, being a man with a naturally fiery temper, might eat shirtless if only Mu Jin was at home.
The group was so hot that they didn't even bother to open their mouths, and silently finished their dinner.
Mu Zhou had taken a break from the busy farming season, but he was too busy. He only came to see him once in the evenings of the past two days.
However, he was engrossed in learning hemp weaving and processing from Bai Qiqiu, and didn't find it boring at all.
Lying on the bamboo mat, Mu Jin and Zhou Lin covered only their bellies with a thin blanket.
"I heard from Mian'er today that Brother Zhaoye is building a new house. He must be getting new furniture for his new house. It's a pity you might not have time then. Otherwise, you could tell him. Maybe after you finish your work in town, you can work in the village."
Now, Mu Jin won't let him hold her while she sleeps at night, saying it's too hot.
Zhou Lin had no choice but to lie flat in the darkness, staring at the roof.
"The work in town will be finished by autumn, we'll see then."
I don't know when, but the buzzing of mosquitoes started. I was hot and sleepy, and the buzzing of mosquitoes kept me from sleeping.
Mu Jin, unusually moved, got up, lit the oil lamp, and burned the mugwort she had prepared a few days ago, placing it in a rough earthenware plate.
The house is lined with bamboo, so you have to be careful when burning things.
By the light of the oil lamp, Zhou Lin glanced at the wooden posts at the four corners of the bed.
"Shall we buy some cloth tomorrow? To hang up the bed curtains?"
Mu Jin nodded, "I'll ask Zhao Ran and Qi Qiu tomorrow if they want to buy it together."
Early the next morning, Zhou Lin, carrying one tael of silver, pulled a cart and went to town.
Wen Zhaoran's eyes were hazy, with some dark circles under them, indicating that she hadn't slept well the night before.
Mu Jin wanted to let him go back to his room for a nap, but Wen Zhaoran shook his head, saying it was too hot in the room and he couldn't sleep anyway.
I splashed some cold water on my face and felt a little more awake.
At noon, the locust flowers in the yard were dried, and Hibiscus gathered them into a newly bought burlap sack and put it into the cupboard in the kitchen.
Bai Qiqiu and Wen Zhaoran spent the morning cutting pig feed, and in the afternoon, they sat under the peach tree and continued the work they had done the day before, sorting hemp.
The owl lay beside the two with its belly exposed, its tongue lolling out, looking incredibly hot.
Now, the night owl has grown from a little puppy into a wolfhound.
With its ears perked up, it looked quite imposing and majestic.
Mu Jin carried a bucket of water and sprinkled some water on the pigpen so that the pigs could sleep more comfortably.
Mosquitoes are most prevalent near the pigsty, and Hibiscus stands nearby, burning some mugwort.
The family members are all busy with their own things, from the vegetable garden to the fields; there's truly a lot to do.
As evening fell, Mu Jin cut up the light green linen that Zhou Lin had bought and hung it on the bedpost.
The curtains on three sides were tucked tightly under the mattress.
Hibiscus climbed into the bed, lit the mugwort, and placed it in a rough pottery plate.
After the mugwort burned out, Mu Jin lowered the last curtain of the bed. Now, she could finally sleep without being bothered by mosquitoes.
During the daytime, Bai Qiqiu tied four bamboo poles to the foot of his bed.
Wen Zhaoran followed his example and arranged the bed curtains.
With no mosquitoes buzzing around them at night, the group finally got a good night's sleep.
In the blink of an eye, the wheat harvest in the village was coming to an end. In the fields, children and women were picking up the fallen ears of wheat.
They plucked feathers from the passing geese, leaving every household's fields spotless.
We will not give outsiders any chance to take advantage of us.
The peaches are all ripe, and we can pick more than five baskets a day.
If it weren't for the fact that Mu Heng's family had an oxcart to help them pull the fruit, Zhou Lin would have had a real hard time moving it to town.
The busiest time in the village has passed, and cicadas quietly emerge from the ground.
In the evening, Mu Jin made a cucumber salad and garlic-flavored green beans. After a simple meal, the group went to the foot of the mountain to catch cicadas.
Cicadas are a rare delicacy in summer. In town, five cicadas cost one coin. If you're careful, you can earn a lot of money in a summer.
During the day, the village children run around searching for cicada burrows.
The small opening was gently dug open, and the hole suddenly became larger, about the size of an index finger.
Use a thin stick or pour water into it, and the cicadas will come out.
Mu Jin, Bai Qiqiu, and Wen Zhaoran found many cicada burrows in their courtyard.
Especially under the peach trees, on the trunks, you can see seven or eight cicada shells hanging on the branches at a glance.
The sound of cicadas heralds the arrival of the hottest part of summer.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com