Chapter Forty-Eight
Mu Jin said helplessly, "I haven't even said anything yet, why are you all looking at me like that?"
Zhou Si was overjoyed. "Big brother, you mean..."
Mu Jin smiled and said to Bai Qiqiu, "Wait a moment, your older brother and I will help you move your luggage over. Although the room next to Si'er hasn't been renovated yet, it should be better than the room you're staying in."
Upon hearing this, Bai Qiqiu nodded repeatedly, like a chick pecking at rice.
"Okay, thank you very much, brother."
Mu Jin smiled and said, "As for the bed, let Qi Qiu use the small one that Si'er used to have, and you and Zhao Ran can use the big one. If we use bamboo to make the floor, it will be too much trouble and take a long time. Your older brother hasn't had much free time lately. Uncle Huang can make the floor, so let's make the floor first and repair the house. We'll give him 130 coins, which should be enough. Qi Qiu, are you willing to pay this amount of money?"
Bai Qiqiu continued to peck at rice like a chick, "I'm willing."
Mu Jin chuckled, "Then eat quickly, and bring the things over as soon as you're done."
Bai Qiqiu hesitated for a moment, then moved the money bag he had brought back closer to Mu Jin.
"Brother, please take this money first."
Mu Jin shook her head. "You keep this money yourself. It's for your food expenses, one year at a time. Given your appetite, you can't eat that much anyway."
Bai Qiqiu said gratefully, "Brother, don't worry. I'll take care of all the heavy work, like carrying water back home, when you go to town to work."
Mu Jin chuckled, "It's not that bad. We'll work together; I can't let you do it all by yourself."
With the matter settled, Bai Qiqiu felt much more at ease.
After dinner, I helped wash the dishes and chopsticks, then went back and moved my few belongings over.
That night, Bai Qiqiu finally got a good night's sleep.
Mu Jin and Zhou Lin returned to the house, and said with a helpless smile, "Our family is growing bigger and bigger, it'll be lively from now on."
Zhou Lin closed the door, bolted it shut, and ruthlessly shut out the little owl who wanted to follow him into the house.
"Once Si'er and Zhaoran are married, you'll probably feel lonely again."
Mu Jin smiled and said, "That's not wrong."
He then instructed, "Tomorrow you go to Qian Fu's house, work hard, and don't embarrass Uncle Heng."
Zhou Linyu said confidently, "My master praised me a few days ago, saying I'm doing well. Don't worry."
Mu Jin chuckled, "Uncle Heng really said that?"
Zhou Lin nodded heavily. "Why would I lie to you? My master said that once I master the carving, I will be able to graduate."
Mu Jin placed her hand on his stomach and said gently, "Then you must learn from Uncle Heng well."
Zhou Lin turned over, hugged him tightly, rested her chin on Mu Jin's forehead, and nodded gently.
Suddenly, Mu Jin remembered that the broken pot, split in two, was still in the woodshed.
"We took the old pots from home to town, melted them down, and made two hoes and two shovels."
"I'll take it with me when I go to town tomorrow," Zhou Lin said, his voice muffled, clearly on the verge of falling asleep.
Mu Jin closed her eyes and rested her head against Zhou Lin's chest.
We've made a lot of money selling vegetables lately, but it's all been spent. It's like money coming in from one pocket and going out from the other; we've spent as much money as we earned.
Without money, let alone raising children, one dares not even afford to get sick.
We still need to hurry up and save some money.
Before falling asleep, Mu Jin thought for a while, then hugged Zhou Lin's waist and drifted off to sleep.
Early the next morning, Zhou Lin took some green vegetables to town.
Bai Qiqiu had been in Mujia Village for so many days, and this was the first time he had a good night's sleep. When he woke up, he felt refreshed and full of energy.
I got up early this morning and helped pick some bok choy, carry water, feed the chickens and ducks, and water the vegetables.
When Wen Zhaoran woke up, she found herself with no work to do and was busy with Bai Qiqiu, who was going to weed the vegetable garden.
"Brother Qi Qiu, you're doing all my work! You've done it all, what am I supposed to do?"
Bai Qiqiu loved beautiful women the most. Looking at Wen Zhaoran, he was extremely fond of him. How could there be such a handsome young man? He was so envious.
He said softly, "Zhaoran, go back to your room and rest. I'll do it."
Mu Jin, standing to the side, sighed and said helplessly, "Qi Qiu, you should tidy up your house first, so it won't leak when it rains. Si'er, hurry up and find Uncle Huang. Go to the foot of the mountain and dig up some yellow soil. There's still some straw left from the straw we bought from Uncle Mu a few days ago, which should be enough."
Upon hearing this, Bai Qiqiu put down his hoe. "Brother, I'll go right now."
Zhou Si negotiated a price with Uncle Huang and quickly brought him back.
"Your house is practically a dining hall now. How come you brought home another boy?"
Uncle Huang looked at Bai Qiqiu, who was carrying two baskets of yellow soil, and said in surprise.
Zhou Si hurriedly said, "Uncle Huang, this is my fourth brother's fiancé. My eldest brother lives outside, and my younger brother is kind-hearted and worried about him, so he asked him to stay with us for a while."
Uncle Huang understood. "Ah, so he's the desperate young man who's been pressuring your fourth brother to marry him? He's not bad looking, and he's strong too. He seems like someone who can manage a household."
Bai Qiqiu put down the two baskets of yellow soil, saw Uncle Huang, and hurried over.
"Uncle Huang, thank you for your hard work."
Uncle Huang stroked his beard, smiled and nodded, "He's still a polite young man."
There were quite a few stones left over from what was dug up in the fields, which saved Bai Qiqiu the trouble of going to the mountains to dig more.
Seeing Bai Qiqiu busy, Wen Zhaoran quickly grabbed a hoe and went to the vegetable garden.
This is the last job left; we can't let him steal it from us.
Mu Jin and Zhou Si helped Bai Qiqiu transport the loess back. With Uncle Huang there, they went to the fields to weed first.
Uncle Huang turned over the yellow mud with a shovel, watching the young men walking back and forth in the yard.
He sighed inwardly, thinking that the Zhou family was truly experiencing a decline in their once-prosperous men.
Zhou Lin is truly blessed; his household servants take good care of him, inside and out.
Bai Qiqiu's house was uninhabitable for the time being, so he moved to another room to live in for the time being.
Although the Zhou family's old house was dilapidated, it had many rooms, which was more than enough to house the few of them.
After the house was repaired, Bai Qiqiu moved in. The floor was flat, and the bed, though small, was sturdy and brand new.
Bai Qiqiu was living very comfortably.
As the weather gets hotter, the pigs at Butcher Wang's house in the neighboring Wangjia Village gave birth to piglets.
When Mu Jin heard about it, she thought of bringing two more, but unfortunately the pigsty at home hadn't been built yet.
Bai Qiqiu was eating lunch when he noticed that Mu Jin's brows were slightly furrowed, as if she had something on her mind.
He couldn't help but ask, "Brother, what's wrong? Is something bothering you?"
Mu Jin sighed, "It's nothing. I was thinking of bringing two piglets back. The pigsty at home hasn't been built yet. I was thinking of asking someone to come over and help build two pigsties."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Si was about to speak when Bai Qiqiu said, "I thought it was something serious. What's there to worry about? Big brother, I can build a pigsty myself."
"you?!"
As soon as Bai Qiqiu finished speaking, three pairs of eyes turned to him in disbelief.
“My family used to raise cattle, sheep, and pigs. We raised a lot of them. I was stronger than other boys when I was little. My mother was pregnant when I was born. I was the only child in the family. I was strong, so I could do anything. I could build pigsties and cowsheds.”
"Brother Qi Qiu, you're really amazing." Wen Zhaoran's eyes were full of admiration; he was truly a hero among men.
Mu Jin came to her senses and smiled, "That's great! The pigsty at home is yours to manage. Si'er, Zhaoran, and I will help you."
Bai Qiqiu smiled and said, "Alright, leave it to me. You can rest assured, big brother."
Mu Jin smiled, thought for a moment, hesitated for a while, and then said, "Qi Qiu didn't say anything, I don't know if I should ask."
Bai Qiqiu took a bite of the coarse flour steamed bun and said, "Brother, we're all family. Just ask me anything."
"I only heard you say you had a fiancé before. What about your father and the others? Did they get separated from you when you were fleeing?"
Bai Qiqiu was stunned; this was the very thing Mu Jin had wanted to ask.
After thinking for a moment, he said, "I don't know where my father and mother went. When we were fleeing, I took a nap and when I woke up, they were gone. I searched for them for a long time but couldn't find them. The villagers who fled with me didn't know when they disappeared either."
Mu Jin was speechless. Logically speaking, Bai Qiqiu's father and mother only had him as their child, so they would never have abandoned him.
Bai Qiqiu sighed, "My father and mother must have encountered some trouble. I stopped looking for them after that and wandered to Qingshui Town with everyone else. Later, I settled in our village. I thought that as long as I live well, I would be able to see my father and mother one day."
Wen Zhaoran nodded heavily and said, "Brother Qi Qiu, it will definitely happen. I've been waiting for my father and mother. Once they're done with their work, they'll definitely come looking for me."
Deep in Wen Zhaoran's heart, his father and mother were just like any other person, returning home once they had completed their mission.
Although the separation was sudden, he still believed that his father and mother were still alive in this world.
Mu Jin sighed as well. He had never been loved by his parents and didn't have a deep understanding of family affection. He envied children who were loved by others.
"It will come."
As she spoke, she placed a piece of tofu on the plates of Wen Zhaoran and Bai Qiqiu.
Zhou Si changed the subject, saying, "Big brother, when are we going to build a pigsty?"
Mu Jin thought for a moment and said, "Let's start today. Qi Qiu, just tell us what you need and I'll get it ready."
Bai Qiqiu pulled himself out of his sadness. "Yellow earth, straw, and some rough wood. We even need to build a shed for the pigsty so that we don't get sick from the rain."
Mu Jin nodded. "It seems we still need to buy some straw; we don't have enough left at home."
Zhou Si said, "I'll go ask Brother Lingyun to buy some more. When I went last time, I saw that he still had quite a lot left at home."
The group got right to work; after lunch, they went to the foot of the mountain to dig up yellow soil.
Mu Jin specially asked Zhou Si to borrow a cart from the Mu Hunter's family, because they needed a lot of yellow soil this time, and it would be too time-consuming to carry it in baskets one trip at a time.
Mu Lingyun also came along with the cart.
Mu Jin and Zhou Si, Wen Zhaoran digging yellow soil, and Mu Lingyun and Bai Qiqiu transporting it home.
Working together, the group finally managed to transport enough loess before sunset.
When Zhou Lin returned home, he looked at the small mound of earth in the yard and felt puzzled.
"Ah Jin, why are you digging up so much soil?"
Mu Jin came out of the kitchen. "You're back. Go wash your hands. The food is ready. This yellow soil is for covering the pigsty."
"It will take two more days to finish the work in town. Once I'm done, I'll come back and build the pigsty."
Zhou Lin took the responsibility upon himself as a matter of course.
Mu Jin handed him a cloth and said with a smile, "This time we don't need you, Qi Qiu will cover you up."
Zhou Lin was surprised. There were plenty of men who could build pigsties, but this was the first time he had ever encountered a guy who knew how to build one.
My fourth brother is no ordinary guy.
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