75.075 Leisure
"Xiao Yuan, ride your bicycle to call your grandparents and tell them to come over for lunch tomorrow. We'll have stewed goose in an iron pot for lunch tomorrow," Su Yu called to the child in the inner room from the vegetable garden.
"Okay, Ping An, are you going or not?"
“Let’s go, we’ll each ride a bicycle.”
Two boys, about the same height as Su Yu, came out of the room. Their palms were still covered in pencil dust. Su Yu knew from their handwashing that they had been hiding inside, copying pictures from comic books. Since the third grade, the two boys had no longer been satisfied with just reading stories in comic books.
"Don't ride too fast," Su Yu warned, but it was probably a waste of breath. Boys this age are very wild. They not only ride fast, but also compete with single and double handlebars. The tires on their old bicycle have been replaced twice. They're either flat or punctured.
Three years have passed, and it is now autumn of 1975. The orchard is becoming increasingly well-managed, and the orange saplings planted three years ago have already begun to bear fruit this year. Every winter, the entire orchard is turned over by hand and oxen to freeze and kill the insect eggs in the soil. In spring and summer, there is no need to busy herself with catching insects. Su Yu has now achieved the same status as Yu Yuan'an in the orchard, and she can arrange her own time to go there.
"Auntie, are you home?" Er Ya called from outside the door.
"Yes, come in yourself, the door isn't locked."
"Little Blackie and Little Flower have gotten fatter again." Er Ya petted one dog in each hand, shooing Little Flower away when it sniffed her. She then grabbed a handful of garlic cloves and pressed them into the loose soil, asking, "Auntie, do you have any brown sugar at home?"
Su Yu then noticed that her lips were pale and her forehead was sweating. She threw the garlic cloves she hadn't finished scrambling into the small basket, stood up and said, "Yes, I'll go make you a bowl."
Luckily, there was still boiling water in the water bottle. Su Yu cut off a piece of brown sugar, made a pot of brown sugar water, and handed it to Er Ya. "Here, drink it slowly while it's hot. I'll fill a bottle with hot water for you to hold on your stomach."
"Auntie, don't bother, I've prepared the hot water. I'll drink it and then go back to lie down for a while." Er Ya frowned as she sipped the brown sugar water. The hot, sweet water warmed her body, which was covered in cold sweat.
She was sixteen years old. She got her period last winter. The first time she got it, she was in so much pain that she couldn't stand up straight. She managed to eat two pieces of chicken at home, but she vomited them up. She was lying in bed with no warmth at all, and she was sweating profusely even in the dead of winter.
"Washing clothes with cold water again?" Su Yu couldn't do anything about the agonizing pain of menstrual cramps, especially since Er Ya was in poor health, malnourished, and doing heavy work. Even she, an adult, couldn't stand washing clothes with cold water in the dead of winter, but Er Ya still went to the weir every few days to wash clothes for the family of six.
Oh, by the way, Du Xiaojuan had another son two years ago, and he's just turned two now. Er Ya has been taking care of him since he was born. There's been no official document about family planning, so it hasn't affected the residents of this small town at all. People are still having children as usual.
"Sister, sister, where are you?" came a child's voice from next door. When there was no response, the child started crying loudly.
"Auntie, I'm much better now, I'm going back." Er Ya gulped down the brown sugar water in the jar, rubbed her warmed hands, and prepared to leave, ignoring the loud crying from inside the house.
"Do you still have toilet paper? I just bought two stacks a few days ago," Su Yu asked.
"Yes, Auntie, you don't need to prepare for me anymore. I'll have my mom buy it for me."
"Oh, your mom actually agreed? I remember she still uses ashes packets, right?" Su Yu had overheard Du Xiaojuan asking Er Ya to prepare leftover ashes from the stove for her at home.
"Well, if she doesn't buy it for me, I won't help her take care of Xiaohu. So she can only take him to work. She doesn't dare to scold or beat me, so she has to agree." Er Ya kicked away Xiao Hua who was coming closer, heard her brother running out crying, told Su Yu again, and hurriedly ran out.
"Sister, I woke up and couldn't find you."
“I came out when I heard you crying. Come on, let’s go back.”
Su Yu heard the crying outside stop. The door to Er Ya's house opened and closed again. Then Xiao Hu called out "Sister" repeatedly. The child had no idea that Er Ya was his second sister and that he had an older sister. Da Ya got married last year. She had taken care of her bedridden grandmother and left, and then she got married and started her own family in the countryside. Du Xiaojuan had never let her eldest daughter come back.
"Mom, open the door for me." Xiao Yuan called from outside the door. As soon as Su Yu opened the door, she saw the two children carrying old pumpkins.
“My grandpa told us to take these. He said his pumpkins yielded several this year, and he and my grandma couldn’t finish them all, so he asked us to bring two back.” Xiao Yuan saw the door open, handed the pumpkins to his mother, and rode his bike inside. Ping An followed suit, holding the handlebars against the doorstep, wanting to experience the thrill of a bumpy ride.
The next day, Su Yu went to the orchard and brought back the goose she had ordered, which was packed in a sack. The goose had already been killed. When Su Yu returned, Ping An had already boiled water. He took the goose, put it in a bucket, and poured boiling water over it to scald its feathers.
"Mom, I've already kneaded the dough. Half a pumpkin, four scoops of flour, and a lump of old dough. Can you see if the dough has risen?" Xiao Yuan followed his mother into the kitchen and lifted the pot lid to show her the basin of dough.
"Okay, but next time you can mash the pumpkin puree a little finer. Look, there are still chunks of pumpkin in the dough." Su Yu instructed her son, who loves to cook, pinching off a small piece of dough the size of a fingernail and showing it to Xiao Yuan. "Look, that's the tender skin of the pumpkin. Don't be reluctant to peel it."
"Everything else is great. The day you cook better than me isn't far off." Su Yu put her hand on Xiao Yuan's shoulder, encouraging him to continue practicing diligently.
"Xiao Yuan, don't listen to Mom's nonsense. She just wants to be lazy. Once you learn how to cook, she'll be a hands-off boss and won't cook anymore." Ping An poked his head in, but just as Su Yu was about to tap him on the head with a spoon, he chuckled and withdrew, squatting by the ditch with a bucket to pluck goose feathers.
"You brats, you two used to always be asking for this and that, but I can't even enjoy a day of my own? If you keep nagging, I won't lift a finger today, and you two will have to cook." Su Yu chased him out and gave Ping An two light taps. Seeing him wince in pain but still smiling, she laughed and scolded, "You just love teasing me. I have to pinch you a couple of times and slap you a couple of times before you feel better."
“You’re laughing too, you like this kind of thing, don’t deny it.” Ping An said, then jumped up with her arms outstretched, took two steps away from her, and looked at her with a sly grin, half-provoking.
Su Yu glared at him, but instead of chasing him away as he wished, she kicked the bucket and ordered him to quickly pluck the goose feathers. Ping An was right; she did indeed like this kind of lively and playful family relationship. Ping An and Xiao Yuan treated her somewhat like peers, and they could joke around, tease and scold each other. The three of them felt more comfortable together.
The goose stew was put into the pot, and Su Yu kneaded the dough. Once the steamed buns had risen, she put them into a large vat in the yard where a large fire was burning. This way, the steamed buns would have a golden-brown surface and taste sweet and fragrant.
The two boys were tending the fire in the kitchen, smelling the aroma of meat. Su Yu pressed the garlic cloves she hadn't finished arranging that morning into the ground. She heard sheep bleating in the alley, and her dog, Xiao Hei, was wagging its tail and barking softly. She went over and opened the door, and sure enough, her parents had arrived.
"Little Black and Little Flower, come in." Su Yu tied up the two dogs with ropes and opened the gate to let the five sheep into the yard.
"Dad, why did you bring the sheep here again?" Su Yu ran to grab the rope dragging on the ground. After the old couple came in, she tied the sheep to the door so they wouldn't have a chance to wreak havoc on her little vegetable garden.
"I herded the sheep all the way here. After I finish eating, I'll herd them back. There's plenty of wild grass along the way, and they'll be full after going back and forth." He carried the medicine pot from the basket to the main room, planning to boil some medicine after lunch and drink it here instead of rushing back to boil the medicine.
The old man seems to be in better spirits than when he first fell ill. Two years ago, the village bought two lambs, and he used his position as the former village chief to take over the sheep herding job. Now, the lambs are growing three centimeters a day. He drives the sheep around every day, and when he wants to go to his daughter's house for lunch, he takes his medicine pot with him. He goes there with the sheep at noon, eats, and then leaves, driving the sheep back home once they've eaten their fill.
"Xiao Yuan is safe and sound. Here, this is some sweet cogon grass I dug up." The old man washed his hands, picked up a handful of cogon grass roots, and went into the kitchen.
"Wow, Grandpa, where did you dig these cogon grass roots? They're thicker than the ones we dig, and they're so juicy and sweet!" Ping An took them and stuffed them into his mouth. His undisgusted manner pleased the old man, who grinned and said, "If you like them, Grandpa will dig some more for you next time. I also found a small pond with fish and shrimp in it. When the water level drops a bit in a while, I'll come and call you two to go catch them together."
"Don't wait any longer, we'll be back in school in half a month, how about in the next few days? Xiaoyuan and I will come to see you, we're not afraid of the water."
"Oh, school's starting soon. You'll be starting junior high this fall, right?" Old Man Su thought for a moment and set the date for five days later. He would invite Xiao Xing along too; his grandson was a good boy.
After the half-pot of goose was cooked, Su Yu stir-fried a plate of vegetables. The pumpkin buns roasting in the large vat were also ready. Su Yu took out a cloth and brought them out. She also buried a few oranges in the ash pit. Roasted oranges can relieve coughs and phlegm, and they are also warmed up so that her father won't feel cold in his stomach after eating them.
"You stewed it all, didn't you leave half for Ningjin?" Old Man Su could tell it was a whole goose just by looking at the two goose legs inside.
"I'll buy it again when he gets back. I won't let him down. Look at how much you care about him. Anyone who didn't know better would think he's your son and I'm your daughter-in-law." Su Yu picked up a goose leg for him. He only needed a goose leg, a steamed bun, and two bites of vegetables for this meal. Any more than that and he couldn't handle it.
"Mom, take whatever you want to eat. You won't have indigestion if you eat it at noon." Su Yu handed her a tissue to wipe her mouth.
"I digest well, so I'm not afraid of indigestion," she said slowly.
Excluding the old man who only ate the goose leg, the four of them—two children, an elderly woman, and Su Yu—completely devoured a whole goose. The old woman didn't even eat a steamed bun, and Su Yu, seeing the pile of bones in front of her, didn't dare give her much water.
"Mom, have you eaten yet?" Su Yu called out, waking up the old lady who was sitting and dozing off.
"Huh? Oh, I'm full." Yu Anxiu snapped out of her daze and went to get some water.
"Then you fetch a basin of water for the sheep to drink." Su Yu gave her a task to do, making her get up and move around.
After she went to get the water basin, Old Man Su came over and sat down in a chair, laughing and saying, "Are you worried your mother will eat herself sick? You're overthinking it. Your mother has a good appetite and good teeth. She can eat two bowls of rice in one meal. All that meat today doesn't even amount to two bowls of rice." He calculated the old woman's appetite, and if she didn't get seriously ill, she could live to be eleven o'clock in the morning without any problem.
"My mom is indeed very healthy; she eats even better than me." She seems like someone who lives a long life.
"Oh, by the way, when I leave later, could you give me a few of the steamed buns you baked? They're golden brown and dry, I really like them."
“Okay, come over next time you want roasted buns. I have a lot of free time now.” Besides going to work at the orchard, she rides her bicycle around looking for places with few trees to plant. In three years, she has planted two rows of trees on both sides of the road to the orchard. The earliest trees she planted are now taller than her.
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