A month has passed in the blink of an eye, and it's now May.
The presence of two strangers in their home brought many inconveniences to Lin Momo and Shiguang's lives.
First, all the outdated items inside and outside the house must be put away.
Everything else was fine, but after the lighting was changed to candles, Lin Momo, who was used to bright light, got used to it for several nights. Although she lit several candles that were as thick as a child's arm, the brightness still couldn't match that of electric lights, but the candlelight in the room had a different kind of romantic feel.
What drives Lin Momo crazy is that she has to cook every day. She can no longer eat food from her space when she doesn't feel like cooking, and she can no longer eat fresh meat such as pork, beef, and mutton.
If they want to eat meat, they can either eat free-range chickens, ducks and geese, or cured meats such as bacon, smoked meat and ham. However, since the two of them can satisfy their cravings in the space, it's not too difficult to endure.
To reduce cooking, Lin Momo changed the family meals from three meals a day to two meals a day. Anyway, Zhu Rui was recuperating in bed and didn't move around much, so eating too much would easily make him gain weight.
It must be said that it was fortunate that there was a servant attending to the young master at his bedside, which saved Shi Guang and Lin Momo a lot of trouble. All they had to do was provide two sets of clothes and daily meals.
After a month of recuperation, Zhu Rui's arm injury has scabbed over, and his leg bone, after being set by Shi Guang, has also recovered well. He can now walk a few steps with crutches.
Lin Momo couldn't help but sigh, "Young people's recovery ability is truly amazing."
Of course, the chickens, ducks, and geese raised at home, as well as the fish and shrimp in the pond, also made a huge contribution. They were almost all eaten up by him, and their numbers were reduced by half, which made Lin Momo feel very distressed. However, for the sake of the five hundred taels of silver, she endured it.
Moreover, several kinds of poultry have just hatched a group of chicks, a considerable number, making the small valley lively every day.
During the month he was recuperating, Zhu Rui, young and vigorous, couldn't stay in bed. Every morning and evening, when the sun wasn't too strong, he would go out to the courtyard for some fresh air. His servant couldn't move him, so he had to ask Shi Guang for help.
Time was quite quick; he stopped what he was doing, went inside, carried the person to the courtyard, placed him in a grand chair, and even had a servant bring a small stool for Zhu Rui to rest his feet on.
Then he went on to do his own thing, chopping wood in the yard, weeding in the fields, or helping Lin Momo water the vegetable garden, pull weeds, or pick vegetables.
Unable to bear the loneliness, Zhu Rui would often pull Shi Guang aside for casual chats.
He had long sensed that Shi Guang's identity was not simple. His demeanor and behavior were not like those of a hunter in the mountains. It would not be surprising if he were the son of an official. Therefore, he became more and more curious about his background.
Seeing that Shi Guang was unwilling to talk much, she started chatting with him about other things, including the details of her trip into the mountains and her injury.
His father suffered from severe rheumatism due to years of fighting. After retiring from the military, he was tormented by the pain and needed tiger bone as medicine to alleviate the pain.
They wandered around the mountains for several days without finding a trace of the tiger. Just as they were about to go down the mountain to try another one, they found themselves lost and wandered deeper and deeper into the tiger's territory. They were caught off guard by a pair of tigers that suddenly appeared.
He drew his bow to shoot, but another tiger pounced and bit his arm. Only with the desperate rescue of his followers did he escape from the tiger's jaws, but he was rendered unable to fight and could only flee in panic...
Shi Guang felt deep sympathy for his plight and appreciated his filial piety. He revealed that he had tiger bones and planned to sell them after descending the mountain in a few days.
Zhu Rui was overjoyed and offered to pay one thousand taels for the tiger bone in his possession.
This price was much higher than what the pharmacy offered, and time, of course, wouldn't refuse. He immediately went back to his room to find Lin Momo and retrieved a set of tiger bones. Zhu Rui also called his servant Li Yu to fetch a thousand taels of silver.
The two exchanged money for goods.
Overjoyed to have the tiger bone, Zhu Rui was extremely grateful to Shi Guang, feeling that this person was quite nice to get along with. Since he wanted to befriend him, he stopped being so reserved and became much more casual in his speech and actions, as if the two were bosom friends.
As time has progressed to this era, I haven't had a single friend. It's rare to find a peer with whom I can get along reasonably well, and I don't want to keep them at arm's length.
Besides, Zhu Rui is a decent person and has an extraordinary background as the son of a military general of the current dynasty. It wouldn't hurt to befriend him.
Although the way this guy looked at his wife made Shi Guang want to punch him, after he deliberately emphasized that Lin Momo was his wife, the guy's gaze became more restrained, which was quite sensible.
Time stopped holding him accountable.
So, over time, the two peers gradually became close, often sitting under the newly built grape trellis, chatting about everything under the sun, including the state of the world.
Zhu Rui even urged Guangyao to join the army with him: "Guangyao, it's such a waste for someone with your skills to stay in these mountains. If you go to the battlefield, you'll definitely stand out and become the youngest general in this dynasty."
"After I go back this time, my dad will send me to join the army. Why don't you come down the mountain with me and join the army? I'll protect you, and no one in the army will dare to bully you. That way, we brothers can fight side by side on the battlefield and make great achievements!"
He patted Time on the shoulder, speaking with great enthusiasm and passion.
Time smiled faintly and replied lightly, "I still have to spend time with my wife."
Upon hearing Shi Guang's words, Zhu Rui's expression stiffened.
At first, he thought Shi Guang and Lin Momo were siblings, but then he felt their behavior was too intimate, and a sense of loss inexplicably welled up inside him. When he heard Shi Guang say that Lin Momo was his wife, Zhu Rui's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, was completely shattered.
Later, he had a pleasant conversation with Shi Guang, and gradually he felt relieved.
Unexpectedly, when he heard Shi Guang casually showing affection in front of him, Zhu Rui felt as if the wound in his heart that had just scabbed over had been torn open, and a dull pain suddenly came, but he dared not show it.
After calming himself down, he casually suggested, "Then take your sister-in-law with you. We can settle her in a town near the military camp so you can reunite often. Once you've achieved some military merit and become a centurion, you can keep her by your side."
This dynasty primarily implemented a military household system. In peacetime, in addition to training, they also farmed. In wartime, each household would select one able-bodied man to go to the battlefield. However, later on, many military households, unable to bear the exploitation by their superiors, deserted their homes, and the military household system became defunct in name only. The conscription system then became prevalent.
Generally, recruited soldiers are not allowed to have their families accompany them. Only those who have made meritorious contributions and risen to a certain rank are allowed to have their families accompany them.
While accompanying his wife to the army was not an option, it was no one else's business if the family moved to a town near the military camp. Although most families wouldn't be so foolish as to abandon their homes and livelihoods to join a lowly soldier who earned only a few copper coins, Zhu Rui felt that given Shi Guang's situation, it would be better for him to keep his wife by his side.
It can be said that he thought of everything for his friend very thoroughly.
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