After a few days of rest, Mu Yi'an had to recover. She couldn't keep hiding in her room; escaping wasn't in her nature.
"Second daughter-in-law, you're up. Are you feeling better?"
"I'm sorry to have worried you, Mother. I'm not dizzy anymore. My sister-in-law and sister-in-law have worked hard these past few days, sharing the tasks I was supposed to do."
"We're family, how can we be so particular? We should understand and look after each other."
This was Mu Yi'an's first close encounter with Jiang's mother, Madam Wang, also known as Jiang Wangshi, the scholar's wife—yes, her surname was Wang. Mu Yi'an hadn't been idle these past few days; she had meticulously researched and taken notes on the situation and personalities of everyone in the Jiang and Mu families. Not knowing how to use a calligraphy brush didn't matter; she understood the principle behind a quill pen.
Jiang Shuyun, inspired by Mu Yi'an's idea, searched around Jiangjia Village and found that there were indeed people raising geese.
In his quest to obtain the longest and stiffest goose feathers, Xiao Jiang, a scholar, was chased by a goose, which pecked his thigh several times, causing him excruciating pain. He even lost one of his shoes in the process.
Later, the goose's owner couldn't bear to see him like this and helped him pluck a few stiff goose feathers. He had never seen the young scholar Jiang so disheveled and didn't know what use the goose feathers were. Scholars were really different from them.
Jiang Shuyun put on his shoes, thanked the goose's owner, and took the few hard-earned goose feathers home to report back. If he weren't forced to live with Mu Yi'an, he really wouldn't want to serve her anymore—a woman who was easily irritable and troublesome.
Are these enough?
"What's wrong? Did you step in poop? You look so pale."
"It's worse than stepping in poop. I was chased by a goose and got bitten on the thigh several times. It must be bruised, and it's burning hot right now."
Jiang Shuyun felt extremely wronged. Having lived for over forty years, she never imagined that one day she would be chased by a goose and even lose her shoes in the process.
"You didn't just go and pluck feathers from the goose, did you?"
"Otherwise what?"
"Haha... Jiang Shuyun, you must have only ever eaten stewed goose in an iron pot, and never seen a live goose, right?"
Looking at Jiang Shuyun's aggrieved expression, Mu Yi'an couldn't help but burst into laughter, tears streaming down her face. After several days, some of the pent-up frustration in her heart had finally dissipated.
"I've seen them, aren't there some at the zoo?"
"Those are swans, okay? Geese. In my hometown mountain village, they are kept to guard the house and drive away weasels."
Mu Yi'an could also see that Jiang Shuyun's life since childhood was really different from his own, even though they were less than ten years apart.
"Alright, stop making fun of me. Let me tell you, besides basic common sense, I really don't have any life skills. Please bear with me from now on."
"Tell me what the basic common sense of life is, and I'll have a better understanding."
"I dress myself, eat myself, and do simple cleaning and tidying. I have a nanny at home, or I order takeout. I can't cook, and I've hardly ever washed my socks. Except for when I lived in a dormitory in college, my clothes were sent to a dry cleaner."
Jiang Shuyun's voice grew softer and softer as he spoke. He never expected that he would have a day when he would travel through time, especially to ancient times. Otherwise, he would definitely have learned some life skills.
"Forget it, we'll talk about it later. First, help me sort out these few feathers. I need to organize the information in my head and sort out my interpersonal relationships as soon as possible. I'm not used to fighting battles I'm not sure I can win."
Mu Yi'an suggested a very simple method: use a thin stick to clean the inside of the feather tube to ensure it is unobstructed. Remove the scales and skin tissue that often accompany the feathers, and scrape away any feathers that may obstruct writing.
Finally, hardening is done by baking, which is simple and convenient. The rest can be weathered slowly and kept for later use.
Jiang Shuyun was quick-witted and understood immediately, handling the situation promptly.
"Give me paper and ink, I need to organize my documents."
"Wait a moment, I'll go to the study to get it for you."
The two worked together, and in a short time, Mu Yi'an had finished organizing the useful information in her mind.
"Mu Yi'an, you're amazing! The relationships between the characters are so well organized and easy to understand."
"These are the original owner's memories, and can only be used as a reference. We'll need to gradually understand the specifics through further contact. Although I resent fate for putting me in such a place, there's no going back, and I don't have the courage to die again."
Since you're going to live, you have to live with understanding, not in a daze. Think about it these next few days: what do you want to do? What kind of life do you want to live?
Mu Yi'an spoke earnestly; she had always worked hard in her life, but she never expected to have such an encounter.
"I understand, I'll think about it."
Jiang Shuyun also understood that he was no longer the Jiang Shuyun of the past, who had the means to lie down and live as he pleased.
Mu Yi'an was momentarily distracted, her thoughts wandering elsewhere. She quickly pulled herself together and tried her best to mimic the original owner's words and actions to avoid appearing out of place.
Change is possible, but it needs time to develop. Too many changes can't happen all at once; otherwise, even a fool would know there's something wrong with her.
The next morning, Mu Yi'an got up early.
"Mom, what are you going to make for breakfast? I'll go make it."
Since she didn't know what dishes were in the kitchen, Mu Yi'an consulted her mother-in-law first.
"There are some pancakes at home that have already been made. You can make some side dishes and cook some porridge while you're at it."
Jiang's mother hardly cooks anymore; her three daughters-in-law take care of things in the kitchen.
"Okay, Mom, I'll go check the kitchen."
Mu Yi'an looked at the primitive stove, which was similar to those in her hometown, so it shouldn't be difficult to set up. The farthest place the original owner had ever been was the county town, so most of the information in her mind was about everyday family matters, lacking any regional or cultural details. Therefore, Mu Yi'an didn't know which period of history this dynasty resembled, or which province it was located in.
"Sister-in-law, are you feeling less dizzy?"
Just as Mu Yi'an started cooking the porridge, Sister-in-law Jiang came in.
"I'm much better, thank you for your concern, sister-in-law. You've worked hard these past few days!"
Information about Jiang Dasao Lin Wanru came to Mu Yi'an's mind. She was the village head's granddaughter. Everyone in the village said that Jiang Linshi was a generous person and was the eldest daughter-in-law carefully chosen by Jiang's mother.
“It’s not hard work, my sister-in-law hasn’t been feeling well these past few days either.”
"Sister-in-law, I'll make breakfast. You go and do other things. Mom said there are pancakes, and she wants me to cook some porridge and make some side dishes. The porridge is already cooking. I'll go check the vegetable garden and pick some vegetables."
Mu Yi'an exchanged a few polite words with her sister-in-law, then carried her bamboo basket to the vegetable garden in the backyard.
The Jiang family's property was quite large, with a vegetable garden and a livestock shed in the backyard. Mu Yi'an heard the donkey braying.
"Wow, not only donkeys, but mules too."
Looking at the two well-raised livestock, Mu Yi'an felt a little comforted. At least the Jiang family's conditions were not bad, and she didn't have to work in the fields.
"After dinner today, there is an important thing to do, which is to take stock of the original owner's assets, which are called dowry or personal property in ancient times."
Mu Yi'an made a mental note of this matter; it was of utmost importance, concerning her future quality of life.
Following the original owner's method from her memory, Mu Yi'an made a standard breakfast without making any mistakes.
After cleaning up the kitchen, feeding the baby, and letting the second son go to his grandmother's room to play with his other cousins, Mu Yi'an began to take stock of her dowry to see how much she had.
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