My Husband is a Drama King [Book Transmigration] 28

Chapter 28: Autumn Harvest

He and Xu Zhici rarely corresponded. Except for the first year he arrived at the army camp, the two of them would occasionally write to each other. Xie Huaichuan didn’t know many characters, but he could still read a simple letter.

Could something have happened to Zhici? Otherwise, why would he write a letter?

With this thought, Xie Huaichuan eagerly opened the envelope. When he saw the characters on the paper, a trace of surprise flashed in his eyes. Whose handwriting is this? How can it be so elegant and have such character?

His brow was furrowed as he read the letter, but it relaxed afterward. A smile rippled in his eyes, and the tips of his ears were slightly red. He had a cloth towel draped around his neck, and he grabbed it to wipe his face.

He put the envelope away.

“So you miss me?” Xie Huaichuan thought with a light cough.

He was a reserved person. Hearing Xu Zhici’s direct words, he was both happy and guilty.

“Captain, what did the letter say? Why are you smiling like that?”

“Yeah, besides sending things, he even wrote a letter this time.”

Xie Huaichuan went to unpack the bundle. “Zhici’s younger brother got married. His brother-in-law is a scholar, and he had him write the letter for me.”

“Isn’t he not married yet? And you’re already calling him brother-in-law, Captain,” a group of soldiers teased Xie Huaichuan.

Xie Huaichuan thought to himself that the two were already engaged, so no one would know if he called him that in advance. Xu Zhizhou is married. That troublemaker has finally left Zhici.

Every time he met with Zhici, Xu Zhizhou would have to tag along. Their rendezvous would always have an extra person, and Xu Zhizhou would be on guard against him as if he were a wolf.

Xu Zhizhou didn’t like him, and he didn’t like Xu Zhizhou either. The two of them maintained a superficial peace in front of Xu Zhici, but behind his back, they despised each other.

Now that Xu Zhizhou was married, Xie Huaichuan finally felt at ease.

He took a section of sausage and some cured meat and went out.

After he left, the remaining soldiers started to mutter. “The captain is giving those things to that blind military strategist again. The general clearly doesn’t value him, but the captain still has to curry favor with him. It’s been three years already.”

Another soldier also nodded. “Yeah, even a block of ice should have been warmed after three years, but the captain is still trying to warm a cold butt.”

“Military Strategist Wu is too harsh. If it weren’t for the captain’s care these past few years, he would have been bullied to death long ago.”

…

Xie Huaichuan didn’t know about the soldiers’ private complaints. He announced his arrival before entering Wu Yi’s tent. Wu Yi was practicing his calligraphy. He was blind in one eye, which was covered with a black cloth.

Only Xie Huaichuan came to this place frequently.

Wu Yi smelled the familiar aroma of meat. “Your little husband has sent you things again.”

Xie Huaichuan placed the items on the table, took a broom, and helped him sweep the floor. He had been doing this for years, bringing delicious and useful things over, and then sweeping the floor without a word. When he was done, he noticed that Wu Yi’s gaze had been on him the whole time. Xie Huaichuan calmly put down the broom.

“Huaichuan, come and sit,” Wu Yi’s voice softened, and his expression relaxed.

Wu Yi said thoughtfully, “General Xiao no longer values me. I’m just living off the army. Relying on the fact that General Xiao is a great man with a poor memory, he hasn’t kicked me out. You’ve been working for me for three years. What do you want me to do for you?”

Xie Huaichuan was not coy. He cupped his hands and said, “I know of your great talent, sir. If that plan had been adopted back then, we wouldn’t have suffered such great losses. I learned a few characters at home when I was young, just enough to read simple letters, and then I joined the army. You are a learned man, sir. I would like to ask you to teach me how to read and write, and to teach me the ways of the world.”

Wu Yi looked at Xie Huaichuan steadily and sighed. “Other soldiers are satisfied with being a captain. They don’t think about finding someone to teach them how to read and write after joining the army. Why are you different?”

Xie Huaichuan said seriously, “I thought the same when I joined the army. I thought it was enough to risk my life and follow the orders from above. But then I realized that I still need to have my own judgment.”

Wu Yi looked at Xie Huaichuan with surprise. He stroked his beard and said, “Good. Since you have the heart to learn, and I have received your charity for these years, I will teach you how to read and write. As for the ways of the world, you need to comprehend them yourself. Others cannot teach you.”

Xie Huaichuan was overjoyed. He decisively performed the disciple’s ritual of respect. “Disciple pays his respects to Master.”

Wu Yi stood up and helped Xie Huaichuan up.

With this long-held wish fulfilled, Xie Huaichuan was delighted and treated Wu Yi with even more respect. Wu Yi also grew closer to him. He was alone, without a wife or children. In ancient times, a disciple was considered half a son.

Learning that Xie Huaichuan’s parents had passed away, Wu Yi felt even more pity for him.

.

After the autumn rain, the rice in the fields, as if dyed, suddenly turned from green to golden. The fields were still wet after the rain. Song Ye looked at his family’s fields and saw that this year’s rice was heavy and growing strong. He couldn’t help but smile.

“It’s a good harvest this year. Look at my ten acres of high-grade fields. I’m going to earn a lot of money again.”

A while ago, the family had bought a young ox for eight taels of silver. Now the young ox was spirited and could be used for work, a new laborer for the family.

This time, the crops grew well and could be sold for a lot of money.

Song Ye said, “It seems that the plant ash was useful. I think this year’s harvest is better than last year’s.”

Liang Su replied, “I’ve said it before. Scholars know more than us farmers.”

The autumn harvest was what they looked forward to all year. After it was over, the family would have a much easier time.

When it was time to harvest the rice, Xu Zhizhou and Song Mingyan came to help. Xu Cheng brought a water jug.

When Xu Zhizhou saw the Song family’s rice, he was surprised. “Our family’s rice has grown so well. I don’t think any other family in the village can compare.”

Song Ye worked efficiently. “Changxu said before to sprinkle plant ash on the ground. I was half-believing and half-doubting, but I didn’t expect it to be so effective. At first, I only sprinkled half of it. In the middle of weeding, I found that the fields with plant ash had fewer pests and grew better, so I sprinkled the other half as well.”

Xu Zhizhou kept this in mind. His family also had fields, so he could use Song Changxu’s method in the future. Harvesting rice was hard on the hands. After cutting for a while, Xu Zhizhou went to carry the grain.

He carried the grain back home, rubbed his lower back, and then spread the grain in the courtyard to dry.

When it was time to cook lunch, Xu Zhizhou was the first to run back. Compared to cutting grass and carrying grain, cooking was much easier.

The family had earned money from the small stall, and with the ox to help with the work, they were more willing to spend on food. Xu Zhizhou used plenty of salt and oil in his cooking. Besides, the autumn harvest required a lot of energy, so eating more salt and oil was good for building strength.

The vegetables were all picked from the fields. He made a green vegetable and meatball soup, sprinkled with some scallions to make it look presentable. There was also a plate of cucumber with scrambled eggs, braised eggplant, and stir-fried potatoes with green beans. There were a few leftover cakes from the morning, which he steamed with the rice.

With someone cooking at home, they could eat, rest for a while, and then go back to the fields to work. The autumn harvest was the busiest time for farmers. They wished they could split themselves in two.

Xu Zhizhou took a short nap at noon. He yawned. “When will Song Changxu pass the exam? Will I still have to harvest rice, carry grain, and be busy all day? If a husband doesn’t work hard, he will drag his husband down to live a hard life.”

Thinking of this, he became angry. He grabbed Song Changxu’s pillow and beat it. Seeing the pillow beaten out of shape, Xu Zhizhou’s anger subsided a little.

When the time came, he jumped out of bed. A short nap was a short nap. There was still work to be done in the afternoon.

In the evening, when Song Changxu returned home, Xu Zhizhou had just come back, dusty and tired, with a full basket of grain. He saw Song Changxu with his book box, wearing a long robe, looking clean and handsome, and his anger flared up again.

Xu Zhizhou put down his basket, poured out the grain, and stirred it a few times with a rake.

Song Changxu was innocent. “?”

He went into the house to put down his book box. When he came out, he saw Xu Zhizhou wiping the dust from his face with a cloth, looking very vain. Song Changxu couldn’t bear to look. He said, “You watch the house. I’ll go to the fields to carry the grain.”

Xu Zhizhou’s expression instantly became pitiful. “You’re so considerate, husband. I’ll make a good meal at home.”

Song Changxu covered his upturned lips with his fist.

What’s there to laugh about? A grown man should be working.

The basket he carried was twice the size of Xu Zhizhou’s. He carried it and left. Xu Zhizhou pinched his own arm in the courtyard. It seemed he wasn’t as strong as his husband.

But if he was that strong, he would have to do more work, so it was good that he was not as strong. Xu Zhizhou quickly became happy again.

With Song Changxu’s help, the work in the fields went faster. By the time it was completely dark, they went back. Song Changxu’s back was aching.

He was really not cut out for farming. If he had to work in the fields for the rest of his life, he would bury himself.

When the family returned home, a hot meal was already ready. Even the dusty Xu Cheng, holding a rake, had bright eyes.

They were all dirty. After washing his hands, Song Changxu came to eat. His posture was proper. He ate three bowls in one go and still felt it wasn’t enough. He could still eat more.

Xu Zhizhou: “…”

After eating and drinking their fill, everyone was tired. For the first time, Song Changxu had the thought of not reading tonight. He just wanted to lie down.

After washing up, he went back to his room and lay down on the bed. Song Changxu thought to himself that he would sleep for a while and then get up to read and write.

Song Changxu’s thoughts were hazy, and he soon lost consciousness.

After washing up, Xu Zhizhou brewed a pot of hot tea to put in the room. At night, Song Changxu would always read for a while before sleeping.

This was a good thing, and Xu Zhizhou certainly approved. If people didn’t need to sleep, he would wish for Song Changxu to read all day.

Anyway, it wouldn’t kill him.

Xu Zhizhou pushed open the door and didn’t hear the sound of pages turning. He peeked at the bed.

There was a large lump on the bed. Song Changxu was lying on the pillow, sleeping soundly.

Xu Zhizhou subconsciously lightened his steps, put the teapot on the table, and went over to look at Song Changxu.

The mosquito net was down. His hands were placed properly on his sides. His eyelashes cast a shadow. His handsome face had a hint of softness. His nose was high, and the candlelight created a three-dimensional effect. His thin lips were still pursed.

Xu Zhizhou’s lips, face, neck, and collarbone had all been measured by these thin lips.

Xu Zhizhou touched the tip of his nose and murmured to himself, “Why is his nose so high?”

“Should I wake him up to read?” Xu Zhizhou thought to himself.

He looked at Song Changxu’s handsome face and decided against it. “He’s tired today. It’s better to let him rest for a while. Even a donkey needs to rest for a few moments before it can turn the mill.”

Xu Zhizhou took off his hair ribbon and applied some fragrant balm to his face and neck. Although it was a bit difficult to earn money, Xu Zhizhou was still willing to spend on himself.

He looked at himself in the bronze mirror and was very satisfied.

“A ge’er’s face is the most important thing. Of course, a man’s face is also important. Otherwise, who would take a liking to him? Right, husband?”

Song Changxu was asleep and couldn’t speak, so he couldn’t refute him.

Xu Zhizhou took it as a default.

He happily hummed a little tune, blew out the candle, and opened a small crack in the window for the breeze. He slept on the inside, and Song Changxu slept on the outside.

He arranged the pillows. The bed was covered with two layers of thick, new quilts, which were very soft. Xu Zhizhou took one of Song Changxu’s arms and held it in his own, and soon fell asleep.

Tomorrow afternoon, he would wait for his husband to come back and work.

The autumn harvest was always busy. Song Changxu regretted not reading. He was harvesting rice and carrying grain. At night, he would fall asleep quickly, without time to think about anything else.

After the family had finished threshing the grain, Song Changxu breathed a sigh of relief. Although the family had told him not to help, how could he really not?

He carried the last basket of grain back. Xu Zhizhou had carried a basket back before him. When Song Changxu came back from outside, he saw Xu Zhizhou spreading the grain with a rake and sweeping the sticky dry grass on top with a long, thin bamboo broom.

His waist was bent low, his waist slender. The orange light of the setting sun fell on Xu Zhizhou’s face, but his face still looked fair, his wrists thin and white.

Song Changxu’s Adam’s apple bobbed up and down.

His eyes were dark. He bent down and poured the grain into the courtyard. The neatly arranged grain had to be rearranged again. Xu Zhizhou glared at Song Changxu in a huff, his hands on his hips. “You could have poured it over here. Why did you pour it over there?”

Song Changxu said, “Is here and there any different?”

Xu Zhizhou: “It’s different. I have to walk a few more steps.”

Song Changxu was handed a rake by Xu Zhizhou.

Song Changxu: “…”

After the family’s grain was threshed, they had a lot left over after setting aside their own rations and the grain for taxes.

Song Ye and Liang Su were both happy. Although Song Changxu’s wedding had cost a lot of money, and they had spent more than twenty taels of silver on a new young ox, it was still better than they had expected. This time, the grain could probably be sold for six taels of silver, which was much better than in previous years, when they could at most sell it for four. Their family’s fields were all good. Although they were not as large as others, the yield was excellent.

The tax in the Ningxing Dynasty was one-thirtieth. The land tax was based on the number of acres. Besides the land tax, the common people also had to pay a poll tax, a cotton tax for selling cotton, a fish tax for selling fish, and a cloth tax.

The villagers were all farmers, so they generally only had to pay the land tax and the poll tax.

After the busy autumn harvest, the Song family rested. Song Ye said with a smile, “Changxu, someone in the village asked about the plant ash. Should I tell them or not?”

This method was his son’s idea. He was afraid he would let it slip, so he had to ask his son.

Now that he was married, his son was also the head of his own small family.

Song Changxu: “It’s fine. You can tell them.”

Xu Zhizhou pulled Song Mingyan to his room secretly. He handed a box of fragrant balm to Song Mingyan.

“Elder Brother, you’re so good-looking. You should take good care of your face and hands. I have a lot of fragrant balm here. You can take this to apply to your face and hands.”

Even the cheapest fragrant balm cost eighty copper coins a box. Song Mingyan refused.

“Take it, Elder Brother,” Xu Zhizhou said with a smile, pressing Song Mingyan down to sit and applying some of the balm to his face.

A faint fragrance wafted over. Song Mingyan touched his face. Xu Zhizhou took his own eyebrow pencil and drew his eyebrows for him.

“It would be even better with some lipstick.”

Song Mingyan looked at himself in the bronze mirror and said, “I’m about to sleep. It’s better not to apply lipstick.”

Xu Zhizhou thought for a moment and agreed. “The autumn harvest is over, and life is more leisurely. I’ll apply lipstick for you then.”

Song Mingyan hadn’t dressed up since he got married. What ge’er didn’t love to be pretty? He was no exception.

Song Changxu came out of the mud house, wiping his wet hair with a cloth. The work was lighter today. Song Changxu had written an essay about farming in his room.

Xu Zhizhou sat on the bed and finished the last stitch. He had already embroidered five purses. He kept a dark blue one and would sell the other four.

Song Changxu had run out of ink halfway through his writing. There was no one to add fragrance to his red sleeves, so he had to do it himself.

He finished the other half with a calm heart.

Seeing that it was getting late, he was about to blow out the candle.

He climbed into bed. Now he had the mind to think about other things. Xu Zhizhou felt Song Changxu’s hand tentatively placed on his waist.

He gently patted his hand. “Don’t fool around. It’s time to sleep.”

He really has a dimple in his waist. His waist is so thin and soft.

Author’s Note:

Little Song: I’m just curious. [Covers face and peeks]

Little Xu: I’ve long forgotten about the consummation. [Eating melon]