Farming for Three Meals a Day [Farming Life] 2

Chapter 2

“Is Xi-ge’er’s face really incurable?” one of the young men asked.

Yao-ge’er curled his lip. “Isn’t it? His wedding date with the Cao family is next month, and the betrothal gifts should be arriving soon. Have you seen any sign of that from the Cao family? It’s because they heard about Ye Xi burning his face and backed out, haven’t they?”

“The face is the most important thing. Many people marry us young men for our looks. Now that his looks are gone, I’m afraid Xi-ge’er will really have difficulty getting married. Forget the Cao family, even ordinary farming families might not want him.”

Yao-ge’er listened with satisfaction. For years, he had always been overshadowed by Ye Xi. Now that Ye Xi’s face was injured, it was his, Lin Yao’s, turn to be proud.

“Tsk, he still dares to think about the Cao family. Cao-ge’er is a scholar and might even pass the Xiucai exam. If he marries such an ugly freak, how will he hold his head up in the future?”

The others nodded, holding their wooden basins, all agreeing with Yao-ge’er. Ye Xi was probably completely ruined.

Ye Xi by the riverbank had long been accustomed to these words. He didn’t listen to their gossip, finished cutting the grass, picked up his basket, and prepared to leave.

Yao-ge’er, however, spotted him. These days, Ye Xi had been avoiding people, and he hadn’t had a chance to run into him. Wasn’t it a coincidence today?

He approached Ye Xi with feigned sincerity, his eyes darting towards Ye Xi’s face veil. “Xi-ge’er, we were just talking about you. What a coincidence, we haven’t seen you these days, everyone is worried about you.”

Ye Xi glanced at him indifferently, knowing his insincerity. He was probably gloating inside right now.

The Lin family and Father Ye had always had a feud. Back when the village was dividing land, there was a small piece of wasteland by the riverbank that no one cultivated. Father Ye, being diligent, wanted to add to the family’s food supply, so he worked day and night for several days to clear the wasteland. The pebbles he removed from it piled up like a small mountain. Just after he finished clearing it and before he could plant anything, the Lin family went to the clan elders and the village chief, claiming that it was their ancestral land.

This matter dragged on for a while, and finally, the village chief decided to take back the land, forbidding anyone from cultivating it. After this incident, the Ye family and the Lin Yao family became sworn enemies, secretly hoping to see each other’s downfall.

How could Yao-ge’er miss such a good opportunity? He wished he could stab Ye Xi in the heart. He blocked Ye Xi’s path and said falsely, “I don’t know how your face is doing, Xi-ge’er. Since we’ve met today, why don’t you lift your veil and let us see?”

Ye Xi snorted coldly, took a step back, dodged Yao-ge’er’s hand that was reaching for his veil, and scolded coldly, “Stop being so fake and concerned in front of me. It’s like a viper offering New Year greetings, you have no good intentions.”

The smile on Yao-ge’er’s face faded slightly, and he said aggressively, “Since we’ve bumped into each other today, I’m determined to see your face. Let’s see how you can still be worthy of the Cao family in the next village.”

Ye Xi chuckled lightly. “I know you’ve been eyeing the Cao family for a long time, hoping it would be your turn to marry into their family. Tsk, you should also see how much you’re worth and whether you have such good fortune.”

Lin Yao’s thoughts were exposed, and the smile on his face couldn’t be maintained. He anxiously tried to pull the veil off Ye Xi’s face, wanting to humiliate him in front of the other young men.

Ye Xi quickly shifted his right foot, turned his body slightly, grabbed Lin Yao’s right arm with both hands, twisted it behind his back, and held him firmly.

Before Yao-ge’er could react, he was captured by Ye Xi. His strength was far inferior to Ye Xi’s, and he couldn’t break free. Just when he hadn’t yet processed what was happening, a sharp sickle was pressed against his cheek.

“You! What are you doing!” His face instantly turned white with fright, his eyes fixed on the tip of the blade close to his face.

The other young men were also stunned, standing there with their basins of dirty clothes, not daring to step forward or even breathe loudly. Who would have thought that Ye Xi would suddenly become so fierce and wield a knife!

Ye Xi calmly lifted his eyelids and glanced at everyone, then smiled softly. “Since my face is already burned, and you’re all waiting to see me as a joke, I might as well go all out and take one of you down with me, so you don’t have to laugh at me behind my back every day.”

His smile, in the eyes of the others, was like the King of Hell, scaring all the young men into shivering, tightly closing their lips and not daring to speak.

Ye Xi’s light words, however, almost scared Yao-ge’er out of his wits. He trembled and said, “Ye Xi, you’re crazy! If you dare to cut my face, my family will never let you go! Let me go!”

Ye Xi calmly pressed the sickle slowly against his delicate cheek. The cold tip of the blade startled Yao-ge’er, and he didn’t dare to move a muscle.

“What am I afraid of? You said it yourself, my face is ruined, I can’t get married, my life is ruined. Since you’re so concerned about me and care about me so much, why don’t you keep me company? It would be great if we could live together from now on.”

“You’re crazy! Ye Xi, you’re a lunatic, let me go! I don’t want to stay with you!” Yao-ge’er’s face was pale, his legs weak with fear.

Seeing this, Ye Xi stopped frightening him, withdrew the sickle, and released his arm. He said coldly, “That’s what you said. Stay away from me in the future, don’t come near me.”

Yao-ge’er rubbed his sore shoulder, only daring to glare at Ye Xi with his eyes, not daring to speak again.

Ye Xi then put the basket back on his shoulder and slowly walked away under everyone’s gaze.

When he got home, Liu Xiufeng had gone to the mill at the village entrance to grind flour. Ye Xi mixed the chicken and duck feed in a food basin, then went to the vegetable garden to pick a few cucumbers, preparing to make dinner.

As dusk approached, under the orange-red sunset, the people working in the fields gradually dispersed. Wisps of smoke drifted from chimneys, carried by the wind to the mountainside. Water buffaloes that had finished grazing and bathing flicked their tails as they walked through the fields.

By the time Ye Xi finished cooking dinner and set the bowls and chopsticks in the courtyard, Liu Xiufeng returned. She carried a bag of buckwheat flour. Although taxes had been reduced in recent years and life for farmers had improved, they still couldn’t eat only white rice and flour all the time. They had to mix in some coarse grains and store some food in the granary in case of drought, flood, or a bad harvest in the coming year.

“What are we having for dinner tonight?” Liu Xiufeng asked as she washed her hands by the well after putting the bag of flour back into the ceramic jar in the kitchen.

Ye Xi brought out a basket of sweet potatoes and potatoes. “Steamed dry rations, with dry-fried chili peppers and shredded potatoes.”

Liu Xiufeng nodded. “Okay, that’s filling.”

Just as she finished speaking, Father Ye and his elder brother returned, carrying wicker baskets. The baskets of animal manure they had taken out early in the morning had been scattered in the fields. Both of them smelled strongly, so they went to the well first.

Ye Xi used the well sweep to draw a bucket of water from the well. The well water was ice cold. Father Ye and Ye Shan hastily washed themselves with the well water, finally feeling some relief from the summer heat.

While washing, Father Ye casually said, “Do you remember that dilapidated house halfway up the mountain?”

Liu Xiufeng sat on a low stool in the courtyard, twisting hemp thread. “The house that used to belong to Blind Liu?”

Father Ye hummed in agreement, wiping his neck with a cloth. “It looks like someone has moved in.”

Ye Xi sat by the well, looking at his father. “That house has been unoccupied for a long time. I passed by it from afar when I was digging wild vegetables a while ago, and the weeds in the courtyard were taller than a person. It looked creepy, I only dared to walk around it.”

Ye Shan laughed at his younger brother. “Xi-ge’er is still so timid. But Blind Liu’s house was sturdily built back then, with good wood and bricks. It’s still quite solid despite the wind and sun.”

Liu Xiufeng finished twisting a hemp rope and said casually, “Blind Liu had no children. After he died, the house became empty. It’s good that someone moved in, so such a good house won’t go to waste.”

Father Ye shook his head. “It’s a stranger who moved in.”

Liu Xiufeng looked at him. “A stranger?”

“I saw him in the fields today with Second Wang from next door. He’s a big, burly man, tall and strong, speaking with an accent from the northern prefecture.”

Liu Xiufeng gasped. “It’s been years since a stranger came to our Shanxiu Village. Don’t tell me he’s someone with a shady past.”

Father Ye said, “Hard to say. He looks strong, like someone good at fighting and causing trouble. He went to the village chief and said he wanted to buy Blind Liu’s house. The village chief didn’t agree at first, afraid of disturbing the peace of our Shanxiu Village. But the man took out his identity papers and household registration, showing he’s an ordinary commoner. Plus, the price he offered was reasonable, so the village chief agreed. Anyway, he lives halfway up the mountain, far from the village, so it doesn’t matter much.”

Ye Shan finished cleaning himself and sat down at the small square table. He picked up a potato and took a large bite, revealing the soft yellow center. “Don’t mention it, I glanced at him from afar, hey, he’s actually taller than me. His beard hasn’t been shaved for a while, and he looks quite like a Hu barbarian.”

Ye Xi gasped upon hearing this, feeling a little apprehensive.

The Hu barbarians his brother mentioned were barbarians who caused chaos more than ten years ago. They were all tall like demons, with full beards. It was said that they specialized in capturing beautiful girls and young men, and secretly ate people. He had never seen them, but many elderly people in the village had. Whenever Hu barbarians were mentioned, they would turn pale with fear. Even after so many years, they still shuddered at the thought. Ye Xi had seen picture books from a traveling salesman. The Hu barbarians in the pictures had green faces and fangs, holding a thin person in their hands, about to stuff them into their mouths. It was terrifying.

Liu Xiufeng also felt a bit scared when she heard her son say this. She muttered “Amitabha” twice and warned her young son, Ye Xi, “You must avoid that place in the future, don’t go near there.”

Ye Xi nodded repeatedly. He didn’t want to go near any Hu barbarians. “I understand, Mother. I’ll avoid them.”