Farming for Three Meals a Day [Farming Life] 72

Chapter 72

Spring plowing officially began on the day of Awakening of Insects, but Shanxiu Village, being warmer, always started earlier. After Rain Water, Ye Xi and Lin Jiangshan had already planted potatoes, cutting the potatoes into pieces with sprouts.

They spent their free time fertilizing and tending the vegetable garden. After the spring rain, the seedlings grew quickly, the lettuce already sprouting small roots, still thin, but in a while, they could harvest and eat them.

They couldn’t leave the wasteland next to their house uncultivated, so they tilled it, and Lin Jiangshan built a bamboo fence around it, letting the newly bought chicks and ducklings roam freely inside.

Spring thunder had rumbled two days ago, awakening the insects and ants underground, providing food for the chicks and ducklings.

Birds chirped and flew around the eaves, and Ye Xi looked up, smiling. “Husband, swallows are building a nest under our eaves, it’s almost half finished.”

Lin Jiangshan looked at the eaves of the main room and replied, “Yes, they’ll move in and be our neighbors in a few days.”

Ye Xi said happily, “Swallows building nests under the eaves is a sign of good fortune, they won’t come to houses without good fortune.”

After letting out the chickens and ducks, Ye Xi and Lin Jiangshan led the cow out to graze, then tied it to the open space outside the courtyard, letting it enjoy the fresh grass and some fresh air.

“Today is Awakening of Insects, we should have pear soup,” Ye Xi said, checking the lunar calendar hanging by the kitchen door. They had to observe the customs for each solar term, to ensure good weather and a bountiful harvest.

Fresh pears weren’t available until autumn, so the dried pears they saved from last year came in handy, perfect for making tea today.

Lin Jiangshan was outside, weaving a fence with leftover bamboo strips, planning to build a small flower garden for Ye Xi by the courtyard gate. He loved flowers, and now that they had chickens and ducks, he had to protect his plants.

He always took good care of the things Ye Xi liked.

While he worked, Ye Xi went to the kitchen, took the clay pot and stove, and prepared to make pear tea. He first simmered the dried pear slices in the clay pot until they softened, then added a handful of snow fungus from the cupboard, wild snow fungus picked from the mountains, soft, white, and translucent. Ye Xi had been reluctant to eat it, as such dried goods sold for thirty or forty wen per catty in town, but Lin Jiangshan had insisted he keep it for himself, saying it was good for the skin, nourishing and moisturizing.

The snow fungus bloomed like a flower when soaked in hot water.

After simmering the pear tea for a while, a sweet aroma filled the air, the water turning a light yellow like tea. He added the snow fungus, red dates, and goji berries.

While the pear tea simmered on the charcoal stove, Ye Xi sat in the courtyard, mending their thick winter clothes, which he would wash and store in the cabinet after mending, until next winter.

“I brought some mugwort, isn’t today the day for ‘villain hitting’?” Lin Jiangshan said, holding a bunch of green mugwort.

Ye Xi put down his needlework and smiled. “I was just thinking of asking you to get some, I didn’t expect you to find it already, today is indeed the day for ‘villain hitting’.”

Lin Jiangshan took over the task. “I’ll do it, you just sit and rest.”

“Villain hitting” was a ritual of burning mugwort in the corners of the house to repel snakes, insects, mosquitoes, and mice, and also to remove the musty smell after a winter of closed doors and windows.

Ye Xi continued mending the cotton-padded jacket in the courtyard. After a winter of wear and tear, the cuffs were inevitably frayed, with some cotton filling exposed. He waited for Lin Jiangshan to finish burning the mugwort in the house.

The pear tea on the stove was also ready. He lifted the lid, stirred it with a spoon, the snow fungus had dissolved, the soup thick and gelatinous, the red dates pitted, the pear slices completely softened and blended into the soup.

Ye Xi added two pieces of rock sugar, let it dissolve, and then served two bowls.

They sat in the courtyard, enjoying the sweet pear tea, soothing and moisturizing, a comforting warmth.

Lin Jiangshan said, “I saw some wild peach blossoms on the mountain, with bees buzzing around them.”

Ye Xi, sipping his pear tea, smiled. “The peach blossoms are blooming, spring is truly here. This is the most beautiful time of year in Shanxiu Village.”

Shanxiu Village, with its clear streams and high mountains, had countless peach, pear, and apricot trees on its slopes, and also some wild cherry trees. In spring, the pink and white blossoms, against the backdrop of the remaining snow on the mountaintop, the blue sky, and the white clouds, created a breathtakingly beautiful scene.

Their small courtyard had a perfect view of this scenery, and Ye Xi loved sitting there, drinking tea, even having lunch there.

Lin Jiangshan smiled. “I’ll go to the forest this afternoon and see if I can find a beehive, we can save on buying sugar, and you like honey too.”

Ye Xi loved honey, its smooth sweetness much better than cane or rock sugar. There were beekeepers in the village, but the price was high, and villagers found it extravagant, so only pastry shops in town or wealthy families bought honey.

Last year’s honey was from a small beehive Lin Jiangshan found in the forest, barely half a jar, and Ye Xi had been using it sparingly, it was almost gone now.

“Then wear a face covering and thick clothes, don’t get stung,” Ye Xi said, worried.

Lin Jiangshan prepared a torch and a bucket of water. “I’ll find a beehive in a tree hollow, seal the opening, smoke it out, and pour some water in, if any bees try to sting me, I’ll burn them with the torch.”

Ye Xi was finally relieved, people in the village had died from being stung by bees after accidentally disturbing a beehive.

After Lin Jiangshan left, Ye Xi took a basin and their cotton-padded jackets, planning to go to the river to wash them. They were thick and heavy, requiring a good beating with a mallet and soap pods.

Li-ge’er also happened to be washing clothes today and came to invite Ye Xi to go to the river together, and they both left with their wooden basins.

On their way, they encountered many women also washing winter clothes, and they inevitably exchanged some pleasantries.

“Li-ge’er, your wedding day is approaching, Auntie is waiting for the wedding feast.”

Li-ge’er smiled. “Yes, we’ll definitely prepare a good feast and invite Auntie.”

The women praised Li-ge’er for finding a good husband, a skilled butcher, they would never be short of meat.

They teased Li-ge’er, making him blush, and then praised Ye Xi for his good fortune, virtuous and capable.

The Ye family’s life was improving, and the villagers all saw it, some envious, saying that the young couple were the most capable in the village, having built a good foundation for their family.

At the riverbank, Ye Xi and Li-ge’er rolled up their pants, found a spacious and flat spot, and squatted down, crushing the soap pods and beating them into a lather with mallets.

Wherever women gathered, there was bound to be gossip, and the women, now together, started chatting.

Ye Xi and Li-ge’er listened quietly.

The gossip ranged from the Zhang family’s dog being stolen, to Mrs. Zhao’s daughter giving birth to a son, to the Li family’s daughter-in-law having a big fight with her parents-in-law, and finally, to the Li family in the next village.

Ye Xi, hearing the mention of the Li family, looked at Li-ge’er and asked softly, “Is that the Li family, the one Li Xi separated from?”

Li-ge’er nodded. “Yes, Li Xi’s parents.”

“What happened?”

Li-ge’er rubbed the clothes in the water and said, “Hmph, it’s their retribution. Li Xi left with nothing after the separation, all the money and possessions were taken by those biased parents to support their eldest and youngest sons. Now they know what it’s like.”

Ye Xi then heard Second Aunt Zhang say, “That Old Li from the Li family, when he went to the village to buy pigs, slipped on the mountain path and rolled down the hill. Fortunately, a shepherd saw him, otherwise, he would have been lying there for days. But he broke his leg and his back, I heard it’s serious, they carried him home, and the doctor said it would take at least half a year of rest and medicine to heal. ‘Injury to muscles and bones takes a hundred days to heal,’ it’s no joke.”

Second Wife Guan had married into that village and had heard about it from her relatives. “He has to take medicine every day, but he’s bedridden and can’t move, someone has to take care of him. Mother Li can only stay with him all the time. The doctor said it’s uncertain whether he’ll be able to walk again, it depends on fate. Buying and brewing medicine every day costs money, and with the father bedridden and the mother needing support, the eldest and youngest sons of the Li family are fighting, the eldest daughter-in-law is domineering, and the youngest daughter-in-law is not one to back down, their house is in chaos, with constant arguments and fights.”

The women gossiped excitedly, enjoying the drama, and Ye Xi whispered to Li-ge’er, “Is it true?”

Li-ge’er nodded. “They took all the family assets, and now that their parents need support, they’re shirking their responsibilities. Li Xi signed a contract when he separated, he’s not obligated to support them. They drove him out with nothing, saying they didn’t need his support, now they know what it’s like.”

Ye Xi asked, “What does Li Xi say?”

Li-ge’er said, “His heart is hardened, after his parents turned against him and drove him out, he doesn’t care anymore, he’s just focusing on our future life together.”

Ye Xi smiled. “What goes around comes around. He met you, and now his life is peaceful and happy, this is his reward!”

After washing their clothes, Ye Xi returned to the courtyard, and Lin Jiangshan had just returned with a beehive, several layers of it, filled with white bee pupae.

Lin Jiangshan carefully extracted the honey and put the pupae in a bowl.

“Alright, I’ll fry the bee pupae for you tonight, they’re delicious,” Ye Xi said with a smile.

Lin Jiangshan was craving some wine. “This needs to be paired with wine, husband, do you agree?”

Ye Xi playfully glared at him. “I’ll have a couple of cups with you tonight.”

That night, the lamplight in the small courtyard was warm and inviting. A plate of crispy fried bee pupae, a cold dish of seasonal vegetables, and salted peanuts, they sat facing each other, clinking their wine cups. The night breeze blew gently, and crickets chirped softly.

Lin Jiangshan reached out and held his husband’s hand, his thumb caressing the back of his hand, their fingers intertwined.

The warm wine, the loving gazes, the smiles on their faces, all spoke of simple and peaceful happiness.