Ever since Yu Nian got the wheelchair, his life became much more convenient. When Tian Yao went out, Yu Nian could now take care of his own needs. And when Tian Yao was home, he could even help with whatever tasks were within his ability.
As the New Year drew closer, Tian Yao spent less time going out. Most of the time, he stayed home. The firewood he had previously collected from the mountain—some of the larger pieces needed splitting. Winter had arrived, and they were using much more firewood. Fortunately, he had been diligent earlier. This year seemed likely to be colder than any before.
Tian Yao added an extra blanket to the bed and also spread out a fur blanket made from wild beast hides back when Father was still alive. At times like this, Tian Yao felt even more deeply what a wonderful thing it was to have an extra person in bed during this harsh winter.
The pain in Yu Nian’s leg from the cold, which Tian Yao had worried about, also hadn’t happened. Tian Yao breathed a sigh of relief.
Once winter arrived, Tian Yao’s waking time became much later than before. Eventually, he was even waking up later than Yu Nian.
This day was already the eighth of the twelfth lunar month, Laba Festival. Tian Yao was woken by the expanse of white light filtering in from beside the window. When he came to, he was still resting his head on Yu Nian’s arm, their hair intertwined together.
Yu Nian hadn’t woken yet. Tian Yao lifted his eyes to look at him. He had taken good care of Yu Nian; his face, once thin and sharply angular, had now filled out, looking much better than when he first arrived.
He turned his head and gazed at the ceiling. If Yu Nian hadn’t met with disaster, their paths in this life probably never would have crossed. He would have been a noble young lord, and Tian Yao would still be just a village ger scratching a living from the earth.
He sighed. That tiny sound woke Yu Nian, who moved his arm, now somewhat numb. Still not fully awake, his voice was slightly muffled. “What are you sighing about?”
Tian Yao didn’t tell him his melancholy, sentimental thoughts, just said, “It’s so bright outside, it must have snowed last night.”
Yu Nian then opened his eyes and took a glance at the window, which was indeed excessively bright. “It probably did.”
Nothing except Tian Yao’s head extended out from under the covers. He squeezed closer to Yu Nian. “Next year, we absolutely must build a kang. It’s too cold.”
Gray was perfectly comfortable. He had dragged his bed over beside the charcoal brazier in the room. Once the brazier went out at night, he’d move over and lie down by the bed.
Yu Nian murmured an acknowledgement and closed his eyes again.
Tian Yao, however, couldn’t fall back asleep but didn’t want to get out of bed either. One moment he was playing with Yu Nian’s hair, the next moment grabbing his hand.
Yu Nian’s hands were no longer as soft and fair as before. Ever since getting the wheelchair, he started getting in and out of bed by himself and could help Tian Yao with many tasks within his power. So his palms now had many calluses, and both arms had become much thicker. Resting his head on them was exceptionally comfortable.
But no matter how comfortable, they still had to get up. Today was Laba, and there was much to do. The Village Chief’s household was slaughtering their New Year pig today and had already told Tian Yao in advance to come help—it was practically an annual tradition.
He sat up quickly, and Yu Nian got up with him. After dressing, he didn’t let Tian Yao carry him out of bed. Instead, he propped himself up with his arms, using his powerful upper body strength to shift from the bed to the wheelchair.
When Tian Yao pushed open the door, he was met with a gust of icy air. A thick layer of snow covered everything, the yard a vast expanse of white. Tian Yao stepped on it, hearing the crunch-crunch sound.
Although snowy weather was cold, Tian Yao loved playing in the snow. He rolled a snowball from by the doorstep and stuck it right in the doorway to block it.
Yu Nian stayed at the door, watching him the whole time.
Tian Yao thought he might want to play too but was concerned for his health. If he caught a cold now, it truly wouldn’t be easy to recover from. So he scooped a handful of snow from his large snowball and formed a small one, handing it to Yu Nian.
Yu Nian took it—icy cold in his palm.
Gray also came bounding out. Ger and dog frolicked in the yard. Soon, a scattering of plum blossom-like paw prints appeared in the pristine snow.
Gray was already quite large by now. Catching Tian Yao off guard, he pounced, pushing him down into the snow.
Tian Yao stuffed a mouthful of snow at Gray’s muzzle before flipping over and shoving the dog’s head into the snow. They played wildly for a good while before having enough. Only then did Tian Yao find the tools to clear the snow from the yard—it wouldn’t do if Yu Nian fell.
Sweeping the entire yard wasn’t tiring. Now, Tian Yao’s whole body was steaming with heat. He simply made breakfast and had to head to the Village Chief’s after eating. Because he’d be doing physical labor today, he wore his short, practical clothes, brimming with vitality.
“Want to come with me? The Village Chief’s house will be incredibly lively today.” Only after speaking did Tian Yao recall that the Village Chief’s home wasn’t exactly a pleasant place for Yu Nian. It held some very unpleasant memories for him.
“Alright, let’s go.”
While walking along the road, Yu Nian asked Tian Yao, “Does it snow often here in winter?”
Tian Yao nodded. “There’s quite a lot of snow, but usually it doesn’t come this early, and it’s not this heavy. The snow came a bit too early this year.”
“Have there ever been snow disasters in the past?”
“Never. The snow amount has always been manageable. At least, in all the years I’ve been alive, I haven’t experienced one.”
Yu Nian lowered his head, lost in thought.
Upon arriving at the Village Chief’s house, many people were already there. Children ran and played along the paths, chasing each other with snowballs, full of joy.
“Just waiting for you.” The Village Chief walked up to them, his eyes sweeping over the wheelchair Yu Nian was sitting in. He nodded to Tian Yao. “Dazhuang is all height and no strength.”
Tian Yao smiled. “Village Chief, please look after my husband.”
After Tian Yao left, the Village Chief turned his gaze to Yu Nian. This was the first time they had met since the wedding.
He observed Yu Nian’s healthy complexion and secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Tian Yao was a child he had watched grow up. He knew the child’s parents had raised him well. He didn’t want to do something immoral—didn’t want to harm a life.
Huailing Village was backed by great mountains and had very little contact with the outside world. Yu Nian’s arrival this time was a huge variable for Huailing Village. One moment of carelessness could bring disaster to the entire village.
“I haven’t yet thanked the Village Chief.” Yu Nian’s gaze had been fixed on Tian Yao the whole time, watching as he single-handedly dragged the pig out of the pen. Ignoring the pig’s squeals, Tian Yao hauled it in front of the large stove.
The Village Chief breathed another sigh of relief. Whatever Yu Nian was thanking him for, as long as Yu Nian held no grudge, it was fine.
“Once spring comes, you can come out and walk around more. It’s convenient for you to move about now.”
Yu Nian nodded.
The Village Chief said nothing more to him and also went to help elsewhere.
Yu Nian was once again witnessing Tian Yao’s strength firsthand. The Village Chief’s pig had been well-raised. Several strong men couldn’t hold it down, but Tian Yao seemed to exert no effort at all, pinning the pig firmly. Several people beside him quickly used hemp rope to bind the pig’s snout and tied its four trotters to the four legs of the table.
Butcher Zhang had long been waiting nearby. He picked up his knife and cleanly slit the pig’s throat. Beside him, Tian Dazhuang brought a bucket over to catch the pig’s blood.
The pig’s squeals went on for a good while before the fat pig slowly stopped moving. The large stove nearby had already heated a pot of boiling water. Tian Yao, as expected, tossed the now-still pig into the pot, scalding the top half then the bottom half. There were specialized people to scrape off the bristles, and Tian Yao then ran back to Yu Nian’s side.
At this moment, several children were gathered around him. Last time, they had only watched from afar. Now, they had all come up to Yu Nian’s side, their eyes blazing as they stared at the wheelchair beneath him.
One bolder child quietly reached out to touch the wheelchair.
But the moment they saw Tian Yao, they all scattered at once.
Tian Yao: …
“Why do they all run the moment they see me!” Tian Yao huffed angrily. “Am I that scary?”
Yu Nian recalled how he had just pinned the pig. That was perhaps a bit frightening for children.
“No, they probably just wanted to go play.”
Only then did Tian Yao break back into a smile. “We’re eating at the Village Chief’s for lunch. Pork butchering stew. Auntie Hu’s sauerkraut is legendary. Is there any meat you want in particular? The Village Chief said half the pig will be sold to Butcher Zhang, and the other half they’ll keep for themselves. I secretly asked the Village Chief—we can buy some back home.”
Yu Nian thought for a moment. “Buy some bones?”
Tian Yao immediately understood his intention. “To make broth for hot pot? But we’re supposed to make eight-treasure porridge today.”
“Salt them and save for a couple of days from now.”
Tian Yao answered “alright,” but someone called for him again over there, so he ran back.
Butchering and sectioning one pig took almost the entire morning. The Village Chief’s wife, Aunt Hu, had already started preparing the midday butchering stew. The pig’s blood was processed, the pork collar cut into large chunks, but the most important thing was Aunt Hu’s pickled sauerkraut. Almost as soon as it went into the pot, the rich aroma wafted out unceasingly.
There were no particular rules for eating in the village. In such an atmosphere, no one wanted to be constrained either. Everyone was holding a bowl of food, squatting together in small groups with those they were close to, eating heartily and cheerfully.
“Should we… take ours back home to eat?” Tian Yao was still worried Yu Nian wouldn’t be too comfortable with this style of eating anywhere—on the roadside, in the yard, bowl in hand. So he asked him.
Yu Nian, however, shook his head. “That’s not necessary.”
So Tian Yao quickly finished his bowl of butchering stew, wolfed down two cornbread buns, and ran off to tell the Village Chief he wanted to buy some bones.
The Village Chief’s brow furrowed so tightly it could crush a mosquito. “What are you buying that stuff for! There’s not a bit of meat on them!” he said, then his gaze fell on the wheelchair Yu Nian was sitting in. He figured they might have a hard New Year, unable to afford even a bit of meat.
“No, we just have a craving for that taste.” Tian Yao hurriedly waved his hands.
But the Village Chief didn’t listen at all. He had Aunt Hu pack up all those bones, stripped perfectly clean of meat, and gave them all to him. Then, ignoring Tian Yao’s protests, he also stuffed in a cut of meat.
Tian Yao snatched up the bones and ran, leaving his copper coins on their table before pushing Yu Nian back home.
In winter, it got dark early. By the time they got home, the sky had already dimmed again. They didn’t have the full eight treasures’ worth of ingredients at home, so Tian Yao just mixed whatever they had together and cooked a porridge. He also used the meat from the Village Chief to stir-fry a cabbage with sliced meat. Tian Yao’s cooking skills had improved a lot by now; using Father’s little booklet, he could make many different dishes.
Yu Nian had also been flipping through that little booklet recently. The more he looked, the more he felt that Tian Yao’s Little Dad was unusual. Many of the cooking methods, even when he lived in the prefectural city before, he had never heard of.
He glanced at the disordered storage room next door and, during the meal, said to Tian Yao, “We haven’t had much to do lately. Why don’t we also tidy up that room next door?”
Tian Yao immediately became vigilant, staring at him. “What for? You want to sleep in separate rooms again?!”
