Chapter 6: Wedding Night & Planting
It was only then that the large and small dared to believe that the bowl filled to the brim with rice was really for them.
The fragrant aroma of the steaming white rice, accompanied by the scent of stir-fried shredded potatoes, made their stomachs grumble in unison.
Qu Qing, seeing their reserved demeanor, couldn’t help but smile slightly. He said, “If you’re hungry, go ahead and eat.”
When they still hadn’t moved, but were staring at him intently, he immediately understood. Apparently, they were waiting for him to start eating first. So Qu Qing picked up his chopsticks and took a bite. Only then did the little ones start devouring their food.
Qu Qing was hungry too, but compared to them, he felt they were famished. It made him wonder if they had gone without food the entire day.
Watching the two of them eagerly devouring their meal, and the small one struggling to hold the bowl and use chopsticks, he helped the little one with a few bites, feeling it was enough for the child before stopping. Mao’er happily accepted and swung its legs joyfully as it ate.
When Gou’er caught sight of Qu Qing’s actions, his throat suddenly choked up, his eyes heated up, and he almost shed tears. His eating movements also slowed down.
He felt so unbelievably happy now, as if he were dreaming. Here, nobody scolded him for being ugly, nobody called Mao’er a little monster, nobody hit or scolded them. And there was delicious food to eat.
Qu Qing saw Guo’er burying his head and only eating the food in his own bowl, as if he didn’t want to move his chopsticks casually, so he also gave him a lot of shredded potatoes.
Seeing them both enjoying their meal so happily, Qu Qing had the illusion that he was taking care of two children. However, to be honest, this feeling was not bad either. Even though Guo’er wasn’t good-looking, at least being with him felt comfortable. And Mao’er was a child worthy of pity. Taking care of them wasn’t a bad thing. In the future, he wouldn’t be alone, and he could seek a lot of help from these locals. If it weren’t for Guo’er today, he might not have been able to enjoy this hot meal.
After continuing to help Guo’er with a few more bites, Qu Qing suddenly noticed that he had stopped eating, his head lowered even further.
“What’s wrong?” Qu Qing glanced at him and saw that he was shedding tears into his bowl. Qu Qing stopped eating and leaned over to pat his shoulder gently. “Why are you crying? Is the food not good?”
When Guo’er heard him say that, he raised his head and shook his head vigorously at Qu Qing, “No.. No, it’s delicious. It’s delicious, it’s the best I.. have ever eaten.”
Mao’er next to him raised his head and whispered, “Mao also thinks it is the most delicious.”
“Then why are you crying?” Qu Qing really did not understand.
Guo’er, still holding the bowl, sobbed, “It’s just that… I’m afraid we won’t have such delicious food anymore in the future. You let us eat this meal… Does it mean you’re going to chase us away?”
Last night, his mother also bathed him and gave him a full meal, and then today she sent him and Mao’er here without any mercy.
Qu Qing stiffened and couldn’t decide whether he felt pity or sadness for them. How miserable must their past have been for them to be moved to tears by a meal of white rice and stir-fried potatoes?
As soon as such a topic was brought up, even Mao’er stopped eating. With a few grains of rice still on his mouth, his eyes stared at Qu Qing without blinking, fearing he might say something like, “Yes, I’m going to chase you away immediately.”
“I won’t chase you away. Don’t worry. In the future…” He wanted to say, “I’ll never let you go hungry again,” but then suddenly remembered this was a barren ancient era. He couldn’t guarantee his own food in the future, let alone theirs. Making empty promises was irresponsible. So he changed his words, “In the future, as long as I have food to eat, you won’t be short of any.”
When Guo’er heard him say “you two,” not “you,” it was a hundred percent confirmation that he was willing to accept Mao’er staying. He didn’t know how to feel about it, wanting to cry but also laugh, fearing it was all just an illusion and a lie. He wanted to ask why the man was being so kind to them, but he couldn’t bring himself to say it.
“Hurry up and continue eating, or the food will get cold.” Qu Qing said.
Gou’er and Mao’er picked up their bowls and continued eating.
Gou’er thought, let it be like this. Whether it’s true or false, no matter what tomorrow brings, this is good enough. At least… the happiness of a full stomach at this moment is not a lie.
Qu Qing ate only seventy percent full because he saw how hungry the two were. So he gave most of the dishes to them. He quietly watched the two people on the side, and finally the rice was eaten clean, even a grain of rice is not left.
Qu Qing looked at the clean plates and felt the clean-your-plate movement could be thoroughly implemented at home in the future. Seeing the two rubbing their bellies contentedly, he thought they must be full now. Full was good.
Gou’er took the initiative to wash the dishes, while Mao’er followed behind him. Qu Qing stood up and walked to the courtyard, looking at the dimming sky. He thought there were no candles at home, nor any lighting. There wasn’t even any nighttime entertainment. When it got completely dark, it would be pitch black here, and it seemed that sleeping would be the best option.
He locked the gate of the courtyard and closed the door of the room where the seeds were kept. These were the fundamentals of his survival in the future. If they were stolen, he would have no place to cry.
He looked around the courtyard again, thinking about how he would have to renovate it in the future. After all, it was the place where he would be living for a long time to come. As he turned around, he unexpectedly found a pleasant surprise. From a corner, he retrieved a whetstone. He immediately picked up the stone, wet it a little, and proceeded to sharpen the rusty sickle and the blunt kitchen knife from the kitchen for a while.
By the time he finished, only a faint light remained on the horizon, indicating that it would soon be completely dark.
He handed the knife to Gou’er to put away and asked him to heat up some water.
Gou’er didn’t understand why they needed hot water at that moment, but he obediently did as he was told. Qu Qing went inside the house, felt the rough bed made of straw, and decided to lay out some clean clothes from the cabinet on top of it. He also made a makeshift pillow with clothes. After heating the water, he told the two to wash their feet and then go to bed. Qu Qing noticed there wasn’t enough water, and just used the rest. When Gou’er tried to heat more, Qu Qing stopped him.
Qu Qing said casually, “That’s enough. We don’t have much water at home. Don’t dirty your feet again after washing them.”
Gou’er watched as Qu Qing finished washing his feet and poured out the dirty water himself. He suddenly felt uneasy sitting. His mother had told him to take good care of Qu Qing, bring him tea and water, massage his shoulders and back. Today, on the first day of his arrival, he had Qu Qing pour foot-washing water for him. This…
Mao’er also sat on the bed. He moved his little buttocks and saw that it was almost pitch black now. There was no need to worry about the strange eyes being seen. So he opened his other eye, feeling curious about the new bed. He touched and looked at it, reached out and shook Gou’er’s sleeve, his tender voice carrying obvious joy, “It’s so soft here, and it smells so good!”
Gou’er casually hummed a few words, but his mind was still with Qu Qing.
In fact, during the day, he had also wondered where he would sleep. Would it be in the kitchen, the adjacent storage room with a few sacks, or the courtyard outside? He had thought about many things, but he had never imagined that Qu Qing would let him sleep on the only bed in the house.
Qu Qing poured out the dirty water, placed the basin down, closed the door, and locked it with the latch.
Gou’er stiffened all over at the moment he heard the wooden bolt being inserted.
Although he was an inexperienced ger, he vaguely understood that something might happen on the wedding night, the so-called bridal chamber…
Thinking of this, he suddenly felt a bit dejected. He had once fantasized about what his wedding day would be like. When his sister got married, she wore a red wedding dress and became a beautiful bride. Many people came to congratulate her, and there was a lively banquet. When his brother got married, he also married a beautiful bride in a red wedding dress. Red double happiness were posted in the house, and everyone celebrated the arrival of the bride, with sweet candies to eat.
But as a ger, he only had… His mother had sent him away with anger on the day he was “married.” There was no dowry, no candies, no banquet. The only thing he had was a red cloth strip for his hair, which he didn’t even need anymore.
He remembered the saying in the village: What’s the use of a ger? They don’t have the strength to work like men, nor can they give birth like women. Some gers never even manage to have children their whole lives. It’s simply tragic. All gers must have done something sinful in their past lives to be born as gers.
In fact, not only in this village but also in other villages, gers were generally not well-liked, but he was even more unpopular because he was ugly.
He wouldn’t be able to use the only red cloth strip he had in the future now that he didn’t have any hair.
Guo’er quietly grabbed the red cloth strip hidden in his chest, only now realizing how sad he was for his long hair.
Qu Qing groped his way through the darkness, and after his eyes adjusted, he could vaguely see the blurry outline of the room. He walked to the bedside and said to the two who hadn’t lay down yet, “Guo’er, sleep inside, Mao’er, sleep in the middle. I’ll sleep on the outside. The bed is a bit small, so let’s squeeze for now. Later, I’ll find a way to make the bed bigger.”
Just like soldiers in the army who listen to orders, the two immediately complied and lie down obediently.
Qu Qing took off his shoes and and went to bed. He lifted the blanket and lay down on his side, smelling the fragrance of straw and the sunlight emanating from the bedding. He thought, this place wasn’t so bad after all.
Gou’er shifted to the corner, and out of habit, he pulled Mao’er closer, realizing that Qu Qing didn’t have enough space to sleep.
Qu Qing didn’t mind and, after lying flat and adjusting the blanket to cover all three of them, he finally relaxed and started thinking about tomorrow.
The air suddenly quieted down. Mao’er soon became sleepy, yawning widely and falling asleep holding Gou’er’s arm.
Qu Qing and Gou’er were both having trouble sleeping.
After some time, Qu Qing heard Gou’er moving beside him from time to time, knowing that he wasn’t asleep yet. He turned around suddenly, startling Gou’er, who thought maybe something like the legendary bridal chamber might be happening. After all, Qu Qing had specifically prepared water for him to bathe earlier.
Just as he was thinking wildly, Qu Qing whispered, “Gou’er, do you have any idea about planting? Like… corn, potatoes, and rice?”
When he heard the word “planting,” Gou’er was still thinking about some other lascivious topic, but then he realized that Qu Qing was really just talking about planting…
He suddenly felt embarrassed for his previous wild thoughts and blushed. Fortunately, it was dark, and nothing could be seen clearly, or else he would have lost face this time.
–
