Chapter 154 – The First Planting
According to the ancient text, once the red sandy soil turns into red clay, it becomes suitable for cultivating plants. Yan Xiaosi was curious about the effects of planting in the spiritual soil of her portable space. While wandering in the forest, she had dug up several He Shou Wu roots. Since these few-year-old roots wouldn’t fetch a good price, she randomly dug some holes and planted them, still with their roots attached.
Just after planting the He Shou Wu, she heard Ms. Zhong and Yan Shuqin’s conversation from the outside world. “Lunch will be ready soon, Shuqin. Go find Xiaosi and call her back to eat.”
“Alright, I’ll go now.” Having wandered in the mountains for a while and then cultivated in her portable space, Yan Xiaosi hadn’t realized it was already noon. Feeling hungry, she quickly left her portable space.
Yan Shuqin frowned upon seeing Xiaosi’s hands covered in mud. “Xiaosi, don’t forget you’re a girl. Don’t always use your hands to dig up herbs. If your hands become too rough, who will marry you?”
Yan Xiaosi glanced at her hands and retorted, “Big sister, why don’t you look at your own hands?”
Yan Shuqin hid her hands behind her back. Over the years, working alongside her mother chopping and selling wood, her hands had become rough, not at all like those of a girl. “I don’t care about that,” she murmured.
Yan Xiaosi frowned sympathetically. As the eldest sister, Yan Shuqin had done the most work to take care of her younger sisters. “Big sister, even if you don’t care about your hands, I do. You’re pretty, and with proper care, you’ll be a stunning beauty.”
Yan Shuqin blushed at her sister’s words. “Xiaosi, should you really be praising people like this? If others heard, they would laugh at me.”
As Yan Xiaosi washed her hands clean in a stream, she walked back to the cave with Yan Shuqin, chatting along the way. “Big sister, I want to ask you a question, and you must answer honestly.”
“What is it? Go ahead and ask.”
“Big sister, do you have feelings for Brother Dazhuang?”
Yan Shuqin’s ears turned red at the question, and she didn’t know how to respond. “Xiaosi, why are you asking this?”
Yan Xiaosi stopped and looked at her seriously. “Big sister, Yao Jin won’t give up easily. For the sake of your lifelong happiness, we must find you a husband before General Zhan leaves Xize County.”
Back in the mountains, where things were calm, Yan Shuqin had put the matter out of her mind. Now, as Yan Xiaosi brought it up, she frowned. “Xiaosi, but it seems Brother Dazhuang doesn’t feel that way about me.”
Yan Xiaosi thought for a moment before asking, “Big sister, when did you start liking Brother Dazhuang? Would you be upset if you had to marry someone else?”
When did she start liking Tian Dazhuang? Yan Shuqin thought carefully and replied, “I guess it was when I saw how carefully and attentively he looked after you. I started to think he was a good man and gradually developed feelings for him. If I had to marry someone else, I wouldn’t be happy for a while. Whether I’d be happy later, I can’t say.”
Unable to predict such an uncertain matter, Yan Xiaosi didn’t dare to gamble, knowing a wrong decision could ruin her elder sister’s happiness. “There’s a saying, ‘It’s just a layer of gauze for a woman to pursue a man.’ Big sister, if you like Brother Dazhuang, go ahead and pursue him boldly. With your beautiful face and diligent, virtuous nature, you shouldn’t worry about winning over that clueless Brother Dazhuang.”
Yan Shuqin looked at her with surprise and said, “Xiaosi, before when Aunt Tian proposed the marriage to our mother, weren’t you reluctant? Why now…”
Yan Xiaosi interrupted her. “Brother Dazhuang has always been a good person. My reluctance when Aunt Tian proposed was because she’s too domineering. Brother Dazhuang, raised solely by her, listens to her too much. I was afraid you would be bullied by her after getting married. But now that you like Brother Dazhuang, the situation is different. As for Aunt Tian, if she dares to bully you, I have my ways to deal with her.”
Yan Shuqin felt warmth in her heart, considering her younger sister as a huge support. With Xiaosi around, no one could bully her. “Xiaosi, how did you become so capable? I still remember when you were born, so tiny like a newborn kitten. I thought I would protect you for a lifetime, but now it’s you who are protecting us.”
Without Yan Xiaosi as their pillar, they would have struggled after leaving the dilapidated temple. “Maybe I was a fierce ghost in my past life. Whoever dares to bully our mother and three sisters, I will make them pay,” Yan Xiaosi said with a smile, pulling Yan Shuqin’s wrist as they continued towards the cave.
After lunch, as Ms. Zhong and Yan Shuqin were cleaning up, Tian Dazhuang arrived. Seeing the light inside the cave, he walked in.
Ms. Zhong, seeing him enter, hurriedly asked, “Dazhuang, why have you come? Have you had lunch? If not, I can make you something.”
“Aunt Yan, I’ve already eaten lunch before coming. You don’t need to busy yourself,” Tian Dazhuang replied while walking towards Yan Xiaosi.
Yan Xiaosi poured a bowl of water and handed it to him, asking, “Brother Dazhuang, did you come in such a hurry because you found out about someone selling land?”
Climbing the mountain had left Tian Dazhuang thirsty, so he gratefully drank the water. “I did find out. A family in Shaoyao Village wants to sell their land.”
“Which family?”
“It’s Tian Qingquan’s family. Remember, a few days ago, Tian Qingquan’s son fell ill. They tried some herbs but to no effect. Recently, his condition worsened, he started talking nonsense and stopped eating. Tian Qingquan and his wife are afraid that if they delay any longer, their son might not make it. So, they plan to sell their three acres of land to pay for his treatment.”
Yan Xiaosi was familiar with Tian Qingquan’s family. Tian Qingquan and Tian Dazhuang shared the same ancestry. After several years of marriage, Tian Qingquan and his wife had only one son, Tian Baogen, whom they cherished deeply. It was likely they would sell their land to treat their son.
As soon as Tian Dazhuang finished speaking, Yan Xiaosi briskly stood up and went to Ms. Zhong. “Mother, quickly give me the silver.”
The money Yan Xiaosi had earned was kept by Ms. Zhong for safekeeping. Knowing her daughter intended to buy Tian Qingquan’s land, Ms. Zhong quickly took out twenty taels of silver.
“Xiaosi, let me go with you,” Ms. Zhong suggested.
Yan Xiaosi glanced at Tian Dazhuang and then said to her mother, “Mother, someone needs to take care of our current home. You and Second Sister stay in the cave. Big sister and I will go with Brother Dazhuang.”
