Chapter 57: A Visit ◇

"Learning martial arts alongside my father while tending to the fields."

Later that day, Yu Lian made a visit to Second Uncle's residence and sought out Uncle Qiushou for help. She wished for him to serve as a witness while they retrieved the medical expenses from Hua Baogui's home. At the time, Hua Qiushou was also working nearby. As the eldest son of Second Uncle and holding some influence, he was an appropriate person to assist in claiming the debt.

Without any further ado, Hua Qiushou readily agreed to take action. After all, this matter was not the fault of the Mu family; for instance, could one blame someone for building their house where it stood if he himself ran onto their land and accidentally met his demise? Clearly, that would be unjustified. Moreover, the person in question had been rescued, and the advance payment for medical treatment was no trifling sum—it was only reasonable to reclaim those expenses.

Second Master was assisting his wife in peeling garlic when he heard this. He glanced over and said, "Fei-er, just say it's my word, and ask Precious Father to return every single coin of your silver."

After Yu Lian expressed her gratitude to Second Master and his son, she was about to leave when Second Grandma called her back. "I've made some sweet cakes. Take them home for your children to try, my rascals have already ruined their teeth with sweets, yet they still clamor for more."

These so-called sweet cakes were made by mixing sugar powder with white flour, shaping them into round patties, steaming them until cooked, and then frying them until both sides turned golden brown, resulting in a sweet and soft treat.

As sugar and fine flour were both expensive commodities, peasant households rarely made such delicacies. For Second Grandma, it was an annual or biannual occurrence.

Noticing Yu Lian's curiosity, she chuckled and explained, "Yesterday, I was in high spirits because my daughter-in-law is pregnant, and it happened to be Bean's birthday. The children begged for sweet cakes, so I managed to acquire half a catty of sugar and indulged them."

Taking the sweet cakes, Yu Lian offered her congratulations. "Your sweet cakes are always delicious. Guo'er often mentions that Bean declares your sweet cakes as the best in the world. I'm sure my three children will be overjoyed when I bring them home."

Second Aunt seemed to be in a good mood and, as an act of kindness, also shared some of her drying garlic with Yu Lian, along with two bundles of green vegetables.

Yu Lian felt rather embarrassed. She had come to seek a favor but ended up leaving with more than she had expected. Once again, she marveled at how kind and generous Second Uncle's family truly was to them.

Upon returning home, Meiyi was already preparing dinner, with Little Guo'er assisting by tending to the fire. Yu Lian called Little Guo'er out, while the twins didn't need to be summoned; their keen sense of smell led them to the kitchen from somewhere, drawn by the aroma.

"What did you bring back, Sister? I can smell the scent of sweet biscuits," asked Little Guo'er, wrinkling her little nose and making a playful face at her two elder brothers. "You two are such gluttons."

Yu Lian distributed the sweet biscuits bestowed by her second uncle's wife, giving one to each person, and stowed away the remainder. These treats, with their high sugar and salt content, could easily spoil one's appetite for dinner if consumed excessively.

The twins received the sweet cakes with delight. Despite their size, equal to an adult's palm, the twins devoured them in just a few bites. With eager eyes, they looked at Yu Lian, hoping for more.

In their former days back in the capital's marquis residence, they wouldn't have so much as touched this sort of empty sweetness with a chopstick. Now, it has become a luxurious delicacy; one is not enough, and they crave another.

As Yu Lian was about to enter the room, the two of them gently took hold of one of her arms each, pleading, "Sister... we haven't had our fill yet."

Little Guo'er, being a ladylike young girl, ate with refined manners. She held half of the delicacy in her hand, nibbling on it gently and steadily. Remarkably, the twins showed some restraint and refrained from snatching their sister's treat.

Although they were greedy, they never stole food from others, which was a rare virtue. When faced with problems, they knew how to protect their family, and more importantly, despite the significant change in environment and diet from the capital to this rural area, the three children adapted well without ever being picky eaters.

Yu Lian patted the twins' heads. "Dinner will be ready soon. Let's leave the sweet cakes for Aunt Mei to steam for your breakfast tomorrow morning."

With that, she headed inside to have a chat with her grandmother.

Little Guo'er divided her half of the sweet cake into three equal parts, giving each person a piece. "Let's eat together."

Hua Yan and Hua Xing exchanged glances before popping the cake into their mouths. They wrapped their arms around Little Guo'er's shoulders. "Guo'er, you're so good. In the future, your brothers will look out for you."

Delighted, Little Guo'er asked, "How will you do that?"

Hua Yan replied, "You're a girl, and girls can easily be bullied, especially pretty ones. Don't worry, when you grow up, if anyone dares to bully you, we'll teach them a lesson!"

"That's right, teach them a lesson! Who would dare to bully our little sister?"

Hua Zhan returned with his hoe, overhearing their conversation. He glanced at his two foolish sons, initially saying nothing but giving them a look. Later, while washing his hands and feet in the yard, he overheard their exaggerated boasts. Passing by the room, he casually remarked, "You two? With your amateur skills? You couldn't even beat a cat."

Yu Lian watched the scene unfold from the doorstep, smiling. "Father, if you think Yan'er and Xing'er aren't skilled enough, why don't you take pity on them and train them? Teach them to become unbeatable masters, so they can protect our sister and family, and no one will dare to bully them."

"Yan-er, Xing-er, do you want to learn?"

Recalling the pain they endured when their father first taught them martial arts, the twins vigorously shook their heads, refusing the offer. However, Yu Lian followed up with, "Do you really not want to learn? If not, you'll be hoeing the fields your whole life, starting with a small hoe and eventually graduating to a larger one. From childhood to old age, will you be content spending your days in the fields?"

The twins' heads shook even more fiercely, their hands waving along with them.

Compared to practicing martial arts, farming was undoubtedly more exhausting. It involved wielding hoes under the scorching sun and harsh winds. In their minds, there was no greater hardship. Hence, during their recent experience helping their father clear the land, they looked at the villagers with immense admiration.

They could work all day without complaint!

The twins hastily asked, "If Sister learns martial arts, she won't have to farm, right? Then we choose to learn martial arts!"

That was Hua Xing's remark.

Hua Yan quickly smacked his brother's head and said, "What are you saying? Are we learning martial arts just to avoid farming? Of course not! We're doing it to protect our sister, our sister-in-law, our grandmother, our parents, Aunt Mei, and our entire family, aren't we, Sister, Father?"

Hua Zhan would believe his mischievous sons were sincere if bears could speak. He glanced at the two troublemakers indifferently but genuinely pondered the proposal in his heart.

He... always felt somewhat inadequate, with his two sons still young. He had never expected much from them, but upon serious reflection, should anything unexpected happen to him, who would take charge of the family in the future?

Even if a daughter-in-law is capable, she is still a woman. Without a male descendant to support the family, life in the village can be vulnerable to bullying and manipulation. It would be good for these two boys to learn some martial arts so they can protect their family in the future.

Yu Lian "believed" and said earnestly, "Yan'er and Xing'er are good children. After we finish our meal, I will reward you both with another sweet cake to share. Your sister-in-law knows that you are both loving and caring for your family, and that you enjoy farming, being very diligent, isn't that right?"

Enjoy farming? That was impossible, it would never happen in this lifetime! But the twins, in perfect unison, replaced the word 'dislike' that was about to slip out with 'like'!

Lying doesn't cost a silver coin anyway!

Perhaps their sister-in-law would be happy again and give them another sweet treat!

Yu Lian smiled and said, "That's perfect. You can learn martial arts from Father while also tending to the fields. Moreover, when the new house is built, and we move in, you will have a study room where you must also read and learn to write."

The twins: "???" They were confused and almost jumped up.

Hua Zhan nodded, "Tomorrow, rise at dawn and practice horse stance."

The twins: "...."

The next day, Yu Lian, Hua Qiushou, and Dashu's wife went together to Hua Baogui's house.

She addressed Big Tree's wife because she had witnessed the entire incident from start to finish and could serve as a credible witness.

Not wishing to arrive empty-handed, Yu Lian had brought a basket filled with roughly ten eggs, which she had specially purchased from someone else. Aunt Mei stared longingly at the basket of eggs, as if reluctant to part with them. One only realizes the cost of daily necessities when they're in charge of managing the household; even though she wasn't the head of the family, her role as the cook had made her well aware of the value of ingredients.

Once in the marquis's mansion, serving as a concubine, who could have foreseen that there would come a day when even gazing upon an egg would evoke a heart-wrenching reluctance?

Back then, in the mansion, there were dozens of ways the cooks would prepare eggs; even the simplest dish of scrambled eggs would be enhanced with finely minced meat and garnished with chopped scallions, sometimes even enriched with rare ingredients to be steamed. Dried seafood specialties from the southern regions such as shellfish were luxuries only accessible to high-ranking officials in the capital city. On one occasion, when the imperial court bestowed a batch of tribute items, an elderly lady within the household particularly enjoyed these delicacies. To cater to her taste, they were meticulously incorporated into steamed egg dishes. During that time, she had the privilege of partaking in this sumptuous fare several times, not realizing its true value but merely appreciating the heightened freshness and delectable flavors it offered.

Now, she felt an immense reluctance to part with the basket of unadorned, ordinary eggs! Normally, she would sparingly consume them, steaming two or three at a time to share with the elderly matriarch, Lian'er, and her three children.

It had been quite a few days since I last tasted the flavor of eggs.

Even though she was here to request money, Yu Lian had disguised her visit as a medical checkup for Hua Baogui. When Hua Baogui's mother opened the door, she saw Yu Lian's face and felt displeased. She had planned to leave her son at the clinic for a few days based on the doctor's advice the next day, but Yu Lian's absence forced her to take him away.

Looking down and seeing a basket of eggs in her hands, the woman's expression softened. She smiled and said, "You've come all this way, why bring gifts? You're too polite." As she spoke, she reached out to take the basket of eggs, almost snatching it away. She continued, "How did you know that our precious Baogui loves eggs? When he was little, our family hardly dared to eat one all year round, we saved them all for him. He ate one every day and grew up plump and fair."

Maintaining a faint smile on her face, Yu Lian inwardly disapproved of the family's distorted treatment due to gender bias. Was it simply because they had too many daughters that they treated their only son like gold?

As they entered the courtyard, before Yu Lian could see Hua Baogui, she heard a weak cry, "Mother, mother, ride the big horse."

"You're not my mother. Father, where are you, Father?"

Dashu's wife tugged at Yu Lian and signaled her with a meaningful look. Yu Lian paused and whispered, "Is she perhaps...simple-minded? Why does she seem odd?"