Chapter 158

Chapter 158

Yan Lan still supported Yu Wenyao, feeling annoyed as she heard Xu Yuqing's concern. She looked at Yu Wenyao and tightened her grip, pinching him hard.

"Ahh~" Yu Wenyao cried out in pain and shook off Yan Lan's hand.

Yan Lan snorted, not wanting to look at him, and complained to Xu Yuqing, "It was all because of him. He went crazy, insisting on dragging me along to dig up some good vegetables."

Thinking about the earlier embarrassment, she hit Yu Wenyao's arm again with particular force.

Yu Wenyao howled but dared not say anything.

"You wouldn't believe it. Halfway there, he couldn't hold on and we both fell. I said we should go back, but he insisted on continuing. The ground was wet and slippery, and we fell several times. This guy said he would carry me back, but he couldn't even lift me!"

Yan Lan's resentment was almost palpable.

Yu Wenyao stood beside her, wanting to argue that it wasn't because he couldn't lift her, but because the ground was too slippery. However, one fierce glance from Yan Lan made him shrink back, and he hurriedly ran inside to find his friends for comfort.

Xu Yuqing found this amusing but noticed that parts of Yan Lan's clothes were wet. If she didn't change, she might catch a cold. "Sister Yan Lan, come in and change your clothes. The food is ready, and you can eat now."

"No need to change; it's nothing. If I needed to change, I would have gone back earlier," Yan Lan waved her hand. Her body wasn't that weak.

Besides, wearing Yuqing's clothes, she feared they would tear due to her small frame.

Xu Yuqing had been a bit worried, but seeing that Yan Lan was indeed fine, she relaxed. They picked up their bowls and chopsticks. Then, Yan Lan remembered her son and asked Xu Yuqing, "Where's Yu Song?"

Hearing her mention Yu Song, Xu Yuqing couldn't help but think of Xie Junli's earlier appearance, and she chuckled. "He's asleep inside. We woke him up for dinner."

"Huh? That kid could sleep through anything? Usually, he refuses to sleep," Yan Lan was surprised as she followed Xu Yuqing inside.

Xie Junli and Yu Wenyao instantly became irrelevant. They exchanged a glance, then turned away in disgust, silently cleaning up the kitchen.

In the room, Yu Song looked sound asleep.

He was curled up, his cheeks flushed. Yan Lan couldn't help but smile, her maternal glow evident.

Xu Yuqing approached and gently lifted the blanket. Yan Lan reached out, caressing his face, and softly called, "Song, little Song, wake up. It's time for egg custard."

There was no significant reaction; he even seemed annoyed, lowering his head and frowning.

Yan Lan laughed mischievously and picked him up. "Come on, let's go eat Auntie's scrambled eggs!"

Auntie! Yu Song's eyes snapped open, and his mouth watered. "I want to eat!"

As soon as he opened his eyes, he saw Xu Yuqing smiling at him. "Auntie, I want to eat scrambled eggs!"

Xu Yuqing didn't tease him further. "Sure, it's all for you."

She handed him his pants, and Yan Lan quickly dressed him. Finally able to eat, Xu Yuqing sighed in relief. But as soon as they stepped out of the room, they smelled something unpleasant.

She frowned and exchanged a glance with Yan Lan before walking briskly into the kitchen.

With her keen nose, she immediately identified the source of the smell: the small stove on the floor.

And that familiar herbal concoction...

Xu Yuqing rubbed her forehead, realizing she had to drink this bitter concoction.

Her heart sank, feeling utterly defeated.

Xie Junli noticed her distress and felt a pang of sympathy, but he wanted her to get better sooner.

The kitchen had no door, and as the herbs boiled, the smell grew stronger. Fortunately, it wasn't unpleasant anymore, just the scent of herbs.

Eating with the aroma added a unique flavor.

At the table, only Xu Yuqing was distracted, eating without taste.

But no matter how much she delayed, she still had to drink the medicine.

After dinner, everyone stayed at the table, including little Yu Song.

The table was cleared except for a bowl of dark, steaming medicine.

Xu Yuqing looked at the medicine in fear, feeling helpless. She took two steps back, wanting to leave.

But Xie Junli anticipated her move, standing behind her, picking up the bowl. The medicine still steamed slightly as he brought it to Xu Yuqing's lips. "Do you want me to feed you with a spoon?"

A spoon? Feed me??

Xu Yuqing shook her head vigorously. Drinking it spoon by spoon would be unbearable. Looking at the bowl, she couldn't even lift her hand.

Yan Lan patted Yu Song, who was in her arms. "Come on, cheer Auntie up."

Yu Song nodded, his little face showing fear of the concoction. "Auntie, drink it quickly! Later, I'll give you candy!"

Encouraged by the child's voice and Xie Junli's worried gaze, Xu Yuqing closed her eyes, determined. She couldn't lose face in front of the child.

Now she was grateful for having to take the medicine only once a day.

If she had to take it more often, she'd die.

Taking the bowl, Xu Yuqing took a deep breath, pinched her nose with one hand, and poured it down her throat.

It really was being poured; some of it overflowed from the corner of her mouth. Xie Junli quickly took out a handkerchief to wipe it off for her. Xu Yuqing was completely unaware of this; she only felt that her whole body had turned bitter, and her tongue was completely numb. The last sip went down.

Xu Yuqing was completely dazed. Yan Lan, with sharp eyes, hurriedly placed a glass of water in her hand and took away the bowl. "Quick! Drink some water!"

Yu Song also ran over to his father, looking everywhere for some candy to eat.

Everyone was quite busy. After the bitterness in her mouth subsided, Xu Yuqing suddenly felt that it wasn't so bad after all.

There wasn’t any problem.

With a piece of candy in her mouth, Xie Junli patted her head and picked up the bowls and chopsticks to clean the kitchen. Seeing her like this, Yan Lan felt relieved and picked up Yu Song. "Alright, now that you’ve finished your medicine, we’ll be going back."

"Okay."

Xu Yuqing nodded and bid farewell to Yan Lan’s family.

After closing the door, she immediately ran to the bed and lay down. Her stomach churned, and as soon as she spoke, the bitterness surged up again, making her uncomfortable.

Moreover, this medicine seemed to make her sleepy. Xu Yuqing hadn’t lain down for more than a few minutes when her eyes involuntarily closed. When she came to, she saw Xie Junli waking her up.

Rubbing her eyes sleepily, she asked, "What is it?"

Xie Junli touched her cheek, which was smooth and tender. "The doctor said not to sleep too long."

He kept an eye on the time; she had slept for just over an hour before he woke her up.

But Xu Yuqing was still sleepy. She yawned. "A nap should at least be two hours. I’ll sleep a little longer."

After saying this, she wanted to close her eyes and continue sleeping.

Xie Junli looked at her worriedly. Seeing that he couldn’t stop her, he decided to take action and kissed her. A few minutes later, he looked at his panting wife. "If you keep sleeping, I’ll keep doing this."

"You sleep your sleep, and I’ll do my work."

He said this calmly.

But in Xie Junli’s eyes, it was a blatant threat—a huge threat!

How despicable! Xu Yuqing glared at him angrily and, taking advantage of his momentary distraction, tried to pull the blanket over herself. However, with her limited strength, Xie Junli easily pulled the blanket back.

Seeing her clothes about to be removed, Xu Yuqing hurriedly struggled to get up. "Wait! I’m getting up, I’m getting up!"

Getting up reluctantly, Xu Yuqing was lost. What could she do during this long afternoon if not sleep?

She looked at Xie Junli, who was folding the blanket.

Right, the radishes!

All the radishes from the cellar had been brought up, and there were still many left, but they weren’t enough for drying.

"If I’m not sleeping, then let’s go dry the radishes!"

She dragged Xie Junli along, determined to keep him busy, and excitedly led him outside.

Xie Junli moved all the radishes into the yard, while Xu Yuqing started pumping water.

The dried mud on the radishes could be easily scraped off with her fingernails. After cleaning them, she put them in the water. One by one, the bucket of water soon turned murky.

After moving the radishes, Xie Junli brought a stool for Xu Yuqing to sit on, then squatted down and took over her task. Xu Yuqing’s fingertips were red from the hard, rough mud.

But Xie Junli seemed unaffected. With a light rub of his palm, the mud fell right off.

Seeing this, Xu Yuqing turned around and sat down to wash the radishes.

Radish slices taste better with the skin on, so she tried to clean the surface thoroughly.

The early spring water was still a bit cold, but under the sun, it became comfortably warm. Xu Yuqing pumped bucket after bucket of water and finally managed to clean all the radishes.

She called for Xie Junli to bring the knife and cutting board from the kitchen. Xu Yuqing then started slicing the radishes.

Now that the sun was out, although not very strong, it was enough to dry the radishes without needing to heat the stove.

"Xie Junli, hang a rope on the wall to dry the radishes." Xu Yuqing took the knife and gestured to Xie Junli.

Xie Junli put down the cutting board, acknowledged her, watched her skillfully slice the radishes, and then turned to start working.

He hammered a nail into each wall. Although there was thin hemp rope available, Xie Junli feared it might break since the radishes were heavy.

He brought over a roll of wire, which he handled as if it were a soft rope, easily securing it in place.

Beside him, Xu Yuqing sliced the radishes with a rhythmic sound, cutting each radish into three or four pieces, then slicing each piece vertically into strips, perfect for hanging.

Slicing radishes was simple, but slicing so many made Xu Yuqing’s hands tire quickly. These radishes were large and difficult to cut, requiring effort.

Putting down the knife, she shook her hands and sighed, missing modern appliances.

Xie Junli noticed her fatigue and quickly finished securing the wire, pulling it tight to ensure it was secure. Then he walked over and took the knife from Xu Yuqing. "Let me do the slicing."

Xu Yuqing’s eyes lit up. "Sure!"

Happily putting down the knife, she offered him the stool and squatted beside him, watching his skilled movements.

Not bad. Thinking about it now, Xie Junli truly was a great man—never complaining, always willing to work, attentive, and generous with money.

Her judgment was pretty good, indeed.

Taking the sliced radishes from Xie Junli, Xu Yuqing happily ran to the wire he had set up and hung the radishes on it.

The sliced radishes fit perfectly on the wire. Xu Yuqing hung one small basket and then went back for more. Xie Junli worked faster than she did, and she couldn’t hang them as quickly as he could slice them.

Finally, the yard was filled with hanging white radishes, looking quite pleasant and having a unique charm.

Xu Yuqing placed her hands on her hips. "Now that the radishes are done, what's next?"

Xie Junli finished tidying up the things on the ground. The activity had been no trouble for him at all as he stood up and looked around the yard. "Didn't you say you wanted to plant vegetables? It's time to sow some seeds."

Saying this, he pulled a bag of seeds from his pocket.

It seemed he had been well-prepared.