Chapter 39: A Nightly Conversation Between Husband and Wife

Chapter 39: A Nightly Conversation Between Husband and Wife

The subordinate was somewhat satisfied with the couple's attitude of repentance. After giving them some more warnings, he intended to leave. Stepping out of the kitchen, he stood in the courtyard and looked around. Suddenly, he glimpsed a child staring at him from the dim entrance of the main room. Startled, his face turned pale, and he stepped back, treading on Li Baihu’s foot.

"Y-you saw..." He wanted to ask Li Baihu if he could see the person standing in the doorway, but then he saw the skinny child come out, leaning against the door.

Zhao Xiping waved and said, "Sui Liang, come and greet the official."

Sui Liang didn’t move. He understood that these two men were bad people.

"My little brother is a fool; he doesn’t understand what’s being said. Please forgive him," Sui Yu apologized humbly.

Seeing it was a living person, the subordinate patted his sleeves and straightened up, his expression changing repeatedly due to losing his composure, which annoyed him greatly.

"Really a fool or pretending?" Li Baihu didn't miss the chance to irritate them. He took two steps forward, but Zhao Xiping stepped in front of him, blocking his way. "This child hasn’t made a sound since you handed him over to me. A six-year-old boy who can’t speak and only follows orders—what else could he be but a fool? He was scared senseless, and if you scare him further, he might wet the bed. Are you going to take him back and raise him?"

Li Baihu snorted, glanced at Sui Yu, and said, "He wasn’t handed over by me, but if you find him a burden, I’ll take him with me when I leave and send him to the penal labor camp."

Sui Yu’s face changed, and Zhao Xiping’s expression darkened. He endured for a moment, then softened his tone. "He’s too young; he won’t survive long in the penal labor camp. When he grows up, whether he’s still a fool or not, I’ll personally send him there to serve."

The subordinate kept staring at Sui Liang. Seeing no reaction from him even after hearing this, the child seemed truly like a fool, so he waved his hand and turned to leave first.

Li Baihu hurried out to see him off without saying anything more.

Once the footsteps faded away, Sui Yu breathed a sigh of relief. She limped over to close the gate, then turned to see Sui Liang silently crying under the eaves, looking frightened as if just realizing what had happened.

Zhao Xiping didn’t know how to comfort children, nor did he have words to reassure him. He couldn’t think about the future and saw no way out, so he stood there in silence.

"Next time strangers come in, stay inside and don’t come out," Sui Yu instructed.

Sui Liang wiped away his tears and nodded obediently, vaguely aware that he shouldn’t have shown himself earlier.

"You still have many years before you grow up, so don’t be afraid." Sui Yu forced a smile, walked over, and took Sui Liang’s hand, leading him into the kitchen. She reassured him, "Even if you go to serve, there’s nothing to fear. I’ll make you tall and strong, and you can learn martial arts from your brother-in-law. In ten years, building dams or digging trenches for the Great Wall will be easy work."

Sui Liang believed her and wiped away his tears, stopping his crying.

"You’ve endured all the hardships during exile; what else is there to be afraid of? Right?" Sui Yu encouraged him, also motivating herself. "Nothing to fear; everything will work out eventually. Let’s eat well, sleep well, and work hard."

Sui Liang nodded vigorously.

"Wash your hands and eat the buns. Eat plenty." Sui Yu let out a breath unnoticed, sat down by the stove, and stuffed some dry grass into the cold stove hole, blowing on the embers to reignite the fire. She blew again and again until she felt dizzy.

The flames rose, and Sui Yu tossed a clump of cow dung into the stove, added some dry wood, and stared at the orange-red flames, lost in thought.

Sui Liang sat beside her, nibbling on a bun. The cat, hearing the smell, stretched and jumped down from the top of the food cabinet, crouching by their feet, its tail tucked, and closed its eyes to the crackling of the burning wood.

Zhao Xiping couldn’t stand the silence in the room, so he went outside to shovel snow and clean the camel pen. After cleaning the pen, he turned to carry the chicken coop, planning to wash it with snow.

In the kitchen, Sui Yu regained her spirits after a while and started packing the steamed buns into a basket, preparing to make another batch. If today’s buns couldn’t be sold, they would eat them themselves, filling up on them every day.

"Zhao Fuzhang, go to the vegetable garden and cut some leeks. We have some free time today, so I’ll make a few more fillings and bake some flatbreads. Let’s change our diet; we’re tired of eating radishes," Sui Yu called out from the kitchen. "If you want tofu fillings, run to the street and buy two blocks of tofu."

Zhao Xiping looked at her carefully, then nodded and put down the chicken coop. "Is there anything else you want? I’ll buy it for you."

Sui Yu thought for a moment. She wanted chicken, but considering the money in her hand, she shook her head. "Nothing else."

The man left with the money, and Sui Yu brought out the soaked soybean sprouts from the food cabinet. "Liang Ge’er, come help pick the sprouts. They’re not good if they’re too old. Look at me, I’m picking out the old ones and throwing them away."

Picking sprouts was time-consuming and tedious, but now it served as a good distraction.

Zhao Xiping returned from the street with tofu and went to the vegetable garden to cut two bunches of leeks, then slowly washed them in the kitchen.

They had bought lard and bean oil a few days ago, and the jars were still nearly full. With plenty of oil, Sui Yu didn’t hesitate to use it. She fried the sprouts, tofu, and leek eggs, then wrapped the oily fillings in dough and flattened them to bake.

"I found that this flat pan is perfect for baking flatbreads and pancakes. It makes a crispy golden shell that smells delicious," Sui Yu said, flipping the bread with a spatula. "Move the fire a bit to the west, just enough to warm it, not to create flames."

Zhao Xiping nodded and used a poker to adjust the embers.

One pan could bake seven round flatbreads. By the fifth pan, it was completely dark outside. When the last bread was done, Sui Yu mixed water with ash to clean the pot bottom. After washing the oil off, she drew water to heat for washing faces and feet.

The oil lamp flickered, almost empty. Sui Yu added two spoonfuls of lamp oil, and the flame rose, casting the cat’s shadow large on the wall. She stared at the shadow until the water began to steam, then lifted the lid.

Zhao Xiping went outside to get a wooden basin. While washing his face, he pulled out a small-necked black pottery bottle from his chest and handed it to Sui Yu. "Camel fat, use it after washing your face."

Sui Yu looked at him, uncapped the bottle, and sniffed it. It had a slight fishy smell, like milk.

"When did you buy it? When you bought tofu?"

Zhao Xiping nodded, hoping to cheer her up.

"The shopkeeper said it prevents frostbite and redness." Whether it was true, he wasn’t sure, but he heard the shopkeeper say it to others, so he bought a bottle.

Sui Yu smiled slightly, dried her face, and rubbed a dollop between her palms, applying it gently. She winced in pain; her face was chapped and cracked from the cold wind, and the camel fat stung.

"What’s wrong?" Zhao Xiping asked, puzzled.

Sui Yu waved her hand and applied another dollop to Sui Liang’s face, who also winced but didn’t cry out.

"You should apply some too..." Sui Yu leaned closer, examining Zhao Xiping’s face. Despite the cold, his face showed neither redness nor dryness, and his lips weren’t chapped.

"Forget it, you don’t need it." Sui Yu put the bottle away. "Thanks, I feel better now."

Zhao Xiping mumbled something, poured the washing water into the foot basin, and added hot water from the pot. Then he removed his shoes and socks to soak his feet.

Tonight, they wouldn’t knead dough, so they didn’t need to keep the stove lit. But considering the cat, Sui Yu buried some ashes in the stove to keep it warm until late night.

Lying in bed, Zhao Xiping spread the wolf skin on the mattress. Seeing the two at the foot of the bed asleep, he blew out the lamp, plunging the room into darkness, leaving only the sound of breathing.

Gradually, one of the breathing sounds became steady as Sui Liang fell asleep, but the other remained uneven, unable to calm down for a long time.

The night passed swiftly in the cold wind. The bed, crowded with three people, had finally warmed up, but Sui Yu's chilblains began to act up again. She was too lazy to get up and instead gently rubbed her feet together through her socks. However, the itching persisted, and she lost her patience, rubbing them hard against the curved edge of the manuscript scrolls under the bed.

The chilblains broke open, and the pain set in.

"Damn it." Filled with frustration, Sui Yu sat up and slapped the painful and itchy spots after taking off her socks. The clear sound of her slaps echoed in the room, waking up Sui Liang, who turned over and sat up.

"It's nothing; I'm just swatting a mosquito." Sui Yu patted him and lay back down, trying to hold her breath. The itching on her legs and feet only grew more unbearable, and she lost her composure, stretching out her foot to rub it against the edge of the bed.

Xiping opened his eyes and pulled both her feet back. Her feet were bare, the tops burning hot while the soles were icy cold. He felt the raised bumps and pressed them with his fingertips, from the top of her feet to her toes, ankles, and legs—nowhere was smooth. He switched to using his palms.

"My toes itch the most," Sui Yu said in a low voice. "I can't even sleep properly. It's torture. I'd rather have a quick death."

Xiping remained silent, using both hands to rub her feet with his palms.

"Will you scratch my itch for me tomorrow night?" Sui Yu asked.

"Mm, go to sleep. I'll sleep after you do."

Sui Yu couldn't fall asleep. Since there was nothing to do tomorrow, she didn't need to force herself to sleep. Once the itching subsided temporarily, she moved her feet and got up to switch to the end of the bed.

"Don't worry, I won't touch you." Sui Yu lifted the quilt and wolf skin and slipped in smoothly. It was truly warm on this side.

"Go back to your side."

"I don't want to sleep yet. When I feel like sleeping, I'll go back." Sui Yu sighed softly. "When you were scratching my feet, I almost cried. Talk to me; I'm not happy today."

Xiping stiffened and moved a bit away, staring at the dark ceiling, unsure what to say.

"If we can't sell anything, how will I earn money? The pressure will be back on you alone."

"I can support you all."

Sui Yu shook her head. She once again deeply realized her precarious situation. Criminal slave, criminal slave—this shackle bound her, and at any moment, it could cost her life. If it came to that, even Xiping wouldn't be able to protect her. Just like today, if the official had been more violent and tried to take her away, Xiping wouldn't have been able to stop him.

"Aren't you thinking of raising piglets? When spring comes, I'll buy you two more sheep. One pig and two sheep; by the end of the year, selling them will earn you more than my salary." Xiping spoke slowly. "Didn't you say you're not afraid of any difficulties? Don't lose hope. If you can't do business, there are other ways to make money."

Sui Yu nodded; there was no other choice.

"The money I earn can only buy one piglet..."

"I'll buy them for you. The money from selling the sheep is yours; I don't want it."