Chapter 64: The Sheep-Tending Pig

Chapter 64: The Sheep-Tending Pig

Earlier, Uncle Old Niu had delivered a stone of grain, and later, Sui Wen'an brought a stone of rice flour. Sui Yu figured that in two more days, the government would also distribute food, and then their grain jars would be brimming full.

A rooster crowed in the courtyard. Sui Yu covered the grain jar and walked out. Cat Officer was pouncing on a wild chicken on the ground. She went over and picked up the chicken. Its legs were injured, and its wings were clipped. She thought it best to slaughter it rather than let it grow thinner.

"Brother Liang, come help me with the fire. I'll kill the chicken, and from now on, we can stir-fry it with radishes for several meals," said Sui Yu.

Sui Liang nodded happily and ran into the kitchen to start the fire.

Sui Yu carried a basin of water into the kitchen and poured it into the pot. She weighed the knife and bowl in her hands, plucked the feathers from the chicken's neck, and slit its throat. The chicken's blood dripped into the bowl.

"Mew—" Cat Officer, smelling the blood, cried out loudly, dragging stones around the courtyard in agitation.

After the chicken's blood had drained completely, Sui Yu threw away the carcass and took the bowl into the kitchen. She sprinkled a pinch of salt into the bowl of chicken blood. By the time the wild chicken had fully expired, the blood in the bowl had coagulated.

"Mew—" Cat Officer cried out again.

"I know, I know. Later, you can have the chicken's butt," Sui Yu muttered. She went inside to get scissors to pluck the chicken's feathers. It was a wild rooster with long tail feathers and beautiful plumage. She planned to cut them off, wash them, and make a shuttlecock.

Sui Liang knocked on the door with a stick to tell Sui Yu that the water had boiled.

Sui Yu picked up the wild chicken and threw it into a basin. She went inside to pour boiling water over it. Reflecting on the situation, she said, "People with skills can always find ways to earn money, even when they're down on their luck. Before my brother-in-law returns, if I can get some cowhide or sheepskin, I'll make a bow. We siblings can learn archery. Even if not for self-defense, hunting could save us a lot of money."

Sui Wen'an, having been freed from slavery, relied on crop yields for sustenance. Since the harvest wasn't ready yet, the grain he ate was likely provided by Lord Hu or borrowed from villagers. He had no extra money to buy rice or flour, relying instead on the money he earned from selling game.

Thinking about his freedom to trade, Sui Yu sighed and threw the chicken's butt to Cat Officer. "Your brother-in-law has been away for nearly a month. I wonder how he's doing."

After plucking all the feathers, night had fallen completely. Sui Yu cleaned up the chicken feathers and dumped them into the manure bucket along with the water. She washed the chicken's innards and stir-fried the intestines, gizzard, heart, liver, and blood with dried vegetables. She also cooked two bowls of dumpling soup. This was dinner for her and Sui Liang.

After the meal, Sui Yu hung the plucked chicken in the room, rubbed it with salt, and released Cat Officer to guard the food in the kitchen. After finishing these tasks, she lit a lamp and sat under the oil lamp to sew the shuttlecock, softly telling Sui Liang, "Go to bed early tonight. Wake up early tomorrow, and we'll play shuttlecock in the courtyard."

Sui Liang nodded, remembering how skilled his sister was at playing shuttlecock.

The siblings went to sleep, and the oil lamp was extinguished as the small courtyard sank into the endless night.

Not long after Sui Yu fell asleep, she suddenly woke up. She listened intently to the sounds outside. There were men laughing outside the gate.

The pigs in the pigpen grunted, and the lambs bleated twice.

Cat Officer came out of the kitchen and silently approached the front gate. Suddenly, it let out a loud cry, scaring the people outside into taking a step back. Then the gate was violently pounded.

Sui Yu got dressed and stood up, opening the door in the dark. Standing in the courtyard, she shouted, "Did your father die? Coming to bang on the door in the middle of the night to report a death? Get lost!"

Her shout woke half the lane. Neighbors opened their doors, and the few thieves in the alley fled in panic.

The neighbor on the right opened his gate and, under the moonlight, saw no one in the alley. The man walked back and forth, cursing, "Damn little bastards, tired of living, coming to our alley to steal. If you dare come again, don't run; we'll beat you to death."

Reaching the Zhao family's door, he called out, "Zhao's wife, if there's any more noise, just shout. Don't be afraid. Everyone in this alley is honest and won't tolerate thieves."

"Ai, thank you, Brother," Sui Yu replied. She wasn't scared; the alley housed thirty to forty families. As long as no one deliberately invited trouble, the thieves couldn't sneak into her bed unnoticed. Tonight's visitors were likely just some lustful men testing her.

Sui Yu went back to sleep and woke up naturally before dawn. She wanted to exercise by playing shuttlecock, so she didn't try to go back to sleep and got up immediately.

Sui Liang also got up.

With the fire burning in the stove and the pot filled with rice, Sui Yu and Sui Liang stood in the courtyard, kicking the shuttlecock back and forth. Occasionally, she would run into the kitchen to add wood to the stove.

As daylight broke, the millet porridge was ready. Sui Yu took Sui Liang to the vegetable garden to pick some vegetables for lunch.

"Sui Yu, what happened last night?" asked the woman carrying firewood.

"Some lustful men couldn't control themselves and came knocking on the door late at night," Sui Yu replied straightforwardly. The more openly she spoke, the less gossip there would be. She scanned the area, hands on her hips, and cursed, "If any of those shameless ones come knocking again, I'll curse their ancestors until smoke comes out. Shameless dogs, they should look at themselves before showing off their lustful bodies."

The woman carrying firewood laughed. She had misjudged Sui Yu, thinking she was modest but realizing she was actually fiery-tempered.

"It's because of your cousin. Her indiscretions bring shame to all of us. You're the unluckiest."

Sui Yu scoffed. "I'm different. Anyone who dares approach me will get a slap in the face. Anyway, enough talk. I need to pick some vegetables. Are you cooking too?"

"Just started the fire."

"You carry on." Sui Yu led Sui Liang away. Half the lane had heard her curses, and no one came out to pry further.

At the vegetable garden, Sui Yu told Sui Liang to dig tender chicory while she collected old shepherd's purse and half a basket of radishes to feed the pigs.

"Scared? If someone knocks on the door tonight, will you be scared?" Sui Yu asked Sui Liang with a smile.

Sui Liang shook his head. Last night, he was scared, but not anymore. He wanted to speak up when angry.

On the way back, Sui Liang hopped and skipped ahead, silently mouthing words when he saw butterflies and flowers.

After eating and feeding the pigs, Sui Yu led the camel and sheep out. Just as she locked the door, she saw Uncle Old Niu entering the alley.

"I heard some shameless ones came knocking last night?" asked Uncle Old Niu.

"Yes, I cursed them out, and the neighbors scared them away," Sui Yu replied.

"Right, that's how it should be done," Uncle Old Niu nodded. "Shout if there's any noise. As long as you don't open the door, they can't get in."

Sui Yu nodded. Last night's incident was behind her. She switched to talking about tomorrow's food distribution and reminded Uncle Old Niu not to forget her share.

The food distribution, which should have been at the beginning of the month, was delayed until the end.

Afterward, Sui Yu and Sui Liang led the sheep and pig to graze. The camel wandered freely, the lambs were tied to saplings, and the black-skinned pig lazed in the sun. Cat Officer hunted insects in the grass. Sui Yu and Sui Liang collected firewood nearby—broken branches, worm-eaten roots, and wet wood from the river.

"Girl, isn't that your sheep? It's running away," shouted the shepherd across the river.

Sui Yu turned around and saw that her two goats had broken free from the saplings and were running away, dragging the rooted tree seedlings with them. She hurriedly dropped her firewood and told Sui Liang to watch over things here while she went to chase after the goats.

The black-skinned pig was startled awake. It shook off the sand on its body and stood up. After watching for a moment, it bit through the rope and slipped away right under Sui Liang's nose.

The two goats ran in different directions. Sui Yu caught one but could do nothing about the other escaping goat. The young goat had grown bigger and was too fast for her to catch. She called out loudly, trying to bring back the fleeing goat. In the next moment, she saw a pig chasing the goat, with the black-skinned pig running and grunting, and Sui Liang trailing behind at a distance.

Sui Yu tied the goat to another tree and then rolled up her sleeves to continue the chase. As she ran around, she saw the pig chasing the goat toward her. Sui Yu spread her arms to block their path.

With a person in front and a pig behind, the escaping goat slowed down. Sui Yu took the opportunity to run over and grab the rope. Just as she was about to catch the pig, the black-skinned pig stopped and grunted a few times before walking up to her feet.

Sui Yu looked it over a few times and recalled what had just happened. This pig seemed to have been chasing the goat all along.

Sui Liang panted as he ran over, grabbed the pig's rope, and fell to the ground, gasping for breath.

"Brother Liang, you can't even outrun a little pig. You should practice more," Sui Yu teased him.

She led the black-headed goat to tie up the other one, but the black-skinned pig wanted to leave, restrained by the rope still in Sui Liang's hand.

Suddenly, Sui Yu let go of the black-headed goat, which ran away. She waved at the pig. "Xiaohei, go chase the goat. Brother Liang, let go of the rope."

The pig slowly walked toward her.

Sui Yu was greatly disappointed; it seemed she had misunderstood. She quickly tied up the other goat again and continued the chase. As soon as she moved, the black-skinned pig also started running, both aiming for the black-headed goat that had run into someone else's wheat field.

The black-skinned pig surpassed her, and the little pig, whose legs barely reached her knees, grunted and trotted toward the goat destroying the crops. It chased, circled, and turned, driving the goat closer to her.

Sui Yu slowed down; she had only seen sheepdogs before, never a pig herding sheep.

"Good piggy, I'll give you extra food at noon," Sui Yu said with a smile, patting the pig's head.

The goat was chased back, and the camel returned as well. It was time to prepare lunch. Sui Yu bundled the firewood and placed it between the camel's humps, then led the two goats back.

The camel, knowing the way, walked ahead, and the black-skinned pig, favored by its owner, dragged the rope and followed, grunting. The cat, with its tail upright, occasionally scratched it.

As the door opened, the camel and the pig entered one after the other and obediently went to their respective pens. Sui Yu peeked inside, withdrew her head, and patted the goats, leading them into the house. "Others know how to work and understand humans, but all you know is eating."

At noon, while cooking, Sui Yu added half a bowl of millet to the rice. People would eat white rice, while the millet rice was reserved for feeding the pig.

In the afternoon, Sister La Mei came to help Sui Yu with sewing, and Sui Yu stayed home for a while.

As night fell again, Uncle Niu sneaked out with a machete when it was quiet. He hid behind a half-stack of alfalfa hay outside the Zhao family's wall, waiting for someone, but eventually fell asleep. He woke up to sounds in the courtyard before dawn. Hearing that Sui Yu had woken up, he carried the machete back home.

Around mid-morning, Uncle Niu brought two stones of grain. Hearing people talk about someone sleeping in Sui Yu's hay stack, he sighed and said, "It was me. I kept watch outside all night, but those little rascals didn't show up."