Chapter 80: A Sentimental Child

Chapter 80: A Sentimental Child

Early in the morning, Zhao Xiping got up to sweep the fallen snow from the courtyard. The snow was dry and sandy, crunching underfoot.

Sui Yu lay in bed listening to the sound of sweeping outside. The rustling was like insect chirping, and she drifted back to sleep with her eyes half-closed.

After clearing the snow both inside and outside the house, and cooking the porridge, Zhao Xiping pushed the door open and called, "Breakfast is ready. Get dressed and eat."

Sui Liang rolled over and sat up, hissing as he quickly put on layer after layer of clothes.

Sui Yu pulled herself up in bed, shivering as she said, "It's so cold."

Zhao Xiping threw the clothes from the wooden chest beside the bed and asked, "Are you getting up? If not, I'll bring your food to the bed."

"The more I lie in bed, the colder it gets. I might as well get up." Sui Yu picked up her fur vest and put it on, then layered five more garments over it. She also wore five pairs of pants, topped off with a thick, wind-blocking skirt.

Stepping out of the dim house, the bright light outside made it hard to keep her eyes open. The rooftops were covered in white, and the wind blew snow particles into the air.

The snow had long stopped falling, but a thin layer had already settled on the freshly cleared courtyard.

Entering the warm kitchen, Sui Yu sighed in relief. The use of fire was truly a monumental achievement in history; she couldn't imagine how people survived the harsh winter without it in prehistoric times.

Golden millet porridge, salted eggs with runny yolks, and half a bowl of pickled radish strips—this was their usual breakfast for the family of three.

"Since it's snowing, the sheep won't gain weight. Later, I'll go to Eastern City to ask about the sheep prices," Sui Yu said.

"It's too cold outside. I'll go alone. You stay here," Zhao Xiping said, scooping out the yolk for her while he ate the whites.

Sui Yu took a bite of the oily yolk, which was smooth and neither choking nor dry. She picked up a strip of pickled radish to go with her porridge and took another big bite, saying, "I'm going too. It's boring at home."

"I'm going too," Sui Liang said.

"Just don't complain about the cold," Zhao Xiping said, not insisting.

After finishing their meal, Sui Yu sat by the stove to burn wood and cook pig feed. Zhao Xiping, unfazed by the cold, washed the dishes with cold water in a few swift motions, then went out to fetch a bucket and scoop pig feed.

Once the pigs were fed, they tossed a bundle of hay to each of the camels and sheep. Zhao Xiping patted the dust off his clothes and said, "Let's go."

Sui Yu stuffed two thick logs into the stove, petted the cat warming itself on the stove ledge, and told it not to wander outside. She closed the stove door and walked out, hunched over.

The snow in the alley had been cleared and piled on either side of the road, leaving chicken claw marks on the snowbanks. Sui Yu stepped on them, leaving her own footprints, and Sui Liang followed suit.

"Aren't you cold?" Zhao Xiping stood aside waiting.

Sui Yu jogged over and linked arms with him. He resisted, and she hit him lightly, saying, "There's no one around outside."

"Let go when we get to the street," Zhao Xiping conceded.

Sui Yu gave him a sidelong glance and muttered, "Who doesn't know we share a bed at night?"

"That's different."

"Indeed it is," Sui Yu said pointedly.

Zhao Xiping couldn't argue and simply shut his mouth.

Outside the military settlement, only a few people were on the street. There were more bird tracks than human footprints in the snow.

Eastern City was near the eastern gate, where it was busier and livelier. At the entrance, two large pottery pots were set up, filled with boiling water, sending steam into the air. As people approached, they felt the warmth.

"Selling feather plucking, hide scraping, and pig slaughtering services," the vendor shouted as people passed by.

"How much?" Sui Yu stretched out her hands to warm them.

"Two coins per chicken if you give me the feathers. No extra charge for wool if you give me the sheep. One hundred coins per pig."

"Let's go," Zhao Xiping pulled Sui Yu away.

Further inside, there was the mule market. Three mules were tied to posts within a fence—one old, one skinny, and one healthy and strong.

"Looking to buy a mule?" the mule dealer asked from his wooden shack.

Zhao Xiping shook his head and continued walking. Next was the horse market, where only one horse lay in the snow chewing on hay.

Sui Yu bent down to inspect the horse's teeth. They were worn down, indicating an old horse.

"Will anyone buy it?" she asked.

"Rich families might buy it for meat, but the meat isn't very good from an old horse," Zhao Xiping said, continuing on. The sheep market was bustling with activity, and the bleating could be heard even before they got close.

Inside the fenced area, many sheep were penned, and buyers crowded around. The sheep dealer yelled out prices, his dirty sheepskin coat shining. Even from a distance, the stench was overpowering.

Zhao Xiping asked Sui Yu to wait outside while he entered the pen. He selected a sheep similar in size to their own and asked, "How much for this one?"

"Two hundred coins. It's a good size and well-fed. You won't lose out buying it," the dealer said.

Live sheep were sold whole, not by weight.

"Do you buy sheep? What price do you offer?" Zhao Xiping asked.

"How big are they?"

"About the same size as this one."

The dealer gestured and said, "In this cold weather, you'd have to let me make a couple of taels of silver."

Another customer approached, and the dealer moved on. Zhao Xiping left the pen, his hands behind his back, and said, "One hundred and seventy coins, maybe one hundred and eighty at most. Or we can sell them ourselves, spreading the word and waiting for buyers to come to our place. We could get twenty or thirty more coins for each sheep."

"Can't we sell them here in Eastern City?" Sui Yu asked.

Zhao Xiping shook his head and said, "No, all the traders in Eastern City are registered with the government to prevent thieves from selling stolen sheep, donkeys, or camels."

"Then we'll spread the word that if anyone wants to buy them, we'll sell. If not, we'll bring them here and sell them to the sheep traders," Sui Yu made her decision.

Zhao Xiping followed her advice; after all, the sheep were hers to decide on.

He wanted to check out the place where they sold camels, so Sui Yu and Sui Liang went with him. There were vendors selling dead camel meat, but no live camels. It was rare for people to buy live camels in winter because storing fodder was a hassle.

"Do you want to buy a camel? A big one or a small one?" The vendor came out, exhaling white breath, and said, "Tell me what kind you want, and I'll keep an eye out for you when I collect camels in spring."

"How much do they cost?" Sui Yu asked.

"There's no fixed price. Camels over five years old and those that have given birth are more expensive. Those under five years old are cheaper, the smaller they are, the less they cost."

"What about recently weaned ones?" Sui Yu asked again.

"One sheep's price." The vendor saw she was interested and whispered, "If you're not afraid of the trouble, come next spring when I catch wild camel calves; I'll give you a discount."

Sui Yu nodded and said, "I'll think it over and come back when I decide."

"Sure thing. Do you want to buy some camel meat? It was slaughtered yesterday, still fresh."

Camel meat is fatty and has a strong flavor. Zhao Xiping had eaten it twice; every bite was oily, and the oil lingered in the mouth, making it feel sticky. He heard that only the hump tasted good.

"Cut me two or three pounds of fat," Zhao Xiping pointed to the pale yellow fat near the tailbone and said, "Just this part."

"Sure thing."

Sui Yu and Sui Liang also approached. She bent down and pinched a piece of meat, seeing the bright red color and thinking it would be good for replenishing blood. She asked, "How much is the meat per pound?"

"Eighty wen per pound."

A camel weighs over a thousand pounds, and even a dead one could fetch sixty to seventy taels after bleeding and skinning.

Sui Yu did the math and realized their family wasn't poor at all.

"Do you want to buy two pounds of meat? It's quite cheap," she asked.

Zhao Xiping thought she hadn't tried camel meat yet, so he had the vendor cut another two pounds of good meat.

Winter days were short, and by the time they got home, it was time for lunch. While Sui Yu cooked, Zhao Xiping went out to spread the news about selling the sheep. By the time he returned, the camel meat was already stewing and fragrant.

The camel fat had been rendered into half a jar, now solidified and slightly yellowish-white.

"Should we sell that jar of wine? Now that we've sold the chickens and sheep, we have some money. Let's keep that good wine for ourselves," Sui Yu said.

Zhao Xiping hesitated, realizing he was actually considering it. Before last autumn, he had never been stingy with himself regarding food, clothing, or daily necessities.

"Don't sell it. Let's keep it for ourselves," Zhao Xiping went to fetch the wine jar and said, "Let's have some today to warm up our bodies."

"Then I'll add two spoonfuls of wine to the pot; the camel meat is too fatty."

Two spoonfuls of wine added to the soup brought out its aroma. Once the alcohol evaporated, the camel meat was ready.

Zhao Xiping brought out a small stove for stewing medicine, scooped some charcoal from the hearth, and placed a wooden basin on top to keep the soup warm without letting it cool and congeal.

Camel meat wasn't as tender as pork nor as flavorful as chicken, but its price was satisfying.

Sui Yu smiled.

"What are you smiling about?" Zhao Xiping asked.

"Just being picky after a full meal."

They barely finished the two pounds of camel meat. Sui Yu went to dig up some radishes to feed the pigs. The bowls and chopsticks were hard to wash due to the congealed grease, so she put them all in the pig food pot to boil.

"Is anyone home?"

Zhao Xiping opened the door and led someone in to see the sheep.

Sui Liang stood by the hearth, looking unhappy. He couldn't bear to part with the sheep he had raised for half a year.

"We can buy one together, but it's still early for the New Year. We'll pay in ten days."

Zhao Xiping refused, saying, "You can take it and raise it. If I keep it here, others might come to buy it, and I'd offend someone either way."

"You have a point," the buyer nodded, "Alright, I'll buy it now and eat the meat sooner. I want the black-headed sheep; drag it out for me, and I'll go get help."

When the grazing goat was dragged out by its horns, it struggled fiercely, bleating loudly. The other sheep in the pen also panicked and kept ramming the walls.

The black-headed sheep had its legs tied, and the buyer paid, then used a stick to lift it away. The sheep cried pitifully, and Sui Liang chased after it, watching it move further away until he squatted down and cried.

Zhao Xiping looked at Sui Yu, feeling the silver in his hand was scalding.

Sui Yu felt a pang of sadness too, but she controlled herself. They raised these animals to sell for money.

"We still have one sheep left," she said dryly.

It would have been better not to mention it. Hearing this, Sui Liang cried even harder, sobbing, "That one will be sold too..."

"Shall we raise two more next year?" Zhao Xiping suggested.

Sui Liang shook his head vigorously, "It'll just be sold anyway."

Zhao Xiping was at a loss for words. He gestured to Sui Yu, indicating she should comfort him.

"Next year, we'll buy one more. That one will be yours, and no one can sell it without your permission," Sui Yu half-pulled and half-hugged him inside, saying, "It's cold outside. If you catch a chill, you'll get sick, and then we'll spend money on medicine, which means less money to buy more sheep."

The remaining sheep in the pen was still bleating anxiously. Sui Liang wiped away his tears, dug out two fresh radishes from the sand pit, washed them, chopped them into small pieces, and fed them to the sheep. Thinking that this sheep would also be sold soon, he hugged it and cried.

"How about not selling it?" Zhao Xiping said.

Sui Yu shook his head, "Compassion can only be sustained on the premise of not enduring hunger and cold. For our family, what is needed now is money."

Two days later, another family came to see the sheep, which were ten coins cheaper than in Eastern City, and they took the sheep away that very day.

Sui Liang wept once more, chasing out of the alley.

The bleating of the sheep and the wailing of people make for a truly heart-wrenching scene.

Those who heard the noise came out to watch the commotion, pointing at Sui Liang and teasing him.

That evening, Sui Yu went to catch a chicken and penned it up. The next day, she boiled water to pluck the chicken's feathers, and by noon, she had stewed it.

Sui Yu handed a large chicken leg to Sui Liang and asked, "Is it delicious? Does the meat smell good?"

Sui Liang nodded.

"Your brother-in-law won't be going back to his hometown for the New Year this year. After the Little New Year, let him buy a lamb leg. We'll stew it on New Year's Eve. Mutton helps to ward off the cold, and once we're warmed up, we can all go out and dance the Nuo dance together," Sui Yu said, probing without changing her expression.

Sui Liang's face showed resistance.

"It's not our sheep," Zhao Xiping added.

"Alright, then." Since it wasn't his own sheep, he could accept it.