Chapter 47

Chapter 47

The front door opened, and Xu Dengke came out with his messy hair, his eyes widening as he saw who was at the door. "Third Aunt... you... you guys?!"

Lu Yao almost burst out laughing, while Zhao Beichuan's face also turned quite peculiar. They hadn't expected to rent from Xu Dengke's aunt.

"These two gentlemen want to rent our shop. Could you write up a contract for us to avoid any trouble later?"

Xu Dengke nodded and walked into the house awkwardly. He still didn't know that Zhao Beichuan was aware of his relationship with Lu Yao and pretended not to recognize them.

"Come in," the old lady invited, and Lu Yao and Zhao Beichuan followed her inside.

The Xu family had three rooms that looked dilapidated. The moment they entered, a strong stench of foot odor filled their noses, nearly making Lu Yao gag.

The eastern room was where his parents lived, while the western room belonged to Xu Dengke. It was cluttered with old clothes and socks, some of which were covered in a layer of oily mud, making it impossible to see their original colors. Lu Yao glanced around and almost vomited.

He had always thought Xu Dengke dressed neatly outside, but his home was surprisingly filthy.

Xu Dengke blushed and started gathering the dirty clothes. "You, you guys, please take a seat. I'll go get the ink and brush."

The old lady sat down, and Lu Yao and Zhao Beichuan stood beside her.

After a while, Xu Dengke returned with paper and a brush. "Third Aunt, how should we write this?"

The old lady had been renting out the shop for over ten years and knew contracts well. She asked Zhao Beichuan's name and said, "Today, Zhao Beichuan rents one shop and three rooms from Xu Fengxia. The annual rent is twenty taels of silver, plus a deposit of two taels. If there is any damage to the walls or the house, the deposit will be used for compensation."

There were two copies of the contract. Lu Yao read it, confirmed it was correct, and pressed his thumbprint on it before handing over the silver to the old lady.

The old lady gave Lu Yao the keys. "If you need anything, come find me. Take good care of the shop; don't damage it."

"Okay."

Xu Dengke escorted them to the door and quickly closed it, never daring to speak to Lu Yao, fearing the man next to him might recognize him and beat him up.

*

On the mule cart, Lu Yao observed Zhao Beichuan, who was silently driving. Unable to resist teasing him, Lu Yao said, "Jealous?"

"No."

"But you look unhappy."

Zhao Beichuan wasn't jealous, just uncomfortable. If Scholar Xu had been capable, it would have been different, but seeing his pitiful state, Zhao Beichuan felt sorry for Lu Yao, remembering how he had once tried to commit suicide for such a person.

"Let's go clean up the house first and then bring Xiaonian and Xiaodou over."

"Alright!"

They returned to the rented old house, finding the small courtyard increasingly comfortable. Though smaller than the place in Wan'gou Village, it was neat and complete.

The front yard was paved with stones, preventing mud during summer rains. There was also a vegetable garden and an outhouse at the back, which they could plant vegetables in come spring.

Lu Yao unlocked the door. When they arrived earlier, they hadn't gone inside. As he pushed open the door, dust fell from the walls, indicating it had been uninhabited for a long time.

The layout was simple: bedrooms on either side and a kitchen in the middle with two stoves. The clay pots were missing, likely taken by Aunt Xu.

In the eastern bedroom, the bed was piled with wooden shovels and sickles, and the old bedding was chewed up by rats. Zhao Beichuan carried them out to the yard.

There was also an empty five-drawer cabinet that could be used for storing small items.

The western room was cleaner but empty, with a large hole in the roof, probably caused by rain leakage in summer, leading to a collapsed section of the bed. They would need to fix it after moving in.

The doors and windows needed repairs due to age, and all these fixes would cost at least a thousand cash coins.

Though expensive, it brought peace of mind, knowing they wouldn't have to worry about sleeping outside in winter.

By mid-morning, they had cleaned up most of the house. Lu Yao planned to return to the village to fetch the children. After what had happened, the children needed reassurance and shouldn't be left alone for too long.

They drove the mule cart back to the village and found Xiaonian and Xiaodou running out of their yard upon arrival.

"It's so cold. What are you two doing out here?" Lu Yao jumped off the cart and hugged the children.

Xiaonian opened his mouth but couldn't speak, tears streaming down his face. "No one's home. We're watching the grain... so it doesn't get stolen."

Xiaodou clung to Lu Yao's waist, crying. "We couldn't see Big Brother or Sister-in-law. We were scared."

Lu Yao patted their heads, feeling a deep sadness. "Don't cry. Your sister-in-law and Big Brother went to town to rent a shop. We're moving to town soon!"

"Really?!"

"Really. The house is already rented. We'll move in soon!"

Xiaodou exclaimed, "Great! Will we be able to eat meat buns every day in town?"

Lu Yao laughed through his tears, ruffling his hair. This kid only thinks about food.

Much of their belongings had been burned, but whatever remained needed to be taken.

Zhao Beichuan moved the grain from the yard onto the cart. Originally, there were twelve bags of millet and five bags of beans in the western room, but only seven bags of millet and three bags of beans survived the fire.

Lu Yao carried out some blankets and clothes, leaving some behind. The bedding was all taken out. In the chaos, he couldn't remember which items were valuable and which weren't.

All the chickens and piglets in the backyard were caught by Zhao Beichuan and stuffed into sacks, loaded onto the cart.

While moving, Lin Daman arrived to collect his things. Seeing each other, they shared a somber moment.

"Master, where are you going?"

Lu Yao replied, "I was planning to find you. We're moving to town. What are you and Xiaochun and Xiaodong planning to do?"

"The Village Headman spoke to us earlier. Since the Song family is no more, the house and land belong to the village. However, Xiaochun and Xiaodong are Song family members. He asked if I wanted to return and receive half the land." Lin Daman paused. "I agreed and plan to move back to the old courtyard."

The Village Headman didn't give him all the land for his own good. With over twenty acres, Lin Daman couldn't manage it alone. As a widower with two children, he couldn't handle such a large estate, so giving him less land was better for their sustenance.

Lu Yao nodded. "Good. You'll have a house and land. Your life will improve. You've learned how to make tofu. Sell it in the village when you have free time."

Tears welled up in Lin Daman's eyes, and he suddenly knelt down. "Thank you, Master. Without you, I wouldn't know what to do..."

"Get up. You worked hard. You owe me nothing."

Lin Daman was deeply grateful. No matter what, Lu Yao had helped him in his darkest hour, a kindness he would never forget.

Lu Yao lifted the children onto the cart and placed the iron pot upside down on the grain, finishing the move.

It was getting late, and they needed to settle in town. They couldn't delay any longer.

Zhao Beichuan cracked the whip, and the mule pulled the cart full of belongings towards town.

Lu Yao and the children sat on the cart, looking back at their home. The sky was dark, and the wind blew the peach charms on the door, making them rattle. The New Year decorations on the door fluttered and slowly disappeared...

The two children rubbed their eyes; many years later, they would still remember this day.

*

Back in town, the first thing they did was to find Landlady Xu and ask her where they could buy firewood in town.

All the firewood at home had been burned up, and it was too late to cut more now; they could only buy some from someone else for the time being.

Lu Yao knocked on the landlady's door, and soon, Aunt Xu came out.

"What is it?"

"Aunt Xu, where can we buy dry firewood in town?"

"How much do you need?"

"Two baskets for now, and if that's not enough, we'll buy more."

"I'll give you two baskets first, twenty cash coins per basket." This price wasn't expensive; buying it in the village would cost about the same.

"Thank you very much."

The old lady called out, and soon a middle-aged man, presumably her son, came out of the house. "You go back first; I'll have my eldest son deliver it to you shortly."

"Alright, thank you."

When the mule cart arrived at their new home, Lu Yao took out the key and opened the gate. The two children curiously peered inside. "Sister-in-law, is this our new home?"

"Yes, get off quickly and help carry things into the house."

"Okay!" The two children slid off the cart and carried clothes and bedding into the house.

Lu Yao held a mat under one arm and a cloth bag in the other, which contained the remaining twenty taels of silver—their entire fortune, never leaving his side for a moment.

The roof of the west room was leaking and uninhabitable, so they all stayed in the east room.

They laid down the mat, placed the bedding on top, and Zhao Beichuan moved the sacks of grain into the west room. After emptying the cart, he took down the iron pot and placed it on the stove.

The original clay pot was larger, making the iron pot unsuitable. Zhao Beichuan found some stones to prop it up, securing the pot just enough to cook dinner that evening.

Soon, Aunt Xu's son arrived with two baskets of firewood. Zhao Beichuan spoke with him in the yard.

Aunt Xu's son, Liu Dalì, was a straightforward man. "I heard from my mother that you rented a shop in Xiasanli. What kind of business will you be doing?"

Zhao Beichuan replied, "We're selling tofu, made from soybeans."

Liu Dalì was surprised. "So the tofu in the town's restaurants is yours!"

"Yes."

"When it's ready, I must buy some to try!" He had eaten tofu a few times at a restaurant with friends, finding it delicious but a bit pricey—a dish of minced meat tofu sold for thirty-five cash coins, suitable for an occasional treat.

Seeing them busy settling in, Liu Dalì didn't stay longer, collected forty cash coins, and left.

With the fire lit in the stove, the room became warmer, but the windows were drafty, and the warmth quickly dissipated. Lu Yao hung the old bedding over the window to block the cold wind.

As night approached, the two children were hungry. Neither the adults nor the children had eaten all day.

Zhao Beichuan fetched some water from the well; there wasn't even a water jar at home, and they needed to purchase one once the shop opened in town.

The porridge in the pot was cooked, but without bowls or chopsticks, the family gathered around the stove, taking turns eating with a single iron spoon.

Lu Yao remembered the leftover ribs, chicken, and dumplings from last night—all gone in the fire. The thought alone made him feel full with anger.

The two children didn't mind the hardship; they were happy to be drinking thin porridge with their elder brother and sister-in-law.

After dinner, Lu Yao heated a pot of water to wash the children's faces. The fire had covered them in ash, turning their little faces into smudged kittens, dirty and grimy.

After washing, he hurried them to bed. Without oil lamps, they couldn't do anything else, and the two children quickly changed into their nightclothes and climbed into bed.

The fire had frightened Lu Yao badly, causing him to wake up several times during the night.

Zhao Beichuan held him close, kissing his forehead to comfort him, silently vowing never to let him experience such a thing again!