Chapter 428 [The End]

Chapter 428: The End (Full Text)

At the end of the year, Sanquan Village was several times livelier than usual. The candied hawthorn vendor had barely reached the village entrance when the children who'd been waiting for a long time surrounded him. There were also people from neighboring villages carrying their own dried vegetables, mountain goods, and freshly milled rice and flour—leftovers from the market days a few days prior. Taking advantage of the pre-New Year lull, they carried their goods to nearby villages to sell for a bit of cash.

But sugar and pork were still the most popular items. In recent years, sugar had become considerably cheaper than before—even the sugar coating on the candied hawthorns was thicker than it used to be, so the children could enjoy something sweet for the New Year too.

Today, three households in the village were slaughtering pigs, and the lively shouts could be heard from the moment one entered the village.

"Big sister-in-law, I saved two slabs of pork belly for you to make dumplings." Auntie Song, all smiles, brought over two slabs of pork belly to Chang Jinhua. Without waiting for her to decline, she plopped them down by the water vat at the courtyard gate and was off in a whirlwind.

Chang Jinhua had just stepped out when she heard the ruckus, but Auntie Song was already out of the courtyard.

A Xun, who'd been sorting his herbs in the yard—some only work best when picked in winter—pointed at the fresh meat in the vat. "Grandma, Auntie Song from next door brought it over."

"I heard. Leave it out to freeze for a bit, then have Wei Ying take it in and chop it for filling. Tonight, Grandma will make you dumplings." Chang Jinhua, wrapped in her thick, puffy russet quilted jacket, gazed toward the village entrance and muttered, "Wan'er and the others should've been back by now. We've already done the chickens and ducks—just waiting on them to get home before we do the pig."

Yunque, cheeks flushed, said, "Ma'am, let me go check the village entrance. Maybe they'll be back today?"

Their breath puffed white in the cold as they talked. Chang Jinhua rubbed her hands together. "It's freezing—don't bother. If they're coming back, we'll know soon enough." Even so, she couldn't bring herself to head back in.

She treated her servants well, and Yunque and the others had loosened up a lot more in the countryside than in the capital. She ignored the old madam and dashed out the door.

Before long, she came running back, over the moon. "Ma'am, young master—they're back! The master and young master are really back! And the young masters are here too!"

Chang Jinhua, who hadn't gone inside yet, was in the yard watching over the dried mountain goods—all things she'd set aside for Meng Wan and the others to take back to the capital, aired out whenever the weather was good.

"They're back? Where are they now?" Chang Jinhua tossed aside the wood ear mushrooms she was holding and hurried out the door.

The snow at the entrance had been swept completely clean, with tall piles of snow stacked along the roadside. Sure enough, seven or eight carriages were rolling down the frozen dirt road—looking a bit odd, with pitch-black wheels.

Song Tingzhou held Meng Wan's left hand, while A Yan tugged at his right sleeve. Chu Ci, in a thick cloak, rode behind them on horseback. Xue Sheng drove the first carriage, with Huang Ye inside holding the curtain aside, clutching Meng Wan's travel bundle.

"Mother, we're home."

"Mother!"

"Grandmother!!!"

After Song Tingzhou spoke, Meng Wan and A Yan's voices rang out, each louder than the last.

The wrinkles at the corners of Chang Jinhua's eyes deepened as she smiled. "Ah!"

The snow wolf, who'd been dozing by the fire in the gatehouse, came bounding out at the commotion, leaping straight at Chu Ci and spooking his horse so bad it wouldn't move.

Chu Ci dismounted, patted the snow wolf, then looked up to meet A Xun's beaming smile and grinned back.

The household bustled about unpacking. Luckily, the old house had been renovated, so Meng Wan had room for everything he'd brought. Huang Ye, Wei Ying, and Zhifan and Zhimao could handle the unpacking.

A Yan darted inside and called the snow wolf in to play. He'd grown up with the snow wolf, and after so long apart, he really missed it.

Chang Jinhua took off her grandson's rabbit-fur cap and bright red cloak. "How come it's only A Yan? Didn't Tong'er come with you all too?"

The room had a heated kang and a stove built into the floor. Meng Wan handed his cloak to Song Tingzhou and climbed onto the kang next to Chang Jinhua. "The day after tomorrow is New Year's Eve, so Tong'er's got to go to the Fang family. On the third, we'll go to the Fang house to pay New Year's respects and bring him back."

Chang Jinhua took the small quilt Yunque handed her and draped it over Meng Wan's legs, then said with a start, "Mother really is getting old and forgetful. Tong'er ought to go back to the Fang family for the New Year—that's his grandpa's place." Such a little kid, raised by Chang Jinhua to this size—to say she didn't miss him would be a lie.

Meng Wan grabbed her wrinkled hand and tucked them both under the small quilt. "Mother, you're so hale and hearty—aren't you way stronger than those noble ladies in the capital who can't take three steps without huffing and puffing? If you're forgetful, then A Yan's a little scatterbrain."

A Yan buried his head in the snow wolf's fluffy white fur, then, playing along, burrowed into Chang Jinhua's arms. "Grandma isn't old—Grandma's the best grandma in the whole world. I really want your dumplings, the shrimp and pork ones!"

From the moment they got back, the smile hadn't left Chang Jinhua's face. She patted A Yan, signaling him to get up. "Alright, Grandma'll go make dumplings for A Yan right now."

Knowing A Yan loved shrimp, Chang Jinhua had stocked up on frozen shrimp. Seafood was scarce in Guyang County, and these shrimp cost more than meat.

Chi Yu had taken leave this year to go back to Lingnan. After Chang Jinhua left, Meng Wan shot Xue Sheng a meaningful look. "The Fang family has many mouths to feed—First Master Fang has no shortage of grandsons and maternal grandsons. Tomorrow, find an opportunity to bring him and Uncle Ge over to our house for the New Year."

Xue Sheng understood immediately. "I'll go early tomorrow morning. I won't bring anyone else—I'll just say the Fang family sent them over."

"Mm." Meng Wan cradled a cup of hot tea, blew on the floating leaves, and took a sip.

Compared to Fang Jinrong's family, his own mother mattered more. All these years of raising the child couldn't be for nothing.

Chang Jinhua was making boiled dumplings. Meng Wan, having warmed up his numb body, joined in to help wrap them.

"You just go wait on the kang to eat—there are plenty of people helping. Why do you need to do it yourself?" Chang Jinhua shooed him away as she always did.

Hearing this, Meng Wan was reminded of when he'd first been bought into the Song family—he couldn't do anything right back then either. Chang Jinhua would scold him impatiently, curse him for wasting things, then cook the food herself and let Meng Wan eat what was ready. It wasn't like she'd bought a son-in-law; it was more like she'd bought an ancestor to worship.

The woman in his memory, stern on the outside but warm within, had unknowingly aged. Meng Wan's eyes grew moist, and he lowered his head, hiding it behind the motion of wrapping dumplings. "Can't I just want to spend some time with Mother? Are you still shooing me away?"

His aggrieved words made Chang Jinhua laugh. "I'm worried you'll catch cold, and you don't appreciate it? Fine, Mother won't shoo you away. Xiao Ci, you and A Xun go check Auntie Song's house—if she has pork ribs, buy half a side. Your father loves them."

The young couple, who had also been apart for half a year, went hand in hand to the neighbor's house, but unfortunately only came back with a pig's heart. "Grandma, Auntie Song's house has sold almost everything except what she kept for herself. No ribs, but she insisted on giving us a pig's heart."

"A pig's heart works too—boil it and serve it cold with the dumplings." Meng Wan directed them to take the pig's heart to the kitchen, then told them to go play wherever they liked.

Chang Jinhua's hands moved swiftly as she wrapped dumplings, one after another in the blink of an eye. "No worries if we didn't get any today—tomorrow we'll slaughter our own pig and have a pig-slaughter feast. Grandma will save all the ribs for you."

Meng Wan's sweet words came freely, without cost. "Mother is the best. When my husband and I were down south, the thing I craved most was your cooking."

Though he was deliberately trying to cheer Chang Jinhua up, the words came from the heart. Chang Jinhua's cooking wasn't as refined or elaborate as those professional chefs', but it was exactly the flavor Meng Wan loved most.

Everyone enjoyed a steaming hot meal of dumplings. Traveling in winter was grueling, so after dinner, Meng Wan took a hot bath and slipped into the warm bedding, squinting his eyes in contentment.

On the twenty-ninth, the Song household slaughtered their pig. Not only did they keep all the meat for themselves, but they also bought three more pigs from other villages and invited the entire village to a pig-slaughter feast.

Before the midday feast began, First Master Fang personally delivered Tong'er over. "We've come uninvited, bold-faced as we are, to join the feast."

Chang Jinhua was naturally delighted to see Tong'er, holding him close and fussing over him, then sending him inside with A Yan to eat. She also invited First Master Fang to take a seat quickly.

After the feast concluded, when Tong'er and Old Ge were kept at the Song residence, Chang Jinhua finally understood what the Fang family meant by it.

"Wan Geer, don't you think this might not be quite right?" Chang Jinhua was very cautious about social propriety, worried that keeping Tong'er for the New Year might offend the Fang family—after all, First Master Fang rarely got to see his maternal grandson.

Before Meng Wan could speak to reassure her, Tong'er burrowed into Chang Jinhua's arms. "Grandma, Tong'er isn't leaving. I'm staying here to spend the New Year with you."

A Yan ran over to fight for space with Tong'er, and Chang Jinhua pulled them both close, one on each side, a kindly smile on her face. "Alright, Tong'er isn't leaving—he'll stay at Grandma's house and spend the New Year with A Yan and Grandma."

After the pig-slaughter feast, the New Year spirit grew even stronger. On the morning of New Year's Eve, Meng Wan was woken by the sound of firecrackers. Outside, the sky wasn't even light yet, and the warmth of the bed was still cozy. Meng Wan burrowed into Song Tingzhou's arms, covering his head, with only a few strands of hair peeking out from the ends.

Song Tingzhou, still drowsy, pulled him up onto his body and bent down to kiss Meng Wan's forehead, which was just barely visible. His voice was low and husky. "Sleep a little longer?"

"Bang!"

Meng Wan furrowed his brow. "So noisy."

More and more families in Sanquan Village were getting well-off. Two of the younger lads had passed the tongsheng examination, while many more had failed.

Some people walked their chosen path to the bitter end, envious of those like Song Tingyue who suddenly passed the xiucai exam and changed their family's fortunes, studying until they dragged their entire families into poverty.

More often than not, they had the self-awareness to learn a few words and take up artisan crafts—not to mention rolling in wealth, but enough to renovate their parents' homes and buy meat and vegetables to bring back for meals.

Firecrackers popped all day long, not just at other people's houses—A Yan and Tong'er had been setting them off all day too. When they came back, they'd passed through Changping Prefecture, and Chu Ci had bought them firecrackers, triple-crackers, and ground rats—each one louder than the last, irritating Meng Wan so much he shooed them out of the house, and they quickly hit it off with the village kids.

A Yan still remembered the neighbor boy Xing Geer and invited him over along with a few cousins from the clan.

"Husband, the Zhu family's New Year gifts have arrived." Zhifan stomped the leftover snow off his boots and came in to report.

"So late—must have been delayed by last night's snow." Meng Wan was stewing pig trotters at the stove and couldn't free his hands. "Go call the master—there might be a letter for him. Have Brother Huang Ye log the rest in the ledger and store it properly."

Zhifan tightened the neck warmer around his neck. "Right away, I'm off."

"Is Lan Niang pregnant again?" Chang Jinhua was also in the kitchen and asked casually upon hearing Meng Wan's words.

When Meng Wan and Song Tingzhou had returned, they'd stopped by the Zhu residence. Zhu Zening had hugged Song Tingzhou and wept, then even insisted on kneeling and kowtowing to him. Third Master Zhu wouldn't let anyone intervene—it was all his son's sins, and for Song Tingzhou to still treat him the same as before was already a rare show of affection.

"That's not all—it's twin boys. If not for that, they'd have come in person to deliver the gifts. Lan Niang is due in February after the New Year. After the holiday, I'll have A Xun and Xiao Ci go to Changping to be with her during the birth—they'll surely be safe." Meng Wan spoke warmly, genuinely happy for Lan Niang and Zhu Zening. Staying in Changping with a calm mind wasn't a bad thing.

Chang Jinhua was pleased for the newlyweds too, and as she spoke, she straightened up. "Xiao Ci and A Xun have been married a year now—who knows, maybe our family will have good news next year too."

Chu Ci, passing by the door, flushed bright red, pretended he hadn't heard, and tiptoed away.

Meng Wan's face went pale with shock. "They're way too young—absolutely not." He wasn't ready to be a grandpa yet!

His household was large, and whether master or servant, everyone ate the same. Everyone was at their post—stoking the fire, chopping vegetables, setting out bowls and chopsticks—orderly and unhurried. The kitchen was thick with steam, and the aromas of meat and vegetables mingled with the smell of cooking fire, weaving together the warmest, most down-to-earth New Year atmosphere.

Meng Wan lifted the pot lid, revealing bubbling home-style braised fish, with soft white tofu simmered until riddled with holes, soaked through with thick, sticky sauce. The kitchen was cozy and warm, the stove crackling, its glow making everyone's cheeks flushed.

Chang Jinhua and Jin Gu gathered around the big cutting board wrapping dumplings. The sky darkened quickly in winter, and in the courtyard A Yan and Tong'er were setting off fireworks—sparks of every color bursting in the night sky, painting the snow on the walls in a riot of brilliant hues.

"Wow!"

Amid the children's exclamations came the startled howl of the snow wolf.

Plump white dumplings tumbled in the boiling water, floating up in no time, and Chang Jinhua scooped them onto plates. Alongside them, all sorts of meat and vegetable dishes were brought to the table.

"A Yan, Tong'er, time to eat—come inside now!" Meng Wan stood at the door calling the wild children in for dinner, while other village families called their own kids.

He caught sight of Xiao Mei's shy face and smiled. "Happy New Year!"

Xiao Mei's eyes crinkled with a smile. "Happy New Year."

"Wow!"

"So much good food!"

"Young master, come wash your hands first."

The whole family sat together, chatting about everyday things, the room filled with laughter and joy. Outside, the wind howled; inside, it was warm as spring.

In the dead of night, everyone had dozed off in various positions. The dishes were cleared from the table, and small trays were set on the kang, piled with peanuts, melon seeds, pastries, and dried fruit.

Meng Wan leaned against Song Tingzhou's shoulder, dark hair against fair skin, his peach-blossom eyes half-closed, a faint crease marking them. He chatted idly with Song Tingzhou, determined to stay up for the entire New Year's Eve.

"Did the Hanlin Academy historians write me into the annals?" Meng Wan asked with genuine curiosity.

Song Tingzhou toyed with his slender fingers and chuckled. "Shall I go ask at the Hanlin Academy when we return to the capital?"

"How embarrassing..." Meng Wan nuzzled against his cheek. "Then ask subtly—and if they haven't, tell them to get on it."

Maybe someday the descendants of the Meng family could read about their ancestor's achievements. Though it probably wouldn't be in his era—after all, before he'd transmigrated, he'd never heard of any dynasty with tri-gendered people.

They chatted a little more, and Meng Wan's eyelids grew heavier, his thoughts more fanciful, his voice so soft Song Tingzhou had to strain to hear.

"Do you think people could really step out of storybooks?" Before Song Tingzhou could answer, Meng Wan's eyes closed completely, his breathing even.

Song Tingzhou gripped his hand, lowered his lips to his ear, and said slowly, "They can—otherwise, where would you have come from?"

"If there's a next life, I should follow you too."

—My wife, young at my side, studying with me through cold nights, warming my porridge. Through honor and disgrace together, each other's comfort, day and night in each other's company.

Now that I stand in the halls of power, I cherish this bond, to protect her and guard our remaining years together.

*The End of "Transmigrated as a Dowry, Next Second"*