Chapter 52: Green Rice Balls and Kites

Chapter 52: Mugwort Rice Balls and Kites

After cutting the mugwort and returning home, Wen Xi picked out the more tender leaves for making rice balls, and spread the rest on a large bamboo tray to dry in the courtyard.

The sun at this time of year wasn't scorching yet, and mosquitoes hadn't emerged either. Once the mugwort dried and was twisted into coils for burning, it would be just right for use.

A faint bitter fragrance spread through the courtyard, perking everyone up.

Wen Xi and the others first removed the stems from the selected mugwort, keeping only the leaves, and washed them thoroughly. When the water in the big wok on the stove came to a boil, they poured the washed mugwort leaves in to blanch them. The tender leaves turned a deep green after a brief dip in the boiling water.

Wen Xi stirred them with chopsticks, remembering Chen Lanfang's advice that the mugwort leaves shouldn't be blanched too long. As soon as the leaves softened, he quickly scooped them out and transferred them to a wooden basin filled with cold water.

The blanched mugwort still had a strong bitter taste, so it needed to be rinsed in several changes of cold water.

Wen Xi squeezed the rinsed mugwort into clumps to wring out the excess water, then Li Wan took them over to the cutting board and chopped them finely. The mugwort for wrapping rice balls had to be chopped until it became a paste. Li Wan put considerable effort into it, the knife thudding against the board as if she were hacking at bones.

He Jin handled the dough; with so many hands, splitting the chores kept things easy.

After all the fussy prep, actually wrapping the balls turned out to be the easy part. Pinch off a small piece of dough, shape it into a small bowl, fill it with red bean paste and a sesame-peanut filling, then roll it into a ball about the size of a fist—and one rice ball was done.

Wen Xi lined the steamer with clean gauze and placed the finished rice balls inside one by one. Chen Lanfang reminded him, "Leave a little space between the rice balls, so they don't all stick together after steaming."

Wen Xi adjusted their positions accordingly.

The fire in the stove blazed, and before long steam began rising from the steamer. Even with the lid on, the aroma of the rice balls escaped anyway.

When she figured enough time had gone by, Chen Lanfang moved the steamer onto another iron wok with no fire underneath. After the steam dissipated a bit, she lifted the lid, and the bitter fragrance of mugwort mingled with the sweet aroma of glutinous rice wafted out, filling the entire kitchen with a delicious scent.

At first, the mugwort's bitterness struck Wen Xi as sharp, but the more he smelled it, the more he liked it. Seeing Chen Lanfang lift the lid, he couldn't help but lean in for a look. The rice balls in the steamer were all plump and glossy, their color deepening after cooking to a rich, dark green—looking soft and irresistible.

He Jin looked puzzled. "That's strange. Usually, when those two little gluttons at home know we're making something tasty, they'd be in the kitchen waiting by now. Why haven't we heard a peep from them today? They're not up to some mischief, are they?"

As the old saying goes, kids quiet means kids scheming. He Jin was about to go check when Wen Xi said with a smile, "They're not causing trouble. The two little ones are bugging their third uncle to make them kites."

"That explains it." He Jin chuckled. "Those two got shown up by Ermao last time, so they're probably hoping their third uncle will help them win back their pride."

Last time, when Tiezhu and Tao'er went out to play, they saw Ermao and Xiaogouzi and the others flying kites, with eagles painted on them that looked fierce and cool. Tiezhu and Tao'er were dying of envy and came home demanding that the family make them some.

Yan Wangchun and Yan Fuqiu did make them, but the designs on the kites came out all wonky—what was supposed to be an eagle looked more like a hen. When the two children took them out, instead of earning their friends' admiration, they got laughed at by a bunch of brats. Tiezhu was totally bummed.

So when Yan Fengan came back, they immediately begged him to make them new ones.

The kids wanted an eagle kite and a butterfly kite. Yan Wangchun and Yan Fuqiu cut the bamboo strips clean, bent them into the shapes their children wanted, and tied them tightly with thin hemp cord.

Yan Fengan, standing nearby, pulled out some old rice paper, cut it to size, and had them paste it over the frames.

This task required patience—the paste had to be applied bit by bit. If the paper wasn't smooth, the kite wouldn't fly right.

Yan Fengan told the two children not to make a mess, and they obediently put their hands behind their backs and squatted nearby, watching.

Once the paper was pasted on, it needed to dry for a while. After the paste had set, Yan Fengan moved a small stool to sit under the eaves, took out his prepared paints, and started sketching out the eagle.

An eagle was a bird of prey. For the kite to look fierce and imposing, the eyes had to be drawn large and round, with small pupils that focused intently, giving it a fierce, angry stare. The wings should be square and broad, with each feather at the tips clearly outlined.

Tiezhu watched with his mouth hanging open, going "whoa" dramatically and exclaiming, "Third uncle, your eagle looks so real! It's a hundred times better than Ermao's."

He didn't understand the effort Yan Fengan had put into the details—he just knew the eagle on the kite looked fierce and awesome.

Tao'er pulled on Yan Fengan's sleeve. "Third uncle, third uncle, what about my butterfly?"

Yan Fengan handed the finished kite to Tiezhu and reassured Tao'er, "Don't worry, third uncle will paint yours right away."

Unlike the eagle's fierceness, the butterfly should be softer and more graceful. When painting it, you had to be careful that the wings had no sharp angles or jagged edges, and the colors should be light shades like pale yellow and soft pink.

When it was done, Tao'er clapped her hands happily. "What a beautiful butterfly! Third uncle, you're so amazing!"

Yan Wangchun and the others took the two kites, tied on the strings, and ran around the courtyard with them. Tiezhu and Tao'er chased after them, yelling stuff like "The butterfly is flying!" and "The eagle is flying!"

After testing that the kites were properly balanced, Yan Wangchun said, "We'll take you up the mountain to fly them during tomorrow's tomb-sweeping."

The kids jumped up and down with excitement.

The ruckus outside pulled Wen Xi and the others out to check.

Looking at the two kites, Li Wan said with a smile, "Third brother's got real talent. He makes an eagle look like an eagle and a butterfly like a butterfly."

Yan Wangchun and Yan Fuqiu rubbed their noses sheepishly at this, clearly aware of how embarrassing their chicken-looking eagle from last time had been.

The joy of the group was infectious, and Wen Xi's eyes crinkled into a smile. He hadn't realized his husband had such a talent.

Yan Fengan walked over to him and asked, leaning in close, "So, not bad, right?"

Wen Xi replied quietly, "If you quit studying, you could probably make a living just painting."

Yan Fengan smiled and said, "Supporting a whole family might be tough, but supporting you—that should be no problem."

That wasn't entirely untrue—most of the silver in their money box had been earned by him. But Wen Xi didn't feel discouraged; even if he only earned a little, he was still happy.

Chen Lanfang brought out the steamed rice balls and told them to wash their hands and try them.

They had cooled down a bit by then. The bitterness of the mugwort combined with the sweetness of the red bean paste created a perfect balance—not too rich at all.

The next morning after breakfast, the whole family carried baskets of food to sweep the graves of Yan Fengan's grandparents.

Other families were already on the hillside paying respects to their ancestors. White banners stood atop graves of various sizes, with rice balls and spirit money placed before each.

Yan Shichang was an only child because of his parents' health issues, so Yan Fengan and the others had no uncles or other relatives in the village. The Yan family graves were tended only by their own family.

After a spring had passed, more weeds had grown around the graves. Yan Shichang and Yan Wangchun took out sickles to clear them, while Yan Fuqiu and Yan Fengan split the work—one set out the rice balls, the other found stones to hold down the paper money.

On Qingming, the paper money wasn't burned—it was weighed down with stones so it wouldn't blow off. After the weeds were cleared, the younger generation each bowed three times, and the ceremony was complete.

After the worship, the family didn't rush down the mountain. Chen Lanfang led the daughters-in-law and the younger women to forage for edible wild vegetables in the hills, while Yan Wangchun and the others accompanied the two children flying their kites.

Shen Liang's father's grave was also nearby. When Yan Fengan and Wen Xi saw the brothers, they went over to greet them.

Once Shen Yun and Wen Xi went off together to dig bamboo shoots and wild vegetables, Shen Liang went ahead and told Yan Fengan about the Wen family's affairs.

"Zhao Shoutian spent thirty taels of silver to marry Liu Geer, then snuck back to the Wen house and stole over forty taels to pay off his debts. He thought Wen Shishan would spare him for Wen Liu's sake and not report it to the authorities, but Wen Shishan did it anyway."

Zhao Shoutian hadn't expected him to actually follow through. He chased him down and stopped him halfway. Wen Shishan told him to return the money—if he did, he'd pretend nothing had happened; if not, he'd report him to the county office.

Forty taels of silver—Zhao Shoutian had already paid thirty to the money lender, and the remaining ten he'd squandered on food and drink. He had nothing left to give back.

Under the laws of this dynasty, anyone who stole property would be subject to flogging, hard labor, or exile depending on the amount. Zhao Shoutian had stolen a substantial sum of forty taels. If it really went to the county court, even if the magistrate took their in-law relationship into consideration, a beating and three years of hard labor would be unavoidable.

Zhao Shoutian was terrified and tried to use Wen Liu as a shield. He and Wen Liu had just gotten married—if he were sent to hard labor over this, how could Wen Liu hold his head up in the village afterward?

He thought Wen Shishan, who doted on Wen Liu so much, would surely consider his situation. But Wen Shishan seemed like a different person—he wouldn't acknowledge anyone but the money. He gave Zhao Shoutian three days to scrounge up the money, or else it would be the county court.

Zhao Shoutian was forced into a corner and had no choice but to go borrow money from the money shop again. Those people at the money shop were also the type to kick a man when he's down—originally his house and fields could have been pawned for thirty taels of silver, but this time they only offered him twenty.

Zhao Shoutian was in a hurry for the money, so he had no choice but to accept it.

Wen Shishan originally wasn't having it with only paying back twenty taels, but Wen Liu and Li Qiaozhen kept making a fuss at him the whole time. He was so fed up that he had no choice but to accept the loss.

Yan Fengan sighed and said, "I knew from the start that these two families marrying would bring trouble, but I didn't think they'd cause this much drama."

Shen Liang snorted and laughed, saying, "This is just the beginning—there's more trouble to come. Wen Shishan hasn't been home at all lately, always running into town. You know why that is?"

Yan Fengan guessed, "Did he pick up a gambling habit like Zhao Shoutian?"

"He's so tight with his money, why would he gamble? I'll be straight with you—two years ago he took up with a widow in town as his mistress. Last year that widow gave birth to a son, claiming it was his, and he was grinning from ear to ear. What do you think he's using all that money for? It's to support his precious little darling on the side."

Shen Liang was always out and about, and he knew a little about every piece of gossip. Wen Shishan thought he was hiding it well, but in reality, his dirty little secret was already an open book to everyone.

Yan Fengan hadn't expected there to be something like this behind it all, but thinking it over, the sudden shift in Wen Shishan's attitude toward Wen Liu was now explained.

Not having a son had always been Wen Shishan's biggest worry, which was why he had placed all his hopes on Wen Liu, a single gē'er. Now that he's had a son late in life, of course he'd make plans for his own son.

This man was the one responsible for Wen Xi's suffering, and yet here he was, getting his wish granted in his old age. Yan Fengan felt a bit put out and asked casually, "Is that child really his?"

"You hit the nail on the head with that one. That widow would sleep with him, so she'd sleep with anyone—who knows who the real father is." Since it was just the two of them, Shen Liang couldn't help but be a bit crude. "No sooner does Wen Shishan leave than another man walks into the widow's house. So which one of them do you think is the real father?"

He stretched and went on, "Li Qiaozhen stays home all day quarreling with him, and Wen Liu, a gē'er who's already married out, doesn't properly stay at the Zhao house either. Who knows what those two, mother and son, are up to. Just wait and see—there's more trouble brewing."

In the distance, Shen Yun picked some wildflowers and stuck them in Wen Xi's hair. Wen Xi instinctively glanced in Yan Fengan's direction, and when he saw the man looking at him too, he smiled shyly.

Yan Fengan couldn't help but smile back at him. As long as it didn't affect his life with Wen Xi, the Wen family could raise as much hell as they wanted.

—

On the afternoon of the third day of the holiday, Yan Fengan was about to return to the academy. As he was packing his bag, he noticed three items laid out on the table—a money pouch, a fan case, and a handkerchief.

Yan Fengan picked up the pouch and looked at it, feeling somewhat surprised. The colorful butterfly on the pouch looked shiny and smooth, with bright, vivid colors—it was so lifelike, and the technique was unlike anything he'd ever seen.

The fan case had just one orchid embroidered on it, and the tiny flowers on the orchid felt different from the rest of the fabric to the touch, as if a thin layer of soft fuzz had been spread over them.

He picked up the handkerchief and examined it as well. Though he wasn't exactly an expert, he could still tell the fabrics apart. Both the pouch and the fan case were made of brocade, while the handkerchief was made of fine silk—these weren't materials just anyone would use.

He asked Wen Xi, "Are you planning to sell these things?"

Wen Xi took the things out of his old pouch and put them into the new one, shaking his head. "No, I made them just for you."

Yan Fengan held the fan case in his hands and looked at it over and over, smiling as he said, "What would I do with something this nice?"

Wen Xi hung the pouch from his waist, stepped back to take a look, and nodded with satisfaction. Meeting Yan Fengan's sparkling eyes, he smiled too and said, "This is nothing—I still think it could be better. The rich folks out there all use kesi silk; now that looks truly classy."

After a moment's thought, he added, "You're a scholar—I'm sure plenty of people at the academy are watching your every word and action. We don't need to dress in gold and silver, but we can't let others look down on you."

Yan Fengan knew Wen Xi was worried about him being looked down on at the academy. If wearing these things would put Wen Xi's mind at ease, then he'd gladly go along with it.

"Once people know I have such a handsome and skillful fūláng, they'll be too busy being jealous to think less of me."

Wen Xi's cheeks flushed, but his heart was full of sweetness. Yan Fengan asked again, "These materials must have cost a pretty penny, didn't they?"

"Not too much—I bought the scraps from Brother Shen. They weren't too expensive. If I'd bought whole pieces, it would've been pricey." Wen Xi had come up with a new embroidery technique, and after trying it on both fine silk and brocade, he could do it on both. After saying this, he asked Yan Fengan, "Husband, how much do you think I can sell these for?"

Yan Fengan had heard the rich young men at the academy bragging before—just the pouches on their belts cost several taels each. Hearing Wen Xi ask this, he said hesitantly, "With materials and craftsmanship like this, you could definitely sell them for three to five taels, right?"

"Really?" Wen Xi's eyes brightened. If he could really sell them for that price, even if he only sold one, it would be a good profit.

Yan Fengan nodded. "Really."

This wasn't just him saying nice things to please Wen Xi. The rich folks in the city cared about fabric and style in everything they used. Materials like brocade and fine silk were already much more expensive than cotton, and with Wen Xi's skilled craftsmanship on top of that, people would still pay high prices for them.

"Then I'll make a few more of them—how about I take them to the city to sell at the Dragon Boat Festival?"

"Sure. When the time comes, I won't come home first. When you come to the city, come find me at the academy, and I'll come with you to sell them."

Hearing him say that, Wen Xi's eyes curved into crescents from smiling. He couldn't help but snuggle up and hook his arm through Yan Fengan's, coaxing, "Husband, you're the best."

Yan Fengan smiled and patted his head. "Did you make any more pouches or fan cases?"

"I made three altogether. If you like them, take another set to the academy to switch things up." With that, Wen Xi went to get the other two sets for Yan Fengan to pick from.

Yan Fengan looked at them—of the other two pouches, one had goldfish embroidered on it and the other had peonies, and the fan cases also had different plants embroidered on them.

"I don't need that many for just myself. Tell you what—I'll bring these to the academy, and if any of my classmates like them, I'll sell them for you."

Wen Xi was naturally happy that Yan Fengan would help him sell things, but after the initial excitement, he said hesitantly, "The academy is a place for learning. Would it be bad for you to be selling things there?"

A scholar who should be focusing on his studies instead of trying to make money off his classmates—people would definitely talk behind his back. Wen Xi didn't want Yan Fengan to be talked about.

"It's fine. I won't be shouting about it everywhere. If someone wants one, we'll sell; if not, we'll wait until the Dragon Boat Festival to deal with it."

Seeing how sure of himself he was, Wen Xi felt at ease and agreed.

Author's note:

OMG, I only realized after finishing that I forgot about the bowl of river snails that Xi touched. Let's just pretend they ate them. Thanks to the babies in the comments—those of you following the serial are all angels.