The second month brought the rejuvenation of all things as nature awoke from its slumber. There were no fresh vegetables from their own garden, but there were wild greens for them to eat.
Mama Bai asked, "Madam, the estate has sent some shepherd's purse. Shall we make shepherd's purse dumplings 📹 today?" As the residence's cook, Mama Bai always tried to bring variety to the dining table.
Yuxi wasn't particularly fond of dumplings, but Yun Qing enjoyed them, especially lamb dumplings. However, it was not advisable to eat lamb too often. Yuxi forbade him to indulge in it too often and suggested, "Let's make some shepherd's purse dumplings and a cold shepherd's purse salad." She had been eating a lot of wild greens lately, and only yesterday, she had stir-fried beef with fennel.
Mama Bai acknowledged and withdrew to prepare them.
After taking care of household chores, Yuxi took Zaozao to the vegetable garden. Watching Zaozao clap her hands at the birds perched on the trees, Yuxi couldn't help but tickle her nose and laugh. "I wonder who this little one takes after..." Well, she certainly didn't take after Yuxi.
The garden was now filled with various vegetables, although they had only begun to sprout. Stepping inside, one could feel the vibrant energy of life.
Mama Lan suggested, "Madam, if we convert this space into a greenhouse, we can have vegetables to eat even in the middle of winter." During the harsh winter, apart from eating cabbage and pickles, the only vegetables available were bean sprouts. Fresh, green vegetables were nowhere to be seen.
Yuxi shook her head. "Let's discuss this matter later." Her perspective had changed, and she now thought it would be good to build a greenhouse so that they could have green vegetables during the winter. However, she understood that constructing a greenhouse would take time and could not be done in a day or two. Besides, she had other plans in mind, so she put this idea aside for now.
A chill filled the air as the wind picked up and began to blow. Yuxi didn't dare to linger outside, fearing her child might catch a cold. She quickly carried Zaozao back inside. Seeing Zaozao struggling and unwilling to leave, Yuxi playfully bit her round face gently and said, "In the future, you'll definitely be a mischievous little monkey." Little did Yuxi know that her words would come true.
At noon, Yun Qing came over from the front courtyard. Since moving his office into the residence, their meal times had become regular.
Yun Qing said, "Chen Shi has given birth. The washing ceremony will be held the day after tomorrow. You should attend." Although Yuxi didn't like Chen Shi, she considered Fu Tianlei a good friend of her husband's, so she would undoubtedly attend the ceremony.
Listening to Yun Qing's indifferent tone and considering the absence of any joyful announcement from the Fu family, Yuxi suspected that the newborn was most likely another girl. Otherwise, there wouldn't be such a lack of fanfare. However, even though she thought about it, it wouldn't be appropriate to ask directly: "Is the child a boy or a girl?" If Chen Shi had indeed given birth to another daughter, it would be too bad for her.
Yun Qing calmly added, "It's a girl." Seeing that Yuxi only answered with an 'oh' and remained silent, he continued, "Old General Fu may find a second wife for Tianlei." After all, Fu Tianlei was already twenty-six years old, and Old General Fu couldn't wait any longer.
Yuxi responded with another 'oh' and then asked, "If I also give birth to three daughters in the future, will you take a second wife?" The gender of a child was determined by fate, and she couldn't guarantee that her next child would be a son.
Yun Qing glanced at Yuxi and stated, "We will surely have a son one day." Seeing Yuxi's expression darken, Yun Qing patted her shoulder and added, "Don't overthink things." Yuxi was good in every way, except that she tended to overthink and worry, which was his least favourite trait of hers.
Yuxi spoke up, "He Rui, let me tell you, even if I don't give birth to a son in the future, you are not allowed to take a second wife." If she couldn't bear a son, she wouldn't mind if he took a concubine of lesser rank, but it absolutely couldn't be a noble concubine.
Hearing this, Yun Qing was speechless. "Why are you cursing yourself like that?" He had never met anyone who cursed themselves for being unable to bear a son! Could he say that his wife was an anomaly?
Yuxi said, "Anything is possible. He Rui, if I still haven't given birth to a son by the time I turn thirty, you can take a concubine, but not a second wife." After all, if a second wife gave birth to a son, it would directly threaten the position of the main wife.
Yun Qing didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Don't overthink it. I've told you I won't take concubines, and I definitely won't." It turned out that Yuxi hadn't taken his previous words to heart at all.
Although Yuxi was touched by Yun Qing's previous statement about not taking concubines, she didn't believe it. Words spoken during the honeymoon phase were not always trustworthy. There were too many precedents for such promises, such as Fu Tianlei and Chen Shi. When Fu Tianlei married Chen Shi, he also promised to be together forever, but what happened now? A few years later, he was about to take a second wife. "Of course, I believe you. However, the continuation of the family line is important. If such a situation arises, I can't selfishly cut off the Yun family's incense1." Whether these words were a test or a sincere sentiment, only Yuxi herself knew.
Yun Qing fell silent momentarily before saying, "If I am truly destined to have no son, then we can have Zaozao recruit a son-in-law into the family in the future." That way, the family line would not be completely broken.
Yuxi was stunned. She said these words because she had experienced too much, making her prepare for the worst in everything. It was the only way she could keep a clear head. "Really?"
Yun Qing gently hugged Yuxi and whispered, "We are still young, and we will be able to have a son. If it's truly impossible, it might be because I've killed too many people. Since that's the case, there's no point in forcing it."
Yuxi was taken aback. She hadn't expected Yun Qing to say such things. "I'm sorry." She said this as a precaution for Yun Qing, as she couldn't be one hundred per cent sure of her own ability to bear a son.
Yun Qing gently patted Yuxi and said, "Don't overthink things in the future." He thought it was better to keep Yuxi busy. If she had tasks to do, she wouldn't overthink things. Otherwise, he would feel tired too.
With this thought in mind, Yun Qing began to discuss official matters with Yuxi: "Each camp is taking the two thousand acres of land distribution seriously. They have planted wheat and vegetables in the vacant areas. The only thing left is to buy chicks and ducklings." If they succeeded in planting, the camps would have vegetables to eat, and they could occasionally have some meat as well.
Yuxi said, "If they don't understand, they can ask experienced old farmers and women who are good at raising chickens and ducks." Speaking of which, Yuxi suddenly remembered something. In her previous life, she had also spent a year on a farm, and at that time, it was popular on the farm to use compost to raise earthworms to feed chickens. She had heard that this method not only made the chickens grow faster but also increased their egg production.
Yun Qing smiled. "Everyone is hoping that the harvest from these two thousand acres of land will improve their food, so they will be meticulous." When it comes to everyone's vital interests, they would naturally be careful.
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Yuxi thought a little deeper before suggesting, "We need to set up a complete accounting system; otherwise, the accounts will be confusing, and it will not be clear if someone has tampered with them. Also, we will check the accounts from time to time in the future." Although the accounts had been prepared, there was no way to prevent people with bad intentions from tampering. But if someone were checking the accounts, those people would not dare go too far.
The couple continued their conversation for quite a while until Mama Qu called from outside for them to eat. This incident made Yun Qing realise it was better for Yuxi to keep busy than to overthink things. Keeping her busy was better than letting her mind wander aimlessly. Of course, the precondition was that her body could handle it.
That afternoon, Yuxi called Han Dong and explained how earthworms were used to feed the chickens and ducks: "Let's try it at Scholar Tree Estate first. If it works, we can promote it later." She knew she had to be convincing because others wouldn't just take her word for it. After all, as a military general's wife who had never done any manual labour, how could she possibly know about raising chickens and ducks? She actually didn't know much about it. It was just that when she was on the farm in her previous life, the women around her often talked about it, and hearing it repeatedly left a deep impression. This method of using earthworms might sound simple, but it definitely wouldn't be that easy to implement.
Han Dong was amazed and asked, "Madam, where did you hear about this method?" He had never heard of feeding earthworms to increase egg production before!
Yuxi replied, "I read it in a book, and the General also mentioned raising chickens and ducks today, which reminded me of it. By the way, with so many chickens and ducks on the farm, we should take good care of them." Raising a large number of chickens and ducks was also risky because they were prone to disease. Regarding this matter, Yuxi felt helpless. That's why she didn't rely on poultry farming to make money.
Han Dong nodded. "Alright."
That same evening, Fu Jian sought out Fu Tianlei and said, "You're already twenty-six this year; you can't put it off any longer." Old Zhao's eldest grandson was already ten years old, and in a few years, he would be a great-grandfather. As for Fu Jian, he hadn't even seen the shadow of his grandson yet. He couldn't bear it any longer.
In the past, whenever Fu Jian mentioned taking a concubine, Fu Tianlei would always directly refuse. But this time, he didn't. After a moment, he replied, "Let's discuss this after Ah Wen finishes her confinement period." By him bringing up the subject now, how could Ah Wen feel at ease during her confinement? If she didn't recover properly during this period, it could easily lead to health problems.
As they were going to bed the next evening, Yuxi told Yun Qing, "He Rui, the Fu family still hasn't sent an invitation. So I won't go to their house tomorrow." It was customary to send out invitations to the washing ceremony on the day of the child's birth. Without an invitation, Yuxi wouldn't dare to visit them uninvited.
Yun Qing looked at Yuxi and asked, "Could they have forgotten?"
Yuxi glanced at Yun Qing and responded, "How could they forget something like this? I think the Fu family is probably just thinking it's still the national mourning period, so they're not planning to invite outsiders." This was just an excuse that Yuxi made up on the spot. If her guess was correct, Chen Shi was probably unhappy because the baby was a girl. Otherwise, there was no reason why she wouldn't have sent out invitations for the third-day washing ceremony.
Yun Qing frowned. Even though it was the national mourning period, they were not hosting a banquet; they just wanted to invite close friends and family to participate in the tradition of 'adding blessings to the basin2 for the child. Even in the capital city, no one would raise any objections, let alone in Yu City.
Yuxi smiled and said, "I'll visit Chen Shi in a couple of days." Considering Fu Tianlei and Yun Qing's close relationship, Yuxi should have visited Chen Shi yesterday. However, since Chen Shi didn't like her and didn't visit her until a few days after Zaozao was born, Yuxi didn't plan to see her yesterday. Since others had been putting on airs with her, she obviously wouldn't be in a hurry to visit them either.
Yun Qing was unaware of Yuxi's elusive manoeuvres when he said, "You can decide for yourself." Since the Fu family hadn't sent an invitation, it would be perfectly understandable if Yuxi didn't attend.
Footnotes Full List
- This metaphorically refers to the lineage and legacy of a family, often associated with burning incense to honour the ancestors.
The Chinese phrase "添盆" (tiān pén) literally translates to 'adding to the basin'. This meaning arises from the traditional practice of using a basin filled with water, flowers, and symbolic objects during the ceremony. Symbolism:
Water: The water in the basin symbolises purity, cleansing, and new beginnings. It represents the washing away of any negativity and the start of a fresh journey for the newborn child.
Flowers: The flowers added to the basin represent beauty, joy, and prosperity. They symbolise hopes and wishes for the child to have a life filled with happiness and success.
Symbolic Objects: Often, symbolic objects like coins, red envelopes, and jade are added to the basin. These objects represent wealth, luck, and good fortune, signifying the wishes for the child to have a prosperous and fulfilling life.'
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The Rebirth of Han Yuxi