Chapter 57 Chapter 57
When Ye Bao woke up the next day, he found himself huddled alone in a corner, while his younger brother Gu Fengyan was nestling in the arms of his older brother Huo Duan, with only the top of his head showing.
The two of them were so close that no one cared about him.
Ye Bao tried to get in between the two of them, but after struggling for a long time with his small body, he just couldn't get in...his older brother even pushed him away and pulled the younger brother into his arms, making him feel nothing.
Ye Bao was stunned for a moment, his mouth pursed in grievance, and he burst into tears with a "wow".
"What's wrong? Why are you crying so early in the morning?" Gu Fengyan dazedly shook off Huo Duan's arms around his waist and sat up suddenly from the bed.
He was stunned for a moment, then quickly wrapped Ye Bao in a blanket and brought her over, "Xiao Bao, tell your brother what's wrong? Why are you crying?"
Huo Duan opened his eyes and saw Gu Fengyan hugging Ye Bao and comforting her... Ye Bao's eyes were red from crying, and tears as big as beans fell onto the quilt.
"What's going on?" He frowned in confusion.
Ye Bao grabbed Gu Fengyan's collar, stared and choked, "Big brother pushed me, wuwuwu... Big brother pushed me."
Gu Fengyan immediately understood... He and Huo Duan were sleeping soundly, while Ye Bao was huddled in the corner alone. This was unfair.
"Don't cry, don't cry, your brother will beat him." He was both amused and helpless, and kicked Huo Duan lightly.
He kicked him in the side of the waist.
"No, when did I..." Huo Duan sighed and suddenly choked.
He seemed to have actually pushed Ye Bao in his sleep.
"Brother was wrong..." He took Ye Bao over and apologized angrily, "Forgive brother, you are crying like a little cat."
Ye Bao was quite well behaved. He choked up twice and then stopped crying. He nodded his little head and said, "I'm not a little cat..."
Gu Fengyan took a piece of clothing and asked Huo Duan to put it on him. It was still dark outside the window and it was still early.
Huo Duan handed Ye Bao to Gu Fengyan and wrung out a handkerchief from outside to wipe his face.
"Are you still sleeping?" Gu Fengyan said to me, Ye Bao.
He was aching all over right now, and he definitely couldn't get up... But Ye Bao was a child, and children were full of energy, as if they were not sleepy.
Sure enough, Ye Bao rubbed his eyes and shook his head.
Huo Duan threw the handkerchief into the basin and smiled, "Ayan, go back to sleep for a while. I'll take care of him... You worked hard last night."
Gu Fengyan was covered in a quilt, with his black hair scattered all over. His snow-white collar revealed an even whiter neck covered with red marks... just like a few plum blossoms blooming on the snow.
"Why are you talking nonsense in front of the kids?" He glared at Huo Duan and kicked him in the waist with his toes.
Ye Bao looked at Gu Fengyan and then at Huo Duan in a daze, "Brother, I'm hungry." He pulled Huo Duan's sleeve, not caring at all about what they were talking about.
Huo Duan held Gu Fengyan's ankle and rubbed it, then suddenly covered Ye Bao's eyes... He hooked the back of Gu Fengyan's head and bit his watery lips.
"Um..." Gu Fengyan struggled and pushed Huo Duan, but the back of his head was held tightly and he couldn't push it open.
Ye Bao was confused, and pulled Huo Duan with his little hands, "Brother...I feel uncomfortable."
After a while, Huo Duan finally let go of Gu Fengyan and covered him with the quilt. He was in a good mood while holding Ye Bao, "Brother is playing with you. Aren't you hungry? What do you want to eat, Xiaobao?"
When Ye Bao heard about food, he stopped thinking about anything else and his little head started to work.
Gu Fengyan wiped his lips and stared at Huo Duan with tears in his eyes.
"Why are you glaring at me, Ayan?" Huo Duan looked innocent and smiled wickedly.
A rooster crowed loudly on the other side of the river... If we don't sleep a little longer, it will be dawn soon.
His breathing gradually calmed down. Gu Fengyan simply ignored it, wrapped himself in the quilt, and cursed, "Asshole."
Huo Duan put Ye Bao down, blocked Gu Fengyan's view while covering him with the quilt, and kissed the top of his head, "Go to sleep, A Yan, I'll call you when breakfast is ready."
Ye Bao jumped around to see what his two brothers were doing. Huo Duan picked him up and carried him outside, "Don't make any noise. Brother will give you some steamed eggs, okay?"
Ye Bao's eyes were bright, and he didn't think about anything else. "I want two..."
It was almost dawn when Gu Fengyan woke up... There were birds singing outside the window. He wrapped himself in the quilt but did not move.
After a while, the door was pushed open and Huo Duan came to ask him to get up and have dinner.
Huo Duan coaxed the man into waking up, helped him put on his clothes and wash his face before leaving.
There was a milky white mist on the top of the mountain. It was early autumn and there was still mist hanging on the peach leaves.
Huo Duan was not very good at cooking, so he picked some wild vegetables at the back of the house and cooked two bowls of plain noodles… There were four eggs left in the old house, so he steamed two for Ye Bao and one for Huo's father.
In the end, all of it was in Gu Fengyan's bowl.
The egg was cooked to medium-rare and had a soft core. Gu Fengyan sat down and poked it with the tip of his chopsticks. The golden soft core flowed out like quicksand, wrapping around the noodles and vegetables. He took a bite and finally felt better.
"Where are Ye Bao and Dad?" Gu Fengyan buried his head in his meal and gave half an egg to Huo Duan. "It's so greasy, I'll give it to you."
Huo Duan picked a few green vegetables for him and ate half an egg. "It's the busy farming season. Brother Dashan and Brother Jing have gone back to their parents' home. Only my aunt and uncle are left in the fields. Daddy sent Ye Bao back and took care of the family at the same time."
Although Liu Jingyu's parents' home is just at the entrance of the village, only a few steps away, the etiquette must be followed this time and not a single step can be missed, otherwise people will gossip behind their backs, saying that the Ye family does not value this son-in-law.
Gu Fengyan nodded, "Why don't we go and help?"
"I'll go after dinner. You're at home, and I guess someone will come to ask for medicinal seeds after the afternoon." Huo Duan took a few bites of rice, cleared the bowl and watched him eat.
Gu Fengyan felt a little uncomfortable being stared at, and he said, "Oh... don't look at me like that."
Huo Duan laughed, "Poor appetite?"
"I don't feel very energetic." Gu Fengyan nodded, drank a few sips of soup, put down the bowl and stopped eating.
Apart from the vegetables and half an egg, the bowl was hardly touched.
Huo Duan didn't force him to eat, and took the bowl away. "Don't get angry by yourself this afternoon. I brought it to you from my aunt's house."
It's just a meal, but I don't have much appetite, as if I'm being too delicate. Gu Fengyan was both amused and confused.
But he didn't refuse. He was indeed a bit lazy and didn't really want to cook.
"Let me clean up the bowls. Go quickly before the sun comes out." He stood up, took the bowls and went into the house.
Huo Duan agreed verbally, followed closely to the kitchen, and started adding water to the pot.
"What are you doing?" Gu Fengyan raised his eyebrows.
Huo Duan smiled and said, "You two, clean up quickly. You just stand aside so I can see you."
Gu Fengyan felt sleepy after eating. He was too lazy to talk nonsense with him and just stood by and watched Huo Duan finish washing the dishes.
"Why are you so sleepy?" Huo Duan saw that he seemed a little unwell, wondering if he was sick, and suddenly became serious, "Why don't we go see a doctor?"
Gu Fengyan felt that he was making a big deal out of nothing.
"Just take a nap at noon." He yawned, "Go quickly, it's getting late."
To harvest crops, one has to wait until the sun is out to avoid them being exposed to the sun. During the busy farming season, one has to rely on the morning. If Huo Duan goes too late, he won't be able to help much.
At this moment, the milky fog on the top of the mountain dissipated, gradually reflecting a bit of crimson morning glow, a sign that the sun was about to rise.
Huo Duan looked through the window...it was possible to go.
"If you feel unwell, tell me. It's okay if you don't work today..." He hugged Gu Fengyan for a while and gave her detailed instructions.
You are not a child. Gu Fengyan complained, but his heart was soft and warm.
"I see." He smiled, "Boss Huo, you are just like an old lady's foot binding, nagging..."
Huo Duan said seriously, "Ayan, you have to listen."
Gu Fengyan smiled and said, "I understand. Go quickly."
The sun is over the top of the mountain outside, and it will be very hot in a few hours... Although it is early autumn, the sun's scorching heat has not diminished at all.
Gu Fengyan picked a handful of tender bamboo shoots from behind the house, soaked them in a large pot of water and asked him to take it to Ye Bixian and Huo Xiuling.
Huo Duan left with the water...
Gu Fengyan had nothing to do alone, so he swept the yard and pulled out some weeds in the vegetable garden in the backyard that he had not had time to harvest.
The sun was getting hotter and his face turned red from the sun. He went back to the house and drank a few sips of the summer heat-relief tea he had brewed in the morning. Gu Fengyan then took out the dried medicinal herbs that he had piled up over the past few days and put them on the shelf to dry in the sun.
After sitting under the eaves for a while, he felt a little sleepy. As the sun was so bright, he estimated that no one would come, so he went back to the house and took a nap.
When it was afternoon, the sun was a little dimmer, and Gu Fengyan sat under the peach tree again, waiting for someone to come.
There are only a few people in the village, and except for some who are hesitant and don't want to pay, most of them have already taken the medicinal seeds.
Not many people came in the afternoon, so Gu Fengyan gave them detailed instructions, asked them to sort the medicinal seeds by category, and collected the corresponding money.
Since no one came, Gu Fengyan started to pack things into the house.
When I came back and was sorting out the account books, I heard someone coming in.
He turned around and saw that it was Jiang Xuerui.
"Why are you here? Come, come and sit down..." Without even packing up his things, Gu Fengyan immediately stepped forward to protect Jiang Xuerui and walked over to sit down.
She is five or six months pregnant and her pregnancy is already obvious. A boy does not behave like a woman when she is pregnant. Jiang Xuerui's belly is only slightly bulging, which is not very noticeable. But he is thin and his belly is so big that you can tell at a glance that he is pregnant.
Gu Fengyan found it quite miraculous that a man was pregnant.
He took a cup of boiled plum water from the house and cooled it to the right temperature before giving it to Jiang Xuerui. "Why didn't you ask Brother Shen to come if you have something to do? You should have a good rest and don't overwork yourself."
The cooked black plum juice is sweet and sour and delicious. Jiang Xuerui has been craving sour food since she got pregnant, and this is just what she likes.
"Don't talk about resting. I'm almost rusty at home after these few months. I finally convinced you to let me come and chat with you." Jiang Xuerui drank the black plum water in small sips.
It was very difficult for a boy to give birth, and Shen Zhuo put a lot of effort into this matter. After Jiang Xuerui became pregnant, he no longer asked him to run around.
Gu Fengyan couldn't help but look at his belly, "It's not easy to give birth to him, it's right for Second Brother Shen to be careful."
Jiang Xuerui really liked the sweet and sour taste of black plum water, and drank a cup of it in one go. Gu Fengyan continued, smiling a little embarrassedly, "Shen Zhuo and I went back to my parents' place and just came back this morning. I heard from you that Shen Zhuo should agree to my coming, so I came."
No wonder I didn’t see Shen Zhuo and Jiang Xuerui yesterday, it turns out they went back to their mother’s home.
Gu Fengyan smiled and said, "Just come over. Huo Duan and I have been in the village these days."
While drinking water, Jiang Xuerui saw the account book on the table that had not been collected yet.
"But you haven't finished with the herbs yet," he sighed, "even with this little thing, it's a pity that I can't help you much."
Gu Fengyan smiled and said, "That's not true...Big brother is taking care of the herbs so we don't have to worry about it. But Huo Duan and I are looking for people to grow herbs in the village these days, so we have to stay for a few days."
"Growing medicinal herbs?" Jiang Xuerui and Shen Zhuo went back to her parents' home, and the news had not yet reached here, so they were a little surprised.
Gu Fengyan just remembered this.
However, the Shen family has several acres of abandoned land.