As dawn broke, the sound of roosters crowing and dogs barking filled the air. Qiao Yue looked at the beams of light slanting in from outside and called out, “One, two, three, get up!” But after shouting, he still lay in bed.
After about ten rounds of this, Qiao Yue finally sat up. Since he was already up, he wasn’t in a rush to wash up. Today was a clear and bright day, perfect for drawing cards.
Qiao Yue drew a [Candy Card] again, but this time it was fruit candy. Each piece was wrapped in colorful transparent paper, with different colors representing different flavors. They were only as big as a pinky finger, but fortunately, there was a lot of candy in one card, probably around three to four pounds, much heavier than milk candy.
Most of the cards he drew these days were food-related, but Qiao Yue wasn’t greedy. Even if ten coins could buy this much candy, he would still be secretly pleased. After all, even two pounds of maltose for ten coins would make him smile.
Indeed, the spiritual treasure system was something else. Even the candy was more exquisite than what was sold in their county. It was a good thing he encountered it.
Qiao Yue felt grateful for the benefits of the system and couldn’t help but think he was quite capable! He had clearly forgotten how he was scared half to death at the beginning, feeding buns to the chickens and not daring to draw a second card for half a month.
Qiao Yue stuffed a handful of fruit candy into his pocket and then put it away as it was. Only then did he leisurely go to wash up.
After breakfast, he stuffed two candies into Qiao Xiaoyuan’s hand, who insisted on following him. As expected, after getting the candy, Qiao Xiaoyuan immediately turned and ran to find Miao Ge’er.
Qiao Yue packed a few cornbread in oil paper, carried a basket on his back, and set off to wait for Fang Chuyue. However, after waiting for a while and not seeing Fang Chuyue, Qiao Yue had no choice but to walk to the end of the village.
When he reached the Fang family’s door, Fang Chuyang and Fang Chuqing were waiting at the entrance. Seeing him, Fang Chuqing gave him a strange look.
Of course, it was strange. Fang Chuqing had always looked up to her big brother as a role model, especially after Fang Chuyue saved Li Fuwen. She revered her brother’s theory of marrying into the city, even though the Li family later backed out. It didn’t change Fang Chuqing’s thoughts.
So she actively helped Fang Chuyue, never expecting that by a twist of fate, her brother-in-law would turn from a scholar to a lazy man. As a twelve-year-old girl, it was hard for her to accept.
If Fang Chuyue hadn’t warned her in advance, her attitude today might have been worse. Fang Chuyang, on the other hand, was fine. He was just a bit taciturn and didn’t like talking to strangers. But Fang Chuyue had given him a heads-up yesterday, so they had to go out together today.
Seeing Fang Chuqing’s attitude, Qiao Yue rolled his eyes in front of the little girl. He wasn’t one to take things lying down, whether it was a three-year-old child or an eighty-year-old man. If someone made him uncomfortable, he would definitely retort. Today, for Fang Chuyue’s sake, Qiao Yue only gave a slight eye roll.
He thought to himself, saying they were going out together, but the person was nowhere to be found. Qiao Yue crossed his arms, fuming, and then asked Fang Chuyang beside him, “Yang Ge’er, where’s your big brother?”
Fang Chuyang replied, “Uncle Zhou came by, and big brother told us to wait at the door for Brother Qiao.”
Uncle Zhou? Uncle Tiezhu? Uncle Daqiang? Uncle Min?
Qiao Yue walked to the side, thinking about which Zhou families were in the village. After a while, Fang Chuyue appeared wearing a straw hat, holding a hoe and a basket.
“Have you been waiting long? Let’s go,” he said as he approached Qiao Yue.
“Yes,” Qiao Yue nodded, “I usually sleep at this time, but I got up early just for… and ended up waiting for so long. If I had known, I wouldn’t have gotten up so early. Why did you make me wait so long? Now I’m sleepy again.”
Fang Chuqing: “…” Liar.
He had only been there for a short while, just a few words, and he claimed to have waited a long time. Fang Chuqing looked at Fang Chuyue, thinking, “Big brother, don’t believe him! He just got here!”
In front of his two younger siblings, Qiao Yue didn’t feel embarrassed at all. He just exaggerated a bit, but he did come early, and he was genuinely sleepy.
Fang Chuyue actually started explaining, “Let’s talk while we walk.”
The two walked side by side, half an arm’s length apart. Qing Jie’er watched them get closer and couldn’t help but hiss. Yang Ge’er turned his head, “Little sister, do you have a toothache?”
The two younger ones followed behind, and Fang Chuyue said, “Just as I was about to leave, Uncle Zhou came by to say that Brother Daqing’s life was saved, and he brought us two pelts.”
Zhou Tiezhu had hurried to the medical center with the money, and they wouldn’t start treatment until they had enough silver. Otherwise, once the leg was amputated, the patient’s family might refuse treatment or abandon the person at the medical center, which would be troublesome.
Even though the leg was amputated, Zhou Daqing was still in critical condition. The Zhou family didn’t want to wait at home for news; they were waiting for the next moment. Would it be a new life or a final farewell?
If the doctor hadn’t come out to chase them away, the Zhou family would have camped outside the medical center day and night. The Zhou family was almost empty during the day, which caught the attention of some people.
Yesterday, Zhou Daqing finally broke his fever. Although he lost half a leg, he seemed to have survived. Zhou Tiezhu finally breathed a sigh of relief. When he returned home, he found that thieves had tried to break in. There were several messy footprints in the corner of the courtyard wall, thanks to the rain, which left footprints in the mud.
After some inquiries, Zhou Tiezhu found out that it was because neighbors and Fang’s father had been patrolling the area that the thieves left empty-handed. Otherwise, the house might have been robbed.
So Zhou Tiezhu quickly came over to express his gratitude. However, with only about ten taels left at home and the medical center still needing money, he had nothing to give but a few pelts.
Hearing this, Qiao Yue frowned. He really didn’t know about the Zhou family’s troubles. Since the Zhou family had built their home at the foot of the mountain for hunting, Qiao Yue lived at the village entrance, and their relationship wasn’t close. Unless he went to check on the beehives, Qiao Yue rarely went to the foot of the mountain. When they met, they just exchanged greetings. Coincidentally, he had moved the beehives to Lin Manor recently and hadn’t been there for a while.
But hearing that Zhou Daqing had lost a leg, Qiao Yue couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. Qiao Yue sighed and handed him two pieces of hemp rope, one long and one short, “Here.” The length of the hemp rope matched Qiao Yue’s shoe size.
Fang Chuyue tied the hemp rope to the basket. The Fang family’s land was near the foot of the mountain, not far from Zhou Tiezhu’s house. The Qiao family originally had a few acres of land here, but they had been sold.
When the four of them arrived, there were quite a few people working in the fields. The three-leaf sorrel in the field had grown in patches, and if not dug out, it would affect the growth of the crops. Fortunately, the radishes dug out were sweet and refreshing, good for snacking or cooking. So, apart from a few aunts and uncles, many of the people in the field were young girls and boys around ten years old.
“Isn’t Yue Ge’er getting married in a few days? Why is he still bringing his siblings to the fields?” someone said, looking over.
“Oh, Yue boy is here too. Getting married has made you diligent, huh?”
As soon as these words were spoken, Qiao Yue became the focus of many aunts and uncles’ attention. Qiao Yue greeted them one by one, quickly putting down his basket and taking out a small hoe, a shovel, a straw hat, and two small stools. He handed one stool to Fang Chuyue and sat down, ready to start digging the three-leaf sorrel.
Everyone: “…” It’s the first time they’ve seen someone start working by sitting on a small stool.
How could a man be so delicate about work, even less so than them? They secretly criticized him behind his back. It’s not that no one sits on a small stool; during busy farming times, many people tie a small stool to their waist, sitting down to rest when tired, and cutting rice when not. But it’s rare to see someone sitting on a small stool while working in the fields because everyone thinks it’s inefficient and would rather finish quickly and go home.
Qiao Yue looked at Fang Chuyue, “Sit down.” He didn’t realize he had become the center of attention again.
Fang Chuyue simply sat down too. The two of them were on one end, while Yang Ge’er and Qing Jie’er were on the other, and the four of them started digging the three-leaf sorrel.
After a while, Qiao Yue rummaged through his basket and took out a bamboo cup, “Have some water.”
Fang Chuyue looked at the bamboo cup in front of him and shook his head, “I brought water, you drink.”
“It’s different,” Qiao Yue said, “Just take a sip.”
Fang Chuyue obediently took a sip of the flat soda, and his eyes suddenly lit up. Although he didn’t say a word, the surprise in his eyes was evident. Qiao Yue raised an eyebrow proudly, “Isn’t it different!”
Fang Chuyue nodded quickly, took another sip, and then handed it back.
“You’re not drinking anymore?”
“Mm.” Seeing Fang Chuyue nod, Qiao Yue capped the cup and took another bamboo cup to drink happily. He would never shortchange himself~
The two of them were good-looking, and even drinking water made people blush. Some of the boys and girls of marriageable age couldn’t help but wonder if their future husbands would treat them the same way.
The little father of a boy nearby saw his son distracted and scolded, “What are you looking at? If you dare to act like that fox, I’ll beat you to death!”
“Little father, what are you talking about!” the boy retorted angrily.
“I’m teaching you now, don’t be picky. Look at Fang Chuyue, how many people came to propose at first, but he thought he was so good-looking and wanted to marry into the county. Dragging it out, look at him now, only able to marry a lazy man. If the man of the house doesn’t work the fields, do you want to eat the northwest wind in the future!”
The boy argued, “You’re just saying that because you’re sour. Last time you praised Fang Ge’er and said you wanted to match him with cousin. Don’t think I don’t know!”
His little father, seeing his son always contradicting him, rushed over to hit him, “You stupid boy, how did I give birth to such a fool!”
“Don’t hit just because you can’t win an argument,” the boy said, darting away, “If my husband looked like that, I’d be happy to support him! At least watching him eat would make my meals taste better!”
Unlike the man he was set up with last time, who had bow legs, a pockmarked face, and a big mouth. That ugly face, his little father kept saying the man had good conditions, but the boy was so disgusted he couldn’t eat!
The sun was high, making people feel weak. Qiao Yue didn’t care what others thought; he was already tired, looking at the three-leaf sorrel in the field and sighing.
Seeing his dazed look, Fang Chuyue wiped his cheek with the back of his hand and asked, “Do you want to take a break?”
Qing Jie’er looked at the sky: “…” They seem to have only been out for half an hour, right?