In the afternoon, Xu Chuang was doing laundry in the courtyard, while Ji Yuchen, feeling drowsy, lay down to sleep again. He hadn’t slept enough in the morning, and this nap lasted two to three hours. When he woke up, the room was empty, so he walked to the courtyard and saw someone sawing wood beside the grinding table.
Xu Chuang was stepping on one end of the wood to keep it in place, holding the saw with both hands, cutting it into square sticks of equal length.
Curious, Ji Yuchen walked over and asked, “What are you doing?”
Xu Chuang was momentarily distracted. Perhaps it was because Jiuer had just woken up, but his voice sounded soft and a bit like he was being coquettish.
He glanced back at him and said he was making a chair for him.
There were no chairs in Xu Chuang’s house, only small stools about twenty to thirty centimeters high. A few days ago, Ji Yuchen had an injury on his leg, making it difficult to sit down and get up, so he complained that the stool was unusable. Xu Chuang had long wanted to make him a taller one, but he was busy with farm work and only now had the time.
Ji Yuchen stared blankly at the wood on the ground, rubbed his eyes, and said, “It’s not that much trouble. My leg is much better now; I can sit on the small stool.”
Xu Chuang said, “This time there’s plenty of wood. I’ll make two chairs, one for each of us. Then we can eat around the table. Didn’t you say you don’t like eating on the kang?”
Because sitting on the small stool was inconvenient, they had recently been eating on a low table set up on the kang. Ji Yuchen didn’t like it. First, he felt cramped, and sitting cross-legged made digestion difficult, seriously affecting his performance. Second, using the sleeping area for eating felt awkward. He still thought there should be a dining table at home, as food is the most important thing for people, after all.
Xu Chuang’s house had a table but no stools. If he made two chairs, they could eat in the narrow space at the entrance, turning it into a small dining area, which Ji Yuchen thought was great.
He stood next to Xu Chuang, watching him saw wood. After a while, he felt tired and squatted down, resting on his knees. Xu Chuang told him to go inside, but Ji Yuchen couldn’t sit still and asked when they would go to the river to collect snails.
He was quite curious about the snails mentioned at noon, wondering what they looked like and if they tasted good.
Xu Chuang looked at the sky; the sun had already set quite a bit and wasn’t as harsh as at noon. He went inside, grabbed a bamboo basket, and put a straw hat on Jiuer’s head, saying they should try their luck by the river.
Qiantang Village had little water, with only a spring coming down from the back mountain, forming a small river along the low-lying area, trickling along.
Xu Chuang stepped barefoot into the water, feeling around the sandy riverbank for snails the size of knuckles, still covered in mud.
Ji Yuchen leaned in to look and asked if these things were edible.
Xu Chuang used his thumb to rub off the mud on the outside, revealing the shiny, patterned shell.
He said they should take them back, let them purge the sand for a couple of days, and then stir-fry them with chili for a delicious dish.
Recalling the “shadow” of the spicy rabbit dish from last time, Ji Yuchen asked nervously, “Can you use less chili?”
Xu Chuang said, “I’ll stir-fry them with sauce for you. They’ll taste good even without chili.”
They stayed on the riverbank for half an hour. Ji Yuchen, imitating Xu Chuang, picked up a few handfuls of snails and then played with the water while standing on a rock. Xu Chuang, having good luck, found a few river mussels. Seeing they had collected enough, he called Jiuer to go home.
He watched as Jiuer jumped off the rock, ran over to him in a few quick steps, with a big smile on his face and water droplets still clinging to him.
Xu Chuang didn’t know how he could have so much fun by himself. It seemed like Jiuer’s very existence was synonymous with “happiness,” making people feel joyful and unforgettable.
When they returned to the small courtyard, it was still early. Xu Chuang first soaked the snails, wanting to finish the chairs as soon as possible.
He worked quickly, sawing the four legs, seat, and small backrest of the chair in no time. The next step was to create a mortise and tenon structure on the sawn wood and then assemble it.
Ji Yuchen stood by the stone mill, watching and chatting idly.
He felt an itch on his face and unconsciously reached up to scratch it. Xu Chuang, while fetching materials, didn’t notice the person behind him and stepped on Ji Yuchen’s shoe tip, apologizing repeatedly.
He wanted to say, “I didn’t see you behind me. Did I hurt you?…”
Xu Chuang’s words got stuck in his throat, and when he turned around, he was startled: Ji Yuchen’s face was covered in scratches from his own nails, his cheeks were red, and there were red spots.
Xu Chuang was stunned for half a second, and the saw fell to the ground…
“What happened?! How did this happen?!”
His voice was louder than usual, and the sound of flapping wings came from the chicken coop next door, as if they were startled.
Xu Chuang held Ji Yuchen’s face, examining it closely, seeing that his eyes, forehead, and nose were all red and burning. Ji Yuchen stretched his arm to scratch the back of his neck, saying it itched. Xu Chuang turned him around to look, and his originally fair neck was now bright pink, like a steamed crab…
How could he have gotten so sunburned? It was as if the scorching sun had burned a layer of skin…
Xu Chuang pulled him inside, got a towel, and wet it to apply to his face. Ji Yuchen felt uncomfortable and insisted on looking in the mirror.
He was fine until he looked in the mirror, and then he almost cried, thinking he might be disfigured and never recover.
Tears quickly filled Ji Yuchen’s eyes, and Xu Chuang held his hands to stop him from touching his face, saying it was probably sunburn, and scratching it would leave scars.
He carefully blew on Ji Yuchen’s face to relieve the itch. Ji Yuchen, thinking of something, turned his face away, not letting Xu Chuang see, curling up like a little hedgehog.
After a lot of fussing around in the room, none of Xu Chuang’s methods seemed to work. Ji Yuchen was still itchy, both itchy and painful.
He felt like his face was burning like wood, his whole body dry and hot.
Xu Chuang knew this couldn’t go on, so he decided to take Ji Yuchen to Uncle Wang’s house at the village entrance to ask for some aloe vera. Uncle Wang was the village head of Qiantang Village, and his wife had planted a lot of flowers and plants in the courtyard. Xu Chuang remembered there was a pot of aloe vera, which was the best remedy for sunburn.
By this time, it was already late, and as the sun set in the west, there were almost no people on the village’s small stone road. Ji Yuchen followed behind Xu Chuang, trying to hide his “ugly” appearance as much as possible.
When they reached the courtyard gate, Uncle Wang wasn’t home, and it was Aunt Wang who opened the door. She greeted Xu Chuang cheerfully, asking why he had come at this time.
Xu Chuang chuckled and told Aunt Wang, “Auntie, I wanted to ask for some aloe vera. My Jiuer got sunburned, and his face is both painful and itchy. He can’t stand it.”
Aunt Wang quickly invited them in. She looked at Jiuer’s face and exclaimed, “How did this little face get so sunburned? Where did you go to play? Didn’t you know to wear a hat?”
Ji Yuchen replied softly, saying he didn’t go anywhere. He glanced at the table and noticed the bowls and chopsticks, realizing it was mealtime and feeling like they had come at the wrong time.
Ji Yuchen turned around and tugged on Xu Chuang’s hand. Aunt Wang told them to sit down while she went outside to cut some aloe vera.
After she left, Ji Yuchen whispered, “Should we have come later?”
Xu Chuang reassured him, “It’s okay. Once you apply it, it’ll feel better soon.”
He knew they had come at an inconvenient time, and visiting at this hour seemed like they were there for a meal. But Xu Chuang couldn’t wait any longer; Jiuer was in pain, and he couldn’t bear to wait another moment.
Aunt Wang soon returned with a knife, carrying a bowl of water and a large piece of aloe vera leaf.
She skillfully cut off the root of the aloe vera, saying that part couldn’t be used, then sliced the remaining leaf into small sections and soaked them in water.
Ji Yuchen watched eagerly, wondering when it would be ready. Aunt Wang seemed to read his mind and said it needed to soak for a while. If he was hungry, he could have some fruit to tide him over, and she’d make noodles for them later, inviting them to stay for dinner.
Unable to refuse such hospitality, Xu Chuang kept thanking her. Aunt Wang brought out some fruit from the living room, picking a soft and firm apricot for each of them. Ji Yuchen, distracted by the fruit, momentarily forgot about his face pain and took a bite.
The sweet and sour juice filled his mouth, bringing a refreshing sensation, and it was incredibly delicious. Ji Yuchen realized he hadn’t had any fruit since coming here, and if no one mentioned it, he wouldn’t have thought of it. Xu Chuang’s fields were filled with vegetables and grain crops, and he didn’t like eating them unprocessed.
After finishing the apricot in two or three bites, he seemed to want more. Xu Chuang handed him the one he was holding, reminding him to eat slowly, as no one was going to take it from him.
Aunt Wang, seeing how much he enjoyed it, was delighted and went inside to get a plastic bag, filling it with apricots for them to take home.
After some back-and-forth, Xu Chuang couldn’t refuse the elder’s kindness and had to accept. Ji Yuchen looked up at Xu Chuang, like a child receiving New Year’s money from relatives, waiting for his parents’ approval before accepting it.
Xu Chuang chuckled and shook his head, telling him to thank Auntie. Ji Yuchen quickly said, “Thank you, Auntie! You’re the best! Beautiful and kind-hearted!”
By the time they finished, Aunt Wang had taken the soaked aloe vera out, cut off the spines on both sides with a knife, and peeled off the top and bottom skins to extract the gel inside.
She handed a piece to Ji Yuchen, telling him to apply it to his face first, saying she’d make the rest into aloe vera juice for them to take home and apply after washing, ensuring it would heal in two days.
Ji Yuchen took the transparent, soft aloe vera gel and placed it on his face, feeling its coolness as it slid around.
He found it amusing, and his mood improved significantly. He turned to Xu Chuang and asked, “Will this really work? Is it true?”
Xu Chuang nodded, telling him to listen to Auntie, and it would definitely work.
They sat in the outer room waiting while Aunt Wang went to the kitchen to prepare the aloe vera and make dinner. She soon returned with a glass bottle filled with filtered aloe vera juice, telling them to apply it to the sunburned areas after washing their faces, as it had a soothing and hydrating effect and could relieve pain.
Xu Chuang thought about how they had left in a hurry and hadn’t brought anything, so he decided to bring some vegetables tomorrow to repay their kindness.
After having dinner at the village head’s house, Ji Yuchen was so full he could barely move, climbing the stairs slowly.
Xu Chuang didn’t rush him, carrying the apricots in one hand and the aloe vera juice in the other, walking beside him. He thought about how delicate Jiuer’s skin was, like a peeled egg. In the morning, he had seen that there was shade, so he shouldn’t have been sunburned, and he had worn a straw hat when they went out in the afternoon. Yet, he still got sunburned, and Xu Chuang couldn’t figure out where he went wrong.
He thought he must take good care of Jiuer in the future, not letting him suffer again.
Because of this unexpected incident, Xu Chuang couldn’t finish the chairs as planned and had to postpone it. After getting home, Ji Yuchen took a shower and climbed onto the kang, starting to apply the aloe vera juice to his face.
Freshly extracted aloe vera juice doesn’t last long, especially in the hot summer, and Aunt Wang said it would only be good for two or three days before it went bad.
Ji Yuchen carefully applied a coin-sized amount to his face, feeling it wasn’t enough, so he applied a thicker layer, examining himself in the mirror.
When Xu Chuang came into the room after his shower, he saw Jiuer looking in the mirror, checking himself out like a vain little fox.
He leaned over to see if the little guy needed any help, then took off his shoes and lay down on the kang.
In the quiet of the night, with the lights off, the sound of cicadas chirping outside, Ji Yuchen felt less pain on his face after applying the aloe vera, and he hugged the blanket, ready to sleep. As he drifted into slumber, a thought suddenly popped into his mind:
Oh no! I forgot something important!
[Author’s Note]
What important thing could our little ancestor have forgotten?