The house suddenly gained more than twenty chickens and ducks, plus two sheep. Shen Feng spent the night cutting bamboo to make a fence. The house was small, but the yard was fairly large, and he even fenced off a big patch of wasteland behind the house so the chickens and ducks could peck around and feed themselves.
The sheep were temporarily kept in the kitchen. The ewe looked like she would give birth in seven or eight days. Shen Ruo brought in thick dry straw and set up a simple nest for her, planning to cut some fresh grass the next morning.
The ewe walked carefully on her heavy hooves into the nest, crouched down cautiously, and nudged Shen Ruo’s hand with her damp nose.
Seizing the moment, Shen Ruo stroked her horns gently and said softly, “Thank you for your hard work.”
The ewe exhaled heavily, and Shen Ruo rubbed the fur on her body, then carefully touched her belly.
It was round and firm, and he could feel the little lamb moving inside.
When Shen Ruo had arrived, Xiao Yuntun was already about to be born, so he had never experienced the sensation of fetal movement.
But now, with the ewe, he could feel it. It was truly wonderful.
“Baa.” The ewe bleated, and the ram immediately came over and lay down on the muddy ground beside the nest.
Shen Ruo petted one with each hand. Both sheep had excellent temperaments and weren’t afraid of humans. Their soft fur made him almost unwilling to let go.
“All right, you’ll sleep here for tonight,” Shen Ruo said, brushing off the straw clinging to him as he got up.
There was still boiling water on the stove prepared by Li Shantao. Shen Ruo mixed it with well water and carefully gave himself a bath. Only after the water had completely cooled did he change into clean clothes and return to his own room.
Newborns are most vulnerable to germs, especially in ancient times when medical conditions were so primitive.
Shen Ruo quietly opened the door and sat down beside the bed.
The moonlight tonight was bright, streaming through the window and faintly illuminating the surroundings.
Xiao Yuntun, who had slept fitfully throughout the day, was now awake.
His eyes were fully open, round and clearly defined in black and white.
But the skin on his body was still wrinkled, which made his eyes look like little grapes.
He was actually quite ugly.
Shen Ruo had to admit it.
He had thought the baby would at least resemble him, since he looked fairly good himself, but it seemed his child hadn’t inherited that.
Moreover, before Shen Ruo had arrived in this body, it had looked almost identical to the original owner’s, even sharing the same birthday. The only difference was that this body was five years younger.
The original owner was nineteen this year, but in an era when people typically married young, he was already considered an old “leftover” bachelor.
It wasn’t that no one had wanted to come propose marriage, but the original Shen Ruo had sworn he would only marry Gu Yun. Not only did he compete with the heroine for attention, he also clung to Gu Yun at every opportunity. Almost everyone in the surrounding villages had heard about it, after all, Gu Yun was the only scholarly young man in the village, and countless girls and young men admired him.
But they only dared to like him quietly, showing some self-awareness.
Shen Ruo, however, was different. Before the accidental pregnancy, he openly and frequently displayed his affection. When the other party avoided him, he still chased after them, acting like a full-on simp.
In the end, he got nothing and even lost his life.
Shen Ruo waved his hand in front of Xiao Yuntun’s eyes while recalling the original owner’s past antics, things so embarrassing they made him wish he could sink through the floor.
No wonder Shen Dashan had to give him the cold shoulder; it really was shameful!
“Ah… aah…”
A tiny, soft voice mixed with breathy sounds suddenly spoke, and Shen Ruo stared at Xiao Yuntun in surprise.
“I thought newborns only cried loudly… didn’t expect them to say ‘ah ah’ too?” Shen Ruo smiled and gently kissed the wrinkled little cheek of Xiao Yuntun.
“Mmm, such a fragrant little treasure.”
Xiao Yuntun seemed to understand what was being said; he made a few more “ah-oo” sounds and opened his mouth in a smile.
His round, shiny eyes curved into crescent shapes.
Shen Ruo looked at him from side to side, teasing him. Xiao Yuntun waved his little hands energetically, and tiny bubbles of saliva escaped from his mouth.
Shen Ruo quickly grabbed a piece of cloth to wipe him clean.
The father and son played for a while, and then Xiao Yuntun got sleepy again. Shen Ruo didn’t continue teasing him and instead held him loosely with one hand. Soon, they both drifted into a sweet, deep sleep.
After about a quarter of an hour, the sound of Xiao Yuntun’s loud crying woke Shen Ruo.
“He must be hungry,” Shen Ruo thought.
He was just about to get up and make some rice soup in the kitchen when the door was knocked.
Li Shantao entered, carrying a bowl, and smiled: “Ruo’er, did he wake you? This is your first time, newborns have tiny stomachs and get hungry quickly. You need to keep food ready even at night.”
“Thank you, Mother. I’ll handle it from now on,” Shen Ruo said, feeling guilty that Li Shantao had gone to the trouble of making rice soup in the middle of the night. Her dark skin couldn’t hide the black circles under her eyes.
“That old man… sigh. How about I take him to our room so he won’t keep bothering you?” Li Shantao said, holding the rice soup, which had cooled to a warm, drinkable temperature.
Shen Ruo was starting to get used to holding a baby. He said, “Everyone goes through this, there’s no reason I can’t handle it.” Besides, this was his own child, he couldn’t bear to hear him cry.
That whole night, neither Shen Ruo nor Li Shantao got much sleep. Every so often, Xiao Yuntun would wake up crying.
The next morning, just as Shen Ruo managed to nap a little, he was woken by the cacophony of nine roosters crowing one after another.
The sky was just beginning to lighten, and for a moment he didn’t even realize where he was.
Groggily opening his eyes, he saw Xiao Yuntun next to him, wide awake and flailing his limbs energetically, which finally fully brought him to consciousness.
“Good morning, little one,” he said, taking Xiao Yuntun’s tiny hand and giving it a kiss.
“Ah-oo… oo,” Xiao Yuntun responded in baby talk, obligingly.
Shen Ruo got out of bed and stretched, then used a thin quilt rolled along the bed’s edge to keep Xiao Yuntun from rolling off.
He then pushed the door open and stepped out.
By the time Shen Ruo reached the kitchen, Shen Feng had already cut some fresh tender grass, and Li Shantao and Liu Shan were busy working there, while Shen Dashan had already gone to the fields.
“Ruo’er, you’re up?” Li Shantao looked up from adding firewood to the stove and saw him.
“Mother, sister-in-law, I’ll make breakfast today,” Shen Ruo said with a smile.
“Sounds good! Our Ruo’er’s cooking skills have always been excellent. It’s been almost a year since we last had your cooking,” Shen Feng said with a big laugh while feeding the sheep.
“I’ll go wash some clothes and wake Ergou at the same time,” Liu Shan said.
“Alright. The stove still has some rice water simmering; I’ll take it to feed Xiao Yuntun first,” Li Shantao said, carrying the bowl out.
Everyone had their own tasks to handle.
Shen Ruo first went to the simple chicken coop Shen Feng had made yesterday and collected eight eggs, then picked a handful of green onions from the small vegetable patch.
He planned to make egg pancakes and steam some egg custard.
Everyone in the family looked pale and thin, he needed to make sure they got proper nourishment.
The household didn’t have wheat flour; the most plentiful were dark millet flour and a little under half a pound of cornmeal.
Shen Ruo mixed the cornmeal, millet flour, and beaten eggs together, adding water to make a batter. He brushed a thin layer of oil in the pan and poured in the batter, spreading it flat with a spatula.
As the eggs and green onions hit the hot oil, a rich, savory aroma filled the air, glistening with the smell of oil.
Smelling the fragrance, Ergou woke up and ran to the kitchen with hurried steps.
“Wow, Uncle, what are you making? It smells so good!”
“It’s egg pancakes,” Shen Ruo said with a smile, placing a pancake in a bowl and handing it to him. “Ergou, help Uncle taste it first and see if it’s salty enough.”
“It’s a little hot… I’ll blow on it before eating.”
“Thank you, Uncle.” Ergou grinned, pinched a corner of the pancake, blew on it a few times, and then took a bite.
“So delicious! So soft!” Ergou’s face lit up with delight.
“Mm, Uncle promises from now on all the pancakes at home will be soft,” Shen Ruo said, affectionately ruffling Ergou’s hair.
Ergou couldn’t stop eating; his mouth was full, so he couldn’t speak, only nodding vigorously.
The steamed egg custard was ready too, and Shen Ruo set breakfast on the table.
Today’s breakfast received unanimous praise from the family, especially Ergou, who practically turned into a non-stop compliment machine, showering Shen Ruo with endless praise.
Shen Ruo could only laugh and shake his head in exasperation.
After breakfast, Shen Feng was about to head to the fields, planning to take Shen Dashan’s breakfast with him as well.
“Mother, sister-in-law, I want to go to the town today.”
To do business, he first needed to understand the market, see where the wealthy people were, and find the best location.
He had to consider the customer flow and spending power.
“Then you’d better hurry. There’s a cart at the village entrance, and people will leave soon. If you don’t go now, you might miss it,” Li Shantao said, a little worried about his health. “Or should I go with you?”
“No need, Mother. You take care of Xiao Yuntun for me.”
When Shen Ruo reached the village entrance, five people were already seated on the cart. When they saw him, their expressions turned somewhat strange.
As he got closer, he realized Gu Yun was also on the cart.
Following the principle that as long as he wasn’t embarrassed, anyone else could be.
Shen Ruo handed three copper coins to the driver without looking around and jumped onto the cart.