Returning Home
After that, they went to the general store to buy salt and soy sauce. Compared to sugar, salt was much cheaper. Being a necessity, the government ensured its price remained reasonable.
“Get your candied hawthorn here~”
As they left the store, an old man carrying a stick of candied hawthorns passed by, and Lin Qiao’s eyes were glued to the bright red treats.
Yang Lan chuckled and called out to the man, “Sir, I’ll take a stick of candied hawthorns.”
“Sure thing, five coins for a stick, here you go!”
Yang Lan paid and handed the candied hawthorns to Lin Qiao.
Lin Qiao’s eyes widened, “Husband?”
“I bought it for you. See if it’s sweet,” Yang Lan said.
Lin Qiao nodded vigorously, a wide smile spreading across his face. He knew Yang Lan was teasing him again, but he didn’t mind. He carefully bit into one of the fruits and immediately said, “Sweet, I love it!”
Yang Lan was infected by his happiness and smiled too.
Next, they went to the market to buy a large rooster, two pounds of premium pork belly, five pounds of fatty meat, and two pig trotters. The rooster and pork belly were for the homecoming visit, the fatty meat was for rendering lard at home, and the pig trotters were a treat for Yang Lan himself.
Lin Qiao looked at him, finally understanding what he meant by spending lavishly. This much meat would last their family a whole year.
“Husband, isn’t this too much…” Lin Qiao whispered as they left the butcher’s shop.
Yang Lan disagreed, “Did you forget what Doctor Xu said? You and Father both need to nourish yourselves more. Once we finish this, I’ll buy more.”
Lin Qiao was reminded of his difficulty in having children and agreed they needed the nourishment, so he said no more.
With time to spare after shopping, Yang Lan took Lin Qiao to a noodle shop.
This was a place the original Yang Lan often visited, so he was familiar with the menu. He called out, “Boss, two bowls of bone broth noodles and a plate of cold dishes.”
“Coming right up!”
Lin Qiao tugged at his clothes, glancing around nervously.
Yang Lan held his hand on his knee and whispered, “When I used to study here alone, I often ate at this place. Back then, I thought that once I got married, I’d bring my wife or husband here to eat.”
“Ah?” Lin Qiao looked at him.
“So I brought you here, Qiao Ge’er,” Yang Lan said with a gentle smile.
Lin Qiao stared at him, his heart pounding so loudly he forgot to be nervous.
Soon, the proprietress brought over two bowls of noodles. “Here are your noodles, enjoy.”
Yang Lan tapped Lin Qiao’s forehead lightly, “Eat up, their bone broth noodles are a specialty, really tasty.”
Lin Qiao nodded and lowered his head to eat.
After finishing their meal, it was about time to head to the city gate.
Uncle Wang was already waiting, helping them load their purchases into the cart. Seeing the rooster and meat, he was surprised, “Why buy so much?”
“Tomorrow is Qiao Ge’er’s homecoming day,” Yang Lan explained.
Uncle Wang was taken aback. In farming families, Ge’er were often treated like men, with little dowry given, and homecoming gifts were usually modest, sometimes just vegetables from the field.
It was rare to see someone like Yang Lan buying special gifts.
But Uncle Wang wasn’t one to pry. He simply nodded and went to drive the cart.
Back home, Zhang Shi saw the contents of the basket but said nothing. As long as his son could earn money and wasn’t wasting it, he was supportive.
Yang Lan was sent to the study to learn, while Zhang Shi and Lin Qiao got busy.
The rooster was put in the coop with a handful of rough rice, ensuring it wouldn’t starve overnight.
Rendering lard in the summer heat was tough work, with sweat pouring as soon as the stove was lit, but neither Zhang Shi nor Qiao Ge’er minded, their smiles wide.
“Qiao Ge’er, you’re truly a blessing to our family. Ever since you came in, good things keep happening,” Zhang Shi said with a smile.
Lin Qiao blushed, “Father, what are you saying? It’s because Husband is capable.”
Yang Lan, returning from the restroom, overheard and shook his head with a smile.
Though he had unexpectedly traveled from being a top lawyer to a rural youth with nothing, things didn’t seem so bad.
Dinner was a feast, with soybean-braised pig trotters, minced meat eggplant, and cucumber egg soup.
Qiao Ge’er’s cooking was excellent, even impressing Zhang Shi, who willingly ceded the chef’s role to him, helping with washing vegetables instead.
After dinner, Yang Lan took out his money pouch.
He had a total of ten taels and three coins, and after spending quite a bit in town, he had over eight taels left.
He handed a five-tael silver ingot to Zhang Shi, “Father, as we discussed this morning, please keep this for me.”
Zhang Shi agreed, taking the ingot inside, likely to stash it away.
Back in their room, Yang Lan gave Lin Qiao two pieces of broken silver, keeping one for himself, “Father manages the household money, but we should have some ourselves too.”
Qiao Ge’er was stunned, holding the silver pieces with open hands, “How can this be? It’s your money, why give it to me? I’ll lose it.”
“Then don’t carry it around, hide it in the house,” Yang Lan said, “You know, they say men turn bad when they have money. What if I take the money and fall for some Ge’er in town? Then the household money would be managed by someone else.”
Qiao Ge’er’s eyes widened, unable to imagine life without Yang Lan, nor wanting him to be good to anyone else.
“I… I’ll keep it then. I’ll hide it well and won’t lose it,” he whispered, clutching the silver tightly as if it would keep him with Yang Lan forever.
Yang Lan chuckled softly and nodded.
The next day, the weather was clear, perfect for going out.
After breakfast, Yang Lan packed the homecoming gifts into the basket and set out with Qiao Ge’er.
On the way, they met many villagers, and Yang Lan greeted them politely. Everyone was surprised and, upon hearing they were going for the homecoming, offered their congratulations.
Yang Lan chuckled, knowing the villagers were mostly simple and good-natured.
Meanwhile, at the Lin family in Old Guan Village…
Lin Dacheng watched Wang Shi bustling about and felt annoyed, “They might not even come, why are you busying yourself?”
Wang Shi glared at him, unable to suppress her fiery temper, “You dare speak? If not for the greed for a bit of silver, would we have married off a good Ge’er to a sickly scholar?”
Lin Dacheng took a drag on his pipe and lowered his eyes, “He’s a Ge’er, destined to marry out. Marrying a sickly scholar is better than an old widower older than me. Besides, we’ve raised him for eighteen years, isn’t two taels of silver for dowry justified?”
“Now the villagers say we sold our Ge’er, how do you think that makes me feel?” Wang Shi frowned.
Lin Dacheng was silent for a moment, “The Yang family is small, we’ll have the eldest, second, and fourth sons help out more in the future.”
“That’s all we can do,” Wang Shi sighed, frequently glancing toward the gate.
Soon, a chubby boy ran in from the gate, his forehead sweaty, shouting, “Grandpa, Grandma! Third Uncle is back!”
Wang Shi stood up quickly, pulling the boy to ask, “What about Third Uncle’s husband?”
“They’re all here, Grandma, let me go, I want candy,” the chubby boy wriggled free from Wang Shi’s grasp and dashed off.
Wang Shi’s lips curled into a smile. It’s good they’re all back, at least the Yang family acknowledged Qiao Ge’er.
“What are you standing around for? Go make some sugar water,” Lin Dacheng called.
Wang Shi nodded, giving him a playful glare, pretending not to care about the Ge’er.
The chubby boy, Lin Yubao, launched himself into Lin Qiao’s arms, demanding a reward, “Third Uncle! I brought the news back, where’s my candy?”
Lin Qiao chuckled, poking his chubby cheek, “You’re already so plump and still want candy?”
Lin Yubao’s lips pouted instantly, enough to hang a kettle on.
Yang Lan, not used to dealing with children, watched with amusement. He pulled out a piece of malt candy from his pocket and popped it into the boy’s mouth.
Lin Yubao beamed, praising endlessly how good and handsome his uncle was.
Yang Lan chuckled, understanding why the boy was so chubby, his sweet talk was too effective.
As they approached the Lin family gate, Lin Qiao’s steps slowed. Yang Lan knew he was nervous about returning home, so he didn’t rush him.
Inside the main hall, two bowls of sugar water were already set on the table. Wang Shi watched Lin Qiao with red-rimmed eyes.
Yang Lan told Lin Qiao, “Go talk to your mother.”
Lin Qiao nodded, calling out to his mother, and the two headed to the kitchen.
Yang Lan sat at the table in the main hall, and soon, Lin Qiao’s three brothers returned, joining Lin Dacheng. Looking at the four tall, burly men across from him, Yang Lan felt like he was in a courtroom.
However, Lin Dacheng, feeling guilty about Qiao Ge’er and having received a substantial dowry, didn’t make things difficult for Yang Lan. He didn’t even say anything harsh, only advising the couple to live well together.
Afterward, he introduced Yang Lan to Lin Qiao’s three brothers.
The eldest, Lin Hai, was twenty-five, already married with a child, the chubby boy from earlier.
The second, Lin Jiang, was twenty, recently engaged, set to marry a Ge’er from the same village by the end of the year.
The youngest, Lin He, was sixteen, had studied for two years, and worked as a waiter at a restaurant.
All three brothers were burly, but their honest nature was evident as soon as they spoke. They felt guilty about selling their brother and hoped Yang Lan would treat Qiao Ge’er well, showing him kindness and offering help if needed.
Yang Lan smiled and agreed, while sighing inwardly.
Before meeting this family, he had imagined many possibilities, never expecting them to be decent people. Yet, despite this, Qiao Ge’er couldn’t escape the fate of being hastily married off to bring good fortune.
Ultimately, it was poverty that drove them.
While they talked, the meal in the kitchen was ready.
The meal was especially lavish today, clearly prepared in advance by Wang Shi, with a stew of bone and winter melon soup. The rooster and pork belly Yang Lan brought were also cooked, filling the table with meat dishes.
Lin Yubao had been anxiously pacing at the kitchen door, and as soon as the dishes were served, he eagerly grabbed a piece of meat to gnaw on.
Not just him, the adults were also tempted. The Lin family had never seen so much meat, not even during New Year’s.
For a while, the chopsticks moved rapidly across the table, the only sounds were chewing and swallowing, with no one speaking.
After the meal, everyone felt closer.
Lin Yubao snuggled into Lin Hai’s arms, dozing off. Yang Lan and Lin Qiao soon took their leave, and before they left, Wang Shi packed a basket full of seasonal vegetables and fruits for them, which Yang Lan accepted with a smile.
On the way home, Lin Qiao was in high spirits, excitedly sharing stories from his childhood with Yang Lan.
Yang Lan listened quietly, a gentle smile on his lips.
After today, Qiao Ge’er could finally let go of a burden in his heart.